Category Archives: Deportes

Marcos Giron Outlasts Taylor Fritz to Reach ATP Dallas Open Semifinals

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Marcos Giron has taken down the favorite…

The 28-year-old Latino tennis player upset No. 1 seed Taylor Fritz — his practice partner — 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3) on Friday to advance to the semifinals of the ATP Dallas Open.

Marcos GironGiron, the tournament’s seventh seed, battled back after losing the second set and falling behind 4-2 in the third set.

“When I was down a break in the third, we got a change of balls, and I was able to kind of take advantage of that,” Giron said. “Once I was able to sneak out a break, my level improved.”

By defeating the 19th-ranked player in the world, No. 70 Giron scored his fifth career win in 18 chances against top 20 players to reach his second ATP semifinal.

Fritz was playing in his first tournament as the top seed.

“I’ve practiced with Fritz so much,” Giron said. “We’re both based in L.A. and we both train in Carson so we know each other’s game well.”

Giron had the only service break in the first set against Fritz. Giron almost gave back a 5-4 lead by falling behind 30-40 but rallied to hold serve and win the set.

Fritz’s serving dominated the second set, winning three games without a point for Giron.

The third set looked similar as Fritz took a 4-2 lead. Giron broke Fritz to tie the match. Each player had a break and then held serve to send the match into the tiebreak. Then they both reached match point, but neither could win the point.

Giron never trailed in the tiebreak, and he scored the final three points to win when Fritz hit long. Fritz had won the only previous ATP match between the two.

In Saturday’s semifinals, Giron will meet No. 4 Jenson Brooksby, who dispatched Australian Jordan Thompson 6-3, 6-0.

Yordenis Ugas to Face Errol Spence in Welterweight Three-Belt Unification Bout

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It’s official… Yordenis Ugas is readying for a three-belt unification bout…

The 35-year-old Cuban professional boxer, who has held the WBA welterweight title since January 2021, and Errol Spence will unify welterweight titles on April 16 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Spence announced on social media.

Yordenis Ugas,The bout will be Spence’s third at the home of the Dallas Cowboys; he defeated Mikey Garcia and Danny Garcia (no relation) at the venue in 2019 and 2020, respectively.

The deal was being finalized in December, as previously reported, but the fight wasn’t announced until two months later as Premier Boxing Champions officials sought to lock in a date and venue.

Spence, who will put his WBC and IBF titles on the line, will be making his second comeback from serious injury. The 31-year-old boxer was involved in a single-car accident in October 2019 that hospitalized him for days and sidelined him for months. A planned August 2021 fight with Manny Pacquiao was derailed after he underwent surgery to repair a detached retina.

Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs) stepped in on 11 days’ notice and scored the upset of Pacquiao via unanimous decision. Now, Ugas will defend his WBA title in a three-belt unification.

The 35-year-old Cuban and Spence have one common opponent: Shawn Porter. Spence defeated Porter in a brutal September 2019 fight via split decision. Six months earlier, Ugas dropped a controversial split-decision to Porter.

Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) is rated No. 2 at 147 pounds by ESPN; Ugas is one spot behind. Terence Crawford, who holds the other welterweight title, is No. 1.

A fight between the winner of Spence-Ugas and Crawford would crown an undisputed welterweight champion, but there remains a roadblock. Eimantas Stanionis stepped aside from his mandatory title shot against Ugas to allow him to fight Spence. Stanionsis will fight Radzhab Butaev on the undercard, sources told ESPN. Both are rated in ESPN’s top 10 at welterweight.

Donovan Carrillo Makes Mexican History by Reaching Figure Skating Finals at Winter Olympics

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2022 Beijing GamesDonovan Carrillo has skated his way into the annals of Mexican sports history…

The 22-year-old Mexican figure skater, the first figure skater to compete at the Winter Olympics in 30 years, has advanced to the free skate after an impressive short program at the 2022 Beijing Games.

Donovan CarrilloHe’s the first Mexican skater to reach the finals, and he’s done so despite never having trained on professional rinks.

His short program on Tuesday set to the songs “Black Magic Woman” and “Shake It” by Santana won him an overall score of 79.69. Towards the end of his performance, Carrillo skated with his hands over his heart.

“This is for my family and all Mexico,” he said.

Donovan CarrilloBorn in Zapopan, Jalisco, Carrillo has said his training has been difficult. His family struggled to pay for his lessons and, at times, to find practice facilities. He’s known for training at a shopping center rink during public sessions.

Mexico hadn’t had a figure skater compete at the Winter Olympics since the 1992 Albertville Games when Riccardo Olavarrieta and Diana Encinas fought for gold. On Tuesday, Donovan Carrillo ended the country’s dry spell by competing in the men’s short program in Beijing.

