University of the East opened its bid in the 2024 V-League Women’s Collegiate Challenge in a stunning way, crushing reigning NCAA Season 99 champion De La Salle-College of St. Benilde in straight sets at the Paco Arena on Wednesday night, July 31.The Lady Warriors staged multiple comebacks to complete their domination of the Lady Blazers in a battle between Jerry Yee-coached squads.“The Lady Blazers have had the advantage over us the past couple of weeks, so I’m very happy that the girls pulled through even coming from behind,” said UE assistant coach Obet Vital.Down by as many as five points midway through the final set, UE rattled off a pivotal 9-1 run to gain momentum and sweep CSB to a 25-22, 25-23, 25-21 victory.Khy Cepada led the Lady Warriors by delivering 20 points, all from attacks, while Kayce Balingit and Jenalyn Umayam contributed 12 and 10 markers, respectively.Jelai Gajero also returned to the court for the first time since tearing her ACL in the same tournament seven months ago. The California Academy standout focused on regaining her floor defense for the game.Meanwhile, Corrine Apostol paced CSB with 14 points, while Rhea Densing chipped in 12 markers.UE will face UAAP Season 86 silver medalist University of Santo Tomas on Sunday, August 4, while St. Benilde will aim to bounce back against Far Eastern University on the same date.

Team USA dominated the South Sudan Bright Stars 103-86 in the group phase of the Olympics men’s basketball on Wednesday, July 31 at the Pierre Mauro Stadium in Paris, France.There was no repeat of their pre-Olympic game where South Sudan almost made an upset against the Americans as the game ended at 101-100. Team USA had to overcome a 16-point deficit, with LeBron James scoring the game winning lay-up.The Americans showed their might this time as they started the game with a 6-0 run and never looked back until the end to secure their quarterfinals ticket in the Paris Games.Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo led the Americans in scoring with 18 points, 14 of which came from the first half of play. He also grabbed seven rebounds, swatted two shots, dished off one assist and tallied one steal.Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Anthony Edwards, Devin Booker and Derick While all finished in double figures in scoring too.It was also the return of Jayson Tatum in the starting line-up after not playing a single minute in their opening game against Serbia.On the other hand, Noni Omot led South Sudan with 24 points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals while Carlik Jones added 18 markers, seven dimes, three boards and one steal.Team USA will still be facing Puerto Rico on August 3 to cap off their group stage assignment while the Bright Stars will face Serbia in a must win situation to advance to the next round.

Carlos Yulo ranked 12th in the all-around finals of the men’s artistic gymnastics to cap off the first of his three medal events in the 2024 Paris Olympics at the Bercy Arena in France on Thursday, August 1 (Manila time).The 24-year-old gymnast, who is a three-time all-around gold medalist in the Southeast Asian Games, failed to land a podium finish by placing 12th out of 24 qualifiers with a total score of 83.032.Still, it was a remarkable performance for Yulo as he reached his first individual all-around finals of the Olympics – a far reach from the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games where he finished the all-around qualification at 47th place.Yulo showed significant improvements in the different apparatuses, highlighting his improvement from just being a floor exercise world champion in 2019.Yulo netted his highest score in vault with 14.766 points, then garnered 14.500 points in parallel bars and 14.333 points in floor exercise to bounce back from an unfavorable start that saw him fall during his pommel horse routine.Oka Shinnosuke of Japan bagged the gold medal with a total of 86.832.The 2020 Tokyo gold medalist Zhang Boheng of China failed to defend his crown, finishing second with 86.599 points.Zhang’s teammate, Xiao Ruoteng snatched the bronze medal with a close score of 86.364.Yulo will look to bring his upgraded routines, but with cleaner execution, in the apparatus finals of the floor exercise and the vault medal rounds on August 3 and 4, respectively.

Hergie Bacyadan bravely took the challenge but ultimately succumbed to top seed Li Qian of China in the Round of 16 of the women’s 75kg at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Wednesday, July 31, at North Paris Arena.The 34-year-old Chinese, a two-time Olympic medalist, scored long jabs and quick combinations in taking unanimous 5-0 decision against the 29-year-old Filipina, who was making her Olympic debut.The Igorot boxer tried to match up with the more seasoned Chinese boxer in the opening round, but Li was able to impose her will against the debutant, earning the nod from all five judges.Bacyadan, a first-time Olympian, would connect combination shots against Li in the third round, also putting the Chinese bet on the ropes, but it proved too late as the latter secured the victory with a dominant performance.The loss of Bacyadan came just hours after Olympic medal bet Eumir Marcial bombed out in the men’s light-heavyweight class.

