Good evening.

You might have seen headlines over the weekend about Tyreek Hill, a wide receiver for the Miami Dolphins.

Hill was on his way to play in an NFL game when he was detained by police for a traffic incident and placed in handcuffs face-down on the ground.

A couple of hours later, Hill played an integral role in the Dolphins’ 20-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguar with an 80-yard touchdown.

He celebrated by mimicking handcuffs.

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Stat of the day

67
The number of points Argentina scored in their thrashing of the Wallabies on Sunday morning (AEST). It’s the most points any team has scored against the Wallabies, who scored 27 points, in 135 years of playing Test rugby. Australia will now prepare for their final two games of The Rugby Championship against the All Blacks for the Bledisloe Cup. The first game is on Saturday 21 September at Accor Stadium in Sydney.

Quote of the day

"Not being able to defend that marathon would've broken me, I think. There was three years that went into that. It really throws things into perspective. I'm so much happier with a silver."
Australian Paralympian Madison de Rozario speaking to Nine Network after she won silver in the women’s T54 marathon, revealing her father died on the day of the Opening Ceremony. 

Random fact of the day

Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar announced on social media last night that he will be headlining the 2025 Super Bowl. The 2023-24 Super Bowl had 123 million viewers. This past weekend marked the first week of the 2024-25 NFL season with the Super Bowl to take place on 9 February.

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In case you missed it…

🏉 After 27 rounds of the NRL, the top eight teams on the ladder will advance to the finals which begin next weekend. In the qualifying finals, the Panthers (2nd) will play the Roosters (3rd) on Friday and the Melbourne Storm (1st) take on the Cronulla Sharks (4th) on Saturday. In the elimination finals, the Cowboys (5th) will host the Knights (8th) on Saturday and the Bulldogs (6th) are up against Manly (7th) to round out the weekend on Sunday afternoon.

🏉 The first weekend of AFL finals saw Carlton and the Western Bulldogs eliminated from the competition after losses to the Brisbane Lions and Hawthorn, respectively. The upcoming weekend will see four teams play in the semi-finals for two spots in the preliminary finals. On Friday, Port Adelaide will play Hawthorn at Adelaide Oval with the winner advancing to play the Sydney Swans. On Saturday, the Giants will host Brisbane at ENGIE Stadium for a spot in the preliminary final against the Geelong Cats. 

🏉 West Coast Eagles defender Beth Schilling has been named the Week Two Telstra AFLW Rising Star nominee. The 20-year-old recorded a game-high seven marks, 11 intercept possessions, and three tackles against Essendon on Saturday.

🏉 Sydney Swans captain Chloe Molloy said she still wants to assist her team in any way possible, after tearing her ACL in training last week. Molloy said: "I'll push my hat into whatever the team needs from me; whether that's insight, coaching or whatever it may be down on the bench or up in the box.” She’s the second AFLW captain with a season-ending ACL injury from the first two rounds after Port Adelaide skipper Janelle Cuthbertson tore her ACL during Friday evening’s clash with the Western Bulldogs.

🏄‍♀️ American surfer Caity Simmers became the youngest-ever surfing world champion at the age of 18 at Lower Trestles in California over the weekend. Meanwhile, Simmers’ compatriot John John Florence became the men’s world champion for the third time. Three of the ten competitors were Australian but Molly Picklum (5th), Jack Robinson (4th), and Ethan Ewing (5th) were all out-surfed on the day.

🚴‍♂️ Two Australian cyclists finished La Vuelta a España in a leader’s jersey. Kaden Groves won the sprint classification (green jersey) and Jay Vine won the mountains classification (polka-dot jersey). Meanwhile, in the general classification for the overall lead, Aussie Ben O’Connor finished two minutes and 36 seconds behind Slovenian Primož Roglič, who has now won four editions of the prestigious multi-stage cycling tour of Spain. An amazing effort from the Australians!

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Paralympics wrap-up in Paris

After 11 days of competition in Paris, the Paralympics have come to an end. Australia won one medal on the final day, courtesy of opening ceremony flag bearer and five-time Paralympian Madison de Rozario, who claimed silver in the women’s T54 marathon. 

The Closing Ceremony

The Closing Ceremony took place in a rain-soaked Stade de France filled with 64,000 spectators, and featured performances from 24 DJs honouring the French electronic music scene. Australia’s flag bearers were Lauren Parker and James Turner. Parker won three medals in Paris across the triathlon and para-cycling events, and Turner won two gold medals on the track. 

