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MONACO: No driver on the grid at this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix can claim to know the bumps, corners and idiosyncrasies of the Mediterranean principality's famous streets as intimately as local hero Charles Leclerc.The Monegasque driver remembers watching the red Ferraris whizz through the familiar home streets as a toddler, who was later to travel to school on them by bus and as an adolescent dreamed of racing on the world's most iconic F1 course.At 21, and approaching only his sixth race as a Ferrari Formula One driver, he has realised his and his greatest mentors' ambitions by coming home to race in front of family and friends in the distinctive overalls of the 'scarlet scuderia'.His father Herve Leclerc, a one-time Formula Three driver who died in 2017, and his inspirational friend Jules Bianchi, who died in 2015 following a crash at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix, share the personal space on his racing helmet this weekend, a division to reflect their importance to him."Without … [Read more...] about Formula 1: Cautious Leclerc testing home course limits at Monaco

BERLIN: Bayern Munich's goalkeeper and captain Manuel Neuer will play in this weekend's German Cup final against RB Leipzig, coach Niko Kovac revealed on Friday (May 24).Neuer, 33, has been out injured since mid-April after sustaining a calf injury in a Bundesliga game against Fortuna Duesseldorf.The Bayern number one had hoped to return to the first team two weeks ago, but was still out of action when Bayern wrapped up the league title in Munich last weekend.Kovac, though, said on Friday that his captain would be back on the pitch at the Berlin Olympic Stadium on Saturday evening."Manuel will play tomorrow, because he is our captain and has played well this season," said the Bayern coach.Neuer said that the cup final in Berlin was always "something special"."The coach knows that I have missed the last few weeks, but we have played some matches in training so I am well prepared."Kovac also revealed that midfielder Leon Goretzka would not be fit for the final against Leipzig.Neuer, … [Read more...] about Football: Neuer to make cup final return for Bayern

PARIS: Having won 20 grand slam titles during a glittering career, one might think that Roger Federer has seen it all.Yet the 37-year-old Swiss admits he is stepping into the unknown as he returns to the French Open after a three-year hiatus.The former world number one won his only Roland Garros title back in 2009, and he wanted to give it another go after skipping the last three editions of the claycourt major.Asked if he thought he could lift the Musketeers' Cup on Jun 9, Federer replied: "I don't know. A bit of a question mark for me. Some ways I feel similar to maybe the Australian Open in 2017. A bit of the unknown," Federer told reporters on Friday referring to his comeback to the season's first major in 2017 after being out of action for six months."I feel like I'm playing good tennis but ... is it enough against the absolute top guys when it really comes to the crunch? I'm not sure if it's in my racket."But I hope I can get myself in that position deep down in the … [Read more...] about Tennis: Federer admits he’s stepping into the unknown in Paris

Sport Second seed Karolina Pliskova wants to ensure she is battle-ready when the French Open begins by choosing reigning champion Simona Halep as her pre-tournament practice partner. 24 May 2019 11:25PM Bookmark REUTERS: Second seed Karolina Pliskova wants to ensure she is battle-ready when the French Open begins by choosing reigning champion Simona Halep as her pre-tournament practice partner.The powerful Czech is being tipped as a potential champion this year after winning in Rome last week - her biggest claycourt title to date.And she can think of no better preparation than trading shots with Romanian Halep, who claimed her long-awaited first Grand Slam title by outlasting Sloane Stephens last year."I always enjoy to play with her, it's a guarantee that the practice is going to be a good level, because she always plays good. She always fights in the practice," the 27-year-old Pliskova told reporters on Friday.With Halep in the top half of the draw and Pliskova at the … [Read more...] about Tennis: Pliskova hopes hitting with Halep will pay off

Sport Former South Sudan FA president Chabur Goc Alei has been banned from all soccer-related activities for 10 years at national and international level for misappropriation of funds and bribery, world governing body FIFA said on Friday. 24 May 2019 11:05PM Bookmark REUTERS: Former South Sudan FA president Chabur Goc Alei has been banned from all soccer-related activities for 10 years at national and international level for misappropriation of funds and bribery, world governing body FIFA said on Friday.Along with the ban, which comes into immediate effect, former FIFA standing committee member Alei was also fined 500,000 Swiss francs (US$499,000)."The adjudicatory chamber of the independent ethics committee has found Mr Chabour Goc Alei... guilty of having misappropriated FIFA funds, as well as having offered gifts or benefits, in violation of the FIFA Code of Ethics," FIFA said in a statement."The investigation... was related to misappropriation of FIFA Financial … [Read more...] about Soccer: FIFA bans former South Sudan FA chief Alei for 10 years