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Pacquiao draws comeback fight as Barrios retains WBC welterweight title

Pacquiao draws comeback fight as Barrios retains WBC welterweight title

Nikkei Asia6 days ago
Sports
46-year-old Filipino hero says, 'I thought I won the fight'
Mario Barrios, left, fights Manny Pacquiao in a welterweight title boxing match Saturday, July 19, 2025, in Las Vegas. © AP
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Manny Pacquiao pushed back against his doubters, the odds and even Father Time on Saturday night - and nearly made some history.
But Pacquiao, in the end, fell just short on the judges' scorecards as Mario Barrios escaped with a majority draw to retain the WBC welterweight championship. Two judges scored the bout a draw, and judge Max DeLuca awarded Barrios a 115-113 victory.
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Australia's swimming dominance: Small population but big results
Australia's swimming dominance: Small population but big results

Japan Today

time20 hours ago

  • Japan Today

Australia's swimming dominance: Small population but big results

The main swimming pool is seen at the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore, Thursday, July 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian) By STEPHEN WADE Australia has a relatively small population. But Australia is a giant when it comes to competitive swimming. Whether it's the Olympics, or as it is this time with the swimming world championships opening in the pool in Singapore on Sunday, Aussie swimmers grace the podium. 'We have swimming in our DNA as a country,' Rohan Taylor, Australia's head coach, told The Associated Press. 'We have to be particular and purposeful in finding the talent,' he added. "And then it's the coaching. We can't get it wrong. We get one crack at the talented athlete.' Australia won seven gold medals and 18 overall at last year's Paris Olympics, second in both categories to the United States. The United States has 340 million people, almost 13 times Australia's population of 27 million. The Americans won eight gold and 28 overall. China, No. 3 with 12 overall, won only two gold medals from a population of 1.4 billion — 52 times Australia's. Australia's women are swimming powers, led by Kaylee McKeown and Mollie O'Callaghan. Add in Moesha Johnson, who has already won the 10- and 5-kilometer open-water races in Singapore and expects to race the 800 and 1,500 in the pool. McKeown won the 100 and 200 backstroke in Paris and in Tokyo in 2021. She also won both races two years ago at the worlds in Fukuoka, Japan. O'Callaghan is the defending 200 freestyle winner for Paris. Then there's men like Kyle Chalmers, who won the 100 free at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and has piled up nine Olympics medals and 12 in world championships. 'They have done so well on the international stage — multiple times,' Taylor said. "So it's another opportunity for them to add to their CVs.' For French star Léon Marchand, the world championships mean easing off. He won four individual Olympic gold medals a year ago in Paris. The Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 are still far off. Time to swim a lighter schedule. None of that for Canadian Summer McIntosh. She won three individual gold medals in Paris, but will go for five in Singapore, a test run for her program in Los Angeles. These worlds, a year after the Olympics, feature swimmers in their prime, older swimmers who want to see if they can make it to LA, and young swimmers making their debut. Another worlds is set for 2027 in Budapest, Hungary — the final proving ground before the 2028 Olympics. Marchand is expected to race only the 200 and 400 individual medley races in Singapore, dropping the 200 breaststroke and 200 butterfly. He won gold in all four in Paris, but wants to be fresh from the two IM races and world-record shots. In Singapore, McIntosh will go in the two IMs, the 200 fly, and the 400 and 800 freestyle. She did not swim the 800 free in Paris. This time she will, which sets up a showdown with American superstar Katie Ledecky — maybe the most anticipated race of the worlds. The eight gold medals that U.S. swimmers won to top the Paris standings was their lowest victory total at the Olympics since the 1988 Seoul Games, when the Americans fell to East Germany. Singapore is the place to regroup and add youth, with the home Los Angeles Olympics in view. The American men had a tough Olympics with the only gold from Bobby Finke in the 1,500. Look for some new faces in Singapore. 'The average age of our men's team is younger than the average age of our women's team,' U.S. coach Greg Meehan told The AP. He said it was 'the first time in recent memory.' He ran off names like freestylers Jack Alexy, Luke Hobson, and Rex Maurer and Luka Urlando in the butterfly. 'I do acknowledge that the rest of the world is getting better. There is no doubt about it,' Meehan said. 'I love a challenge — I'm going to lean into that.' Familiar names stand out on the women's side — Katie Ledecky, Gretchen Walsh, Torri Huske, Kate Douglass and Regan Smith. Ledecky, of course, is a nine-time Olympic gold medalist and holds world records in the 800 and 1,500 freestyle. Walsh holds the world record in the 100 fly, and Smith in the 100 backstroke. Yes. A 12-year-old swimmer named Yu Zidi from China is competing in the world championships, and her incredible times mean she might win a medal. At 12. Yu has qualified in the 200 and 400 IMs and the 200 fly. Her time of 2:10.63 in the 200 IM was the fastest ever from a 12-year-old swimmer — female or male. Yu has a best in the 200 fly of 2:06.83 and 4:35.53 in the 400 IM. Both times would have been good enough for fourth place in last year's Olympics. The Chinese stars are Pan Zhanle, who set a world record of 46.40 in 100 freestyle in Paris, and Qin Haiyang. Qin holds the world record in the 200 breaststroke in 2:05.48. AP sports: © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

