US singing sensation Mariah Carey’s performance at the Opening Ceremony (OC) of the 2026 Winter Olympics failed to impress viewers, with many criticising her for allegedly lip syncing. Five-time Grammy Award-winner Carey, 56, who performed the Italian classic song Volare and her own hit single Nothing Is Impossible, on Friday at Milan’s San Siro Stadium in Milan, attempted to make little effort while hitting the high notes. Eagle-eyed viewers also felt there was disconnect between the words she mouthed and the lyrics being heard. One viewer said on X: “I haven’t seen a worse lip sync performance than this.” Another commented: “The worst part is she’s not even trying to hide the lip syncing.” An IOC spokesperson said: “Certain elements are pre-recorded to ensure accurate timing and sound quality.” 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.
09 February,2026 10:02 AM IST | Mumbai | AgenciesIndian badminton super star Saina Nehwal,35, Instagrammed a series of pictures wearing this little black dress to her 2 million online followers on Sunday and they lapped it up. One follower said the 2012 Olympics bronze-winner “is one of the most beautiful athletes in India, while another wrote: “Saina, you look gorgeous.” 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
09 February,2026 09:54 AM IST | Mumbai | AgenciesWhile success in competitive archery depends on external factors like heat, wind, etc, besides of course the archer’s mental strength and skills, top-class equipment is the most crucial ingredient. Malad-based teen para archer Rutvi Lolge, 15, has experienced this first hand while participating in school, district, state and national-level competitions with inferior equipment. mid-day highlighted Rutvi’s story in November and OGQ, a not-for-profit sports and athletes’s promotion body came forward to sponsor her dream of winning an Olympic medal. She recently participated in the Archery Championships in Patiala, losing (99 to 145) to her hero and world champion Sheetal Devi. The teenager never expected to beat her idol, but felt the gap in scores could’ve been lesser had she used better equipment. Rutvi Lolge with (standing, left to right) mum Suvarna, St Anne’s High School’s sports coordinator Ram Ahiwale, coach Jagannath Shetkar, parish priest Rev Fr Anicito Pereira, St Anne’s principal Sister Leo Vinnarasi, (restaurateur & well wisher) Ronnie D’Souza and coach Rohan More Hereon, though Rutvi will not have such issues as she has recently received her advanced compound bow (PSE Dominator XZ 35, costing R3.8 lakh), imported from USA by her coach Rohan More. Her school principal Sister Leo Vinnarasi of St Anne’s HS, Malad, presented her the bow. Malad-based restaurateur Ronnie D’Souza, who owns UK United, a sports coaching initiative, was the first to spot Rutvi’s talent last October and informed this correspondent. “During a school function in October, I saw Rutvi training and noticed that despite her physical problems, she was extremely confident,” said D’Souza. Rutvi’s coaches More and Shetkar believe “she will perform better as she starts training with one of the best compound bows in the world.” Mum Suvarna, a single parent, who works as a freelance nurse, got emotional: “I’m grateful to Rutvi’s school principal, Ronnie, and mid-day for everything,” she said. PSE Dominator duo X 35 (PSE is among world’s Top 5 compound bow manufacturers >> Bow is made of high density aluminium>> String is made of high grade stainless steel >> Ambidextrous design >> Customisable stabilisers>> Customisable grips Cost of bowRs 1,60,000 Cost of accessoriesRs 2,20,000 Total costRs 3,80,000 Weight2.86KG Length35 inches Top speed338 FPS (feet per second)
09 February,2026 09:53 AM IST | Mumbai | Ashwin FerroElavenil Valarivan and Arjun Babuta clinched the 10m air rifle mixed team gold with a flawless display at the Asian Championship (Rifle/Pistol) on Sunday. Elavenil and Babuta’s combined 505.0 gave them a four-point edge over South Korea’s Eunji Kwon and Kim Woorim. Meanwhile, Gurpreet Singh clinched the 25m standard pistol gold, as compatriots Harsh Gupta, and Amanpreet Singh took silver and bronze respectively. 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
09 February,2026 09:47 AM IST | New Delhi | PTITejaswin Shankar won the men’s heptathlon event with 5993 points to clinch India’s lone gold as the country ended the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships campaign with five medals here on Sunday. India finished overall sixth in the medals tally. China topped the chart with 34 medals — 10 gold, 11 silver and 13 bronze. 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
09 February,2026 09:45 AM IST | China | AgenciesHow many prime contenders can you pack in a six-horse contest? For the answer, go to the Mathradas Goculdas Trophy, the feature event on the Sunday card. Between the top handicap Ataash (who has won three races in this class after teaming up with apprentice jockey A Omkar) and the bottomweight Ultimo (who will likely put his best foot forward in the hands of Neeraj Rawal) are two more solid contenders: Christophany (knocking at the door) and Market King (who has suddenly woken up to old form). I expect Market King in the hands of Vivek G, with a little luck, to pull off an upset. First race at 2.30 pm. Selections: Sonny Brar Trophy (Class II; 2000m)Golden Dancer 1, Exuma 2, Endurance 3. Mathradas Goculdas Trophy (Class I; 1400m)Market King 1, Ultimo 2, Christophany 3. Nadir & Yawar Rashid Trophy (Class III; 1400m)Bishop 1, Amazing Ruler 2, Seneca 3. RM & Rukmani Goculdas Million (For 5y&o, Class IV; 1200m)Starseed 1, Silver Strike 2, House Of Lords 3. NM Irani Trophy (For 5y, Maidens; 1200m)Paloma 1, Organised Chaos 2, Hermanus 3. Nawabzada Rashiduzzafar Khan Trophy (Class IV; 1600m)Marius 1, Bravo Zulu 2, Bohemian Rhapsody 3. SA Wahid Plate (Class V; 1000m)Viennoise 1, Ar First Star 2, Sentinel 3. RecommendationsBest bet: Golden Dancer (1-3)Upsets: Rambler (3-4), Sporting Alice (5-9) & Cornerstone (6-3) Today's poolsSuper jackpot pool: 2,3,4,5,6.7Jackpot pool: 3,4,5,6,7Treble pool: 4,5,6Tanala pool: All races.
