​In this capacity, President Obama will have a minority equity stake in the new venture
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, July 27, 2021/ -- The National Basketball Association (NBA) (www.NBA.com) today announced that former President Barack Obama has joined NBA Africa (https://on.nba.com/3eZjcuX) as a strategic partner.

President Obama will help advance the league’s social responsibility efforts across the continent, including programs and partnerships that support greater gender equality and economic inclusion.  In this capacity, President Obama will have a minority equity stake in the new venture, which over time he intends to use to fund Obama Foundation youth and leadership programs across Africa.

NBA Africa conducts the league’s business in Africa, including the Basketball Africa League (BAL) (www.theBAL.com), which held its inaugural season (https://on.nba.com/3rBynjl) in May featuring 12 of the top club teams from 12 African countries.  NBA Africa is focused on expanding the NBA’s presence in priority African markets, deepening the league’s engagement with players and fans across the continent, and continuing to grow Africa’s basketball ecosystem through programs like the Jr. NBA, Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Africa and NBA Academy Africa.  In addition, NBA Africa has launched several social responsibility initiatives (https://on.nba.com/2UMLuCp) aimed at raising awareness of gender-based violence, supporting girls’ education, and improving the livelihoods of African youth and families.

In 2019, I was quite blessed and fortunate to cover the basketball World Cup that was held in China. More importantly, I was tasked with covering the African teams who qualified for the tournament. As an avid fan of the game and someone who is keen to help promote the game in Africa, I was thrilled and honored to be a face of African basketball at such a global event. I was one of the few African sports journalist to report live courtside and do studio analysis. 

Africans are sports fanatics and football is by far the most popular sport in the continent. Athletics has a decent following, especially in East Africa, but overall, football is the undisputed king. 

Another sport that is growing in popularity in the continent is basketball and with our physical stature and athleticism, I can see Africa becoming a fertile breeding ground for the next Hakeem ‘the Dream’ Olajuwon, Dikembe Mutombo or Giannis Atentokounmpo. 

​Sierra Leone’s America-based sprinter, Maggie Vanessa Barrie, on Sunday 25 July 2021 landed at the Narita International Airport, also known as Tokyo-Narita International Airport to join other Sierra Leonean athletes at the Olympic Games village in Tokyo, Japan. 

The 25-year-old who travelled from the United States, arrived in the evening hours of Sunday as she joined the swimmers and Judoka at the Games village five days ahead of her event at the Olympic Stadium in Shinjuku, Tokyo. 

In a short welcome address at the Games village, Sierra Leone’s Chef de’ Mission, Unisa Deen Kargbo, welcomed the U.S based sprinter and referred to her as the country’s star for this year’s Olympic Games. 

Mr. Abraham Kotey Neequaye has been elected as the new President of the Ghana Boxing Authority (GBA) after he defeated opponent, Dr. Henry Manly-Spain in elections at the GBA Congress held at the Bukom Boxing Arena on Thursday.
Mr. Neequaye polled 54 votes  against 46 of Dr. Manly-Spain to become the new leader of the GBA, taking over from Lawyer Peter Zwennes to begin a 4-year mandate.
He was sworn into office together with two Vice Presidents; Mr. Rabbon Dodoo and experienced referee/judge Roger Barnor who went unopposed, Treasurer Mr. Lord Isaac Acquaye and a 4-member executive board comprising Messrs Michael Neequaye, Shadrach Acquaye, also a referee/judge, boxing promoter Alhaji Tofiq and trainer, Lawrence Carl Lokko by Mr. Kwame Amponfi Jnr, Acting Deputy Director General, Technical of the National Sports Authority (NSA).

​Integral will once again work with Nigeria's most popular broadcaster the NTA Network, to deliver all content on its free-to-air-platform
LAGOS, Nigeria, July 23, 2021/ -- Integral (www.Integralsande.com), Nigeria’s leading sports marketing and management company, has secured the exclusive rights to broadcast the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 on free-to-air television.

