SPORT | 07

Hamilton eyes

Schumacher record

as F1 steps into

brave new world

SPORTBuffon and

Chiellini extend

Juventus deals

until 2021

SPORT | 09

TUESDAY 30 JUNE 2020

Qatar star Samba eyes glory in Tokyo after Games delay

FAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

Qatari track and field star Abderrahman Samba got little time to recover from a painful injury before last year’s IAAF World Athletics Champion-ships Doha 2019. But with Tokyo Olympics delayed by a year due to coronavirus

pandemic, the star Qatari hurdler sees the post-

ponement as an ‘excel lent ’

o p p o r -tunity

for

himself to regain full fitness.

At the 2019 World Championships - the first event to be held in the Middle East - Samba was facing a furious competition at Doha’s iconic Khaifa Interna-tional Stadium, with three sub 47 athletes – including himself,

Karsten Warholm and Rai Benjamin – eyeing top honours in the in the 400m hurdles what was dubbed the toughest battle in the championships.

Samba suffered from an injury few weeks before the home championships while running 400m flat at London Diamond League. Eventually, the Qatari star finished behind Warholm and Ben-jamin in Doha, but he hailed his bronze as a ‘gold medal’ at that time.

“I competed in pain as I did not recovered from the injury I suffered in London event,” Samba recalled at Live with Al Adaam programme.

The Qatari said with the organisers pushing back

the Olympics, he will not have to face the same ordeal in sports’ biggest spectacle.

“The Olympics delay is good for me because it will give me ample time to be ready which was not the case before,” he said.

“I was racing against time to recover completely from the injury and the postponement

is excellent for m e , ” t h e

24-year-old said.

While speaking on the pre-vailing situation worldwide, Samba said athletes suffered a lot because they were confined to home training due to restric-tions imposed to contain the spread of virus.

“We are returning to routine training with gradual lifting of restrictions, which is good,” he said.

Memorable moment Recalling the highlights of

his career during his career so far, Samba said he would not forget the moment when President of Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) H E Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani congratulated him for winning a bronze medal at Doha 2019.

“The words cannot be erased from my memory. The

appreciation I received from everywhere was huge and I will not forget all the support I received,” he said.

“What I am today is because of the QOC and the Qatar Athletics Federation, who give me full support and good atmosphere to train.”

The Qatari star also recalled toughest time of his career when he stumbled in the last hurdles of final race during the 2017 World

Athletics Championships in London.

“It was a difficult stage of my career but at the same time it also gave me strength to stand up for the challenge again,” he said.

“The year 2018 was a turning point in my career in which my performance was very good. The same year I clocked 46.98 during the Paris Diamond League,” he said.

Samba also heaped praise on his Qatari team-mate Mutaz Barshim, the reigning world high jump champion.

“He is a great athlete a pride of our country and the Arab world. Patience and professionalism are his per-manent slogans,” said Samba.

TUESDAY 30

FAWAD HUSSAINTHE PENINSULA

Qatari track and field starAbderrahman Samba got little atime to recover from a painful injury before last year’s IAAFWorld Athletics Champion-ships Doha 2019. But with Tokyo Olympics delayed bya year due to coronavirus

pandemic, the star Qatari hurdler sees the posth dl th t-

ponement as an ‘excel lent ’

o p p o r -tunity

for

himself to regain full fitness.

At the 2019 WorldChampionships - the first event to be held in theMiddle East - Sambawas facing a furious competition at Doha’siconic Khaifa Interna-tional Stadium, with three sub 47 athletes – including himself,

Karsten Warholm and Benjamin – eyeing honours in the in the 40hurdles what was dubbedtoughest battle in championships.

Samba suffered frominjury few weeks before home championships whrunning 400m flat at LondDiamond League. Eventuathe Qatari star finishbehind Warholm and Bb hi d W h l d Bjamin in Doha, but he hahis bronze as a ‘gold meat that time.

“I competed in pain did not recovered from injury I suffered in Londevent,” Samba recalled at Lwith Al Adaam programmm

The Qatari said withorganisers pushing b

the Olympics, he will have to face the saordeal in sports’ biggspectacle.

“The Olympdelay is good for because it will gme ample time toready which wasthe case before,”said.

“I was racagainst time recover complefrom the injury the postponem

is excellent m e , ” t

24-year-said.

Abderrahman Samba

says Olympic Games

postponement due to

COVID-19 pandemic is a

good developement for

him as it will give him

ample time to attain full

fitness from injury.

H H Sheikh Mohammed

bin Khalifa Al Thani’s

homebred Min’ha

(No Risk Al Maury x

Margouia) notches the

second Group victory

of her career in the

Criterium des Pouliches

(Gr.2 PA) at La Teste,

France.

Abderrahman Samba heaps special praise on his team-mate and world champion Mutaz Barshim (right).

THE PENINSULA — DOHA

H H Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Thani’s homebred Min’ha (No Risk Al Maury x Margouia) yesterday notched the second Group victory of her career in the Criterium des Pouliches (Gr.2 PA) at La Teste, France.

Before that, she was last seen with Valentin Seguy in the saddle, in the Prix Nefta – Dormane (Gr.2 PA) behind Amyr Du Soleil, owned by H H Sheikh Mohammed as well, at Bordeaux on 23 May.

At La Teste, four-year-old chestnut filly was partnered once again with jockey

Valentin Seguy. Drawn towards the inside in this 12-runner race, she sat on the rail in second or third position throughout the early stages the 1900m run for 4YO+, with General Lady on her outside while the pace was set by Belqees (Mahabb).

