Sports
Ex-Spain Football Boss In Court Over World Cup Kiss Scandal

Five days after resigning as Spain’s football chief, Luis Rubiales is due in court Friday on sexual assault charges over forcibly kissing women’s World Cup player Jenni Hermoso.
The 46-year-old has been summoned to Madrid’s Audiencia Nacional court at midday (1000 GMT) where he will appear before Judge Francisco de Jorge who is heading up the investigation.
At the hearing, which will be closed to the public, Rubiales will be questioned as a defendant in regards to allegations of “sexual assault”, a court statement said earlier this week.
Hermoso will also be called to testify at a later date.
The case comes barely four weeks after Rubiales sparked outrage when he forcibly kissed the midfielder in front of the world’s media after Spain defeated England in the final on August 20.
Rubiales, who was head of Spain’s RFEF football federation at the time, has repeatedly insisted the kiss was consensual.
Hermoso has said it was not and that it left her feeling like the “victim of an assault”.
De Jorge on Monday admitted a complaint against Rubiales filed the previous week by the public prosecutors’ office, citing alleged “offences of sexual assault” and “coercion”.
Under a recent reform of the Spanish penal code, a non-consensual kiss can be considered sexual assault, a category which groups all types of sexual violence.
If found guilty, Rubiales could face anything from a fine to four years in prison, sources at the public prosecutors’ office have said.
In their complaint, prosecutors said they had included the offence of coercion because of Hermoso’s statement in which she said “she and those close to her had suffered constant ongoing pressure by Luis Rubiales and his professional entourage to justify and condone” his actions.
The global furore over the incident all but eclipsed the victory celebrations for Spain’s World Cup champions.
‘100% Non Sexual’
After three weeks of refusing to resign over the kiss, Rubiales, who was suspended by FIFA on August 26, stood down late on Sunday but continued to insist the kiss was consensual in a TV interview with Britain’s Piers Morgan.
“What we had is a spontaneous act, a mutual act, an act that both consented to, which was driven by the emotion of the moment,” he said, describing the kiss as “100 percent non-sexual”.
The hearing comes with new coach Montse Tome, the first woman to lead the team, set to announce her squad on Friday for UEFA Women’s Nations League matches against Sweden and Switzerland on 22 and 26 September.
Her first job will be to try and convince the 23 world champions to don the red jersey again after they and dozens of others said they would not play for the national team without significant changes at the head of the federation.
The players have not yet said what they will do following Rubiales’ resignation although the situation has changed since the RFEF sacked their controversial coach Jorge Vilda, named Tome in his stead and pledged further internal reforms.
“We have had discussions.. I don’t think there will be any problem,” Rafael del Amo, head of the RFEF’s women’s football committee told Cope radio on Tuesday.
“I think things will move forward.”
AFP
Sports
BREAKING: Wrestling legend Hulk Hogan is dead

Hulk Hogan, the iconic face of professional wrestling in the 1980s who parlayed his prowess in the ring into an acting career, has died at the age of 71, US media reported today.
Hogan — known for his towering 6’7″ (two-meter) physique, bandana and distinctive blond handlebar mustache — died at his home in Florida, NBC News reported, citing his manager Chris Volo.
TMZ also reported the news, citing unnamed sources.
Sports
African junior champs: Nigeria Wins Gold Medals across Sprints
Her compatriots Chigozie Nwankwo and Perezide Sigah finished second and third, respectively, recording 24.01s and 24.26s, to complete an emphatic Nigerian 1-2-3.

• Ezechukwu -middle ( first) Nwankwo (second) Sigah (third)
At the packed MKO Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta on Sunday, Miracle Ezechukwu stormed to victory in the CAA African U-18/U-20m girls’ final having won three gold medals of the championship with a personal best of 23.87s.
Her compatriots Chigozie Nwankwo and Perezide Sigah finished second and third, respectively, recording 24.01s and 24.26s, to complete an emphatic Nigerian 1-2-3.
Ezechukwu, who also clinched gold in the 100m earlier in the event, described the championships as a dream come true and expressed her gratitude to her coach and the organisers.
Moments after the U-18 triumph, Nigeria repeated the feat in the U-20 women’s 200m final as Success Oyibu led another clean sweep for the host nation when she blazed to a new personal best of 23.56s.
She was closely followed by U-20 100m champion Chioma Cynthia Nweke (23.95s) and Lucy Nwankwo (24.24s) to ensure Nigeria captured all six medals available across both female sprint categories.
Oyibu credited her performance to divine guidance and her camp’s preparation.
Earlier in the day, Nigeria won a protest regarding its U-20 men’s 4x100m relay team.
After initial claims of an exchange outside the zone, the Confederation of African Athletics ruled in Nigeria’s favour, awarding the quartet of Saliu Toyeeb, Joachim Uyovwiyoma, John Caleb and Malik Oluwatobi the gold medal, which earned Nigeria’s third consecutive title in the event.
Sports
Athletes from 31 countries arrive Nigeria for African Karate Championship
The championship will feature competitions in multiple categories, including Cadet (14–15 years), Junior (18 years), Senior, Para-karate, and Wheelchair divisions.

Athletes from 31 African countries, on Sunday, arrived in Nigeria for the 2025 African Karate Championship, scheduled to be held from July 21 to 28.
The championship will feature competitions in multiple categories, including Cadet (14–15 years), Junior (18 years), Senior, Para-karate, and Wheelchair divisions.
The President of the Karate Federation of Nigeria (KFN), Hon. Silas Agara, disclosed this in Abuja during a press briefing. He commended the Nigeria Immigration Service for facilitating a smooth visa process for the international delegations.
He noted that the participating countries have completed their registration, which closed on Wednesday night.
Agara said: “We have most of the countries on ground now. As of the closing date, 31 countries had confirmed participation.”
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