Chile’s table tennis player Zeng Zhiying proved that age is just a number by being the country’s representative in the Paris Olympics. She fulfilled the athlete’s dream of playing in the grandest stage at 58 years old.Despite bowing out early in the tournament, Zhiying still shone with her own spotlight because of her grit to finally reach her Olympic dream in a tourney where it’s filled with all sorts of players from different ages and backgrounds.Zeng made her Olympic debut on Saturday but fell short in the preliminary round where she lost to Lebanon’s Mariana Sahakian, 1-4.Before Zeng’s match, she made sure to thank her father and brother for the support they have given throughout her journey.

Carlos Yulo begins the first of his three final events at the Paris Olympics men’s artistic gymnastics at the Bercy Arena on Wednesday, July 31.The reigning Asian all-around champion, Yulo showed he can go toe-to-toe with the best in the world after placing ninth in the qualification with a total of 83.631 points.The individual all-around finals, featuring 24 finalists, is expected to be a showdown among the Chinese and Japanese aces with Filipino-British bet Jake Jarman as a dark horse.Meanwhile, Gymnastics Association of the Philippines president Cynthua Carrion is realistic that Yulo has a slim chance in the all-around competition.“He will not win,” said Carrion bluntly. “But he will give it his all.”But Yulo will be there in what could well be a preview to an anticipated Yulo moment in floor exercise and vault finals at the Bercy Arena this weekend.Yulo's determination to succeed stems from a frustrating finish in the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games, where the 2019 floor exercise world champion could not make the final event as a fall during the qualification round took him out of medal contention.

Hidilyn Diaz, the Philippines’ first Olympic gold medalist is coming to the French capital, not as an athlete, but as a member of the International Weightlifting Federation Athletes’ Commission.Her arrival to the Games was confirmed by the Philippine Sports Commission Chairman Dicky Bachmann on Tuesday, July 30.“She is arriving either on August 3 or August 4,” said Bachmann in a text message, adding that Diaz’s arrival would be a great source of inspiration for other Filipino athletes who are still vying for the Olympic medal, including her fellow weightlifters Elreen Ando, John Ceniza and Vanessa Sarno.“Her presence will definitely add much-needed inspiration to all our athletes competing in the Summer Games,” added Bachmann.The Zamboanga native Diaz, who captured the country’s first Olympic gold medal during the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, remains a towering figure in Philippine sports as her feat became a shining moment for the nation.Marking a new chapter in her journey to develop future champions, Diaz inaugurated her weightlifting academy, HD Weightlifting Academy, in Jalajala, Rizal on July 26, the third-year anniversary of her golden conquest in the Tokyo games.

Farm Fresh finally tallied its first win in the 2024 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference.Yeny Murillo was unstoppable in the fifth set as Farm Fresh survived the Galeries Tower in a five-set thriller, 25-22, 35-37, 23-25, 25-20, 15-10, to secure their first victory in Pool A on Tuesday, July 30, at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.The Colombian outside spiker led her team’s offense after delivering 29 crucial points, built on 26 attacks, 16 excellent receptions and 10 excellent digs, carrying her squad on her back in the fifth set.“You know, we have been working really hard and we are trying to get in rhythm with each other and I feel like my team needed this win because my team needs motivation to keep pushing and keep pushing harder,” Murillo said during the postgame press conference.Also leaving a strong impression for the Foxies were Caitlin Viray and Trisha Tubu with 18 markers apiece and Ckyle Tagsip contributing 15, including four blocks, in a solid team win for Foxies, who now occupied the fifth spot in Pool A with a 1-2 win-loss record.On the other hand, the Highrisers dropped to 0-3 at the bottom of Pool A.Thai import Chuewulim Sutadta paced the Galeries Tower with 19 points, 19 excellent receptions, and 10 excellent digs.Graze Bombita and France Ronquillo added 17 points each, while Roselle Baliton chipped in 14 markers.Farm Fresh aims to sustain its momentum when they face Nxled on Saturday, August 03, at the same venue, while the Galeries Tower will look to secure their first win against Creamline. 

