The Spaniard has failed to regain full fitness from a hip injury sustained earlier this year

Rafa Nadal has delivered news that no tennis fan wanted to hear.

The King of Clay will miss the French Open after failing to regain full fitness from a hip injury suffered at the Australian Open back in January.

The 14-time Roland Garros winner says he expects to retire following the 2024 season.

Nadal has dominated the clay court season for close to two decades.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion fronted a widely anticipated press conference at his tennis academy in Mallorca to drop the bombshell, saying its the right thing to do for his body and personal happiness.

“I’ll look to be 100% ready for next year, which I believe will be the last year of my professional career,” Nadal told a news conference at his tennis academy in Mallorca, Spain.

“The evolution of the injury I sustained in Australia has not gone as I would have liked. I have lost goals along the way, and Roland Garros becomes impossible.”

“I’ll not establish a date for my return. I’ll see how my body responds and take it from there,” said the 36-year-old. “If I keep playing at this moment, I don’t think I can be there next year.

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to come back in the highest level and compete for Grand Slams. What I will try to do is to give myself the opportunity to go back to what could be my final year competing at the highest level.”

The East Asian nation raised the issue when Premier Li met with the head of the IOC, Thomas Bach

China has expressed concerns to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) about the politicisation of sporting events.

The issue was raised when Chinese Premier Li Qiang met Thomas Bach, the head of the IOC, in Beijing over the weekend.

“China’s efforts to promote the Olympic spirit will never cease, and [China is] ready to work with IOC to oppose the politicisation of sports, and make further contributions to the Olympic movement,” Li said.

It is rare for China to raise such concerns with the IOC in public, and it was the first time it had made such comments since the Winter Olympics in Beijing early last year.

The United States and several of its allies took part in a diplomatic boycott of the Games, citing alleged human rights abuse in China’s far west region of Xinjiang.

Beijing has repeatedly denied the accusation and said it opposes any attempts to politicise sporting events.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino says the organisation has been receiving TV bids between $1-10 million, and they would not cave in to such low offers

 
FIFA is threatening a broadcast blackout across Europe’s top five nations ahead of this year’s Women’s World Cup.

The governing body has been selling the TV rights to the competition separately from the men’s tournament, but FIFA has been receiving low-ball bids to broadcast the event.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino says the organisation has been receiving TV bids between $1-10 million, and they would not cave in to such low offers.

“To be very clear, it is our moral and legal obligation not to undersell the FIFA Women’s World Cup,” Infantino said. “Therefore, should the offers continue not to be fair, we will be forced not to broadcast the FIFA Women’s World Cup into the big five European countries.”

“The European public will not be able to watch the Women’s World Cup.

“FIFA is trying to grow revenue in the Women’s World Cup

“Broadcasters should put their action behind their words, because they rightfully criticise organisations for not paying women and men equally … otherwise we’ll simply not sell these rights at these undervalued prices to them.”

The event kicks off in July.