Tokyo 2020 Olympics

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      Team GB Olympic gold medal-winning boxer Galal Yafai to turn professional and follow brothers Kal and Gamal

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      OLYMPIC boxing gold medallist Galal Yafai has revealed he will follow his brothers Kal and Gamal by turning professional.The Team GB star defeated Carlo Paalam of the Philippines at Tokyo 2020 to claim the flyweight crown.
      Galal Yafai has revealed he will follow his brothers Kal and Gamal by turning professionalCredit: Instagram
      The Team GB star won boxing gold at Tokyo 2020Credit: PA
      Yafai’s elder sibling Gamal, 30, recently held the European super-bantamweight title while Kal, 32, had the WBA super-flyweight title between 2016 to 2020.
      And despite previously being non-committal over whether he would go pro himself, the younger Yafai brother has now told talkSPORT he is ready to ste -up after winning amateur boxing’s greatest accolade this month.
      He said: “Definitely, I wanna be a world champion man. Even before the Olympics I was dying to go pro.
      “I was devastated with the year’s [extra] wait and I thought, ‘I wanna be pro now.’
      “I don’t really like amateur boxing, it’s not for me, but because I got to the Olympics I had to go.
      “And I just happened to win gold as well, so it’s put me in great stead to hopefully be a world champion.”

      The fighter also revealed that fans will not have to wait very long to see his pro bow.
      Yafai added: “I’m definitely gonna be fighting before the end of the year, hopefully it goes to plan.
      “Trainer-wise I’m still looking around and seeing who could suit me.
      “Tony Sims is a great trainer and a good person as well, I really like Tony Sims. I’ll look at all of them and see what happens.”
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      CJ Ujah breaks silence on doping ban as ‘shocked’ Team GB relay silver medal winner says ‘I am not a cheat’

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      TEAM GB star CJ Ujah has declared ‘I am not a cheat’ after being provisionally suspended for an alleged anti-doping breach.The 27-year-old won 4x100m sprint silver in Tokyo.
      CJ Ujah declared ‘I am not a cheat’Credit: PA
      CJ Ujah poses alongside his team-mates on the podium after winning 4x100m relay silver in TokyoCredit: Getty
      But Ujah, as well as team-mates Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, could be stripped of his medal if he is found guilty.
      Ujah, however, is adamant that he did nothing wrong.
      Breaking his silence, he told PA: “It’s taken me a few days to process the information I received on Thursday shortly before it was made public.
      “I am completely shocked and devastated by this news.
      “To be absolutely clear, I am not a cheat and I have never and would never knowingly take a banned substance.
      “I love my sport and I know my responsibilities both as an athlete and as a team-mate.

      “I am respecting the formal processes and will not be making any further comment until it is appropriate to do so.”
      The presence of banned substances ostarine and S-23 were found in Ujah’s sample.
      These help with building muscle.
      Italy’s shock double-gold winning sprinter Lamont Marcell Jacobs taunted that he ‘smiled’ when hearing the news of Ujah’s provisional suspension.
      He told Tuttosport: “Doping? The situation has not touched me so much.
      After seeing the Ujah investigation I would say that perhaps it is better to look into your own house first and then attack others. It makes me smileLamont Marcell Jacobs
      “I know the sacrifices and the blows I went through to get here and instead I want to enjoy it 100 per cent.
      ‘”After seeing the Ujah investigation I would say that perhaps it is better to look into your own house first and then attack others. It makes me smile.”
      If found guilty, in addition to losing his silver medal, Ujah could be booted out of athletics for four years.
      First, however, he can ask to have his B sample analysed.
      Lamont Marcell Jacobs poses with one of his goldsCredit: AFP
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      North Korea airs first Tokyo Olympics broadcast two days AFTER Closing Ceremony with Team GB vs Chile women’s football

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      NORTH KOREA aired its first Tokyo 2020 broadcast a whole TWO DAYS after the Olympic Games’ closing ceremony.The delayed Tokyo 2020 Games came to an end last Sunday with a spectacular closing ceremony at the Olympic Stadium.
      The Tokyo 2020 Olympics came to an end last weekCredit: AP
      But North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has so far only permitted a single three-week-old event from the tournament be broadcastCredit: AFP
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      But the government in Pyongyang have only just begun broadcasting events from the tournament.
      According to Yonhap, the socialist regime’s first broadcast of the Games was the women’s match between Team GB and Chile.
      That match, which Team GB comfortably won 2-0, originally took place THREE WEEKS ago.
      Korean Central Television (KCTV) aired 70 minutes of Team GB’s opening fixture of the tournament.
      Specialist North Korean website NK News claims the game was aired without any commentary and with a low resolution.
      Residents in North Korea would’ve had no knowledge of the Games as they aren’t permitted access to the internet or watch international TV channels.