“Many people told me during the beginning of my career that this was a crazy dream,” Carrillo said. “People were always laughing or telling me it wasn’t possible for a Mexican to qualify.”

Carrillo hopes his history-making performance at the Olympics encourages other athletes from Mexico.

“My message to the Mexicans who will be watching me at the Olympic Games through their screens is that no matter the hardships that may present themselves to you, work hard and never give up,” he said in Spanish in the Olympic Channel‘s Winter Tracks video series.

Carrillo is scheduled to compete against 23 other skaters in the free skate program on Thursday.

Ryan Garcia to Make Comeback Against Emmanuel Tagoe in Lightweight Fight in April

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Ryan Garcia is preparing for his return to the ring…

The 23-year-old Mexican American boxer will meet Emmanuel Tagoe in a lightweight fight on April 9 at the Alamodome in San Antonio on DAZN, according to Oscar De La Hoya, who promotes Garcia.

Ryan Garcia

The bout will be Garcia’s first since January 2021, when he scored a seventh-round TKO of Olympic gold medalist Luke Campbell in a career-best performance.

Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) was slated to fight Javier Fortuna in July 2021, but he withdrew from the fight to address his mental health. A bout against Joseph Diaz Jr., set for November 2021, was cancelled after Garcia suffered a wrist injury while training that required surgery.

“I went through a hard year. … Everything came tumbling down on me mentally,” Garcia said on ESPN+‘s State of Boxing in December. “It was a hard time in my life. It got really dark … to the point I didn’t know if I wanted to live anymore. I had a lot of thoughts about that throughout the whole year.”

Garcia possesses arguably the quickest hands in boxing and packs plenty of power, too. He’s trained by Eddy Reynoso at Canelo Alvarez‘s San Diego gym, and under Reynoso’s tutelage, Garcia rose to No. 6 in ESPN‘s 135-pound rankings.

Garcia has lobbied for a super fight with Gervonta “Tank” Davis but first must impress against Tagoe coming off a 15-month layoff, the longest of his career.

Tagoe, a 33-year-old fighting out of Accra, Ghana, will be competing in the U.S. for just the second time. He’ll do so against his best opponent by far; Tagoe (32-1, 15 KOs) has fought only a handful of recognizable names. His last bout was in October 2020, a majority-decision win over Mason Menard, who is best known for a first-round KO loss against Teofimo Lopez.

“I’m not going to give up and I’m going to keep being an inspiration for people that are struggling,” said Garcia, who is approaching 9 million followers on Instagram. “I’m right back on track and I’m not going to let anything that all these people are saying outside of the ring, trying to come at my character and who I am as a fighter, I’m not going to let any of that get to me.”

Sofia Huerta Called Up by U.S. Women’s National Team Coach Vlatko Andonovski for SheBelieves Cup

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Sofia Huerta will be representing the U.S. later this month…

U.S. women’s national team coach Vlatko Andonovski has called up a squad that mixes youth and experience, including the 29-year-old Mexican American professional soccer player and a midfielder for OL Reign in the National Women’s Soccer League, for this month’s SheBelieves Cup.

Sofia HuertaAndonovski’s roster leaves out big names like Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan in favor of up-and-comers like 22-year-old Brazilian-born American professional soccer player Catarina Macario and 22-year-old Ashley Sanchez, a forward for the Washington Spirit.

The 23-player squad will compete in the USWNT‘s first games of 2022 when the Americans face the Czech Republic, New Zealand and Iceland in the SheBelieves Cup, taking place February 17-23.

The games will be played at the Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, and Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.

Veterans left out include some of the USWNT’s biggest attacking names, such as Rapinoe, Morgan, Tobin Heath and Christen Press. Andonovski said those players had been left off to make room for the players needing to prove themselves.

“All these players are very good players — we know that they’ve done so much for this team,” Andonovski told ESPN of the veterans. “But right now I want to give a chance to players like Sophia Smith and Mal Pugh and Catarina Macario, Ashley Hatch, players that have earned their spot on the national team or earn their spot back. I want to give them maximum minutes or whatever minutes they earn so we can evaluate every aspect of their game, in the training environment or game setting.”

However, the veterans being left off the roster shouldn’t be interpreted as those players being a lock, Andonovski added.

“It doesn’t mean that all these players that have done well in the past are just going to come back here in the next camp because they’ve done well a year ago or two years ago,” Andonovski added. “There’s a reason why we’re not calling Mia Hamm or Julie Foudy in camp, right? So the same goes here: they need to perform, they need to play in their markets, they need to play well in their markets, and show that they can still contribute and be valuable for the national team.”

