RIO DE JANEIRO: Brazilian woman at the centre of an alleged rape scandal involving star striker Neymar gave a statement on Friday to police investigating the sexual assault allegation that has gripped the soccer-mad country. Najila Trindade Mendes de Souza has accused the football megastar of raping her in a
TOKYO: Teenage sensation Takefusa Kubo won his first senior Japan call-up Friday when he was named in coach Hajime Moriyasu’s squad for next month’s Copa America in Brazil. The FC Tokyo midfielder, who was invited to Barcelona’s youth academy as a pint-sized nine-year-old where he earned the nickname the “Japanese
LOS ANGELES: Kawhi Leonard scored 15 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter as Toronto beat Milwaukee 105-99, leaving the Raptors one win away from advancing to the finals for the first time in franchise history. The Raptors started Thursday’s pivotal game slowly and trailed 49-46 at the half,
LOS ANGELES: Disgraced former American cyclist Lance Armstrong says he wouldn’t change a thing about the reign of doping that led to him being stripped of his record seven Tour de France titles. All of Armstrong’s titles between 1999 and 2005 were vacated by the International Cycling Union six years
PARIS: Reigning champion Simona Halep on Friday said that the pressure was off ahead of the start of her French Open title defence after ending her long wait for a Grand Slam trophy 12 months ago. The Romanian beat Sloane Stephens in Paris last year to clinch her maiden major
MOSCOW: Lokomotiv Moscow, fresh from their midweek Russian Cup victory, go into Sunday’s match at lowly Ufa in pole position to join champions Zenit St Petersburg in next season’s Champions League group stage. Lokomotiv, who beat Ural Yekaterinburg 1-0 in the final to claim their eighth Russian cup, are currently
SYDNEY: Australian rugby league great Greg Inglis Friday entered a clinic to deal with “mental health” issues as he struggles to adapt to life outside the game. The 32-year-old, who retired as one of the sport’s most decorated players last month, has reportedly been “depressed and fragile”. His club the
Here are the five works by living artists that have fetched the highest sums at auction, with Jeff Koons’ “Rabbit” breaking the record in New York on Wednesday. ‘Rabbit’, Jeff Koons The stainless steel casting of an inflatable rabbit fetched a record price for a living artist of US$91.1 million
MALABO: In a country awash with oil, the poorest survive in shantytowns a stone’s throw from smart modern apartments and family homes supposedly built to help those most in need. The government of Equatorial Guinea had billed the rows of state-subsidised housing as never-to-be-missed home-owning opportunities for the poor. But people familiar with the blocks
MUMBAI: Indian stocks jumped to record highs Thursday as early results in the world’s biggest election showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on course for a second term. Traders and business leaders welcomed trends in the vote count showing Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was set to win a majority, expressing