France prevailed in their nail-biting Olympic men’s basketball clash against Japan 94-90 in a game that went to overtime.In the closely contested ballgame, the No. 9 ranked Les Bleus was trailing by four points in the dying seconds of game until Matthew Strazel threw a desperation three-pointer that went in and was fouled by Yuki Kawamura of the ranked 26 Japan Akatsuki Five. Strazel converted the bonus free throw that tied the game at 84 and forced overtime.During the extension, Victor Wembanyama scored eight of the 10 overtime points of France to overcome his game struggles and led Les Bleus to victory.Wembanyama started the game with eight points, then had his woes for the rest of the game before overtime came. The San Antonio Spurs superstar still led the French team in scoring with 18 markers, added 11 boards, six assists, two steals and two block shots.Strazel who bailed them out with his four-point play in the regulation that forced overtime tallied 17 markers and three dimes.Meanwhile, Yuki Kawamura led the Akatsuki Five in scoring with 29 markers. He also grabbed seven rebounds, dished off six assists, and tallied one steal.Los Angeles Lakers Rui Hachimura added 24 points (7/11 on 2-point shots, 3/5 on 3-point area, and 1/2 on free throws) for the Japanese team. He also grabbed three boards in his 28 minutes of play before his ejection after receiving his second unsportsmanlike foul with 8:31 left in the fourth quarter.France now has a 2-0 slate in their group while Japan went down to 0-2.The Akatsuki Five next assignment will be on August 2 against Brazil while the host team Les Blue will face Germany on August 3 to cap off their match-ups in the Group Phase.

Swimmer Kayla Sanchez’s quest for a medal in the women’s 100 meter freestyle at the 2024 Paris Olympics came to an end when she failed to advance in the semifinals.Sanchez clocked 54.21 seconds in the second semifinal on Tuesday, July 30, (early Wednesday in Manila) at the Paris La Defense Arena, good for seventh in her group and 15th overall.Earlier in the day, the 23-year-old Filipina made her Olympic debut for the Philippines by delivering an impressive performance after finishing fourth-place in the heats.She registered 53.67 seconds, setting a new national record for the Philippines in the women’s 100m freestyle.Unfortunately, Sanchez missed the top-eight cutoff for the final and became the eighth member of the 22-strong Team Philippines to get eliminated.Gymnasts Aleah Finnegan, Emma Malabuyo, and Levi Jung-Ruivivar, fencer Samantha Catantan, judoka Kiyomi Watanabe, rower Joanie Degalco, and boxer Eumir Marcial all bowed out of medal contention in their respective events.

Nesthy Petecio secured a ticket to the Round of 16 of the Women's Featherweight (57kg) via unanimous decision (5-0) against India's Jaismine Lamboria.Petecio, the Tokyo Olympics silver medalist and Philippine female flag-bearer in the Paris Games  showed her might from the very beginning of the match to keep her gold medal dream alive.The Filipina boxer will face France Amina Zidani in the Round of 16 on August 3, 2:00 a.m. PH time.

After heartbreaking losses from the women’s rowing and women’s judo, Kalya Sanchez kept the women's medal dream alive for the Philippines as she entered the semifinal round of women’s 100m freestyle in swimming.Sanchez swam to the top 16 with a time of 53.67, earning the country a slot in the semi-finals. She even ranked number four in heat 4.This is the second Olympic stint of Sanchez who previously represented Canada in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and won silver.The semifinals will be tomorrow, July 31, 3:25 a.m. PH time.

In what appeared to be a continuation of a sad story overall for the Filipino judoka, Kiyomi Watanabe’s Olympic dream ended early as she fell quickly out of medal contention in the 2024 Paris Games.She ended her Olympics bid in a 51-second Ippon loss against China’s Jing Tang in the women’s judo -63kg Round of 32 at the Champ-de-Mar Arena in Paris, France Tuesday afternoon (Manila time).This is the second straight early exit for Watanabe, following a similar ippon loss against Spanish judoka Cristina Cabana Perez in just 38 seconds at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in 2021.Watanabe is the third Filipino and first woman judo athlete to compete in multiple Summer Olympic Games, the last being John Baylon and Jerry Dino in the 1988 Seoul and 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games.Watanabe is a regional champion, having won in the Southeast Asian Games in 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2019.

Team USA has dominated their Olympic opponents both in the men’s and women’s divisionThe Americans led by NBA superstars LeBron James and Kevin Durant defeated Serbia 110-84 in their opening game of their group stage.LeBron James tallied 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds while Durant scored the game high 23 points coming off a perfect field goal from the first half of play.On the other hand, Nikola Jokic paced the Serbian team with 20 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.The win placed Team USA on top of Group C after one set of games. Their next opponent will be the uprising and first time Olympian South Sudan team on July 31.

Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan won the country’s first medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics in the women’s individual saber event at the Grand Palais on Monday, July 29.Five-time Olympian Kharlan reached the semifinals by defeating Japan’s Fukushima Shihomi (15:9), Azerbaijan’s Anna Bashta (15:6), and Hungary’s Anna Marton (15:7), but she lost to top seed Sarah Balzer (7:15) of France in the semifinals.Kharlan overturned a six-point deficit to beat South Korea’s Sebin Choi, 15-14, to earn a bronze medal.The Ukrainian fencer was disqualified from last year's world championships, a key Olympic qualifier, for refusing to shake the hand of a Russian opponent Anna Smirnova after winning their bout.Amid a mounting backlash, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) stepped in to hand Harlan a “unique exception”, a guaranteed spot at the Games. The fencing’s governing body overturned a two-month ban it had imposed along with the disqualification and made handshakes optional soon after.Kharlan has now earned a total of five Olympic medals in both team and individual events, but her latest medal is nothing like the others.“I brought a medal to my country, and it is the first one, and it is going to be a good start for our athletes who are here because it is really tough to compete when your country is at war,” Kharlan said post match.“Every medal is like gold. I don’t care that it is bronze. It is gold.”

