🏉 Jillaroos and Kangaroos too good for NZ

Plus, a new half-marathon world record

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Good evening!

The Miami Heat recently revealed a sculpture of one of their all-time greats, Dwayne Wade. Now, basketball fans are accusing the sculptors of producing a piece that looks nothing like the subject.

Speaking of athletes who have been misinterpreted, we have come up with a new Instagram game to keep you on your toes.

It’s called Blurdle and you can find it here. The answer for the first post will be revealed in tomorrow’s newsletter.

Dwayne Wade’s statue (X)

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Stat of the day

57 minutes 30 seconds
The winning time at the Valencia half-marathon, a new world record, set by Ethiopian runner Yomif Kejelcha. The time was quicker than the previous world record by one second. In the women’s race, Kenya's Agnes Ngetich recorded a 63:04, the second fastest time in history and just 11 seconds shy of the record.

Yomif Kejelcha at the 2023 World Championships (Getty)

Quote of the day

"There's not much expectation on me because I'm so young, but obviously still want to do well, and I was like, guess I'll go for it, not many runs needed and, yeah, went pretty well."
15-year-old cricketer Caoimhe Bray, who debuted for the Sydney Sixers in the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) on Sunday. The all-rounder is the youngest WBBL player in history. Bray took a wicket and hit the winning runs for the Sixers finishing her innings on 12 runs not out. She is also a talented soccer player who has represented the Junior Matildas.

Bray smacked a four over cover to win the match for the Sixers (Getty)

Random fact of the day

There are only eight players in the history of the NBA who have scored over 29,000 career points. The most recent to join the group is Kevin Durant, who passed the mark during the Phoenix Suns’ victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night. 

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In case you missed it…

🏉 The Jillaroos and Kangaroos have both continued their strong Pacific Championship campaigns, with both of Australia’s representative rugby league sides notching wins over New Zealand on Sunday. New Zealand’s women were held scoreless (14-0) for the first time in history against a strong Jillaroos outfit. In the men’s game, the Kangaroos won 22-10, exacting revenge for their 30-0 loss to New Zealand in last year’s final. 

Dylan Edwards turning defenders inside out (Getty)

🚲 Australian Cameron Wurf came seventh at the Hawaiian Ironman triathlon world championship on the weekend. German triathlete Patrick Lange won his third Hawai’i Ironman and set a course record of seven hours 35 minutes 53 seconds. The Ironman triathlon distance consists of a 3.8km swim, 180km bike, and 42km run. 

Cameron Wurf also rides for the pro cycling team INEOS Grenadiers (Getty)

⚽ The Matildas drew 1-1 with Switzerland in Zurich on Saturday morning. It was the first time the two sides had ever played each other. Australia took the lead in the 43rd minute with a penalty from Caitlin Foord and Switzerland’s Geraldine Reuteler hit back with the equaliser in the 58th minute. The Matildas play Germany tomorrow at 4:10am (AEDT).

Caitlin Foord takes a shot at goal (Getty)

⛸️ Figure skaters Anastasia Golubeva and Hektor Giotopoulos Moore have become the first Australian team to win a medal at an International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup. The pair won bronze at an ISU Grand Prix event held in Halifax, Canada. 

Anastasia Golubeva and Hektor Giotopoulos Moore (Getty)

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NZ’s Kate Heffernan was the Player of the Match (Getty)

New Zealand Silver Ferns win netball’s Constellation Cup

New Zealand’s Silver Ferns won the Constellation Cup for the first time since 2021, beating the Australian Diamonds 61-43 in Perth on Sunday. The Kiwis now lead the four-Test series 3-0.

What happened

The first half was close, with New Zealand heading into the break with a narrow 28-26 lead. The true difference proved to be the third quarter as the Ferns showed composure to jump out to a ten-goal lead by three-quarter time.

Grace Nweke was once again New Zealand’s best scorer with a 47-goal performance. The Silver Ferns’ Kate Heffernan was named the Player of the Match. Both teams will now head to Melbourne for the final match of the series, where Australia will be looking to hold off a historic Kiwi whitewash.

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Spain’s Carlos Sainz (Getty)

Sainz claims his fourth F1 win to help Ferrari overtake Red Bull in Championship

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz won his fourth Formula One race at the 2024 Mexico Grand Prix. The victory, aided by 3rd-placing teammate Charles Leclerc, propelled Ferrari ahead of Red Bull and 29 points shy of leaders McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship.

What happened

Sainz started in pole position, briefly losing his lead to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in the early stages but reclaiming it on the ninth lap. Meanwhile, the rivalry between Drivers’ Championship leader Verstappen and Lando Norris, who sits in second, intensified.

Verstappen finished in sixth position after he was handed two 10-second penalties for pushing Norris wide. Norris, who finished second behind Sainz, has reduced Verstappen’s lead in the title race from 57 to 47 points with four GPs and two Sprint Races remaining in the season.

Aussie Oscar Piastri performed poorly in qualifying and started the race in 17th. He was able to cut through a large chunk of the field and finish in 8th place.

What they said

Norris said: “[Verstappen] is dangerous, I just have to avoid a crash, I’ll end up in the wall”.

Sainz said: "I really wanted this one, I really needed it also for myself – I wanted to get it done. I’ve been saying for a while I wanted one more win before leaving Ferrari and to do it here in front of this mega crowd is incredible. Now, four races left, I want to enjoy as much as possible and if another one comes, I will go for it."

What’s next

The paddock will now head to Brazil for the SĂŁo Paulo Grand Prix on 3 November.

A message from our sponsor

Cassandra Iannucci is a senior lecturer at Deakin University and recently helped to co-author an article that explored physical education (PE) curriculums at Australian schools.

PE has long demonstrated benefits for physical, mental, and social health. Research has shown that students who engage with and enjoy PE at school will carry healthy habits into their adult life.

However, global trends suggest a decrease in physical activity in the past 25 years, coupled with an increase in screen time. Australia, which has long been considered a ‘sporting nation’ received a grade of D- on the Global Physical Activity Report card in 2014, 2018, and 2022.

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Such efforts can help instill positive attitudes toward physical activity and overall well-being. Learn more about the vital role of sport and PE in education at Deakin University and its potential impact on future generations.

Think Beyond The Field. Study Sport at Deakin.

Looking back…

AFLW (Sunday)

Who: Western Bulldogs v
Euro-Yroke
Result: Bulldogs won 36-35

Who: Collingwood v Carlton
Result: Carlton won 32-28

Who: Brisbane Lions v
Sydney Swans 
Result: Lions won 78-10

NBL (Sunday)

Who: Sydney Kings v NZ Breakers
Result: Breakers won 93-89

Who: Melbourne United v
Cairns Taipans
Result: Melbourne won 106-63

A-League (Sunday)

Who: Auckland FC v Sydney FC
Result: Auckland won 1-0

Who: Western United v
Western Sydney Wanderers
Result: 1-1 draw

Looking forward… (All times are AEDT)

WBBL (women’s cricket)

Who: Hobart Hurricanes v
Sydney Thunder

Time: 6:10pm tonight

Where to watch: Foxtel, Kayo

Women’s Soccer

Who: Australia v Germany

Time: 4:10am tomorrow

Where to watch: Paramount+

World Series (Game 3)

 Who: Yankees v Dodgers

Time: 10:30am tomorrow

Where to watch: Foxtel, Kayo

TDA asks