CARLI LLOYD (UNITED STATES)

One of the all-time greats of the women’s game, Lloyd will be 39 when the tournament begins and a late career revival of form has given her the chance of winning a third gold medal following success in 2008 and 2012.

The forward scored one of the most memorable goals in women’s soccer history with a spectacular effort from the halfway line as part of a hat-trick inside the opening 16 minutes of the 2015 World Cup final win over Japan.

Lloyd spent most of the successful 2019 World Cup campaign on the bench but she has come back from a 10-month layoff after knee surgery and is looking ready for Tokyo.

MOHAMED SALAH (EGYPT)

Not surprisingly, Egypt are desperate to include the finest player to emerge from the Arab world as one of the three over-age players in their squad for Tokyo.

A Champions League and Premier League winner with Liverpool, the 29-year-old’s participation is not yet secured, with talks continuing with his club.

If he does get the all-clear, Group C opponents Spain, Argentina and Australia will have to contend with his deft touch, clever movement and, above all, his eye for goal.

MANA IWABUCHI (JAPAN)

A World Cup winner with Japan in 2011, the 28-year-old former Bayern Munich forward recently joined Arsenal but her focus will first be on her role with the ‘Nadeshiko’.

Iwabuchi has scored 34 goals in 76 appearances for Japan and if the host nation are to enjoy medal success they will need their experienced striker to be on top form.

LUKAS NMECHA (GERMANY)

The 22-year-old forward won the golden boot and scored the winner in the final of this year’s UEFA Under-21 tournament and is key to German hopes at the Games.

The Hamburg-born striker grew up in England and has been part of Manchester City’s academy system but spent last season on loan at Belgian club Anderlecht.

Nmecha, who can operate centrally or wide, represented England at age-group level until switching to Germany in March 2019. He made his debut against England.

GERSON (BRAZIL)

When Flamengo won the 2019 Copa Libertadores and back-to-back Brazilian league titles in 2019 and 2020, the quick-thinking Gerson was the heart of a midfield packed with characters.

The quiet 24-year-old was perhaps the most underrated player at the Rio de Janeiro club but his input was crucial in helping them to their greatest spell since Zico and Junior ruled the roost.

Gerson, no relation to the 1970 World Cup legend, had returned to Flamengo after a disappointing spell in Italy with Roma and Fiorentina. He quickly found his feet again and his impressive displays over two highly successful years won him another chance to prove himself in Europe. He left Flamengo in June to sign for French club Olympique Marseille.

Super Eagles’ goalkeepers John Noble and Ikechukwu Ezenwa, as well as forward Anayo Iwuala top the list of 25 players invited to camp for next month’s international friendly match between Nigeria and Mexico at the famous Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in the State of California, United States of America.

Three –time African champions Nigeria will clash with the CONCACAF Gold Cup holders on Saturday, 3rd July in what is part of the Mexican’s MexTour Series that will see them play three matches before clashing with Nigeria.

Also invited are Rivers’ United ace defender Ifeanyi Anaemena, Enyimba FC midfielder Ekundayo Ojo and forwards Ibrahim Olawoyin (Rangers International) and Stephen Jude (Kwara United).

The players are expected to report at the Serob Legacy Hotel, Wuye, Abuja on Tuesday, 22nd June with their travel documents. Only 22 of them will travel to the United States of America for the glamour friendly.

The match, which kicks off at 7.30pm LA time will be the sixth confrontation between the senior teams of both countries, four of which have ended in draws. The only win in the series has gone to Mexico, when they trumped a US Gold Cup encounter in Dallas (State of Texas) 2-1 on 24th June 1995.

Close-fought confrontations include a 1-1 draw at the FIFA

Intercontinental Tournament for the King Fahd Cup (now FIFA Confederations Cup) in Saudi Arabia on 13th January 1995 (Mexico prevailed 5-4 on penalties in the quarter final match), and 0-0 draws in friendly matches in Houston and Atlanta the previous decade.

A friendly game in Mexico also ended 2-2. It is expected that the LA Coliseum, a 77,500 –capacity facility that

has hosted major international championships of all all grades, will be at full capacity for the friendly match.

NFF’s FIFA Match Agent, Jairo Pachon of Eurodata Sport, said while announcing the encounter last month: “We are happy to be able to announce this match, which is a clash between two very big teams from two different continents. Mexico against Nigeria is a big match any day and the venue is class.”

Goalkeepers: Ikechukwu Ezenwa (Heartland FC); John Noble (Enyimba FC)

Defenders: Olisa Ndah (Akwa United); Adekunle Adeleke (Abia Warriors); Tope Olusesi (Rangers International); Ifeanyi Anaemena (Rivers United); Christopher Nwaeze (Kwara United); Enyinnaya Kazie (Rivers United); Mohammed Zirkiflu (Plateau United); Imoh Ubot (Enyimba FC); Tebo Franklin Degaulle (Nasarawa United); Lawal Oriyomi Murtala (Kwara United)

Midfielders: Anthony Shimaga (Rangers International); Seth Mayi (Akwa United); Uche Nwasonaya (Plateau United); Samuel Nnoshiri (Katsina United); Ekundayo Ojo (Enyimba FC)

Forwards: Anayo Iwuala (Enyimba FC); Stephen Jude (Kwara United); Ibrahim Olawoyin (Rangers International); Charles Ashimene (Akwa United); Chinonso Ezekwe (Rangers International); Auwalu Ali Malam

(Kano Pillars); Neurot Emmanuel (Plateau United); Abdulmutalif Sanusi (Katsina United).