Can the one and only King of MLBB Analysis help solve the Phoenix Army’s playoffs woes?That is the question that many people are asking, as Caisam “Wolf” Nopueto traded his three-piece analyst suit and caster headset for a white-black-and-orange long sleeved polo to call the shots on the side of a revamped TNC Pro Team’s roster for MPL Philippines Season 14.Wolf, a 13-season veteran of global Mobile Legends broadcast, was announced as the new lead tactician for TNC in a roster reveal held Sunday night.The legendary esports broadcaster is a two-time Philippine Esports Awards winner, and had also innovated the use of graphic explainers, and his self-developed mobile app, in giving context and deep analysis to what was traditionally a hype and energy-centered MPL Philippines broadcast.

The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters swept the 39th Kadayawan Invitational basketball tournament after dominating the De La Salle Green Archers 138-116 during the finals night held last July 28 at the University of Southeastern Philippines gymnasium in Davao City.Photo: Rain or Shine Facebook page RoS’ import in the upcoming PBA Governor’s Cup led the way with 34 points and 11 rebounds while the eventual Finals MVP Andrei Caracut added 21 points, eight assists and three rebounds.Supporting the two are Gian Mamuyac and Keith Datu. Mamuyac finished with 17 markers while Datu also tallied the same score highlighted by his 3-of-4 shooting from the three-point area.The Elasto painters were perfect 4-0 from the came at the expense of fellow PBA teams Phoenix Fuel Masters and Converge FiberXers in the single round elimination while defeating UAAP champions De La Salle Green Archers twice - one in the eliminations and one in the finals.In the finals, UAAP MVP Kevin Quimabao still led the Green Archers with a double-double performance of 19 points and 16 rebounds despite having an ankle sprain. He was supported by Mike Philips who tallied 18 markers and 11 boards.The reigning UAAP champions might not won the Kadayawan tourney but they still held their heads up high as they defeated two pro teams in Converge and Phoenix during the elimination round and even got toe-to-toe against eventual champions RoS in the preliminaries before bowing down to them in the tournament finale.Meanwhile, Phoenix defeated Converge 87-81 in their battle for third.Phoenix import Jay McKinnis led the way for the Fuel Masters by scoring 22 points and grabbing 17 rebounds while star Jason Perkins added 13 markers.The champion team received P200,000 as prize money.

Filipina rower Joanie Delgaco’s goal to keep the Philippines bid alive in the 2024 Paris Olympics shattered as she bows out of medal contention in the quarterfinals of the women’s single sculls on Tuesday, July 30, at Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium.Delgaco registered a time of 7:58.30 to wind up sixth in the six-woman heat. Only the top three athletes in each heat will advance to the semifinals.The 26-year-old, who is the first female rower from the Philippines in the Olympic Games, qualified for the quarterfinals after she topped the repechage heat with 7:55:00 last Sunday, July 28.Delcago will try to bounce back in the consolation semifinals set for Wednesday, July 31, at the same venue.

Serbian gaming organization Aurora Gaming has formally entered the MLBB scene through the reveal of its powerhouse MPL Philippines roster Saturday night.The team is composed of powerhouse veterans, all of which have had significant experience in and out of the Land of Dawn.Leading the pack are ex-Blacklist International stalwarts Edward Jay “Edward” Dapadap, Kenneth Carl “Yue” Tadeo, and Renejay “Renejay” Barcarse.RSG Philippines’ former star jungler Jonard “Demonkite” Caranto, TNC Pro Team stalwart Ben “Benthings” Maglaque, and Minana EVOS’ Jan Dominic “Domeng” del Mundo have also joined the team.At the coaching team of Aurora’s star-studded lineup are ex-Blacklist coaches Aniel “Master The Basics” Jiandani, supported by assistant coach Dexter Louise “Dex Star” Alaba.And guiding the team as Esports and Gaming Content Directors are MPL legends Johnmar “OhMyV33nus” Villaluna and Danerie James “Wise” del Rosario.Aurora Gaming says their focus on the team would focus on ambassadorship, quelling rumors of a return for both OhMyV33nus and Wise to competitive MLBB.