In the midfield, veterans Julie Ertz and Samantha Mewis are also left out in favor of less established USWNT players such as Macario and Sanchez. Mewis is coming off an injury, Andonovski said, but Ertz wasn’t fit enough to merit a USWNT call.

“Julie was not ready to come into camp from a physical standpoint,” Andonovski said. “In the conversation that I had with her, she understands that in order to get back into camp — and that’s not just for Julie, that’s for any player on this team — first and foremost, you got to be healthy, fit and ready to play. Then, the next thing is you gotta perform in your club market to earn your spot on the national team.”

Ertz was traded from the Chicago Red Stars to NWSL expansion club Angel City FC in December, but she was not on Angel City’s preseason roster announced on Tuesday and has not reported for the club’s preseason camp.

“Whenever Julie is ready and she performs well — we know how good she can be, we know how valuable she is for this team — we’re gonna be happy to see her back,” Andonovski said.

The SheBelieves Cup roster mostly includes players who had joined the USWNT in Texas for its annual January camp, which traditionally features more bubble players and up-and-comers.

The exceptions are midfielder Macario, who missed the camp to stay with Lyon as it faced rival Paris Saint-Germain in the Coupe de France, and defender Becky Sauerbrunn, who missed the January camp with what U.S. Soccer called “a minor injury.”

“We had a great camp in Austin and now we need to see this group of players in game environments against highly motivated opponents,” Andonovski said. “Every player in the pool is focused on making the roster for World Cup and Olympic qualifying this summer.”

Of the 23 players on the roster, 11 are players who have been on the fringes of the USWNT and have 25 or fewer caps. Six players have single-digit caps.

USWNT SheBelieves Cup roster

GOALKEEPERS: Aubrey Kingsbury (Washington Spirit; 0), Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage; 2), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars; 78)

DEFENDERS: Alana Cook (OL Reign; 4/0), Abby Dahlkemper (San Diego Wave FC; 77/0), Tierna Davidson (Chicago Red Stars; 45/1), Emily Fox (Racing Louisville FC; 8/0), Sofia Huerta (OL Reign; 9/0), Kelley O’Hara (Washington Spirit; 148/2), Emily Sonnett (Washington Spirit; 63/0), Becky Sauerbrunn (Portland Thorns FC; 199/0)

MIDFIELDERS: Morgan Gautrat (Chicago Red Stars; 87/8), Lindsey Horan (Olympique Lyonnais; 108/25), Rose Lavelle (OL Reign; 68/18), Catarina Macario (Olympique Lyonnais; 12/3), Kristie Mewis (NJ/NY Gotham FC; 33/4), Ashley Sanchez (Washington Spirit; 2/0), Andi Sullivan (Washington Spirit; 22/2)

FORWARDS: Ashley Hatch (Washington Spirit; 4/2), Mallory Pugh (Chicago Red Stars; 67/18), Margaret Purce (NJ/NY Gotham FC; 9/2), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns FC; 10/1), Lynn Williams (Kansas City Current; 45/14)

Major League Baseball Hires Former Mets General Manager Omar Minaya as Amateur Scouting Consultant

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Omar Minaya has scouted a new opportunity…

The 63-year-old Dominican former New York Mets general manager has been hired by Major League Baseball as a consultant for amateur scouting.

Omar MinayaHe’ll advise the baseball operations department on both domestic and international scouting initiatives.

Minaya will report to Morgan Sword, the executive vice president of baseball operations.

Minaya became a scout with the Texas Rangers in 1984 and signed Sammy Sosa. He moved up eventually to director of professional and international scouting and left in September 1997 to become an assistant general manager with his hometown Mets.

He joined the Montreal Expos as major league baseball’s first Hispanic GM in February 2002.

Minaya returned to the Mets as GM from September 2004 until October 2010, then was fired and became the San Diego Padres‘ senior vice president of baseball operations from December 2011 until January 2015.

He served as senior adviser to players’ association head Tony Clark until December 2017, then rejoined the Mets as a special assistant until November 2020.

Luis Diaz Agrees to Contract with Liverpool

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Luis Diaz is switching sides…

Liverpool has completed the signing of the 25-year-old Colombian professional footballer from Porto despite strong interest from Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.

Luis Diaz

The deal is subject to Diaz agreeing a work permit.

Diaz was Jurgen Klopp‘s primary target for the summer transfer window, according to ESPN sources, but the club brought forward their plans to sign the winger when Spurs opened talks with Porto last week. Sources added that Diaz has signed a contract until 2027 at the club.

