Champion boxer says it’s more than winning titles
FRESH of adding a third championship belt to his collection, Bahamian boxer
Carl Hield says his journey is about more than winning titles. He wants to continue proving that Bahamian fghters can compete at the highest level while inspiring the next generation to follow in his footsteps.
Hield, 39, made the remarks during a meetand-greet with supporters following his latest victory.
Surrounded by fans from his community, he refected on the sacrifces that led to becoming a three-title holder and looked ahead to his next challenge.
“First of all, I want to give God thanks. He gave me the strength and knowledge to keep leading me in the right direction,” Hield said.
“It means a lot to me to have three titles. To know
• Carl Hield inspiring next generation of Bahamian fghters
• 39-year-old to defend his championship belts Aug. 15
the hard dedication and work and where I came from. To be able to have three titles to represent The Bahamas on the highest level and show the people that we do have talented people that come from the Caribbean.”
‘Jazz’ and Yanks go from near comeback win to 7th straight loss
NEW YORK (AP) — After their captain said focus was lacking, the New York Yankees went from the verge of a dramatic win to another frustrating loss and are on their worst skid in three years.
New York’s losing streak reached seven games with a 6-2 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday, when Camilo
Their longest skid since 2023
Doval forced in the go-ahead run with a bases-loaded walk to Spencer Torkelson in a four-run 11th inning. “I feel like we just got to lock in, do all the small stuf,” second baseman Jazz Chisholm said. “We make a
SEE MLB, Page 3
Jonquel just misses double double, has two blocks
NEW YORK (AP)
— Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionsecu wouldn't let the New York Liberty come away without the Commissioner's Cup championship in front of their home crowd.
Ionescu scored 26 points — her best ofensive efort of the season — and Stewart added 25 points and 11 rebounds to help the Liberty beat the Las Vegas Aces 93-85, winning the in-season tournament Tuesday night. Jonquel Jones
New York Liberty beat Las Vegas Aces 93-85 to win Commissioner’s Cup
just missed a double double as she contributed nine points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks.
“To win our second one, it's special to do it in Barclays with our fans," said Stewart, who earned MVP honours of the game.
SEE WNBA, Page 2
Hield will not have long to celebrate as he is already preparing to defend his championships on August
15. “The main goal is to go there, get my hand raised and keep the titles,” he said. The veteran fghter also
spoke about the importance of connecting with his supporters, saying the turnout at the event showed him
just how many people are behind him.
“It’s very important to always do a meet-and-greet.
Now I learned that I have a lot of fans and a lot of people behind me from my community that’s willing to back me. It’s amazing to see that everyone came out, support, take pictures, get to know me and just keep moving forward from here,” Hield said.
While Hield continues to build his own career, he said he is equally committed to helping develop boxing in The Bahamas. He revealed that he spends weekdays working with young athletes, hoping to provide them with the same guidance that inspired him to enter the sport.
“It’s very inspiring for me because I had people I looked up to before I came into boxing that made me come into boxing,” he said. “What I’m doing is I’m
Harry Kane sends England into World Cup round of 16
after 2-1 victory against Congo
ATLANTA (AP) — England handled the pressure and is now headed to Mexico City.
Harry Kane ensured England avoided an early exit from the inaugural 48-team World Cup by scoring two second-half goals in a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Congo in the round of 32 yesterday.
The late victory, England's second ever at the World Cup after conceding the frst goal, earned the 1966 champions a spot in the round of 16 and a match against co-host Mexico.
“It was just about pounding the rock, keep pounding the rock and our moment would come,” Kane said after scoring his fourth
and ffth goals of the tournament. “We spoke about people having hero moments. It can be anyone in the team … Whoever it is, we have hero moments, and for me it was the day.”
That team's next match will be played at the Azteca Stadium, the site of Argentina great Diego Maradona’s infamous “Hand of God” goal that eliminated England from the 1986 World Cup quarterfnals.
Getting there didn’t come easy against a Congo team that nearly pulled of one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.
England's only other World Cup victory after trailing 1-0 came in the 1966 fnal against West Germany at Wembley Stadium. “That’s a good sign.
Belgium converts late penalty to beat Senegal 3-2 in extra time in the round of 32
SEATTLE (AP) — Youri
Tielemans scored from the penalty spot in stoppage time of extra time, and Belgium came back from two goals down to beat Senegal 3-2 yesterday in the round of 32 at the World Cup.
Tielemans was fouled just before the end of the 30 minutes of extra time were fnished and the referee awarded the penalty after a video review.
It just shows you the level of determination and the level of belief and also the level of focus," England coach Thomas Tuchel said. “I didn’t feel the weight on their shoulders and I found that we played it with the exactly right attitude and we trusted our spirit.
