Sports

AMMAN — Jordan Motorsport has announced a quality international entry for the forthcoming Jordan Baja, the new seventh round of the 2019 FIA World Cup for Cross-Country Bajas. The event will be based in Aqaba and centred around Wadi Rum on September 19-21, according to the Jordan Baja Media Service.

Eighteen cars and competitors from 15 nations are entered in the main FIA section of the three-day event subject to FIA approval. They will be joined by nine motorcycles and quads and a further eight teams in a national category.

The motorcycle event is also being observed as an official candidate event for next year’s FIM Cross-Country Bajas World Cup.

Russian Vladimir Vasilyev, Argentina’s Orlando Terranova and Poland’s Jakub Przygonski are currently embroiled in a three-way battle to determine the outcome of the FIA Drivers’ Championship. All three will be present in the Hashemite Kingdom in a trio of Mini All4 Racings, built by the German X-raid team. 

They face competition in the T1 category from Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Khalid Al Qassimi and Saudi Arabia’s Yasir Seaidan.

Russian Fedor Vorobyev has a useful lead in the T3 category in his Can-Am Maverick X3. The winner of the category in both Hungary and Poland recently faces competition from the likes of Italy’s Michele Cinotto and Saudi Arabia’s Saleh Al Saif. 

Sultan Al Balooshi won the motorcycle category at the Ha’il International Rally in both 2018 and 2019 and he tops the two-wheel category. Ata Al Hmoud was the runaway winner of the section in last year’s FIA candidate event in southern Jordan and the Jordanian will be aiming for the top step of the podium on his home event.

The Kuwaiti duo of Salem and Fares Al Thefiri head the national section in their Nissan Patrol.

The super special stage and ceremonial start are scheduled for Thursday in Aqaba City before competitors head into the legendary deserts of Wadi Rum, made famous across the world by a host of Hollywood blockbuster movies.

These include the recent Aladdin, all-time classic Lawrence of Arabia, the latest Star Wars film and numerous cinematic links to the reddish nature of the surface of planet Mars.

NEW YORK — Rafael Nadal captured his 19th career Grand Slam title in thrilling fashion on Sunday by winning the US Open final, outlasting Russia’s Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4 to seize his fourth crown in New York.

The 33-year-old Spanish left-hander moved one shy of Roger Federer’s all-time men’s record 20 Grand Slam triumphs and became the second-oldest New York champion in the Open era after Ken Rosewall in 1970 at age 35.

“Has been one of the most emotional nights in my tennis career,” Nadal said.

World No. 2 Nadal took the top prize of $3.85 million at Arthur Ashe Stadium and added to his US Open trophy haul from 2010, 2013 and 2017.

Nadal, who was in his fifth US Open championship match and 27th Grand Slam final, is the first man to claim five major titles after turning 30.

But it took a supreme effort from the Spanish maestro, who nearly became the first player to drop the final after leading by two sets since Ted Schroeder in 1949.

“This victory means a lot,” Nadal said. “And the way it happened. It was hard to control the nerves. The nerves were so high after having the match almost under control.”

Nadal, who rose to 22-12 in five-set matches, only lost once at a Slam when up two sets, to Italy’s Fabio Fognini in the 2015 US Open third round.

“I more or less had the match under control,” Nadal said. “The way he was able to fight, to change the rhythm of the match, was incredible.”

At four hours and 50 minutes, the match finished four minutes short of equalling the longest final in US Open history from Mats Wilander’s 1988 win and Andy Murray’s 2012 title.

It was the second Slam title of the year for Nadal after taking his 12th French Open crown in June.

In addition to reaching the brink of Federer’s mark, Nadal moved one shy of the Open era record five US Open titles won by Federer, Jimmy Connors and Pete Sampras.

“A 19th Grand Slam title is something unbelievable, outrageous,” Medvedev said.

Nadal, who won his only prior meeting with Medvedev in last month’s Montreal final, stretched his win streak over Russians to 20 matches since losing to Nikolay Davydenko in the 2011 Doha semifinals.