“I could not be happier that we’ve been able to get this deal done and bring Luis to Liverpool,” Klopp said.

“I have always been a believer in only signing players in January if you would want to sign them in the summer, and that’s very much the case with Luis.

“He is an outstanding player and someone we’ve been tracking for a very long time.

“This team deserved to add quality and when we played against Luis earlier this season, we saw what a danger he is, how fast he is and how his mentality was to help his team.

“We know Porto is an outstanding club who nurture players in the best possible way and provide a brilliant football education. They are a class club and, I have to say, have been tough negotiators.”

Liverpool faced a host of logistical issues in signing Diaz, who is in South America with the Colombia squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Argentina, but were able to complete the deal ahead of the by the 11:00 pm GMT (5:00 pm ET) transfer deadline on Monday.

Diaz requires a work permit to enter the United Kingdom and therefore will unlikely arrive in Liverpool until the end of next week at the earliest.

“We also have to say thank you to the Colombia FA for being so helpful in allowing us the time to complete this deal,” Klopp added. “They have a big game on Tuesday and I know as well as anyone how important preparation is for matches, so for them to allow us a few hours to finalise the transfer without impacting their training was greatly appreciated.

“I also must make clear my appreciation to our ownership and football operations team for how they have managed to act so decisively to get this done.

“Luis is a player we believe will make us better now and in the future. He is the player we really wanted and they’ve made it happen, so I am very happy.”

The winger has been in fine form for Porto this season, scoring 14 goals in 18 games in Portugal’s Primeira Liga, as well as scoring twice in this season’s Champions League group stage.

Diaz joined Porto from Colombian side Atletico Junior in 2019 and has made 125 appearances, scoring 41 goals and registering 20 assists.

https://twitter.com/LFC/status/1487756795544223746

Rafael Nadal Rallies to Win Australian Open & Claim Men’s Record 21st Grand Slam Title

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Life is grand for Rafael Nadal…

The 35-year-old Spanish professional tennis player, a renowned right-to-the-end competitor, fought back from two sets down defeat Daniil Medvedev to win the Australian Open and claim his record 21st Grand Slam title.

Rafael Nadal

With his dramatic 2-6, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 comeback win that lasted 5 hours, 24 minutes, Nadal set the men’s record for most Grand Slam singles titles.

Nadal now has one more major title than Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, his long-time rivals in the so-called Big Three.

He was the only one of the three who had a chance to claim the record solo in Australia.

Federer is still recovering from knee surgery, and Djokovic was deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament because he wasn’t vaccinated against COVID-19.

It’s all history now that Nadal has become just the fourth man to win all four of the sport’s major titles at least twice.

“I was repeating to myself during the whole match, ‘I lost a lot of times here having chances, sometimes I was a little bit unlucky,'” Nadal said. “I just wanted to keep believing until the end.”

“Tonight has been unforgettable. I feel very lucky.”

Nadal was broken when serving for the championship for the first time at 5-4 in the fifth set, but he made no mistake two games later, converting the first of his championship points.

Taking everything into account, “the scenario, the momentum,” he said, “without a doubt probably the biggest comeback of my tennis career.

He added, “The most unexpected. And most surprising, I think, for everyone.”

Federer and Djokovic were watching, from a distance, and both used social media messages to offer congratulations to Nadal for breaking their three-way tie atop the men’s Grand Slam standings.

Nadal and Medvedev packed a lot of drama into the final that started Sunday night, was delayed in the 84-minute second set when a human rights activist jumped onto the court and finished close to 1:15 a.m.

Nadal was serving for the second set but was broken in that game. Then Medvedev had his moments to break again in the third set but admitted he got tight.

“Should have done better. Should have hit a winner,” Medvedev said. “Maybe would have won the match.”

“Tactically nothing changed,” he added, “but Rafa stepped up.”

Indeed, he did. And at 1:30 a.m. he stepped up onto the podium to give his victory speech.

“Good evening. No, good morning!” Nadal joked, looking at his watch.

In the background, Rod Laver, the aging Australian tennis great for whom Melbourne Park‘s main stadium is named, was holding up his smartphone to capture the scenes. A woman nearby held up a sign that stated: “Rafa is the GOAT.”

For now, in terms of men’s major titles at least, Nadal is the Greatest Of All Time.

Nadal praised Medvedev for the part he played in what eventually became the second-longest Australian Open final ever. Nadal’s loss to Djokovic a decade ago lasted 5:53.

Nadal’s 21st major title was even more remarkable considering he had only two matches under his belt in the second half of 2021 because he was sidelined with a chronic foot injury. He also overcame a bout of COVID-19.

