FIBA: Canada targets Olympic success after first World Cup bronze

MANILA -- Small forward Dillon Brooks said Canada would take "good momentum" into next year's Paris Olympics after beating the United States to win bronze at the FIBA World Cup on Sunday.

Canada won 127-118 in overtime in Manila to claim their first World Cup podium finish, denying the United States a medal for a second straight tournament.

Canada had already qualified for their first Olympics since 2000 by finishing as one of the two highest-placed teams from the Americas at the World Cup.

Brooks, who finished the game as Canada's top scorer with 39 points, said the medal would fuel their ambitions when the new NBA season starts next month.

"It's good momentum for us, we'll hold on to that throughout the season," he said.

"I'm going to see a lot of my team-mates during the season.

"Guys that weren't here, that's motivating to them as well, to want to join us, to get better, to make a run at the Olympics."

Canada led for most of the game and built double-digit leads in both the first and third quarters.

They looked to have the game won until the United States' Mikal Bridges hit a game-tying three-pointer with 0.2sec remaining.

Canada quickly took control in overtime, with Brooks and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in imperious form.

"This team was amazing, special, it's the beginning of something that's going to last for a long time," said head coach Jordi Fernandez.

"All 12 guys came in and worked every day since August 1, they got at least 1 percent better every day.

"They built the identity that we just showed."

Fernandez said Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 31 points, was "to me the MVP of this World Cup".

Bridges called Canada's point guard a "slithery" player to defend.

"He knows how to get away from you," Bridges said of Gilgeous-Alexander.

"He's an unbelievable player."

Fernandez paid tribute to Brooks's leadership after the Houston Rockets player helped keep the United States' stars quiet while scoring points at the other end.

Brooks was booed by the Manila crowd earlier in the tournament but they serenaded him with chants of "MVP" against the United States.

Brooks said he was determined to help the team win after losing in the semi-finals to Serbia.

"Having that edge every single game, how I prepared for the game, how I was trying to be a leader out there for my team-mates, I've got to bring this back to Houston," he said.

Agence France-Presse

Simone Biles pulls out of Olympic all-around title defense

TOKYO, Japan -- Simone Biles abandoned the defense of her individual all-around Olympic crown on Wednesday, a day after her shock withdrawal from the women's team final over mental health concerns. 

As a worldwide outpouring of support for the troubled US gymnastics superstar grew, a statement from USA Gymnastics confirmed that Biles would not take part in Thursday's all-around final.

The 24-year-old 2016 Olympic all-around gold medallist's participation in the four individual event finals starting on Sunday will be decided after further evaluation, USAG said.

"Simone Biles has withdrawn from the final individual all-around competition at the Tokyo Olympic Games in order to focus on her mental health," USAG said in a statement.

"Simone will continue to be evaluated daily to determine whether or not to participate in next week's individual event finals.

"We wholeheartedly support Simone's decision and applaud her bravery in prioritising her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many."

The decision marks a stunning turn of events for Biles, who had been widely expected to crown the greatest career in gymnastics history with another multiple haul of gold medals in Tokyo.

The diminutive Texan, winner of four gold medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics, was vying for a potential six golds in Japan.

- Game-changing moment -

However her campaign unraveled on Tuesday when she suddenly withdrew from the team final after an uncharacteristically shaky display on the opening vault. Biles later said she had pulled out of the final out of concern for her mental well-being.

"I have to focus on my mental health," Biles said. "I didn't want to go out and do something stupid and get hurt... At the end of the day we don't want to be carried out of there on a stretcher."

Biles' decision has been hailed as a game-changing moment for elite sport, helping to dispel enduring stigmas surrounding mental health.

Biles told US Olympic broadcaster NBC television late Tuesday she would assess her readiness to compete on a "day-by-day" basis.

"Physically, I feel good, I'm in shape," she said on NBC television's Today program. "We're going to take it day by day, and we're just gonna see." 

As Biles reflected on her shattered Olympic dreams, she drew broad support from athletes, officials and public figures.

"Simone, you've made us so proud. Proud of who you are as a person, teammate and athlete," said Sarah Hirshland, US Olympic and Paralympic Committee chief executive officer.

"We applaud your decision to prioritize your mental wellness over all else and offer you the full support and resources of our Team USA community as you navigate the journey ahead."

- Obama support, Phelps concern -

Former US first lady Michelle Obama tweeted: "Am I good enough? Yes, I am. The mantra I practice daily. @Simone_Biles , we are proud of you and we are rooting for you."

Two-time Olympic Alpine ski champion Mikaela Shiffrin offered support as well, tweeting: "@Simone_Biles keep whipping out that smile of yours cause it is undeniably golden. Always."

US swimming and Olympic legend Michael Phelps, who in 2018 revealed his own struggles with depression and suicidal thoughts following the 2012 Olympics, said watching Biles struggle on Tuesday "broke my heart."

Phelps told NBC the Olympics could be overwhelming for athletes, and that he had often struggled to find support during his own career.

"The biggest thing is we all need to ask for help sometimes too when we go through those times," Phelps said. "For me, I can say personally it was something very challenging. It was hard for me to ask for help."

Biles's former USA teammate Aly Raisman spoke of her concerns for her friend's wellbeing.

"I know that all of these athletes dream of this moment for their whole entire lives, and so I'm just completely devastated," Raisman told NBC. 

"I am obviously so worried and just hoping that Simone is OK."

Raisman and Biles were among the gymnasts abused by former US team doctor Larry Nassar, who was jailed in 2018 for sexual abuse.

"It's just so much pressure, and I've been watching how much pressure has been on her in the months leading up to the Games, and it's just devastating. I feel horrible," Raisman added.