Fifth seed Medvedev, 23, would have been the youngest men’s Grand Slam champion since Juan Martin del Potro at the 2009 US Open.

Medvedev, who will rise to a career-best fourth in the rankings, was a champion at Cincinnati and runner-up at Montreal, Washington and the Open.

“His summer was one of the best summers I ever saw,” Nadal said. “People saw why he is already No. 4 in the world.”

Medvedev, who saw his career-best 12-match win streak snapped, would have been the first Russian to win a Grand Slam title since Marat Safin at the 2005 Australian Open and the first Russian to win the US Open since Safin in 2000.

Electric fifth set

On a knife’s edge at 5-5 in the third set, Medvedev reeled off eight of the last nine points to force a fourth, breaking Nadal in the 12th game with a backhand winner.

“To be honest in my mind, I was already thinking, ‘What do I say in the speech, it’s going to be in 20 minutes,” Medvedev said.

“I was like I have to fight for every ball, and it went further but it didn’t go my way.”

Nadal was broken in the 10th game of the fourth set to force a fifth when Medvedev blasted a sterling backhand return winner.

Nadal rescued three Medvedev break chances to hold in the second game of the fifth set, fired a backhand volley winner to break Medvedev in the fifth game and seized a 5-2 edge when Medvedev hit an overhead smash long.

Serving for the match, Nadal was broken when umpire Ali Nili issued Nadal a time violation for his first serve and the Spaniard sent his second long, the crowd booing Nili for his call.

Nadal squandered two break and match points in the ninth game as the drama intensified.

Again serving for the match, Nadal rescued a break point then hit a forehand drop volley for his third match point chance and Medvedev sent a forehand return long to end matters.

Nadal screamed and fell to the court on his back in joy and exhaustion.

NEW YORK — Teenager Bianca Andreescu became Canada’s first Grand Slam singles champion Saturday with a rollercoaster 6-3, 7-5 win over 23-time major champion Serena Williams in the US Open final.

The 19-year-old Andreescu became the youngest Grand Slam winner since Svetlana Kuznetsova at the 2004 US Open, handing Williams a fourth consecutive defeat in the final of a major to again deny her a record-equaling 24th Slam title.

“It’s so hard to explain in words but I’m just beyond grateful and truly blessed. I’ve worked really, really hard for this moment,” said Andreescu, who had won just two Grand Slam matches ahead of her US Open main draw debut. 

She improved her record over top-10 opponents this season to 8-0 and will rise to a career-high ranking of fifth on Monday.

“This year has been a dream come true. Being able to play on this stage against Serena, a true legend of the sport, is amazing.

“It wasn’t easy at all. I tried to prepare my best like I do every match, I tried not to focus on who I’m playing. I’m really proud of how I dealt with everything.”

Andreescu tied Monica Seles, who lifted the 1990 Roland Garros trophy in her fourth major, for the record as the fastest player to win her first Slam title in the Open era.

Williams, 37, suffered a second finals loss in a row at Flushing Meadows, after a 2018 defeat against Naomi Osaka best remembered for a furious tirade against chair umpire Carlos Ramos.

“Bianca played an unbelievable match, I am so proud and happy for you. It was incredible tennis out there. If anyone could win this, outside of Venus, I’m happy it’s Bianca,” Williams said.

Appearing in a 33rd Grand Slam final, and fourth since the last of her 23 major titles, Williams made an inauspicious start at Arthur Ashe Stadium by conceding her opening service game with successive double faults.

Andreescu, who wasn’t even born when Williams won her maiden Slam at the 1999 US Open, responded with a comfortable hold, a pattern that repeated itself until the Canadian threatened to run away with the opening set.

Serving at 2-4, Williams erased five break points with a combination of aces and booming groundstrokes, but Andreescu was knocking on the door once more as the American served to stay in the set.

A forehand winner earned the youngster a set point, and Williams duly her gifted her the opener with another double fault.

Andreescu had failed to even reach the main draw at Flushing Meadows the past two years, twice falling in the first qualifying round, and her confidence continued to flow as she surged 2-0 ahead in the second — Williams again doubled-faulting on break point.

