Saudi boxer Kalthoum Hantoul sacrifices day job for shot at Olympic boxing glory

Saudi boxer Kalthoum Hantoul sacrifices day job for shot at Olympic boxing glory
Saudi Kalthoum Hantoul realized her career as a telecommunications specialist in the private sector paled in comparison to her passion for boxing. (Instagram: wcgriyadh2023)
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Updated 16 December 2023
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Saudi boxer Kalthoum Hantoul sacrifices day job for shot at Olympic boxing glory

Saudi boxer Kalthoum Hantoul sacrifices day job for shot at Olympic boxing glory
  • The 29-year-old recently secured a silver medal in the women’s elite 50kg category at the Saudi Games after a challenging final against Sara Al-Shahrani

DUBAI: Kalthoum Hantoul, although a newcomer to the boxing world, swiftly made a pivotal choice.

On entering the ring, she realized that her career as a telecommunications specialist in the private sector paled in comparison to her passion for boxing.

The 29-year-old light flyweight from Dammam recently resigned from her job to fully devote herself to boxing, with her sights set firmly on the 2028 Olympics.

A silver medal at the recent Saudi Games 2023, after a challenging final against Sara Al-Shahrani, shows Hantoul could well be on the right path.

Born into a family of 11 siblings with a deep-rooted love for football, Hantoul started kicking a ball from an early age. However, when her women’s team failed to assemble the minimum seven players, that was when she turned to boxing.

“My parents have always been fans of Al-Nassr club, but most of us kids support Al-Hilal club, so there was always internal rivalry,” she said on the dynamics of her football family.

Hantoul pursued boxing secretly while her family believed she was still training for football. It was not until she clinched gold at the World Combat Games in Riyadh in October 2023 that her family began to embrace her dedication to this new sport.

“My family didn’t see boxing as a sport for women; they viewed it as brutal and physically demanding. Initially, I trained in secret, while they believed I was practicing football. That’s how it all began,” she said.

“My first fight was at the Saudi Games 2022. Until then, my family had refused my participation. But I kept going, and at the World Combat Games in Riyadh 2023, my whole family was watching. It was the real turning point for their support.”

Hantoul stumbled into the sport by chance in February 2022 when a boxing coach approached her as she was playing football and suggested she give it a try. Now she dedicates five days a week to training at Al-Taraji Club with her coach, Sajad Al-Jassas, a former boxer with the Saudi National Team and now their current coach.

Despite her desire to compete, her actual debut did not take place until November of last year at the Saudi Games.

“I attended around five different tournaments before the Saudi Games in order to compete, but there were no opponents in my weight category. I was eager to fight and excitedly awaited that day. When it finally arrived, I wasn’t nervous or scared just overjoyed to finally get to fight and I performed exceptionally well,” she said.

“After my participation in the Saudi Games 2022, I was invited to join the national team. I believe they took notice of my bout with Reem Al-Sharif, which was one of the most significant fights of the event. Following that, I took part in a local championship, and it was then made official — they selected me,” Hantoul said.

The boxing season in the Kingdom begins in January, featuring four annual main championships: the Regional Championship, the Saudi Cup, the Kingdom Cup, and the end-of-season qualification tournament for the Saudi Games.

The Saudi Boxing Federation has significantly contributed to the sport’s development, particularly in women’s boxing, with Rasha Al-Khamis — vice president of the federation — playing a pivotal role in this progress.

“Honestly, the Saudi Boxing Federation has helped the sport a lot, especially for women’s boxing,” Hantoul said.

“I heard that previously, there was minimal support for boxing,” she added. “But with the establishment of the new federation, many boxers, including those who had discontinued their careers, have started again due to the enhanced level of support.”

Despite taking up the sport as an adult, Hantoul displays fearlessness in the face of hard work and identifies the most challenging aspect of boxing as not the training or physical impact, but rather the mental battle of facing familiar opponents.