Following the leader, Min’ha found herself alone in the straight, as Belqees weakened, and the François Rohaut-trained Min’ha was good enough to run all the way to the line to secure a 2½-length win in front of Al Shaqab Racing’s homebred UM TAJ (FR) (Al Mamun Monlau x Dyala).

The Thomas Fourcy-trained runner-up was ridden by Jerome Cabre. The Julien Augé-ridden Almajdah (FR) (TM Fred Texas x Ajdabya), who was further 2 lengths behind gave the third place as well to Al Shaqab

Racing and Thomas Fourcy.Trainer François Rohaut

was pleased with the manner in which Min’ha won, and commented: “She has improved over the winter. She is a very professional filly and it will be interesting to see how she runs in the Group 1 PA races for fillies. She won well today. There was a decent pace and she came to the lead easily. It’s what I wanted to see from here today, and I have.”

Min’ha is out of Margouia (Tidjani), so is a sister to Champion ASSY, the first ever Qatar-bred winner of the H H The Amir Sword.

Min’ha wins Gr2 P/A Criterium des Pouliches

Min’ha leading the Criterium des Pouliches (Gr.2 PA) race at La Teste, France yesterday.

Half of Tokyo residents are not in favour of Games next year: PollAFP — TOKYO

Just over half of Tokyo’s resi-dents don’t think the postponed 2020 Olympics should be held next year, backing either a further delay or outright cancellation because of fears over the coronavirus, according to a poll published yesterday.

The survey carried out by two Japanese news organisa-tions is only a single data point, but comes after health experts warned that even a year’s delay may not be sufficient to hold the Games safely.

The poll conducted over the weekend found 51.7 percent of respondents hope the Games in 2021 are postponed again or cancelled, while 46.3 percent want to see the rescheduled Olympics go ahead.

Among those opposed to a 2021 Games, 27.7 percent said they want them cancelled alto-gether, while 24.0 percent would prefer a second postponement.

The telephone poll, con-ducted by Kyodo News and Tokyo MX television between June 26-28, received 1,030 replies.

Of those who said they want to see the Games held next year, 31.1 percent said the event should be in a scaled-back form, including without spectators, while 15.2 percent said they wanted to see a

full-blown Olympics. Tokyo 2020 was postponed in March as the coronavirus spread across the globe, causing the worst disruption to the Olympics since two editions were cancelled during World War II. The Games are now scheduled to begin on July 23, 2021, although they will still be known as the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Officials from Japan and the International Olympic Com-mittee have warned it will not be possible to postpone again, and even the year-long delay has created significant financial and logistical headaches.

The poll, conducted ahead of the Tokyo gubernatorial election on July 5, also found incumbent Yuriko Koike leading her opponents “by a large margin”.

Her precise lead was not specified, in keeping with a media tradition of not pub-lishing polling figures in the days before a vote.

Koike has been heavily involved in preparations for the Games, travelling to Rio for the handover ceremony after the last Summer Olympics.

Earlier this month, she said that the rescheduled Olympics will be safe despite the coro-navirus pandemic, pledging a “120-percent effort” to ensure the first-ever postponed Games can go ahead.

07TUESDAY 30 JUNE 2020 SPORT

AFP — LONDON

Seven months after they last competed in earnest, the Formula One circus will push a post-lockdown reset button to open the 2020 season in Austria on Sunday.

The event at Spielberg is being held on its original cal-endar date, but is not the once-anticipated 11th round of the championship, but the first - a season-opener delayed by the global coronavirus pandemic.

More than three months after the Australian Grand Prix was abandoned on the eve of opening practice in Melbourne, the race in the Styrian Alps will be run behind closed doors, without fans, sponsors’ agents and guests and only a handful of reporters restricted to the media centre.

The usual high-rise motor homes will be replaced by tents and awnings while the teams, cut to 80 members and all in protective gear , wi l l operate in san-itised “bubbles within bubbles” in a paddock b e r e f t o f human contact and the usual s w e l l o f rumour and speculation.

For a l l involved, who are tested four days before the event and five

days later, it will be an unprec-edented and unique experience.

Yet, despite all the change and the surreal atmosphere it is expected that the action, when it begins, will deliver the same likely story.

Lewis Hamilton, powered by the all-conquering Mercedes, goes in search of a seventh drivers’ title to equal the record of Michael Schumacher.

“It has been unbearable - I have missed the racing and the competition so much, so it will be great to be back,” said Mer-cedes team boss Toto Wolff.

Even during lockdown, drivers moves for next year took place, Ferrari announcing the release of four-time champion Sebastian Vettel, to be succeeded by Carlos Sainz of M c L a r e n and Daniel Ricciardo signing to

leave Renault and be the Span-iard’s replacement at the cash-starved outfit so badly hit by the pandemic.

Those 2021 moves will not affect this year’s line-ups, but may affect relationships between departing drivers and teams anxious not to allow unique operational and per-formance intelligence to leave with them.

If anywhere, this is likely to have most effect at Ferrari as the Italian team strives to avoid open conflict between rising star Charles Leclerc and Vettel, who is a free agent and a potential target for not only Renault, but also Mercedes.

The pair, who were intense rivals last year, tested in Italy last week ahead of the opening “double-header” with two suc-cessive races at Austria’s Red

Bull Ring circuit before a third race in Hungary.

“ I have no expe-r i e n c e o f heading back to the same track and having a second race, but I ’ v e b e e n around for a while,” said Vettel.

