Sports

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — Evgenia Medvedeva set a new world record on Sunday in the women’s figure skating short programme, with a brilliant skate that helped the Olympic Athletes from Russia (OAR) into second place in the team competition behind Canada.

Medvedeva, the reigning world champion who is competing in her first Olympics, was awarded 81.06 points for her performance, sparking cheers from Russian fans in the crowd.

The 18-year-old overcame a number of hurdles to make it to Pyeongchang, including a broken foot that forced her to drop out of the Grand Prix Final last year and a doping scandal that cast doubt on whether the Russians would be allowed to participate at all.

Medvedeva said her injury and the uncertainty surrounding Russian Olympians had just made her and her teammates stronger.

“I competed to feel the magic of the Olympics,” she said.

Following the women’s short programme the top five teams — Canada, OAR, the United States, Italy and Japan — advanced to the final round of the team event.

Trailing Canada and the OAR, the United States are currently in third place after solid performances by 20-year-old Bradie Tennell and the husband-wife pair of Chris and Alexa Scimeca Knierim.

In the pairs free skate, Canadians Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford had a solid performance but did not cleanly land their throw quad Salchow, an element that pushes the technical limits of the sport. The pair earned 148.51 points.

“It’s nice to have a strong performance but not a perfect one here, so we have room left to improve for the individual event,” Radford told Reuters. 

Italy’s Valentina Marchei and Ondrej Hotarek skated a personal best score of 138.44 points, helping Italy into fourth place, while Olympic Athletes from Russia Natalia Zabiiako and Alexander Enbert finished third with 133.28 points.

Canadian ice dancers dazzle

Earlier on Sunday, Canadian ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir produced a sizzling routine to bolster an already strong Canadian team performance.

The reigning world champions and three-time Olympic medallists dazzled with an impressive midline step sequence that earned them 80.51 points.

American brother and sister Maia and Alex Shibutani’s energetic performance that included smooth twizzles and an impressive rotational lift, finished second with 75.46 points. 

“It was our strongest performance that we were looking to put out, I think we made a lot of big steps coming out of Nationals,” Alex told reporters, referring to the US competition last month. 

“The programme felt great. We went out there with a job and we’re very happy that we did it,” he said, although he added they were a little disappointed at their score.

Ekaterina Bobrova and Dmitri Soloviev, part of the Russian team that won gold at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games, were third with 74.76 points.

“We had trouble with our rumba,” Soloviev told reporters. “Of course we’re disappointed because we worked on this element more than on the others.”

The first day of the team competition, which included the men’s and pairs short programmes, were marked by falls by Canada’s Patrick Chan and American jumping ace Nathan Chen, although the overall team scores were lifted by the later pairs results. 

The final rounds take place on Monday.

AMMAN — Jazira kick off the 15th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup on Monday when they play titleholders Iraqi Air Force Club in Group A while Faisali play Syria’s Wihdeh in Group C on Tuesday, as the second-tier Asian club competition kicks off around the continent.

Jazira’s group includes Oman’s Suweiq and Bahrain’s Malikieh. While Faisali’s group includes Oman’s Dhofar and Lebanon’s Ansar. The top teams from each group in addition to the best second placed team will move to the second round.

Last week, Faisali lost their 2018 AFC Champions League play-off match to Uzbekistan’s Nasaf Qarshi 5-1 and failed to reach the group stages of Asia’s elite club competition. They have now settled to play the AFC Cup alongside their compatriots Jazira. Jordanian teams have never before made it past the ACL preliminary round. Wihdat were knocked out in 2017, 2016 and 2015, while Shabab Urdun were eliminated in 2014.

Jordanian league champs Faisali last season finished runner-up to Tunisia’s Tarajji in the Arab Clubs Championships after an impressive performance which included two wins over Egyptian veterans Ahli. This season they are not leading the league and hope to make up on the regional scene.

Last season, Ahli played the AFC Cup for the first time and Wihdat reached the West Asia zone semifinals, the winner of which faced the winner from the rest of the Asian zones to decide the AFC Cup champion, won by Iraqi Air Force Club for the second year running.

The AFC Cup was previously won three times by Jordanian teams: Faisali won in 2005 and 2006 while Shabab Urdun won in 2007. Other Jordanian teams that competed include Wihdat, Jazira, Ramtha, Hussein and That Ras. 

