Tennis, Australian Open: Crowd favorites Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis crowned their double show at the Australian Open with a surprising title win. The two Australian wildcard starters, who brought unexpected attention to the competition with their entertaining and emotional performances, won the final on Saturday against their compatriots Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell 7:5, 6:4.
For Kyrgios and Kokkinakis it was the first Grand Slam title – and for Australia the second tennis highlight within a few hours. Before the doubles final at Rod Laver Arena, Ashleigh Barty became the first Australian to win the singles title in Melbourne since 1978. For the first time since 1980, four Australians had won the title in the doubles final of the home Grand Slam. With their unconventional performances, the two friends Kyrgios and Kokkinakis created a great atmosphere at their matches.
Alpine skiing, downhill: Ski racer Kira Weidle narrowly missed her second podium of the season at the dress rehearsal for the Olympic Games. In her home race on the Kandahar downhill in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the 25-year-old finished fourth on Saturday. Four hundredths of a second were missing Weidle for third place.
“It wasn’t my best skiing. That’s also what annoys me. It’s not so much the placement,” said Weidle. The World Cup runner-up had to struggle especially with the comparatively warm temperatures. “That’s not supposed to be an excuse, but it’s something I don’t particularly like,” said the speed expert ZDF with a view of the plus degrees in Garmisch. Good for Weidle: In the Chinese ski area, where the Olympic downhill will take place on February 15, it is currently around minus five degrees Celsius.
Victory in the demanding Kandahar downhill in Garmisch went to World Champion Corinne Suter from Switzerland, who celebrated her first World Cup success this winter. Second went to compatriot Jasmine Flury (+0.51) followed by Cornelia Hütter of Austria, 0.78 seconds back.
Soccer, Bundesliga: RB Leipzig is the first Bundesliga club to take legal action against the audience limit that applies due to the corona pandemic. For the Saxons, there is currently an upper limit of 1000 spectators at home games. The club has therefore applied to the Saxon Higher Administrative Court in Bautzen for a temporary injunction to be issued in summary proceedings. RB announced this on Saturday. With the application, the people of Leipzig hope to obtain a short-term solution for home games that represents “a decision that is factually fair, justified and understandable for all parties”.
Already last Tuesday, Managing Director Oliver Mintzlaff im image-Interview emphasizes: “We know that the pandemic has hit many in the country hard. Despite a minus of over 60 million euros in the past two years, we have had a lot of understanding for political decisions. But now the point is where every German citizen , every entrepreneur and every Bundesliga club can expect pragmatic, logical and understandable decisions.”
The managing director of Borussia Dortmund, Hans-Joachim Watzke, had recently heavily criticized the policy of not agreeing on a nationwide relaxation of the upper limit for spectators. The future chairman of the supervisory board of the German Football League (DFL) spoke again of “symbolic politics” at the expense of the sports clubs.