Sport THURSDAY 20 MAY 2021 F1: Hamilton, Verstappen play down risk of collision We’veWe’v got 19 more (races) to go and we could connect, hopefully not. I think therether is a nice balanced amount of respect between us... he feels perhaps he has a lot to prove. I’m not necessarily in the same boat there and I’m more long ttermerm ‘it’s a marathon not a sprint’ mentality. I’ll continue with that and I’ll do everythingevery to make sure that we avoid connecting. Lewis Hamilton Sport | 15 PREMIER LEAGUE: Everton 1-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers; Newcastle United 1-0 Sheffield United; Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Aston Villa Tokyo Olympics will be safe, says IOC REUTERS – TOKYO can be safely held at this point.” Bach said the IOC would do its part to keep The International Olympic Committee the Japanese public safe, by having (IOC) reassured an anxious Japan additional medical personnel as part yesterday that the Tokyo Olympics of the NOC delegations to support the would be safe for athletes as well as medical operations and the strict the host community, amid mounting Together with our implementation of the COVID 19 opposition to the Games and fears it Japanese partners and countermeasures. will fuel a spike in COVID-19 cases. friends, I can only Much of Japan, including the key Speaking in Tokyo alongside senior cities of Tokyo and Osaka, is under a Japanese officials, IOC chief Thomas re-emphasise this full state of emergency until month-end Bach said he believed more than 80% commitment of the IOC to to rein in infections. The southern pre- of residents of the Olympic Village fecture of Okinawa will request its own would be vaccinated or booked for organise safe Olympic and emergency declaration as new infec- vaccination ahead of the Games set to Paralympic games for tions reached record highs, it said start on July 23. yesterday. He rejected growing calls to cancel everybody. To accomplish Japan aims to inoculate most of its the global sporting showpiece, already this, we are now fully 36 million people older than 65 by the delayed once due to the pandemic, end of July. To reach that target, it saying that other sporting events had focused on the delivery of hopes to deliver about a million shots proved the Olympics could go ahead the Olympic Games: IOC a day, or three times faster than the with strong COVID precautions. President Thomas Bach current pace. Bach’s comments came as Japan So far, just 3.7% of the population kept up its battle on a fourth wave of of 126 million have received at least infections, although a slow vaccination one vaccine shot, the lowest rate campaign has undermined already among wealthy countries. Initially, the shaky public confidence that the holdup was scant supplies of the Games should proceed. vaccine developed by Pfizer Inc and “Together with our Japanese BioNTech SE, the only one approved partners and friends, I can only re- by regulators. emphasise this full commitment of the But arrivals of the Pfizer vaccine An anti-Olympics group member holds a banner during a protest outside the IOC to organise safe Olympic and Par- have increased dramatically in May, alympic games for everybody,” Bach Japanese Olympic Committee headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. and Japan is expected to approve said. Moderna Inc’s candidate this week for “To accomplish this, we are now vaccinated medical workers was less 500 nurses to help out with the Games use in mass vaccination centres. The fully focused on the delivery of the than 30%, the Nikkei added. are unrealistic, said Kenyu Sumie, the shot developed by AstraZeneca PLC is Olympic Games.” Less than 30% of Much of the vaccine supply was chairman of a group representing more also being considered by domestic medics in Japan’s major cities have been concentrated in large hospitals, and than 100,000 doctors and dentists in regulators. vaccinated against the coronavirus, with there had been problems in the reser- Japan. As supply bottlenecks eased, just 65 days left to the start of the vation systems for medical staff, it said. “It’s impossible to think about dis- problems with vaccine reservation Olympics, the Nikkei newspaper said. The slow pace of vaccinations of patching them (to the Olympics) when systems and manpower shortages have Cabinet figures showed this week The problem is especially pronounced doctors and nurses has been among they haven’t even received their own cropped up. The government is looking that three months into Japan’s vacci- in the capital, Tokyo, which plays host the complaints cited by medical groups two