Sports Breakfast 7.24: Zheng Qinwen Clinches First WTA Tour Championship, Jordan Approved to Sell Hornets
In the early morning of July 24th, the WTA250 Palermo finals kicked off with an intense match between No. 2 seed Zheng Qinwen and No. 5 seed Paolini. After three sets of fierce competition, Zheng Qinwen emerged victorious with a 2-1 win, securing her first championship in her personal career tour.
Zheng Qinwen’s victory not only marks a significant milestone in her tennis journey but also makes her the 12th Chinese Golden Flower to conquer the WTA tour. At the age of 20, she also becomes the youngest Chinese women’s singles WTA champion.
What adds to the intrigue is that Zheng Qinwen achieved her first WTA main match victory at Palermo in 2021 and has now claimed her first WTA singles championship at the same venue after two years. It seems that Palermo has become her fortunate ground. Last season, Zheng Qinwen’s outstanding performance earned her the prestigious “Best Newcomer Award” from the International Women’s Tennis Association. With this recent victory, Zheng Qinwen will gain 280 points, elevating her world ranking to 24th.
In other news, on July 24th, it was reported that the NBA Board of Directors approved Michael Jordan’s sale of the Charlotte Hornets to a group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnell. This decision marks the end of Jordan’s 13-year tenure as the Hornets’ largest shareholder. The NBA’s Board of Governors voted 29-1 to approve the deal, with New York Knicks owner James Duran casting the sole dissenting vote. The stake Jordan is selling is valued at approximately $3 billion, and the transaction is expected to be completed within the next one to two weeks.
In the gaming world, League of Legends mobile game announced a collaboration with Jay Chou, a renowned musician and brand spokesperson, to launch an exclusive brand new national style skin series. The skins will be designed by Jay Chou himself, with classic songs serving as the inspiration. This collaboration aims to showcase the fusion of national style and popular classics, celebrating the beauty of the new national aesthetic.
Moving on to e-sports, KBG emerged victorious in the League of Legends mobile game Asian League 1 (WRL A1) championship. As the first team to claim the Asian League championship trophy, KBG represented the WRL CN division. The event was co-hosted by Tencent Games, Riot Games, and Tengjing Sports, under the guidance of the Beijing Municipal State-owned Cultural Assets Management Center and the Beijing Economic and Technological Development Zone Management Committee. The three-day celebration took place at the Beijing JDG Intel E-sports Center. With the conclusion of the first season, the second season of the League of Legends Mobile Asian League (WRL A2) is set to take place from September to December this year.
Turning to the transport sector, the Fuxing Asian Games smart EMU was recently unveiled at its debut in Changchun. These smart EMUs will be utilized during the Hangzhou Asian Games and the Asian Paralympic Games for rail transit services in Hangzhou and five other cities, including Ningbo, Wenzhou, Jinhua, Shaoxing, and Huzhou. With a design speed of 350 kilometers per hour and a capacity of 578 people, the Fuxing Asian Games Smart EMU consists of four trains and four trailers.
Magic Johnson, former NBA player and entrepreneur, has expanded his business portfolio by acquiring a stake in the NFL Washington Commanders. This recent acquisition brings the total number of clubs under Johnson’s name to five, including NFL Washington Commanders, MLS Los Angeles FC, WNBA Los Angeles Sparks, MLB Los Angeles Dodgers, and Team Liquid. Johnson’s net worth exceeds $620 million.
In the business realm, ELECTRO X, a sports drink brand, recently completed a pre-A round of financing, raising tens of millions of yuan. The funding was led by Yiyuan Capital, with Dongjin Food joining as a follower. Since its establishment in 2021, ELECTRO X has focused on emerging sports categories and created a diversified product lineup centered around sports hydration, catering to the refined urban sports market.
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