“I guess the level of per-fection will be higher the s e c o n d weekend - the level of errors will be even smaller.

“It will be a chance to review strategy just seven days afterwards so that’s a first and let’s see how we tackle that challenge.”

The opening three races form just part of an intensive spell of eight European races in 10 weeks, which may become nine in 11 if a round at Mugello, in Italy, is added.

Vettel added that he “can’t imagine what it will be like to race without any fans,” espe-cially at the sweeping circuit where Max Verstappen was roared to victory by a huge orange wave of Dutch sup-porters last year.

Verstappen and Red Bull are expected to challenge Mercedes, with Ferrari and Racing Point, newly dubbed “the pink Mer-cedes” team after copying the champions’ cars, in close pursuit in the opening events where it will be intriguing to see if Hamilton’s focus has been affected by his active and vocal support for the current anti-racism protests.

Last week, just days after launching the Hamilton Com-mission to boost diversity in motorsport, he slammed remarks made by former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone as “ignorant and uneducated” before calling for the restoration of Grand Prix in Africa.

“It’s a really weird time in the world and the biggest chal-lenge in my mind is not about t h e c h a m p i o n s h i p necessarily."

July 5 - Austria. The Red Bull Ring at Spiel- berg. 71 laps of 4.318km. Total distance:306.452km. 2019 pole: Charles Leclerc (Mo- naco) Ferrari. 2019 winner: Max Verstappen(Netherlands) Red Bull. A rural circuit in southern Styria, owned byRed Bull. July 12 - Austria, the second race at the Red Bull Ring will be officially known as the GrandPrix of Steiermark (Styria). July 19 - Hungary. The Hungaroring, outside Budapest. 70 laps of 4.381km. 306.670km.2019 pole: Verstappen. Winner: Lewis Hamil- ton (Britain) Mercedes. Tight, twisty and slow. The first race in 1986 was a breakthrough forF1 behind the ‘Iron Curtain’. August 2 - Britain. Silverstone. 52 laps of 5.891km. 306.198km. 2019 pole: Valtteri Bottas (Finland) Mercedes. Winner: Hamilton. The first world championship grand prix washeld here in 1950. August 9 - Britain, officially designated the 70thAnniversary Grand Prix. Also at Silverstone. August 16 - Spain. Circuit de Catalunya, near Barcelona. Race consists of 66 laps of 4.655km. Total distance: 307.104km. 2019 pole: Bottas. Winner: Hamilton. Completely familiar to all teams from pre-season testing.On the calendar since 1991. August 30 - Belgium. Spa-Francorchamps. 44 laps of 7.004km. 308.052km. 2019 pole andwinner: Leclerc. The longest lap on the calen-dar and one of the fastest and oldest circuits. Sept. 6 - Italy. Monza. 53 laps of 5.793km. 307.029km. 2019 pole and winner: Leclerc. “La Pista Magica”, Ferrari’s home track, datesback to the 1920s but is still the fastest in F1.Races still to be scheduled: China, Canada, Vi- etnam, Russia, Mexico, US, Brazil, Bahrain,Abu Dhabi.

REVISED 2020 CALENDAR

Action during the Austrian Formula One Grand Prix in Spielberg, in this June 30, 2019 file photo.

Hamilton eyes Schumacher record as F1 steps into brave new world

2000 Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 2001 Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 2002 Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 2003 Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 2004 Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari

2005 Fernando Alonso (ESP) Renault 2006 Fernando Alonso (ESP) Renault

2007 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) Ferrari 2008 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) McLaren

2009 Jenson Button (GBR) Brawn 2010 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Red Bull 2011 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Red Bull 2012 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Red Bull 2013 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Red Bull 2014 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes 2015 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes

2016 Nico Rosberg (GER) Mercedes 2017 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes 2018 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes 2019 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes

CHAMPIONS SINCE 2000

Can Hamilton retain focus to land seventh title? The main threat to Lewis Hamilton’s bid to land a record-equalling seventh drivers’ title is likely to be himself -- just ahead of Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. The sport’s first black champion has admitted he is committed to racing formore than personal or team triumphs.

“I’m racing for all of you out there who mayfeel that you don’t have a voice,” said the Brit- on, who made his voice heard in support ofrecent anti-racism protests during the en- forced time-out. “In the world, in the society that we live in, I think making it as a young black kid from a council estate in Stevenage, making it to F1 through the tiniest window of opportunity -- that’s a very, very important part of my journey and then staying there andcontinuing to deliver against adversity.”

Verstappen’s chance to seize the day? Having proved his speed and racing talent this is the time for Max Verstappen and Red Bull to seize their moment and emerge from theopening trio of races as championship lead- ers. A year ago, the young Dutchman bullied his way to victory at the Red Bull Ring and a double repeat of that plus a strong result at Budapest would see the Milton Keynes-basedteam on top of the embryonic title race. Pre-season testing in Barcelona suggested their car is very fast, but also ‘skittish’ andmay face reliability problems. But the driver pairing of Verstappen and AlexAlbon has a proven ability to shine in chal- lenging conditions and can beat Ferrari totake the fight to champions Mercedes.

Will Vettel shine with Ferrari? After confirming he is leaving Ferrari at the end of this year, Sebastian Vettel may feelfreed and capable of delivering the consisten- cy and speed that can inspire the team againdespite the threat of Charles Leclerc. The four- time champion has the speed and quality, butFerrari have to deliver a car that can show im- mediate performance development as the season unfolds. Pre-season testing suggested that this year’s machine had sacrificed some of last year’s outright straight-line speed forimproved pace in slow and medium corners.

