Sports

One-Day Cup: Lammonby ton keeps Somerset alive as Leics & Middlesex stay top

Published

3 days ago

August 7, 2026

Middlesex clinched their fifth win of the competition with a brilliantly measured chase to add insult to injury for Durham, who had England opener Gay retire hurt earlier in the day.

Durham posted 303 from their 50 overs and, although Gay left the field unable to continue with a shoulder complaint on nine, his opening partner Alex Lees added 103. Will Rhodes also contributed 65, while Middlesex bowler Naavya Sharma claimed figures of 4-64 from his 10 overs.

Chasing a daunting target, Middlesex put runs on the board early.

When Josh De Caires (34) got out to Kasey Aldridge, Middlesex captain Ben Geddes (77) and Joe Cracknell (84) immediately picked up the baton and put on 96 for the third wicket.

Neither were there to steer Middlesex over the line, but late hitting from tail-enders Toby Roland-Jones and Henry Brookes finished the job with just three balls left.

Yorkshire all-but sealed progress from Group B with a five-wicket win over Derbyshire at Scarborough, thanks to substantial contributions from batters James Wharton and Sam Whiteman.

Openers Harry Came (58) and Martin Andersson (67) shared a stand worth 140 for the Falcons before the hosts fought back.

Ben Cliff (3-57) led the way with the ball to ensure Derbyshire were made to settle on 278-8, and that made for an enticing out-ground chase.

Derbyshire appeared well placed to defend that figure when they had Yorkshire at 57-3. But century partnerships between Wharton (75) and Whiteman (94), and then Whiteman and George Hill (63 not out) carefully guided the hosts to victory in the final over of a gripping match.

Essex edged a thriller, winning by just three runs against hosts Glamorgan as more than 600 runs were scored and 17 wickets fell at Sophia Gardens.

Put in, Essex openers Benkenstein and Noah Thain (76) put on 166 for the first wicket, as the former smoked 140 from just 109 balls.

Having been 257-2, Essex collapsed and were bowled out for 312 with 17 deliveries left of their innings. However, they were well placed to defend that when they reduced Glamorgan to 78-5, with Shane Snater (3-49) making in-roads with the ball.

A terrific unbeaten 118 from Timm van der Gugten, well supported in the middle overs by Alex Horton (85), hauled Glamorgan towards the victory line.

Yet they fell short when needing six from the final over as Mackenzie Jones restricted them to just two.

Fynn Hudson-Prentice top scored with a blistering 68 from only 35 balls as he helped Sussex up to 333-9 – but Worcestershire Rapids won the day at Hove thanks to their skipper.

Hudson-Prentice, in his final season with Sussex before he joins Hampshire in 2027, was one of eight players in the batting order to pass 20 in a true team effort which failed to bear fruit.

Ben Gibbon (3-74) was rewarded for his efforts with the ball, but Jack Leaning also posted 50 as the hosts set an imposing total for their visitors to chase.

Isaac Mohammed (44) and Brett D’Oliveira (31) set the platform for the hunt and then Kashif Ali smashed 73 from 51 balls, including six fours and three sixes.

Libby played a captain’s knock to anchor the chase, finishing on 109 not out as the Rapids chased down their target with 10 balls remaining.

Sports

U.S. Olympic hopeful Jonah Koech accepts 3-year ban for blood doping

Published

28 seconds ago

August 10, 2026

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National doping officials at USADA announced Monday that U.S. middle-distance runner and Olympic hopeful Jonah Koech has accepted a three-year ban for blood doping. The watchdog group said Koech, 29, will be ineligible to compete through July 17, 2029.

USADA’s decision ends Koech’s bid to compete at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, and he must forfeit all medals, points and prizes he has won since his first abnormal blood sample on July 30, 2025.

That list includes his national title in the 1,500 meters at the 2025 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, where he posted a personal best time of 3:30.17 and qualified for the 2025 World Championships. That event, at which he finished 13th in the 1,500 meters, was his final competition before the ban.

Blood doping involves athletes receiving medically unnecessary blood transfusions and Erythropoietin Receptor Agonists, or ERAs, to increase their blood’s capacity to carry oxygen. By boosting their red blood cell counts, competitors can exhibit significantly improved endurance. ERAs are typically used to treat anemia, but can carry life-threatening side effects such as blood clots and strokes.

USADA tests blood samples over time to track an athlete’s hemoglobin, the protein that allows red blood cells to transport oxygen throughout the body. That testing process, which USADA calls its Athlete Biological Passport, searches for certain biomarkers associated with blood doping and hemoglobin shifts.

“This case is proof that the Athlete Biological Passport can both deter and detect doping,” USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart said in a statement. “To ensure a fair playing field, every anti-doping organization needs this tool and the resources to use it effectively.”

A ban for blood doping would normally last four years, but admitting violations, as Koech did, can shorten an athlete’s ineligibility to three years.

Sports

Jonah Koech: US 1500m champion stripped of title and given three-year doping ban

Published

8 minutes ago

August 10, 2026

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American middle-distance runner Jonah Koech has been banned from the sport for three years for blood doping.

The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said Koech’s doping violation was identified after “highly atypical blood values in his athlete biological passport (ABP)”.

An ABP tracks an athlete’s blood values over time to identify signs of doping even without a positive drug test.

Koech had emerged as the surprise winner in men’s 1500m at the US Outdoor Championships last year, finishing ahead of Ethan Strand and 2024 Olympic gold medallist Cole Hocker in a meet record three minutes 30.17 seconds.

His title has now been stripped after the 29-year-old accepted the ban “for the use of a prohibited substance and/or method”, USADA said.

Sports

Alexis Sánchez signs with CF Montréal as free agent, continues career in MLS: Sources

Published

15 minutes ago

August 10, 2026

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CF Montréal has signed Chilean forward Alexis Sánchez, sources briefed on the situation tell The Athletic.

Sánchez will be a designated player for Montréal. Chilean outlet El Deportivo LT first reported the player was signing with the Canadian club.

CF Montréal put up a teaser video for a new No. 10 signing on Monday evening, in which managing director Luca Saputo says “he wants Alexis, No. 10” on the jersey.

#🔟 pic.twitter.com/cxu9eOkJC7

— CF Montréal (@cfmontreal) August 10, 2026

Sánchez, 37, has had a stellar career featuring stops at Barcelona, Arsenal, Manchester United, Inter Milan and many more. He spent last season with Sevilla in La Liga, with four goals and two assists in 28 appearances (1,308 minutes).

The forward is Chile’s all-time leading scorer (51 goals) and also holds the national record for appearances (161 caps).

Sánchez won league titles for Barcelona (2013), Inter Milan (2021, 2024) and Colo Colo (2006 Clausura, 2007 Apertura), where he began his career. He led Chile to two Copa America titles at the expense of Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the 2015 and 2016 finals. He also won two FA Cups with Arsenal (2015, 2017).

Montréal could use a boost of any kind. The club sits 14th in the Eastern Conference with 16 points after 18 matches but is seven points off the playoff line, albeit with plenty of games left in the regular season. Montréal’s 24 goals are tied for second-fewest in the conference.

Sánchez becomes the latest big-name player to feature for Montréal in MLS, joining the likes of Didier Drogba, Alessandro Nesta, Victor Wanyama, Ignacio Piatti and Marco Di Vaio, among others.