World championship silver medallist Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar beat teammate Niraj Kumar to clinch gold with a world record, as India swept the podium in the 50m rifle 3-positions event on the penultimate day of the Asian Championship here on Thursday. Aishwary, who signed off 2025 on a high by clinching Asian Championship gold in Kazakhstan along with silver medals at the World Championships and the World Cup Finals, carried that momentum into the new year. He fired a world record score of 362 to edge Niraj by a margin of just 0.2 points. The 25-year-old sealed his triumph with a superb 10.7 on his final shot, finishing with a tally of 362. Niraj settled for silver with 361.8, while Akhil Sheoran claimed bronze with a score of 343.5 at the Karni Singh Shooting Range. It was a bittersweet moment for Niraj, who came agonisingly close to gold but had to settle for silver, even as he celebrated his first individual international medal. The contest went down to the 35th and final shot, underscoring just how tight the battle for the top spot had been. Niraj fired first to hit a 10.3 giving Aishwary a target of 10.6 to win the gold. Olympian Aishwary held his nerve and hit a superb 10.7 to leap over Niraj and secure the gold. Earlier, Niraj had topped the qualification round with a score of 593, while Aishwary finished second with 588 and Sheoran placed third with an identical score of 588. The trio of Niraj, Aishwary and Sheoran totalled 1769 to clinch the team gold, followed by Japan (1754) and Kazakhstan (1748) respectively. In the junior men's final, Adriyan Karmakar secured his second gold medal of the championship with a comfortable victory, shooting a score of 353.2, which was 4.7 more than silver medallist Dmitriy Kim of Kazakhstan. India's Manvendra Singh Shekhawat won bronze with a final score of 338.6. The third Indian in the final, Hemant Burman finished in fifth place going down in a shoot-off. The championship will conclude on Saturday with the medals in women's 50m rifle prone and men's 25m centre-fire pistol to be decided. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 February,2026 09:44 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIInconsistencies continued to plague India as they slumped to a 0-8 defeat against Argentina, with Tomas Domene netting four goals in the Rourkela leg of the FIH Men's Pro League here on Thursday. Domene (15', 20', 26', 60') led the charge with his multiple strikes, while Tomas Ruiz (14'), Lucio Mendez (22'), Ignacio Ibarra (25') and Nicolas Della Torre (30') also found the net as the visitors completely overpowered a lacklustre Indian side at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium. India started on the front foot, attempting to make early inroads, but after a brief spell of dominance, they squandered a golden opportunity to take the lead towards the closing stages of the first quarter when they were awarded a penalty stroke. Harmanpreet Singh was denied from the spot by the Argentine goalkeeper. Argentina scored almost instantly with Ruiz (14') powering his tomahawk into the back of the net to give his side the lead. The visitors quickly doubled their advantage as Domene (15') managed to guide his effort past Suraj Karkera to give his side a 2-0 lead in the opening quarter. Searching for a way back into the contest, India began the second quarter with greater urgency as Shilanand Lakra and Harmanpreet Singh earned a couple of penalty corners. However, they were unable to convert, with a goal continuing to elude them. With momentum on their side, Argentina continued to pile on the pressure. Domene (20') tripled the lead with a composed finish, and Mendez (22') soon added a fourth. Ignacio Ibarra (25') rifled his shot from a tight angle to score a fifth, while Domene (26') completed his hat-trick soon after. Nicolas della Torre (30') also got on the scoresheet, closing out the first half with a 7-0 lead for Argentina. India created some opportunities with Shilanand and Aditya Lalage coming close to finding the back of the net. However, Tomas Santiago stood tall in the goal for Argentina. Despite creating scoring opportunities, the third quarter ended goalless. The hosts pushed forward in the final quarter, earning their third penalty corner. However, Argentina managed to find the back of the net against the run of play with Domene (60') adding a fourth goal to his tally, and giving his side a big win. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
13 February,2026 09:25 AM IST | Rourkela | PTIAmerican luger Sophia Kirkby has seemingly accomplished her target of finding romance at the Winter Olympics. The 24-year-old, who, before the start of the competition in Italy, called herself the ‘most eligible bachelorette,’ has revealed that she has been inundated with around 600 messages on Instagram from people wanting to take her out on a date. In the build up to the Olympics, Kirkby had promised to give her 31,000-plus Instagram followers regular updates through reels and vlogs, detailing her off-track life, with a particular emphasis on dating, according to British tabloid The Sun. “I’ll be sharing what it’s like navigating the dating world of competing athletes — wild schedules, early bedtimes, constant travel… and somehow still trying to be romantic,” she had written. Now, days ahead of Valentine’s Day, Kirkby has revealed: “I have so many contenders for a date and I’m ready to start messaging you guys back and seeing what we can schedule,” said Kirkby, adding that she has pencilled in two dates for Saturday — Valentine’s Day.
