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Two athletes sharing Olympic gold in a near-empty stadium in Tokyo caught the imagination of an expectant audience across the world, which was at the time ravaged by the Covid-19 pandemic.Mutaz Ezza Barshim embraced his old friend Gianmarco Tamberi at the end of the men's high jump as the judges confirmed the double gold for the Qatari and the Italian who have known each other for years dating back to competing as youths."To be honest, it will never happen again," Barshim told AFP in an interview."That moment, we'll never share that again. It was a one-time thing. Coming back from injuries and a dark place, I wanted to do something different, something with a different meaning."I'm glad it touched so many people's hearts, but we are sportspeople, we are professionals, we always want to be the best, we have that fire, 'I want to beat you, you want to beat me'."Barshim said he felt "lucky" to have shared the gold with Tamberi."We've been competing since 2010 and came to pro level together," he explained."As professional athletes we deal with a lot. There's one thing which is the biggest thing and that is injury. In 2018, I injured my left Achilles, broke both my ligaments and it was a very dark time for me, mentally and physically."One second you are the best and a few moments later you're on a wheelchair and they're dragging you out of the surgery room."Gianmarco, my friend, had a similar injury in 2016 just before the Rio Olympics which prevented him from being there."When the bar was 2.37 metres in Tokyo and me and him cleared at the first attempt, we looked back and there was no one left, it was emotional. So it was a tie."I asked 'can we share?'. The reply was 'yeah it's possible' and that was it! We didn't even discuss things. I looked at Gianmarco's eyes, he looked at me, we jumped, we hugged and the rest is history, that's one of the moments that will stick forever."Barshim joked that World Athletics plans to award every event winner prize money of $50,000 (46,000 euros) would also guarantee no further shared gold."It's not happening, 50 or 500, no sharing!" said the 32-year-old, who also has three world outdoor titles to his name."Anything offered in terms of a prize is good for the athletes, it's motivation. These athletes work really hard and sacrifice and this sort of prize is very important."Prize money in athletics doesn't compare to football or basketball, for example."It's a good start, you have to start somewhere."Barshim kicked off his outdoor season with second place at the Xiamen Diamond League meeting last week and will stay in China for the Suzhou of the elite one-day circuit on Saturday before returning home to Doha for the next instalment there on May 10."After I'll take some time off and hopefully peak at the Olympic Games," Barshim said, adding that he was looking forward to the return of fans to the quadrennial showpiece of sports after the Covid-blighted Tokyo Games."In terms of having the Olympics with fans back again, it's amazing. I love adrenaline, when the crowd is back, the sound of clapping or shouting, it's like a battle feeling," he said."We didn't have that in Tokyo because of Covid but somehow we felt so ready because it was already postponed for one year. There was a lot of circling, but when it finally happened we were like kids going to Disneyland. We didn't need fans to feel the hype."

Pakistan's most prominent woman cricketer and former captain Bismah Maroof has announced her retirement, ending a 17-year trailblazing career where she became a champion for women's rights.The 32-year-old ended her international career on Thursday after featuring in Pakistan's 3-0 home defeat in the one-day international series against the West Indies."I have decided to retire from the game I love the most," Maroof was quoted in a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) statement."It has been an incredible journey, filled with challenges, victories, and unforgettable memories."The left-handed batter scored 3369 runs in 136 one-day internationals and 2893 in 140 Twenty20 internationals -- both Pakistan records.She captained Pakistan in 62 T20Is with 27 wins and 34 ODIs with 16 wins.She will still remain active in league cricket.Maroof's journey made her an icon for gender rights in a patriarchal society, where women's participation in sports poses a challenge to strict social norms.She gave birth in August 2021, prompting the PCB to implement a maternity clause in central contracts for women cricketers that allocated paid maternity leave.Maroof and her daughter Fatima gained a massive following during the women's World Cup in New Zealand in 2022, where videos of Indian players playing with the baby went viral on social media.The International Cricket Council posted a photo on social media platform X of the mother-daughter duo with the caption: "Little Fatima's first lesson in the spirit of cricket from India and Pakistan".Maroof thanked the PCB for its support during her motherhood."The support from the PCB has been invaluable, particularly in implementing the first-ever parental policy for me, which enabled me to represent my country at the highest level while being a mother," she said.Maroof won gold medals with the Pakistan team in the 2010 and 2014 Asian games and played in four editions of the Women's ODI World Cup between 2009 and 2022.She also featured in eight editions of the T20 World Cup, including the last event in 2023.

