Morocco Forced to Wait for AFCON Knockout Place After Mali Draw

Football - CAF Africa Cup of Nations - Morocco 2025 - Group A - Morocco v Mali - Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco - December 26, 2025 Morocco's Ismael Saibari reacts after Mali's Lassine Sinayoko scored their first goal. (Reuters)
Football - CAF Africa Cup of Nations - Morocco 2025 - Group A - Morocco v Mali - Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco - December 26, 2025 Morocco's Ismael Saibari reacts after Mali's Lassine Sinayoko scored their first goal. (Reuters)
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Morocco Forced to Wait for AFCON Knockout Place After Mali Draw

Football - CAF Africa Cup of Nations - Morocco 2025 - Group A - Morocco v Mali - Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco - December 26, 2025 Morocco's Ismael Saibari reacts after Mali's Lassine Sinayoko scored their first goal. (Reuters)
Football - CAF Africa Cup of Nations - Morocco 2025 - Group A - Morocco v Mali - Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat, Morocco - December 26, 2025 Morocco's Ismael Saibari reacts after Mali's Lassine Sinayoko scored their first goal. (Reuters)

Morocco missed the chance to guarantee their spot in the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations after Lassine Sinayoko's second-half penalty earned Mali a 1-1 draw with the hosts on Friday.

The match was a tale of two spot-kicks, with Brahim Diaz giving Morocco the lead from a penalty deep in first-half injury time and Sinayoko replying on 64 minutes.

The stalemate at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in the capital Rabat ended Morocco's world record winning run which had been taken to 19 matches with their 2-0 victory over Comoros in the tournament's opening game.

It also means Morocco have not yet confirmed their place in the knockout phase, although they are on top of Group A with four points from two games.

Mali come next on two points alongside Zambia, who drew 0-0 with minnows Comoros earlier in Casablanca.

Morocco next face Zambia on Monday and a victory in that match against the 2012 champions will ensure that the hosts go through as group winners.

"We'll look back at the second half and see what the problem was but we didn't play the way we did in the first half. We didn't impose our game and had to drop off. The penalty changed the game a bit," Morocco midfielder Azzedine Ounahi told broadcaster beIN Sports.

"We go into the third game with the same approach, to win the game and finish top of the group."

Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi, the African player of the year, was again an unused substitute as he continues his recovery from an ankle injury suffered playing for Paris Saint-Germain at the start of November.

- Mbappe watches on -

His former PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe, the current Real Madrid superstar and France skipper, was among the spectators in the crowd of 63,844 and appeared to be wearing a Morocco shirt with Hakimi's number two on it.

With Hakimi on the sidelines, Mbappe's Real Madrid teammate Diaz was the main attraction on the pitch -- the little number 10 forced a good save from Mali goalkeeper Djigui Diarra on 17 minutes and then played a key part in the penalty which led to the opening goal just before the interval.

Mali defender Nathan Gassama brushed the ball with his hand as he tried to stop Diaz dribbling past him inside the box, and the referee eventually awarded a spot-kick following a lengthy look at the pitchside VAR monitor.

Morocco's Soufiane Rahimi had a spot-kick saved against Comoros but this time Diaz sent the goalkeeper the wrong way for his second goal of the tournament.

However, Walid Regragui's side, the best team in Africa according to the FIFA rankings, could not build on that as Mali won a penalty of their own just after the hour mark.

Sinayoko went down under a clumsy challenge by Jawad El Yamiq and 29-year-old Cameroonian referee Abdoul Abdel Mefire awarded the penalty after eventually being called over to check his screen.

Auxerre striker Sinayoko, having been booked apparently for something he said to the referee, kept his cool to stroke in the reward and restore parity.

Morocco substitute Youssef En-Nesyri was denied by a good Diarra save and Mali then held on through 10 minutes of stoppage time for a point, as the final whistle was greeted with jeers from the home fans.