      North Korea opted against sending a delegation to Tokyo this year due to concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, insisting they wanted to protect their athletes.
      The regime, however, has publicly claimed there are no cases of Covid in the country.
      A statement from the country’s ministry of sport read: “The committee decided not to join the 32nd Olympics Games to protect athletes from the global health crisis caused by the coronavirus.”
      The International Olympic Committee reached out to North Korea several times to assess the state of the pandemic within its borders.

      An IOC spokesperson said: “The IOC has not received any official application from the NOC of DPRK to be released from their obligation to take part in the Olympic Games according to the Olympic Charter.”
      The Tokyo 2020 games marked the first time North Korea has missed a summer games since 1988.
      The North Korean government opted to boycott the Seoul Games due to the ongoing Cold War, which ended three years later.

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      Team GB boxing hero Lauren Price reveals she is in talks with Eddie Hearn about turning pro after winning Olympic gold

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      TEAM GB’S Olympic boxing hero Lauren Price has revealed she is set for talks with Eddie Hearn over turning professional.The 27-year-old Welsh wonder won middleweight gold in Tokyo last week and has now been contacted by Anthony Joshua’s Matchroom promoter.
      Eddie Hearn wants talks with one of Team GB’s gold medal heroes from the Tokyo GamesCredit: Getty
      Olympic middleweight champion Lauren Price revealed she plans to have talks with him over turning proCredit: PA
      Price claims she wants to ‘keep her options open’ but reiterated her intention to defend her title at the 2024 Paris Games and admitted her heart is still in the amateur ranks.
      She told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast: “I’m sure as an athlete three years is nothing.
      “I’m still young and for me Paris is only three years away so I could be a double Olympian.
      “There’s a lot of opportunities there, but for now I’m just enjoying the moment. I’ll take a few weeks off and chill out and then go from there.
      “But for me, I love what I do – I’ve got a great life training in Sheffield, training with world class coaches in a world class programme.
      “I can’t thank GB Boxing enough so for me there’s everything that’s coming up as well.”
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      Speaking about Hearn, she continued: “He’s asked to have a chat with me and stuff like that.
      “He’s obviously the main man and I don’t know; it’s opened my options up, but for now I’m just going to take some rest and enjoy the moment.
      “When you win an Olympic medal and that it changes your life doesn’t it, and starting off as a pro, if you’ve got that type of background, you’ve reached the top in the amateur game… then the price, as you say, will be pretty interesting.”
      Price also added: “For now my heart is obviously staying on with Team GB and doing another Olympics.
      “You look at the likes of Nicola Adams and Katie Taylor. They both did two cycles and Katie Taylor at the minute she is smashing it up in the pros as well.
      “Being a man, it’s different. In the women’s game it’s big, it’s getting bigger and bigger all the time so another three years it will be bigger again and (I can) just go from there then.”
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      Team GB Olympic hero Galal Yafai bought PlayStation 5 by big brother Kal after winning Tokyo gold medal

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      GALAL YAFAI was not only rewarded with a gold medal for his Olympics heroics – but also a PlayStation 5.Victory in the flyweight division at Tokyo 2020 was just the latest step in the 28-year-old’s rise, which includes a Commonwealth Games gold.
      Galal Yafai has enjoyed a hero’s welcome after winning goldCredit: Getty
      And Yafai had a special gift waiting for him when he returned home to Birmingham after his victory over Carlo Paalam.
      The boxer revealed on GMB: “Kal bought me a Playstation 5.
      “You know what, before the final.
      “It’s kind of a present, I’ve been wanting one for ages now and thankfully Kal was able to get one.”
      Older brother Kal, 32, held the WBA super-flyweight title for over three years until his defeat to Ramon Gonzalez in February 2020.
      But getting hold of a PS5 is still a tall order, given the rapid manner in which they sell out across the country.
      GMB host Ben Shephard joked that the Olympic triumph was worth it for the games console, to which Yafai laughed and replied: “Definitely.”
      Team GB finished fourth in the medal table for Tokyo 2020, thanks to 22 gold medals.
      It’s overwhelming, I’m just so grateful for everyone to show me that love.Galal Yafai