End of the road for Williams and whatnow for talented Russell? George Russell and Williams face a defining challenge and season after the famous British team was put up for sale during the lockdown - leaving their young and talented Englishdriver to race for his future this year.

Russell, a member of the Mercedes juniordriver programme, is tipped to have a big fu- ture, but needs a stronger team in 2021 toprove himself unless Williams find some re-surgent form and haul themselves off the bot- tom of the championship. Russell made good use of the lockdown to become F1’s ‘virtual champion’ during e-racing from his homecomputer and said recently he is “very excit- ed” to return to racing. “It’s going to be surreal, but I can’t wait for it- I just want to be back in a car.”

No hugging and not much prospect of joy for Ricciardo at Renault? Daniel Ricciardo is famous for his beamingsmile and big hugs, but he has had to aban-don his tactile approach to life.

“I’ve got to keep my distance,” he admitted ina team video call last week. “We’re going to find some new ways to em-brace each other, especially after a good re- sult, but obviously we’re going to do what wecan to keep this thing out of the paddock.”

FIVE TALKING POINTS

onsors’ agents only a handfultricted to the

gh-rise motor placed by tents hile the teams, rs and

p gthe release of four-time champion Sebastian Vettel, to be succeeded byCarlos Sainz of M c L a r e n and DanielRicciardo signing to

privals last yealast week ahea“double-headecessive races

Bull Ringthird race

“ I

2018 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes 2019 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton

Fight against racism: Mercedes to compete in all-black carsAP — BRACKLEY

Mercedes announced yesterday that it will race in all-black cars for the 2020 Formula One season as it

pledges to fight racism and improve the diversity of its team.

Six-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton and team-mate Valtteri Bottas will also race in black overalls for the season, which starts on Sunday in Austria after a

long delay caused by the

c o r o n a v i r u s pandemic.

“The Black Lives Matter movement has shone a searching light on how much we need new measures and

actions in the fight against racism and all forms of discrim-ination,” Mercedes announced in its colour switch from silver.

Hamilton, who is the only Black world champion in F1, has spoken widely about racism following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month. He plans to create a commission to increase diversity in motorsport.

“It is so important that we seize this moment and use it to educate ourselves whether you are an individual, brand or company to make real mean-ingful changes when it comes to ensuring equality and inclu-sivity,” Hamilton said in the announcement Monday.

Hamilton said he had spoken to Mercedes F1 team principal Toto Wolff about standing united.

“I have personally experi-enced racism in my life and seen my family and friends expe-rience racism, and I am speaking

from the heart when I appeal for change,” Hamilton said.

Mercedes said Monday that just 3% of its workforce identify as belonging to minority ethnic groups, and that only 12% of its employees are women.

“We will not shy away from our weakness in this area, nor from the progress we must still make; our livery is our public pledge to take positive action,” Wolff said.

“We intend to find and attract the very best talents from the broadest possible range of backgrounds, and to create credible pathways for them to reach our sport, in order to build a stronger and more diverse team in the future,” Wolff added.

The season will finally get underway with back-to-back races at the Austrian Grand Prix as part of an eight-race European swing. The Red Bull Ring in Spielberg will host races on July 5 and 12.

Some of the records in Lewis Hamilton’s sights as F1 season kicks off

Lewis Hamilton (pictured) is hoping to equal Michael Schumacher’s record seven For- mula One championships in the season that starts in Austria this weekend after beingdelayed since March by the COVID-19 pandemic. The following details some of the milestones the Mercedes driver and his team canreach.

7 - Titles. A record held by Ferrari great Schumacher. Also successive constructors’ ti-tles. Mercedes have won the last six, a record shared with Ferrari.

8 - Schumacher holds the record of eight wins at the same grand prix. Hamilton is on seven for Canada, which remains uncertain for this year, and Hungary -- third race ofthe revised season.

Also Grand Slams (pole, led every lap and fastest lap). Hamilton needs two more toequal late compatriot Jim Clark’s all-time record of eight.

11 - Longest gap between first and last championships. Hamilton took this record last year (2008-19) from Schumacher (1994-2004) andcan stretch it to 12 this season.

13 - Most races won in a single season, a record Schumacher shares with Sebastian Vettel. Hamilton’s highest tally is 11. That looks unlikely in this coronavirus-affected year, with the sportsetting its sights on 15-18 races after originally planning a record 22.

19 - Grands Prix won after leading every lap. Hamilton shares therecord with Ayrton Senna.

33 - Consecutive points finishes. An ongoing record heldby Hamilton, whose last failure to score was in Aus-tria in 2018.

65 - Front row lockouts. Ferrari hold this onebut Mercedes are on 64.

88 - Pole positions. A record held by Hamil-ton, whose 88th was in Abu Dhabi last No-vember.

91 - Race wins, a record held by Schumacher. The German’s last win was in China in 2006. Hamilton starts the campaign with 84 winsto his credit. He has averaged 10 wins a sea-son for the past six years.

148 - Most grands prix led. Hamilton set thislast year.

155 - Podium finishes. Another of Schumacher’s records thatlooks destined to fall. Hamilton is on 151.

250 - Most consecutive starts. A Hamilton record.

AP — BRACKLEY

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AFP - LONDON

The English county cricket season will start on August 1, the England and Wales Cricket Board announced yesterday.

The format has still to be decided, although the ECB said this was “due to be agreed” by the 18 first-class counties in early July.

