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CASARES, Spain — Spanish star Carlota Ciganda was the home heroine on Sunday as she birdied the 16th and 17th holes to beat Nelly Korda of the United States and secure the point that ensured Europe retained the Solheim Cup.

Europe, who trailed 4-0 after Friday’s opening session, needed to split the last-day singles at Finca Cortesin in Spain to gain a tie and retain the team trophy.

American Lexi Thompson beat Europe’s Emily Pedersen in the final match to end a thrilling competition 14-14.

It was the first time that the matches have ended in a draw and the first time Europe has held the Cup three times in row.

Ciganda, all square with three to play, holed from 4 feet at the 16th and from 2 feet at the short 17th.

“I’m so happy,” said Ciganda, who was congratulated by Spain’s King Felipe VI, and in turn thanked European captain Suzann Pettersen.

“I love Suzann, I love Spain and I love the Solheim Cup,” said Ciganda, who won all four of her matches.

Pettersen, who famously holed the winning putt at Gleneagles in Scotland four years ago, shed tears of joy.

“It was meant to be for Carlota in Spain,” she said. “I said to her going down 16 is this what you would have wanted, and she said she was up for it.”

Another home star was Caroline Hedwall who turned a three-hole deficit into a two hole win over Ally Ewing.

With the pair all square with two to play, Hedwall sank a 30 foot birdie putt at the 17th.

It was an amazing turnaround for a home side that suffered a 4-0 drubbing on the opening morning foursomes.

“There is no such thing as giving up,” said Pettersen. “We got off to a rough start, but turned it round and there will be a big party tonight.”

The final day started in a tie.

Leona Maguire got the first point on the board with a decisive 4 and 3 victory over Rose Zhang. A star of Europe’s win in Ohio as a rookie two years ago, the Irish woman helped clinch the point by holing a 35-foot eagle at the par four 14th.

“It feels just incredible,” said the 28-year-old after nudging Europe into the lead for the first time. “Suzann gave me a job to do and the fans were just fantastic.”

Momentum 

The first point for the USA came in the top match with Megan Khang beating Linn Grant by one hole in a high-quality contest. The American was six under par in the tricky, windy conditions.

“I’m super proud,” said Khang. “I knew that Linn would bring it and be a tough opponent.”

Danielle Kang put America 10-9 ahead with a 4 and 2 win over Charley Hull, but Anna Nordqvist, Europe’s most experienced player, tied the score again with a 2 and 1 victory over Jennifer Kupcho.

As the tension mounted the tide seemed to turn in America’s favour.

Europe’s Georgia Hall, who had been two up early in the back nine, three-putted the 17th from 12 feet to allow Andrea Lee to level the match.

At the same time, Europe’s Gemma Dryburgh, who had been three up, missed a short par putt at the 16th ad also fell back to a tie with Cheyenne Knight.

Lilia Vu, who won 4 and 3 over Madelene Sagstrom, and Angel Yin, 2 and 1 over Celine Boutier, added two points for the Americans.

Hedwall and Ciganda switched the momentum and Thompson’s 2 and 1 win over Pedersen in the final match was only good enough to make it 14-14.

Europe had kept the Cup.

AMMAN — Jordan joins 12,000 athletes from 45 countries at the 19th Asian Games which opened in Hangzhou, China, on Saturday and runs until October 8.

The Kingdom’s  delegation includes 79 athletes competing in  15 sports: Archery, athletics, badminton, basketball, boxing, fencing, golf, gymnastics, ju-jitsu, karate, shooting, taekwondo, weightlifting, triathlon and e-games.

Jordan’s 2018 Asian Games gold medalist taekwondo’s Juliana Al Sadiq, who won bronze at the 2023 World Championship and boxing’s Mohammad Abu Jajeh, who won bronze at the World Championship,  carried Jordan’s flag at the opening ceremony

The Kingdom missed the Beijing Games in 1990, and returned to the 12th edition in Hiroshima, Japan in 1994 where Jordan won two silver and one bronze medal in taekwondo.