“I love the challenge. I love to be at the top of my sport. I love to be the best at every competition. This is what drives me — excellence, especially since I am representing the national team. It is a big thing to represent your country.”

In a short span of time, Hantoul has already graced the podium a few times with a silver medal on her debut at the Saudi Games in 2022, bronze at the 2023 Arab Games in Algeria, gold at the World Combat Games (Riyadh), and that silver at the recent Saudi Games 2023.

“Over the next few months, I want to go back to the drawing board and fix my mistakes, working on being better and winning gold medals from as many competitions as I can. I will just be training with my coach, Sajad Al-Jassas, at Al-Taraji Club as the new season of boxing starts soon in January,” Hantoul said.

“I know that I have four years to make it to the Olympics in 2028, and by doing this full-time, I think that I can be ready.”


Hull, Babnik and Sobron lead Aramco Team Series Riyadh

Hull, Babnik and Sobron lead Aramco Team Series Riyadh
Updated 59 sec ago
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Hull, Babnik and Sobron lead Aramco Team Series Riyadh

Hull, Babnik and Sobron lead Aramco Team Series Riyadh
  • Hull came out at a blistering pace, with four birdies and an eagle wrapping up her front nine of six-under-par
  • The Ladies European Tour’s rising star Chiara Tamburlini led her team to equal the record of 23-under-par

RIYADH: A strong opening day of the Aramco Team Series presented by PIF – Riyadh saw three players share the clubhouse lead as Charley Hull, Pia Babnik and Luna Sobron each finished at seven-under-par.

Hull came out at a blistering pace, with four birdies and an eagle wrapping up her front nine of six-under-par, as she began the hunt for her first win since 2022 at this week’s Golf Saudi organized event

The English star, who has been finished in second place twice on the series this year, added a further two birdies to her scorecard, before walking off with a bogey on the 18th, after just missing a short putt.

“It's a very, very scoreable golf course,” said Hull reflecting on her day. “You could shoot 60 – I was looking to shoot a 58 after the front nine - but yeah, I played well.

“It was a shame about my putt on the last, it just bobbled. It went straight down like a line on the green, but I played pretty decent.”

When asked about her increased length off the tee this year, adding 10 yards, Hull was unfazed – explaining this is just a biproduct of her own personal fitness drive.

“I don't train for golf,” she explained. “I have no interest in doing golf training like I just trained for me. In my mind that that's what's happened. I've hit it a bit longer, it's bit of a bonus.”

Also in the clubhouse at seven-under-par was Slovenian Pia Babnik, winner of the Aramco Team Series presented by PIF in Jeddah in 2021, aged just 17. After bursting onto the scene, Babnik finished 2022 ranked 67th in the world, but has since struggled for form, dropping as low as 512th.

Coincidentally, Babnik was introduced to her new coach, Matt Belsham, through Charley Hull – who has helped Babnik to rebuild both her confidence and her technique.

“I've been working with him since last August,” said Babnik. “It's just been amazing. He helped me a lot. I still have my dad as a coach, but it's just good to have Matt. He completely changed my swing to be more compact and, yeah, just more stable.

“My technique was just terrible, so we're still working on that, and then the power will come back as soon as I get the feel of the new technique.”

Spaniard Luna Sobron found herself at the top of the leaderboard early in the day, finishing the day at seven-under-par. Following a year battling injuries and losing her LPGA tour card, it’s a welcome return to form for Sobron – made all the more impressive by the fact it was her course debut.

“It’s a really good course,” said Sobron following her round. “I only had nine holes of practice on Tuesday and nine on Wednesday, but you can really score low with the right shots.”

“My putting was on fire, I made nearly all of them. I have changed up my putter, and now I’m using aimpoint – so I feel like everything has become much clearer to me.”

There was also a hole-in-one early in the day, as South Africa’s Cassandra Alexandra walked off with an ace on the sixth hole – a 165-yard par-three. The magical moment was actually missed by Alexandra, following on from some debate with her caddie on what club to use.

