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Riyadh to host inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2027, qualifying starts this year

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Lausanne, Feb 11: The inaugural Olympic Esports Games will take place in Riyadh in 2027, two years later than originally planned, following a 12-year agreement with Saudi Arabia signed last year. The qualifying period, the Road to the Olympic Esports Games, will start this year, the International Olympic Committee said on Tuesday.

In June 2024, the IOC Executive Board announced that it would create an Olympic Esports Games, with the 142nd IOC Session held during the 2024 Summer Olympics due to vote on the proposal.

In July 2024, it was announced that the inaugural Olympic Esports Games would be held in Saudi Arabia in 2025, following a new partnership with the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee. The proposal was ultimately approved by a unanimous vote on July 23, 2024.

For the organisation of the Olympic Esports Games, IOC is partnering with the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee. The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) will become the founding partner of the Games.

“The IOC and EWCF will collaborate closely with key stakeholders to establish qualification pathways, enhance competitive integrity, and align the national esports ecosystems with broader global standards,” the IOC said in a release.

A joint committee of the IOC and the SOPC has been set up to steer the Games. It is chaired by IOC Member Ser Miang Ng and co-chaired by HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal.

The committee consists of six people, three from each partner, and is currently working to define the games that will be part of the first edition of the Olympic Esports Games.

The cooperation between the IOC and the SOPC was the major topic of a meeting between the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, HRH Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, IOC chief Thomas Bach and the president of the SOPC and Minister of Sports, HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal in Riyadh on Sunday.

“There is now a very clear roadmap to the historic first-ever Olympic Esports Games. With the Road to the Olympic Esports Games starting this year, the Games are becoming a reality. This is further evidence of the strength of the partnership between the IOC and the SOPC in many areas,” Bach said.

“The journey to the first-ever Olympic Esports Games is clear, with an immediate timeline that works for all parties and sees the Road to Olympic Esports Games start in 2025. Together with the IOC, there is real momentum, unity, and clarity on the way forward, with the focus now on delivering.

“Already Saudi Arabia is looking forward to welcoming the world and playing its part to help the dreams of so many esports athletes come true,” the president of the SOPC added.

health

Tobacco is not just addiction but poison: Delhi Speaker Vijender Gupta leads walkathon on World No-Tobacco Day in Rohini

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New Delhi, May 31: On the occasion of World No-Tobacco Day, Delhi’s Rohini area witnessed a strong show of public awareness and health advocacy through a walkathon organised to spread the message against tobacco consumption.

The event, themed ‘Walk for Life’, brought together medical professionals, civic leaders, and local residents in a collective stand against the harmful effects of tobacco.

Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta, who flagged off the walkathon, delivered a powerful message on the dangers of tobacco. “Tobacco is not just an addiction; it’s a poison,” he said, addressing the gathering. “It is a dangerous habit that ruins lives, and the only effective way to combat it is through sustained awareness and education,” he added.

Organised by the Indian Medical Association in collaboration with the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre, the event saw enthusiastic participation from doctors, healthcare workers, and members of the public.

The walkathon aimed to raise awareness, especially among the youth, about the health risks associated with tobacco, including its direct link to life-threatening diseases like cancer.

“The younger generation often views smoking and tobacco use as fashionable, but we must help them understand the long-term consequences,” Gupta added, urging collective efforts to curb the rising trend of tobacco use among the youth.

Speaking at the event, Dr. Sudhir Rawal, Medical Director at the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute, emphasised the medical impact: “Tobacco is one of the main avoidable causes of cancer. If you don’t use tobacco, you significantly reduce your risk of developing cancer, especially lung and mouth cancer.”

The event also featured health-themed activities, including group exercises and educational talks, to create a more engaging and impactful experience for participants.

As part of a broader initiative across the country, the Rohini walkathon served as a crucial reminder of the importance of quitting tobacco and promoting healthier, smoke-free lives.

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Sports

IPL 2025: This will be the year for RCB, AB de Villiers backs his former franchise to end title drought

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Mumbai, May 31: Former South Africa batter AB de Villiers backed his former IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to lift their maiden title this year after securing their berth for the summit clash with a commanding win over Punjab Kings in Qualifier 1 on Thursday.

This year, RCB have been in stellar form and have not lost a single away game so far in the season. They finished the league stage with 19 points to seal the second spot in the points table.

Virat Kohli and Phil Salt have been leading the run-scoring for the franchise with 614 and 387 runs respectively. The duo has been supported by middle-order batters including captain Rajat Patidar, Jitesh Sharma and Krunal Pandya.

On the bowling front, Josh Hazlewood is the leading wicket-taker for the side with 21 scalps in 11 games while Krunal Pandya (15 wickets), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (15 wickets) and Yash Dayal (12 wickets) are also contributing in tandem to make them a balanced unit.

“I’m very happy that RCB is in the final. We saw MI winning last night, so it’ll be a very good qualifier too, knockout match between Punjab and MI. Looking forward to that one, and whoever deserves it will play RCB in the final, so I’m very much looking forward to the final and hopefully, this will be the year for RCB,” De Villiers told Media in Mumbai.

The legendary batter backed Punjab Kings to play the final against RCB but remains sceptical after watching Mumbai Indians’ dominance against Gujarat Titans to knock them out of the tournament on Friday.

“I said quite a while ago, about a month ago, that Punjab and RCB will be in the final. MI looked very strong right now, so it looks like the odds are against my call, but it is still cricket. You never know. It is a knockout match. It takes one or two great performances to turn the pressure onto your opposition. So I think it’s still going to be Punjab, but I’ve got a little bit of doubt now in my mind after watching last night’s game,” he said.

Punjab Kings will now take on Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 2 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday to seal a place for the IPL 2025 final against RCB on June 3 at the same venue.

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National

SpaceX’s Starship fails 3rd time, Musk blames fuel leak as megarocket explodes

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New Delhi, May 28: Even as SpaceX’s Starship flight exploded during splashdown on its ninth test on Wednesday, the company’s founder Elon Musk blamed it on fuel leaks.

This is the third time in a row that Starship flight has faced issues during the test flight. The company’s last two test flights — the seventh (January) and eighth (March) test flight — also ended prematurely with the destruction of the aircraft.

The ninth test flight of Starship — which blasted off at about 7:36 p.m. EDT (5:06 am IST) from the company’s Starbase launch site in Texas — successfully reached orbit, flying farther than on its two previous attempts.

However, the spacecraft’s payload bay door failed to open, preventing the planned release of simulated Starlink satellites. Around 30 minutes into the mission, SpaceX confirmed a fuel tank leak aboard the vehicle.

The first-stage Super Heavy booster exploded shortly before its expected splashdown, and live video showed the upper-stage vehicle spinning uncontrollably before its planned re-entry through Earth’s atmosphere, due to fuel leaks.

“Leaks caused loss of main tank pressure during the coast and re-entry phase,” Musk shared in a post on his social media platform X.

“Contact with the booster was lost shortly after the start of the landing burn when it experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly approximately 6 minutes after launch, bringing an end to the first reflight of a Super Heavy booster,” SpaceX said in a statement.

However, Musk called the flight an achievement and noted that there had been no loss to the heat shield tiles.

“Starship made it to the scheduled ship engine cutoff, so big improvement over the last flight! Also, no significant loss of heat shield tiles during ascent. Lot of good data to review,” Musk said.

SpaceX noted that the company “will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test”.

Standing 403 feet (123 meters) tall, Starship and heavy booster — the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket system. It will launch the moon lander for NASA’s Artemis 3 mission that aims to land astronauts on the Moon by 2026.

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