At the last 18th edition in Indonesia in 2018,a record total of 12 medals were won, including two gold, one silver and nine bronze medals. Taekwondo’s Juliana Al Sadiq secured gold and Ju-Jitsu’s Haidar Al Rasheed another. Ju-Jitsu added a silverin addition, 9 bronze medals were won of which 3 came in taekwondo — includin gone by Saleh Sharabati and another by Ahmad Abu Ghaush, another 3 in ju-jitsu,2 in karate and 1 in boxing.

Two of the medal winners went on to win Olympic medals later on, including Abu Ghaush, the first ever Olympic gold medallist at the 2016 Games Rio de Janeiro while Sharabati won silver at the 2020 Tokyo Games where Abdul Rahman Masatfa won bronze in karate.

BARCELONA — Jude Bellingham rescued Real Madrid with a 94th-minute strike to earn the Spanish giants a 1-0 win over Champions League debutants Union Berlin on Wednesday.

Carlo Ancelotti's side, 14-time winners of the competition, were thwarted at every turn by their stubborn German opponents, who were only promoted to the Bundesliga four years ago, until Bellingham prodded home at the death.

The England international has started his Madrid career in stunning goalscoring form with six goals in six games for the club across all competitions.

Madrid seemed destined to take only a point after Union Berlin goalkeeper Frederik Ronnow frustrated them and Rodrygo and Joselu both hit the woodwork, until Bellingham intervened.

"Scoring in the last minute is the spirit of this shirt — of not giving up," Madrid coach Ancelotti told a news conference.

"[Bellingham] has great qualities, it seems he's got luck too, because the goal is a rebound, but he was there, he arrives from deep, and he's more switched on than others, he's got that quality and he's taking advantage of it."

Real Madrid have only failed to score in one of their last 68 home matches in the Champions League, and on few occasions at the Santiago Bernabeu have they seemed as toothless as in the first half.

Without injured forward Vinicius Junior the Madrid attack has lacked dynamism in recent weeks, even as midfielder Bellingham's goals have earned them a 100 percent record in La Liga after five games.

The English midfielder made his Champions League debut in the competition for Madrid after his move from Borussia Dortmund in the summer

Bellingham arrived after Madrid's thrashing by Manchester City in last season's semifinals, a new star to help Madrid try to win the competition they crave the most.

Despite Madrid's illustrious history, the visitors were calm, composed and above all, well-drilled defensively, under Swiss coach Urs Fischer.

Record signing Robin Gosens warned his Union Berlin teammates they could not play with "awe and fear" and they responded with a disciplined display.

Perhaps it should have been no surprise, with veteran Italian defender Leonardo Bonucci making his debut at the back for the visitors.

The German side sat deep, surrendered the ball to Madrid and succeeded in frustrating the hosts.

Joselu wasted Madrid's best chance in the first half, heading narrowly wide, while his teammates were reduced to pot-shots from distance.

Madrid turned the screw in the second half as the minutes ticked away, with Ronnow making a superb save to deny Rodrygo at the near post, before the Brazilian cracked another effort against the woodwork.

Berlin's goalkeeper tipped Joselu header's against the post, while also denying veteran midfielder Luka Modric, given a rare start by Ancelotti.

Union Berlin were living on a knife-edge in the final stages, with Joselu swinging a leg at Bellingham's cross to direct the ball fractionally wide with Ronnow beaten.

Eventually Bellingham decided the game, in the right place at the right time as a deflected Fede Valverde strike fell his way in the box and he stabbed home from point-blank range.

"I'm disappointed, we were a minute away from taking a point so you can understand that, but on the other hand I'm very proud of my team's result, they did everything possible," said Berlin coach Fischer.

"Football is fair — in the 95 minutes Real Madrid clearly 'won', but it hurts too if they take your point away in the last minute, because in defence we played well."

Madrid's 20-year-old midfield master Bellingham took Zinedine Zidane's number five shirt in tribute to the Los Blancos great when he arrived, but so far his goals have turned him into Madrid's de facto Karim Benzema replacement.

