Professional Sports
PANORAMA
★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★ ★ To get the daily Sports Examiner Recap by e-mail: sign up here! ★ ≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡ ● Athletics ● The mystery over the “official” time of 4:06.42 for Kenyan star Faith Kipyegon at […]


★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★
★ To get the daily Sports Examiner Recap by e-mail: sign up here! ★
≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Athletics ● The mystery over the “official” time of 4:06.42 for Kenyan star Faith Kipyegon at the Nike “Breaking4″ event and the shown 4:06.91 event time was explained by Runner’s World.
The 4:06.91 time was the standard measurement of the time from the firing of the starter’s pistol to the time that Kipyegon crossed the finish line. The 4:06.42 time is a “chip time” from when Kipyegon actually began her race effort, to the time she finished.
This is seen often in mass road races, where some runners do not cross the start line for quite a while, but not in something as short as a mile. But now you know.
¶
The Times of London reported on an e-mail message from Grand Slam Track Senior Director of Racing Kyle Merber sent to athlete agents on Tuesday (1st) concerning appearance and prize-money fees owed to athletes who competed in the Kingston, Miramar and Philadelphia Slams:
“We’d like to provide the following update regarding payments for the athletes who competed in Grand Slam Track events this year. Our plan is to make payments for Kingston prize money before the end of July and the remaining payments due by the end of September, which includes the honoring of Los Angeles appearance fees.”
The final meet, scheduled for UCLA’s Drake Stadium in Los Angeles for 28-29 June, was canceled over financial concerns, despite more than 10,000 tickets being sold for the two days combined, with more than two weeks to go.
● Football ● Much attention continues to be paid to the attendance figures at the FIFA Club World Cup, with the first round of playoff matches completed.
The group stage had 1,667,819 in attendance across 48 matches for an average of 34,746.
For the eight Round-of-16 playoff matches, Inside World Football offered a table showing 342,006 in attendance for an average of 63.28% of capacity (550,744). Of the eight matches:
● 2 had from 20-26,000
● 2 had from 30-35,000
● 1 had from 40-45,000
● 3 had from 60-65,000
OK, not great. Eight matches are left.
¶
The U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated the guilty verdicts against former Fox International Channels head Hernan Lopez and Full Play Group SA dealing with television rights, wire fraud and money laundering for multiple major football tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup and Copa Libertadores. Full Play was also convicted on charges related to Olympic qualifying matches and the Copa America tournament.
All of the convictions had been thrown out in September 2023 by District Judge Pamela Chen (Eastern District of New York), citing a May 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision. But the appeals court ordered her to reinstate the convictions and to continue the proceedings in line with their opinion.
Lopez’s attorney promised to continue their appeals.
● Swimming ● The ancient suit by U.S. swimmers Michael Andrew and Tom Shields and Hungarian star Katinka Hosszu against World Aquatics (then FINA) for restrictions of trade over a planned 2018 meet in Italy, will apparently come to trial at the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, California beginning on 12 January 2026.
World Aquatics has energetically opposed the suit and it appears to be thrown out at one point, but a September 2024 ruling by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held the matter to be sufficient to be tried.
● Table Tennis ● After the disruption, screaming and shouting that caused the International Table Tennis Federation’s Annual General Meeting in March to be suspended, the ITTF is obligated to convene the meeting once again to finish voting on several offices. On Wednesday, the federation noted:
“Given the complexity of this situation, the ITTF engaged a leading law firm to ensure the continuation of the AGM is managed in full compliance with ITTF statutes and Swiss law, where the federation is headquartered. The date and details of the AGM’s continuation will be announced as soon as possible.”
It can be expected that at the re-convened meeting, a continued challenge to the Presidential vote will be made. ITTF Senior Executive Vice President Khalil Al-Mohannadi, the loser in the election by 104-102, has already announced an appeal to the ITTF Tribunal and to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
¶
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Professional Sports
Mark Pope dishes out very high praise for Malachi Moreno
Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope has high expectations for freshman Malachi Moreno as the Great Crossing High School recruit makes his way to campus. “Malachi Moreno is gonna be fun,” Pope said in a press conference Monday. “We’re gonna have a lot of fun with him. He’s so young and he’s so capable. From […]


