Swiatek Sets up Miami Open Final against Osaka

Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a ball in her women's semifinal match against Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, at the Miami Open tennis tournament, Thursday, March 31, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP)
Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a ball in her women's semifinal match against Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, at the Miami Open tennis tournament, Thursday, March 31, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP)
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Swiatek Sets up Miami Open Final against Osaka

Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a ball in her women's semifinal match against Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, at the Miami Open tennis tournament, Thursday, March 31, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP)
Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a ball in her women's semifinal match against Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, at the Miami Open tennis tournament, Thursday, March 31, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP)

Second seed Iga Swiatek will face Naomi Osaka for the Miami Open title after the Pole defeated American Jessica Pegula in Thursday's semi-finals.

After Japan's Osaka battled past Belinda Bencic 4-6 6-3 6-4 earlier in the day, Swiatek, who will become world number one on Monday, claimed her 16th straight win with a 6-2 7-5 victory over Pegula to reach a third straight WTA 1000 final.

Swiatek sailed through the opening set but had to fight back from an early break down in the second. She squandered two match points at 5-4 before sealing victory two games later.

The 21-year-old is the first player to make back-to-back finals at Indian Wells and Miami since Victoria Azarenka won the "Sunshine Double" in 2016.

Swiatek has faced Osaka only once, with the Japanese player winning in straight sets at Toronto in 2019.

"My second match on the WTA Tour, when I felt I am doing a breakthrough, was against her (Osaka)," said Swiatek, who will go top of the rankings following Ash Barty's retirement.

"Even though I lost that match, it inspired me to work harder because she was number one back then. Right now I feel like I am on a different level, so I can actually compete ... We'll see how it is going to go. I'm really excited."

Osaka overcomes Bencic

Four-times Grand Slam winner Osaka fired off 18 aces as she defeated Olympic champion Bencic to reach her first Miami Open final.

Osaka conceded only two first-serve points in the first set but was unable to convert when it counted as Bencic saved a pair of break points in the second game.

Osaka, who had not dropped a set in the tournament, then lost her serve in the third game and again in the fifth.

The pair traded breaks early in the second set before Osaka seized the momentum after breaking in the sixth game.

"She had a really amazing service return - there were times I thought that I hit great serves but she just hit winners," Osaka said.

"(I was) just battling my inner thoughts and trying to know that I must play one point at a time and adjust if I have to but try not to overwhelm myself with my thoughts."

Osaka saved five of six break points in the third before closing out the match with an ace and a grin, having reached her first final since her second Australian Open title a year ago.

"I feel like if I was negative for a split second I would have lost the match today," said Osaka, who will play in her fourth WTA 1000 showpiece match on Saturday.

"I have to keep pumping myself up and I haven't played as many matches as a lot of these other players so I just have to keep learning."



Lindsey Vonn Back in US Following Crash in Olympic Downhill 

Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Alpine Skiing - Women's Downhill 3rd Official Training - Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre, Belluno, Italy - February 07, 2026. Lindsey Vonn of United States in action during training. (Reuters)
Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Alpine Skiing - Women's Downhill 3rd Official Training - Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre, Belluno, Italy - February 07, 2026. Lindsey Vonn of United States in action during training. (Reuters)
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Lindsey Vonn Back in US Following Crash in Olympic Downhill 

Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Alpine Skiing - Women's Downhill 3rd Official Training - Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre, Belluno, Italy - February 07, 2026. Lindsey Vonn of United States in action during training. (Reuters)
Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Alpine Skiing - Women's Downhill 3rd Official Training - Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre, Belluno, Italy - February 07, 2026. Lindsey Vonn of United States in action during training. (Reuters)

Lindsey Vonn is back home in the US following a week of treatment at a hospital in Italy after breaking her left leg in the Olympic downhill at the Milan Cortina Games.

“Haven’t stood on my feet in over a week... been in a hospital bed immobile since my race. And although I’m not yet able to stand, being back on home soil feels amazing,” Vonn posted on X with an American flag emoji. “Huge thank you to everyone in Italy for taking good care of me.”

The 41-year-old Vonn suffered a complex tibia fracture that has already been operated on multiple times following her Feb. 8 crash. She has said she'll need more surgery in the US.

Nine days before her fall in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Vonn ruptured the ACL in her left knee in another crash in Switzerland.

Even before then, all eyes had been on her as the feel-good story heading into the Olympics for her comeback after nearly six years of retirement.