UK police on Friday charged two men arrested after five migrants, including a girl, died this week trying to cross the Channel from France.Three men, a woman and a seven-year-old girl lost their lives in the early hours of Tuesday in the sea near the northern French town of Wimereux.They had been in a packed boat that set off before dawn but whose engine stopped a few hundred metres from the beach.A South Sudanese national, aged 22, has been charged with assisting illegal unlawful immigration, the National Crime Agency said.Both he and a second man, also 22, from Sudan, were charged with entering the UK illegally.A third man who was arrested, an 18-year-old from Sudan, had been bailed pending further inquiries, the agency added.Several people then fell into the water during Tuesday's tragedy. About 50 people were rescued and brought ashore but emergency services were unable to resuscitate the five.Fifteen people have died this year trying to cross the busy shipping lane from northern France to southern England, according to an AFP tally.That is already more than the 12 who died in the whole of last year.

The Bank of Japan kept its ultra-low interest rates unchanged Friday and stopped short of signalling another hike, pushing the yen to a fresh 34-year low against the dollar.The slide, due in part to the differential between BoJ rates and others worldwide, stoked speculation that Japan might intervene in the market, possibly as soon as Friday if US inflation data is strong.The BoJ called time on negative rates last month with its first rise in borrowing costs in 17 years as inflation finally settled around two percent after the "lost decades" of deflation and stagnation.Friday's decision to keep its benchmark rate between zero and 0.1 percent was keenly awaited, with the bank saying that "accommodative financial conditions will be maintained for the time being".But there had been speculation that the BoJ might respond to a drop in the yen to levels not seen since 1990.BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda signalled last week that the central bank could change monetary policy if the fall in the yen became "too big to be ignored".But comments on the yen from Ueda on Friday "lacked any urgency", Charu Chanana at Saxo said, adding that the BoJ was surprisingly "dovish" again on interest rates.- Global outlier -The BoJ has been a global outlier in sticking to an ultra-loose policy while other central banks pushed rates up as they fought against surging inflation -- causing a wide differential that saw investors push into other currencies.The standout among them has been the dollar, which has gained even more ground in recent weeks as a string of above-forecast US inflation readings fuels fears the Federal Reserve will keep rates at two-decade highs for longer than hoped.A weaker yen is good for Japanese exporters but it pushes up the price of imports and the BoJ hiked its inflation forecast for the current fiscal year to 2.8 percent, from 2.4 percent previously.With the currency sitting around three-decade lows against the dollar, speculation has grown that authorities could intervene in forex markets to provide support for the first time since 2022.Business federations have also expressed unease about the fall in the yen, the worst performer among the Group of 10 major currencies this year.At around 5:00 pm (0800 GMT) on Friday, the dollar bought 156.70 yen. However, Japanese stocks rose on relief that firms' borrowing costs would not rise.Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki warned Friday the government was "concerned" about the negative aspects of the weak yen, repeating that authorities will take "all possible measures" if necessary, Japanese media said.Media reports before the meeting had suggested that the BoJ might pare back bond purchases, which might have eased pressure on the yen.But although the language of the bank's statement was tweaked slightly, its stance appeared unchanged.The BoJ has spent vast amounts on bonds and other assets to pump liquidity into the Japanese economy, targeting inflation of two percent that policymakers hoped would fuel growth.The institution currently holds 592 trillion yen ($3.8 trillion) in JGBs, an amount equivalent to the size of Japan's gross domestic product in 2023.

The US Department of State announced today the appointment of Lise Grande as the new Special Envoy for Middle East Humanitarian Issues.Grande, who replaces David Satterfield, is currently head of the independent US Institute of Peace. She previously worked for the United Nations for more than 25 years, a career that included running aid operations in Yemen, Iraq and South Sudan.

