London 2012: Multiple world wrestling champion Saori Yoshida has been handed the honour of carrying the Japanese flag at the London 2012 opening ceremony as she targets her third straight Olympic gold medal. Yoshida, a nine-time world champion who is seeking an Olympic hat-trick in the 55kg division, said she was nervous but happy at the prospect of leading out Japan’s team on July 27. “I feel nervous, but I am happy that I will be able to lead the Japanese delegation,” said Yoshida, 29.
Volleyball: The assistant coach of Bulgaria’s national team, Nayden Naydenov, will lead the side at the London Olympics. The appointment follows the shock resignation last week of head coach and crowd favourite Radostin Stoychev, who stepped down in protest at the federation’s management. Naydenov, Stoychev’s assistant during his year-and-a-half reign, already led the team in their FIVB Volleyball World League game against Argentina over the weekend. Stoychev, a huge star at Italy’s Trentino Volley, took over the Bulgarian team in February 2011 and his contract was due to expire after the Olympics.
Horse Racing: Frankel enhanced his status as the best racehorse in the world when coasting to his 11th win from 11 runs in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot yesterday. Trained by Sir Henry Cecil and ridden by Tom Queally, Frankel justified his prohibitive starting price of 10-1 on to win this Group One by 11 lengths from Excelebration. This was Frankel’s most impressive performance in his remarkable career as he toyed with his 10 rivals with Queally barely moving a muscle to take the opening race of the Royal Ascot festival in splendid isolation.
Judo: Judo black belt and Russian President Vladimir Putin hopes to go to the London Olympics to watch his favorite sport. In a meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron, whose capital will host the Olympics in July and August, Putin said that he had tentative plans to attend the judo matches at the games. An avid sportsman, 59-year-old Putin has practised judo since his high school days, and has frequently been photographed and filmed sparring with top-class athletes.
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Boxing: From the boxing ring to Broadway – Mike Tyson (picture) said he’s teaming up with director Spike Lee to take his one-man show “Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth” to the New York stage. Tyson, the self-styled “baddest man on the planet,” debuted the show in Las Vegas in April, pulling few punches in recounting the highs and highly-publicised lows of his career. Now he plans to bring the show to the Longacre Theatre for six nights only, July 31 to August 5, in what will be a Broadway debut for both Tyson and Lee.