Shakhtar Boss Pays Ukrainian Racer $200,000 After Games Disqualification

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds helmet as he meets with a Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych , who was disqualified from the Olympic skeleton competition over his "helmet of remembrance" depicting athletes killed since Russia's invasion and his father and coach, Mykhailo Heraskevych, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Munich, Germany February 13, 2026. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds helmet as he meets with a Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych , who was disqualified from the Olympic skeleton competition over his "helmet of remembrance" depicting athletes killed since Russia's invasion and his father and coach, Mykhailo Heraskevych, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Munich, Germany February 13, 2026. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
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Shakhtar Boss Pays Ukrainian Racer $200,000 After Games Disqualification

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds helmet as he meets with a Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych , who was disqualified from the Olympic skeleton competition over his "helmet of remembrance" depicting athletes killed since Russia's invasion and his father and coach, Mykhailo Heraskevych, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Munich, Germany February 13, 2026. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds helmet as he meets with a Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych , who was disqualified from the Olympic skeleton competition over his "helmet of remembrance" depicting athletes killed since Russia's invasion and his father and coach, Mykhailo Heraskevych, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Munich, Germany February 13, 2026. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)

The owner of ‌Ukrainian football club Shakhtar Donetsk has donated more than $200,000 to skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych after the athlete was disqualified from the Milano Cortina Winter Games before competing over the use of a helmet depicting Ukrainian athletes killed in the war with Russia, the club said on Tuesday.

The 27-year-old Heraskevych was disqualified last week when the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation jury ruled that imagery on the helmet — depicting athletes killed since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 — breached rules on athletes' expression at ‌the Games.

He ‌then lost an appeal at the Court ‌of ⁠Arbitration for Sport hours ⁠before the final two runs of his competition, having missed the first two runs due to his disqualification.

Heraskevych had been allowed to train with the helmet that displayed the faces of 24 dead Ukrainian athletes for several days in Cortina d'Ampezzo where the sliding center is, but the International Olympic Committee then ⁠warned him a day before his competition ‌started that he could not wear ‌it there.

“Vlad Heraskevych was denied the opportunity to compete for victory ‌at the Olympic Games, yet he returns to Ukraine a ‌true winner," Shakhtar President Rinat Akhmetov said in a club statement.

"The respect and pride he has earned among Ukrainians through his actions are the highest reward. At the same time, I want him to ‌have enough energy and resources to continue his sporting career, as well as to fight ⁠for truth, freedom ⁠and the remembrance of those who gave their lives for Ukraine," he said.

The amount is equal to the prize money Ukraine pays athletes who win a gold medal at the Games.

The case dominated headlines early on at the Olympics, with IOC President Kirsty Coventry meeting Heraskevych on Thursday morning at the sliding venue in a failed last-minute attempt to broker a compromise.

The IOC suggested he wear a black armband and display the helmet before and after the race, but said using it in competition breached rules on keeping politics off fields of play. Heraskevych also earned praise from Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.


Speed Skating-Italy Clinch Shock Men’s Team Pursuit Gold, Canada Successfully Defend Women’s Title

 Team Italy with Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini, Michele Malfatti, celebrate winning the gold medal on the podium of the men's team pursuit speed skating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP)
Team Italy with Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini, Michele Malfatti, celebrate winning the gold medal on the podium of the men's team pursuit speed skating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP)
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Speed Skating-Italy Clinch Shock Men’s Team Pursuit Gold, Canada Successfully Defend Women’s Title

 Team Italy with Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini, Michele Malfatti, celebrate winning the gold medal on the podium of the men's team pursuit speed skating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP)
Team Italy with Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini, Michele Malfatti, celebrate winning the gold medal on the podium of the men's team pursuit speed skating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP)

An inspired Italy delighted the home crowd with a stunning victory in the Olympic men's team pursuit final as

Canada's Ivanie Blondin, Valerie Maltais and Isabelle Weidemann delivered another seamless performance to beat the Netherlands in the women's event and retain their title ‌on Tuesday.

Italy's ‌men upset the US who ‌arrived ⁠at the Games ⁠as world champions and gold medal favorites.

Spurred on by double Olympic champion Francesca Lollobrigida, the Italian team of Davide Ghiotto, Andrea Giovannini and Michele Malfatti electrified a frenzied arena as they stormed ⁠to a time of three ‌minutes 39.20 seconds - ‌a commanding 4.51 seconds clear of the ‌Americans with China taking bronze.

The roar inside ‌the venue as Italy powered home was thunderous as the crowd rose to their feet, cheering the host nation to one ‌of their most special golds of a highly successful Games.

Canada's women ⁠crossed ⁠the line 0.96 seconds ahead of the Netherlands, stopping the clock at two minutes 55.81 seconds, and

Japan rounded out the women's podium by beating the US in the Final B.

It was only Canada's third gold medal of the Games, following Mikael Kingsbury's win in men's dual moguls and Megan Oldham's victory in women's freeski big air.


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.