Sports News Roundup: Olympics-Tennis-Japan's Osaka returns to spotlight in Centre Court Games opener; WTA roundup: Katarzyna Kawa keeps Polish hope alive in Gdynia and more

Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and world number two, has not played a competitive match since pulling out of the French Open in May amid controversy https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/osaka-withdraws-french-open-following-row-over-media-boycott-2021-05-31 over her decision to skip all press conferences at the tournament in an effort to protect her mental well-being. WTA roundup: Katarzyna Kawa keeps Polish hope alive in Gdynia Katarzyna Kawa kept a home-soil run alive when she upset No. 3 seed Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania 6-2, 6-4 in the second round Thursday at the BNP Paribas Poland Open in Gdynia.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Olympics-Tennis-Japan's Osaka returns to spotlight in Centre Court Games opener

Japan's Naomi Osaka will return to the spotlight on Saturday, kicking off her Olympic campaign in the first match on Centre Court as a home crowd favorite after taking a mental health break two months ago. Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and world number two, has not played a competitive match since pulling out of the French Open in May amid controversy https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/osaka-withdraws-french-open-following-row-over-media-boycott-2021-05-31 over her decision to skip all press conferences at the tournament in an effort to protect her mental well-being.

WTA roundup: Katarzyna Kawa keeps Polish hope alive in Gdynia

Katarzyna Kawa kept a home-soil run alive when she upset No. 3 seed Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania 6-2, 6-4 in the second round Thursday at the BNP Paribas Poland Open in Gdynia. Kawa, ranked No. 143 in the world, had little trouble as she converted five of nine break points and won 64 percent of her first-serve points (27 of 42) against Begu to advance to the quarterfinals.

Archery-S.Korean women sweep qualifying, eye longest gold streak

South Korean women archers took the top three places in qualification on Friday, with one breaking an Olympic record that stood for 25 years along the way, as the team takes aim at the longest gold medal streak at the Olympics. All 128 archers, 64 women and 64 men, shoot a qualifying round for the individual event. They total their points scores, up to a maximum of 720, and are ranked from top to bottom at the end of the round. Each one's position after the ranking round becomes their seed for matchplay.

Disappointed WADA watches as Russians prepare for Tokyo Games

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) will be forced to watch as Russian athletes don uniforms in their country's colours of red, white and blue and compete at the Tokyo Olympics, having received softened sanctions over the nation's doping scandals. WADA had originally banned Russia from the world's top sporting events for four years in December 2019, but the sanctions were halved late last year by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), in a clear victory for the Russian side.

NFL-COVID-19 outbreaks among non-vaccinated players could mean forfeits

The National Football League informed its teams on Thursday that COVID-19 outbreaks among non-vaccinated players during the 2021 season could lead to forfeits and loss of pay if games cannot be rescheduled. According to a memo sent by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, the league has no plans to add a 19th week to the regular 18-week season to accommodate any games that cannot be rescheduled.

Novak Djokovic faces tough draw at Olympics

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic's road to the Golden Slam is not an easy one, with possible matches against Andrey Rublev and Alexander Zverev in his path at the Tokyo Olympics. Djokovic, representing Serbia, has won the season's first three grand slams and could become the first male player ever to win the Golden Slam if he first captures gold in Tokyo. Then all that's left is winning the U.S. Open in August. Steffi Graf is the only player to ever do it, in 1988.

Olympics-Softball-Mexico to take on U.S. in clash of familiar foes - and fiancees

After failing to score in their Olympics debut, Mexico's softball players came good on their promise that a different team would show up on the second day of the Games. With their bench ramping up cheering at each turn, Mexico erased deficits against defending gold medallists Japan and nearly won in extra innings.

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NHL-NHL's schedule includes break to send players to Beijing Olympics

The NHL released the schedule for its 2021-22 season on Thursday that featured the debut of the Seattle Kraken on opening night and a break in action next February to accommodate a potential deal to send players to the Beijing Olympics. Subject to reaching an agreement with the NHL Players' Association and International Ice Hockey Federation on issues including appropriate COVID-19 insurance for NHL players, the league has agreed to halt its season from Feb. 7-22.

Scandal-hit Tokyo looks to final torchbearer to mend battered image

Battered by scandal on the eve of the opening ceremony, Tokyo 2020 organizers have the chance to patch up the Games' image when they reveal today who will carry the Olympic flame for the final few steps to light the stadium's cauldron. The identity of the final torchbearer is one of the Games' most closely held secrets yet speculation has swirled for months around well-known athletes including Naomi Osaka https://jp.reuters.com/article/uk-tennis-frenchopen-factbox/factbox-japans-naomi-osaka-who-withdrew-from-the-french-open-on-monday-idINKCN2DC1VR, the four-time Grand Slam tennis champion, whose superstar status could also draw attention away from the string of gaffes https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/tokyo-2020-plagued-by-embarrassing-scandals-gaffes-2021-07-22 by organizers in the build-up to the Games.