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OUSMANE DEMBELE RULED OUT OF EURO 2020 OLYMPICS DUE TO KNEE INJURY

France forward Ousmane Dembele has been ruled out for the rest of Euro 2020 with a knee injury.

The French Football Federation has announced the Barcelona winger will leave the squad ahead of the world champions’ final Group F game against Portugal in Budapest on Wednesday.

Dembele suffered the injury after being introduced as a second-half substitute in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Hungary. He played only 30 minutes before being withdrawn late on.

It has now been determined the 24-year-old will not be fit to play any further part in the tournament following scans in a Budapest hospital on Sunday.

A statement from the FFF read: “The recovery times are incompatible with his retention in the group currently playing UEFA Euro 2020.”

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NAOMI OSAKA WITHDRAWS FROM WIMBLEDON BUT WILL COMPERE AT THE OLYMPICS

Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from Wimbledon but will still compete at this summer’s Olympics in Tokyo.

The world number two has been taking time away from the court since withdrawing from the French Open for mental health reasons amid a furore around her refusal to fulfil media duties.

Wimbledon is set to begin on June 28th and tournament organisers had been hopeful the Japanese player would take her place in the women’s singles draw.

But in a statement on www.olympics.com, her management teams said: “Naomi won’t be playing Wimbledon this year. She is taking some personal time with friends and family.

“She will be ready for the Olympics and is excited to play in front of her home fans.”

On Wednesday, Wimbledon chief executive Sally Bolton had revealed that the All England Club was expecting Osaka to compete.

Bolton said: “We’ve reached out to her team, we haven’t spoken to Naomi herself. At this point in time she’s entered into the Championships and we haven’t received confirmation that she won’t compete.”

Tournament director Jamie Baker added: “I had the conversation with her team. It’s absolutely clear that we’re here, we’re completely open for any discussions when they want to have that.

“Hopefully it goes without saying that we want the best players competing here no matter what.

“We treat every single player with a tremendous amount of care.”

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BRISBANE SET TO BE AWARDED 2032 OLYMPIC GAMES

Brisbane is poised to be confirmed as the host city for the 2032 Olympic Games next month.

The International Olympic Committee’s members will take the final decision at the IOC Session on July 21st in Tokyo, after the organisation’s executive board proposed Brisbane as Games hosts on Thursday.

The Australian city is the first selected under the IOC’s new preferred candidate system, which has been designed to avoid cities wasting money and resources on unsuccessful bids but has been criticised for lacking transparency.

Brisbane was awarded preferred bidder status in February and IOC president Thomas Bach said on Thursday that it had just one final hurdle to overcome.

“Now it’s in the hands of the IOC members,” the German said.

“The Future Host Commission looked at all aspects of Brisbane 2032 – the master venue plan, sustainability, feasibility, legacy and highlighting the impressive public support, as well as the strong support across the political spectrum.

“All of this made it irresistible. But we are not there yet, it is in the hands of the IOC members to vote on July 21.”

The IOC said Brisbane’s bid made use of 84 per cent existing or temporary venues, although local officials have suggested that The Gabba cricket ground could be demolished and rebuilt to become the lead venue for the Games.

When asked where this left other cities that might have been interested in hosting the Games, Bach said: “The advantage of this new (preferred host) approach is that we now already have a pool of interested parties who want to organise an Olympic Games in 2036 or even 2040.

“I think we can be extremely satisfied that this process just continues. The future of the Games look bright.”

Bach said remarkably little about the Tokyo Games, which are little over a month away and will take place amid the coronavirus pandemic.

He said the IOC and the other organisers were fully in “delivery mode” for the Games, and that he intended to arrive in Japan in mid-July for the series of meetings which precede the sporting action, with the opening ceremony taking place on July 23.

The third version of the athletes’ playbook – a detailed guide to the Covid-19 protocols in place for the Games – will be published next week.

Bach said the excitement he could sense from athletes for the Games to begin was beginning to rub off on him.

“The athletes…accept and respect these restrictions that we will all have to face,” he said.

“In the end it’s about their competition, their determination and their reward for working not only for four years but for many more years to prepare for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most of them.

