It might be hard to believe if you’ve been outside in Melbourne today, but the Winter Olympics are just around the corner. 

On this day in 1924, the first edition of the Winter Olympics was being held in Chamonix, France. Here is an epic picture of Norway’s Einar Landvik competing in that year’s Games. How times (and safety gear) have changed!

7 minutes and 27.57 seconds
The time it took for 19-year-old Cameron Myers to run the men’s 3,000 metre event at the New Balance Grand Prix in Boston over the weekend. Myers' time is the fastest ever 3000m for an Australian, eclipsing the previous record of 7:28.02 held by Stewart McSweyn.

"Even though today didn't go like I had planned, it was an incredible two weeks. Pretty life-changing for me. The best result of my career, so super happy. I'm looking forward to taking it into the rest of the year."
Australian Maddison Inglis following her straight sets (0-6, 3-6) loss to world number two Iga Świątek in the fourth round of the Australian Open last night. Asked what she would be doing with the $480,000 of prize money she won, Inglis joked that she had had her eyes on a new toaster for a while.

A baggy green cap worn by cricket legend Sir Donald Bradman sold for $460,000 at auction over the weekend. It’s the highest price ever paid for a cap of Bradman’s. The cap, one of eleven known baggy greens belonging to Bradman, was given to Indian cricketer Sriranga Wasudev Sohoni in 1948 and was held onto by his family until now.

🚴‍♂️ Australian cyclist Jay Vine won the Tour Down Under for the second time, surviving a dramatic final stage on Sunday that included a crash caused by a kangaroo on the course. Vine, who also won the race in 2023, went down along with several others but was able to remount and defend his overall lead. Swiss rider Mauro Schmid finished second, and Australian Harry Sweeny was third. British sprinter Matthew Brennan won the final stage, outsprinting New Zealand's Finn Fisher-Black. 

🏂 Australia had a huge showing at the X Games in Aspen, led by teenage sensation Indra Brown and snowboard icon Scotty James. Brown, just 15, claimed silver in the freeski halfpipe on her X Games debut. It continues a breakout season for Brown, who has secured four podiums from five major events. Meanwhile, James extended his X Games dominance by winning a fifth straight superpipe gold, marking a record-equaling (with Canadian snowboarder Shaun White) eighth career title at the event. Heading into the Milano-Cortina Olympics, James is seeking to become the first Australian winter sports athlete to win a third Olympic medal (and his first gold).

🏈 Super Bowl LX is set, with the Seattle Seahawks to face the New England Patriots on 9 February (AEDT) in Santa Clara, California. The Patriots booked their spot with a gritty 10-7 win over the Denver Broncos in blizzard conditions, led by 23-year-old quarterback Drake Maye and a dominant defence. Meanwhile, Seattle earned the NFC title by outgunning the Rams 31-27, with quarterback Sam Darnold throwing three touchdowns. The Seahawks head into the Super Bowl as early favourites. Australian Michael Dickson, who plays as a punter for the Seahawks, could become the second Australian to win the Super Bowl after Jordan Mailata’s Super Bowl victory with the Philadelphia Eagles last year. 

🏂 Former Canadian Olympian Ryan Wedding was arrested in Mexico and extradited to the U.S. over the weekend. The 44-year-old ex-snowboarder, who competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics, is accused of running a vast cocaine trafficking network and ordering multiple murders. U.S. authorities believe Wedding oversaw a billion-dollar operation linked to the Sinaloa Cartel, and the FBI compared his alleged role to that of notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar. Wedding has pleaded not guilty, according to Canadian broadcaster CBC. 

Your Big Summer of Sport is here

From Super Bowl Monday on 9 Feb to NBA All-Star Weekend and March Madness, summer sport is stacked. 

Add in Aussies lighting up the NBA, the Tillies in the UEFA Women’s Champions League, and the run home to the NBL Finals and WNBL Finals. 

Stream the Big Summer of Sport with ESPN on Disney+.

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The Perth Scorchers won the Big Bash League final at home on Sunday. 

The Scorchers claimed a record-extending sixth title with a six-wicket win over the Sydney Sixers in Perth. 

Here’s what to know.