Up to 10,000 domestic spectators will be allowed in Tokyo 2020 venues, Olympics organizers said yesterday, a decision that cuts against the recommendation of medical experts who said holding the event without fans was the least risky option.

The announcement ends months of speculation and highlights Japan’s determination to push on with the Games and salvage the multi-billion-dollar extravaganza amid public opposition and deep concern about a resurgence in infections.

The decision was widely expected after some recent comments by organizers and as the government’s own medical experts last week appeared resigned to the event going ahead with fans. Japan has largely avoided the kind of explosive coronavirus outbreaks that have devastated other countries, but the vaccine roll-out was initially slow and the medical system pushed to the brink in some places.

The limit for the Games, scheduled to begin on July 23, “will be set at 50 per cent of venue capacity, up to a maximum of 10,000 people,” organizers said in a statement.

But the cheering – for a victory or a plucky underdog – will likely be quelled as shouting will be prohibited. Organizers also said masks would be required and spectators be requested to travel directly to venues and go straight home.

Numbers could be further reduced after July 12, depending on whether “quasi emergency” COVID-19 measures, due to expire the day before, are extended or due to any other anti-infection measures in force at the time, according to organizers.

Spectators from overseas have already been banned. The national stadium, built for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and due to host athletics and soccer this time, would have held 68,000 fans but now will be at a sliver of that.

Organizers are still considering whether to allow alcohol to be served in venues, Tokyo 2020 President Seiko Hashimoto said. Even as experts voiced concern, Hashimoto had previously said she was eyeing allowing up to 10,000 fans.

Some of the country’s top health experts on Friday said banning spectators would be the least risky option.

All-time Olympic great sprinter Usain Bolt and his partner Kasi Bennett announced on Sunday the birth of twin boys, who have been named Thunder Bolt and Saint Leo Bolt.

Bolt revealed the news on Instagram with a Father’s Day family photo, showing a lightning bolt emoji next to each of his children’s names in the caption, without stating when the twins were born.

Bennett also posted a shot of the couple posing with the twins and daughter Olympia Lightning Bolt captioned: “Happy Father’s Day to my forever love! @usainbolt You are the rock of this family and the greatest daddy to our little ones. We love you world without end!”

Olympia Lightning was born in May 2020, but the name was announced only two months later.

Messages of congratulations poured in after Bolt’s Instagram announcement, from fans as well as athletes – including fellow Jamaican sprint star Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, American 200m specialist Wallace Spearmon and 200m world champion Dina Asher-Smith of Britain who posted “Congratulations so adorable!”

The 34-year-old Bolt, who won eight gold medals at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Games, will not be competing at the Covid-delayed Tokyo Olympics next month after retiring in 2017.

The fastest man in history, Bolt holds the world records for 100 metres and 200 metres. He is the only sprinter to win the 100m and 200m double at three consecutive Olympics.

Bolt, who won 23 major championship golds in a glittering career, tried to turn to professional football after his track career ended, but failed to secure a contract and retired from all sport in 2019.

“It was a good experience. I really enjoyed just being in a team and it was much different from track and field and it was fun while it lasted,” he said at the time.

Former Nigeria coach Samson Siasia’s life-ban from football for bribery has been reduced to five years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

He was initially sanctioned in 2019 by FIFA for agreeing to “receive bribes in relation to the manipulation of matches.”

The former Super Eagles’ player and later coach appealed against the ban with football’s governing body and Cas as he denied the charges against him.

CAS “determined the imposition of a life ban to be disproportionate for a first offence which was committed passively and which had not had an adverse or immediate effect on football stakeholders, and that a five-year ban would still achieve the envisaged aim of punishing the infringement committed by Mr Siasia.”

The ban has been backdated to start on 16 August 2019 as the court explained the background to the case.

“In 2010, a match fixer tried to involve Mr Siasia as a coach of a club under his strict instructions,” CAS noted.

 “With the promise of employment benefits, Mr Siasia would have had to always field several players under the control of the match fixer.

“The negotiations between the match fixer and Mr Siasia in relation to the conditions of employment were conducted by email over a period of two months.

“Eventually, the club did not accept or could not afford Mr Siasia’s requests and the negotiations ended.”

The court also cancelled a fine of CHF 50,000 (US$50,000) that had also been part of the sanctions imposed by FIFA.

“(CAS) acknowledged the need for sanctions to be sufficiently high enough to eradicate bribery and especially match-fixing in football.

“However, the Panel considered in the particular circumstances of this matter that it would be inappropriate and excessive to impose a financial sanction in addition to the five-year ban, since the ban sanction already incorporated a financial punishment in eliminating football as a source of revenue for Mr Siasia.

“And considering that Mr Siasia had not obtained any gain or pecuniary benefit from his unethical behaviour.”

A former international, Siasia won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria and played in their maiden World Cup appearance later that same year. He played over 50 times for his country while scoring 16 goals.

As a coach he led his country’s under-20 and under-23 sides to continental success in 2005 and 2015 respectively.

He also guided the under-20’s to a runners-up finish at the 2005 World Youth Championships (as it was known at the time) in the Netherlands.

Siasia is the most decorated African football coach at the Olympics, winning silver at the Beijing Games in 2008 and bronze at the 2016 Games in Rio.