schulz: German defender Nico Schulz under investigation for domestic violence

Germany defender Nico Schulz is under criminal investigation for domestic violence, after a former Borussia Dortmund player’s former teammate filed a police complaint. Dortmund state prosecutor confirmed that police had raided Schulz’s home to secure evidence as part of the investigation, saying, “The investigation is pending due to a criminal complaint filed by an ex-girlfriend. A house search retrieved and data secured.

Media reports have emerged recently alleging that Schulz assaulted his former partner in 2020 while pregnant with their daughter 12 times since 2018 by Germany. The German tabloid Bild ran images of text messages allegedly sent by Schulz, where he acknowledges his actions and apologizes for his behavior, as well as photos allegedly showing hurt to Schulz and his former partner. with.

Dortmund issued a statement saying they only became aware of the “extremely serious and shocking” allegations through media reports. He said he had yet to take disciplinary action against Schultz because the situation was “extremely unclear”.

“However, we reserve the right to do so at any time when we know more objectively,” the statement read. According to the statement, Schultz denied the claims, telling Dortmund that “he will defend himself against these allegations with the help of a lawyer and that he will also maintain his innocence”.

Originally published at Pen 18

India Inc needs to invest more in sports at the grassroots level: Neeraj Chopra

Olympic javelin medalist Neeraj Chopra told ET in an online interaction on Monday that Indian corporates need to invest more at the grassroots level to promote sports in the country.

“There is a good amount of interest and sponsorship from corporate houses for top level-reaching athletes and sportspersons. But if there is a lot of corporate sponsorship at the grassroots level, it will be more beneficial to promote sports in India,” Chopra said. He was speaking at the launch of a new campaign for Limca Sportz, the lemon drink brand of beverage maker Coca-Cola, for which Chopra recently signed an endorsement deal. Comparing with cricket, where most sponsors are currently are also odd, Chopra said; “there is a lot of interest in sports other than cricket as well, and it will grow”.

India won a total of 61 medals in the recently concluded Commonwealth Games

in sports as diverse as badminton, weightlifting and boxing. And in July this year, Chopra became only the second Indian to win a medal at the World Athletics Championships.

While brands benefit athletes when they win, industry executives say sponsorships have to be long-term and start with beginners in the form of academies and specialized training to benefit both the athletes and the sport.

Originally published at Pen 18

CoA not to take over affairs of IOA: SC extends status quo until further orders

The Supreme Court on Monday extended its status quo until further orders, holding that the three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) appointed by the Delhi High Court will not handle the affairs of the Indian Olympic Association. A bench of Justices SA Nazeer and JK Maheshwari sought response from the Center and others on the petition filed by the association.

“Notice issued. Status quo will continue till further orders, prepare the list after four weeks,” the bench said.

The matter will be taken up after four weeks.

The top court had earlier taken note of the submissions of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Center and the IOA, that the order may have a negative impact on the nation and ordered interim relief to maintain status quo in the affairs of the IOA.

The CoA appointed by the High Court includes former Supreme Court judge Justice Anil R Dave, former Chief Election Commissioner SY Qureshi and former Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs Vikas Swarup.

The Delhi High Court had on August 16 ordered the constitution of a CoA to manage the affairs of the IOA.

Originally published at Pen 18

FIFA vs AIFF: SC issues interim order out, stay on CoA from further takeover

Originally published at Pen 18

FTX Crypto Cup: India’s Praggnanandhaa defeats 5-time World Chess Champion Carlsen

India’s 17-year-old Rameshbabu Pragyanand defeated five-time world chess champion Magnus Carlsen in the FTX Crypto Cup and finished runner-up in the tournament in Miami.

It was his third consecutive win over the Norwegian in his career.

Though Carlsen took the win, the Tamil Nadu player gave him a tough time.

When Pragyananand faced Magnus Carlsen in the FTX Crypto Cup Final, he was down a game, but at a crucial moment, he defeated the world champion in three straight games to make history.

The fight was fierce and Pragyanand ended right down to Carlson, who somehow managed to defend his title despite the threats made by Pragyanananda.

Pragyananand started his winning streak in the championship after defeating his opponent in the opening game of the championship. But after that the 17-year-old had to face consecutive defeats against Poland’s Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Vietnam’s Kwang Lim Le. After winning the first game, Duda overtook Pragyananand as the leader.

The next two matches were drawn, with Pragyanand winning the fourth place. The Polish player then won both tie-break rounds to claim a 4–2 victory.

Inputs from ANI

Originally published at Pen 18

BWF Worlds: Onus on Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy in PV Sindhu’s absence

With injured PV Sindhu being ruled out for the first time in a decade, young Lakshya Sen and HS Prannoy will be responsible for leading India’s challenge at the BWF World Championships starting here on Monday. With five medals in 2019, including gold, Sindhu is a big figure in BWF’s most prestigious and competitive tournament, but an ankle injury en route to her maiden Commonwealth Games title win dashed her hopes of traveling to the Japanese capital.