That prompted forlorn looks from the Williams box, where her close friend Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, was seated alongside sister Venus and fashion titan Anna Wintour.

The American carved out four opportunities to hit back the following game, benefiting from a huge stroke of luck when a forehand brushed the tape and trickled over to haul herself back on serve.

Undeterred, Andreescu promptly regained the initiative with another break and looked to be marching towards the title when she followed a routine hold by again breaking the Williams serve for a 5-1 lead.

Andreescu brought up championship point in the ensuing game, but Williams smacked a forehand winner to stay alive and then rattled off 14 of 17 points to peg her opponent back at 5-all.

“I was just fighting at that point, just trying to stay out there a little bit longer,” said Williams, feeding off the energy of 24,000 cheering fans as she briefly sparked hopes of an incredible comeback.

“The fans started cheering so hard it made me start playing a little bit better and fighting a little bit more.”

The Canadian stemmed the bleeding by holding for 6-5 and an errant Williams backhand handed Andreescu two more shots at the title. Williams saved the first with an ace but Andreescu secured victory on the next with a blistering forehand return.

AMMAN — Jordan plays Senegal on Monday, hoping for its sole win as it concludes the FIBA World Cup 2019 journey — the world’s premier basketball competition currently under way in China.

Jordan lost the chance to win in Round 1 losing a lead in the final minutes of the match before handing the win to the Dominican Republic 80-76.

They had tough games and lost against to France 103-64 and then to Germany 96-62 as it ended Group G matches.

In placement matches deciding positions 17-32, Jordan lost to Canada 126-71.

After the Kingdom first played at the FIBA World Cup in 2010, this is the second time at the tournament which acts as a qualifier to the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Tunisia is the only other Arab teams among the qualifying teams to the World Cup finals which ends on September 15 and includes 32 teams playing in eight groups with the top two from each group advancing on to Round 2.

Tunisia finished third in their group in Round 1 matches after it beat Iran 79-67, lost to Puerto Rico 67-64 and beat the Philippines 86-67. It beat Angola 86-84 on Sunday.

Jordan’s journey to the World Cup started with Round 1 qualifiers in which it topped Group C after it beat India, Lebanon and Syria. In Round 2 qualifiers, Jordan beat expectations and finished third in Group E behind New Zealand and South Korea as China came in fourth and edged Lebanon into the group’s best 4th place team to make it to the World Cup finals. 

Observers have pointed out that merely reaching the World Cup and having the chance to play leading teams and star studded line-ups will boost the team’s overall presence internationally and competitive experience.

“Jordan is actually playing in the World Cup, that in itself is an achievement that should not be underestimated. Fans or onlookers should not expect the team to beat France or Germany who have players in the NBA,” said a basketball official who requested anonymity. “We are among the top 32 countries playing the game, and that should be an accomplishment to build on and strive for the better in the future,” he added.

Former coaches and players noted that although the Jordan Basketball Federation tried hard to prepare the team and regroup the players, the team’s preparations are not up to par with the needs of competing at the World Cup level.

They mainly attribute that to the haphazard funding efforts which hamper long term planning. Financial support for Jordan’s second most popular game is seen as below par by most observers, leading to a decline in the game locally and less competitive advantage on the regional scene, although the basketball squad was the only Jordanian team to actually reach a World Cup in a team sport in 2010 alongside the junior team in 1995.

At the 2010 World Cup, Jordan played against Serbia, Germany, Argentina, Australia and Angola. The team was resilient but finished winless at 23rd.

At the 2011 FIBA Asia Championship, Jordan reached the final for the first time in the country’s history, but lost the chance of qualifying to the 2012 Olympic Games after losing the final 70-69 to China. Jordan then played the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournamen but lost to Puerto Rico and Greece and was eliminated. 

Regionally, Jordan’s basketball team won the West Asia title in 2002 and repeated it in 2014 when Jordan managed to win the West Asian Basketball Association title for the second time in the absence of both the Lebanese and senior Iranian teams.

