Oscar De La Hoya speaks out as protests over ICE raids continue
Though born in Montebello, California, De La Hoya spent his formative years in East Los Angeles, a predominantly Latino community. At the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, De La Hoya held an American flag and Mexican flag in the boxing ring after winning a gold medal.
"As a proud Mexican-American, I carry immense gratitude for the sacrifices my family made in coming to the U.S. from Mexico in pursuit of a better future,'' De La Hoya, 52, also said in the statement provided to USA TODAY Sports. "Their courage gave me opportunities I'll never take for granted.''
De La Hoya, who won eight world championships in six weight divisions before announcing his retirement in 2009, was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2014. He is the founder and CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, one of top promotion companies in boxing.
Jane Murcia, Director for Golden Boy Promotions, said De La Hoya was not available for interviews.
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Belfast Telegraph
7 minutes ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Brave Co Down are undone as Manchester United set up SuperCup NI Premier Final clash with Southampton
Emmanuel Ziro's goal eight minutes into the second half secured a 1-0 win for United and broke the hearts of a brave County Down side, who were tough to break down and a match for the boys from Old Trafford in spells throughout the game. It will be an all-English battle in the decider at Coleraine Showgrounds (8pm) after Southampton brushed off the challenge of Hamiilton Academicals, winning 4-1. United have won the Premier tournament five times this century, as well as one Junior title and given that record, plus a previous history beyond the 21st century, there will be a level of expectation on them to triumph again. 'If these lads are going to play for Manchester United they are going to have to deal with pressure so it's really nice practice for them,' said United coach Tom Curtis. 'This tournament is a real test for the boys against really well organised and well motivated teams and it's a fantastic experience for everybody.' United were patient in their approach throughout the game, happy to retain the ball, rotate possession and probe for openings when they may be found. That meant there wasn't a lot for Down goalkeeper Max Sykes to do, particularly in the opening stages and also in general throughout the game. In contrast Down were aggressive in trying to win the ball back and keen to attacking quickly when the did have the ball. That contrast was evident when Down's Stephen Kelly had the first real chance of the game with a shot that sailed just over the bar before United could muster anything of note. That quickly changed when Samuel O'Brien slipped a pass wide to Edson DeJonge-Seiros on the left and Sykes did well to save. Kelly's pace was a major asset to Down when they got the chance to break and when he got a run on the United defence and there was a lucky escape for United when he fed Zak Magowa, only for the ball to get stuck under the striker's feet.. The longer the game went on the more likely it looked that one goal would settle it and that's how it turned out. Abdoulaye Douka Nkoto, who lit up the tournament with two beautifully taken goals against Rangers on Tuesday night, again showed his quality with a superb through ball that split the defence, sending Ziro through one-on-one with Sykes and he rolled the ball home from 10 yards out. It was hard on Down who had been strong, disciplined and had coped with much of what United had to offer up to that stage and they can be proud of the performances that got them to the Semi-Final stage. George Robinson netted a first-half hat-trick in Southampton's victory over Hamilton. Archie Lovatt added a third as the Saints all but wrapped up the win by half time. Josh Carson netted a consolation for the Scots. Intercontinental beat Rangers 2-1 to take their place in the Globe Final, where they will meet Ichifuna, who beat Mexican side Tigres 1-0. Brighton won a penalty shoot-out against County Tyrone after a 0-0 draw to take their place in the Vase Final, where they will play County Londonderry after their 3-2 win against AFC Bournemouth. County Antrim are in the Bowl Final after a 3-1 win over County Fermanagh and that will be a local affair after County Armagh won 2-1 against West Cork Academy. County Armagh boss Darragh Peden says his boys are having fun all the way to the Junior Final Darragh Peden's 'fun and enjoyment' approach has put County Armagh Juniors one step away from the ultimate joy at the SuperCup NI. An all-county Final against County Antrim, who beat St Patrick's Athletic 3-0, awaits after a thrilling 5-4 win over Celtic and if the decider has even half the excitement then fans are in for a real treat. Armagh conceded their first goal of the tournament just a minute into the game, but 25 minutes later they were 4-1 up after a terrific response. Ethan Connolly benefited from Alfie Davidson's tenacity in chasing the ball down to equalise 10 minutes after falling behind, Will Davison swept home when the ball was delivered across the box five minutes