It left the task of continuing India’s impressive run in the tournament on the young shoulders of Lakshya and the experienced pair of Prannoy and Kidambi Srikanth. The country has not returned empty handed from the world since the 2011 edition.

It was Srikanth and Lakshya who ensured India’s presence on the podium in 2021, when they finished with a silver and a bronze respectively, but this time the ground will be much stronger than last year.

It disappeared in 2021 along with Japan’s Kento Momota and the Indonesian pair of Jonathan Christie and Anthony Ginting. But this time there has been no such withdrawal.

Also, looking at their exploits in recent months, the Indian male shuttlers will also have high expectations.

After winning a Commonwealth Games gold medal on debut, a confident Lakshya has been on a sensational run this season and will enter the top event as one of the favourites.

The 20-year-old, who was disappointed after not being able to cover the distance in Spain, will try to make up for his unfinished business when he opens against Danish legend Hans-Kristian Solberg Wittingus.

Lakshya’s shares have been rising since his return from Huelva in December as he won his maiden Super 500 title at the India Open, finished with a silver at the All England Championships, before joining hands with Srikanth and Prannoy to give India their first title. First Thomas Cup victory. May.

However, all three will become enemies this week after being clubbed in the same quarter.

In fact, ninth seed Lakshya could clash with Prannoy in the third round if the senior supporters manage to beat former world number one and second seed Momota in the second round.

Prannoy has been one of the most consistent players in the circuit this season with quarter-finals, three semi-finalists and a runner-up, and he will be itching to continue his impressive run.

The 30-year-old Indian is known for his giant-killing exploits and comes into the event after a recent twin victory over world number four Chou Tien Chen, and will envision his chances against Momota, who has since The same player hasn’t seen his car crash two years ago.

12th seed Srikanth was sensational in Bangkok and it was his unbeaten run that played a huge role in India’s Thomas Cup win, but the former world No. 1’s confidence shattered after losing twice to upcoming Malaysian Ng Tje Yong .

Commonwealth Games

However, he recovered to return with a bronze medal from the Commonwealth Games and will have to do his best when he faces the likes of Nhat Nguyen of Ireland and Zhao Jun Peng of China in Tokyo.

If Srikanth clears the initial hurdles, world number 5 Malaysian Lee Jia Jia will advance to the quarter-finals.

2019 World Championships bronze medalist B Sai Praneeth is also in the fray and will face Taiwan’s Chow Tien Chen.

The former Singapore Open champion will try to exorcise his exorcism in Tokyo, where he battled without a proper coach or physio, facing a series of defeats for an early exit from the Olympics last year.

All eyes will also be on Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, who won India’s first gold medal in men’s doubles at the Commonwealth Games earlier this month.

The world number 7 pair, who won the India Open title in January and were a key force in the Thomas Cup victory, received a bye in the first round, but Malaysian 13th seeds Goh Wei Shem and Tan Wei Keong in the second. expected to clash. Round.

Away from all the limelight there will be a certain Saina Nehwal, who was once the highlight of all eyes.

The decorated shuttler has silver and bronze from the Worlds but has, lately, been looking a dim shadow of himself, after a series of below-par performances due to both injuries and a lack of form.

The 32-year-old from Hyderabad registered a stunning victory over China’s He Bingjiao as she reached the quarter-finals for the first time in 16 months at the Singapore Open and will try her best when she opens against Hong Kong’s Cheung Ngan Yi.

The pairing of Ashwini Ponnappa and N Sikki Reddy, among others, and

In women’s doubles, Gopichand and Tresa Jolly are also in the fray. The pair are Commonwealth Games bronze medalists in 2018 and 2022.

Originally published at Pen 18

Cincinnati Masters: Kichenok, Ostapenko capture women’s doubles title

Cincinnati [US]Lyudmila Kichenok and Jelena Ostapenko continued their stellar season by winning their biggest team titles of all time at the Western and Southern Open on Saturday.

Kichenok and Ostapenko defeated Nicole Melicher-Martinez and Alain Perez 7-6(5), 6-3 in one hour and 24 minutes to win the WTA 1000 in Cincinnati.

After several rain delays finally took the court, the pair of Melicher-Martinez and Perez basically held the upper hand, breaking Ostapenko in the first game of the match to take a 4–2 lead. Kichenok and Ostapenko, however, returned 4-4 on the serve.

In the tiebreak, a powerful Ostapenko return earned his team a pair of set points, and Kichenok and Ostapenko converted the other of the two to take a one-set lead.

There was no break point 3–3 in the second set, but after that, Kichenok and Ostapenko won the final four games of the match to capture the title.

“It’s my biggest title and I’m very happy,” Kichenok said after the match.

“It’s hard to describe, it’s amazing. I just can’t find the words. I’m still a little shaky after the match, it’s so exciting,” she said.

“It doesn’t matter what the score is, [the key was] To be aggressive and put pressure on them,” WTA.com quoted Ostapenko as saying.

“It was something they didn’t like, and it helped us in crucial moments,” she said. (ANI)

Originally published at Pen 18