Table tennis-Sweden's Moregard injured by drone strike in training
Paris 2024 Olympics - Table Tennis - Men's Team Gold Medal Team Match - South Paris Arena 4, Paris, France - August 09, 2024. Truls Moregard of Sweden in action during his gold medal match against Zhendong Fan of China. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji
Swedish table tennis player Truls Moregard suffered a freak accident this year when he was hit by a drone during a practice session.
The 23-year-old, who won two silver medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, was struck on the left hand when a drone filming his training collided with a lamp and came crashing down.
"It's okay now, but the drone hit badly and broke half the nail. It bled a lot and throbbed painfully. I think that was what made me so stressed," Moregard told Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter.
Moregard, who plays right-handed, said the accident in his home town of Eslov did not affect his preparations for the World Championship in Doha starting on May 17. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
European game generated 38 billion euros in 2023-24 season, study shows
Europe's soccer market grew by 8% in terms of revenue in the 2023-24 season to 38 billion euros ($43.46 billion) with England's Premier League generating the most, Deloitte said in a study published on Wednesday. In its Annual Review of Football Finance, Deloitte said the top five leagues -- Premier League, Bundesliga, LaLiga, Serie A and Ligue 1 -- generated 20.4 billion euros in revenue, an increase of 4%. Premier League clubs had the highest revenue of Europe's top leagues at 6.3 billion pounds ($8.50 billion). However, the traditional 'big six' clubs in England's top flight reported lower average revenue growth (3%) than other clubs that were in the Premier League in both the 2023-24 and 2022-23 seasons (11%). The study said the growth was largely driven by expansion of clubs' commercial offerings, which also led to the teams cumulatively generating more than two billion pounds in commercial revenue for the first time. "A focus on stadia development and diversification of commercial revenues led to growth across the European football market in the 2023-24 season," Tim Bridge, lead partner in Deloitte's Sports Business Group, said. "However, clubs and leagues cannot afford to take their eye off the ball as new challenges, including an evolving regulatory landscape and changing fan behaviours, arise. "The pressure is mounting for more clubs to drive additional revenue at the same time as managing rising costs. "More so than ever, leaders and owners must recognise the great responsibility they have of managing these businesses, capturing the historic essence of a football club while honouring its unrivalled role as a community asset for generations to come." Clubs in Europe's 'big five' leagues reported an aggregate operating profit (0.6 billion euros) for a second successive season, while the aggregate wages/revenue ratio fell from 66% to 64%. WSL REVENUE SOARS Clubs in England's Women's Super League (WSL) jointly generated revenue of 65 million pounds in the 2023-24 season, a 34% rise. Each WSL club had a double-digit increase in revenue, while all 12 clubs reported over one million pounds in revenue for the first time, with an average revenue of 5.4 million pounds. "Through developing more robust fan engagement strategies, strong commercial deals and securing central distributions, WSL clubs unlocked a new phase of growth," Deloitte Sports Business group's knowledge and insights lead Jennifer Haskel said. "Plus, as the reporting and attribution of commercial revenue remains inconsistent between clubs, we may be scratching the surface on the value now being generated by the women's game." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Auckland coach readies part-time squad for Club World Cup's 'toughest group'
Auckland City's players aren't full-time professionals and many have taken annual leave to compete in the Club World Cup where they face what coach Paul Posa calls "the toughest group". New Zealand's champions, who are fresh from winning the OFC Champions League, will face Bayern Munich, Benfica and Boca Juniors in Group C of the revamped tournament, which starts on Saturday, and Posa acknowledged their uphill battle. "It's quite possibly the toughest group we could have drawn," Posa, who guided them to fifth place in the old Club World Cup in 2009, told Reuters. "We have two traditional European powerhouses in Bayern Munich and Benfica and Boca Juniors, who are also capable of going all the way." "We have competed in many of the previous versions of the CWC competition which has given us a broad range of experience allowing us to punch above our weight in the past. Our goals are to be prepared, and compete, to the best of our ability," he added. Auckland enter the 32-team tournament months after claiming their 13th Oceania title and fourth in succession. Yet despite continental success, football remains a part-time commitment for the squad. "All of the players have other jobs alongside their football commitments," said Posa. "However, they have an extraordinary dedication to their football outside of their working hours. "Players have had to take annual leave from their jobs... Indeed some of the players were unable to take time to attend both the OFC Champions League competition and the Club World Cup." The mid-June to mid-July tournament timing means it falls during Auckland's season rather than after it, as the previous version of the competition did. "The challenge of having the CWC fall in the middle of the season has been ensuring that players are in top form at the right times - however I believe we're on track to achieve this," said Posa. Serving as caretaker coach for Albert Riera, who's away for family reasons, Posa previously managed Auckland from 2008-2010. During the 2009 Club World Cup, they defeated UAE's Shabab Al Ahli and DR Congo's TP Mazembe to finish fifth. The 63-year-old acknowledged how difficult it would be to repeat his 2009 success: "It's nice to dream we could be that competitive again - however, we're realistic about the challenge." While temporary, Posa has maintained Auckland's established playing style. "It has not been difficult to maintain a playing philosophy that has evolved at Auckland City over many years. Of course, every coach puts their own fingerprint on a team," he said. This stability underpins Auckland's continued success. "This comes down to building on experience gained in previous competitions and a consistent focus on being well organised and prepared, both on and off the pitch," Posa said. "The culture surrounding the team is such that they always want to win and motivating them is no problem at all." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Jack Grealish left out of Manchester City squad for Club World Cup
Jack Grealish remains City's record signing, but, has fallen down the pecking order over the past two seasons. PHOTO: REUTERS MANCHESTER, United Kingdom - Jack Grealish's future at Manchester City was plunged into further doubt on June 11 after the England international was left out of Pep Guardiola's squad for the Club World Cup. Despite City naming just 27 players from a possible 35 for the tournament beginning in the United States on June 14, Grealish was omitted alongside former captain Kyle Walker. All four of the club's new signings this week - Rayan Ait-Nouri, Rayan Cherki, Tijani Reijnders and Marcus Bettinelli - are included. Ballon d'Or winner Rodri is also selected after making his comeback from a long-term knee injury just before the end of the Premier League season. Grealish, who remains City's record signing after a £100 million move from Aston Villa in 2021, has fallen down the pecking order over the past two seasons. He made just seven Premier League starts in the 2024/25 campaign and was notably not summoned from the bench as City went down to a 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final last month. The 29-year-old still has two years left to run on his City contract and his reported £300,000-a-week (S$500,000) wages are a barrier to finding a potential suitor. Guardiola threatened in May he could leave the club if the size of his squad is not cut before the new season begins. Grealish is just one of a number of expected exits, along with Walker. The 35-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at AC Milan, but the Italian giants have not taken up an option to buy. City begin their Club World Cup campaign against Moroccan side Wydad Casablanca in Philadelphia on June 19 before facing further group games against Al Ain of Abu Dhabi and Juventus. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
