Sports

The bullet is through the church: world football player Lionel Messi exchanges 'his' Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain.   The Argentinian went to the famous youth academy in Barcelona as a thirteen-year-old and eventually stayed in Spain for 21 years. It is a two-year contract with an option for a third year. The Paris club will annually hand Messi a payslip of 40 million euros. Lionel Messi is the latest addition to PSG's star grid, including footballers such as Kylian Mbappe and Neymar. The Argentinian will earn 40 million euros annually. The French are certainly happy to see him come. Messi was met by a crowd of frenzied fans in Paris on Tuesday afternoon when the footballer waved a wave from an airport window, and the crowd started chanting his name. Shortly after the world s...

Serena Williams has had a sad retreat at Wimbledon at the age of 20. The American tennis star, who won the grass tournament in London seven times, gave up in her first-round match against Aliaksandra Sasnovich from Belarus.   With a score of 3-3 in the first set, she was unable to continue playing due to an injury. Williams, 39, has already stepped onto the centre court with a bandage around her right leg. With that leg wrapped up, it went well for four games. Then, she made a misstep with a 3-1 lead and limped off the court for injury treatment. She returned and continued the match hopefully, but after a few strokes, she realized that it was no longer possible and gave up. With tears in her eyes, she descended towards the catacombs.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has released the definitive handbook full of rules that athletes and officials must adhere to during the Olympics.   The third edition contains some changes and additions compared to the previous two manuals published by the IOC. As was already known, the athletes must be tested daily for the coronavirus during the Games. Anyone travelling to Japan for the Games must be tested twice within 96 hours of departure. Upon arrival, a so-called saliva test awaits at the airport. In the first three days, everyone (athletes, officials, trainers, journalists) must do such a saliva test every day; for the athletes and officials, this will remain a daily routine during the Games. Those who do not follow all the rules in the manual, which consists of ...

People react with surprise to the news that handball international Yvette Broch has withdrawn from the Olympic Games.   The routine of Orange does not want to be vaccinated against the coronavirus and, according to the staff of the Dutch team, has been told that she, therefore, ends up in an isolated position, especially in Tokyo. Broch doesn't feel like it, so she is no longer available for the Summer Games in Japan. "As the athletes' committee, we have always understood that there will be no distinction between vaccinated and unvaccinated athletes," says Schreuder. "I am not aware of any change in this area. So that needs to be checked now. As far as I know, the premise was that you don't even have to share whether you're vaccinated or not; that's under medical secrecy, that's pr...

After the first practice, Max Verstappen also concluded the second free practice of the new Formula 1 season with the best time.   The 23-year-old Dutchman employed by Red Bull recorded 1.30,847 on the Bahrain International Circuit. This made him a fraction faster than the Briton Lando Norris in the McLaren and the reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes. Verstappen had recorded the best time earlier in the day during the new season's first free practice with 1.31.394. It was the first time since 2014 that Mercedes did not set the fastest time during the first training session of the season. The race is on Sunday at 5 p.m.

Ferrari is doing everything it can to prevent a repeat of last season in Formula 1. That said, team boss Mattia Binotto on Friday during the team presentation for the new season.   "Last year was certainly a big disappointment. We know we cannot repeat such a bad result. We know that we must somehow do better in 2021," said Binotto. Ferrari finished in a disappointing sixth place in the manufacturers' standings last year, far behind the competition. Charles Leclerc finished eighth in the World Cup standings, and the now-departed Sebastian Vettel finished thirteenth. "I think it's really a matter of mindset," Binotto continued. "Team mentality and driver mentality. As a team principal, I am fully aware of the responsibility I have to be part of such a team. I don't feel any pressur...

The Tokyo Olympics costs, which are postponed to 2021, have risen to $ 12.6 billion. In the budget plan published on Tuesday, the organizers speak of an additional cost of 2.3 billion.   Despite all the savings, the event's costs have again risen sharply due to the corona measures. For example, there are already 135 million dollars in additional expenditure for the opening and closing ceremonies. In the new budget plan, 5.4 billion dollars of the costs will end up with the organization. The host city of Tokyo provides 5.4 billion dollars, and the Japanese government 1.7 billion dollars. The costs of the Games had already risen sharply before the corona crisis. At the allocation in 2013, Tokyo still assumed costs of 6.1 billion dollars. "We should not only look at the Games from a...