“I didn’t see it!” she admitted. “It was Anabel Fuller’s mum who told me, and I was like, ok cool! My caddie had a nine iron in mind, but I thought a chippy eight would be good… and chippy eight it was. I missed a few putts, if I could have made one or two more, I would have been even happier, but three under for the day, I’ll take it.”

In the team element, the Ladies European Tour’s rising star Chiara Tamburlini led her team to equal the record of 23-under-par, a single day scoring record for the series. After winning the team event in Shenzhen, Tamburlini is keen to become the first ever captain to win successive titles.

Tamburlini’s group is made up of Anne-Charlotte Mora, Mimi Rhodes and amateur Teniel Chu – who contributed with an incredible 11 net birdies to the team score.

“We had a great team again, and we all played well,” said Tamburlini. “But to be top again, it just shows as well how much I love this format and how well it suits my game and my mental game especially. Hopefully we'll get it done tomorrow.”

Day two of the tournament begins on November 1, at Riyadh Golf Club. For more information, visit www.aramcoteamseries.com.


Pakistan’s Noman Ali, Saud Shakeel move into top 10 Test rankings after England heroics

Pakistan’s Noman Ali, Saud Shakeel move into top 10 Test rankings after England heroics
Updated 31 October 2024
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Pakistan’s Noman Ali, Saud Shakeel move into top 10 Test rankings after England heroics

Pakistan’s Noman Ali, Saud Shakeel move into top 10 Test rankings after England heroics
  • Saud Shakeel moves to seventh spot in Test batters ranking while Noman Ali secures ninth spot in bowlers ranking
  • Shakeel scored match-winning 134 against England in Rawalpindi Test in which Ali took nine wickets to script Pakistan win

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani cricketers Saud Shakeel and Noman Ali moved into the top 10 Test batter and bowlers’ rankings for the first time in their careers, the International Cricket Council (ICC) reported this week, based on their heroic performances against England this month. 
Pakistani spinner Noman Ali and Sajid Khan spun Pakistan to a series victory against England this month, taking 39 wickets in two Test matches against the visiting side. 
In Rawalpindi, Ali took nine wickets to spin Pakistan to victory over England in the series decider while Shakeel bagged the Player of the Match award for his stellar knock of 134 that helped Pakistan pile on an impressive lead. 
“Left-handers Saud Shakeel of Pakistan and Rachin Ravindra of New Zealand have moved into the top 10 for the first time in their careers,” the ICC wrote on its website on Wednesday. 
“Shakeel has advanced 20 slots to reach seventh position after his knock of 134 won him the Player of the Match award.”
Ali also made “huge progress” in the ICC bowlers’ rankings, as per the ICC. 
“Noman is in the top 10 for the first time, moving up eight slots to ninth position after finishing with nine wickets in Rawalpindi as Pakistan won by nine wickets to clinch the WTC series 2-1,” the ICC said. 
Pakistan’s series victory over England came after the South Asian side suffered a humiliating 2-0 loss to Bangladesh at home. This marked the first time Pakistan won a Test series at home after defeating South Africa in 2021 nearly four years ago.


Test cricket hat-tricks highlight an outstanding group of bowlers

Test cricket hat-tricks highlight an outstanding group of bowlers
Updated 31 October 2024
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Test cricket hat-tricks highlight an outstanding group of bowlers

Test cricket hat-tricks highlight an outstanding group of bowlers
  • The feat has been achieved 46 times in men’s test cricket and three times in women’s Tests

It seems only fair and balanced that, after last week’s coverage of triple centurions, attention should focus on players who have taken hat-tricks in test cricket.

This feat constitutes the bowler taking wickets with three consecutive deliveries, not necessarily in the same over, although this is usually the case. The feat has been achieved 46 times in men’s test cricket and three times in women’s tests. A hat-trick may be considered an equivalent feat to scoring a triple hundred, although the latter may involve greater levels of endurance. This could be reflected in the smaller number of triple centuries — 32 — compared with hat-tricks.

