If you were forwarded this email (hi! welcome!), you can sign up for the newsletter here.

Good evening!

Most people are slowing down at 75. Jacky Hudson is pulling on the green and gold.

The great-grandmother from Port Stephens has been picked in Australia's lawn bowls squad, the Jackaroos, for her first Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this July.

She'll line up in the vision-impaired mixed pairs with Jake Fehlberg, already a world champion partnership after gold at the 2023 Worlds. The Commonwealth Games is one of the few major international events that integrates para and able-bodied athletes into the same team and program, with medals counting equally toward the national tally.

Go Jacky!

Yesterday's poll results: 71% of you wouldn't switch the team you support if a new one set up closer to where you live.

I’ve got 10 seconds

Stat of the day

One
The number of NRL clubs yet to be invited to play in the league's Las Vegas season opener, after the four teams for next year's fixtures were announced overnight. The Dolphins are the only NRL side yet to be picked, although the club is expected to get their turn in 2028. The Wests Tigers will play Melbourne Storm, while the Parramatta Eels will face Gold Coast Titans on Sunday 28 February 2027. 

The Dolphins are the last of the current NRL teams to get a Vegas invite (Getty)

Quote of the day

"My recovery is going well and I'm feeling much better, but unfortunately I'm still not ready to compete."
Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz in an Instagram post announcing his withdrawal from Wimbledon, the sport’s grass-court major held annually in London. The two-time champion has been sidelined with a wrist injury since the Barcelona Open in April. Alcaraz had also withdrawn from the French Open earlier this year, meaning he will miss two consecutive majors where he was the defending champion. His absence opens the door for world number one Jannik Sinner, who has won six straight Masters 1000 tournaments.

Random fact of the day

In 1894, Sarah Maddock became the first woman to ride a bicycle from Sydney to Melbourne, covering 924km in nine days. The following year the NSW native did Sydney to Brisbane and back, a 2,575km round trip averaging 129km a day. And she did it all on a 14kg bike!

I’ve got 30 seconds

In case you missed it…

🏉 South Sydney Rabbitohs forward Jai Arrow has retired from the NRL, effective immediately, after being diagnosed with motor neurone disease at 30. The progressive neurological condition gradually weakens the body's muscles, and currently has no cure. According to MND Australia, most people diagnosed with the disease live an average of two to three years, however survival time varies. Arrow, who played 178 NRL games and 12 State of Origin matches for Queensland, asked the public for "support, understanding, and privacy" rather than sympathy. He and his partner have a one-year-old daughter.

Jai Arrow has retired from the NRL following an MND diagnosis (Getty)

🏉 The AFL has tightened its crackdown on umpire contact after a run of incidents across recent rounds. The league is giving officials more scope to award free kicks when players fail to clear the protected zone at stoppages or make contact while attempting to run around an umpire. The league will now send repeat careless-contact offences directly to the Tribunal, which can impose suspensions. Six players were reported in round 10, following five in round nine and three in round eight.

Southampton have been expelled from English football’s second-tier playoffs after admitting to spying on three rival teams during training sessions. The breaches related to league fixtures this season and violated rules introduced after Leeds United were caught in a similar scandal in 2019. Southampton had been due to face Hull City at Wembley this weekend for promotion to the Premier League – a move estimated to be worth at least £200 million ($A374 million) in future revenue. Middlesbrough, who Southampton defeated to reach the final, will now take their place.

The widely circulated image of an alleged Southampton spy (BBC)

🏒 Riot police were deployed in Montreal after crowds flooded the streets to celebrate the Canadiens reaching the next round of the NHL playoffs. The Canadiens defeated the Buffalo Sabres in a seven-game Atlantic Division playoff series and will now face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference finals. It marks the first time since 2014 that Montreal has made it this far in the Stanley Cup race. If the Canadiens beat Carolina, they will face either the Colorado Avalanche or Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup finals. No Canadian team has won the Cup since Montreal lifted the trophy in 1993.

The Canadiens are hoping to end a 33-year Canadian Stanley Cup drought (Getty)

Together with Swisse

Recovery that actually tastes good

Magnesium is one of the most important minerals for muscle recovery – and most Aussies aren't getting enough of it. Swisse Magnesium Gummies deliver 105mg per serve in a form your body actually absorbs, making them an easy addition to your post-workout routine.

The full Swisse Gummies range also covers apple cider vinegar and fibre, all in flavours that make taking your supplements genuinely something to look forward to.

I’ve got 1 minute

Arteta celebrates with players after their Champions League semi-final win earlier this season (Getty)

Arsenal win first English Premier League title since 2004

Arsenal have been crowned Premier League champions for the first time since 2004. The Gunners sealed the title in England's top division of men's football after league rivals Manchester City drew with Bournemouth this morning (AEST).