So far this season, reigning League and Jordan Cup champs Faisali beat Jazira to win the 35th Jordan Super Cup. Wihdat beat Jazira to win the Jordan Football Association (JFA) Shield. In the Jordan Cup, Jazira ousted Faisali while Shabab Urdun eliminated Wihdat to reach the final.

AFC Cup Champions list

2004Jeish (Syria)

2005Faisali (Jordan)

2006 Faisali (Jordan)

2007Shabab Urdun (Jordan)

2008Muharraq (Bahrain)

2009Kuwait SC (Kuwait)

2010Ittihad Aleppo (Syria)

2011Nasaf Qarshi (Uzbekistan)

2012Kuwait SC (Kuwait)

2013Kuwait SC (Kuwait)

2014Qadissieh (Kuwait)

2015Johor Darol Tazim (Malaysia)

2016Air Force Club (Iraq)

2017Air Force Club (Iraq)

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea — Sweden’s Charlotte Kalla won the first gold medal of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics on Saturday after powering away from the field to secure victory in the women’s 7.5km + 7.5km skiathlon.

Sochi Games champion Marit Bjoergen of Norway, who has decided to skip Thursday’s 10km sprint race, took the silver 7.8 seconds behind Krista Parmakoski of Finland won the bronze. 

Kalla made her break midway through the last of the four laps, leaving Bjoergen to battle Parmakoski and Swede Ebba Andersson for the podium places. 

It was the third Olympic gold medal for the 30-year-old Kalla, who won the 10km freestyle at Vancouver in 2010 and followed that with a win in the 4x5km relay in Sochi four years later. 

“I‘m very happy today, it feels incredible,” a beaming Kalla told a media conference. 

With about a dozen racers close together as they made the switch from freestyle skiing to skating style, Kalla began evaluating when she would attack. 

“During the first skating lap I knew it felt very good, so my plan was to try to do something quite early on the last skating lap,” she explained. 

“I didn’t know exactly where Marit was, I knew that she was in the group somewhere, so I just tried to focus on my performance and not evaluate what the others did.” 

Kalla barely looked over her shoulder during the final three kilometres as she dug deep for victory. 

“There were thoughts about maybe what are the others doing, but I just tried to focus on my performance all the time and just look forward,” she said, acknowledging that she had found it tough. 

“I know that I have been in the zone of pain many times in the summer and fall, and just looked forward all the time,” she said. 

Silver medallist Bjoergren has decided not to participate in Thursday’s 10km race, but said it had nothing to do with her performance in the skiathlon. 

“It’s a decision I took a long time ago. I don’t feel like I have a chance of a medal, so that’s why I made this choice,” she told broadcaster Eurosport. 

Meanwhile, Pyeongchang Olympics organisers were looking into a disruption of non-critical systems on the day of the opening ceremony but could not yet confirm if it was a cyber attack, games spokesman Sung Baik-you said on Saturday. 

The Winter Olympics opened with a spectacular ceremony on Friday, attended by several heads of state who witnessed the joint march of North and South Korean athletes, as games systems played up. 

The ceremony was also attended by North Korean ceremonial leader Kim Yong-nam and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, as well as US Vice President Mike Pence. 

Some local media reported system problems, including the games website and some television sets, were due to a cyber attack but Sung said it was still too early to determine whether hackers had attempted to damage them. 

“There were some issues that affected some of our non-critical systems last night for a few hours,” Sung told reporters, without detailing what the issues specifically were. 

LeBron James capped his 64th career triple-double with a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 140-138 overtime victory over the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday.

James finished with 37 points, 10 rebounds and 15 assists, and he set the stage for his game-winner with a block on Jimmy Butler on the previous defensive possession, the first blocked shot of the game for the Cavaliers.

James followed by catching the inbounds pass from Jeff Green and nailing the jumper to send Cleveland to their first win on national television this season. The Cavaliers had been 0-8 in such games, losing by an average of 18 points per game.

Butler scored a team-high 35 points while Karl-Anthony Towns had 30 points and 10 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Jeff Teague also recorded a double-double with 14 points and 15 assists.

Rockets 109, Heat 101

James Harden scored 41 points to lead Houston to their sixth straight victory, beating host Miami.