Kentucky Wildcats head coach Mark Pope has high expectations for freshman Malachi Moreno as the Great Crossing High School recruit makes his way to campus.
“Malachi Moreno is gonna be fun,” Pope said in a press conference Monday. “We’re gonna have a lot of fun with him. He’s so young and he’s so capable. From him, we’re gonna see moments where it’s like he should be in the NBA right now, and we’re gonna see moments where we feel like, I’m not sure Malachi knows exactly what he’s doing. And we’re going to see both of those, and that’s what growth is.”
It remains to be seen where Moreno will be in the rotation when the season starts. He should be behind Arizona State transfer commit Jayden Quaintance, but Quaintance may not be ready for the start of the season as he recovers from knee surgery earlier this year. That means Moreno could have a chance to start when the season gets underway in early November.
Right now, Kentucky’s front court includes Moreno, Brandon Garrison, Mo Dioubate, Reece Potter, and, eventually, Andrija Jelavic, who is still in the process of making his way to campus.
Even so, Pope likes what Moreno can bring to the Wildcats in his freshman season.
Professional Sports
UFC 318
[embedded content] New Orleans — Welterweight Islam Dulatov moonlights as a model, but as of Saturday’s UFC 318, he’s a UFC fighter with a big, bonus-winning victory in his promotional debut. Dulatov knocked out Adam Fugitt to earn a Performance of the Night bonus on the UFC 318 prelims, in a fight originally booked for […]


New Orleans — Welterweight Islam Dulatov moonlights as a model, but as of Saturday’s UFC 318, he’s a UFC fighter with a big, bonus-winning victory in his promotional debut.
Dulatov knocked out Adam Fugitt to earn a Performance of the Night bonus on the UFC 318 prelims, in a fight originally booked for February. A long time coming, in other words (Dulatov agreed on Saturday that fight camp felt never-ending), but the outcome he was looking for. Even better than he imagined.
“I think it’s not comparable to reality, because it’s better than I ever had in my mind,” Dulatov (12-1) stated following the bout, speaking with media outlets including Cageside Press. “Unbelievable feeling, really. I trained so hard for this, over 10 years of my life.”
Sporting a cast following the win, Islam Dulatov revealed that he’d sustained in injury during training. “I think I broke my thumb last week in sparring already. In this fight I gave an uppercut… I don’t know what it is now, I have to check it.”
Of course, fighters never go into a bout 100% healthy, he acknowledged. “It’s okay. Part of the game.”
While he did have photoshoots booked this week, making it a good thing he didn’t take any damage to the face, Dulatov is currently focused on fighting. “I have some shoots coming up, all this stuff. A lot of things coming up. For me, it’s more important, what’s next for me in the UFC. Have to go back to the gym, start camp again, and fight soon again.”
As for when fights against ranked opponents might come for the talented welterweight prospect, he feels they’ll come when they come. No rush, in other words.
“I’m going to be honest with you guys, I want to take my time for this. I grow up, I make big steps in each fight. Actually, it will take as long as it will take. I waited so long for this opportunity to fight in the UFC. Two years or something like that. It will not change anything. I want to fight for the title when I’m in my prime. We will get there soon.”
Watch the full UFC 318 post-fight press conference with Islam Dulatov above.
High School Sports
These are the top returning 7A boys soccer stat leaders in 2025
The 2025 North Carolina high school boys soccer season is upon us. Schools belonging to the N.C. High School Athletic Association will have their first practice on July 30. HighSchoolOT has dived into last year’s statistics to give you a look a the top returning players in each of the new classifications this fall. Here […]