MONZA, Italy — Charles Leclerc secured pole for Ferrari in the Italian Grand Prix in shambolic circumstances on Saturday when only two cars participated in the final qualifying showdown laps.

An unprecedented “cat-and-mouse” procession as the teams crawled round the circuit, backing each other up to claim good slipstreaming positions, resulted in a farce that saw eight cars timed out by the chequered flag.

"A big mess," said Leclerc, who took pole ahead of defending five-time champion Lewis Hamilton.

The Monegasque and Carlos Sainz of McLaren were the only drivers to produce final qualifying runs after clocking lap-times on their first runs in Q3. 

The stewards immediately declared that the shambolic failure at the end of the session was under investigation, the teams having failed to deliver a contest for the paying public.

"Today, to see so many people here feels amazing," said a happy Leclerc, who claimed his maiden victory at last week's tragic Belgian Grand Prix where he dedicated his win to the memory of his late friend Anthoine Hubert, who was killed in the previous day's F2 race.

"I am happy with pole, but disappointed at the end.

"Honestly, I have to be grateful we're on the front row to have a fight with the Ferraris," said Hamilton.

"It's a bit of an anti-climax, but we just timed out."

Valtteri Bottas qualified third in the second Mercedes ahead of Sebastian Vettel in the second Ferrari, the two Renaults of Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg and Sainz, who was seventh.

Red Bull new boy Alex Albon was eighth ahead of Lance Stroll of Racing Point and Kimi Raikkonen of Alfa Romeo, both of whom failed to clock a time in Q3 when Raikkonen crashed. He was uninjured.

Bottas said he and Mercedes had been unlucky to be trapped in the bunched traffic.

"The yellow flag in the last corner meant we probably missed the pole."

Wild cheering 

The Q1 session started in dry conditions and warm late-summer sunshine with a welcome air temperature of 23°C and the track at 38, a near-perfect invitation for Ferrari to delight a big red crowd in the old Autodromo Nazionale.

As expected, the top teams made a cautious start as they looked for enough room to launch a tag-team slipstreaming show. When they did, Leclerc soon went top to be passed promptly by both Renaults, led by Hulkenberg.

Leclerc rose again to wild cheering from the tifosi after a brief red-flagged suspension when Sergio Perez pulled up at Curva Grande.

That cost him a spot in Q2 as he went out along with Romain Grosjean of Haas, the two Williams men George Russell and Robert Kubica and Verstappen, who suffered a power failure.

The Dutchman was set to take penalties and start at or near the back anyway, but this continued a recent run of setbacks. Hamilton was out early and soon on top in Q2 before Leclerc took over with a lap in 1:19.553, just a tenth faster than the champion and Vettel, before Hamilton went top in 1:19.464.

Hamilton led Bottas out of the Mercedes garage ahead of the two Ferraris for Q3 and then stopped at the pit-lane exit to allow them to pass — a strategic move that left Vettel as a reluctant leader.

Leclerc topped the opening runs ahead of Hamilton before Raikkonen went off backwards into the barriers at Parabolica to bring a red-flagged stoppage.

Qatar unveiled the logo for the 2022 World Cup which will be hosted by the Gulf emirate, displaying it in public spaces in Doha and cities around the world on Tuesday.

The design is a stylised Arabic white unisex shawl with maroon patterning, which is displayed in a figure-of-eight symbolising infinity while creating a heart shape above the words “FIFA WORLD CUP Qatar 2022”.

It was projected onto the vast facade of the country’s National Archives in the capital’s southern Msheireb district to fanfare that included a procession of soldiers on horseback watched by a crowd of hundreds.

The building was illuminated with the emblem at exactly 20:22 local time — the same as the year of the tournament.

“The logo is very elegant and showing local culture with the [burgundy] colour of the Qatari flag,” Algerian hospitality worker Mourad Bencheikh, 36, told AFP as visitors crowded to photograph the new branding.

“By time, people will like it.”

The emblem was also displayed in Madrid, Buenos Aires and Beirut along with several other major cities. 

‘It’s wonderful’

“This one is unique for Qatar,” said Sri Lankan quantity surveyor Mohammed Fairoos, 30, as he and a group of friends took a selfie in front of the National Archives projection.