Japan Hails ‘New Chapter’ with First Olympic Pairs Skating Gold 

Gold medalists Japan's Riku Miura and Japan's Ryuichi Kihara pose after the figure skating pair skating free skating final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
Gold medalists Japan's Riku Miura and Japan's Ryuichi Kihara pose after the figure skating pair skating free skating final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
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Japan Hails ‘New Chapter’ with First Olympic Pairs Skating Gold 

Gold medalists Japan's Riku Miura and Japan's Ryuichi Kihara pose after the figure skating pair skating free skating final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
Gold medalists Japan's Riku Miura and Japan's Ryuichi Kihara pose after the figure skating pair skating free skating final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 16, 2026. (AFP)

Japan hailed a "new chapter" in the country's figure skating on Tuesday after Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara pulled off a stunning comeback to claim pairs gold at the Milan-Cortina Olympics.

Miura and Kihara won Japan's first Olympic pairs gold with the performance of their careers, coming from fifth overnight to land the title with personal best scores.

It was the first time Japan had won an Olympic figure skating pairs medal of any color.

The country's government spokesman Minoru Kihara said their achievement had "moved so many people".

"This triumph is a result of the completeness of their performance, their high technical skill, the expressive power born from their harmony, and above all the bond of trust between the two," the spokesman said.

"I feel it is a remarkable feat that opens a new chapter in the history of Japanese figure skating."

Newspapers rushed to print special editions commemorating the pair's achievement.

Miura and Kihara, popularly known collectively in Japan as "Rikuryu", went into the free skate trailing after errors in their short program.

Kihara said that he had been "feeling really down" and blamed himself for the slip-up, conceding: "We did not think we would win."

Instead, they spectacularly turned things around and topped the podium ahead of Georgia's Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava, who took silver ahead of overnight leaders Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin of Germany.

American gymnastics legend Simone Biles was in the arena in Milan to watch the action.

"I'm pretty sure that was perfection," Biles said, according to the official Games website.


Mourinho Says It Won’t Take ‘Miracle’ to Take Down ‘Wounded King’ Real Madrid in Champions League

Benfica's coach Jose Mourinho reacts during a press conference on the eve of their UEFA Champions League knockout round play-off first leg football match against Real Madrid at Benfica Campus in Seixal, outskirts of Lisbon, on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
Benfica's coach Jose Mourinho reacts during a press conference on the eve of their UEFA Champions League knockout round play-off first leg football match against Real Madrid at Benfica Campus in Seixal, outskirts of Lisbon, on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
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Mourinho Says It Won’t Take ‘Miracle’ to Take Down ‘Wounded King’ Real Madrid in Champions League

Benfica's coach Jose Mourinho reacts during a press conference on the eve of their UEFA Champions League knockout round play-off first leg football match against Real Madrid at Benfica Campus in Seixal, outskirts of Lisbon, on February 16, 2026. (AFP)
Benfica's coach Jose Mourinho reacts during a press conference on the eve of their UEFA Champions League knockout round play-off first leg football match against Real Madrid at Benfica Campus in Seixal, outskirts of Lisbon, on February 16, 2026. (AFP)

José Mourinho believes Real Madrid is "wounded" after the shock loss to Benfica and doesn't think it will take a miracle to stun the Spanish giant again in the Champions League.

Benfica defeated Madrid 4-2 in the final round of the league phase to grab the last spot in the playoffs, and in the process dropped the 15-time champion out of the eight automatic qualification places for the round of 16.

Coach Mourinho's Benfica and his former team meet again in Lisbon on Tuesday in the first leg of the knockout stage.

"They are wounded," Mourinho said Monday. "And a wounded king is dangerous. We will play the first leg with our heads, with ambition and confidence. We know what we did to the kings of the Champions League."

Mourinho acknowledged that Madrid remained heavily favored and it would take a near-perfect show for Benfica to advance.

"I don’t think it takes a miracle for Benfica to eliminate Real Madrid. I think we need to be at our highest level. I don’t even say high, I mean maximum, almost bordering on perfection, which does not exist. But not a miracle," he said.

"Real Madrid is Real Madrid, with history, knowledge, ambition. The only comparable thing is that we are two giants. Beyond that, there is nothing else. But football has this power and we can win."

Benfica's dramatic win in Lisbon three weeks ago came thanks to a last-minute header by goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin, allowing the team to grab the 24th and final spot for the knockout stage on goal difference.

"Trubin won’t be in the attack this time," Mourinho joked.

"I’m very used to these kinds of ties, I’ve been doing it all my life," he said. "People often think you need a certain result in the first leg for this or that reason. I say there is no definitive result."