“There you can also see this excitement and anticipation and this also helped and encouraged me to feel the same.”

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TAKING A KNEE SET TO BE OUTLAWED AT TOKYO OLYMPICS

Taking a knee is set to be outlawed at the Tokyo Olympics after the International Olympic Committee approved a recommendation from its own Athletes’ Commission to curtail the right to protest on the field of play.

Two thirds of respondents to a survey relating to a potential change of the IOC’s Rule 50, which bans demonstrations of “political, religious or racial propaganda” on Olympic sites, said they did not feel such protests were appropriate.

Athletes’ Commission chair Kirsty Coventry said: “A very clear majority of athletes said that it’s not appropriate to demonstrate or express their views on the field of play, at the official ceremonies, or on the podium, and so our recommendation is to preserve (those places) from any kind of protests and demonstrations or acts perceived as such.”

A total of 3,547 athletes representing 185 countries and 41 sports responded to the survey, as part of a 10-month consultation process initiated by the widespread social and racial justice movements in the United States.

Coventry said the recommendation – which Bach confirmed had been “unanimously approved” – would now be passed to the IOC’s legal affairs commission in order to consider the range of potential sanctions against those who fail to adhere to the rule.

Coventry added: “We are asking the legal affairs commission to come up with a proportionate range of different sanctions, so that everyone knows going into a Games what they can and can’t do. It’s up to (them) to give the Athletes’ Commission guidance on proportionality.”

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TOKYO OLYMPICS AND PARALYMICS: ORGANISERS CONFIRM NO OVERSEAS SPECTATORS WILL BE ALLOWED AT THE EVENT.

No overseas spectators will be permitted to attend this summer’s rearranged Olympic or Paralympic Games in Tokyo, officials have confirmed.

An announcement was made following a meeting of representatives of the International Olympic Committee, International Paralympic Committee, Tokyo Metropolitan Government, the Tokyo 2020 organising committee and the government of Japan on Saturday.

The decision comes due to continuing uncertainty amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A statement from the five parties involved in the meeting read: “Currently, the Covid-19 situation in Japan and many other countries around the world is still very challenging and a number of variant strains have emerged, whilst international travel remains severely restricted globally.

“Based on the present situation of the pandemic, it is highly unlikely that entry into Japan will be guaranteed this summer for people from overseas.

“In order to give clarity to ticket-holders living overseas and to enable them to adjust their travel plans at this stage, the parties on the Japanese side have come to the conclusion that they will not be able to enter into Japan at the time of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“This conclusion will further contribute to ensure safe and secure Games for all participants and the Japanese public.”

The Olympic Games, which were postponed last year due to the pandemic, begin on July 23 and end on August 8.

The Paralympics, which are also affected by the decision, take place from August 24-September 5.

The statement added that tickets purchased overseas through the organising committee will be refunded.

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JAPAN PLANS TO CAP DAILY ARRIVALS AT 2,000 AHEAD OLYMPICS

Japan plans to cap the number of daily arrivals into the country at around 2,000 ahead of the Olympics, according to a newspaper headquartered in Japan.

The country will allow exceptions to its ban on international travellers after its Covid-19 state of emergency is lifted in Tokyo, Nikkei reported on Monday.

The newspaper report added that the proposed number will include Japanese nationals returning to the country, citing individuals familiar with the matter.

Japan has temporarily suspended exemptions allowing foreign athletes to train in the country ahead of the Games as it closed its borders to contain a surge in Covid-19 cases.

The state of emergency in the capital has been extended until March 21st.

More than 70,000 people – including athletes, coaches and media representatives – are expected to enter the country for the Games, Nikkei reported earlier, citing estimates in Japan.

Test events for the Olympics are to start in April. The Games are scheduled to begin on July 23rd.

Last month, Olympic officials unveiled the first of many Covid-19 rules for the Games, starting by banning singing and chanting during events and mandating participants to wear masks at “all times” except when eating, sleeping or outdoors.

Japan has had more than 441,200 Covid-19 cases with the death toll at more than 8,300.