The 2025 North Carolina high school boys soccer season is upon us.
Schools belonging to the N.C. High School Athletic Association will have their first practice on July 30.
HighSchoolOT has dived into last year’s statistics to give you a look a the top returning players in each of the new classifications this fall.
Here are the top statistical leaders in the new 7A classification. Note: Teams must have posted season stats to MaxPreps or sent them to us to be featured in this article
See stat leaders from the other classifications and other sports below:
Returning 7A Soccer Leaders: Total Goals
- Joseth Banegas, senior, Southern Durham — 37
- Blake Oxendine, senior, Jack Britt — 25
- Christopher Serrano, senior, Clayton — 24
- Cole Capps, senior, Heritage — 21
- Robinhio Tanis, senior, Lumberton — 20
- Payton Popp, senior, Mooresville — 18
- Brendan Rayworth, senior, Smithfield-Selma — 16
- Robbie Reeves, senior, Grimsley — 16
- Collin Mckee, junior, Marvin Ridge — 14
- Brandon Martinez, junior, A.L. Brown — 14
- Facundo Rivera, sophomore, Jack Britt — 14
- Brian Valencia, senior, Parkland — 13
- Isaac Congleton, senior, D.H. Conley — 13
- Jahleel Green, junior, Pine Forest — 13
- Sean Lackey, senior, Overhills — 11
- Ethan Hancock-Arroyo, senior, Clayton — 11
- Deyson Castillo, senior, New Hanover — 11
- Alex Kuhner, junior, R.J. Reynolds — 11
- Colton Perkins, junior, Marvin Ridge — 11
- Henry Blackburn, senior, Sanderson — 10
- Clark Marriott, senior, Ashley — 10
- Warren Mountford, junior, Fuquay-Varina — 10
- Spencer Goodwin, junior, New Bern — 10
- Miles Bickel, junior, New Hanover — 10
Returning 7A Soccer Leaders: Total Assists
- Jacob Gibson, senior, Holly Springs — 15
- Tate Peel, senior, Grimsley — 14
- Noah Guzman, senior, Jack Britt — 13
- Carlos Figueroa, senior, Southern Durham — 13
- Nicholas Acevedo, senior, Pine Forest — 11
- Cesar Ramirez, senior, Cuthbertson — 10
- Blake Oxendine, senior, Jack Britt — 10
- Gustavo Ramos, senior, Southern Durham — 10
- Jacolby Locklear, junior, Purnell Swett — 10
- Cassias Mckinnon, senior, Marvin Ridge — 9
- Carter Macey, senior, Cardinal Gibbons — 9
- Joseth Banegas, senior, Southern Durham — 9
- Facundo Rivera, sophomore, Jack Britt — 9
- Brian Valencia, senior, Parkland — 8
- Robbie Reeves, senior, Grimsley — 8
- Brandon Martinez, junior, A.L. Brown — 8
- Alexis Ocampo-Ayala, senior, Reagan — 7
- Alexander Maure, senior, East Forsyth — 7
- Joshua Badillo, senior, Lumberton — 7
- Robinhio Tanis, senior, Lumberton — 7
- Cohen Wertz, senior, Cary — 7
- Deyson Castillo, senior, New Hanover — 7
- Tavalis Parker, senior, Clayton — 7
- Keinner Martinez, sophomore, New Hanover — 7
Returning 7A Soccer Leaders: Total Points
- Joseth Banegas, senior, Southern Durham — 83
- Blake Oxendine, senior, Jack Britt — 60
- Christopher Serrano, senior, Clayton — 54
- Robinhio Tanis, senior, Lumberton — 47
- Cole Capps, senior, Heritage — 43
- Robbie Reeves, senior, Grimsley — 40
- Payton Popp, senior, Mooresville — 40
- Brendan Rayworth, senior, Smithfield-Selma — 37
- Facundo Rivera, sophomore, Jack Britt — 37
- Brandon Martinez, junior, A.L. Brown — 36
- Brian Valencia, senior, Parkland — 34
- Collin Mckee, junior, Marvin Ridge — 31
- Tate Peel, senior, Grimsley — 30
- Jahleel Green, junior, Pine Forest — 30
- Deyson Castillo, senior, New Hanover — 29
- Isaac Congleton, senior, D.H. Conley — 28
- Alex Kuhner, junior, R.J. Reynolds — 28
- Carlos Figueroa, senior, Southern Durham — 25
- Sean Lackey, senior, Overhills — 25
- Nicholas Acevedo, senior, Pine Forest — 25
- Colton Perkins, junior, Marvin Ridge — 25
- Ethan Hancock-Arroyo, senior, Clayton — 24
- Clark Marriott, senior, Ashley — 24
- Miles Bickel, junior, New Hanover — 24
Copyright 2025 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
College Sports
Pro Volleyball Star Bails On Promising Career To Chase Olympics
© Kyle Terada-Imagn Images // USC Athletics Audio By Carbonatix Sara Hughes made a surprising decision to pick Ally Batenhorst as her new beach volleyball partner. The soon-to-be 23-year-old is bailing on a promising indoor career in an attempt to qualify for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Although this kind of switch is not […]



