NEW ZEALAND: The Bangladesh cricket team was just pulling up at one of the two targeted mosques as the attack began, the team’s coach told.
A video posted to Twitter showed the Bangladesh sportsmen walking away from the mosque as a police car heads in the opposite direction, sirens wailing.
The team were due to play against the New Zealand team in the coming week, but local media reporting the match has been canceled.
Bangladesh team escaped from a mosque near Hagley Park where there were active shooters. They ran back through Hagley Park back to the Oval. pic.twitter.com/VtkqSrljjV
— Mohammad Isam (@Isam84) March 15, 2019
(Agencies)
KATHMANDU: Nepal will play against Myanmar as its first contender in the ACC Under 16 East Region Cricket Championship.
The championship is taking place from April 20 to 28 in Thailand. As per the schedule made public by the organizer, Thailand, Nepal and Myanmar will play on April 20.
Various eight countries are participating in the championship that will be played in 35 overs. The participating teams are divided in two groups.
Group A comprises Nepal, Myanmar, Malaysia and the hosts Thailand while Hong Kong, Singapore, Bhutan and China are in Group B.
Nepal will be meeting Malaysia in its second match of the championship on April 24 and it will play against Thailand in the last match of the Group round on April 25. The two teams winning in the group round will book their place in the semi-final.
Nepal is the current defending champion. Nepal had defeated Thailand and clinched the title of the championship last time.
KATHMANDU: Nepal has entered semifinal of SAFF women’s championship 2019. After defeating Bhutan 2-0 today, Bangladesh along with Nepal have also entered into the semifinals.
Nepal will play against Bangladesh on March 16. The teams have three points after winning the first game with Bhutan. Bhutan lost both games against Nepal and Bangladesh. Maldives will play against Sri Lanka on Friday.
In the today’s match, Mishrat Jahan (47′) and Sabina Khatun (85′) have scored the goal for Bangladesh to enter into semifinals.
KATHMANDU: India defeated Maldives 6-0 in the second day of the SAFF Women Championship 2019. India started hitting the post in just 8 minutes of the starting time. Gracie Dangmei of India opened the goal point. Just after 5 minutes, Sweety Devi scored another goal.
In 23 minutes, Indumati Katheresan, 27 minutes Sanju Yadav and in the injury time of the first half Ratan Bala Devi kissed the Net to make the one-way dominant in the game and concluded the first half with 5-0.
The Maldives played defensive in the second half compared to first half and just got the single goal in the second half at the last minute. Sanju Yadav doubled the personal score in the championship. Top two teams of each group will advance to semifinals. Bhutan will play against Bangladesh on Thursday at 3 PM.
ANFA is hosting the event outside Kathmandu valley for the first time. Six SAARC countries are taking part in the event. ANFA is organizing the event with the support from SAFF.
LONDON: A feasibility study by FIFA concluded the 2022 World Cup can expand to 48 teams by using at least one of Qatar’s neighbors as an additional host, and found there is a low legal risk to changing the format and an additional $400 million in revenue could be generated.
The report assesses the political, logistical and legal issues in adding 16 teams — a significant change to the format more than eight years after Qatar won the hosting rights. The report was prepared by the governing body so its FIFA Council can agree in principle on expanding the tournament at a meeting in Miami on Friday. A final decision would come in June.
The study identified stadiums in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that could be used but said Qatar would have to approve which nations it would partner with.
Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE severed economic, diplomatic and travel ties with Qatar in 2017, which prevents flights between the countries. The study says FIFA accepts that the ongoing political spat prevents their involvement in the tournament. FIFA was looking at Kuwait and Oman as options for games in 2022, given their neutrality in the Gulf diplomatic crisis.
With logistics already challenged by the existing plan to play 64 games in eight stadiums spread over a 30-mile radius in Qatar, FIFA said two to four additional venues are required in the region “with one or more” nation.
FIFA stipulates that any additional hosts would have to supply government assurances, including on its human rights requirements.
The FIFA study found that, despite adding 16 games, the enlarged tournament could still be played in a 28-day window from Nov.21-Dec. 18. FIFA said there would be “no major concessions to the sporting quality of the tournament” with expansion. While there were a maximum of four matches per day in the closing stages of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, FIFA said the 2022 tournament could feature six separate kickoff slots early in the tournament to cope with the additional teams.
The FIFA Congress has already agreed to expand to a 48-team tournament from the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada. The same format is proposed, starting with a group stage consisting of 16 groups of three teams, followed by a round of 32. That would ensure, despite adding 16 matches overall, a team would only play a maximum of seven matches like in the 32-team format.
But changing the hosting guidelines would alter the decision of the FIFA executive committee in December 2010, when Qatar surprisingly won the right to stage the Middle East’s first World Cup by beating opposition from the United States, South Korea, Japan and Australia.
FIFA said while it cannot rule out legal action from losing bidders by changing the format, the study said it “concluded that the risk was low.”
KATHMANDU: Nepal defeated Butan 3-0 in the inaugural game of the SAFF Women Championship 2019. Nepal’s Manjali Kumari Yonjan scored the very first goal in just 13th minutes. Nepal stepped up pressure on Bhutan when Sabitra Bhandari doubled the lead in 16th minute.
In the 54 minutes, Niru Thapa scored the goal to safeguard Nepal in becoming the winner. Bhutan tried several attempts but could not succeed.
Top two teams of each group will advance to semifinals. Nepal will play against Bangladesh on March 16, 2019. India will play against Maldives on Wednesday at 3:15 PM. ANFA is organizing the event with the support from SAFF.
KATHMANDU: Nepal is taking on Bhutan in the opener of the SAFF Women Championship at Sahid Stadium in Biratnagar on Tuesday.
The three-time finalist, Nepal is eyeing the SAFF Women Championship tile. India is the main obstacle for the tile dream of Nepal.
Nepal is in group A along with Bhutan and Bangladesh while India is in group B along with Sri Lanka and Maldives.
The game will begin at 3 pm according to Nepali time.
MOSCOW: Three-time world champion and Olympic silver medalist Kelly Catlin has died aged 23, USA Cycling has confirmed.
Catlin won three straight team pursuit world titles on the track from 2016 to 2018, claiming silver in the same event at the Rio 2016 Games.
She competed for Rally UHC Cycling on the road and was studying for a graduate degree at Stanford University.
“We are deeply saddened by Kelly’s passing,” said USA Cycling president and chief executive Rob DeMartini.
“We will all miss her dearly. Kelly was more than an athlete to us and she will always be part of the USA Cycling family.
BIRATNAGAR: The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF), fifth edition, women’s football tournament is beginning in Biratnagar from Tuesday.
In the inaugural match, Nepal will play Bhutan at the Sahid Stadium. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Nepal are participating in the tournament.
While Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh are in Group A, India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives are in Group B. The tournament will run until March 22.
KATHMANDU: Nepal will face Canada in its first game of the 12th edition of Futsal World Cup organized by International Futsal Federation.
The participating 16 teams are divided into four groups in which Nepal is categorized in group ‘D’. Other teams in the group are Canada, Catalan and France. Nepal will face Canada in the first match on April 1, 2019, a day after the inauguration. Likewise, Nepal’s second game against Catalan will be played on April 2. Nepal will play with France on April 3.
Two top teams of each group will advance to the quarterfinals. Nepal got its entry into the World Cup via wildcard.