What happened

Manchester City’s 1-1 draw with Bournemouth this morning leaves them four points behind Arsenal with one round of the season remaining.

With no knockout rounds or finals series in the league, the team that finishes top of the ladder is declared champion.

It is Arsenal's 14th English league championship and their first since the 2003-04 season, when Arsène Wenger's so-called "Invincibles" Arsenal side went the entire campaign unbeaten.

The win ends a long wait for the club’s Spanish manager, Mikel Arteta, who had led the Gunners to a runner-up finish in each of the past three seasons. He is also the first former Premier League player to win the title as a manager, having played for the club between 2011 and 2016.

What’s next?

While Arsenal have now wrapped up their Premier League campaign, their season is not over. The Gunners will now face Paris Saint-Germain in the final of the Champions League, Europe's top club competition, on 30 May.

Help us grow!

Enjoying the newsletter?

If you are, why not share the love with your friends? We’d love your help in getting the word out there.

Send them this link to sign up.

I’ve got 2 minutes

Australian-Egyptian boxer Mai Soliman (Getty)

The Australian-Egyptian boxer who will fight for a world title in front of the Pyramids of Giza

Australian-Egyptian boxer Mai Soliman will fight for a world title in front of the Pyramids of Giza this weekend as part of the first professional boxing event ever held at the site.

The Sydney fighter, who moved from Cairo to Australia at age nine, will face undefeated Japanese champion Mizuki Hiruta for the WBO and Ring super flyweight world titles on Saturday night, on a card headlined by heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk and kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven.

Soliman says the fight is a “full circle moment” after dreaming about competing at the pyramids years ago.

Ahead of the fight, she spoke to The Daily Aus about setbacks, women’s boxing, family and the road to one of the biggest fights of her career.

What first got you into boxing?

It started pretty much towards the end of high school. I had a friend of mine who was boxing, and I found it very interesting even though I didn’t see many females doing it at the time. But I came from a very sporting background. My parents put me into swimming, running, and I played football at such a high level across multiple sports. At the time I wanted to try something different, so I joined my friend at the local boxing gym. What I didn’t realise was that this would take me on a very long journey and pretty much become the start of my career.

How did you keep going after being told no?

I’m just living proof that regardless of how many no’s, or how many setbacks, you keep your head down and keep grinding away.

God has put this dream inside of me to really chase it.

How did the Egypt fight come about?

I had this dream that I’m gonna be fighting in front of the pyramids, and this goes back about four years.

I promised myself that’s something I would want to do, and every time I would go back to Egypt I would talk about it.

One day I woke up to the news that they’re announcing a huge fight in front of the pyramids with Usyk versus Rico, and I tried to reach out to some people I know to see if there was a chance for me to get on the card.

Not even a week and a half later, I get a phone call: ‘Yes, you’re on the card. You’re fighting for a world title.’”

What does it mean to fight there?

For me to go back, it’s a full circle moment. I was born there, came here at the age of nine, started boxing here, and now I’m going back to fight in front of the pyramids, to make history, and to fight for my very first world title.

And I get to share the card with Usyk, and being the only female fighter on the card is unreal.

Why does this fight matter for women’s boxing?

For them to put on a female world title fight and give me an opportunity to go back to where I’m originally from to fight for my very first world title, it’s amazing.

And not even just that, as an Egyptian, I’m pretty sure if I’m correct, I’ll be the first Egyptian to fight for a world title, male or female.

So for me to be given that opportunity on such a global stage, streamed all around the world and to fight for the world title in such an iconic place, the pyramids, it’s amazing.

For women’s boxing, it’s everything.

What’s the goal after this?

I don’t wanna say I’m really looking past the fight in itself. With this fight I’d love to obviously become the new champion.

I’m sure whatever comes after this, it’ll open a lot of doors and it’ll be amazing.

Looking back…

NBA Playoffs
(Eastern Conference Finals) 

Who: Knicks v Cavaliers (Game 1) 
Result: Knicks won 115-104 in OT (Knicks lead 1-0)

Looking forward… (All times are AEST)

Giro d'Italia (Stage 11)

Who: The world's best cyclists
Time: 8:25pm tonight

Where to watch: SBS On Demand

NBA Playoffs
(Western Conference Finals)

Who: Spurs v Thunder
(Game 2, Spurs lead 1-0)
Time: 10:30am Thursday

Where to watch: ESPN (via Disney+, Kayo, Foxtel) 

TDA asks

Keep Reading