The World Senior Games is the world’s largest annual sporting competition for athletes aged 50 and over. 

And no, they’re not usually known for producing outright world records. But this year, Canada’s DonnaJean Wilde has set a new world record for the longest plank by a woman (of any age). 

The 61-year-old held a plank position for five hours to eclipse the previous record (which was also hers) of four hours, 30 minutes, and 11 seconds.

Clearly, DonnaJean doesn't believe in breaks. Not even between her first name(s)!

126
The number of goals Lionel Messi scored for Argentina during his 21-year international career. Messi scored his final goal for the national team in an international friendly game against Benin yesterday, converting a penalty as Argentina won 3-0 in Buenos Aires. The 39-year-old is retiring from international football but will continue playing for Inter Miami at club level.

“We want to be relatable athletes. And if we’re not front and centre of the summer, it makes it pretty difficult when it’s meant to be a summer sport.”
Australian cricketer Beth Mooney speaking to AAP about the scheduling of the 2026/27 international women’s cricket season. Several of Australia’s senior women’s cricket players have voiced concerns that not enough international women’s cricket will be played on home soil over the summer. Australia will begin an ODI series against Bangladesh in Brisbane this Friday, before a T20 series against New Zealand in Sydney next week. However, they will not play another match in Australia until March.

A 2008 study by researchers at the University of Plymouth and Durham University found that English football teams wearing red won more often at home than teams in any other colour across 56 seasons of league football.

🏉 Sydney Roosters premiership winner Spencer Leniu has been allowed to walk away from the final year of his contract, only four days after the club won the NRL Grand Final. The prop is widely expected to sign with the Parramatta Eels, though that deal is not official yet. Leniu is one of six key players leaving the club alongside Connor Watson, Mark Nawaqanitawase, Daniel Tupou, Daly Cherry-Evans, and Angus Crichton.

🏏 Australian cricketer Travis Head has pushed back at former players who criticise the current Test team, saying the group is judged unfairly by people who played in a different era. Head’s comments come after former Australian cricket star Matthew Hayden criticised selectors for recalling Nic Maddinson earlier this week. Head argued that modern conditions now help bowlers more, which in turn has impacted batting averages. Australia will begin a three-Test series against South Africa in Durban tomorrow afternoon (AEDT).

🏉 Wallabies coach Les Kiss has made just one change to the Australian side that will start against New Zealand in the Bledisloe Cup opener at Eden Park in Auckland on Saturday. Outside centre Isaac Henry will replace Hunter Paisami, who has been suspended for four matches after a high tackle in Australia’s victory over South Africa in Perth last month. Australia have not won a Test against the All Blacks at Eden Park since 1986. The Bledisloe Cup is the annual Test series held between Australia and New Zealand.

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Spanish golfer Jon Rahm is leaving LIV Golf, ending a partnership that began in late 2023 when he was the reigning Masters champion. Rahm’s decision comes as the breakaway golf league undergoes an overhaul and faces bankruptcy after Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund withdrew its backing earlier this year.

On Wednesday, Rahm’s lawyer John Beck told a U.S. bankruptcy court that the former world number one had reviewed the terms of “LIV 2.0” and found them “unacceptable to him”.

It’s a significant blow to the league.

Rahm, a two-time major winner, was one of the biggest names to leave the PGA Tour for LIV Golf and has won three straight individual LIV Golf championships. The U.S.-based PGA Tour is men’s golf’s main professional tour.

LIV is a breakaway league that launched with Saudi Arabian funding and has since filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, a form of U.S. court protection that lets a company restructure its debts.

The PGA Tour will not negotiate with current LIV players, meaning Rahm future in professional golf could now involve the DP World Tour, Europe’s top professional golf tour.

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Up to five AFL clubs have shown interest in trading for Sydney Swans player Nick Blakey, who is one of five players who were suspended by the club in August for breaching its standards following a game against Essendon.

Here is what to know.

The AFL trade period is a 10-day window after the Grand Final and before the draft, in which clubs can swap players and draft picks. This year it opened on 5 October and closes at 7:30pm AEDT on Wednesday 14 October.

Blakey has been linked to several clubs, including Geelong, St Kilda, Essendon, North Melbourne and Gold Coast, according to AFL.com.au journalist Callum Twomey.

Later today, Twomey also reported that North Melbourne had offered Blakey an eight-year contract worth more than $11 million. He also met with Suns coach Damien Hardwick earlier in the day.

The 26-year-old is contracted to the Swans until 2031, but a contract does not stop a trade. Clubs can trade a player under contract if they agree on a fair exchange, which the AFL verifies. Players generally cannot be moved against their will, though, and clubs can refuse a player’s request to leave.

Sydney list manager Chris Keane said on Thursday: “Clearly there has been some speculation about Nick. We’re working through all that with his management group. From our perspective, he’s contracted and a significant player for our footy club and that hasn’t changed.”

Keane added that “the most likely scenario” is that Blakey would still be at the club next year.

An AFL club’s list manager is the person responsible for building and managing a club’s player list, which can include a total of up to 44 players.

Blakey is one of five players suspended by the Sydney Swans in August for a “serious breach” of standards following a game against Essendon.

Victoria Police are investigating allegations of a sexual assault at the Pullman Hotel in East Melbourne, where the Swans were staying, on the same night. TDA does not suggest that any of the players are being accused of sexual assault, only that they have been connected to the police investigation. No charges have been laid.

At the beginning of September, Victoria Police released a statement which indicated the next update would likely be in November. Four of the players, including Nick Blakey, have been interviewed by police. Another, Riley Bice, is being treated as a witness.

Given that the trade period closes on 14 October, the clubs weighing a move for Blakey must therefore decide without knowing whether he will face charges or not.