How did Australia go?

Australia finished the Paris 2024 Paralympics ninth on the medal table with a total of 63 medals —  18 gold, 17 silver, and 28 bronze. The result is Australia’s lowest since finishing 12th in Seoul in 1988. China topped the medal tally with 94 gold medals. The next-best-placed nation was Great Britain with 49, followed by the U.S. with 36. 

Speaking to the media, Australian Paralympic Chef de Mission Kate McLoughlin said: “We had foreshadowed that this [lower ranking] would potentially happen and that we needed to do something about it. [The government] finally listened.”

McLoughlin was referring to a Paralympic funding boost, announced as part of the 2024/25 Federal Budget, that will see $54.9 million of additional funding for Paralympic sport. McLoughlin suggested that the disparity between Australia’s Olympic team, which produced its best performance ever, and its Paralympic team was a direct result of funding inequality.

What they said:

Despite it not being Australia’s best Paralympics, the Games gave us some amazing moments. 

Aussie para swimmer Tim Hodge summed up the spirit of the Paralympics: "The Olympics are the epitome of human excellence and the Paralympics are the epitome of human resilience."

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Sinner and Sabalenka reign supreme at the U.S. Open

The U.S. Open concluded with the men’s singles final this morning (AEST), which saw Italian world no.1 Jannik Sinner win his second grand slam title.

Men’s Singles

Jannik Sinner beat American twelfth seed Taylor Fritz in straight sets (6-3, 6-4, 7-5). In doing so, Sinner became the first man in 47 years to claim their first two grand slam titles in the same season — he also won the Australian Open in January.

Sinner said: "This title for me means so much; the last period of my career was not easy.” It was revealed last month Sinner had failed two drug tests earlier in the season but was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Fritz was emotional in front of his home crowd following the loss. "I know we have been waiting for a champion for a long time, so I'm sorry I couldn't get it done this time,” he said. The 26-year-old was the first American man to reach a grand slam final since Andy Roddick at Wimbledon in 2009 and was hoping to emulate Roddick’s victory at the U.S. Open in 2003, which was the last time an American won a men’s singles grand slam.

Women’s Singles

World no.2 Aryna Sabalenka won her third grand slam singles title and first U.S. Open on Sunday morning, beating American world no.6 Jessica Pegula in straight sets (7-5, 7-5). The 26-year-old was dominant throughout the entire two weeks, dropping only one set in seven matches and establishing herself as the queen of the hard court with wins at both hard-court slams in 2024.

"I also had a lot of tough losses in the past. I was always hoping that one day I'll be able to hold this beautiful trophy. It's been always my dream. That's why it's very special, because no matter what, every time I was coming back stronger, and I was learning, I never gave up on this dream, and yeah, you know, it means a lot."

Thompson and Purcell

Jordan Thompson and Max Purcell won their first grand slam as a pair, beating German duo Kevin Krawietz and Tim Pütz in straight sets (6-4, 7-6). The victory was sweet for the Aussies, who finished runners-up at Wimbledon in July after failing to take advantage of three championship points.

This time, they closed out the match on their third championship point to become the first Australians to claim the U.S. Open men’s doubles trophy since 2003, when Todd Woodbridge won alongside Swedish player Jonas Björkman.

A message from our sponsor

In a recent article, Dr. Dominique Condo, Senior Lecturer in Sport Nutrition at Deakin, discusses the AFL's decision to stop body composition and skinfold testing for players under 18. It comes soon after the AFL put an end to publishing player’s weights.

The move to ban skinfold testing on junior players has sparked debate among prominent figures in the AFL who argue that these measures are important for performance and fitness. Ex-player and coach, Paul Roos said, “This is just farcical … they [skinfold tests] are such a minor thing, to take them away seems ludicrous.”

But by keeping weights private, the league aims to reduce the pressure on players to meet certain body standards, which can lead to body image issues and unhealthy behaviours.

Skinfold testing, which measures body fat, has long been used to help track an athlete’s fitness but also risks causing anxiety about body image, especially in young players. The AFL’s new policy reflects a growing understanding that athlete health is more holistic than just physical metrics. The change is part of a broader, global trend in sport to support athletes' mental well-being and promote a healthier approach to body image.

Think Beyond The Field. Study sport at Deakin.

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