DOHA: Qatar defended its close ally Turkey’s controversial operation against Kurdish forces in northern Syria yesterday, saying Ankara had acted against an “imminent threat”. Turkey has helped Qatar weather the effects of a two-year regional economic embargo led by Riyadh over claims of support for Iran and Islamist extremism, denied
Japan manages a rare feat for a developed country when it comes to feeding its children — high scores for nutrition but very low obesity rates. One major key? School lunches. A landmark report by Unicef released Tuesday shows Japan topping the charts for childhood health indicators, with low rates
HANAZONO (Japan): Tonga enjoyed a final flourish at the Rugby World Cup as they beat the United States 31-19 to maintain their 20-year dominance over the Eagles yesterday. The Pacific side fumbled a series of chances and weathered a late fightback before completing their first victory of the tournament in
TOKYO: Rugby World Cup organisers yesterday announced the cancellation of the match between Namibia and Canada due to Typhoon Hagibis but said they were “optimistic” the others could go ahead. “We were left with no option but to cancel the match on safety grounds,” said tournament director Alan Gilpin, who
STUTTGART (Germany): US gymnastics queen Simone Biles equalled the all-time record of 23 world championship medals on Saturday but insisted she had little time to reflect on her astonishing feat with two more finals still to come. The 22-year-old Biles needs one more medal from yesterday’s beam and floor finals
SUZUKA (Japan): Valtteri Bottas jumped from third to first with an electric start to win the Japanese Grand Prix yesterday ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and the Finn’s Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton. Charles Leclerc could only finish sixth in the second Ferrari, meaning Mercedes clinched a record sixth successive constructors’
SHIZUOKA (Japan): Australia fine-tuned preparations for a likely Rugby World Cup quarter-final against England with a hard-fought, error-strewn 27-8 Pool D victory over Georgia at Shizuoka on Friday. Wales’ 27-19 win over Fiji on Wednesday had guaranteed the Wallabies a place in the last eight, with the Welsh playing minnows
VIENNA: He has compared it to aiming to be the first man to land on the moon. Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge is preparing to bust the mythical two-hour barrier for the marathon on Saturday — albeit on a specially prepared course and with pacemakers supporting him. “I just have to make
TOKYO: An angry war of words between Japan and Scotland has injected an element of needle into today’s typhoon-threatened Rugby World Cup clash in Yokohama. Furious at threats of a formal Scottish protest if the crunch Pool A clash is cancelled, Japan coach Jamie Joseph felt the hosts had been
SHANGHAI: Stefanos Tsitsipas said that he scares the “Big Three” after the young Greek stunned world number one Novak Djokovic to reach the Shanghai Masters semi-finals on Friday. The 21-year-old has now defeated Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal this year to burnish his fast-growing reputation. On Saturday though he
