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Centre Court at Wimbledon erupted midway through the second set of Novak Djokovic and Alexei Popyrin’s third-round clash yesterday.

But this cheer wasn't because of the tennis - those streaming England's Euro football quarter-final against Switzerland from Germany had just witnessed their side clinch the game via a dramatic penalty shootout.

Djokovic mimicked a penalty kick, much to the crowd’s delight, before downing Popyrin in four sets.

SPORTS-CEPTION!

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Stat of the day

12
The number of years since Australian basketball veteran Lauren Jackson last played at an Olympic Games. The 43-year-old will head to her fifth Olympics after Australia’s women’s and men’s Paris Games basketball teams - the Opals and Boomers - were announced yesterday. 

Quote of the day

"That was incredible. I have worked so hard over the last few weeks, and I wanted to see what I could do. I felt amazing out there, and couldn't believe it.”
Australia middle-distance runner Jessica Hull after she ran the 5th fastest women’s 1500m in history (3:50.83) at a competition in Paris over the weekend. Hull, who broke the Australian record by over five seconds, finished second behind two-time reigning Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon. Notably, Kipyegon broke the world record with a time of 3:49.04.

Random fact of the day

At the Montreal Olympics in 1976, 14-year-old Nadia Comǎneci became the first-ever gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of ten. The Romanian is also the youngest athlete to win a gold medal in gymnastics. 

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In case you missed it…

🏉 The Wallabies won their first game under new coach Joe Schmidt, beating Wales 25-16 at Allianz Stadium in Sydney on Saturday night. The Wallabies fielded seven debutants - the most first-game players in the side at once in 44 years. Wales, who have now lost eight games in a row, will be looking for redemption in the second test of the series next Saturday in Melbourne. 

🏉 The Wallaroos (Australia’s women’s rugby union team) beat Fijiana (Fiji’s women’s rugby team) 64-5 in a dominant showing in Sydney. Australian winger Desirée Miller scored an equal-record four tries in the win. It follows a disappointing Pacific Four series in May where the Aussies finished last among New Zealand, Canada and the U.S. They will play world number three New Zealand next Sunday in Brisbane. 

⚽ Spain, France, the Netherlands and England are through to the semi-finals of the Euros after winning their respective quarter-finals over the weekend. Spain will play France on Wednesday morning and the Dutch will play England on Thursday morning (AEST).

⚽ Meanwhile, in the Copa América, America’s continental football tournament, Argentina, Canada, Uruguay, and Colombia are through to the semi-finals. Defending champions Argentina will play surprise contenders Canada on Wednesday morning and Uruguay will face Colombia on Thursday morning (AEST).

🏐 The Thunderbirds are on top of the Super Netball table for the first time this season after beating the Swifts 60-48 on Sunday. With one round remaining, the Thunderbirds, Vixens and Fever are all guaranteed a finals spot, with the Lightning (currently fourth), Mavericks and Firebirds all vying for the fourth position. 

🚴‍♂️ Tadej Pogačar has retained the yellow jersey after stage nine of Le Tour de France, with a 33-second lead over second-placed Remco Evenepoel. Last night, Frenchman Anthony Turgis won stage nine, his first-ever stage win at the Tour de France. Today is the first rest day, and Stage 10 will start tomorrow night (AEST).

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We’re now halfway through Wimbledon’s Round of 16 - it’s the pointy end of the tournament, where the best on grass face off. Here are the headlines you need to know. 

Women’s headlines

In the women’s singles, only two of the top ten seeds remain in the draw - Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina (4), who won the Championship in 2022, and Italian Jasmine Paolini (7), the runner-up at last month’s French Open. Paolini’s Round of 16 match with American Madison Keys (12) ended with Keys’ withdrawal late in the third set with injury.  

The first and second seeds, Iga Świątek and Coco Gauff, both lost on the weekend after promising starts to the tournament.

Notably, qualifier and Wimbledon debutant Lulu Sun became the first woman from New Zealand to reach the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in tennis’ modern era (since 1968). Sun beat British player Emma Raducanu. 

Men’s headlines

Italian Jannik Sinner (1) and Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz (3) both secured spots in the quarter-finals beating American Ben Shelton (14) and Frenchman Ugo Humbert (16) respectively. Sinner will play Russian Daniil Medvedev (5) and Alcaraz will play American Tommy Paul (12) on Tuesday. 

Alex de Minaur (9)—the only remaining Australian singles player—is back in action tonight, playing unseeded Frenchman Arthur Fils at 10:00pm (AEST). De Minaur’s third-round match against Lucas Pouille ended after the Frenchman withdrew with an abdominal injury.

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British racing driver and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton won his first Formula One race since 2021 at the British GP on Sunday. The win was Hamilton’s ninth at the Silverstone racetrack, breaking a record for the most wins of any F1 driver at a single venue. It was also Hamilton’s 104th career win in Formula One, extending his record for most race wins ever. 

Mercedes has now won two races in a row after Hamilton’s teammate (and fellow Brit) George Russell won the Austrian GP last weekend. 

How it happened

The race started with three British drivers at the top of the grid - Russell in pole position, followed by Hamilton and Lando Norris. The trio were split early in the race after Russell was forced to retire early due to an issue with his car’s water system. 

The lead changed hands multiple times, with Hamilton first gaining the lead after a decision to switch to slick tyres one lap earlier than Norris, who dropped back another position to finish in third behind Max Verstappen. 

Verstappen now holds an 84-point lead over Norris in the Driver Standings. 

What they said 

Lewis Hamilton said, “I can’t stop crying. Since 2021 I have been trying. It’s my last British win for this team. I wanted to win it for this team. I love them. The important thing is to dig deep. There have been days since 2021 that I didn’t think I was good enough. I love you guys, God bless you.”

What’s next

The Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring will be on the weekend of 19-21 July. Max Verstappen won the 2023 edition with Lando Norris and Sergio Pérez rounding out the podium.

A message from our sponsor

ACL injuries in footy? Should women and girls be playing? You’re asking the wrong question.

Dr Aaron Fox from Deakin’s School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences is working hard to shed light on the complex world of ACL injuries in sport, particularly the differences between male and female athletes. The findings are fascinating.

One of the core differences to have emerged from the research is that AFLW players sustain ACL injuries in non-contact situations (like reacting to an opponents' directional changes) more than their male counterparts. But Dr Fox emphasises these differences aren't due to inherent knee susceptibility, but potentially how young women and girls have grown up with sport, and the sports they would typically play differing from what they now play in adulthood.

The solution? Make sure young women and girls are not held back or limited in their athletic development and have exposure to a range of sports early in life, particularly adolescence.

As well as growing junior AFLW, there also needs to be advancements in technology. Dr Fox and his team are developing innovative ideas around ACL injury risk screening methods, which he hopes will revolutionise how athletes are assessed and trained. These cutting-edge approaches, combined with increased awareness and targeted training programs, are paving the way for reduced injury rates and safer participation in sport for all athletes - the brains hub of Deakin University is well and truly on the case.

Looking back…

Looking forward…(All times are AEST)

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