India began voting on Friday in the second phase of multi-phase national elections to elect new parliament for the next five years.Almost one billion people are eligible to vote in the seven-phase general elections that began on April 19 and concludes on June 1, with votes set to be counted on June 4.A total of 88 seats out of the 543 seats in the lower house of parliament went to the polls on Friday, with 160 million people eligible to vote. They were spread across 13 states and federal territories in the world's most populous country.More than half of the seats in Friday's contests were in the southern states of Kerala and Karnataka and the northwestern state of Rajasthan.Prime Minister Narendra Modi, 73, is seeking a third straight term after his victory in the 2014 and 2019 elections.The outcome of Fridays voting will be crucial for Modis Bharatiya Janata Party, as the 88 constituencies up for grabs across 13 states include some of its strongholds in states like Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.

US troops have begun construction of a maritime pier off the coast of Gaza that aims to speed the flow of humanitarian aid into the territory, the Pentagon said."As an update for our humanitarian assistance support operations to establish the maritime corridor off the coast of Gaza, I can confirm that US military vessels to include the USS Benavidez, have begun to construct the initial stages of the temporary pier and causeway at sea," Pentagon spokesman Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a press briefing.He added, "We'll provide much more information in the very near future as we work alongside the international community to rush aid to the people of Gaza."Ryder said the pier would likely be up and running by early May, and last month said it would take up to 1,000 servicemembers to complete it.The modular causeway system would consist of an offshore platform where ships could deposit aid that would be taken by the Army to a motorized string of steel causeway sections that have been pushed to the shore."Simply put, they'll establish a temporary offshore maritime pier that allows for shipping vessels to transfer cargo to smaller vessels to transport and offload cargo to a temporary causeway for the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza," Ryder said in March, while adding, "The concept that is being planned involves the presence of US military personnel on military vessels offshore, but does not require US military personnel to go ashore."The US government announced at the beginning of March that it intended to help set up a temporary harbor to bring food, water and medicine to the war zone in view of the humanitarian emergency in the Palestinian territory.

Weather inshore until 6pm on Friday will be misty to fogy at places at first, becomes relatively hot during daytime, the Department of Meteorology said in its daily weather report, warning of expected poor horizontal visibility at places at first.Offshore, the weather will be misty at places at first, becomes hazy later, the report added.Wind inshore will be variable at a speed less than 5 knot at first, becomes mainly northeasterly- southeasterly at a speed of 3 to 13 knot.Offshore, it will be variable at first, becomes northwesterly - northeasterly at a speed of 5 to 15 knot.Visibility inshore will be 4 to 8 km/2 km or less at places at first. Offshore, it will be 4 to 9 km/3 km or less at places at first.Sea state inshore will be 1 to 2 feet, while offshore, it will be 2 to 4 feet.