This sub-license deal from Infront, a Wanda Sports Group company and the IOC's exclusive rights holder for free-to-air distribution rights in Sub-Saharan Africa, is in addition to Integral’s existing Premier League sub-license free-to-air media rights agreement on NTA.

The exclusive package includes TV broadcast of live events as well as repeats and highlights from the Olympics. Integral will once again work with Nigeria's most popular broadcaster the NTA Network, to deliver all content on its free-to-air-platform.

Grit and Resilience were the watch word for Game 6 of the 2021 NBA Finals between the Milwaukee Buck and the feisty Phoenix Suns. 

Running roughshod on the Suns in the first quarter of the game the Buck came out guns blazing channeling their energies through their superstar Giannis Antetokoumpo aptly nicknamed “The Greek Freak” for his out of this world talent and determination to dominate the Suns.

Phoenix had to win Game 6 in Milwaukee to take the series back to Arizona to give them a chance at winning the Championship but it was not meant to be as they came out relatively flat in every respect missing shot after shot, despite momentary brilliance from Chris Paul and Devin Booker. DeAndre Ayton and Jae Crowder were nowhere to be found when the Suns needed them to step up.

Members of Italy’s Olympic delegation arrive at Haneda airport on July 13, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Yuichi Yamazaki/Getty Images)
The air is hot, humid, sticky. Tokyo is ready for the first Olympics in full pandemic with its usual sweltering summer climate. It is no coincidence that in 1964 it was organized in October, but at that time it was not the TV contracts that dictated the dates of the Games.
Massive team arrivals began last week. The weather is uncertain, thunderstorms are expected every day in the afternoon and then the sun with 33 degrees, which will be perceived as 43….
Landing - Fortunately for us, the arrival at the airport of Haneda, smaller and closer to the center than Narita, was much more complicated than in previous Olympic editions. Before disembarking, employees of the organization have asked to fill in a form on the plane, a quick but unexpected procedure. In this way, however, a traffic jam is avoided immediately. At a station 200 meters further on, they have checked if the two apps have been downloaded, which help us to have information on health and organization and for them to know where we are at all times…
Number - An identification number was then given for the next saliva test. After a long walk, the result was collected at door 146. The process that can last from 2 to 4 hours.
Risks - All reception staff are very kind, but most of them are headed by the government and therefore are very attentive to details in health declarations. Those who do not fill in the forms with precision, which mainly concern the tests required 96 and 72 hours before departure, risk not only long waits, but also the possibility of being sent home. Attention, the 72 hours from the second and last test strictly required must coincide with the departure time of the plane. If it turns out that the test was done at 10.30 am and three days later the flight will depart at 11.20, then over 72 hours for 50 minutes delicate problems could arise, because the required limits would be exceeded and this could invalidate the process. So you have to pay close attention to this very important detail.

Professor Muhammad Yunus, who is often referred to as the “world’s banker to the poor”, receives the Olympic Laurel award for his extensive work in sport for development, including founding the Yunus Sports Hub, a global social business network that creates solutions through sport. He has collaborated with the IOC on several projects, including educational elements of the IOC Young Leaders Programme, the “Imagine” Peace Youth Camp and the Athlete365 Business Accelerator – the first comprehensive entrepreneurship programme to help Olympians with career transition.
IOC President Thomas Bach said: “With the Olympic Laurel, we take forward the vision of Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder and reviver of the modern Olympic Games. It is also a reflection of the ideals and values of the ancient Olympic Games, with a focus on human development through peace and sport.” 

New York (July 14, 2021) – Major League Soccer today unveiled a wide-ranging and detailed selection process for the 2021 MLS All-Star Game presented by Target which includes participation by the fans, players and media. Tickets for the match on August 25 (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, Banc of California Stadium), go on sale to the public beginning on July 20 at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT through Ticketmaster or by visiting LAFC.com.