“It’s wonderful.”

The Qatari organisers said the logo “was inspired by traditional woollen shawls worn during the winter months”.

The 2022 event will be held in November and December to avoid the scorching Gulf summer.

“Like football, the shawls’ popularity is a unifying force, woven into the everyday fabric of people’s lives,” added the Supreme Committee in a statement. 

Preparations for the global football spectacle in Qatar have accelerated in recent months.

In May, the 40,000 seat Al Janoub Stadium — the first purpose-built ground to be launched for the tournament — was inaugurated with an almost capacity domestic cup final.

The arena, designed by late British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid and located in a coastal town south of Doha, is estimated to have cost around $575 million.

Of the eight stadiums Qatar is building or refurbishing for 2022, Khalifa International was already open and will host this year’s World Athletics Championships.

The Championships will be a major test of Qatar’s readiness to host a global sporting event. Tens of thousands of spectators are expected to descend on the desert nation ahead of the tournament which begins on September 27.

A major road overhaul is also under way across Doha to expand capacity at key junctions and traffic hotspots.

Parts of an ambitious metro rail project opened to the public in May. The rest of the three-line network expected to be launched in 2020 — well ahead of the tournament.

The network will connect nearly all of Qatar’s stadiums, transport hubs and tourist attractions, when it is completed.

FIFA faced a number of negative headlines in recent months including a decision in May to shelve plans for 48 nations to participate in the 2022 contest.

FIFA boss Gianni Infantino had pushed to extend the tournament.

In June, former European football president Michel Platini was questioned by French anti-corruption investigators for several hours in relation to the 2010 award of hosting rights to Qatar.

Meanwhile, Eight countries are vying to host the 2023 women’s World Cup which will include 32 teams for the first time, FIFA said on Tuesday.

Belgium and Bolivia have withdrawn from the original list of 10 nations ahead of the September 2 deadline for candidate submissions. A decision on the host will be announced in May.

The eight nations still in competition are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and South Africa.

South Korea have indicated they will seek to co-host the event with North Korea.

France hosted 24 teams for the 2019 World Cup which proved so successful that FIFA said it had decided to expand the event to 32 teams to boost the growth of the women’s game.

AMMAN — Jordan takes on Taiwan on Thursday as it kicks off the long journey of the qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and 2023 Asian Cup in China competing in Group B alongside Australia, Kuwait and Nepal.

The Kingdom just ended a training camp in Malaysia where it beat the host 1-0. Following its return from Taipei, Jordan will ready to face Paraguay in a friendly on September 10 before they resume qualifiers and host Nepal and Kuwait on October 10 and 15 and host Australia on November 14 and Taiwan on November 19. The qualifiers will then halt until March 31 when leg 2 resumes.

The Kingdom dropped one spot to 99th in the latest FIFA World Rankings, which came after two friendly matches losing to Slovakia 5-1 before beating Indonesia 4-1. Once among the Asia top 10, Jordan is now 16th in the continent but still lags behind relatively uncompetitive Asian teams compared to their best FIFA ranking of 37th in 2004.  

During summer Jordan played at the 9th West Asian Championship which was won by Bahrain. It was the fourth time for Jordan in the final, finishing runner-up three times but never winning the title.

Initiated by Jordan in 2000, and headed by HRH Prince Ali, president of the Jordan Football Association and the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF), Jordan’s best finish at WAFF Championship was runner-up in 2002, 2008 and 2014. Iran won the title for the fourth time in 2008. Iraq won the title once in 2002, Kuwait in 2010, Syria in 2012 and Qatar in 2014, Bahrain in 2019. 

National teams gear up

Meanwhile, the U-19 national team is readying for Group E qualifiers kicking off November 1 alongside hosts Bahrain, Bangladesh and Bhutan. Playing in two zones, 46 teams will compete in 11 groups. The top team from each group and top four second placed teams will advance to the championship. The squad held a training camp in Turkey, played Algeria twice in August before finishing third at the West Asian Championship in Palestine. 

