Former Tennis Champion Becker Jailed in UK Bankruptcy Case

Former tennis player Boris Becker arrives with his partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro (not pictured) at Southwark Crown Court to face sentencing after being found guilty of four charges earlier this month, in London, Britain, April 29, 2022. REUTERS/John Sibley
Former tennis player Boris Becker arrives with his partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro (not pictured) at Southwark Crown Court to face sentencing after being found guilty of four charges earlier this month, in London, Britain, April 29, 2022. REUTERS/John Sibley
TT

Former Tennis Champion Becker Jailed in UK Bankruptcy Case

Former tennis player Boris Becker arrives with his partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro (not pictured) at Southwark Crown Court to face sentencing after being found guilty of four charges earlier this month, in London, Britain, April 29, 2022. REUTERS/John Sibley
Former tennis player Boris Becker arrives with his partner Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro (not pictured) at Southwark Crown Court to face sentencing after being found guilty of four charges earlier this month, in London, Britain, April 29, 2022. REUTERS/John Sibley

German tennis great Boris Becker was jailed for two years and six months by a London court on Friday for hiding hundreds of thousands of pounds of assets after he was declared bankrupt.

Becker was convicted earlier this month of four charges under Britain's Insolvency Act, including failing to disclose, concealing and removing significant assets following a bankruptcy trial.

The 54-year-old six-times Grand Slam champion was found guilty of transferring money to his ex-wife Barbara and estranged wife Sharlely after his 2017 bankruptcy.

"It is notable you have not shown remorse or acceptance of your guilt," judge Deborah Taylor told him as she sentenced him at London's Southwark Crown Court.

"While I accept the humiliation you have felt as a result of these proceedings, you have shown no humility."

She said Becker would serve half his sentence behind bars and the remainder on license. Becker, whose partner Lillian and son Noah were in court, looked straight ahead and showed no emotion as the sentence was handed down.

He was previously convicted of tax evasion in Germany in 2002, for which he received a suspended prison sentence.



‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
TT

‘Flooding Rains’ Threaten to Dampen Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)
Paris 2024 Olympics - Opening Ceremony - Paris, France - July 26, 2024. Spectators are seen behind the Eiffel Tower ahead of the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Reuters)

The Paris Olympics look likely to get off to a soggy start.

Meteo-France, the French weather service, is predicting “flooding rains” Friday evening when the opening ceremony is set to unroll along the Seine River. But the show is set to go on as planned, starting at 1:30 p.m. EDT/7:30 p.m. CEST and should last more than three hours.

Already in the late afternoon, skies were gray with intermittent drizzle. There was a silver lining, though, with temperatures expected to stay relatively warm throughout the evening.

Instead of a traditional march into a stadium, about 6,800 athletes will parade on more than 90 boats on the Seine River for 6 kilometers (3.7 miles). Though 10,700 athletes are expected to compete at these Olympics, hundreds of soccer players are based outside Paris, surfers are in Tahiti and many have yet to arrive for their events in the second week, organizers said Thursday.

Hundreds of thousands of people, including 320,000 paying and invited ticket-holders, are expected to line the Seine’s banks as athletes are paraded along the river on boats.