As part of the voting process, MLS has reviewed performance metrics from the current 2021 season to categorize players in the positions where they are most utilized. For the first time ever, players can be selected in seven specific positions: goalkeeper, right back, center back, left back, defensive midfielder, attacking midfielder, and forward/winger.

Of the 26 MLS players to be selected for the All-Star Game, the breakdown is as follows:

• 12 will be determined by a vote of MLS players, fans, and media. Each of the three voting groups will represent one-third of the combined vote.
• 12 will be selected by MLS All-Star head coach Bob Bradley of host team Los Angeles Football Club.
• 2 will be selected by MLS Commissioner Don Garber.​

AIBA President Umar Kremlev paid official visit to Armenia by the first time with a purpose to meet personally boxers, coaches and other sports officials of the Armenian Boxing Federation.
First meeting was arranged with the President of the National Olympic Committee Gagik Tsarukyan. The NOC President expressed gratitude to Mr. Kremlev for coming and for support of Armenian National Federation in development of boxing.
‘Boxing Federation has new strong leadership, only in cooperation we can give to the new generation of athletes opportunities and facilities to do sport at the highest level’, Mr. Tsarukyan underlined. 
Mr. Kremlev mentioned that the International Boxing Association also wants to give a new quality level to the existing cooperation. AIBA President responded positively to the proposal of organizing a major tournament in Armenia not even excluding the possibility of holding the Elite European Boxing Championships.

The World Athletics Doping Review Board has agreed that the applications of 20 Russian athletes have met the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as neutral athletes in 2021 under Eligibility Rule 3.2 while the Russian national federation (RusAF) remains suspended.
These 20 athletes have met the exceptional eligibility criteria for 2021:
Yekaterina Domnina (3000m steeplechase)
Natalya Evdokimova (triple jump)
Matvey Gerasimov (200m and 110m hurdles)
Anatoliy Kiselev (110m hurdles)
Anastasiya Kolchina (race walking)
Vadim Kukalev (400m hurdles)
Mikhail Kulkov (marathon)
Natalya Leonteva (5000m, 10,000m and half marathon)
Andrey Lukin (100m and 200m)
Vera Markaryan, nee Rebryk (javelin)
Timur Morgunov (pole vault)
Alisiya Naumova (hammer)

Following discussions between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and Cricket West Indies (CWI), the dates of this year’s tournament have been amended. 
 
The Hero CPL will now start on 26 August and finish on 15 September. 
 
This year’s tournament will be played in St Kitts & Nevis with all 33 matches taking place at Warner Park. 
 
The fixtures for the 2021 tournament are as follows: ​

West Indies spinner Fabian Allen has moved into the top 10 of the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings after featuring in his team’s fine showing in an ongoing five-match series against Australia.
The 26-year-old left-arm spinner has gained 16 spots to reach 10th position in the bowlers’ list after grabbing three wickets in the first three matches, which have all been won by the West Indies, who defend their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title later this year.
Fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell (up two places to 22nd), Dwayne Bravo (up seven places to 37th) and Obed McKoy (up 15 places to 38th) have also moved up in the bowlers’ list for the West Indies, while for Australia, left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc has advanced five places and is now in 29th position.
Shimron Hetmyer (up 37 places to 62nd) and Lendl Simons (up six places to 64th) have moved up in the batsmen’s list as have veterans Chris Gayle and Andre Russell, who are tied in 103rdplace after gaining 22 and 38 places, respectively.