Officials had previously announced that the inaugural edition of the Hundred franchise competition had been scrapped because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The first Test between England and the West Indies behind closed doors at Southampton, starting on July 8, is set to be the first major international cricket match since lockdown.

The opening round of the first-class County Championship was originally scheduled to begin on April 12.

The ECB has said the Twenty20 Blast is their most lucrative domestic format, with international fixtures the biggest cash draw.

Health and safety remains the major concern for the ECB, which has approved the return to training of first-class counties on or before July 1.

“It is a significant step for our game that we are able to approve the start of the men’s domestic season for August 1 and one which will be welcomed by eve-ryone connected with county cricket,” said ECB chief executive Tom Harrison.

Harrison, who previously warned a season without any fixtures at all could cost the ECB £252m ($309m), also welcomed the input of the counties and the Pro-fessional Cricketers’ Association in preparing for a “domestic season unlike any the game has faced before”.

Harrison stressed British government health guidance “will continue to shape our planning and

preparation”. PCA chairman Daryl Mitchell said: “County cricket returning from August 1 is hugely positive for our membership. It has been an incredibly uncertain time for players who have waited patiently for some encouraging news.”

Two-day friendly matches between Surrey and Middlesex and Yorkshire and Lancashire in July had already been announced.

The ECB said it remained “committed” to staging women’s domestic cricket.

But a new structure of eight regions could be shelved for 2020 because of difficulties in ensuring medical personnel are in place to handle COVID-19 return-to-play protocols.

There was no word yesterday from the ECB on when recreational cricket would return.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week frustrated hopes for a quick restart, saying that a cricket ball was a “natural vector of disease”.

08 TUESDAY 30 JUNE 2020SPORT

Johnson hangs on to win title

REUTERS - NEW YORK

A pair of bogeys on the back nine and a rain delay were not enough to derail Dustin Johnson (pictured below), who shot 19 under par to win the Travelers Championship by one stroke in Cromwell, Connecticut, on Sunday.

The 2016 US Open champion fended off fellow American Kevin Streelman after shooting a career-low 61 the day prior, claiming his 21st PGA title to mark his 13th con-secutive season with at least one victory.

“I’m definitely proud of myself for continuing the streak… it was a long time between wins though - hope-fully it won’t be that long for the next one,” Johnson said in a televised interview.

He narrowly avoided dis-aster on 15, when he was forced to remove his shoes and stand in a pond to hit his ball, which landed in the damp turf next to the water. He made par, only to bogey on the next hole, after rain forced a brief delay at the fanless tournament.

“Even though there’s no fans here, you can still feel the pressure,” said the 36-year-old American. “The rain delay didn’t help very much because then I actually had time to think about everything.”

American Will Gordon rocketed nine spots up the lea-derboard to finish tied for third with Canadian Mackenzie Hughes.

Johnson, who finished second at both the Masters and the PGA Championship in 2019, failed to make the cut earlier this month at the Charles Schwab Challenge when the tour resumed after the COVID-19 forced a three-month suspension of play.

American Brendon Todd, who had been in the lead after a career low nine-under 61 in the third round, self-destructed on 12 with a triple bogey and failed to recover, ending the tournament tied for 11th.

Golf scores

New York: Leading scores on Sunday after the US PGA Tour Traveler’s Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut (USA unless noted, par-70):

261 - Dustin Johnson

69-64-61-67262 - Kevin Streelman

66-66-63-67263 - Will Gordon 66-62-

71-64, Mackenzie Hughes (CAN) 60-68-68-67

264 - Kevin Na 66-66-65-67

265 - Ryan Armour 67-66-68-64, Bryson DeChambeau 65-67-65-68, Scott Stallings 66-68-64-67, Brendan Steele 69-62-68-66, Patton Kizzire 66-66-66-67

267 - Abraham Ancer (MEX) 67-65-66-69, Patrick Cantlay 66-67-69-65, Viktor Hovland (NOR) 63-69-67-68, Zach Johnson 68-64-67-68, Kim Si-woo (KOR) 68-66-68-65, Rory McIlroy (NIR) 63-68-69-67, Noh Seung-yul (KOR) 64-68-66-69, Doc Redman 68-67-69-63, Brendon Todd 66-65-61-75

WI to wear ‘Black Lives Matter’ logo for England Test matchesAFP - LONDON

The West Indies cricket team will wear “Black Lives Matter” logos on their shirts during next month’s Test series against England in a show of solidarity with the global movement.

The tourists will follow the lead of English Premier League footballers during the three-Test series, which starts at the Ageas Bowl on July 8.

The move comes after the death of African-American George Floyd in US police custody last month.

The logo, which has a clenched fist in place of the letter ‘A’ in the word “Black”, was designed by Watford player Troy Deeney’s partner Alisha Hosannah.

West Indies captain Jason Holder said the team remained focused on winning the series but that there were bigger issues to address.

“This is a pivotal moment in history for sports, for the game of cricket and for the West Indies cricket team,” he said in a statement issued by Cricket West Indies yesterday.

“We have come to England to retain the Wisden Trophy but we are very conscious of happenings around the world and the fight for justice and equality.

“We believe we have a duty to show

solidarity and also to help raise awareness.”Holder said sportsmen and women

could influence opinion and be a force for change. “We did not take our decision lightly,” he said.

“We know what it is for people to make judgements because of the colour of our skin, so we know what it feels like, this goes beyond the boundary.

“There must be equality and there must be unity. Until we get that as people, we cannot stop.”

Deeney said he and Hosannah were overwhelmed by the gesture.