Harden was 13-for-25 from the field, including 5-for-12 from behind the 3-point line. Chris Paul added 24 points for the Rockets, while Goran Dragic and Josh Richardson each scored 30 for the Heat.

The teams exchanged leads in the final quarter, but Houston outscored Miami 26-21 for its 10th win in the past 11 games.

Spurs 129, Suns 81

LaMarcus Aldridge had 23 points and 13 rebounds, and Patty Mills added 18 points off the bench as visiting San Antonio blew out Phoenix.

Danny Green had 17 points, and he and Mills hit five 3-pointers apiece for the Spurs, who broke a two-game losing streak. Mills played 17 minutes.

Alex Len had 14 points, Josh Jackson had 13 and Dragan Bender had 12 for the Suns, who tied the worst margin of defeat in franchise history. Phoenix played without leading scorer Devin Booker (hip) for the second consecutive game.

Jazz 92, Grizzlies 88

Ricky Rubio had 29 points and eight rebounds, and Utah posted their season-best seventh consecutive victory by defeating host Memphis.

Rodney Hood added 18 points as Utah completed a 4-0 road trip. Hood made all eight of his free-throw attempts as part of the Jazz’s 28-of-33 effort from the line. Utah’s Rudy Gobert collected 12 rebounds and scored eight points.

Andrew Harrison scored a season-best 23 points to lead Memphis, who have lost five straight games and seven of its last eight. Marc Gasol added 20 points.

Pistons 115, Nets 106

Blake Griffin poured in 25 points, Andre Drummond pulled down an NBA season-high 27 rebounds and Detroit stretched their winning streak to five games by downing visiting New Jersey.

Griffin, who joined the Pistons for the second game of the streak, also had a team-best seven assists. Drummond’s rebounding total was two shy of his career high. He also contributed 17 points, three steals and three blocks.

Allen Crabbe scored a career-high 34 points for the Nets, who have lost eight of their past nine.

Pacers at Pelicans, postponed

The scheduled game between Indiana and host New Orleans was postponed due to concerns about a wet floor inside the Smoothie King Centre.

A makeup date is to be determined.

A leak in the building’s roof allowed rainwater to seep onto the court, and a delay began shortly before the scheduled tipoff. A delay of approximately 90 minutes ensued while officials of the two teams and the NBA office discussed options before the postponed eventually was announced.

Logically introduced first in the Middle East markets, where Nissan’s full-size SUV enjoys high levels of popularity and cache in general and in the Gulf in particular, the Nissan Patrol V6 broadens the model’s appeal and accessibility. Arriving as a 2017 model year, the V6 is a slightly lighter, more economical and rationalised starting point for the Patrol nameplate. Powered by a tried, tested and familiar 4-litre engine, the Patrol V6 replaces an outgoing lower output entry-level version of the V8 model.

Imposing and assertive

A large, well-equipped and comfortable SUV, the Y62 generation Patrol is the most road-friendly and most refined model to date, it remains a rugged and highly off-road capable vehicle. Traditionally competing with the Toyota Land Cruiser, the Patrol is similarly built using tough body-on-frame construction, but offers more power and an additional two forward gears. Offered in several trim levels from basic XE to range-topping Platinum, as tested, the Patrol V6 is comfortably luxurious, yet is unpretentiously utilitarian rather than overstated or ostentatious in character. 

Designed to carry people in comfort over inhospitable terrain, the Patrol is bother a refined daily driver and reliably capable off-road companion. A huge vehicle with commanding presence and driving height, the 5,165mm long, 1,995mm wide and 1,940mm tall Patrol look big even next European competitors, and features muscular surfacing, bumpers and wheel-arches. Its heavily chrome-laden grille and lower headlight bulge lend it an assertive presence, while vast 275/60R20 footwear makes the V6 Platinum model driven indistinguishable from the range-topping 400BHP V8 model.

Refined and responsive

Developing 125BHP short of top of the line direct injection 5.6-litre V8 model and 45HP less than the outgoing 320BHP lower output entry-level V8 it replaces, the Patrol V6’ naturally-aspirated multi-point fuel injection engine is a thoroughly proven unit. Previously used for smaller Xterra and previous generation Pathfinder Nissan SUVs, the Patrol’s 4-litre V6 gains 9BHP and 2lb/ft for this application, for a total of 275BHP at 5,600rpm and 290lb/ft torque at 4,000rpm, which allows it to carry its approximately 2.7-tonne mass from standstill to 100km/h in around 11-seconds and onto a 190km/h maximum. 