"We have the luck that he's here playing with us and I hope he keeps scoring a lot of goals," defender Nacho told Movistar.

"It was a complete game, we had a lot of shots, the one thing we had to do was to be aware of their counter attacks — we're very happy."

PARIS — Manchester City overcame an early scare to get their Champions League defence off to a solid start on Tuesday but nine-man Celtic endured a rough night in Rotterdam.

Barcelona cruised past Antwerp and KylianMbappe helped Paris-Saint Germain to an opening win on a breathless beginning to the group stage of Europe’s top club competition.

Newcastle returned to the high table of European football for the first time in two decades with a battling goalless draw against AC Milan at the San Siro and Lazio grabbed an equaliser deep in injury time to hold Atletico Madrid.

In Manchester, Pep Guardiola’s City were stunned when Red Star’s Osman Bukari opened the scoring in first half stoppage time.

But Julian Alvarez continued his sparkling early season form by levelling just two minutes after the break.

The Argentine then got some help from Red Star goalkeeper Omri Glazer as he flapped at Alvarez’s free-kick to allow the ball to fly into the far corner.

Rodri rounded off a 3-1 win with a composed finish 17 minutes from time.

“If we scored two goals early in the beginning it would’ve been completely different,” said Guardiola, who was frustrated at his side’s finishing.

“Having 22 [first-half] shots on goal means you are playing really good. It has to be the responsibility of the people in front to score the goals.”

City are next away to RB Leipzig, who share top place in Group E after a 3-1 win at Swiss champions Young Boys.

Mohamed Simaken earned the distinction of scoring the first goal of the group stages with the 2023/24 competition only three minutes old.

The French-born defender’s header put Leipzig into a lightning lead in Berne but Elia levelled for the Swiss hosts before Xaver Schlager and Benjamin Sesko wrapped up the win for the Austrian visitors.

In Catalonia Joao Felix struck twice as Barcelona flexed their muscles with a crushing 5-0 win over Royal Antwerp to show their determination to be considered among Europe’s elite once again.

After consecutive humiliating group stage eliminations Barcelona are desperate to go deep in this season’s competition, last winning it eight years ago.

Felix shone for the Spanish champions on a stroll on a warm night in the Catalan capital, helped on their way by an own goal, with Robert Lewandowski and Gavi also scoring.

That lifted them top of Group H from Porto, 3-1 winners over Shakhtar Donetsk.

Barca’s victory followed a 5-0 thrashing of Real Betis on Saturday, leading coach Xavi Hernandez to say: “I think these last two games are the best level we have shown with me as coach — it’s the path to follow.”

‘Almost perfect’

At Parc des Princes, PSG may have lost Neymar and Lionel Messi over the summer but they held on to Mbappe who set them up for a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund.

The French champions went ahead four minutes after the break when Mbappe scored a spot-kick awarded for a NiklasSuele handball.

Achraf Hakimi added a memorable second, and PSG could have won the Group F encounter by a far more handsome margin in the end.

“It was an almost perfect evening,” purred new coach Luis Enrique.

PSG’s next date is at Newcastle, whose manager Eddie Howe was proud of his side’s dogged return to the competition against seven-time European kings AC Milan.

Howe was the happier of the two managers after taking a point from the clash at the San Siro as his team were mostly on the back foot against last season’s losing semifinalists.

“Definitely pride in result and the performance and the mentality shown,” Howe told reporters.

Over in Rotterdam a “bitterly disappointed” Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers was left to rue the “inexperience” of two players sent off in their 2-0 loss to Feyenoord but said the Scottish champions had proved they could be competitive.

Midway through the second half defender Gustaf Lagerbielke was shown a second yellow card after pulling back Brazilian striker Igor Paixao in the box. He was barely down the tunnel when substitute Odin Thiago Holm also saw red for a studs up late challenge.

“Unfortunately for us, we got the two players sent off and it’s a difficult level 11 v 11, but 11 v nine is really difficult,” said Rodgers who was heartened by the “spirit and mentality” of the nine men left on the pitch.