13 February,2026 09:20 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentNorway’s Sturla Laegreid, who won bronze in the individual 20km biathlon (an event featuring cross-country skiing, and rifle shooting) at the Winter Olympics on Tuesday, issued an apology to his former girlfriend for cheating on her. “Half-a-year ago I met the love of my life. Three months ago, I made the mistake of my life and cheated on her, and told her about that a week ago. This has been the worst week of my life,” Laegreid said. Later, the woman, who wished to remain anonymous, was quoted by Norwegian newspaper VG saying: “It is hard to forgive.”
13 February,2026 09:20 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentIndia let in two goals in the final quarter to suffer a 1-3 defeat to Belgium in their Rourkela leg of the FIH Men's Pro League 2025-26 match here on Wednesday. Nelson Onana (23rd minute), Thomas Crols (53rd) and Arno Van Dessel (57th) scored for Belgium while Shilanand Lakra (29th) was the goal-scorer for India. The two sides were locked 1-1 at the half time as well as at the end of the third quarter, before Belgium pumped in two goals in the final 15 minutes. It was an extremely competitive first quarter with both sides hardly making any mistakes at the back. Belgium earned an early penalty corner in the 4th minute. However, Alexander Hendrickx's drag-flick was stopped heroically by India's first rusher Vivek Sagar Prasad. Four minutes later, India too got their first penalty corner but the home side couldn't capitalise on the occasion. While Belgium were having more possession, India did well to hold their ground and launch quick counter-attacks in search of goal-scoring opportunities. In the 14th minute, Belgium won another penalty corner but this time Tom Boon's powerful attempt went narrowly wide off the target as the scores remained level. The game opened up in the second quarter. Belgium were awarded a penalty corner in the 21st minute but Indian goalkeeper Pawan made a brilliant acrobatic save to deny Alexander Hendrickx a goal. Moments later, Belgium's Thomas Crols was through on goal but Pawan stepped out and made another crucial save to protect his goal. In the 23rd minute, Belgium found the opening goal as they did well to make an interception to win possession in a dangerous position. Thomas Crols passed the ball to Onana who found the net with a simple finish. India stepped up their attack and made some crucial circle entries in the following minutes. In the 29th minute, the hosts made another attack and won a penalty corner. Amit Rohidas's hit was initially stopped by the first rusher, but Shilanand Lakra did well to quickly pounce on the ball and slot it into the net to score the equaliser. Belgium continued to dictate possession in the third quarter. However, India were resilient with their defending and maintained their composure at the back. In the 38th minute, Belgium won another penalty corner but Alexander Hendrickx was denied yet again, this time by Jarmnapreet Singh, who showed