The International Cricket Council has confirmed the points system for the second edition of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) as well as the bilateral series that will be part of the 2021-23 cycle commencing next month.
Each match of the upcoming WTC will now be contested for the same number of points – 12 for a win, four for a draw and six for a tie, moving away from the previous system where the same number of points were allocated to each series, divided across the number of matches played.
ICC Acting Chief Executive Geoff Allardice said the changes had been made to simplify the points system while taking learnings from the disruption last year: 

Zimbabwe’s Roy Kaia has been reported with a suspect bowling action during the one-off Test against Bangladesh in Harare that ended on Sunday.The match officials’ report, which was handed over to the Zimbabwe team management, cited concerns about the legality of the 29-year-old off-spinner’s bowling action.
Video footage of Kaia’s bowling action from the match will now be scrutinised by an Expert Panel as attendance and assessment at an ICC accredited testing centre is not possible due to various restrictions resulting from Covid-19.

After the meeting, the IOC President said:
“I would like to express my heartfelt respect and gratitude to the Government and the people of Japan for welcoming us.
“There are nine days left until the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Athletes from all over the world are now arriving into Tokyo. The Games will unite the world in all our diversity. They will show that we are stronger together in all our solidarity.
“The Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee has done a fantastic job in preparing for these Games and to make Tokyo the best-prepared Olympic city ever. Achieving this was only possible because of the fantastic volunteers and their dedicated staff. The IOC is sitting in the same boat and we are rowing in the same direction, enjoying the full support of the Government of Japan.

The gender balance of the oath-takers is just one of a large number of decisions and commitments from the IOC and the Organising Committee to promote women in sport at all levels and in all structures, as stated in the Olympic Charter. 
Changes to the Olympic oathThe new wording of the Olympic oath results from a set of recommendations drawn up by the IOC Athletes’ Commission on Rule 50.2 and athlete expression in order to increase opportunities for athlete expression during the Olympic Games. These recommendations were approved by the IOC Executive Board back in April 2021. 
The new wording of the Olympic oath is:

The Mass Participations Sports Organisers (MSO) today celebrated the return of mass participation sports events outdoors as the government confirmed that England will move into Step 4 from 19 July.


This gives the green light for the return of the most famous mass participation outdoor running events across the country and MSO members, including the organisers of the London Marathon, parkrun, the Great North Run, Brighton Marathon, the ASICS London 10K, London Landmarks Half Marathon, The Vitality Big Half, Manchester Marathon and This Mum Runs, have worked together to plan protocols and operational solutions that ensure the safe return of mass participation events outdoors.


Hugh Brasher, Event Director of London Marathon Events, said: “It is wonderful to confirm that our great mass participation events are returning across the country. Extensive scientific research worldwide has shown that the risk of transmission of Covid-19 outdoors is negligible. The UK’s event organisers have worked together to ensure the safe return of mass participation sports events outdoors by participating in the government’s Events Research Programme and collaborating on a range of protocols that ensure our events will be safe and Covid-secure.”

Top Ghanaian sprinter – Joseph Paul Amoah who was the first athlete to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will not run in the100 meters dash.
He has explained why he dropped 100m and go for the 200 m and the 4x100m.
Despite qualifying for the men’s 100m event having ran of 10.01 seconds at the 2019 NCAA Division I Championships, the 24-year-old sprinter has decided not to run in the 100m at the Summer Olympics in Japan. 
“Would be running only the 200m and 4×100 at the Olympics Folded hands,” Joseph Paul Amoah said on his social media page on Tuesday, June 6, 2021.
The sprinter explained why he opted to compete in the 200m and the 4x100m relays during a zoom meeting organized by the Ghana Athletics Association (GAA).
According to Joseph Paul Amoah he did not take the decision in isolation, but with consultation from the coaching staff as well as the technical committee of the GAA.

MTN Ghana has launched the 2021 edition of its month long Twincity festival celebration in the Western region.  The celebration is aimed at engaging customers with exciting activities during the month. This year’s Twincity festival also forms part of activities lined up to celebrate MTN’s 25th anniversary and the 10th anniversary of Twincity Fest in the Western region.
At the launch was the Mayor for Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis, Mr. Abdul Mumin-Issah and other stakeholders. 
Speaking at the launch, the Regional Senior Manager for Southwest Business District, Mr. Prince Owusu Nyarko, thanked all stakeholders for their loyalty to the brand for the past 25years and promised an exciting future together.
He said, “as part of activities marking this year’s celebration there will be a lot of exciting activities to thank customers for their commitment to the brand. The highlight of this festival will be the much-awaited football match between the two traditional teams in Sekondi-Takoradi metropolis”.