shots,” Sumie told Reuters into letting pharmacists give the injec- nation push, less than 40% of its to the Games, and other large popu- that oppose the Games. yesterday. tions, after a similar move regarding medical workers were fully inoculated. lation centres, where the rate of fully Requests for about 200 doctors and “There is no way that the Olympics dentists last month. Kerley Gearing up for joint qualifiers Federer “can’t underlines his 100m even think credentials OSTRAVA of winning REUTERS – Fred Kerley underlined his impressive sprinting range by French Open” winning the 100m in 9.96 seconds, taking two notable REUTERS – GENEVA scalps in the shape of fellow American Justin Gatlin Roger Federer said he is not playing well enough to have a (10.08) and Canada’s Andre chance of winning the French Open after the Swiss’ prepa- De Grasse (10.17), at the rations for the claycourt Grand Slam were cut short in Geneva Ostrava Golden Spike on Tuesday. yesterday. The 39-year-old was up 4-2 in the final set against world Kerley, world bronze number 75 Pablo Andujar of Spain but lost the next four games medallist over 400m in 2019, to lose 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in his only tuneup event on clay before posted a 9.91 a month ago, the French Open starts on May 30. the first time he had gone It was Federer’s first match since his comeback in Doha in Qatari players during a practice session as they gear up for their World Cup 2022 and Asian Cup 2023 under 10 seconds, and March after sitting out over a year due to two knee surgeries. Qualifiers Group E matches against India and Oman to be played next month. Qatar will play India on June showed it was no fluke yes- “I think when you played so little and you know where terday with a controlled run 3 before meeting Oman four days later. Both the matches will be played at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium. your level is at, and I think you saw that today, how can I and strong last 20 metres to think of winning the French Open?” the 20-times major leave Gatlin flailing. winner told reporters. Kerley is one of only three “I’m just realistic that I know I will not win the French men to have gone sub-10 for Mueller and Hummels back in and whoever thought I would or could win it is wrong. the 100m, sub-20 for 200m “Of course, crazier things might have happened, but I’m and sub-44 for 400m - not so sure in the last 50 years at the French Open, somebody joining Wayde van Niekerk just rocked up at 40-years-old, being out for a year and a half and Michael Norman. Germany squad for Euro 2020 and just go on to just win everything straight.” Federer said There were impressive the next few weeks were important for his season. performances by two British REUTERS – FRANKFURT the players dropped after Ger- Mueller has delivered 18 “Regardless if you play tournaments or not, if you’re back teenagers over 800 metres. many’s disappointing 2018 World assists and 11 goals in the Bun- on the Tour or you’re practising again with top guys that you Keely Hodgkinson, 19, broke World Cup winners Thomas Cup first round exit and their desliga alone, while Hummels has go through the rhythm ... how it feels to be back on the Tour two minutes outside for the Mueller and Mats Hummels losing Nations League per- established himself as leader at and this is then how you start taking better decisions. first time with a hugely yesterday secured a return to the formance later that year. freshly-crowned German Cup “So when I walk out of a match like today, and I feel like impressive 1:58.89 to win the German national team for the first But an overhaul that was winners Borussia Dortmund, ‘My God, I could play so much better’. It feels strange and it’s women’s race and Max timetime in more than two yyearsears afterafter interrupted by the pandemic in forcing Loew into a U-turn. disappointing, but at the same time, this is the process I need Burgin, who turns 19 on coach JoachimJoachim Loew includedincluded the past 12 months failed to yield Loew also included Monaco to go through and that’s why I can’t get too down on myself Thursday, then destroyed the themthem in hishis 26-man26-man any tangible results as the team striker Kevin Volland, who has not and I need to go back to the drawing board.” field with a brilliant front Euro 2020 squad.squad. crashed to their biggest compet- played for Germany since 2016, running performance to win MuellerMueller aandnd itive defeat -- a 6-0 loss to Spain following a strong season in the Switzerland’s Roger Federer in 1:44.14 - another massive Hummels,H ummel s, -- as recently as last November.