Ohtani homers in 5th straight game, Freeman drives in 2 runs in the 9th as Dodgers beat Twins 4-3
Ohtani homers in 5th straight game, Freeman drives in 2 runs in the 9th as Dodgers beat Twins 4-3

The Mainichi

time3 days ago

  • The Mainichi

Ohtani homers in 5th straight game, Freeman drives in 2 runs in the 9th as Dodgers beat Twins 4-3

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Shohei Ohtani matched a franchise record with a homer in the fifth straight game and Freddie Freeman drove in two runs with a two-out single in the ninth inning as the Los Angeles Dodgers rallied to beat the Minnesota Twins 4-3 on Wednesday. Freeman hit a sinking liner to left field that eluded a diving Harrison Bader and scored Mookie Betts and Ohtani, setting off a wild celebration. Ohtani hit a solo homer to center in the first, his National League-leading 37th of the season. It marked the seventh time in Dodgers history that a player has homered in five consecutive games. Ohtani joins Max Muncy, Joc Pederson, Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Kemp, Shawn Green and Roy Campanella in that club. The Twins scored two runs in the eighth off the Dodgers bullpen, one day after scoring seven runs off Los Angeles' pen in a 10-7 victory. This time, the Dodgers got the better of the Twins bullpen. Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow was dominant, allowing three hits and one run with 12 strikeouts in seven innings. The right-hander was making his third start since returning from a shoulder injury. Minnesota's Chris Paddack had a strong outing, allowing four hits and one run in six innings with eight strikeouts. Royce Lewis, an native of Orange County, California, tied the game at 1 with a solo home run off Glasnow in the third inning. He added a double in the fifth and a walk in the two-run eighth, finishing 2 for 2. Tommy Edman lined a run-scoring, bases-loaded single to right field in the seventh to score Freeman, giving the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. Dodgers reliever Kirby Yates opened the eighth by walking the first three batters he faced. Alex Vesia entered and got Willi Castro to hit into a double play, scoring one run, and pinch-hitter Bader knocked in another run with an infield single.

Shohei Ohtani Homers in Fifth Consecutive Game, Tying a Los Angeles Dodgers Franchise Record
Shohei Ohtani Homers in Fifth Consecutive Game, Tying a Los Angeles Dodgers Franchise Record

Yomiuri Shimbun

time3 days ago

  • Yomiuri Shimbun

Shohei Ohtani Homers in Fifth Consecutive Game, Tying a Los Angeles Dodgers Franchise Record

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shohei Ohtani homered for the fifth consecutive game on Wednesday, tying a Los Angeles Dodgers franchise record. Yankees star Aaron Judge was the last player to homer in five consecutive games, accomplishing that feat last year. Ohtani, who leads the National League with 37 home runs, homered in the first inning off Minnesota Twins starter Chris Paddack. He hit a slow curveball 441 feet to center. He carried the bat midway down the first-base line and then did a bat flip. He didn't hit a home run later in the game with the Dodgers trailing, but his presence was felt. With two outs and the Twins leading by one run, Rocco Baldelli elected to put Ohtani — the potential winning run — on base. Esteury Ruiz drew a walk to load the bases, setting the stage for Freddie Freeman, who delivered a two-run hit to left field. Betts and Ohtani scored to give the Dodgers a 4-3 win. Ohtani did not speak to the media after the game. 'It was the right decision,' Dave Roberts said of Baldelli intentionally walking Ohtani. 'He's got five in a row now (games with homers), which is pretty impressive. He continues to use the big part of the field and hit breaking balls, hit fastballs, so that's been really good. And so that's been really good. And yeah, I mean, Shohei comes up with a chance to win the game so you got to take your chances with their closer and against Esteury (Ruiz). And fortunately, Esteury put together a good at bat to get Freddie up there.' Asked if he was surprised the Twins made that move, Roberts said: 'No, no, I wasn't surprised. It was the right decision. Just didn't work out.' This is the seventh time in Dodgers history that a player has homered in five consecutive games. Ohtani joins Max Muncy, Joc Pederson, Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Kemp, Shawn Green and Roy Campanella in that club. Ohtani, a three-time MVP, is batting .276 with 70 RBIs. He's also pitched well in six games and is scheduled to throw four innings on Monday in Cincinnati as he is getting close in his buildup as a starter, coming back from his second right UCL repair surgery. With an off day on Thursday, Ohtani's next chance to see if he can homer in six consecutive games will be against the Red Sox in Boston. The record for consecutive games with a home run is eight, which has been held for a long time by Dale Long, Ken Griffey Jr. and Don Mattingly. Griffey Jr. was the last player to do it in 1993. Roberts was asked if he thinks Ohtani can reach eight consecutive games. 'Well, I don't know that answer,' Roberts said. 'I do know that if he has the same approach that he's had the last week, that Green Monster is very short. So any fly ball that he hits will be a homer. So he's just got to continue to have that same approach when we go to Boston, and then we'll see what happens.'

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