Japanese Yuki Kurihara, 11 years old, won the gold medal in electronic games at the Asian Games on Saturday in impressive style, after crushing a series of competitors three times his age.
The bespectacled elementary school student, believed to be the youngest participant in the games in Aichi-Nagoya, won the final of the puzzle game “Puyo Puyo Heroes” with a score of 10-2.
He is the youngest athlete for host country Japan in the history of the Asian Games.
“Puyo Puyo” is a sport in “E-Sports” in which players try to clear the screen of colored dots by arranging them in rows and removing them.
Kurihara seemed calm throughout, as he worked his way to gold with a series of impressive performances.
On his way, he defeated the Thai Tanarak Wongkitkun, 28 years old, and a veteran for his age, with a score of 10-1 in the semi-finals, to secure at least the silver medal.
In the final, he barely smiled after defeating South Korean Kang Dongshin (24 years old), despite trailing 0-1 at the beginning.
Kurihara began playing the sport in his first year of elementary school, and soon began competing and winning tournaments.
He obtained his professional license in April of this year, and is accustomed to regularly beating adult players.
He said before the games: “It is difficult to balance it with school and remedial classes, but it (competing in the game) is very fun.”
He added: “Now it's summer vacation, so I have plenty of time to train. “I want to train a lot and develop some new strengths.”
There are no records available regarding the youngest medalists in the history of the Asian Games, which were first held in 1951.
But Indonesian Bunga Nimas won the bronze medal in women's skateboarding at the age of 12 in Jakarta in 2018.
Chinese Cui Chenxi (13 years old) won the gold medal in the women's board competition, three years ago in Hangzhou.
French national team captain Kylian Mbappé, who suffered a knee injury during the European Nations League match against Turkey on Friday, will leave his country’s camp “to avoid any risk,” according to what coach Zinedine Zidane announced on the TF1 channel.
“Things do not look good, unfortunately,” Zizou said in response to a question about the Real Madrid striker’s exit immediately after scoring the lead goal in the 54th minute. He added: “I think he will have to return,” before the channel’s journalist asked him again: “If Kylian Mbappe’s camp ends?” Zidane replied: “Yes, because we will not take any risks.” "He had hyperextension of the knee."
The French Federation then confirmed that Mbappe, who “suffers from a tendon injury,” would return to Madrid to receive treatment.
The new coach of the French national team had explained that the Real Madrid striker was injured “during the shot” that resulted in the winning goal against Turkey.
Zidane repeated: “The indicators are not completely encouraging for him to continue.” "We will not take any risks."
When the goal was scored in the 54th minute, Mbappe received a pass from Michael Oliseh, so he shot with his right foot and was able to deceive Turkish goalkeeper Ugurcan Çakir, scoring his 67th international goal.
But the best scorer in the history of the French national team did not celebrate the goal, as he began limping immediately, before lying down on the field, placing his hand on the back of his left knee, while signs of pain appeared clearly on his face.
He tried to continue playing for a while, before he was forced to give up completely in the 59th minute. After being replaced by Desiree Doue, Mbappé went straight to the dressing room, still limping slightly, after a quick and friendly handshake with his coach, Zinedine Zidane.
In the first match of Zidane's era, France beat Turkey 1-0, and within ten days it awaits three more matches in the Nations League, starting with a visit to Belgium on Monday, then hosting Italy and Belgium at the Stade de France on the 2nd and 5th of October.
Russian Tatiana Prozorova said that her withdrawal from the semi-final of the Singapore Open came after “pressure” from a physiotherapist affiliated with the Women’s Tennis Association, who diagnosed her with a concussion after she was hit by a ball.
The tournament organizers said that Prozorova (22 years old) withdrew from the singles competition this week due to injury, which led to Australian Talia Gibson qualifying for the final without playing the match.
This announcement came after Prozorova and her colleague Sofia Lanceri withdrew from the quarter-final match in the doubles on Friday, after Prozorova was hit in the face by a ball.
“The physiotherapist who was summoned to the stadium insisted on taking me off the field for a certain test,” Prozorova wrote. Unfortunately, I didn't know I could say no. The test was not easy. Given that I spent more than 3 hours on the field every day during the past three days, I was suffering from fatigue, and I had difficulty in some exercises, such as standing on one foot with my eyes closed.
She added: “My team and I had a lengthy discussion with the organizers. The physiotherapist put pressure on everyone present and even claimed that I was unable to take responsibility for my life.”
She said that the tournament organizers supported her desire to continue playing, but the final decision rested with the WTA.
The WTA said Prozorova was evaluated by her on-site medical team and the tournament doctor, and that concussion protocols are in place to protect players' safety.
A federation spokesman told Reuters: “Under the federation’s physical incapacity rule and concussion protocol, a player diagnosed with a concussion is not permitted to participate in competitions, and will be deemed physically unable to do so.”
He added: “The player may not return to competition until she successfully completes the required gradual return protocol and obtains the appropriate medical approval.”
Reaching the semi-finals in Singapore was the best achievement in her career.