Agence France-Presse

Popovich 'thrilled' as US qualifies for Tokyo 2020 basketball

SHANGHAI – Team USA coach Gregg Popovich spoke of his joy after the reigning Olympic basketball champions qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Games on Monday.

The United States, which will be chasing a fourth Games gold in a row, secured its berth for next summer after beating Brazil 89-73 at the World Cup.

Argentina also confirmed its place in Tokyo.

"We're thrilled that we qualified for the Olympics," said San Antonio Spurs mastermind Popovich, whose team will now face France on Wednesday in the World Cup quarter-finals.

"With this new situation of qualifying, you don't want to have to do that every year. So it's a pretty big grind," said the 70-year-old.

But first, the US has the small matter of winning a third world crown in a row and Popovich's young team is building up a head of steam in China.

The Americans were already assured of a place in the last eight but they still made it five wins in a row to top Group K in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

Myles Turner of the Indiana Pacers led them against the Brazilians with 16 points and eight rebounds.

Brazil saw their coach Aco Petrovic ejected in the first half and they refused to attend the post-match press conference.

Having struggled to defeat Turkey in overtime in the first round, this Team USA missing its megastars seems to be warming to the task.

Sunday's victory for Spain over Serbia, who had been title favorites after the Americans' slow start, put Popovich's men back as the team to beat.

There are seven Olympic places up for grabs at the World Cup.

Iran will return to the Games for the first time since Beijing 2008 after they grabbed one of them.

source: philstar.com

Australia stuns Team USA in World Cup tuneup

MANILA, Philippines — Australia scored an emphatic upset over Team USA, 98-94, in their second Pre-FIBA World Cup match on Saturday for the country's first ever win against the Americans in basketball.

Held at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, the Boomers shocked the record 52,079-strong crowd with their inspired play against the defending champions.

San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills led the Australians in the historic win with 30 points, 14 of which were scored in the final quarter.

Fellow NBA player Andrew Bogut chipped in with 16.

The Gregg Popovich-led Team USA was missing many of their NBA superstars who opted to skip the World Cup.

Australia will open their 2019 FIBA World Cup campaign against Canada on September 1.

source: philstar.com

US World Cup winners feted with confetti, chants of 'equal pay'

NEW YORK, United States — Amid chants of "equal pay," "USA" and streams of confetti, the World Cup-winning US women's soccer team was feted by tens of thousands of adoring fans with a ticker tape victory parade in New York on Wednesday (Thursday Manila time).

Wearing identical black T-shirts emblazoned with the words "World Champions" in gold letters, members of the US squad waved to the crowds from slow-moving open-top floats.

Player of the tournament Megan Rapinoe struck her iconic goal-scoring pose as she displayed the World Cup trophy to the cheering fans lining the parade route along Lower Manhattan's fabled "Canyon of Heroes."

Under bright sunny skies, office workers showered the players with white confetti thrown from the windows of skyscrapers lining Broadway.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio joined the US World Cup stars on Rapinoe's float and later hosted the US team in a ceremony at City Hall to present them with the symbolic "Keys to the City."

"This group is so resilient, is so tough, has such a sense of humor, is just so bad ass," Rapinoe told the crowd at City Hall. "We have pink hair and purple hair. We have tattoos, dreadlocks.

"We got white girls and black girls, and everything in between. Straight girls and gay girls," she said.

Star striker Alex Morgan also addressed the crowd.

"We have been known as America's favorite soccer team," she said.

"But from here on out, we'll just be known as America's team."

Players were met with chants of "equal pay" during the parade and on one float, they displayed a poster given to them by someone in the crowd which read "Parades Are Cool, Equal Pay Is Cooler."

While the team is celebrated across the country, the squad has also been held up as champions of gender equality.

The women's team is suing the US Soccer Federation to demand equal pay with their male counterparts, and fan chants of "equal pay" also cascaded from the stands at the Stade de Lyon in France after Sunday's victory over the Netherlands.

Victory tour

The parade, which lasted about an hour, is in line with a New York tradition that dates back more than a century.

While the honor has been bestowed on everyone from astronauts to record-breakers, soldiers and world leaders, in recent decades it has more commonly been used to celebrate sports victories by teams such as baseball's New York Yankees or the NFL's New York Giants.

Wednesday's ticker tape celebration is just the first stop on a protracted victory lap that will send the team across the United States in the coming months.

After the festivities in New York, the players will jet off to California to appear at the ESPYs, the US sports world's equivalent of the Oscars, taking place in Los Angeles later on Wednesday.

The team will then be back on the road next month to play in a five-game series of friendly international matches billed as a "Victory Tour", starting with a clash against Ireland at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California on August 3.

One stop that looks unlikely is a trip to the White House.

The outspoken Rapinoe has been critical of President Donald Trump, saying last month that she would not accept an invitation from him to visit the White House if the United States won the World Cup.

Trump responded by tweeting that Rapinoe should "win first before she talks."

Speaking to ESPN on Tuesday, Rapinoe noted she had "held up my end of the bargain on that one" before adding that the Twitter exchange with Trump had actually helped the team in France.

She also reiterated that she would not be going to the White House, saying on CNN: "I would not go and every teammate that I've talked to explicitly about it would not go."

"I don't think anyone on the team has any interest in lending the platform that we've worked so hard to build and the things that we fight for and the way that we live our life," Rapinoe said.

"I don't think we want that to be co-opted or corrupted by this administration."

On Monday, the team returned home from France, 24 hours after defeating the Netherlands 2-0 in Sunday's final to clinch a record-extending fourth World Cup crown.

source: philstar.com