logo
Azizul returns to training mode as he eyes racing comeback

Azizul returns to training mode as he eyes racing comeback

The Star11 hours ago
Slow and steady: Azizul is healthy and fit, though not fit enough for track races as of yet, says coach John Beasley.
PETALING JAYA: The fire still burns as Malaysia's top cyclist Azizulhasni Awang has returned to where he belongs.
After almost a year away from the track, the two-time Olympic medallist has made a stirring return to training at the National Velodrome in Nilai this week, slipping on his racing gloves once more with quiet determination.
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Full access to Web and App.
RM 13.90/month
RM 9.73 /month
Billed as RM 9.73 for the 1st month, RM 13.90 thereafter.
RM 12.39/month
RM 8.63 /month
Billed as RM 103.60 for the 1st year, RM 148 thereafter.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Azizul returns to training mode as he eyes racing comeback
Azizul returns to training mode as he eyes racing comeback

The Star

time11 hours ago

  • The Star

Azizul returns to training mode as he eyes racing comeback

Slow and steady: Azizul is healthy and fit, though not fit enough for track races as of yet, says coach John Beasley. PETALING JAYA: The fire still burns as Malaysia's top cyclist Azizulhasni Awang has returned to where he belongs. After almost a year away from the track, the two-time Olympic medallist has made a stirring return to training at the National Velodrome in Nilai this week, slipping on his racing gloves once more with quiet determination. Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Full access to Web and App. RM 13.90/month RM 9.73 /month Billed as RM 9.73 for the 1st month, RM 13.90 thereafter. RM 12.39/month RM 8.63 /month Billed as RM 103.60 for the 1st year, RM 148 thereafter.

Soccer-Sweden enter the unknown after shootout loss to England
Soccer-Sweden enter the unknown after shootout loss to England

The Star

time13 hours ago

  • The Star

Soccer-Sweden enter the unknown after shootout loss to England

Soccer Football - UEFA Women's Euro 2025 - Quarter Final - Sweden v England - Stadion Letzigrund, Zurich, Switzerland - July 17, 2025 Sweden's Filippa Angeldahl and Sweden's Nathalie Bjorn in action with England's Michelle Agyemang REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo ZURICH (Reuters) -Sweden's agonising defeat by England on penalties in coach Peter Gerhardsson's final game in charge had them exit Euro 2025 on Thursday and plunged the team into a period of uncertainty as many others in the set-up also consider their futures. Gerhardsson announced earlier in the year that he would be stepping down after the Euros and former Australia head coach Tony Gustavsson has already been announced as his successor, but how the squad and backroom team looks when he takes the reins in the coming weeks remains to be seen. "There are a lot of us on the team who will be leaving after this, so there are a lot of emotions involved. But when you make a decision... even if you don't know how far you'll go in a tournament, there's only this game right now," Gerhardsson told reporters. The game in question was a thriller, a 2-2 draw capped off by a hair-raising penalty shootout that had saves, spot-kicks sent high, and a goalkeeper in Sweden's Jennifer Falk who saved four of seven penalties, but still ended up on the losing side after 18-year-old Smilla Holmberg missed for Sweden. Sweden cruised through the group stage, winning all three games and took a 2-0 halftime lead into the break, but England coach Sarina Wiegman's late substitutions resulted in two quick goals, extra time and a painful repeat of Sweden's 3-2 loss to Canada in the 2021 Olympic final. Falk's overall performance would suggest that she will continue to be the first-choice goalkeeper, but captain Kosovare Asllani and winger Sofia Jakobssonare both 35, and defender Linda Sembrandt is 38, suggesting that they may have played their last championship for Sweden. Asked what it was like to see the likes of Sembrandt after the final whistle, striker Stina Blackstenius said she found it tough. "Everything feels very emotional today in every way, it's hard to put into words what you really feel, but yes, it is difficult," she told reporters before summing up Gerhardsson's eight years at the helm. "Part of the whole thing that this championship was really something that we saw coming, to have a nice end to the time with Peter ... I think we've built up such an incredibly good feeling during this championship. And it's clear that we would have liked to have had a better ending than this," she said. "It's just sad that it couldn't be like that. Peter has been in charge for many years and we've performed well in championships, without it really getting to where we wanted." (Reporting by Philip O'ConnorEditing by Christian Radnedge)

