Sports News Roundup: Olympics-Basketball-US cancel exhibition against Australia due to COVID caution; Olympics-Tennis-Djokovic confirms he will compete at Tokyo Games and more

The 29-year-old played for the Opals against Nigeria in a closed-doors game in Las Vegas as the Australians continued their preparations ahead of their trip to Tokyo. Soccer-England's Saka urges social media companies to step up fight against abuse England's Bukayo Saka said popular social media platforms are not doing enough to prevent online racist abuse after he was on the receiving end following his missed penalty in Sunday's European Championship final against Italy.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Olympics-Basketball-US cancel exhibition against Australia due to COVID caution

USA Basketball said it has canceled the men's exhibition game against Australia set for Friday amid concerns about a COVID-19 outbreak within the U.S. team. Bradley Beal's Olympic hopes were ended when USA Basketball announced the Washington Wizards shooting guard will miss the Tokyo Games after entering coronavirus protocols in Las Vegas.

Olympics-Tennis-Djokovic confirms he will compete at Tokyo Games

World number one Novak Djokovic confirmed he will compete at the Tokyo Olympics as the Serb remains on course to achieve the Golden Slam in tennis. Djokovic completed the third leg towards achieving the Golden Slam last weekend when he added the Wimbledon title to his Australian Open and Roland Garro's triumphs in 2021.

Church in honor of Maradona opens its doors in Mexico

A pair of large vases bearing soccer balls stand at the entrance to Mexico's first Maradonian church and an image of Diego Maradona wearing a charro hat welcomes worshippers. Inside the church, the Catholic Stations of the Cross are recreated with photos of Maradona from his childhood to emblematic meetings with the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro and Pope Francis.

Olympics-Hundreds of horses fly into Tokyo for equestrian competition

It is not only thousands of athletes who are flying to Tokyo for the Olympic Games but also hundreds of horses. They will compete with their riders in the three equestrian disciplines dressage, jumping, and eventing - the only Olympic sports where men and women compete individually on equal terms.

Olympics-Basketball-Cambage's Tokyo hopes in balance as investigation launched

Liz Cambage's hopes of playing at the Olympic Games are in the balance after Basketball Australia launched an investigation into an altercation involving the Las Vegas Aces center in the United States on Thursday. The 29-year-old played for the Opals against Nigeria in a closed-doors game in Las Vegas as the Australians continued their preparations ahead of their trip to Tokyo.

Soccer-England's Saka urges social media companies to step up the fight against abuse

England's Bukayo Saka said popular social media platforms are not doing enough to prevent online racist abuse after he was on the receiving end following his missed penalty in Sunday's European Championship final against Italy. Substitutes Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Saka all missed spot-kicks in the 3-2 shootout loss to Italy, and Saka - who was reduced to tears after the final - penned an apology to the fans as the country's 55-year trophy drought was extended.

Cycling-Pogacar closes in on Tour title, doping suspicions hit the race

Tadej Pogacar claimed another landmark victory in the 18th stage of the Tour de France to edge closer to retaining his title as a cloud of doping suspicions hung over the world's greatest cycling race on Thursday. Before the start of the stage, the French prosecutor's office said it had opened a preliminary investigation into the Bahrain Victorious team after police searched the outfit's accommodation and bus on Wednesday.

Golf-Oosthuizen, Spieth light up British Open

Former champions Louis Oosthuizen and Jordan Spieth sparkled in the morning sunshine to set the pace in the first round of the 149th British Open at Royal St George's on Thursday. South African Oosthuizen, the winner in 2010, made six birdies in a flawless 64 to finish on six under par, one shot ahead of American Spieth, champion in 2017.

'Eggplant' blazers of China's canoe-and-kayak team draw mockery at home

Photos of the Chinese Olympic canoe-and-kayak team wearing blazers in the color of eggplant have drawn widespread mockery and derision by China's unforgiving internet users. The jackets also sport light purple vertical stripes, with their lapels and collars lined with red piping.

Olympics-Risk of COVID spread is 'zero', IOC chief says, amid rising cases

International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach said on Thursday there was "zero" risk of Games participants infecting Japanese residents with COVID-19, as cases hit a six-month high in the host city. Bach said Olympics athletes and delegations had undergone more than 8,000 coronavirus tests, resulting in three positive results. "Risk for the other residents of Olympic village and risk for the Japanese people is zero," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)