At 3:15am tomorrow morning at the Stade Charléty in Paris, triple Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon will attempt a feat no woman has achieved before.

The Kenyan will seek to become the first woman to run the mile (1,609m) in under four minutes.

Kipyegon’s personal best is 4:07.64 (which is also the world record) but for this effort she will wear a specially engineered skin suit, headband, sports bra, and an 85 gram pair of shoes. She will also have pacers running a metre in front and behind.

If you’re a night owl, you can watch the attempt on Nike’s socials (Youtube, Instagram or TikTok) or Amazon Prime. Or I can just tell you about it tomorrow.

P.S. It’s Thursday, do your footy tips!

$US269 million ($AU412 million)
The average valuation of every franchise in the WNBA, the U.S’ top professional women’s basketball league, according to website Sportico. It marks a 180% increase on last year’s average figure of $US96 million. The team with the highest valuation is the Golden State Valkyries, the San Francisco-based team that made its debut this season. Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever grew in value by 273% last season after its first season with the superstar point guard as their marquee player. 

"Usman is a man of principle whose support I valued greatly when I was dismissed and whose ongoing support I appreciate."
Cricket journalist Peter Lalor, in a statement responding to reports that Australian opening batter Usman Khawaja refused an interview with radio broadcaster SEN. Lalor was sacked by SEN earlier this year for reposting content about Israel’s military activities in Gaza on social media, including commentary from Israeli sources. At the time, Khawaja came to his defence and said: "Standing up for the people of Gaza is not antisemitic nor does it have anything to do with my Jewish brothers and sisters in Australia.”

The Sydney Cricket Ground has used a special type of soil as a topdressing for its cricket pitch for over 120 years. Bulli Soil is found at the base of the Illawarra Escarpment south of Sydney (near the town of Bulli). It’s thought that this is what makes the pitch more spin-friendly than other Australian wickets. 

Australia’s new look batting lineup got off to a shaky start against the West Indies, being bowled out for 180 runs on the opening day of the first Test in Barbados. Australia’s innings was held together by solid performances from Travis Head (59 runs) and Usman Khawaja (47 runs) while Sam Konstas (3 runs), Cameron Green (3 runs), and Josh Inglis (5 runs) all failed to fire. The Aussies' bowling attack struck back with four wickets in the afternoon session, with the West Indies ending the day at 4/57. 

Aussie 19-year-old Maya Joint is through to the quarter-finals at the Eastbourne Open after beating British number one Emma Raducanu. Joint beat the 2021 U.S. Open champion in a third-set tiebreaker. She said: “Today was really tough, there was a lot of ups and downs. I was happy I was able to tough it out at the end. I am really glad I was able to win this one.” Fellow Aussies Kimberly Birrell and James Duckworth both lost their respective second-round matches overnight. 

Australian ultra-runner Phil Gore has set a new world record for the Backyard Ultra, running 797.3km in five days. The Backyard Ultra is an endurance event with no predefined finish. The only requirement is that runners complete a 6.7-kilometre loop every hour until they drop out. Gore set the world record at the Dead Cow Gully Backyard Masters event in Queensland. He said afterwards: "It's amazing. The bar keeps getting raised higher and higher and I'm glad that I'm still able to keep up with it. But I'm sure it'll be beaten again within a year." At the same event, Australia's Holly Ranson ran 61 loops (408km) to set a new national women’s record.

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The Dallas Mavericks have selected 18-year-old American Cooper Flagg as the number one pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. 

Flagg was always the favourite to be picked number one after a highly decorated college career at Duke University. 

He is the second youngest player to be picked first after LeBron James. 

Flagg’s arrival will provide a much-needed boost for the Mavericks after trading away the franchise’s marquee player, Luka Dončić, mid-season in a move that outraged the franchise’s fan base. He is expected to start immediately. Flagg said on stage: "I'm feeling amazing. It's a dream come true, to be honest."

The Mavericks were lucky to receive the number one pick after winning the draft lottery with a 1.8% chance. The draft lottery is an annual process that determines the order of picks.

The San Antonio Spurs had the second pick and selected guard Dylan Harper, son of five-time NBA champion Ron Harper. The Philadelphia 76ers took shooting guard VJ Edgecombe as the third pick. 

As for the Aussies who have put themselves up for the NBA Draft, the two most promising prospects are Alex Toohey and Rocco Zikarsky. 21-year-old Toohey has played as a versatile forward for the Sydney Kings since 2023. 18-year-old Zikarsky, standing at 220cm tall, has also spent two seasons in the NBL with the Brisbane Bullets. 

Neither player was selected in the first round of 30 players, but will be hoping to be part of the second round which begins at 10:00am tomorrow.

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The Matildas are in action from 9:00pm tonight, playing Slovenia in the first of two friendlies against the world’s 38th-ranked side in Western Australia. 

Australia is ranked 15th. 

It will be the first time the team takes to the field under new coach Joe Montemurro. 

The Matildas head into tonight’s match off the back of four consecutive wins in a pair of two-match series against South Korea (#21) and Argentina (#32). 

The side has several key players missing. Sam Kerr is still recovering from the knee injury, which has sidelined the star striker since January 2024. Mary Fowler and Tameka Yallop are also out due to injury. Meanwhile, Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Katrina Gorry, Clare Wheeler, and Cortnee Vine are all on personal leave.

The squad for this international window will be co-captained by Ellie Carpenter and Emily van Egmond. 

In a press conference yesterday, Montemurro said: “It is the official start of our build-up for the Asian Cup. Yes, I am looking at a lot of players. Yes, I am trying to instil some language. Yes, I am trying to instil some new ideas. But the approach to the game is still the same. We're playing at home, we are in our country. The attitude has to be that it's a big game.”

Australia is hosting the 2026 Asian Cup, which begins next March.

Montemurro is an Australian who has spent the past decade coaching at the highest level of European women’s football. His most recent role was at French club Lyon, where he coached the side to a national title two weeks ago.  At Lyon, he coached Matildas player Ellie Carpenter. 

Montemurro has also coached and won titles with Melbourne City, Arsenal, and Juventus’ women’s sides.

At the time of his appointment earlier this month, he said: “There’s a generation of talent coming through and major tournaments on the horizon. My job is to honour the legacy, harness the momentum, and help this team play football that inspires and unites the country.”

The Matildas are set to play two matches against Slovenia (tonight and 29 June) before another two-match series against 56th-ranked Panama (5 and 8 July). All four matches are being played in Western Australia between Perth and Bunbury. 

Tonight’s match will be broadcast on Channel 10. The other three matches will be streamed exclusively on Paramount+.