World Yogasana C’ships: India extend lead with 22 gold
Ahmedabad, June 6: India took their gold medal tally to double digits as the hosts continued their domination for the third consecutive day at the inaugural World Yogasana Championships 2026 here on Saturday. Nepal, Japan and United States of America clinched a gold medal each at the EKA Arena here. India expectedly won medals in almost every event, across all age categories. They took their medals tally to 28 medals, including 22 gold, 5 silver and 1 bronze. Argentina moved to second spot in the overall standings, thanks to Nabila Sol Barraza’s two gold and two silver, while Singapore slipped to third with two gold and two bronze. Nepal were one of the biggest movers on the medals tally as they took the fourth spot with one gold, six silver and three bronze. (PTI)
Shaili, women’s 4x100m quartet win gold in Taipei Open
Taipei City, June 6: Long jumper Shaili Singh and the women’s 4x100m relay team won a gold medal each while Tejas Shirse bagged a silver in the 110m hurdles, as all the Indian athletes in the fray returned with a medal on the opening day of the New Taipei City Athletics Open here on Saturday. Shaili was not at her best as she jumped 6.24m, but that was enough for her to take the top spot. She could not go nowhere near her season’s best of 6.58m, which she had recorded while winning silver at the Federation Cup last month. Her personal best remains 6.76m, set in 2023. The Indian women’s 4x100m relay quartet of SS Sneha, Srabani Nanda, Sudeshna Shivankar and Tamanna ran 44.07 seconds to win the gold and equal the meet record. The national record holder Shirse clocked 13.58 seconds in the men’s 110m hurdles final. Chinese Taipei’s 20-year-old Hsieh Yuan-kai claimed the gold with a time of 13.57 seconds. The last day of the meet is on Sunday. (PTI)
Asian Games compound team gold winner Prathamesh accepts ban
New Delhi, June 6: Asian Games compound team event gold winner archer Prathamesh Jawkar has accepted a two-year ban for three whereabouts failures last year, the International Testing Agency (ITA) said. Prathamesh, a part of the 2022 Asian Games compound team gold winning trio that includes Ojas Pravin Deotale and Abhishek Verma, committed three whereabouts failures within a 12-month period. He was not named in the 12-member Indian archery squad for the Asian Games in Japan in September-October. “The ITA reports that archer Prathamesh Samadhan Jawkar has agreed to the consequences imposed for his ADRV under Article 2.4 of the WA anti-doping rules,” the ITA, which looks after anti-doping-related matters on behalf of World Archery, said in a statement. “…The athlete did not challenge the ADRV and agreed with the consequences proposed by the ITA. Accordingly, the case was resolved via an acceptance of consequences. (PTI)
FIBA still planning for Basketball World Cup in Qatar in 2027
San Antonio (US), June 6: FIBA is operating as if the 2027 Basketball World Cup will take place in Qatar as scheduled, though said Friday that it could adjust if the war in Iran or other matters force the sport’s global governing body to take action. “We have excellent partners in Qatar,” FIBA’s secretary general, Andreas Zagklis, said in a roundtable meeting with reporters while attending Game 2 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks. “If things arrive at that spot, I’m sure we will have very good and direct conversations, and we’ll find the best possible solution for the players and the fans.” In short, Zagklis is not worried at this point. The 32-team tournament is set to begin on Aug. 27, 2027, and runs for about 2 1/2 weeks – all happening in Doha. “We have a board meeting of the FIBA and the (local organizing committee) of the World Cup on Monday. I will get the latest updates,” Zagklis said. “I can tell you that the organizing committee has not stopped a single day. This is a project that has been made clear to us, by the highest levels of the government, is a project of national importance. And as you know, Qatar, since I think April 1, has not been affected, impacted by the hostilities.” There have been a series of US-Iran negotiations facilitated by countries in the Middle East over the last few months, including Qatar. The World Cup in Qatar would be the first time FIBA takes the event to the Arab world and will be a direct qualifier for seven nations into the men’s basketball tournament at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. (PTI)