later and it was Davidson himself who fired a thunderbolt from the edge of the box to make it 3-1. Armagh's momentum built further when Eogham Mallon scored from the penalty spot after he had been fouled. Even after Flynn Watson got one back for Celtic, Davidson again riffled home a shot from distance to keep Armagh three goals to the good. When Henry Atkinson's deflected shot found the net on the stroke of half-time and Zion Pullan headed home from a free kick early in the second-half to bring Celtic back to within one goal, the game really was on a knife edge. Mallon missed from the spot when presented with a chance to finally kill off the Scottish giants' challenge and it was the attitude of his players throughout a testing final 20 minutes that impressed Peden as much as anything else. 'I set the camp up to make sure that for Juniors first of all it was going to be fun and enjoyment and a balance between hopefully winning some football matches, which brings enjoyment,' said Peden. 'I'm really pleased with the second-half because we were asked a real question against a top team and ground out a result. Sometimes that's what you need to do. 'At 1-0 down, they had to show character and they hadn't really been served that up because we hadn't conceded a goal previously, but good gutsy characters, passing tests and can be better.' Antrim will now aim to emulate their counterparts from 2017 and 2018, who became the first county team to win the Junior competition, after their Premier team had done so in 2015. Michael Mulholland continued his goalscoring streak with the opener in their win over St Pat's with another superb finish and two goals from Seanan Wright secured their passage to the Final. Blackburn Rovers will contest the Globe decider after a 5-2 victory over Bohemians. They will face County Down, who had a superb 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur. County Tyrone reached the Vase Final with a 2-0 win over County Fermanagh and they will meet County Londonderry, who had a 2-1 win over West Ham United. The Bowl decider will be an all-English affair between Crewe Alexandra and Charlton Athletic. Crewe beat Chicago City 3-2, while Charlton won 2-1 against Plymouth Argyle. Linfield bidding to put last year's Minor Final heartache behind them after shocking Blackburn Rovers in last four Linfield will aim to go one better than 2024 after completing a hugely dramatic comeback before beating Blackburn Rovers on penalties to reach the SuperCup NI Minor Final. The Blues, who lost last year's decider to Crusaders, face Belfast rivals Cliftonville in Friday's Coleraine Showgrounds showpiece (11am), as the Reds too booked their place with a 7-6 shootout win over Shamrock Rovers after a 1-1 draw. A display of character brought Linfield level after falling 2-0 down before winning 7-6 on penalties, with only one kick missed. Divine Shitu shot across goal to put Blackburn ahead in the 22nd minute after Jonas Henderson had made a couple of impressive early saves. When Jacob Woods netted after a shot had come off the bar four minutes later, Blackburn looked in control. Linfield have faced adversity throughout the tournament, losing both Lucas Moore and Aaron Duffy to broken arms early in the week before Ronan Laverty pulled out before kick-off, and reacted with great maturity. They halved the deficit 11 minutes into the second period when Blackburn goalkeeper Jacob Lumor failed to deal with Cruz O'Neill's corner — the ball just about crossing the line — and that swung the momentum in Linfield's favour. With just a couple of minutes to go, Olly Roney sent the ball deep into the Rovers half, O'Neill crossed low into the box and Oliver Prenter hit what was a deserved equaliser. The composure of Prenter, O'Neill, Noah Clarke, Sam DeLargy Jake Booth, Zayne Leckey and Roney as they scored from the spot was impressive for such young players and when the unfortunate Teddy Simpson saw his kick saved superbly by Henderson, the celebrations began. 'That was heart, that was desire, that was energy and they showed real resilience because other teams against an opposition like that with real quality could lie down, get beaten by four or five goals,' said Linfield coach Scott Boyd. 'I think courage is the word that I'll use the rest of the day, because we were on the ropes first-half and they left everything out there.' Coleraine and Leeds United will meet in the Final of the Globe competition after both had 3-0 Semi-Final wins, the Bannsiders beating Kilmarnock while Leeds defeated Ballymena United. Loughgall were 5-0 winners over Crusaders to reach the Vase decider, where they will play Al Jazira Club, who defeated Shankill Juniors 3-1. IDA Bermuda will take on Surf Select for the Bowl after a 1-0 win over Glenavon. The Americans were also 1-0 winners, against Ross County. Shamrock Rovers beat Brighton 3-2 to win the Girls Premier tournament. Manchester United beat Aston Villa to win the Globe, while Northern Ireland were 4-1 winners over Surf Select in the Vase decider. United were also victorious in the Girls Junior tournament, beating Surf Select 3-0. Larne won the Globe competition thanks to a 5-4 victory over Kilmarnock, while FC United were 5-1 winners over Crusaders to win the Vase.