“For me, it’s just amazing,” he said, adding that only six weeks ago, “I didn’t know if I’d be able to play on the tour again.”

Nadal won his first Australian Open title in 2009 and then lost four other finals here. His conversion rate in major finals is now 21 out of 29.

Medvedev, who was aiming to be the first man in the Open era to win his first two Grand Slam titles back-to-back, was ever-so-close to spoiling another 21st celebration.

Djokovic was chasing the same record at the US Open last year, and a calendar-year Grand Slam, when Medvedev beat him in straight sets in the final.

Federer also had his chance at 21, but Djokovic stopped that after saving match points en route to winning the 2019 Wimbledon final.

For Nadal, this was just the fourth time — and first since 2007 — he has rallied from two sets down to win a best-of-five-set match. It’s the first time it has happened at the Australian Open final since 1965.

Newcastle United Signs Bruno Guimaraes from Lyon

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Bruno Guimaraes is crossing the English Channel…

Newcastle United has completed the signing of the 24-year-old Brazilian professional footballer from France’s Lyon in a €50.1 million deal.

Bruno GuimaraesIt’s the team’s third signing since being taken over by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund in October.

The move for Guimaraes follows the arrivals of defender Kieran Trippier from Atletico Madrid and striker Chris Wood from Burnley.

The club said in a statement: “Newcastle United are delighted to confirm the signing of Brazil international Bruno Guimaraes on a four-and-a-half-year deal.

“The 24-year-old midfielder joins the Magpies for an undisclosed fee from Lyon, where he has been one of the outstanding performers in Ligue 1 over the past two seasons, and will wear shirt No. 39 — the number of the taxi once driven by his father.”

Lyon said in a statement later on Sunday that the deal was worth €50.1m, including €8m in performance-based clauses, with a 20% sell-on fee.

Sources have told ESPN that Newcastle offered Guimaraes a £120,000-a-week contract — four times his wage at Lyon.

“Bruno is a hugely exciting talent and has been one of our primary targets so I’m delighted to secure him,” manager Eddie Howe said. “He strengthens the group immediately ready for the challenge ahead.

“He has been one of the standout performers in France and is a full international for Brazil so I have no doubt our supporters will really enjoy watching him. We look forward to welcoming him to the club on his return from international duty.”

Guimaraes began his career at Atletico Paranaense before joining Lyon in January 2020 for €21.5m.

The midfielder also has three international caps for Brazil and has been away with Tite‘s squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay.

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Robson Conceicao Defeats Xavier Martinez by Decision

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Robson Conceicao is back with a vengeance…

In the first fight since his first pro defeat of his career by Oscar Valdez, the 33-year-old Brazilian professional boxer dominated Xavier Martinez on Saturday.

Robson Conceicao,Fighting far more aggressively than he did in his controversial decision loss to Valdez, the judges scored the bout 98-92, 99-91 and 100-90 in Conceicao’s favor.

With the impressive performance in the 10-round ESPN main event, Conceicao (17-1, 8 KOs) set himself up for another title opportunity at 130 pounds.

“I was able to be dominant this evening because I put in such hard work because I was motivated,” said Conceicao, an Olympic gold medalist. “I know I should be the champion. I know I beat Oscar Valdez. He has a fight against Shakur Stevenson, and I think Shakur is going to win. But as a fan and a fighter, I want Oscar to win because he owes me a fight.”

Besides the third round, when Martinez buckled his opponent with a left hook in the closing seconds, Conceicao was in control. He used his long jab to beat Martinez to the punch consistently and befuddled him with his excellent footwork.

Martinez, who was making his Top Rank debut after a long stint with Mayweather Promotions, emerged with a swollen right eye in the first loss of his pro career. The 24-year-old from Sacramento was stepping way up in competition following a career-best win over fringe contender Claudio Marrero.

“I know I didn’t do enough to win; I sat back too much,” said Martinez. “I didn’t listen to the game plan fully. It is what it is. I’m not going to be a sore loser. He did his thing tonight. It wasn’t my night. I’m not done. This is just the beginning.”

But Conceicao is a legitimate top-10 boxer in one of boxing’s best weight classes, ranked No. 9 by ESPN (Martinez entered No. 10). And he wants a chance at revenge.

“I learned a lot from that Oscar Valdez loss, and that’s why I was able to dedicate myself,” Conceicao said. “I wasn’t discouraged by what happened that evening. I know who I am, and I knew if I put in the work, I could have this type of performance. But my mind is set on Valdez, and I definitely want that shot.”