Indian men's hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh exuded confidence ahead of their campaign opener against New Zealand at the Paris 2024 Olympics, scheduled for Saturday.

Speaking about New Zealand in particular, they have been a strong opponent for India - and memories of their 3-3 (4-5 SO) result at the World Cup in Bhubaneswar last year are a reminder to not get complacent against this opponent.

"We have always seen New Zealand as a strong opponent and have discussed this team in detail during our team briefs. It is good to be reminded of the World Cup match against them, so we know we can't drop the momentum at any point in the game. It's important for us to start well and keep up the pressure through the game," said Harmanpreet.

The fans will be in position to witness a unique moment in Olympic history at the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony, set to be held along the Seine on Friday evening.

The Opening Ceremony promises to be unforgettable, with athlete barges floating down the river starting at the Austerlitz Bridge. They will pass under historic bridges and by iconic landmarks such as Notre-Dame and the Louvre, as well as Olympic Games venues including the Esplanade des Invalides and the Grand Palais.

Almost 100 boats carrying an estimated 10,500 athletes will float along the Seine during the parade. The larger of the 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) represented in the parade will have boats to themselves, while the smaller ones will share boats.

Pranav Soorma has qualified for the Paris Paralympics in the F51 category club throw by setting a new world record at the trials.

At the recent trials conducted in Bengaluru, Pranav achieved a throw of 37.23 meters in the F51 category club throw, surpassing the previous world record of 36.22 meters by more than a meter.

Reflecting on his achievement, Pranav Soorma said, "Not winning a medal at the World Para Athletics World Championship held at Kobe in May was a disappointment. My coach Naval Singh and I went back to the basics and worked harder. Now going to Paris, this performance has boosted my confidence."

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that the French Alps will host the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2030.

The announced plans are conditional based on the guarantees given by French President Emmanuel Macron that the new office being formed in the country after 2024 will underwrite all the organisational guarantees that must still be signed.

"The French Alps will host the 2030 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games! Thank you to the IOC for its confidence in our country and its mountains. Congratulations to the elected officials and actors who worked for this success. Let's make innovative, sustainable and inclusive Games," Macron posted on X.

Real Madrid have become the first football club to cross 1 billion euros in revenue with a net profit of 16 million euros in the year 2023-24.

The board of directors of Real Madrid CF has formulated the annual accounts for the 2023-2024 financial year in a meeting held on Tuesday.

Revenue for the 2023/24 season, excluding players tranfers, reached to 1.073 billion euros, which is 27 per cent more than the previous year, according to the data available on the club's website.

"Operating income (before disposal of fixed assets) for the 2023/24 financial year reached 1,073 million euros, representing an increase of 230 million euros (27%) compared to the 2022/23 financial year. In this financial year, despite the stadium not yet being fully operational, the Club has managed to exceed the 1 billion euros mark for operating income before disposal of fixed assets, a figure not previously achieved by any football club," it said in a realese.

One of Team GB's biggest Olympic stars and a clear medal hope, equestrian Charlotte Dujardin has withdrawn from the Paris Olympic Games at the last moment after what she has described as "an error of judgement."

The 39-year-old, who has three gold medals and six in total in equestrian events, withdrew after the release of a four-year-old video of her in a training session, reports .

"A video has emerged from four years ago which shows me making an error of judgement during a coaching session. Understandably, the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) is investigating, and I have made the decision to withdraw from all competition - including the Paris Olympics - while this process takes place."

"What happened was completely out of character and does not reflect how I train my horses or coach my pupils, however there is no excuse. I am deeply ashamed and should have set a better example in that moment," explained the rider in a statement.

India boys beat South Africa 2-0 while the girls lost to England by an identical margin in the 5-8th positions matches of the World Junior Squash Championships Team competition.

The boys will meet England for fifth position while the girls will take on Hong Kong for the seventh in the final round of matches.

India results (5-8th positions):

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has joined the Ligue 1 club Marseille on an initial loan deal for the 2024-25 season.

The 28-year-old midfielder has joined the club on loan with an option to buy after successfully passing his medical.

After playing in the youth teams of FC Copenhagen and Brondby IF, Hojbjerg made his professional debut at Bayern Munich club. His time at Bayern, interspersed with two formative experiences in the form of loans to FC Augsburg and Schalke 04, also allowed him to be called up to the Danish national team at the age of 18 and to add the Bundesliga and the German Cup to his list of achievements.

Newly-appointed Indian team head coach Gautam Gambhir backed captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for the 2027 ODI World Cup saying that both have a lot of cricket left and if they maintain their fitness, they can play in the next quadrennial showpiece.

Rohit and Kohli announced retirements from T20I cricket following the T20 World Cup final win against South Africa that ended India's 11-year-long ICC title drought.

The duo confirmed that they will continue to play the other formats of the game, and Gambhir feels that their exceptional qualities to deliver in big tournaments will be crucial for the country in the upcoming Australia tour and next year's Champions Trophy.

India boys and girls lost narrowly in the quarterfinals of the World Junior Squash Championships Team competition on Sunday.

The sixth-seeded boys went down 1-2 to fourth seed South Korea, and the girls lost by an identical margin to third seed Malaysia.

Yuvraj Wadhwani got India boys off to a winning start with a 3-2 win over Seojin Oh. However, Shaurya Bawa, who last week won individual bronze, went down to individual silver medallist Joo Young Na in four close games. In the deciding tie, Kun Kim proved too strong for Arihant KS.