Times
38 minutes ago
- Times
Lauren Cox determined to make Olympic history after Paris heartbreak
A year ago, a heartbroken Lauren Cox almost quit the sport she loved because the Olympic Games had no home for a sprint backstroke specialist like her. If freestyle had been her thing, she would have travelled to Paris last summer as big a medal hope as Ben Proud, who claimed silver in the Olympic 50 metres freestyle. At the world championships in Singapore on Thursday, Cox, 23, fell only 0.06sec shy of a medal in the 50m backstroke, finishing fifth. Her career was back on track in a new era that will no longer cut her out of the Olympics. The 50m freestyle was added to the Games in 1988 in the belief that a one-length sprint would add a glamorous thrill, but there was no room for 50m events for any other stroke. This was still the case in Paris last year, when Cox just failed to earn selection in the 100m event. Ian Hulme, her coach at Loughborough at the time, eventually persuaded Cox to return to the pool but she agreed only on the understanding that she would only swim for fun. Her Loughborough team-mate Adam Peaty understood Cox's dilemma — he was a triple world champion, as well as a record-holder, in the 50m breaststroke — but his only Olympic target as a sprinter was the 100m. He told Cox to hang on, appointed her as an ambassador to his AP Race business and made it clear that he would be up for a comeback for Los Angeles 2028 if 50m events were added to the programme. On April 9, Olympic chiefs announced they would be. Peaty declared, 'I'll be there!', and so did Cox. 'I remember that moment and feeling so well,' Cox said. 'I can finally talk about it now without crying. I remember touching the wall [in the 100m at trials] and knowing that was it. I was out. I felt like I had let everyone down and I just wanted to burst into tears. It was awful. Heartbreaking.' Only six weeks after the good news, Cox broke the British 50m backstroke record in 27.15 at the AP Race International in London. 'I just love the 50s; instead of just going and getting the T-shirt I can be an Olympic finalist or medallist, which is exciting.' The swimming will take place in a temporary pool sunk into SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Los Angeles, with 38,000 spectators, by far the biggest capacity for swimming at the Olympics. Meanwhile Cox's fifth-place finish has only been bettered by one British swimmer at these championships — Duncan Scott, who finished a solid fourth in the 200m medley. Ahead of him, in a class of his own, was France's four-times Olympic champion Léon Marchand, who annihilated the world record on Tuesday in 1min 52.69sec. He was slower for gold on Thursday, finishing ahead of the USA's Shaine Casas and Hungary's Hubert Kos. Meanwhile, the Canadian triple Olympic champion Summer McIntosh collected her third gold, in the 200m butterfly, with a spectacular competition record of 2:01.99 on Thursday, and has two more golden targets ahead. Saturday brings the 18-year-old's highly anticipated clash with the unbeaten American distance legend Katie Ledecky in the 800m, before she concludes her championships in the 400m medley the following day — an event that will almost certainly end with gold for the Canadian. Yu Zidi, the Chinese 12-year-old, will be in that race, too, having finished fourth behind McIntosh in the 200m medley and 200m butterfly. Whatever happens on Sunday, she will go home the youngest-ever medallist at the world championships as China took bronze in the 4x200m freestyle, granting heats swimmer Yu a medal. For Cox, though, there is added motivation to get on the podium in LA. Her fifth place may not have been as good as the bronze she won at the world championships two years ago, but it has given her the belief that she belongs. 'I thought after the 2023 medal that it could be a fluke. I just need more confidence and belief in myself. I doubt myself a lot… so it's nice to see that I'm still up there with the best and three years to get ready' to make Olympic history.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
David Martindale opens up on strain of Livingston's court cases
