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In the world of football, Carlo Ancelotti signed a contract extension with Real Madrid, to continue his managerial run at the club until June 30, 2026. Tokyo Olympic medallist Bajrang Punia pointed out the lack of national competitions for Indian wrestlers with only a few months to go for Paris Olympics 2024.
Read below to learn details about these top stories and other happenings in the sporting world in the last 24 hours.
Football
Carlo Ancelotti signs contract extension with Real Madrid until 2026
The Spanish giants Real Madrid announced that Carlo Ancelotti has signed a contract extension with them until June 30, 2026, to continue managing their first team. With that, the rumours about the 64-year-old leaving the club for Brazil national football team were quashed, following the expiry of his previous deal in the summer of 2024.
PFA explores legal action over increasing number of matches in football calendar
The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) is in the midst of exploring legal action over increasing the number of matches in the football calendar after the recent European Court of Justice ruling, which seemingly reduced the ability of football bodies to bring such change to the sport. As per the report from the BBC Sport, the PFA wants to stop its members getting forced into committing to matches as the football calendar continues to get more congested.
Real Madrid to make fresh attempt to sign Kylian Mbappe: Reports
As per the report from the Athletic, Real Madrid are going to make a fresh attempt to sign the French footballer Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain, setting a deadline for him to decide by mid-January if he wants to join the Spanish giants in the summer. On January 1, 2024, the 25-year-old will enter into his final six months of his Paris Saint-Germain contract, which will give him the opportunity to freely negotiate with other clubs for a potential free transfer.
Manchester City open talks with Juventus over Kalvin Phillips loan deal: Reports
The English champions Manchester City have reportedly opened talks with the Italian giants Juventus to let the English midfielder Kalvin Phillips on a loan deal during the January transfer window, as per the Times. Notably, the 28-year-old is looking for a move away from Manchester City because of lack of first team football at the club, with an aim to give himself the best chance to play for England in the UEFA Euro 2024.
Some major results in football are as under:
International Friendlies
China 0-2 Oman
Serie A 2023-24
Napoli 0-0 Monza
Genoa 1-1 Inter Milan
Saudi Pro League 2023-24
Al-Fayha 0-2 Al-Hilal
Al-Ahli 1-0 Al-Khaleej
Olympics is 7 months away, no one is serious: Bajrang Punia
Tokyo Olympic medalist Bajrang Punia pointed out the lack of national competitions for Indian wrestlers with only a few months to go for Paris Olympics'24. Not only this, but Punia also urged the Sports Ministry to resume competitions for wrestlers, highlighting the importance of training for the marquee event in next year.
The wrestler said in a social media post, "Wrestling activities have come to a standstill for the last several months. Neither have any nationals nor any camps been organised to prepare the players. There is an Olympic Games after seven months but no one seems serious about it. Wrestling has given four consecutive medals in the last four Olympics.”
More than 20 athletes fail dope tests in National Games 2023
More than 20 athletes failed dope tests in the National Games 2023 in October-November in one of the biggest heaps of doping cases in the country. The 20-odd dope offenders were handed provisional suspension by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), which had collected dope samples from the participants in the October 25 to November 9 multi-sport event.
A source from the Indian Weightlifting Federation said, “Yes, seven weightlifters have failed dope tests during the Goa National Games and there could be more.” The most prominent weightlifter to have received the ban is a double bronze medal winner in the Commonwealth Championships, Vandana Gupta.
Tennis
I feel reborn in a way: Emma Raducanu as she prepares for comeback in Auckland after eight months
Britain's Emma Raducanu said that she feels 'born' as she prepares for tennis return in Auckland after eight months of staying out of action. The 21-year-old said, "I feel reborn in a way. I feel fresh, I feel ready, I feel happy and I feel excited. Overall, I'm feeling positive and lighter. I think that for two years after the US Open I felt maybe a bit more weight on my shoulders, but now I feel completely fresh."
Brisbane International qualifier comes to halt after snake interrupts play
The Brisbane International qualifying match saw a 40-minute suspension on Saturday, December 30 (IST) due to a bizarre reason. The game played between Dominic Thiem and Australian James McCabe came to a halt after a snake made its way onto the court. The sighting prompted the officials to temporarily suspend the game and call the security staff for assistance. After that, a specialist was called in to catch an eastern brown snake.
As identified by local media, the 50cm-long snake belonged to one of the most poisonous species. The unexpected turn of events extended the delay in the game by 40 minutes.
Australian Open increases prize money for 2024 by $10 Million
The first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open has increased prize money for the 2024 season by $10 million. The organisers announced that the first major tournament of 2024 will have an increase in the prize money, leading to an increase in the prize pool for the event to $AU 86.5 million. The singles champions in the men's and women's singles will each get $3,150,000 and every round has seen an increase in prize money. The tournament Director, Craig Tiley said, “We’ve upped prize money for every round at the Australian Open with the major increases in qualifying and the early rounds of singles and doubles."
