Ukraine great Andriy Shevchenko has thanked the Polish people for their support during the war against Russia, hailing sports stars Iga Swiatek and Robert Lewandowski for their efforts.
An ambassador for Laureus Sport for Good, Shevchenko surprised children who had fled the war with a visit to a school in Warsaw.
The world has rallied around Ukraine following Russia's invasion, with sporting stars and celebrities using their platform to raise awareness of the situation in the country.
On Saturday, WTA world number one Swiatek organised a charity tennis match, where Shevchenko was a special guest, while Lewandowski has been vocal in his support – and will wear a Barcelona shirt featuring the UNHCR logo, the United Nations' main agency for refugees, this season.
Following his appearance in Warsaw, Shevchenko thanked Poland as a nation for taking in a flood of refugees from their European neighbours.
"I want to thank you, [the] Polish people, for being very kind to my country. For hosting us here. For providing all the needs," he said, as per Laureus Sport for Good.
"Thank you so much for your support. Also, I want to thank Iga Swiatek and Robert Lewandowski for taking a big part in initiatives helping my country to raise the funds and support against the war in Ukraine."
Shevchenko also praised compatriot Oleksandr Zinchenko for speaking out against the war, something numerous Ukrainian athletes have done.
"Like many, everyone Ukrainian, his reaction against the war, he stood up and then he spoke loud," he added of Zinchenko, who last week signed for Arsenal from Premier League champions Manchester City.
"He expressed his view, he's expressed his very hard feelings against the war for Ukraine, because he loves Ukraine, he loves people.
"And we did a lot of activities together, we've been involved in a few fundraisers. I know he's a very generous person and he did a lot for Ukrainian people."
Smiling the key for Carlos Alcaraz after French Open win over Taro Daniel
A lost set was not enough to take the smile off Carlos Alcaraz’s face as he defeated Taro Daniel to move through to the third round of the French Open.
Taking on the Japanese player on a breezy Philippe Chatrier, world number one Alcaraz won the first set easily only for his opponent to fight back at the start of the second.
It proved only a temporary blip, though, as the young Spaniard dominated the final two sets in a 6-1 3-6 6-1 6-2 triumph.
“I’m really happy with the level that I played today,” said Alcaraz. “I overcame the problems in the match because of the wind and it has been a really complete match from my side, and I’m really happy with that.”
Alcaraz’s positive attitude and sunny disposition has made him not just popular with his rivals but also made some of them rethink their own approach, with Stefanos Tsitsipas thanking the Spaniard during a practice session.
“I’m winning all the time because I am smiling,” said Alcaraz, who next faces Denis Shapovalov. “And I always said that smiling for me is the key of everything.
“I enjoy being in this kind of stadium, these kind of tournaments, cities. That’s the most important thing for me to enjoy, and that’s why I smile all the time.”
Tsitsipas joined Alcaraz in the third round with a 6-3 7-6 (4) 6-2 victory over Roberto Carballes Baena but former champion Stan Wawrinka lost out in the match of the day, going down in five sets to Thanasi Kokkinakis.
The Australian would have felt that was justice after his epic defeat by Andy Murray at his home grand slam in January.
“It definitely feels better when you come out on the winning end of those,” said Kokkinakis.
“I had a heart-breaker against Andy earlier in the year and not many moral victories. It was a tough one to take. You can’t count these guys out no matter how old they are. They get better and better, and you can see why they are multiple grand slam champions.
“Stan is a legend. Still is, obviously, but he was a legend out on court today. He was very nice, very respectful. Hats off to him. The crowd was going nuts for him, but it’s a fun atmosphere. I love playing against that, so it was awesome.”
Cameron Norrie brushes aside Lucas Pouille to reach French Open third round
Cameron Norrie reached the third round of the French Open for the third year in a row with a comfortable win over home hope Lucas Pouille.
Ranked down at 675 after injury and personal problems, Pouille was bidding to make the last 32 at a slam for the first time since Wimbledon in 2019, but Norrie was too strong in a 6-1 6-3 6-3 victory.
The 14th seed wore strapping under his left knee and will no doubt be relieved to have avoided the drama of his raucous five-set duel with another Frenchman, Benoit Paire, in the first round.
The Suzanne Lenglen crowd were not as much of a factor this time, although there was another moment of umpiring controversy, this time in Norrie’s favour, in the third set.
Pouille was convinced Norrie, who was bizarrely penalised for a hindrance shout against Paire, had not got to a ball before it bounced twice but the British player did not stop play and umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore sided with him.
Pouille complained – and was shown to be correct by TV replays – amid booing from the crowd, and the French player lost four games in a row to move to the brink of defeat.
He roused himself for a late stand, breaking Norrie when he served for the match at 5-1 and having two opportunities to get back on serve, but the British number one took his second match point before a final round of booing from the crowd.
Norrie said: “All credit to Lucas, it’s great to see Lucas back and enjoying his tennis. It was a tough battle, tough to get over the line. Thank you to everyone, great atmosphere. Sorry to take another Frenchman out but hopefully you can support me in the next one.”
Norrie may feel tempted to take to the stage in the off-season given the practice he has now had at being a pantomime villain.
Booed onto court, the partisan home crowd light-heartedly jeered his shots during the warm-up while cheering those of Pouille.
The support had played a big part in inspiring Paire and Norrie appeared determined not to let the same thing happen, imposing his game straight away and looking significantly sharper than he had on Monday.
Pouille, who looked very nervous, won only six points in the first five games and, although he saved a set point to avoid the dreaded bagel, Norrie wrapped up the set in less than half an hour.
Pouille briefly became a top-10 player back in 2018 before reaching the Australian Open semi-finals the following year.
Elbow issues triggered a downward spiral that led to depression and a problem with alcohol, and he took time out of the game last year before returning at the start of this season.
A run through qualifying made him the toast of Roland Garros and he led fans in a rendition of the Marseillaise after winning his first-round match.
The 29-year-old swiftly found himself 2-0 down in the second set as well but raised home hopes by winning three games in a row and applying some real pressure to Norrie.
The British number one did well to nip Pouille’s comeback in the bud before things got complicated, and can look forward to trying to make the last 16 here for the first time.
Guyana's national squad finalizing Gold Cup preparations in Kingston
As it ramps up preparations for its preliminary-round match in the Conacaf Gold Cup next month, Guyana’s national football team are currently engaged in a 10-day at the UWI/JFF Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence in Kingston.
The team arrived in Jamaica on Friday, May 26 and will break camp on Monday, June 5.
“We are happy to work with our regional counterparts,” said JFF President Michael Ricketts.
“We all have the same goal of improving the standard of our game and progressing on the international stage. We welcome not only international sporting teams like Guyana, but any other group locally or internationally at our facility. We provide whatever is necessary to ensure that each team or group can concentrate on their main objective. We sincerely hope that Guyana will do well in the Gold Cup and they will be the first of many to be hosted at our centre.”
Guyana will face Grenada in the first round of the Concacaf Gold Cup preliminary round when it gets underway in June, with the winner advancing to the main competition.
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