great skill to make a save on the goalline to keep the scores level. In the 53rd minute, India broke into another strong counter-attack as Nilakanta Sharma played a brilliant pass to Karthi Selvam but the forward couldn't take a shot on goal in time and was stopped by the Belgian backline. Seconds later on the other end of the field, Belgium launched an attack from the left flank as Lucas Balthazar played the perfect pass into the circle from the baseline to Thomas Crols, who struck the ball into the bottom right corner to take the lead for the visitors. In the 57th minute, it was Thomas Crols again in the spotlight as he set up the ball for Arno Van Dessel who did well to sneak the ball into the net and seal the victory for Belgium. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
12 February,2026 10:08 AM IST | Rourkela | AgenciesFour of the nine horses in the fray for the PD Bolton Trophy, the feature event of Thursday's seven-race card at Mahalaxmi, have a chance at the top prize. Fourth Wing, being the sole four-year-old filly taking on older rivals, will most likely be the first favourite. Thundering Phoenix may be looked upon as her main rival, but Earth, who has won in this class over this trip, must be considered the dark horse, along with Singer Sargent, if the last-named is not sluggish at the starting gates. First race at 2.30 pm.Selections: Raza Ali Plate (Class V; 1400m)Alexandria 1, Lara 2, We Still Believe 3. MD Mehta Trophy (For 3y, Maidens; 1000m)Latios 1, Dream Come True 2, Avante 3. PD Bolton Trophy (Class II; 1400m)Fourth Wing 1, Thundering Phoenix 2, Singer Sargent 3. MMT Pandole Plate (Class IV; 1200m)Mriga 1, Skandha 2, Crimson Pirate 3. W Buckley Plate (Class V; 2000m)Bright Button 1, Viking 2, Whisper 3. Bangalore Turf Club Trophy (For 3y, Maidens; 1400m)Cherubine 1, Enrich 2, Shaandaar 3. Byram N Jeejeebhoy Trophy (Class III; 1000m)Enforcer 1, Azure 2, Foxy 3. RecommendationsBest bet: NoneUpsets: Remy Red (1-2), Earth (3-1) & Red Rose (6-6) Today's poolsSuper jackpot pool: 2,3,4,5,6.7Jackpot pool: 3,4,5,6,7Treble pool: 4,5,6Tanala pool: All races.
12 February,2026 10:05 AM IST | Mumbai | Prakash GosaviBasketball superstar Stephen Curry has not just had ample success on the court with the Golden State Warriors (four-time NBA champion), but has also enjoyed a rock-solid family life off it, having married his high school sweetheart Ayesha in 2011. The 37-year-old recently opened up on the secret to his successful marriage, saying it’s rooted in ‘honest communication.’ “We built [honest communication] over time, where you can say whatever is on your mind and it doesn’t come off as a personal attack,” Stephen told America’s PEOPLE magazine ahead of the launch of the animated sports-comedy film GOAT — a movie featuring him and his wife as voice actors. For Ayesha, 36, though it’s all about making time. “Even if it’s a night like this [movie premiere], that’s a date night for us. We just make sure that the foundation of why we started this life together is always at the core of it.”
