Day: August 5, 2020

(Xinhua)08:37, August 04, 2020

The extended Zhangjiakou Ningyuan Airport, one of the key supporting infrastructure developments for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, was completed and put into service on Monday.

The expansion project includes a new terminal, an emergency rescue center, an apron, and an extended runway, among others.

After the extension, the airport can now handle up to 1 million passengers a year from 600,000 previously, said Li Hui, who is in charge of the project.

The project began in 2018 with a combined investment of 1.3 billion yuan (about 186 million U.S. dollars).

(Xinhua)14:27, July 17, 2020

The inaugural edition of the Top Seed Open will feature Serena Williams and Sloane Stephens in the field, organizers said on Thursday.

According to a statement from the tournament on Thursday, American stars Williams and Stephens, both former U.S. Open champions, are set to compete at the international-level event in Lexington, Kentucky that begins on Aug. 10.

The event will be Williams first tournament since she helped Team USA defeat Latvia in Fed Cup in February when she defeated Jelena Ostapenko and was beaten by Anastasija Sevastova.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion has previously confirmed that she will compete at this years U.S. Open at Flushing Meadows.

Stephens last tour-level match was a second round defeat to Canadian teenager Leylah Annie Fernandez at the Mexican Open in March, just days before the COVID-19 pandemic forced professional tennis into hiatus.

(Xinhua)10:56, July 20, 2020

FC Barcelona ended their disappointing league campaign on a positive note as Leo Messi scored twice and inspired them to a 5-0 win away to Alaves on Sunday afternoon.

After Barcas 2-1 defeat at home to Osasuna on Thursday, there was only pride to play for both Barca and Alaves.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Alaves were lacking some tension in their play after assuring their la Liga survival in their previous game and Messi was in the mood to make them pay for their relaxation.

First he slipped the ball to in-form youngster Ansu Fati to open the scoring in the 24th minute, with the 17-year-old showing his anticipation to prod the ball past Roberto in the Alaves goal.

10 minutes later Messi made it 2-0 with his 24th league goal of the season, darting into the Alaves area and wrong-footing Roberto with a swivel of his hips.

Suarez headed home Barcas third just before halftime after Messis sharp pass out to the left allowed left back Jordi Alba to cross to give Suarez a simple chance.

There was bad news for Barca in the 47th minute when central defender Clement Lenglet was forced off with an apparent hip injury. With Samuel Umtiti also sidelined, if the Frenchmans injury is serious, it could be a major problem for Barca when the Champions League restarts next month.

Lenglet was replaced by Nelson Semedo, who minutes after entering the match scored Barcas fourth goal of the game.

Frenkie De Jong returned to action as a late substitute after a muscle injury suffered a month ago, before Messis left foot shot gave him his 25th goal of the campaign and made it 5-0 with 15 minutes remaining. The goal means that Messi has netted at least 25 league goals for 11 consecutive seasons.

(Xinhua)15:57, July 24, 2020

Chinas international basketball player Gao Song has followed in Shao Tings footsteps to join Womens Chinese Basketball Association (WCBA) league side Sichuan from Beijing.

Following friendly communication between the player and the club, Gao Song has reached an agreement to join Sichuan. She will play for Sichuan from the 2020/21 season, read a statement posted on the clubs social media channel on Friday.

Gao was named into Chinas national team in 2009 at the age of 17, and won the Asian Games gold medal one year later.

Standing 1.91 meters tall, the small forward represented China at the FIBA Asia Championship in 2011, 2013 and 2015, the Olympic Games in 2012 and 2016, and the FIBA World Championship in 2014.

Gao suffered a facial fracture during the 2018/19 WCBA season before returning to the national roster to play in the 2019 FIBA Womens Asia Cup and the Olympic qualifying tournament earlier this year, where China got the ticket to the Tokyo Olympic Games with three straight victories.

Prior to Gao, Chinaa national team captain Shao had arrived at the Sichuan side, which finished 12th of 18 teams last season.

The two national players will strengthen the squad and boost our morale for the upcoming season, the club statement said, also expressing hope that Gao can fit into the team as soon as possible.

(Xinhua)14:47, July 26, 2020

Chinas Liang Wenbo is one victory away from the final stages of the Snooker World Championship as he defeated Alfie Burden 6-2 in the third round of the qualifiers in Sheffield on Saturday.

Liang, world number 34, failed to make any century breaks during the match but was consistent enough to seal the win over his opponent with a world ranking of 75.

33-year-old Liang will take a berth at the World Championship if he can beat Fergal OBrien in the final qualifying round.

Liangs best result at the World Championship was a quarterfinal finish in 2008.

In other third round qualifiers, Lyu Haotian lost to Eden Sharav 6-2 and 16-year-old Wu Yize was ousted by Alan McManus 6-3.

The qualifying event held behind closed doors on Tuesday at the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield saw 128 players battling for 16 spots across four rounds.

The World Snooker Championship will be staged at Sheffields Crucible Theatre from July 31 to August 16. Reduced crowds will be permitted to attend every session, as the tournament is one of the pilot events ahead of the full, socially-distanced return of sporting events in England from October 1.

Chinas Ding Junhui and Yan Bingtao have already earned their places in the final thanks to their top 16 rankings, along with defending champion Judd Trump, veteran John Higgins and five-time world champion Ronnie OSullivan.