“The goalkeeper kept on saving incredible saves ... but this team today did not accept a defeat as an outcome.”
Kane made sure the early defcit wasn't a problem Wednesday at MercedesBenz Stadium by extending his record as his country’s leading scorer in tournament history to 13. He has a record 84 goals for the national team in total.
His frst goal came in the 75th minute. Substitute Anthony Gordon lifted
a cross from the left and despite Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi getting a hand to Kane’s header, he didn't stop it from nestling into the bottom corner.
Eleven minutes later, Kane sent his shot into the top corner to put the thoughts of an upset to rest.
“When you get to the knockouts, the pressure and the risks are so much higher.
“But from an attacking point of view, that was easily our best game of the tournament,” Kane said.
“Sometimes you just have to grind wins out and we did exactly that today. I told the boys to enjoy it.
We’re through, and we go again in four days.”
Brian Cipenga had put Congo in the lead in the seventh minute after collecting a cross on the left of the box and shooting low past England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford at the near post.
Mpasi did his best to keep that 1-0 lead alive. He denied Jude Bellingham on three occasions — blocking two close-range headers before halftime and then clawing away another defected efort after the break.
Kane nearly made a breakthrough late in the frst half, but Mpasi blocked
a powerful shot at the near post. And the keeper was also caught up in a collision with Kane in the box. England thought it should have been awarded a penalty, but referee Adham Makhadmeh waved away appeals. Congo had a chance to double its lead when Yoane Wissa hit the post in the frst half. “We’re disappointed because we really believed we could do it,” Congo coach Sébastien Desabre said. “We played well. Towards the end of the match, we conceded two chances and one of the world’s best players scored two goals against us. It’s a shame.”
Habib Diarra and Ismaïla Sarr gave the Senegalese a 2-0 lead, but Belgium substitute Romelu Lukaku got one back in the 86th minute and Tielemans equalised in the 89th.
Tielemans was fouled by Lamine Camara in the area in the fnal seconds of extra time. The referee took several minutes to go over the video before awarding the penalty.
Belgium is back in the round of 16 for the third time in four tournaments.
The team reached the quarterfnals in 2014 and the semifnals in 2018 but failed to get out of the group stage four years ago in Qatar.
The Belgians will next face either the United States or Bosnia-Herzegovina today in Santa Clara, California.
Sarr scored his fourth goal of the World Cup, and one of the most beautiful of the tournament, to give Senegal a 2-0 lead in the 51st minute. He made a perfect frst touch of his chest on a long ball from Moussa
Niakhaté and then sent his shot past Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. Senegal, which was with- out goalkeeper Édouard Mendy because of a knee injury, took the lead on Diarra's goal in the 25th minute. But Lukaku started the comeback by scoring with time running down and Tielemans forced extra time less than three minutes later.
Senegal had advanced to the knockout round as one of the best third-place fnishers, ending up in that spot after playing in a tough group with two-time champion France and the Erling Haaland-led Norway.
Belgium players Kevin De Bruyne and Jérémy Doku both surprisingly came of in the 56th minute.
Chisholm Jr and Yankees suffer 7th straight loss
MLB, from Page 1
lot of mistakes and I feel like we beat ourselves.”
Doval allowed four runs after the Yankees scored twice in the ninth on a homer by Amed Rosario and a wild pitch before Anthony Volpe was caught stealing second and rookie Spencer Jones popped out.
“Tough one going into the of day, but we got to get over it and start playing better baseball,” manager Aaron Boone said.
The Yankees are on their frst seven-game skid since August 12-23, 2023, when they lost nine straight and fell under .500 before fnishing with 82 wins to keep alive their streak of 33 straight winning seasons. Similar to 2023, New York is struggling without Aaron Judge, who spoke before the game and said he felt the team’s focus was missing.
In 2023, the Yankees went 19-23 while Judge was
“I feel like we just got to lock in, do all the small stuff. We make a lot of mistakes and I feel like we beat ourselves.”
– Yankees’ 2nd baseman Jasrado Chisholm
recovering from a fractured toe he sustained after crashing into a wall while making a catch at the Dodgers. After Zack McKinstry followed Torkelson’s walk with a two-run single and another run scored on a throwing error by catcher Ali Sánchez, the Yankees dropped to 12-15 since losing Judge to a stress fracture in his right rib that has yet to be reevaluated.
New York won nine of its frst 13 games without Judge but is hitting .137 in its seven-game slide. The Yankees are also batting .180 during a stretch of 11 losses in 13 games. New York ended a streak of fve straight games without more than four hits,
but fve of their seven Wednesday were against relievers. Detroit’s trio of Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Troy Melton combined to allow two runs and four hits while striking out 26.