Audio By Carbonatix
Sara Hughes made a surprising decision to pick Ally Batenhorst as her new beach volleyball partner. The soon-to-be 23-year-old is bailing on a promising indoor career in an attempt to qualify for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Although this kind of switch is not uncommon, it is still an earth-shattering move in the world of volleyball.
One of the best indoor players in the world will kick off her shoes to join the former world champion on the sand. Nobody saw it coming!
Sara Hughes is already established as one of the top players in beach volleyball.
Sara Hughes is no stranger to the beach. The former top-ranked recruit in both disciplines of the sport chose to play beach volleyball for USC in college and at one point won 103 matches in a row. The Trojans won multiple national titles while she was on the team.
At 5-foot-10, Hughes is considered one of the best defenders in the world. The 30-year-old seems to get a touch on every single ball. It’s insane!
Hughes played with multiple different partners as a professional over the last eight years. She and Kelly Cheng ultimately chose to go their separate ways after a shocking upset loss to Switzerland at the Olympics last summer and an injury.
With the sour taste of Paris now in her rearview mirror, these next four years will focus on Los Angeles.
Enter Ally Batenhorst.
Batenhorst began her college volleyball career at Nebraska and later transferred to USC. She only played indoor for the Trojans but she played both indoor and outdoor for the Huskers, with a 39-28 career record on the sand.
However, Ally Batenhorst has not played on the beach since early 2024. The 6-foot-5 outside hitter signed a professional contract with the Omaha Supernovas of the Pro Volleyball Federation after college.
She recorded 128 kills on 348 swings (36.8%) as a rookie.
Batenhorst’s first year with Omaha was also her last.
She is making the move from indoor to outdoor.
Although Ally Batenhorst loved her time with the Supernovas, she moved back to California during the offseason and fell back in love with the beach. Hughes eventually asked her to be her partner for at least the next three years, which was an easy yes.
They officially announced their partnership earlier this week. It is very big news!
This is a little bit of a risk for Hughes. Batenhorst is not new to the sand but she is still learning the game on a professional level after a 18-month(ish) focus on indoor volleyball.
By partnering now, Hughes and Batenhorst will have enough time to get acclimated before the Los Angeles Olympics cycle gets going. Their partnership, while surprising, could be a really dominant force on the international level if everything comes together as smoothly as they hope!
Professional Sports
Adesanya delivers his prediction for “chaotic” UFC 319 title fight
One of the ways UFC fighters connect with fans is by sharing live reactions to numbered fight cards on social media – a tradition that former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has embraced for years. With the dust barely settled from UFC 318, fans are already turning their attention to the highly anticipated clash between Dricus […]

One of the ways UFC fighters connect with fans is by sharing live reactions to numbered fight cards on social media – a tradition that former middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has embraced for years.
With the dust barely settled from UFC 318, fans are already turning their attention to the highly anticipated clash between Dricus du Plessis and Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 319, set for August 16. The South African champion will make his third title defense in what promises to be a thrilling middleweight showdown.
“Dricus gets it”
Adesanya, who held the belt during two separate reigns (2019-2022 and 2023), offered his take while watching the UFC 319 promo.
“I still think Dricus gets it, late finish…” the 36-year-old said. “Dricus is just chaotic. Chaotic good. Chaotic evil. That’s literally what this fight might be. Chaotic good versus chaotic evil.”
The matchup is shaping up to be a must-watch. Du Plessis is riding high after back-to-back wins over legends Sean Strickland and Adesanya himself, and he’ll be looking to further cement his legacy.
Meanwhile, Chimaev is aiming to prove his elite status and keep his undefeated record intact by capturing UFC gold.
UFC 319: Du Plessis vs Chimaev – main fight card:
- Dricus du Plessis vs Khamzat Chimaev – middleweight
- Geoff Neal vs Carlos Prates – welterweight
- Jared Cannonier vs Michael Page – middleweight
- Tim Elliot vs Kai Asakara – flyweight
How to watch UFC 319
Viewers in the U.S. will be able to watch Du Plessis and Chimaev’s UFC middleweight title fight on ESPN+ PPV. The main card at UFC 319 – an event which is to be hosted by United Center in Chicago, Illinois – is scheduled to begin at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT.


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