Fukushima may host baseball matches
TOKYO • The organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics have approved a plan to hold part of baseball's qualifying rounds in the disaster-hit Fukushima region to support its recovery from the 2011 tsunami and nuclear accident.
The move still has to be formally approved by the International Olympic Committee, with a final decision expected sometime next month.
The organisers have also decided that medals for the Tokyo Olympics will be made from old smartphones and other electronic products as they look to give the Games an environmentally friendly hue.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
UAE star tipped to be Asia's best footballer
KUALA LUMPUR • Shaggy-haired United Arab Emirates playmaker Omar Abdulrahman looks the favourite to become Asian footballer of the year, after he was named in a shortlist of three yesterday.
Should the 25-year-old's club Al Ain beat Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the two-legged AFC Champions League final this month, he will be even more strongly tipped for the award over China's Wu Lei, 24, and Hammadi Ahmed, 27, of Iraq.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Lahm hints that he may retire next year
BERLIN • Philipp Lahm, Germany's World Cup-winning captain and Bayern Munich skipper, hinted that he may retire from football at the end of the season.
The defender, who turns 33 tomorrow, stepped down from international football after leading Germany to the 2014 World Cup and has a Bayern contract until 2018. But Lahm, who has won every major domestic title with Bayern, admitted he might hang up his boots next June.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