Olympic champion Lyles to make 100m season debut at London Diamond League
Olympic champion Lyles to make 100m season debut at London Diamond League

New Straits Times

time20 hours ago

  • New Straits Times

Olympic champion Lyles to make 100m season debut at London Diamond League

London: Olympic champion Noah Lyles reignites competition with Letsile Tebogo over 100m at Saturday's Diamond League meet in London, a week after the American marked his return to action with victory in the 200m over the Botswanan in Monaco. Lyles runs his first 100m of 2025, headlining an afternoon featuring the cream of track and field athletes, winners of 75 medals between them from the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest and the 2024 Paris Olympics, across both individual and relay disciplines. A sell-out crowd of 60,000 is expected at the London Stadium, home to Premier League club West Ham and the venue for a memorable athletics programme at the 2012 London Olympics. AFP Sport looks at five stand-out events at the 11th leg of the 15-meet Diamond League circuit: Tebogo admitted in Monaco that Lyles was the crowd pleaser and that when his face appears on posters, people want to come and see him. The Botswanan, who won the 200m gold at last year's Paris Olympics as Lyles came third, was edged out in Monaco by the American, who clocked an impressive 19.88sec in his return to the track from a tendon injury. Lyles said it had been tough watching early-season competition from home, but his comeback was timely with the World Championships in Tokyo on the horizon in September. "I have a bye for the US Trials which makes it less stressful because it gives us the time to work on the races," Lyles said. "It gives us time to see what works and what doesn't and to be able to make moves from there." The home nation will be represented by Louie Hinchliffe, world indoor champion Jeremiah Azu and world 100m bronze medallist Zharnel Hughes. The Jamaican duo of Oblique Seville and Ackeem Blake, and South African Akani Simbine fill out the field in what should be a top-notch race. Julien Alfred was in dominant form when she scorched to victory in the 100m in Monaco in 10.79sec. It looked to be perfect preparation as athletes finetune their bodies, both mentally and physically, ahead of the world championships. "The last week was not the best for me but it also showed me that I am not where I should be and that there are things that I still need to work on," Alfred said after winning in Monaco. "The season is long but I don't have any trials so I will have time to work on the details. I took a step back and realise that I won't put any pressure on myself this year. I was listening to all that outside noise but I focus on just Julien right now." Britain's Dina Asher-Smith, Daryll Neita and Amy Hunt will provide the competition, along with the sole American in the field, Brittany Brown. The men's 1500m features a stellar cast of homegrown athletes, notably the last two world champions Jake Wightman and Josh Kerr. That pair each outsprinted Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen for victory in Eugene in 2022 and Budapest a year later, respectively. Ingebrigtsen was a late withdrawal from London, his team saying he "still needs a little more time to heal the injury he has been struggling with lately... he does not want to risk anything." Further British hopes ride on the shoulders of Neil Gourley, George Mills and Elliot Giles, while it is Kenya's Phanuel Kipkosgei Koech who owns the fastest time of the season in 3:27.72. There may be no local hero Keely Hodgkinson on the cards as the Olympic champion is still bidding to recover from injury, but the two-lap race is another loaded one. Laura Muir, Jemma Reekie and Georgia Hunter Bell form a strong home trio. The presence of Uganda's Halimah Nakaayi and Jamaican Natoya Goule-Toppin will ensure a rapid race. All eyes will be on Kenya's world champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi, who heads a pack of runners hunting down David Rudisha's world record of 1:40.91. Rudisha set that mark when he won gold at the London Olympics, but for the first time in more than a decade, there are a handful of middle distance stars seemingly capable of pushing their limits to the max.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store