Smooth, responsive, refined and willing to rev easily to its redline, the Patrol V6’ reduced power and some 103lb/ft torque compared to the outgoing entry-level V8 yields improved fuel efficiency, but is to a significant extent compensated by a more modern, smooth and quicker shifting 7-speed automatic gearbox, in place of 6-speed auto and 5-speed manual options. With more aggressive lower gears, closer ratios and four-wheel-drive fraction from off the line, the Patrol launches responsively, overtakes confidently and accumulates speed fluently and at a good pace.

Adjustable ability

Effective and versatile in driving the Patrol, the V6 may not quite as effortlessly muscular as the top-line V8 version, but it can still move at a brisk pace when necessary, albeit by downshifting more often and revving the engine more aggressively to extract more output. With more shifts and high revs applied, the Patrol V6 was surprisingly entertaining and rewarded one for well-timed shifts and throttle inputs. And without the range-topping model’s hydraulic suspension and taut body control, the V6 version’s weight shifts were more exaggerated, but could be more easily manipulated.

With more pronounced squat, dive and body lean, one was better able to shift and re-direct the Patrol V6’s weight to tighten a cornering line through corners by throttle lift off, mid-corner braking and early turn-in, and at lower speeds. More adjustable in its handling characteristics — in not as taut, smooth, refined and level — the Patrol V6 proved to be an engaging drive for a vehicle so tall, large and heavy. Smooth and forgiving, the patrol’s ride quality is comfortable despite its big alloy wheels, while road imperfections are well absorbed.

Generous giant

Stable at speed, refined and settled in ride, the Patrol V6 features light intuitive steering, reassuring brakes and a lighter front end than the V8. In terms of ability, it retains the same 2000kg towing capacity. Highly capable off-road, the Patrol’s rear-biased four-wheel-drive features a locking rear differential for even torque distribution in low traction situations and low gear ratios for more extreme off-road and towing. Double wishbone suspension allows good wheel articulation, while generous 275mm ground clearance, and 26.6° approach and 25.9° departure angles are complemented electronically optimised off-road driving modes.

Though vast in size, the Patrol’s dual angle reversing camera and sensors make reversing much easier, but a blindspot warning would be a welcome addition to the V6. Well-constructed, user-friendly and vastly spacious, the Patrol’s comfortable cabin accommodates eight occupants and features highly adjustable seating and generous luggage space. With a warm ambiance and plenty of quality materials and soft textures, the Patrol V6 Platinum’s thoroughly well equipped features rear DVD screens, but could do with more USB ports.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Engine: 4-litre, in-line V6-cylinders 
• Bore x stroke (mm): 95.5 x 92mm
• Valve-train: 24-valve, variable valve timing, DOHC
• Gearbox: 7-speed automatic, four-wheel-drive
• Drive-train: Locking rear differential and low gear transfer case
• Gear ratios: 1st 4.887:1 2nd 3.17:1 3rd 2.027:1 4th 1.412:1 5th 1:1 6th 0.864:1 7th 0.775:1
• Reverse/final drive ratios: 4.041:1/3.692:1
• Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 275 (278) [205] @5600rpm
• Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 290 (394) @4,000rpm
• 0-97km/h: 11-seconds (est.)
• Top speed: 190km/h
• Fuel capacity: 100 + 40-litres
• Height: 1,940mm
• Width: 1,995mm
• Length: 5,165mm
• Wheelbase: 3,075mm
• Tread: 1,705mm
• Minimum Ground clearance: 275mm
• Approach/departure angles: 26.6°/25.9°
• Kerb weight: 2,700kg (est.)
• Towing capacity: 2,000kg
• Seating capacity: 8
• Steering: speed-sensitive power assisted rack and pinion
• Turning radius: 12.1-metres
• Suspension: Independent, double wishbone
• Brakes, F/R: Ventilated discs, 4-/2-piston calipers
• Tyres: 275/60R20

Price, as driven: JD75,000 (on-the-road, no insurance)