      Yafai, who has another fighter brother in former Commonwealth super-bantamweight champ Gamal, was one of six British boxing medallists.
      Speaking after claiming his crown, he said: “I’m Olympic champion now and I’m over the moon.
      “I’ve worked hard, I took up boxing and thank god it worked out for me. I trained hard, gave it everything, and it just shows that if you work hard, you can get the rewards.
      “My friends, family, brothers will be over the moon. Everyone back in Birmingham, the support I’ve had has been ridiculous.
      “I just want to say a big thanks to everyone who has supported me. It’s overwhelming, I’m just so grateful for everyone to show me that love.”
      Yafai also held a video call with Kal live on television after the win, when he was told of the present.
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      An emotional Kal said: “Unreal, unreal. You’ve been brilliant the whole time.”
      He then added: “Galal, last thing I’ve gotta tell you, I’ve got your PS5 out there, waiting for you.”
      Galal said: “I can’t wait to get home and play on it, can’t wait.”
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      Boxing gold medallist Galal Yafai owes debt to legend O’Sullivan, 84, who convinced him to put Land Rover job on hold

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      FRANK O’SULLIVAN MBE remembers the moment he helped set Galal Yafai on the road to Tokyo gold.The 84-year-old legend of Birmingham amateur boxing had already helped mould older brothers Khalid and Gamal into future world and European champions, respectively.
      Olympic gold medalist Galal Yafai was helped along by boxing legend Frank O’SullivanCredit: PA
      The boxing coach trained Yafai and convinced him to put a job at Land Rover on hold to dedicate himself to the sport
      But flyweight Galal had seen the dark side of the boxing business and, with a promising career at Land Rover developing, sought out life-changing advice from the absolute best source possible.
      O’Sullivan told SunSport: “Even when Gal was just starting out on the Team GB squad, he had a good job at Land Rover.
      “One day he came to me and said he didn’t know whether he could succeed as a boxer.
      “He asked me whether he should quit and focus on his career or sacrifice a promising job to focus on his boxing.
      “I remember holding his hand and telling him that, because he didn’t have children or a mortgage, he could afford to pursue boxing.
      “I told him his window of opportunity would not last long and he should not regret ‘what could have been’ ten years down the line.
      Galal Yafai celebrates his Olympic final winCredit: AFP
      Gamal Yafai, left, Khalid, middle celebrate next to GalalCredit: Getty
      “I then went to Land Rover, spoke to one of their top people and explained the situation.
      “They then decided to give him 12 months off to focus on boxing, keeping his job on hold, and sponsoring him.
      “I think that period really helped him and the company are very proud of having helped someone like that.”
      O’Sullivan, with 65 years of coaching experience, is too modest to accept he is the godfather of Team GB’s recent boxing success, having been mastermind Rob McCracken’s mentor for his amateur career.
      But he is so respected and admired around the Midlands that when a young Kal Yafai was going off the rails at school, his mum gave the head of the Birmingham City Boxing Club permission to beat some sense into the eldest of the three.
      With great fondness for the family, O’Sullivan revealed: “When Khalid first joined the club, his mum brought him down because he was being a bit naughty at school.
      Gamal Yafai, left, Khalid, and GalalCredit: @galalyafai
      “She actually gave me permission, if he gave me any problems, to give him a slap — but thankfully I never had to.
      “I have always taught that to get respect you have to give respect and that is something we have always put into every lad that comes through the door — chump or champ — as part of club policy.”
      O’Sullivan’s mobile rings five times during our interview, with interest peaking in his lifelong dedication to the sweet science.
      His wife is playing secretary as his decades of effort and faith — often unrewarded — finally get the recognition they deserve.
      Tonight, just like last night and tomorrow, O’Sullivan will be down the gym, treating novices and champions just the same.
      He said: “When I first took the gym over, for the first 25 years I never charged anyone a penny.
      “We kept afloat with running our own shows and having regular fun days — all free for the kids but I would charge the parents to come in the gym and watch or wait for them.
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      “I am still in the gym five nights a week now.
      “Mrs O’Sullivan thinks it’s about time I started giving some work to some of the other coaches but I am not ready to hand the reins over yet.
      “The follies of youth and age are catching up with me — but I will always keep trying to beat them.”
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      Olympic marathon runner who knocked over row of water bottles denies he did it on purpose and says they were ‘slippery’