On Wednesday, record 14-time winners Real Madrid host German debutants Union Berlin, and Bayern Munich with Harry Kane welcome Manchester United who are seeking solace in Europe after a troubling start to the Premier League season.

TEHRAN — Crowds of Iranian football fans gave Cristiano Ronaldo a rapturous welcome on Monday as his Saudi team arrived in Teheran for the first home-and-away club tie since the two countries resumed diplomatic relations.

Fans chanted the name of the Portuguese five-time world player of the year as he arrived with his Al Nassr teammates to face Iranian club Persepolis in the Asian Champions League on Tuesday.

The match will be the first since Tehran and Riyadh reached a China-brokered deal announced in March.

Teams from both countries had only played matches on neutral grounds since 2016 when Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia and Shiite-majority Iran severed ties.

In Tehran, excitement filled the air as fans eagerly waited to catch a glimpse of Ronaldo as he left Iran’s Imam Khomeini’s airport.

Large crowds of cheering fans lined the streets as Ronaldo and his team arrived at a hotel in Tehran on board a bus.

Others chanting “Ronaldo, Ronaldo!” even flooded into the hotel lobby.

Posters of Ronaldo sprung up across the Iranian capital’s main streets emblazoned with “Welcome”, written in Arabic, English and Farsi.

“I think it will be a beautiful game and will have a lot of excitement,” said 28-year-old Navid Borhanifar, a Ronaldo fan.

“It’s very exciting for me.”

Sadly for the fans, none will be allowed to attend the match which will be held at the gigantic Azadi stadium, which can host up to 90,000 people.

The Asian Football Confederation have ruled that the game be played behind closed doors as punishment for a controversial 2021 online post by Persepolis before a match against an Indian team.

‘Unlimited Internet’ 

Ronaldo and his teammates have been placed under the protection of an “elite unit”, specialised in securing presidential visits, according to sports website Varzesh 3.

The unit will be in charge of “preventing any contact between fans and players of the Saudi team”, it added.

Ronaldo’s arrival has also sparked a debate over Iran’s Internet restrictions.

Iran has imposed strict internet curbs — including on WhatsApp and Instagram — since last year’s mass protests triggered by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini.

Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, had been arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic republic’s dress code for women.

Last week, Persepolis’s general manager Reza Darvish proposed that the Saudi team be given SIM cards with unfiltered Internet access.

“I have talked to the CEO of Irancell [a local provider and sponsor to Persepolis] and asked for SIM cards for... players and those who accompany them with unlimited Internet,” he said in a press conference.

The 2023-2024 Asian Champions League officially begins this week with the spotlight on Saudi Arabia which alongside Ronaldo has lured a host of stars including Karim Benzema, Neymar and Sadio Mane.

Persepolis are one of the region’s most successful clubs and reached the final of the Asian Champions League in 2018 and 2020, while Al Nassr won the tournament in 1995.

Other matches between the two countries will take place in the coming weeks. Saudi’s Al Ittihad are scheduled to play Iran’s Sepahan on October 2, and Saudi club Al Hilal are scheduled to meet Iran’s Nassaji Mazandaran on October 3.

AMMAN — Jordan’s delegation to the 6th Invictus Games held in Dusseldorf, Germany. - returned home with  17 medals.

The international sporting event for wounded, injured and ill veteran and active service personnel saw 21 countries competing with Jordan’s 16 athletes participating in power-lifting, indoor rowing and athletics which includes the long jump, discus, shot put, running and wheelchair race.

The athletes included retired and active servicemen, from the Army, Gendarmerie, Public Security Department, and others supported by the Hashemite Commission for Disabled Soldiers.  The Kingdom won 2 medals in weightlifting, including a gold and silver and 15 medals in athletics including six gold, three silver and six bronze.

Over 500 athletes competed in 10 disciplines including archery, athletics, indoor rowing, bench press, sitting volleyball, swimming, cycling, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby and table tennis.

Jordan did not participate in the last edition, which was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic and took place in 2022. At the previous 2018 edition in Sydney, Australia, Jordan returned with haul of nine medals and an impressive performance.

The Games, founded by Prince Harry of Britain in 2014, underline the positive impact sport could have on the recovery and rehabilitation of wounded, injured and ill servicemen and women. The word “Invictus”, Latin for “unconquered”  embodies the fighting spirit of those  servicemen and women and highlights the power of sport to inspire recovery, support rehabilitation and generate a wider understanding of and respect for those who serve their country. 

The inaugural Invictus Games was held in London in 2014, Florida hosted the 2016 edition, Toronto 2017, Sydney 2018,  the Hague edition of 2020 was postponed to 2022. The next Games are slated for  Vancouver in 2025. 

BARCELONA — Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez said onnMonday his time in the team as a player helped set a high bar which the club are now struggling to reach in the Champions League.

The Catalan giants won four editions of the competition between 2006 and 2015, and have endured some humiliating eliminations since.

Barcelona let leads slip against Roma and Liverpool and were thrashed by Bayern Munich in recent years, while they have failed to make it out of the group stage in the past two seasons.

“There is huge demand on us, the bar is so high — this is Barca,” Xavi told a news conference.

“This is a consequence of the Barca of the past few years, of our era, as a player. In 10 years, from 2006 to 2015, four Champions Leagues were won.”

The coach said the club’s objective was to make it through the group phase, ahead of their opener in the competition against Belgian champions Royal Antwerp on Tuesday.

“We like challenges, but the level of demand is so high, it’s brutal,” he continued.

“It’s a consequence of inheriting a brilliant era, the best in the history of this club.”

However Xavi said his players were coping well and excited to start their new European campaign.

“Looking in the faces of the players, the joy, I see hope,” added Xavi. “A lot of hope and desire.”

Barcelona spent little in the summer as they continue to endure financial difficulties, but were able to sign Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo on loan.

They also replaced Sergio Busquets with former Barca youth team product Oriol Romeu, signed from Girona.

The midfielder, 31, said he did not imagine he would be back at this level after leaving Barcelona in 2011 for Chelsea, later joining Southampton in 2015.

“I’d be lying to you if I said that when you go to Southampton you think you’ll be playing a key role at Barcelona [one day], it’s hard to imagine,” said Romeu.

“Football has many twists and turns. I’m happy, and hopeful of doing a good job.”

AMMAN — Faisali host Uzbekistan’s Nasaf Qarshi in the Asian Football Confederation  (AFC) Champions League round robin group stages on Monday as Jordanian teams play regional events alongside their local agenda.

Faisali’s Group B also includes Qatar’s Sadd and UAE’s Sharja.

On the other hand, Wihdat will play the second tier Asian competition, the  AFC Cup, after  they were eliminated from the AFC Champions League, losing 3-0 to Ahli Dubai in the preliminary round after they played in two earlier editions.

Wihdat will host Aleppo’s Ittihad in Group B matches on Tuesday. The Group also includes Kuwait Club and Iraq’s Kahrabaa.

The Hussein vs Wihdat and Faisali vs Aqaba league matches are therefore postponed this week.

In 2022, Wihdat were eliminated in the ACL group stages after they became the first of the Kingdom’s clubs to play in the round robin group stages in 2021. None of the Kingdom’s clubs have ever made it past the ACL  preliminary round where Faisali played in 2020 and 2018,  Wihdat in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019 and Shabab Urdun in 2014.

In the second-tier Asian club competition — the AFC Cup — no Jordanian clubs played last season citing financial and technical constraints. 

Earlier this year, Shabab Urdun played at the preliminary round of the King Salman Clubs Cup (the 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup, where they were eliminated by Mauritania’s FC Nouadhibou. 

A total of 37 teams participated in the 30th season of the event — the Arab world’s leading club football tournament organised by UAFA — with a total of $10 million of prize money awarded. Morocco’s Raja CA are the defending champions.