Extra-time goals from Mao Hosoya and Kotaro Uchino ensured Japan squeezed past 10-man Qatar and into the semi-finals of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024 with a 4-2 win over Ilidio Vale’s side at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on Thursday.Hosoya slipped the ball under substitute goalkeeper Ali Korayem to break Qatar’s resistance 11 minutes into extra-time and Uchino added the fourth with seven minutes left as Go Oiwa’s side moved a step closer to claiming the title.“The red card was the turning point as it was very difficult to play with 10 players,” Qatar coach Ilidio Vale said after the match.“I want to congratulate the players for their high fighting spirit. We are dejected to miss a chance for qualifying for Olympics but I am sure the team and Qatar football have a great future ahead,” he added.Fuki Yamada had given Japan a second minute lead before Ahmed al-Rawi levelled with a superb header 22 minutes later, the Qataris then shrugging off Yousef Abdullah’s 41st minute red card to go in front four minutes into the second half through Jassem Gaber.But Seiji Kimura’s 67th minute header restored parity while Hosoya and Uchino struck late to take their nation into the last four as the Japanese seek to maintain their record of qualifying for every Olympic Games since 1996.Japan’s late show came in contrast to their rapid start, the Samurai Blue taking the lead on their first foray forward.Qatar gifted Oiwa’s team the opener after Hiroki Sekine’s hopeful long ball saw Saif Eldeen Hassan under-hit his pass and Yamada collected possession to smash a left foot shot into the top corner of Abdullah’s goal.Japan were in control, with Rihito Yamamoto and Joel Fujita dictating the tempo and Kuryu Matsuki busy, the FC Tokyo playmaker thumping his attempt from outside the area over the crossbar.However, the Qataris steadily asserted themselves and, in the 24th minute, Vale’s team pulled level. The ball found its way to Abdulla al-Yazidi on the right after Kein Sato fell in an attempt to cut out possession and the Qatari’s centre was met unchallenged by al-Rawi, who bulleted his header home.Hosoya should have restored Japan’s lead seven minutes before the break, shooting wide on the stretch from close range after Matsuki’s incisive ball across the face of goal.Moments later Abdullah was seeing red, dismissed after referee Hanna Hattab consulted the pitchside monitor following a clash with Hosoya, the Qatari guilty of lashing out at the Japan striker as he leapt to clear a high ball.Qatar refused to be despondent despite being down a man and, four minutes after the restart, the home side went in front. Moustafa Meshal’s pinpoint free-kick delivery landed squarely on the head of Gaber and he made no mistake.With a quarter of regular time remaining, though, the Japanese were level when Kimura nodded home Yamamoto’s in-swinging corner from close range to set up a finish that saw Sato force replacement goalkeeper Ali Korayem into a save while Shota Fujio headed over. Oiwa’s side were unable to find a way through again in regulation time, but in the 101st minute Hosoya was fed by Ryotaro Araki and he slid his shot under Korayem while Uchino tapped in after the goalkeeper parried Sota Kawasaki’s shot to break home hearts.Indonesia advance after shootout dramaIndonesia stunned South Korea after they pulled off a 11-10 win on penalties after they were tied 2-2 after extra time to seal a historic semi-final place at the AFC U23 Asian Cup Qatar 2024.Pratama Arhan producd the decisive spot-kick in a marathon shootout to cap a hard-earned triumph for the tournament debutants, who were pegged back twice in regulation time despite playing with a one-man advantage from the 70th minute onwards.For Hwang Sun-hong’s charges, who have made the last four on four out of the five previous editions, more than any other team, the defeat ended their hopes of making the Olympic Games for a 10th time. (the-afc.com)

The Qatar equestrian team won gold in showjumping at the First GCC Youth Games in UAE on Thursday with flawless and fastest show in the Special Two Phases class. The team comprising Sheikh Mohamed bin Jassim al-Thani, Khalifa Abdullah al-Khalidi, Ghanem Nasser al-Qadi and Saad Ahmed al-Saad clocked an aggregate of perfect 195.31 seconds. Saudi Arabia secured the silver medal with a time of 188.63 seconds. “It’s a great achievement and we are looking forward to win more accolades for Qatar,” rider al-Saad said.