Ghanaian sprinter Benjamin Azamati has joined teammate Joseph Paul Amoah in opting out of one sprint event at the upcoming Tokyo Olympics.
Azamati has confirmed he will not run in the men’s 200m event and instead will focus on the 100m and the relays.
Earlier, Joe Paul took to twitter to announce his decision to pull out of the 100m event in order to focus on his ‘favorite’ 200m and the relays.
Azamati, 22, has been in hot form in the 100m this season setting a new national record (9.97s) in his first outdoor race of the season to qualify for the Tokyo Games.
He then helped the men’s 4x100m relay team qualify for the Olympics in Silesia, Poland at the end of May before following that up with another personal best in the 200m (20.13) to book his ticket in the half lap event but has now opted not to compete in the event.

NEW YORK (Monday, July, 2021) – Real Salt Lake midfielder Damir Kreilach has been voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Week for Week 12 of the 2021 MLS season.
Kreilach scored two goals in Real Salt Lake’s 4-0 win against Vancouver Whitecaps FC at Rio Tinto Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The Real Salt Lake midfielder opened the scoring inside the first minute when Aaron Herrera found him in the box with a long through ball. Kreilach did well to get in front of his defender and then delicately chip the ball over the Whitecaps goalkeeper with his first touch to complete the move (WATCH GOAL HERE). Coming just 42 seconds into the game, it was the third-fastest Real goal from the start of a game in club history.
In the 57th minute, Justin Meram delivered a cross into the Whitecaps box that Kreilach connected with well to double Real Salt Lake’s lead (WATCH GOAL HERE). Kreilach had an opportunity to complete the hat trick late in the game, but his shot took a deflection off a defender and fell to Anderson Julio for the team’s fourth and final goal of the game.

Olympic, world and Pan American champions and medalists will prepare for the Games at the camp thanks to the partnership between Panam Sports and authorities of the city of Tachikawa.

TACHIKAWA, JAPAN (July, 2021) — For the first time in history, the Pan American Sports Organization is bringing together outstanding track and field athletes, swimmers, volleyball players and judokas from the Americas prior to the Olympic Games.

Thanks to an important agreement between Panam Sports, ADK and Tachihi Holdings, more than 113 people including athletes and coaches have the opportunity to participate in the largest training camp in terms of number of Olympic Committees that is being held in Japan prior to the Olympics in Tokyo.

Ghanaian weightlifter Christian Amoah who is representing at the Olympic Games for the second time says he will be the man to watch at Tokyo 2020.
In an exclusive chat with Yours Truly, the James Town based guy said he does not want to talk much, but the stage will judge his performance.
“I don’t want my competitors to know how much am carrying now,but I can say my training is good and I am lifting very good weights” he said.
The number 4 in the Commonwealth rankings and second best in Africa said he will surprise many people.

The world's best athletes have plenty of opportunities to bank on their popularity. Besides lucrative sports contracts, most of them earn even more significant profits from heavy endorsement deals.
Although the MMA fighter Connor McGregor grasps the top of this list, most of the world's highest-paid athletes come from another sport.
According to data presented by SafeBettingSites.com, NFL players top the ranking of the highest-paid athletes with combined earnings of over $837 million.
18 NFL Players Among the Highest-Paid Athletes, Basketball Follows with 13 Players on the List
In 2021, Conor McGregor racked up on and off-field earnings of around $180 million. However, the fighter was the only athlete from his discipline to make it into the Forbes` Top 50 highest-paid athletes list.