Cricket folklore has it that the term originated in 1858. H. H. Stephenson achieved the feat when playing for the All England Eleven against Hallam and Staveley in Sheffield. By this time, a practice had emerged of taking a crowd collection for professional players who achieved an outstanding feat. On that day, the collection was used to purchase a white hat, which was presented to Stephenson. Records suggest that it was not his first hat-trick that season. Stephenson had already taken two others, both for England, but no award was recorded. His victims were either “veterans” or in the lower order, called rabbits, so perhaps the feats were not deemed outstanding.

The first hat-trick in a test match was claimed by Fred “The Demon” Spofforth for Australia against England in January 1879, in only the third ever test match. This was 50 years before the first triple hundred was scored. It was not long before the next hat-trick was achieved.

Billy Bates of England claimed one at Melbourne in January 1893. By the turn of the 19th century, three more had been taken, all by Englishmen. Johnny Briggs of England at Sydney in February 1892, George Lohmann at Port Elizabeth in February 1896 and Jack Hearne at Leeds against Australia in June 1899, all bowled themselves into cricketing history.

The five hat-tricks at the back end of the 19th century were followed by four in the early part of the 20th. They were remarkable in that only two bowlers were involved. In January 1902 and March 1904, Hugh Trumble of Australia became the first bowler to claim two hat-tricks, both against England. Even more remarkably, he was followed in achieving this feat by Australia’s Jimmy Matthews who claimed two hat-tricks on the same day, May 28, 1912. This was against South Africa at Manchester in a triangular series with England.     

Only two other players have taken two test match hat-tricks. In March 1999, Wasim Akram of Pakistan took a hat-trick in successive tests against Sri Lanka, played as part of the Asian Test Championship. Akram’s first occurred in a group stage match in Lahore, the second in the final, played in Dhaka, a neutral venue. Stuart Broad staged hat-tricks for England against India at Nottingham in July 2011 and against Sri Lanka at Leeds in June 2014.

His achievement in 2011 may not have stood had the Decision Review System been in place. India had not accepted its use at that point. Broad’s first wicket was MS Dhoni caught behind. The second trapped Harbhajan Singh in front with a perfect full-length delivery but replays suggested that Singh had got an inside edge on his bat before the ball hit his pads. The third bowled Praveen Kumar. Broad’s second hat-trick was spread over two overs, the last ball of one and the first two of his next over. The umpire had to remind Broad of his achievement.

Other hat-tricks have generated their own quirks. The first one since 1912 was taken by Maurice Allom in 1930 on his test debut. Two players have achieved the same feat, New Zealand off-spinner Peter Petherick in 1976 and Australian pace bowler, Damien Fleming in 1994, both against Pakistan. One player has taken a hat-trick off the first balls of a test match. This incredible feat was achieved by Sri Lankan seamer Nuwan Zoysa in November 1999 against Zimbabwe. Indian pace bowler, Irfan Pathan claimed a hat-trick in the first over of a test match against Pakistan in 2006.

Although a hat-trick is usually considered as three consecutive balls in the same over, there have been exceptions. Australia’s Merv Hughes claimed one when the wickets fell over three overs. At Perth in 1988, he took a wicket with the final ball of an over. In his next over he took a wicket with the first ball to end the West Indian innings. When the second innings began Hughes claimed a wicket with the first ball. There have been two other occasions when a hat-trick has been taken over two innings, both against Australia by West Indians in 1998 and 2003.