New York also has allowed 23 unearned runs and committed 17 errors in its last 12 games. “It’s been a terrible week for us,” Boone said. “There’s no way of sugarcoating it and we’re capable of way more obviously. Look, you’re going to have stretches where it’s tough where you’re missing some guys, but this was a really difcult week for us ofensively, and coupled with that not playing clean enough and taking care of the ball well enough,
that’s what you get. You get an awful week.” New York survived the early weeks of Judge’s absence because Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger were
hot but both left-handed bats are slumping. Rice had one of the Yankees’ hits and is in a 9-for-54 slump while Bellinger has fve hits in his last 46 at-bats.
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“You want to contribute,” Bellinger said after going 0 for 5 with a pair of strikeouts. When you’re not succeeding, it’s very frustrating.”
Carl Hield inspiring next generation of Bahamian boxers
, from Page 1
already giving my knowledge to the kids. I’m already training kids in my park from Mondays to Fridays, giving my knowledge to them.”
Hield also had a message for young athletes hoping to follow a similar path.
“Never let no one tell you
that you can’t be what you want to be. Always believe in yourself. Work hard and you will see the success in it,” he said.
Despite becoming one of the country’s most accomplished professional boxers, Hield believes the sport still does not receive the recognition or support it deserves locally. “We have a lot of
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talent in boxing,” he said.
“When it’s time for me to hang my gloves up, people are really going to value the legend and what I’m doing for the sport of boxing in The Bahamas. People don’t really see that yet.”
He said his goal is to continue defending his titles and eventually bring championship fghts to The
Bahamas but admitted the lack of support remains one of the biggest challenges facing the sport.
“I want to defend and win my titles here in The Bahamas, but boxing is very low and we ain’t getting that full support. But it’s all good.
The veteran also brushed aside criticism about his age, pointing to his recent
performances against younger opponents. “All the doubters, all the people who say age. Age is nothing but a number because I have guys I’ve been knocking over that are 21 and 22 years old,” Hield said.
“Them doubting me and not believing in boxing in The Bahamas, I’m going to make them believe.” As he prepares for another title defence in August, Hield said his mission remains unchanged. And this mission, he said, is to continue winning, continue representing The Bahamas on the international stage and continue opening doors for the next generation of Bahamian boxers.
Jonquel Jones and Liberty beat Aces to win Commissioner’s Cup
Interested persons can contact Kevon Spence, Randy Cunningham and Deandra Cunningham. WNBA, from Page 1
New York became the frst team to win the tournament twice, also beating the Aces in Las Vegas in 2023. Ionescu has been recovering from a back issue that sidelined her for a bit after an ankle injury took her out for the start of the season. She has stayed patient and confdent that she would eventually get back to her All-Star form.
The fans chanted her name as the team accepted the championship trophy from WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
Las Vegas was missing four-time MVP A’ja Wilson, who tweaked her right ankle on Sunday in a win over Chicago. The
Aces gave the Liberty all they could handle thanks to the stellar play of Jackie Young, who scored 25 of her 31 points in the second half. The Aces led 71-69 early in the fourth quarter before New York went on a 15-2 run to take back control. Pauline Astier got the run started with a 3-pointer with 7:08 left and the Liberty were of and running. Ionescu’s 3-pointer capped the burst and made it 84-73 with 3:39 left. Las Vegas wasn’t done, getting within 86-82 on Young’s 3 with 2:26 left. She had a chance to get the Aces within three with 37 seconds remaining, but missed a contested layup. Ionescu then hit a 3-pointer on the other end to seal the victory. The Aces got a scare
90 seconds into the game when Chelsea Gray went down after getting hit in the nose. The All-Star guard was down for a few minutes before she went back to the locker room with a towel draped over her head. She returned a few minutes later. Gray deadpanned after the game when asked about her nose that it was “attached.” Ionescu had a stellar frst half, scoring 17 points as the Liberty built 51-37 lead at the break. The 51 points were the most ever in the frst half of a Commissioner’s Cup championship game. The Liberty led 58-43 in the third quarter before Young got hot. She had 10 points over the fnal 6 1/2 minutes of the period,
including a three-point play with 24 seconds left that made it 65-62. Young and the Aces continued the run to start the fourth and took a 71-69 lead early in the period. It didn’t last long. This was the fourth time that Stewart played for the Commissioner’s Cup title. She won the inaugural one with Seattle in 2021 and then again with New York two years later. The Liberty lost to Minnesota in 2024. Barclays Center wasn’t available that night, so the game was played in the UBS Arena, about 20 miles from the Liberty’s normal home. The game brought out the stars, with Spike Lee attending the contest as well as minority Aces owner Tom Brady.
