Olympics are all about triumph of human resilience and Afghan break dancer Manizha Talash embodies this spirit. Three years after fleeing the Taliban, she is now all set to perform gravity-defying moves as part of the IOC's refugee squad in Paris. The 21-year-old crossed the border into Pakistan after Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 before settling in Spain as a refugee the following year. "I am living my dream. I never imagined that it could be so beautiful," said Talash, who stumbled upon breaking while scrolling through a social media post as a teenager in Kabul. Chilean TT player ..read more

Dambulla, July 26 Pacer Renuka Singh's three-wicket burst followed by Smriti Mandhana's brisk unbeaten fifty underlined India's ruthless performance as the defending champions walloped Bangladesh by 10 wickets and marched into their record-extending ninth women's Asia Cup final. India will face Sri Lanka, who beat Pakistan by three wickets in the other semifinal, in the title clash on Sunday. Shafali (26 not out) and Mandhana (55 not out) were on song from the word go as India overhauled the target of 81 in 11 overs. Earlier, Renuka (3/10) upfront and left-arm spinner Radha Yadav in the middle ..read more

LIVE ON SPORTS18 IST BADMINTON Men's singles Group L Lakshya Sen vs Kevin Cordon (Guatemala) 7:10pm Men's doubles Group C Satwiksairaj Rankireddy amp; Chirag Shetty vs Lucas Corvee and Ronan Labar (France) 8pm Women's doubles Group C Ashwini Ponnappa amp; Tanisha Crasto vs Kim So Yeong and Kong Hee Yong (Korea) 11:50pm BOXING Women's 54kg Round of 32 Preeti Pawar vs Thi Kim Anh Vo (Vietnam) 12:05am (Sun) HOCKEY Men's Pool B India vs New Zealand 9pm ROWING Men's single sculls Panwar Balraj 12:30pm TABLE TENNIS Men's singles prelim round Harmeet Desai vs Zaid Abo Yaman (Jordan) 7:15pm TENNIS Men ..read more

PARIS, July 26 The city of Paris turned into a colossal amphitheatre, and the iconic river Seine served as a track for the athletes' parade as France showcased its cultural diversity, spirit of revolution, impeccable craftsmanship and architectural heritage in a riveting opening ceremony for the 33rd Olympic Games here today. The Olympic torch is carried on the Seine. The spectacle started with a dreamy break from tradition as 'Parade of Nations' kicked off the proceedings in which athletes from 205 countries and one refugee team sailed down the Seine on boats despite rain threatening to play ..read more

Indervir Grewal Chandigarh, July 26 Every day for what felt like an eternity, a helpless Sukhjeet Singh was overwhelmed by the realisation that his bright future was unravelling and the world leaving him behind. Paralysed in one leg and confined to his bed, a 21-year-old Sukhjeet wondered whether a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice would come to nothing; and that too after getting so close to realising his dream of playing for India. Playing my first Olympics, I am truly excited and all that remains now is to give it my all on the pitch. Sukhjeet Singh Six years on, Sukhjeet is ready to ta ..read more

Paris, July 26 The city of Paris turned into a colossal amphitheatre, and the iconic river Seine served as a track for the athletes' parade as France showcased its cultural diversity, spirit of revolution, impeccable craftsmanship and architectural heritage in a riveting opening ceremony for the 33rd Olympic Games here on Friday. The spectacle started with a dreamy break from tradition as 'Parade of Nations' kicked off the proceedings in which athletes from 205 countries and one refugee team sailed down the Seine on boats despite rain threatening to play spoilsport. French President Emmanuel M ..read more

Paris, July 26 Olympics fever built up in Paris on Friday ahead of the evening's opening ceremony, undampened by the threat of rain and heavy security. A flotilla of barges will carry thousands of athletes and artists along the Seine river in a nearly four-hour show starting around 7.30 p.m. (1730 GMT). Dancers will perform on the city's rooftops, in what organisers said would be a "total show." Hours after a sabotage attack on the high-speed TGV rail network caused travel chaos across France, crowds gathered along the banks of the river. "We are super excited, it happens once in a lifetime. W ..read more

Chandigarh, July 26 With medals made of iron salvaged from Eiffel Tower refurbishments and stadium seating of recycled plastic, Paris Olympics 2024 aims to be the greenest Olympics yet. The case for action is clear as scientists have said intense heat linked to man-made carbon emissions is a growing risk to competitors at the world's largest sporting event and beyond. Paris Olympics 2024 has pledged to reduce its carbon emissions by half compared to the average emitted during the London and Rio Summer Games. Approximately 36,600 medals have been awarded since Athens 1896, the first modern Olym ..read more

Dambulla, July 26 Pacer Renuka Thakur ran through the Bangladesh top order as India restricted their opponents for a mere 80/8 in the Women's T20 Asia Cup semifinal here on Friday. Thakur snaffled three wickets at the top to return with figures of 4-1-10-3 as Bangladesh could never recover from a disastrous start. Skipper Nigar Sultana waged a lone battle of sorts as she top scored with 31 off 51 balls with two fours while adding 36 runs for the seventh wicket with Shorna Alter (19). Indian bowlers led by Renuka were collectively measly with the ball as Radha Yadav grabbed two late wickets to ..read more

Pallekele (Sri Lanka), July 26 Newly-appointed Indian T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav says he has enjoyed being a leader on the field despite not donning the captain's hat, adding that he learnt the tricks of the trade from different skippers over the years. Suryakumar was appointed India's T20 captain last week ahead of Hardik Pandya after Rohit Sharma's retirement from the format. Suryakumar's first assignment will be the three-match T20 series against hosts Sri Lanka starting here on Saturday. "I have always enjoyed being a leader on the field even though I was not the captain. I have always l ..read more