12 February,2026 09:48 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentWorld Championship silver medallist Anish Bhanwala clinched bronze in the men's 25m rapid-fire pistol competition, even as Kazakhstan dominated day eight of the Asian Shooting Championship with four gold medals here on Wednesday. This was Anish's third Asian Championship medal. Adriyan Karmakar in the 50m rifle prone junior men's event and the junior men's 25m RFP team also won gold on the day, taking India's table-topping medal tally to 41 gold, 19 silver and 15 bronze, with two more days of competitions left. Anish and Adarsh Singh took the seventh and eighth qualifying spots with scores of 574 and 573 respectively, ensuring two Indians in the RFP final. Former champion Nikita Chiryukin of Kazakhstan topped the qualifiers with a 582 and led a trio of his mates into the decider. Japanese Dai Yoshioka, a two-time Olympian and a world cup gold medallist and Ha Minh Thanh, a double Asian Games medallist also went through along with Ha's teammate Vu Tien Nam. In the final consisting of eight series of five rapid-fire shots, Yoshioka, Anish and Chiryukin were fastest off the blocks as Vu and Kazakh Artemiy Kabakov became the first two to be eliminated after the third series. As long-time team-mate Adarsh bowed out after the fourth series with 11 hits to his name, Anish found himself in joint lead with Yoshioka and Nikita after the sixth series with 21 hits. However, he got two hits in the seventh as the Japanese struck five and Chiryukin four, settling for bronze, the same result he had achieved three years ago at the Changwon Asian Championships. Yoshioka went on to close with another perfect five to upgrade his Changwon performance by one, finishing on a world and Asian record score of 31. Chiryukin won silver with 28 hits, while Anish ended on 23 hits. Earlier in the first event of the day, Islam Satpayev, the talented Kazakh rifle shooter who won a bronze at the Paris Olympics in the mixed team event, shone bright on the day winning a couple of gold in the non-Olympic 50m rifle prone men's competitions. He won the individual event with a score of 622.5 and the team gold in alliance with teammates Nikita Shakhtorin (622.5, individual silver) and Konstantin Malinovsky (615.0). India won a bronze through Babu Singh Panwar (621.3) in the individual men's event and a silver in the team event when Babu combined with Samarvir Singh (618.2) and Sartaj Singh Tiwana (614.4). In the junior men's rifle prone, India's Karmakar won gold with a tally of 621.7 over 60 shots. The Kazakhs took silver and bronze through Oleg Noskov (620.6) and Tamerlan Kabulov (617.3). Kazakhstan also took the team gold in the event with a tally of 1848.7, which was better than India's 1847.6. In the final event of the day, the junior men's 25m RFP, Indonesia's Muhamad Fawwaz Aditia Farrel took gold with a score of 29 in the final, which was also a world and Asian junior record. India's Suraj Sharma took silver with 23 and Mukesh Nelavalli bronze with a score of 19. Suraj (582) and Mukesh (572) won gold in the team competition, combining with Sahil Choudhary (575) in the qualification round to post a total of 1729. Team Kazakhstan took silver with a tally of 1613. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
12 February,2026 08:35 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIThe Indian men’s hockey team will seek to establish early dominance when their begin thei FIH Pro League campaign against a formidable Belgium here on Wednesday. “I am very happy to see youngsters like Amandeep Lakra, Manmeet Singh and Rosan Kujur earning their opportunities in the squad. This is the right time for them to step up at the international level, and I’m confident they will make the most of this opportunity,” said skipper Harmanpreet Singh on Tuesday. Since 2013, Belgium have had the upper hand against India, winning 22 of their 35 matches. India have won on 11 occasions while, two games ended in a draw. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 February,2026 09:29 AM IST | Rourkela | PTIIndia’s Aakriti Dahiya and Anjum Moudgil won the silver and bronze medal respectively in the women’s 50m rifle 3 positions event at the Asian Shooting Championship here on Tuesday. Kazakhstan shooter Sofiya Shulzhenko set a new world record in the same event enroute winning gold at the Karni Singh Range. Sofiya ended the 35-shot final with a score of 358.2, four points clear of Aakriti. Aakriti’s compatriot Anjum clinched the bronze medal with a score of 340.4. Later in the junior women’s 3P final, India’s Prachi Gaikwad emerged triumphant with a score of 353.3. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
11 February,2026 09:24 AM IST | New Delhi | PTITennis ace Aryna Sabalenka gave her 4.6 million Instagram followers a glimpse of what her life has been looking like lately, following her Australian Open final defeat to Elena Rybakina on January 31. The Belarusian who lost 4-6, 6-4, 4-6 in Melbourne, posted a slew of pictures, featuring her unwinding with some expensive shopping (she’s seen carrying a Gucci bag among other stuff), enjoying extravagant meals, and relaxing by the pool in a red bikini. The post, captioned “Catching you up,” received a whopping three lakh-plus ‘likes.’ One of her followers commented: “So nice to see you chilling after the tournament. I like your energy & vibe. Another wrote: “You’re so gorgeous.”
11 February,2026 09:22 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentADVERTISEMENT
