Olympics
Spain look for second straight Olympic final, Morocco aim for another surprise
Tokyo Games silver medallists Spain take on Morocco on Monday aiming to reach a second consecutive Olympic men’s football final and avenge a painful World Cup last-16 loss to the African side two years ago.
Morocco reached their first Olympics semi-final with a 4-0 win over the United States in Paris, while Spain breezed past Japan 3-0 in Lyon in Friday’s quarters. The Spaniards lost 2-1 to Brazil after extra time in the Tokyo final.
Led by captain Achraf Hakimi and tournament leading scorer Soufiane Rahimi, with five goals, Morocco beat Argentina 2-1 in a chaotic Group B opener before a 3-0 win over Iraq, suffering only a 2-1 stumble against Ukraine in between.
In similar fashion, Spain earned a 2-1 victory against Uzbekistan and 3-1 win over the Dominican Republic before a 2-1 loss to in Group C winners Egypt for a second-place finish.
While the match in Marseille is an under-23 contest, Spanish media say it is the perfect chance to avenge the World Cup shootout defeat, while Morocco defender Achraf Hakimi thinks it is another chance to demonstrate his country’s progress.
“The World Cup opened the doors for us, we know Moroccan football is growing,” Hakimi, 25, said after their win in the quarters, referring to their World Cup run to the semi-finals.
“We have to demonstrate to the youngsters that we are capable of fighting the heavyweights.”
It will be a meeting of familiar faces, as Paris St Germain team mates Hakimi and goalkeeper Arnau Tenas, Villarreal’s Ilias Akhomach and Alex Baena and Real Betis’ Abde Ezzalzouli and Juan Miranda, recently signed by Bologna, meet on the pitch.
“Before going to the Olympics I saw ‘Haki’ and I told him: ‘Spain will play Morocco and we are going to win’,” Tenas said.
“Haki is my friend. He is one of the best players in the world. We’ll see what happens.”
In the other semi-final, hosts France, aiming for their first gold in 40 years, face Egypt in Lyon.
-Reuters
The Olympic rings installed on the Eiffel Tower since June to celebrate the upcoming Olympic Games were removed from the Parisian monument early on Friday morning, as confirmed by an AFP photographer. But the Paris City Hall intends to replace them with a more permanent structure until 2028.
The five-coloured rings, measuring 29 metres in length and 15 metres in height, were placed between the first and second levels of the iconic iron structure on 7 June.
According to Inside the Games publication, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo wants the Olympic symbol to continue decorating the monument until the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
But the descendants of the tower’s creator, Gustave Eiffel are opposing the move. They are insisting that the Olympic rings are aesthetically in conflict with the concept and design of the Tower.
The 30-tonne rings initially installed on the Eiffel Tower were also not designed to withstand winter weather conditions.
Olympics
Despite Egypt winning 3 medals at Paris Olympics, President Al-Sisi orders sports system overhaul
Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ordered a comprehensive evaluation of sports federations that participatedat the Paris Olympic Games, following a mission report submitted by the country’s sports minister.
The mandate includes a thorough expenditure check and a performance review to better highlight areas of improvement and fund allocation in future Games.
Additionally, the president plans to take necessary measures against federations —such as limiting funds— that had negative results in the Paris Games.
Egypt’s participation in sports where it lacks a competitive advantage will also be limited, as the president aims to direct resources to promising athletes to ensure optimal results. The president also aims to reduce administrative and technical staff within Olympic delegations and task relevant ministries with preparing future Olympic athletes.
Al-Sisi’s Olympic overhaul is to be presented to the cabinet for approval and urged the government to prioritise amending the sports law for the House of Representatives for review.
Egypt took home a total of three medals in the Summer Games. Ahmed El-Gendy triumphed in modern pentathlon, Sara Samir claimed the silver in weightlifting, and 21-year-old fencer Mohamed El-Sayed earned the bronze.
-Insidethegames
Paris 2024 sold a record 12 million tickets for the Olympics and Paralympics, beating the Games record previously set by London 2012, organisers said on Sunday.
Some 9.5 million tickets were sold for the Olympics and 2.5 million for the Paralympics, which end on Sunday.
In 2012, London organisers set the record for the Paralympics with 2.7 million tickets sold but only 8.2 million were sold for the Olympics.
-Reuters
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