“There should be no politicization and narrow-mindedness to treat this matter, sportsmanship must come first.”
The Chinese public on Monday gushed over teen heroes Su Yiming and Eileen Gu after their much anticipated appearances on the Olympic slopes as a prominent pundit urged the country’s netizens to stop panning foreign-born figure skater Zhu Yi.
The name of 17-year-old Su, a former child actor, was the most viewed topic on China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform. The term “1800” — referring to his completion of one of the toughest snowboarding tricks — was a close second.
Su took silver in the men’s snowboarding slopestyle event behind Max Parrot of Canada. His Chinese fans, however, questioned why he was not given a higher score for what they called a “perfect” performance.
“You are the king of snowboarding in our hearts,” state broadcaster CCTV posted alongside a video clip of Su receiving his medal.
In contrast, the public continued to mock U.S.-born Chinese figure skater Zhu Yi for crying after she flopped in the figure skating on Sunday.
The 19-year-old fell on the ice and finished last, triggering a fierce backlash nL4N2UH00Z on Chinese social media that critiqued her performance and raised questions about her selection for the Olympic team.
Some members of the Chinese public urged sympathy.
“As long as she represents China, or no matter which country she represents, even though she fell down, we have to be tolerant,” a man who gave his surname as Hu, told Reuters in Beijing while waiting at a bus station near the Olympic tower.
“There should be no politicization and narrow-mindedness to treat this matter, sportsmanship must come first.”
Hu Xijin, a prolific commentator who recently retired as editor-in-chief of the nationalist Global Times tabloid, said on his official Weibo account that the attacks on Zhu were speculative and “too much”.
“I hope that some people will stop humiliating themselves and our country without any bottom line,” he said, defending the decision by Zhu, who was born and raised in the United States in a Chinese immigrant family, to represent China.
“This sports driven reverse immigration is a new product of the times,” Hu said.
China has staffed some Olympic sports with foreign-born players, such as its ice hockey teams for the Beijing Games.
Freestyle skier Gu, whose Chinese name is Ailing and who is one of Team China’s most popular athletes, was also born and raised in the U.S. Her decision to compete for China has been criticized by Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
“Chinese netizens generally like Gu Ailing but their rebuke of Zhu Yi is rude and uncalled for,” Hu said. “I want to say that we should all be more open-minded than Fox and more civilised.”
Gu also trended heavily on Weibo on Monday after participating in the Big Air qualifier.
Her reaction to losing her skis during her second jump was described as “cute”. Gu later managed to get through to the final after nailing her third jump.
“Anyway, she’s able to flip in the air whereas I find it difficult just to turn myself around at home,” said one user, Zhurenyiwen Qi. (Reporting by Brenda Goh and Yin Xiaoyu; Editing by Ken Ferris)
EDMONTON – The Edmonton Oilers signed defenceman Travis Dermott to a professional tryout on Friday.
Dermott, a 27-year-old from Newmarket, Ont., produced two goals, five assists and 26 penalty minutes in 50 games with the Arizona Coyotes last season.
The six-foot, 202-pound blueliner has also played for the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Toronto drafted him in the second round, 34th overall, of the 2015 NHL draft.
Over seven NHL seasons, Dermott has 16 goals and 46 assists in 329 games while averaging 16:03 in ice time.
Before the NHL, Dermott played two seasons with Oilers captain Connor McDavid for the Ontario Hockey League’s Erie Otters. The team was coached by current Edmonton head coach Kris Knoblauch.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) — Maria Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam singles champion, led the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan vote her first year on the ballot — an important part to possible selection to the hall’s next class.
The organization released the voting results on Friday. American doubles team Bob and Mike Bryan finished second with Canada’s Daniel Nestor third.
The Hall of Fame said tens of thousands of fans from 120 countries cast ballots. Fan voting is one of two steps in the hall’s selection process. The second is an official group of journalists, historians, and Hall of Famers from the sport who vote on the ballot for the hall’s class of 2025.
“I am incredibly grateful to the fans all around the world who supported me during the International Tennis Hall of Fame’s fan votes,” Sharapova said in a statement. “It is a tremendous honor to be considered for the Hall of Fame, and having the fans’ support makes it all the more special.”
Sharapova became the first Russian woman to reach No. 1 in the world. She won Wimbledon in 2004, the U.S. Open in 2006 and the Australian Open in 2008. She also won the French Open twice, in 2012 and 2014.
Sharapova was also part of Russia’s championship Fed Cup team in 2008 and won a silver medal at the London Olympics in 2012.
To make the hall, candidates must receive 75% or higher on combined results of the official voting group and additional percentage from the fan vote. Sharapova will have an additional three percentage points from winning the fan vote.
The Bryans, who won 16 Grand Slam doubles titles, will have two additional percentage points and Nestor, who won eight Grand Slam doubles titles, will get one extra percentage point.
The hall’s next class will be announced late next month.
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AP tennis:
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The driver charged with killing NHL hockey player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew as they bicycled on a rural road had a blood-alcohol level of .087, above the .08 legal limit in New Jersey, a prosecutor said Friday.
Gaudreau, 31, and brother Matthew, 29, were killed in Carneys Point, New Jersey, on Aug. 29, the evening before they were set to serve as groomsmen at their sister Katie’s wedding.
The driver, 43-year-old Sean M. Higgins of nearby Woodstown, New Jersey, is charged with two counts of death by auto, along with reckless driving, possession of an open container and consuming alcohol in a motor vehicle. At a virtual court hearing Friday, a judge ordered that he be held for trial after prosecutors described a history of alleged road rage and aggressive driving.
“’You were probably driving like a nut like I always tell you you do. And you don’t listen to me, instead you just yell at me,’” his wife told Higgins when he called her from jail after his arrest, according to First Assistant Prosecutor Jonathan Flynn of Salem County.
The defense described Higgins as a married father and law-abiding citizen before the crash.
“He’s an empathetic individual and he’s a loving father of two daughters,” said defense lawyer Matthew Portella. “He’s a good person and he made a horrible decision that night.”
Higgins told police he had five or six beers that day and admitted to consuming alcohol while driving, according to the criminal complaint. He also failed a field sobriety test, the complaint said. A prosecutor on Friday said he had been drinking at home after finishing a work call at about 3 p.m., and having an upsetting conversation with his mother about a family matter.
He then had a two-hour phone call with a friend while he drove around in his Jeep with an open container, Flynn said. He had been driving aggressively behind a sedan going just above the 50 mph speed limit, sometimes tailgating, the female driver told police.
When she and the vehicle ahead of her slowed down and veered left to go around the cyclists, Higgins sped up and veered right, striking the Gaudreas, the two other drivers told police.
“He indicated he didn’t even see them,” said Superior Court Judge Michael J. Silvanio, who said Higgins’ admitted “impatience” caused two deaths.
Higgins faces up to 20 years, a sentence that the judge said made him a flight risk.
Higgins has a master’s degree, works in finance for an addiction treatment company, and served in combat in Iraq, his lawyers said. However, his wife said he had been drinking regularly since working from home, Flynn said.
Johnny Gaudreau, known as “Johnny Hockey,” played 10 full seasons in the league and was set to enter his third with the Columbus Blue Jackets after signing a seven-year, $68 million deal in 2022. He played his first eight seasons with the Calgary Flames, a tenure that included becoming one of the sport’s top players and a fan favorite across North America.
Widows Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau described their husbands as attached at the hip throughout their lives. Both women are expecting, and both gave moving eulogies at the double funeral on Monday.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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