The 2026 Asian Games are currently taking place in Japan, and one 13-year-old swimmer is putting the world on notice.

China’s Yu Zidi has won two gold medals at the event so far, in the women’s 200m butterfly and 200m individual medley. In both races, she set Asian Games records, and in the 200m IM she was less than half a second off the world record. She’ll also race the 400m IM later this week.

Zidi will be 15 by the time the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles roll around. At this rate, she’ll be a household name by then.

Poll result: A whopping 68% of yesterday’s respondents would prefer to see Fremantle win the 2026 AFL Grand Final. Flagslide.

13
The age of Australian surfer Leihani Zoric, who has become the youngest-ever U18 World Junior Champion. Zoric won the title at the International Surfing Association’s World Championships event in El Salvador. Zoric is the first Indigenous person to win a surfing world title and the first Australian woman to become a U18 World Junior Champion since Tyler Wright in 2010. The Australian team also won the overall gold, and Aussies Locana Cullen and Lucy Darragh won the U16 Boys and U16 Girls titles, respectively.

“Wharfie Time has been incredible. If they play that at the MCG, it will erupt.”
Former Fremantle Dockers player Shaun McManus speaking to AAP ahead of the AFL Grand Final later this week. ‘Wharfie Time’ is an in-game activation played at Fremantle home games which is used to rouse Fremantle’s fans and spur on the team. According to reports, the AFL has denied the club’s request to incorporate it into the Grand Final. McManus, who joined the Dockers in their inaugural season in 1995 and played 228 games, will present Fremantle with the Premiership Cup if they beat the Brisbane Lions this Saturday.

Gael Martin holds the record for the most national titles in Australian track and field events, becoming national champion 20 times in women’s shot put and discus events. She was also the first Australian to win a medal in a throwing event at the Olympics, taking bronze in the women’s shot put at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles.

🏎️ Formula One races will be shorter in 2027. The sport’s commission has decided to reduce the length of Grand Prix races from 305km to 290km, which translates to two to three fewer laps, depending on the circuit. The adjustment was made in line with a regulatory change allowing teams to increase fuel flow, giving cars less reliance on hybrid electricity and more power derived from internal combustion. Without the adjustment, the teams would have had to redesign their cars to accommodate larger fuel tanks.

🏏 Australia’s bowling attack will be close to full strength when the men’s cricket team faces South Africa in an upcoming three-match ODI series, with fast bowlers Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins returning to the side. Both players were rested for Australia’s 3-0 series sweep of Zimbabwe earlier this month. Meanwhile, fellow fast bowler Jack Edwards has also been added to the squad and could make his ODI debut. The first match of the series will be played in Durban and begins on Thursday at 6pm (AEST).

⚽ FIFA President Gianni Infantino has proposed an independent review of the organisation’s governance structure. Infantino’s proposal follows weeks of backlash against his failed plan to sell 21% of FIFA’s commercial rights to private investors. In a letter sent to FIFA’s 211 member associations, he made the proposal for a review that would look into reforming the role of president and increasing transparency. Infantino, who has held the position since 2016, will stand for re-election in March 2027 despite calls from UEFA, the sport’s European governing body, for him to resign.

Only 3% of Australia's medical research funding goes towards women's health issues.

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Nick Daicos won the Brownlow Medal for the first time last night as the AFL’s best and fairest player in the 2026 season.

Here’s what to know.

The league’s umpires vote for the Brownlow, with the four field umpires who officiated every match agreeing on the game’s three best-performing players. The best player is awarded three votes (effectively points), the second-best two and the third-best one.

Daicos received a record 47 votes, finishing ahead of Geelong’s Bailey Smith (36) and the Western Bulldogs’ Marcus Bontempelli (34). The 23-year-old had 13 matches this year where he received three votes, also a record.

Daicos said: “It’s a massive award, and I’m so privileged to be up here. And yeah, I can’t believe I’m a Brownlow medallist, to be honest.”

The Brownlow isn’t the only award announced on the night. Hawthorn’s Nick Watson received the Mark of the Year award for his grab against the West Coast Eagles in Round 24, and the Brisbane Lions’ Conor McKenna won the Goal of the Year for his score against Collingwood in Round 24.

A major talking point before the ceremony was how the AFL would handle votes awarded to the five Sydney Swans players – Isaac Heeney, Nick Blakey, Chad Warner, Riley Bice, and James Jordon – who were suspended by the club for a breach of standards, which included staying out late, drinking, and having people in their hotel room after a match in Melbourne. Four of the five have been interviewed by Victoria Police in relation to a sexual assault investigation into an alleged incident that night.

The players were not invited to the ceremony, but remained eligible for the award, and Heeney, Warney, Blakey, and Bice all received votes. Heeney was the Swans’ top vote-getter with 26, finishing equal eighth on the night. Each time the players were named, the crowd remained silent, and the cameras did not cut to the Swans table.

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NRL referee Ashley Klein has been axed from this weekend’s preliminary finals after a controversial end to Sunday’s semi-final between the Newcastle Knights and the New Zealand Warriors.

The Warriors lost 10-12 at Eden Park, their home stadium. Here’s what went down.

In Sunday’s nailbiter, Klein made the contentious call not to award a penalty to Knights forward Tyson Frizell for blocking the Warriors’ Leka Halasima’s path. The call was missed in the final minute, with the bunker unable to review it despite an injury stoppage shortly afterwards. (The bunker is the NRL’s central video-assisted referee office, which reviews decisions on request during all matches.) The Warriors could have levelled at 12-12 and forced extra time if Klein had awarded a penalty for the infringement.

Other controversial decisions included Klein’s strip call against Te Maire Martin, and the bunker’s call that centre Ali Leiataua touched the ball before it hit the ground. Both players are from the Warriors.

Not calling a penalty over Frizell is the decision that matters most for the Warriors, due to the possibility it could have levelled the game.

At a post match press conference, Warriors coach Andrew Webster said: “We could have won that game”.

In relation to the Frizell non-call, Webster said: “The last one, two points would have drawn the game, he is going across Leka, pretending to try and catch the ball which they’ve told us you can’t do”.

The Warriors contacted the NRL on Monday morning over the contentious calls.

Multiple outlets now report league officials have confirmed the Warriors should have received a penalty after Klein’s non-call towards Frizell’s infringement.

An NRL review backed the two other contentious bunker decisions concerning Warriors players Ali Leiataua and Te Maire Martin. Meanwhile, the NRL has threatened bans for fans who threw bottles and rubbish at Klein.

Klein will lose his spot in the preliminary finals over the error, according to AAP. Grant Atkins or Gerard Sutton will most likely replace him.

Klein has refereed two of the last four grand finals and the past five State of Origin series. He also faced criticism over his calls in State of Origin Game 1 in May, while reports later revealed he had previously held $400,000 in gambling debt. The NRL was aware of Klein’s history and found no wrongdoing, with his betting limited to horse and greyhound racing rather than rugby league.

His selection for Game 2 was questioned, although Queensland coach Billy Slater and NSW coach Laurie Daley backed him.

TDA has asked the NRL for comment. Klein is yet to comment at the time of writing.

Reporting by Pavitra Ravi.