08 February,2026 09:15 AM IST | Mumbai | Prakash GosaviAmerican YouTube star Jake Paul’s partner, Dutch speed skater Jutta Leerdam has made headlines ahead of the Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina for all the wrong reasons, after opting to fly to the event on her private jet instead of travelling with the team. Leerdam, 27, Instagrammed a series of pictures, showcasing her swanky voyage, including specially curated meals, champagne, and cupcakes. Former Dutch footballer Johan Derksen was among the prominent voices criticising her. As per British tabloid The Sun, Derksen said: “Her behaviour is horrible to me, like that of a diva. If I were her coach, I wouldn’t tolerate that.” 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
08 February,2026 09:07 AM IST | Dutch | AgenciesElavenil Valarivan (251.5) clinched the gold medal ahead of Japan’s Misaki Nobata in the 10m air rifle women’s event at the Asian Championship Rifle/Pistol here on Saturday. Elavenil’s compatriot Meghana Sajjanar (229.5)bagged the bronze medal. Earlier in the day, the men’s 50m air pistol event was dominated by Indians, as Saurabh Chaudhary (563-12x), Kamaljeet Chaudhary (561-16x), and Ravinder Singh (559-10x) bagged gold, silver, and bronze respectively. Meanwhile, in the 10m air rifle junior women’s category, Shambhavi Kshirsagar set a new record of 253.7, to take home the gold medal, surpassing Isha Anil Taksale’s 253.1 from Jakarta in 2024 in the process. 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
08 February,2026 09:01 AM IST | New Delhi | IANSFormer world champion shooter Rudrankksh Patil offered a glimpse of what lies ahead this season by clinching the gold medal, while Olympian Arjun Babuta finished second, as India made a telling statement in the men’s 10m air rifle event at the Asian Championship here Friday. Rudrankksh shot a superb 251.9 in the final to hold off the challenge from Babuta (250.7) and stamp his authority on the sport, as the duo, along with Vishal Singh, also earned India the team gold in the event. 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
07 February,2026 09:55 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIIndia’s Davis Cup captain Rohit Rajpal on Friday said recent match exposure and form influenced the team management’s decision to select N Sriram Balaji in place of originally-picked Ritvik Bollipalli for the doubles match in the tie against the Netherlands which begins on Saturday. Balaji and Bollialli had played against Switzerland in the previous away tie that Yuki Bhambri had missed. “We got here early and played a lot of sets. Balaji has been playing back-to-back events and just came off a very good result in Bahrain. Ritvik is playing well, but hasn’t competed actively for one-and-a-half to two months,” Rajpal said. 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
07 February,2026 09:53 AM IST | Bengaluru | PTIWomen’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) star Cameron Brink is making waves both on and off the court, given the 24-year-old LA Sparks player has modelled for American sports and fashion magazine PLAYERS. Now, she wants to take things further, signalling a desire to model for the famous men’s lifestyle and entertainment magazine Playboy. However, that’s only if her rugby star fiance Ben Felter approves. Cameron Brink In a recent interview with American chat show TMZ Sports, when she was asked if she could model for Playboy, she replied: “Yeah, maybe. If my fiance approves.” Brink, who has 1.3 million followers on Instagram and has been engaged to Felter since 2024, also opened up on her bold photoshoot for PLAYERS. “I trust the creatives in the room. I was fully naked for that [PLAYERS] shoot, for one of the shots. It was only gays and girls in the room, so it wasn’t an issue. I like the artistry of it all. I like shooting stuff like that. I think it’s fun,” said Brink. 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
06 February,2026 10:00 AM IST | Mumbai | AgenciesADVERTISEMENT