“Alisha and I are immensely proud to be asked and take part in a monumental moment in world sport, this amazing decision by the West Indies cricket team to show their support for Black Lives Matter,” he said.

Player power was behind the Premier League’s move to put “Black Lives Matter” on the back of shirts for the first 12 games following the restart of the competition.

Footballers are also wearing the logo on their sleeves for the rest of the campaign.

West Indies head coach Phil Simmons is in self-isolation after leaving his team’s bio-secure location in Manchester for a short period of compassionate leave.

Cricket West Indies confirmed that Simmons had twice tested negative for the virus since returning on Friday, and would have another test on Wednesday before rejoining the squad.

The West Indies start a four-day warm-up match against England at Old Trafford on Monday.

Simmons attended the funeral of his father-in-law, who had died prior to the team’s recent assembly in Manchester, having been given permission by medical officials.

English county cricket season set to start on August 1

A staff member puts a model cricket player in its place at Bekonscot Model Village to prepare for its reopening, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, Britain, yesterday.

Captaining England would be ‘huge honour’, says StokesREUTERS - LONDON

England’s talisman Ben Stokes says captaining his country even just once in his career would be a “huge honour” but admits it was never a massive ambition.

The all-rounder is poised to lead the team in the first Test against West Indies on July 8 with captain Joe Root likely to miss the game to attend the birth of his second child.

“I’ve given it a little thought but not really dived into it yet,” the 29-year-old told a virtual news conference yesterday.

“I mean, it’s not like it’s not a big deal. Getting the opportunity to captain England is a huge honour. Even if it’s only the once, you can say you captained England.

“So it’s something that I’m looking forward to if the opportunity presents itself. But also I know I’m only stepping in to take over the reins because of Joe’s personal situation.”

Stokes has matured since his well-chronicled disci-plinary problems and was inspirational as England won the World Cup last year. He is now Root’s trusted vice-captain.

He said the last time he captained a team was during an academy game against Scotland when he was a teenager.

“I never set a goal to want to be a captain,” Stokes said. “If you look at Alastair Cook he was destined to be captain after Andrew Strauss and Joe Root was destined to be captain after Alastair Cook, you know who the next one will be when one is coming towards the end of his career.

“If I’m being honest, I’m not one of those who people would necessarily associate with being next England captain. But I am looking forward to the opportunity of doing it.”

Should Stokes captain the side next week in South-ampton -- a match being played in a bio-secure stadium without fans because of the COVID-19 pandemic -- he says he will be well prepared.

QORC, Round 5: QMMF retain points lead as Al Sulaiti sparkles againTHE PENINSULA - DOHA

Saeed Al Sulaiti (pictured) on Sunday night bagged his third successive win as Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation riders (QMMF) continued to lead the points table after round five of the Qatar Online Racing Championship (QORC).

Al Sulaiti, who won the first round in the battle against Leopard Racing riders last Tuesday, on Sunday pro-duced another session of slick riding in the digital battle.

With his win on Sunday and only one round to go, Al Sulaiti has strengthened his grip on the overall standings.

His team-mate Saoud Al Thani finished second at Aus-tralia’s virtual Philip Island circuit to make it yet another 1-2 finish for QMMF.

The QMMF team is now almost certain to the win title after round 6.

With just one race to go, QMMF has 518 points to Leopard Racing’s 473 for a 45-point lead.

On Sunday, Leopard’s Danny Kent once again posed the toughest challenge for Al Sulaiti, but the British rider suf-fered multiple clashes in the 18-lap simulated Philip Island circuit.

Kent, who had won the second round, was third going into the final lap but crashed once again and was relegated to seventh position.

Al Sulaiti, meanwhile, was assured of the win in the MotoGP 20 PS4 game as the Qatari ace finished the race in 26:58.347.

Saoud Al Thani was 14.752 seconds behind the winner, while Leopard’s Denis Foggia came third.

Leopard’s Marco Ramirez and Lorenzo Dalla Porta were fourth and fifth respectively, while QMMF’s Jassim Al Thani finished sixth.

The sixth and final round will be held at Qatar’s simulated Losail Inter-national Circuit.

Athletes should not ‘minimise’ whereabouts rule, says IAAF chief

AFP - LONDON

World Athletics chief Sebastian Coe says no athlete should “minimise the importance of the whereabouts rule” after 100m world champion Christian Coleman missed three doping tests in a 12-month period.

The American sprinter, who was provisionally suspended earlier this month, risks a two-year ban that would rule him out of next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

The 24-year-old said in a statement on Twitter that he was the victim of “a purposeful attempt to get me to miss a test” in December last year. He said he was out shopping for Christmas presents and had not received a phone call. The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), the anti-doping arm of World Athletics, said “a phone call is discretionary and not a mandatory requirement”.

“It’s not really our policy to comment on unresolved cases -- this is now quite properly a matter for the AIU,” Coe told BBC Sport.

But he added it was “not a good story (for athletics)”.

“No athlete should minimise the importance of the whereabouts rule,” said Coe. “The where-abouts rule is to protect the athletes, it’s to protect their reputations and it’s to make sure that we move as hard and as fast as we can to drug-free sport. It’s one hour a day -- this is not arcane maritime law, this is not complicated. The vast majority of athletes make sure they don’t miss those tests. They have to take it seriously.”

RESULTS AFTER ROUND 51. Saeed Al Sulaiti, Time: 26:58.347 secs;2. Saoud Al Thani +14.752;3. Denis Foggia +29.709; 4. Marco Ramirez; 5. Lorenzo Dalla Porta; 6. Jassim Al Thani; 7. Danny Kent

RIDER STANDINGS1. Saeed Al Sulaiti 196 points; 2. Soud Al Thani 139; 3. Marcos Ramirez 125; 4. Xavi Artigas 96; 5. Jassim Al Thani 88; 6. Jaume Masia 87; 7. Danny Kent 73; 8. Abdulla Al Qubaisi 67; 9. Dennis Foggia 62; 10. Lorenzo Dalla 30; 11. Hamad Al Sahouti 28 .

TEAM STANDINGS1. QMMF 518 points;2. Leopard Racing 473

West Indies captain Jason Holder.PIC: WWW.WINDIESCRICKET.COM

Being able learn from Joe Root in different

situations in the game has rubbed off on me

and I will put me in good stead for all the

situations a Test match can throw at you. At

the same time we have some experienced

guys out on the field I can use like Jimmy

(Anderson) and (Stuart Broad) Broady, so many

people to throw ideas off. I always try to set the example in terms

of commitment and attitude. When it comes down to what to do in a situation it will always

be a positive route: Ben Stokes, England's

new captain in waitingnew captain in waitin

09TUESDAY 30 JUNE 2020 SPORT

Dutch football star Aron Winter to discuss illustrious career on live feedTHE PENINSULA - DOHA

Former Netherlands star Aron Winter will be the special guest in tomorrow's edition of Generation Amazing Instagram Live. The current assistant coach of the Greece national team will discuss his football career and outline the life values he has learned from the sport.

Winter, who turned out for Ajax, Inter Milan and Lazio, appeared in three FIFA World Cups for the Netherlands. He will talk about both his early and present-day inspirations, along with the power of football to unite people and break down cultural barriers.

Winter is the latest football legend to appear in the series. He follows Xavi Hernandez, Samuel Eto’o, Cafu, Tim Cahill

and others. All the star chats can be viewed here.In addition to Winter’s appearance, Sheffield FC’s Foundation

Director, Chris Dolby, will also join @GA4good this week. The former midfielder will discuss his club’s partnership with

Generation Amazing and Leeds United today at 4:00pm Doha time.

The collaboration between Sheffield and Leeds helps young people from disadvantaged communities, including refugees, learn life skills through football – in line with the Generation Amazing methodology, which promotes communication, teamwork and leadership, along with diversity, inclusion, equal rights and communal solidarity.

Dolby said: “I’m looking forward to discussing how we’ve been able to work together to deliver the football for development sessions we provide for underprivileged youth in the Sheffield community, as well as how we plan to develop the sessions in collaboration with Generation Amazing and Leeds United.”

Moza Al Mohannadi, Generation Amazing’s Marketing & Com-munications Director, said yesterday: “We are extremely excited to welcome Chris Dolby to discuss our joint initiative in the UK. We also look forward to receiving some useful insight for our programme participants from European football legend Aron Winter.”

A Qatar 2022 social and legacy programme, Generation Amazing has reached 500,000 beneficiaries. It aims to positively impact 1 million people via unique football training methodology sessions by 2022.

Follow @GA4good on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for more information. Capture you and your relatives enjoying the streams on Instagram for a chance to be reposted and win exclusive prizes from the football stars! Make sure to tag @GA4good and use the #GALive hashtag!

English FA cuts jobs as pandemic wipes out Wembley eventsAP - LONDON

The English Football Association is set to make 82 people redundant as it faces a shortfall of £300m ($370m) over four years due to the coronavirus pandemic shutting down the sport and restarting without fans in stadiums.

Wembley Stadium, which is owned by the FA, was due to be staging seven games at the European Championship including the semifinals and finals next month but the tournament was postponed by a year.

Other events, including concerts and two NFL regular season games, that were due to be staged at English soccer’s 90,000-capacity national stadium this year have also been called off.

“No one knows when a vaccine will be ready or when better medical treatments will be ready,” FA chairman Greg Clarke

said yesterday. “So we have to plan for extended periods of social distancing which could limit crowds, could limit attendances and could limit the number of competitions played.”

FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said the focus will be spending on the key mission - helping the men’s and women’s national teams win major tournaments.

“That means we have set out in our pro-posals some difficult choices because we do not think we can afford to do all the things that we did before,” he said.

Hospitality revenue, which can generate £35m a year, has “completely fallen away and will probably take years to recover,” Bullingham said. Compensation has also had to be paid for some of the cancelled events, while the FA has been unable to fulfil some commitments to sponsors and broadcasters.

“Unfortunately the past few months have impacted the FA severely and we have lost a significant amount of money that we can never recoup,” Bullingham said yesterday.

“The situation has worsened to a point where we now need to reduce the size of the FA in order to deal with the financial impact of the crisis.”

When Britain went into lockdown in March, the FA halted recruitment and 42 vacant positions will not be filled.

Another 82 roles are being removed from the not-for-profit governing body, details showed.

Wembley will still be staging rescheduled lower-league playoff finals and the semifinals and final of the FA Cup in the coming weeks but there cannot be sup-porters in the venue due to efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19.

A general view outside Wembley stadium where the FA Cup Final was due to take place today before being postponed following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), London, Britain, in this file photo taken on May 23, 2020.

Juventus’ Gianluigi Buffon and Giorgio Chiellini celebrate after Sami Khedira

(not pictured) scored their third

goal during a Serie A match against AC Milan at the Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy,

in this March 31, 2018.

Buffon and Chiellini extend Juve deals until 2021AFP - ROME

Gianluigi Buffon and Giorgio Chiellini have extended their Juventus contracts until 2021, the Serie A leaders announced yesterday.

The new deals, long expected to be confirmed by Juve, mean that former Italy captain Buffon will stay with the Turin-based club beyond his 43rd birthday.

“Bianconeri since the beginning. Bianconeri forever. And to confirm it, in case there is a need, today their contract renewals have become official, for another: 2021!,” Juve said in

a statement yesterday. Buffon returned to Juve last summer after a disappointing season at Paris Saint-Germain and is the club’s all-time record Serie A appearance maker, turning out 479 times in the league since arriving in 2001.

With Juventus he has won the league nine times but his only European trophy came when he won the UEFA Cup with Parma in 1999.

He is Serie A’s joint record appearance holder with Paolo Maldini, playing in Italy’s top flight 647 times, and also holds the appearance record for his national team, with 176 caps

between 1997-2018, winning the 2006 World Cup.

Buffon has made a total of 13 appearances in all competi-tions this season, with Wojciech Szczesny now Juve’s first-choice keeper.

The 35-year-old Chiellini, who succeeded Buffon as Juve and Italy captain, joined the club in 2005 and has since become a stalwart in one of the Turin giants’ most successful periods.

He has won eight league titles and four Italian Cups, although he has missed most of this season due to a cruciate lig-ament injury suffered in August.

Football in England loses passion, soul with no fansAP - LONDON

What have I learned about pandemic Soccer - I mean football, of course - since its return in England?

You watch soulless matches with no fans out of ingrained habit - and the misplaced hope that slays you. Your team implodes, also out of ingrained habit. All in all, an added unpleasantness in trying times.

But let's rewind.In the grand scheme of

things, sport during the pan-demic is only a matter of life or death if players, staff or fans become infected. Perhaps an updated rendering of the famous Karl Marx quote: Has sport become ‘’the opium of the people''?

In Britain, where I live, some in the political arena ven-tured that the return of profes-sional football without fans in seats, dubbed Project Restart, would lift the national morale. Debatable.

It's a passionate game of which the fans are the lifeblood. That's true across Europe and beyond.

Supporters, many clad in team colours, are a breathing, heaving, shouting mass - living every moment, every decision, with joyful outbursts or howls of derision. Chants full of indus-trial language encourage hero

worship at best and, at worst, plumb the depths of outright racism and xenophobia.

Watching the English Premier League upon its return has been excitement-free for me - quite a bizarre feeling after decades of following my London team, Arsenal, in the flesh at home and abroad.

So far, the team hasn't played a ‘’home'' match that I would normally attend. Watching other empty stadia has featured a decision: whether to choose the fake audio atmosphere generated by the channels.

No, thanks. That ranks with laugh tracks, lip synching and ghostwriting. So it's natural sound for me - the agitated strains of players, coaches and the ball being kicked and headed.

The first two matches I watched, my team lost. Once, against a superior team, barely registered on the anger scales. The second, against an inferior one, rankled due to a long-term injury to our goalkeeper because of unnecessary foul play from an opponent who then rubbed salt in the wound by scoring the winning goal in the dying seconds.

But it passed quickly, quicker than it ever would have in the past.

A close friend and colleague

who has also supported Arsenal all his life felt the same watching live from New York in our hyper-connected world. We WhatsApp-ed, then moved on with the rest of our weekends.

The same friend and I had attended a match that we still reminisce about where a winning goal, a penalty deep into stoppage time, had sent my row bonkers, us included, and seemed to take the roof off.

Those are the joys. Cama-raderie with several people I sit with as a season ticket holder for more than a quarter century. The pre-match rituals, the pub for a couple looseners (or not, in the event my teenage son, who has gone off the game in the last few years, accompanies me - a rare treat).

Then on Thursday, a win - but dreary watching nonetheless.

I'll keep watching the matches every few days as the league races to complete the interrupted season.

But let's not kid ourselves: Like so much else, this was a financial decision as lockdowns are eased across the world to resuscitate flatlining econ-omies. Hundreds of millions in various currencies are at stake for the monstrous cash-cow brand; global TV rights are in the balance.

But the first ‘’home" game of the pandemic rest-of-season this week will feel especially soulless to view denuded of fans and denuded of me.

And I cannot even fathom when it will cease to be insanity to attend an event with some 60,000 other people again.

M e m o r i e s fortify. Maybe Humphrey Bogart's Rick was right in ‘ ’ C a s a b l a n c a ' ' : "We'll always have ...''

Newcastle United’s Joelinton in action in front of an empty stadium during the FA Cup quarter-final at St James’ Park, Newcastle, Britain, in this June 28,

2020, file photo.

Scheme launched to increase number of ethnic minority coachesAFP - LONDON

The Premier League, English Football League and Professional Footballers’ Association have set up a scheme aimed at increasing the number of coaches from ethnic minority backgrounds.

The placement programme, jointly funded by the Premier League and the PFA, is designed to help footballers make the transition to playing to coaching.

It will be open to all PFA members from a black, Asian or other ethnic minority background and will initially provide up to six coaches per season with a 23-month placement at an English Football League club.

It will have its first intake for the 2020/21 season.

The lack of representation of black people in senior leadership roles in the sport has been in the spotlight because of the increased focus worldwide on the Black Lives Matter movement.

Manchester City and England forward Raheem Sterling has questioned why so few black ex-players have made the transition into coaching or other high-profile roles within football clubs.

At present, only six of the 91 Premier League and EFL managers or head coaches are from a black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) back-ground, according to the BBC.