Germany wins 5 medals on first day of luge world championships

By OlympicTalkJan 29, 2021, 10:27 AM EST

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KONIGSSEE, Germany (AP) — Germany won five of the nine medals on the first day of luge’s world championships Friday, including a podium sweep in the women’s sprint.

Julia Taubitz was first, Anna Berreiter second and Dajana Eitberger third for the Germans in the sprint, which is not an Olympic discipline. The traditional singles and doubles races are Saturday and Sunday.

Two-time Olympic champion Natalie Geisenberger was fourth, giving Germany a 1-2-3-4 finish.

Summer Britcher was the top American in seventh. Full results are here.

MORE: World Luge Championships TV, stream schedule

Two-time Olympic champions Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt of Germany won the doubles sprint, followed by Latvia’s Andris Sics and Juris Sics, with Germans Toni Eggert and Sascha Benecken taking third.

The men’s sprint went to Austria’s Nico Gleirscher, the younger brother of surprise 2018 Olympic champion David Gleirscher, who was third on Friday. Like David in PyeongChang, Nico earned his gold medal with zero prior individual World Cup victories.

In second place was Semen Pavlichenko, a Russian who competed as a neutral because Russia is banned from using its name, flag and anthem at major events like the Olympics and world championships as part of the sanctions from a doping scandal.

Tucker West was 12th for the U.S.

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2023 French Open men’s singles draw, scores

By OlympicTalkMay 31, 2023, 3:38 PM EDT

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The French Open men’s singles draw is missing injured 14-time champion Rafael Nadal for the first time since 2004, leaving the Coupe des Mousquetaires ripe for the taking.

The tournament airs live on NBC Sports, Peacock and Tennis Channel through championship points in Paris.

Novak Djokovic is not only bidding for a third crown at Roland Garros, but also to lift a 23rd Grand Slam singles trophy to break his tie with Nadal for the most in men’s history.

FRENCH OPEN: Broadcast Schedule | Women’s Draw

But the No. 1 seed is Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, who won last year’s U.S. Open to become, at 19, the youngest man to win a major since Nadal’s first French Open title in 2005.

Now Alcaraz looks to become the second-youngest man to win at Roland Garros since 1989, after Nadal of course.

Alcaraz missed the Australian Open in January due to a right leg injury, but since went 30-3 with four titles. Notably, he has not faced Djokovic this year. They could meet in the semifinals.

Russian Daniil Medvedev, the No. 2 seed, was upset in the first round by 172nd-ranked Brazilian qualifier Thiago Seyboth Wild. It marked the first time a men’s top-two seed lost in the first round of any major since 2003 Wimbledon (Ivo Karlovic d. Lleyton Hewitt).

No. 9 Taylor Fritz, No. 12 Frances Tiafoe and No. 16 Tommy Paul are the highest-seeded Americans, all looking to become the first U.S. man to make the French Open quarterfinals since Andre Agassi in 2003. Since then, five different American men combined to make the fourth round on eight occasions.

MORE: All you need to know for 2023 French Open

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2023 French Open Men’s Singles Draw

CJ Nickolas ends U.S. men’s taekwondo medal drought at world championships

By OlympicTalkMay 31, 2023, 3:29 PM EDT

US Performance Center/USA Taekwondo

CJ Nickolas became the first American man to win a world taekwondo championships medal since 2009, taking silver in the 80kg division in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Wednesday.

Nickolas, 21, beat Olympic bronze medalist Seif Eissa of Egypt in the semifinals, then dropped the final to Italian Simone Alessio, the world’s top-ranked man in the division. Nickolas is ranked third in the world at 80kg.

Nickolas moved up to the senior ranks after taking silver at the 2018 World Junior Championships in the 68kg division. He lost in the round of 32 at the last two worlds in 2019 and 2022, but did take bronze at a Grand Prix last September in the 2024 Olympic host city of Paris.

At the Tokyo Games, the U.S. had zero male taekwondo athletes at an Olympics for the first time since it debuted as a medal sport in 2000.

Anastasija Zolotic took gold for the U.S. women in Tokyo but is not at worlds after February right hip surgery. She is back in training.

Makayla Greenwood is the 2022 World champion at the non-Olympic 53kg, which is the weight just below Zolotic’s 57kg. Greenwood, who is due to compete at worlds on Sunday, must move up to 57kg or down to 49kg for an Olympic pursuit.

A nation can enter no more than one athlete per division at the Olympics.

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2023 French Open Men’s Singles Draw

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