The U-16 team is also preparing for its Group A qualifiers for the 2020 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Championship. Jordan got a relatively easy draw against Tajikistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Kuwait for the qualifiers to be hosted in Amman from September 14 through the 22nd. Playing in two zones, 47 teams will compete in 11 groups. The top team from each group and top four second placed teams will advance to the championship. The team played a friendly tourney in Qatar and played Algeria in friendlies during their summer training agenda.

Last year, Jordan bowed out of the Round 1 of the 2018 AFC U-16 Men’s Championship. Held once every two years, the competition serves as a qualifier for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, with the top 4 countries qualifying. 

PARIS — Neymar’s decision to join Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 was motivated by a desire to establish himself as the best player in the world, but a troubled time in the French capital has left the Brazilian at risk of wasting the best years of his career.

The closure of the transfer window has finally brought to an end the lengthy saga surrounding the future of the world’s most expensive player, who will stay at PSG having failed to get the move back to Barcelona he craved.

His former club could not complete a deal to rescue the 27-year-old from his apparent nightmare in Paris, with Neymar so determined to return that sports daily L’Equipe reported he offered to pay 20 million euros ($22 million) from his own pocket towards the fee.

PSG paid 222 million euros ($264 million at the time) for his services, while committing reported wages of 36 million euros a year.

Yet, he has not done nearly enough at the Parc des Princes in two seasons marred by injuries and interrupted by off-field distractions.

In August 2017, the desperation of PSG’s Qatari owners to win the Champions League appeared to fit with Neymar’s own obsession with emerging from Lionel Messi’s shadow and winning the Ballon d’Or.

“I would love for us to meet in two years and see what his value will be compared to today. At least double,” said PSG President Nasser Al Khelaifi at the time.

Missing at key moments

However, since moving to the Parc des Princes, Neymar has appeared in barely half of his club’s matches.

When he has played he has frequently been brilliant, scoring 51 goals in 58 games. He has won back-to-back league titles and one Ligue 1 player of the year award.

But the Champions League is what really matters, and when it has really mattered in Europe he has been absent. Foot injuries saw him miss three of the four Champions League knockout matches the club have played since his arrival.

Without him, they lost in the last 16 to Real Madrid in 2018 and then to Manchester United this year.

After suffering a broken foot for the first time in February 2018, Neymar missed the rest of PSG’s season to be ready for the World Cup. Brazil went out in the quarter-finals.

In January this year, Neymar fractured the same foot, missing the crunch part of PSG’s season during three more months out.

He has since missed the Copa America with an ankle injury and was accused of raping a Brazilian woman at a Paris hotel in May — the case was dismissed in August by a Brazilian judge.

Neymar has never learned French and has often appeared too busy with off-field distractions, including throwing lavish birthday parties and making a cameo appearance in his favourite Netflix series.

Good for 

the PSG brand?

He remains one of the biggest sporting celebrities on the planet, but he must put the last few months behind him quickly and deliver, otherwise there may well be nobody rich enough who is willing to take a chance on buying him next year.

PSG supporters have made clear their unhappiness towards Neymar, yet those feelings can still change if he brings success on the pitch.

In the boardroom, there is also the realisation of his commercial value — when Neymar arrived, Khelaifi spoke of “a project of two brands: we’re associating the Neymar brand and the PSG brand”.

They have since signed major sponsorship and endorsement deals with the likes of Nike, with Neymar’s presence alongside Kylian Mbappe playing a major role.

“PSG are a young club who need a big media profile to help them develop. That is what Neymar has brought, just like Zlatan [Ibrahimovic] or [David] Beckham before him,” French sports marketing specialist Jerome Neveu told AFP.

Ending the Neymar experiment might have allowed PSG to start afresh, although Mbappe and coach Thomas Tuchel had stated their wish that he stays.

“I like Neymar, I want to keep playing with him, with Kylian and with everyone,” said Tuchel recently.

Now all eyes will be on Neymar to see if he can put this episode to bed, although his three-game Champions League suspension means it may be some time yet before he makes any genuine impact.