Prior to 1939, eleven hat-tricks out of the 46 had been taken. It is no surprise that as the volume of test cricket increased the potential for hat-tricks increased. It did take until 1957 for the 12th one to be taken — Peter Loader for England against the West Indies. Thereafter, there is no pattern to the frequency. Since 2000, 20 of the 46 have occurred, the latest by Keshav Maharaj for South Africa against the West Indies in June 2021. The most recent one in women’s test cricket was by Rene Farrell for Australia against England in 2011. This was seven years after Shaiza Khan for Pakistan and 53 years since the first one by Betty Wilson for Australia against England in 1958. 

It should be no surprise that some of the game’s finest bowlers have claimed a hat-trick. Shane Warne did so in 1994 and Glenn McGrath in 2000. It is also a surprise that others did not, most notably James Anderson and Muttiah Muralitharan, two of the leading wicket takers in test history. It seems that a specific set of circumstances need to align for the feat to be achieved. There will have been many occasions when two wickets have been claimed in two balls, but the bowler has failed to take a wicket with the next delivery. It is a common feature of both hat-tricks and triple centuries that they are rare and unexpected. Predicting when the next ones will occur is a fool’s game.


England captain Stokes says home was burglarized with family present

England captain Stokes says home was burglarized with family present
Updated 31 October 2024
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England captain Stokes says home was burglarized with family present

England captain Stokes says home was burglarized with family present
  • Masked burglars stole jewelry and “irreplaceable” personal items during break-in while Stokes was on tour to Pakistan
  • Among items stole were OBE, or Order of the British Empire, a medal given on behalf of the country to Stokes

LONDON: England cricket captain Ben Stokes said masked burglars stole jewelry and “irreplaceable” personal items in a break-in at his home while his family was in the house and he was away with the national team in Pakistan.
Stokes announced on Wednesday that the break-in took place Oct. 17 at his Castle Eden home in northeast England. That was the third day of the second test between Pakistan and England in Multan, with Stokes having just returned to the team after injury.
Among the items Stokes said were taken in the robbery was his OBE, or Order of the British Empire, a medal given on behalf of the country.
“By far the worst thing about this crime is that it was carried out whilst my wife and 2 young children were in the house. Thankfully, none of my family came to any physical harm,” he wrote on X.
 “Understandably, however, the experience has had an impact on their emotional and mental state. All we can think about is how much worse this situation could have been.”
The thieves took jewelry and “other valuables and a good deal of personal items,” he said. “Many of those items have real sentimental value for me and my family. They are irreplaceable.”
Stokes, a World Cup winner with England and one of the most famous sports stars in Britain, said he went public with the news in a bid to help police catch the burglars. He released photos of some of the stolen items.
“Although we have lost cherished possessions, to be clear, my sole motivation in sharing these photographs is not the recovery of material items. It is to catch the people who did this,” he wrote.


Yao Ming quits as head of China’s basketball association

Yao Ming quits as head of China’s basketball association
Updated 31 October 2024
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Yao Ming quits as head of China’s basketball association

Yao Ming quits as head of China’s basketball association
  • The former Rockets center is China’s most famous basketball star and retired from playing in 2011

BEIJING: NBA legend Yao Ming has quit as head of the Chinese Basketball Association after seven years in the job, the organization said on Thursday, calling it a “personal decision.”
The former Rockets center is China’s most famous basketball star and retired from playing in 2011.
“On October 31 the executive committee... held a meeting in Beijing to review and approve Yao Ming’s application to resign as the chairman of the Chinese Basketball Association and elect Guo Zhenming as the new chairman,” the association said in a statement.
The 44-year-old said he decided to quit “after careful consideration and based on considerations for the development of China’s basketball and personal planning,” the statement said.
It directly quoted him as saying that “basketball is a career I have always adored, whether in the past, present or future.”
“I hope that everyone will continue to support Chinese basketball with me in the future,” Yao said.
The association said the national sport administration “expressed sincere gratitude” to Yao for his work.
“It is believed that Yao Ming has done a lot of fruitful work in building the foundation of bringing basketball to the masses... (and) improving the level of the national team,” the association said.
“The executive members... respect and understand Yao Ming’s personal decision,” it added.