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      THE Olympic marathon runner who knocked over an entire row of water bottles claims it was an accident – and insisted they were ‘slippery’.Morhad Amdouni hit the headlines at the weekend when he reached the water station during the 26.2-mile race in 27-degree heat in Sapporo.
      Morhad Amdouni wiped out a whole row of water bottles at a drinking station during the Olympic marathonCredit: Instagram
      He collected the final bottle in the line but claimed the rest were ‘slippery’Credit: Instagram
      But rather than simply grabbing one bottle like his competitors in front, the Frenchman wiped out the whole line that had been set up.
      To top it off, he grabbed the final drink and went on his way as his rivals and viewers at home watched on baffled.
      But after being branded the ‘biggest d***head of the Tokyo Olympics’ by Piers Morgan, Amdouni has told his version of events – and denied doing the deed deliberately.
      As reported by RMC, the athlete said: “With fatigue and all that, I was gradually starting to lose lucidity and energy while hanging on.
      “I would like to apologise to the athletes. At one point, I tried to hold a bottle of water but I dropped some. It was not easy trying to hang on.
      “Out of principle, I tried to share the bottles of water during the race while respecting everyone and going high and proud, fighting for our colours of the jersey.”
      He later clarified on Facebook: “To put an end to all the sterile controversies generated by the video, I put this video [out to help you] really understand what happened.
      “To guarantee freshness to the bottles, they are soaked in the water which makes them slippery.
      “However, it is clear that I try to take one from the beginning of the row but these slip when I touch them.”
      Amdouni eventually finished in 17th place recording a time of two hours 14 minutes and 33 seconds.
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      The race was eventually won by Kenyan legend Eliud Kipchoge.
      Kipchoge finished in a time of two hours, eight minutes and 38 seconds to take gold.
      In winning the marathon he became one of three to successfully reclaim the title, after his victory in Rio 2016.
      Frenchman Amdouni also competed in the 10,000m at the Tokyo GamesCredit: Getty

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      Tokyo 2020 medal table: USA beat China to top spot after landing three golds on final day of Olympics

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      AMERICA once again claimed top spot in the medal table as they pipped China on the final day thanks to three golds.The USA scooped gold medals in the women’s basketball and women’s volleyball, while Jennifer Valente won in her omnium event in track cycling.
      Team USA finish the Tokyo 2020 Games at the top of the medal table thanks to three golds on the final day
      Track cyclist Jennifer Valente poses with her gold medal after winning the women’s omniumCredit: EPA
      The US Olympic team also won the most medals at Tokyo 2020 with a whopping 113 in total.
      They won an incredible 39 golds – one more than China – while also taking home 41 silvers and 33 bronze medals.
      It is the third Games in a row that America have finished top of the pile and sixth out of the last seven Olympics.
      The only Games they have failed to come top in the table since Atlanta 1996 is Beijing 2008 where hosts China finished in first place.
      Incredibly, Team USA have won the most medals at every Games since hosting the global tournament in 1996.
      Another astonishing achievement is that America have never finished outside of the top three in either the medal table or medals won since the very first Athens 1896 Games.
      And they could have had two more gold medals on the final day at Tokyo, but boxers Keyshawn Davis and Richard Torrez Jr lost in their respective lightweight and super-heavyweight bouts.
      Swimmer Caeleb Dressel won the most medals in the 2020 Games, having claimed five golds to bring his total Olympic medal count to seven.
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      Team GB finished fourth in the medal table after winning 22 golds
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      It was another memorable games for Team GB, who finished in fourth spot with a fantastic 22 gold medals.
      Two more golds were won on the final day, with boxer Lauren Price beating China’s Li Qian in the middleweight event.
      And Jason Kenny created British history by becoming the first Olympian to win seven gold medals after he defended his keirin title.
      Great Britain have now finished in the top four for the fourth consecutive Games, having finished fourth in Beijing, third in London and second in Rio.
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