Mohamed Abdulhadi S al-Hajri-owned General Panic capped Qatar’s horse racing season with a thrilling victory to clinch the End Of Season Cup at Al Rayyan Racecourse on Thursday.Under jockey Tomas Lukasek, the Ibrahim Saeed al-Malki-trained bay overcame a stiff challenge from Aemilianus, ridden by Marco Casamento, to win the 1600m Thoroughbred (Class 1) feature race by a head.The race gave a fitting end to the exciting season that comprised 45 Al Rayyan Meetings while Al Uqda Racecourse hosted 22 meetings.The final meeting last evening that had 12 races on the card also featured Al Karana Cup for Purebred Arabian Novice Plate and the Al Utouriya Cup – the Purebred Arabian Open Race.The Khalid Hamad MA al-Atteya-owned Keheilah Al Sakab on second career start, took a spectacular victory in the Al Karana Cup.Under Alberto Sanna, the grey filly tracked the leaders until she was produced in the final 200m to speed past her rivals and record a comfortable two-length win for trainer Jassim Hamad al-Atteya in the 1400m race.HE Sheikha Iman bint Mohamed bin Khalifa al-Thani’s Hargan scored for the second straight time, winning the Al Utouriya Cup.The six-year-old trainee of Rudy Nerbonne came with a massive sweep from the back of the 16-runner filed to go past his rivals one by one to take the lead in the final 100m and score by over three lengths with Lukas Delozier in the saddle.Abdulla Rashid al-Kubaisi, QREC Racing Manager, presented the trophies to the winners.RESULTSEnd Of Season Cup DayWINNERS: (Horse, Trainer, Jockey)1 - Season Finale Trophy - Thoroughbred (Class 1)General Panic, Ibrahim Saeed al-Malki, Tomas Lukasek2 - Al Utouriya Cup, Purebred Arabian Open RaceHargan, Rudy Nerbonne, Lukas Delozier3 - Al Karana Cup, Purebred Arabian Novice PlateKeheilah Al Sakab, Jassim Hamad al-Atteya, Alberto Sanna4 - Thoroughbred Handicap (60-80)Glengarra, Saleh Naji SH A al-Yafei, Saleh Faraj al-Otaibi5 - Thoroughbred Handicap (70-90)Tenjin, Mohamed Ghazali, Marco Casamento6 - Thoroughbred Handicap (70-90)Sarangani, Gassim Ghazali, Marco Casamento7 -Thoroughbred Handicap (70-90)Pagliacci, Ahmed al-Jehani, Saleh Salem al-Marri8 - Thoroughbred Handicap (60-80)Sardem, Bader al-Balushi, Maikon De Souza9 - Local Thoroughbred Handicap (45-65)Torkia, Mohamed Ghazali, Marco Casamento10: Purebred Arabian Graduation PlateZakadir, Alban de Mieulle, Soufiane Saadi11 - Local Purebred Arabian Maiden PlateRaslaan, Mohamed Khaled Elahmed, Muanis al-Siyabi12: Purebred Arabian Maiden PlateDukhan Alseej, Jassim Hamad al-Atteya, Anas al-Seyabi

Jurgen Klopp conceded Liverpool need a collapse from Arsenal and Manchester City to win the Premier League after a shock 2-0 defeat at Everton on Wednesday.Klopp tasted defeat in front of a crowd in the Merseyside derby for the first time to leave the Reds’ title hopes hanging by a thread.Liverpool trail Arsenal by three points with four matches remaining and are just one point clear of City, who have two games in hand.“You can read the table. We need a crisis at City and Arsenal and we need to win football games,” said Klopp, who is nearing the end of his tenure at Anfield.The German had enjoyed a dominant record over Everton with only one previous defeat in 18 games, but his final taste of the Merseyside derby was a bitter one.“It was not the most inspired performance,” added Klopp. “I really feel for the people, I’m really sorry for that. People tell me before about record in the derby. It feels really different (to have lost).“It was unnecessary but it happened.”A run of four wins in nine games has seen Klopp’s men crash out of the Europa League and FA Cup as well as falling off the pace at the top of the Premier League.Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk called on the players not to let Klopp’s farewell fizzle out with a whimper.“I think everyone has to look in the mirror and look at their performance and if they’ve given everything. Do they really want to win the league?” Van Dijk said. “We weren’t good enough. We all have to do much better. We can’t letthe season go out like tonight. We have to do much better in every sense.”Virgil van Dijk said Arne Slot’s attacking tactics could be the ideal match for the club if the Feyenoord boss wins the race to succeed Jurgen Klopp.Klopp will leave Anfield at the end of this season and Slot has emerged as the leading candidate to replace the German.Liverpool are reportedly in talks with Slot over a potential move to Merseyside and Van Dijk has expressed his support for his fellow Dutchman’s football philosophy.“I find it hard to answer of course, but I think Arne Slot is perhaps one of the better Dutch coaches at this moment,” Van Dijk told Viaplay following Liverpool’s 2-0 defeat at Everton on Wednesday.“I think the way of playing and the philosophy he has, that he could be a Liverpool coach.“Only I think from what I read and hear is that it’s still far from being completed. We shall see.”If Slot is picked to take over from Klopp, who led Liverpool to the Premier League title in 2020 and won the Champions League in 2019, he will likely have to lift a team that is set to finish this season on a low note.