Motor racing-Norris takes pole in Belgium with Piastri second
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The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Motor racing-Piastri returns as leader to scene of first F1 win
Formula One F1 - Belgian Grand Prix - Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium - July 27, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri passes the chequered flag to win the Belgian Grand Prix REUTERS/Manon Cruz BUDAPEST (Reuters) -Oscar Piastri has got used to winning since his first in Hungary last year and returns as Formula One leader looking to take a tidy advantage over McLaren teammate Lando Norris into the August break. The 24-year-old has won six of 13 grands prix so far this season, already more than any Australian driver has ever managed in a single year, and leads his British rival by 16 points with 11 races remaining. "I'm really excited to go back. It's always a fun weekend. It's a great city, a cool track as well," said Piastri after winning a rain-delayed race in Belgium last Sunday in McLaren's sixth one-two of the season. "I'm sure Thursday will be nice to go back to where I had my first win. But as soon as we get on track, you forget about that immediately." Hungary -- hot and twisty and with a layout more like an overgrown go-kart track that makes overtaking tricky -- puts a premium on qualifying. Norris took pole last time in Hungary but lost out to Piastri at the start, recovered the lead when the Australian suffered a slower pitstop and was then ordered by the team to hand back the place. The Briton eventually complied but it rankled at the time and he will be looking to win on Sunday without any such controversy. With McLaren dominant, and historically the most successful team in Hungary, the stage is set for another duel between the teammates. Who joins them on the podium remains an open question but this could be the moment Lewis Hamilton has been waiting for with Ferrari, while teammate Charles Leclerc has had five podiums already this season. Hamilton has an unrivalled record at the Hungaroring with eight wins and was third last year, admittedly in a Mercedes, behind the McLarens. He also has nine poles at the circuit outside Budapest. "In the last few races, we've made progress in terms of competitiveness, and in Belgium, thanks to a lot of hard work back in Maranello, we introduced an upgrade package that further improved our performance," said team boss Fred Vasseur. "It will be interesting to see how the updated SF-25 performs on a completely different track, twisty, with plenty of medium and low-speed corners. Charles and Lewis are both in good form, and the team is also performing well." George Russell set the fastest lap last year for Mercedes but his team have made some wrong turns in development and have work to do, with Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli also keen to get back in the points. "After a tough weekend in Belgium, we are looking to put in a more competitive showing," said team boss Toto Wolff. "Our performances in recent races have not been up to our standards, and we have work planned to both understand why that has been and get on top of it this weekend." Four-times world champion Max Verstappen, winner in Hungary in 2022 and 2023, will be starting his 200th race for Red Bull. The race is the 40th Hungarian Grand Prix and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, who took his first win at the circuit with Renault in 2003, has raced in more than half of them -- this being his record 22nd. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Christian Radnedge)
The Star
2 hours ago
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Athletics-World Athletics mandates gene test for female category eligibility
FILE PHOTO: Athletics - World Athletics Indoor Championships - Nanjing Youth Olympic Sports Park, Nanjing, China - March 22, 2025 General view during the women's 3000m final REUTERS/Issei Kato/ File Photo (Reuters) -Athletes will be eligible to compete in the female category for world ranking competitions such as the World Championships only if they clear a one-time gene test in a bid to protect the integrity of women's sport, World Athletics said on Wednesday. The once-in-a-lifetime test for the SRY gene, which helps in determining biological sex, can be conducted via a cheek swab or blood test. The testing protocol will be overseen by member federations and the new regulations come into effect on September 1, ahead of the September 13-21 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. "It is really important in a sport that is permanently trying to attract more women that they enter a sport believing there is no biological glass ceiling," World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said in a statement. "The test to confirm biological sex is a very important step in ensuring this is the case. We are saying, at elite level, for you to compete in the female category, you have to be biologically female. "It was always very clear to me and the World Athletics Council that gender cannot trump biology. We particularly want to thank our member federations for their support and commitment in the implementation of these new regulations." Athletics has spent years debating eligibility criteria to compete in women's events, amid questions over biological advantages for transgender athletes and those with differences of sex development (DSD). World Athletics bans transgender women who have gone through male puberty from competing in women's events, while it requires female DSD athletes whose bodies produce high testosterone levels to lower them in order to be eligible. Earlier this year, a working group found that those rules were not tight enough, with a pre-clearance test for the SRY gene being one of several recommendations the group made for revised rules. The SRY gene reveals the presence of the Y chromosome, which is an indicator of biological sex. The test was also approved by World Boxing in May when they introduced mandatory sex testing for all boxers. Earlier this month, the European Court upheld a 2023 ruling that double 800 metres Olympic champion Caster Semenya's appeal to a Swiss Federal Tribunal against regulations that barred her from competing had not been properly heard. Semenya was appealing against World Athletics regulations that female athletes with DSDs medically reduce their testosterone levels. (Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru;Editing by Christian Radnedge)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Swimming-'Dirty gold! Let's Go!' Australia's Turner stunned by 200 butterfly bronze
Swimming - World Aquatics Championships - Men 200m Butterfly - Finals - World Aquatics Championships Arena, Singapore - July 30, 2025 Australia's Harrison Turner in action during the final REUTERS/Hollie Adams (Reuters) -Harrison Turner had to pinch himself to believe he won bronze in the 200 metres butterfly at the world championships in Singapore on Wednesday, the euphoric Australian yelling "Dirty gold! Let's go!" into the cameras after his surprise podium swim. Turner, who finished behind American Luca Urlando and Poland's Krzysztof Chmielewski, became Australia's first medallist in the event at the world championships and his time of one minute and 54.17 seconds was a national record. "I'm lost for words. Being in lane eight, I just snuck in and I thought, I've got a lane, I've got a chance. Yeah, I never would have imagined to sneak in a bronze there," Turner said. "It's unbelievably special for me. I still can't believe it. When I didn't see really anyone to the side, I was like 'jeez, I might actually have a chance here' and then I saw the boys coming at the last 50 meters, I just dug as hard as I could. "I can't believe it ... Yeah, Dirty gold! Let's go!" Turner was first called up to the Australian squad after Kaylee McKeown opted out of the short course world championships in December and the 21-year-old has made steady progress ever since. He made a splash with a swim of 1:54.90 at the Australian trials in Adelaide last month and his time at the Singapore Sports Hub bettered the country's previous mark of 1:54.46 set by Nick D'Arcy in 2009. "It's just that fire that burns deep within your heart," Turner added. "It's why you rock up, do the early mornings, late nights, you're feeling sore, you're feeling shattered through the week and you pick yourself up because you know you've got a job to do. I'm just so stoked to be here representing Australia. "I love it so much. It's an honour to represent the green and gold." (Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