The final was played in front of 55,000 fans at Optus Stadium, the biggest cricket crowd Perth has ever recorded. The surface offered help for the bowlers early and the Scorchers took control almost immediately.

The Sixers struggled to build momentum. English bowler David Payne broke through in the powerplay and finished 3/18, a spell widely viewed as the moment the match tilted Perth’s way. 

Young and quick Mahli Bearden added to the pressure, including a short-ball dismissal of Steve Smith.

The Sixers did find a moment of relief. Jack Edwards moved sharply at cover to complete a one-handed catch that removed Finn Allen in the ninth over, giving Mitchell Starc his first wicket in a BBL final since the inaugural season, when the Sixers defeated the Scorchers.

Chasing 133 for victory, Perth settled quickly. Mitch Marsh and Finn Allen put on an 80-run opening stand, keeping the required run rate in check and silencing any chance of a Sixers comeback. The Scorchers crossed the target with 15 balls to spare, sealing their sixth BBL title and extending their dominance over the competition.

Sixers captain Moises Henriques said the loss “hurts” and admitted that the team “really wanted to come over here and keep this Perth crowd relatively quiet”.

Scorchers captain Ashton Turner praised the team's efforts, saying: “A mountain of work has gone on the field but also behind the scenes to allow us to play the cricket that’s been good enough to win this competition again.”

The Scorchers now own six of the 15 BBL trophies contested, cementing their status as the most successful franchise in the competition's history.

Reporting by Pavitra Ravi

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On the first day of quarter-finals at the Australian Open, the focus is on a big night of matches on Rod Laver Arena, the last remaining Australian in the singles draws, and challenging conditions at Melbourne Park.

Here’s what to know. 

Rod Laver Arena will host two quarter-finals tonight.

First up, American world number three Coco Gauff faces Ukrainian 12th seed Elina Svitolina. Gauff comes in as the favourite, despite dropping sets in her past two matches against Hailey Baptiste and Karolina Muchova. The 21-year-old is contesting her third straight Australian Open quarter-final.

Svitolina, who is a decade older, is playing in her 14th Grand Slam quarter-final. She has not dropped a set at the tournament so far and is chasing a place in her fourth Grand Slam semi-final.

Later, Alex de Minaur, the last remaining Australian in either singles draw, takes on world number one Carlos Alcaraz. De Minaur has produced a strong run at this year’s Australian Open, highlighted by a straight-sets win over 10th seed Alexander Bublik on Sunday night.

Alcaraz has also looked sharp, defeating American 19th seed Tommy Paul in straight sets in the fourth round. The Spaniard and de Minaur have met five times on tour, with de Minaur yet to record a win. Tonight marks their first meeting at a Grand Slam.

Organisers are relying on Melbourne Park’s extreme heat protocols as temperatures climb. Rod Laver Arena, Margaret Court Arena, and John Cain Arena all have retractable roofs and air conditioning. This allows play to continue with temperatures kept below 30°C when the roofs are closed.

When the heat stress scale reaches its highest level, which is five, play on outside courts can be suspended. On Tuesday, officials delayed the start of wheelchair tennis and opened Margaret Court Arena to ground pass holders to provide air-conditioned relief. Ball kids are rotating more frequently with longer recovery breaks, while additional shade structures and misting stations have been installed around the precinct.

The singles quarter-finals began earlier today, with women’s world number one Aryna Sabalenka defeating American teenager Iva Jović in straight sets, 6-3, 6-0. Jović showed promise, but the two-time Australian Open champion proved too strong.

In the men’s draw, German third seed Alexander Zverev is currently playing American 25th seed Learner Tien. At the time of writing, Zverev is leading two sets to one as they play out the fourth.

Monday was a strong day for the home crowd in the doubles draws, with two all-Australian pairs booking quarter-final spots.

In the men’s doubles, Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans continued their run with a straight-sets win over fellow Australians James McCabe and Li Tu. They are playing their quarter-final today against French seeds Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul.

In the women’s doubles, Kimberly Birrell and Talia Gibson fought back from a set down to win in three sets (3-6, 6-4, 6-2). The pair will play their quarter-final tomorrow, with Gibson reaching the last eight of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career.

You can watch the Australian Open live on Channel 9, 9Now and Stan Sport.