Martindale, who led the West Lothian outfit to promotion out of the Championship via a dramatic play-off final victory over Ross County last term, was delighted when American businessman Calvin Ford finally completed his protracted takeover after months of behind-the-scenes wrangling back in May. He felt that he was unable to devote the time that he needed to coaching before the change of ownership and is now hopeful that having Ford, the great-great-grandson of Ford Motor Company founder Henry, at the helm will enable him to focus solely on football in the coming months and secure survival. Read more: Speaking as he looked ahead to [[Livingston]]'s opening William Hill Premiership game of the new season against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park tomorrow, he said, 'I'm still going to help out with other bits and bobs around the club. But I'm not bogged down in the middle of court cases, with being one of the main witnesses, like I was before. 'Going to your bed at night, I was constantly thinking about phone calls. You'd be on your way home, you'd be getting phone calls from your lawyers, you'd be opening up emails and speaking about stuff. That was a constant. Looking back, that was three-and-a-half, four years. It was so draining. 'I was trying to focus on the game, but you're constantly thinking about what if, what if, what if, what if with court cases. I just feel there's a wee bit of a chain been lifted around the neck of the football club now that all of that is done and dusted. 'With Calvin and a new board at the football club, it's such a better work environment. It's such a better place to be mentally. There's always been a good culture within the building, but just mentally it's better.' (Image: SNS Group) Martindale added, 'There's a huge workload being taken away from me and I'm extremely comfortable with that. Chipper (head of football operations Brian Rice) is now predominantly dealing with recruitment when the window's open. He's helped me massively with that. Before it was myself dealing with that. 'Calvin coming in, a new board coming in, has allowed us to get a better infrastructure outside the footballing department, which has really helped the footballing department. Now we probably have the basic structure that we need going forward. We're in a good place. 'I think I got good at dealing with this and dealing with that. I'd compartmentalise it and store it away. Unfortunately, it was a lot of the stuff within the court cases I knew about because I was the one constant in the building. I was here pre, during and post so a lot of it fell to me. 'But I couldn't have been giving the best of myself as a manager. That definitely had a negative impact on the team. There were failings on my part as well, but you were keen to to do what's right for the football club. 'I've always done that. If we hadn't done what was right for the football club over the last two or three years there wouldn't be a football club. So all those battles two or three years ago were well worth it. The club is in the best place it has ever been in my tenure and hopefully I can deliver the goods on the park.' Read more: Martindale has vowed to keep faith with the players who clinched promotion last season during the 2025/26 campaign – but he has strengthened his squad extensively during the summer with the help of Rice and he is optimistic the new acquisitions will help Livingston to avoid dropping straight back down to the second tier. 'One of the first conversations that I had with the board when I came in was about receiving help upstairs with recruitment,' he said. 'We're probably still a good bit behind other clubs, but between myself and Chipper we'll get a lot more decisions right. (Image: Ross Parker - SNS Group) 'I think good recruitment is probably 50 per cent plus of the battle. You're going to make mistakes, you're going to get decisions wrong and you can only play 11 players at any one point. So recruitment plays a huge part in the success of the football club. 'Look at some of the bigger clubs over the years. Look at Man United and look at their recruitment. They have spent billions of pounds. So it's not always down to finance. It comes down to skill set, experience and eyes and that's what Chipper's got.'
