German sprinter Alica Schmidt – regularly dubbed ‘the world’s hottest athlete’ – has put the disappointment of her Tokyo Olympics flop behind her by announcing she will be modelling at Milan fashion week.
Schmidt, 22, was part of the German track and field squad which traveled to Japan in the summer but was ultimately overlooked for a spot in the women’s and mixed 4x400m relay events.
The blonde bombshell revealed after her Olympic disappointment that she was “going to take a break” but was “looking forward to coming back feeling fresh and ready to train hard again.”
However, it wasn’t all doom and gloom in Tokyo as Schmidt added a reported 400,000 followers to her Instagram account, taking her tally to a whopping 2.4 million.
The eye-catching sprinter continues to attract the attention of various sponsors – including fashion titans Hugo Boss.
As Schmidt excitedly revealed to fans this week, she has jetted off to model for the company at Milan Fashion Week, which runs from September 21 to 27.
“I’m in a great good mood and I’m already totally excited, because I’m flying to Milan today!” Schmidt said on her Instagram Stories.
“It will certainly be very, very cool days in Milan. On Thursday will be the ‘Hugo Boss Fashion Show’ and I will be a part of it!”
Schmidt shared clips of herself preparing for the trip and also arriving at Hugo Boss for a fitting.
She noted, however, that she was still set on pursuing her athletics career despite briefly swapping the track for the catwalk.
With her striking looks, athletic figure and following of millions on social media, it’s easy to see why Hugo Boss would turn to Schmidt for some promotion.
The track temptress has previously revealed that Playboy reached out to her over the possibility of a somewhat more revealing shoot, but that she would prefer to “give way to others” in that respect.
Schmidt has also been at pains to show herself already gearing up for next season, sharing a host of training clips on social media and writing “a lot of laps today” just before she set off for Italy.
Former Russian football international Dmitri Khokhlov is taking Facebook to court, accusing the social media giant of causing “moral harm” by interpreting his surname as a derogatory term for Ukrainians.
Khokhlov, 45, filed a lawsuit against the company headed by billionaire Mark Zuckerberg at Moscow’s Solntsevsky District Court back in July. A preliminary hearing was held earlier this month, according to news outlet Octagon.
The angry Khokhlov has accused Facebook and Instagram of blocking uses of his surname through their algorithms because of its similarity to the word ‘khokhol’, which is sometimes used derisively to refer to Ukrainians.
Reports of Facebook banning the use of ‘khokhol’ and its derivatives first emerged in 2015, triggering debate over its application.
The term traditionally described the Ukrainian Cossack style of haircut but has sometimes taken on derogatory connotations when used by Russian speakers.
“My name is being blocked. Neither me, my friends or acquaintances can use Facebook and Instagram normally,” Khokhlov was quoted as saying regarding his case.
“A lot of people I know called me and said that any mention of my name is blocked. And they get banned for a week. We first noticed this at the end of spring.”
Khokhlov, who manages Russian Premier League team Rotor Volgograd, is said to be seeking compensation for ‘moral damages’ from the social media company and wants changes to their systems.
As a prominent football figure in his homeland, Khokhlov’s name features frequently in interviews, news reports and among comments from fans, which he says all risk being blocked.
“The claim contains a requirement to prohibit the defendant, that is, the American company [Facebook], from performing certain actions against Khokhlov,” said district court official Georgi Yengibarov.
Krasnodar-born Khokhlov made 53 appearances for Russia during his playing days, scoring six times.
The former midfielder’s club career took in spells at Moscow clubs CSKA, Dynamo, and Lokomotiv, as well as stints in the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven and at Real Sociedad in Spain.
Khokhlov was named Dynamo Moscow manager in 2017, serving until he was sacked in 2019.
He was appointed head coach at Rotor in May of this year, ahead of the club’s second season back in the Russian Premier League after a 16-year absence.
A sizeable LAPD police union is going after the Los Angeles District Attorney after it was decided that NBA star Jaxson Hayes would not be charged with a felony after allegedly attacking an officer during his arrest in July.
The New Orleans Pelicans center was booked for a felony charge of battery on a law enforcement officer and then hospitalized to treat his minor injuries after reportedly being involved in a violent confrontation.
Local police were first called out to a domestic disturbance in the Los Angeles area, after Hayes’ girlfriend supposedly said she was scared he was about to physically harm her.
Once they attempted to gain access to the address, Hayes allegedly got physical for real, which caused a brawl to break out.
So serious was the dust-up that police put out a call detailing how an “officer needs help,” as detailed by US outlet TMZ.
Jaxson Hayes was arrested last night after an alleged altercation with police, per @TMZ.
The imposing 6’ft 11in, 220lbs baller was reportedly released after paying bail set at $25,000.
Yet despite there being video evidence that he pushed an officer in body camera footage, the DA – George Gascon – won’t charge Hayes with a felony which has caused outrage among the Los Angeles Police Protective League that represents over 9,000 cops in the Los Angeles area.
“George Gascon’s latest criminals first airball puts a target on the back of every police officer in Los Angeles,” the LAPPL told TMZ.
“Gascon’s refusal to prosecute Jaxson Hayes for violently attacking and injuring an officer during his n-word laced tirade is nothing more than a declaration that it’s open season to attack cops and it’s shameful,” it continued.
Like the correspondence implies, Gascon is a divisive figure who has been accused of taking a soft stance on crime by his critics and failing to offer protection to law enforcement officers.
But Hayes isn’t out of the woods just because Gascon has decided to back off on him, as the city attorney in LA could still try to convict him on misdemeanor charges.
As said, the 21-year-old appears to push the officer in the LAPD’s clip, but what happened next is a point of controversy.
Cops got Hayes to the ground, but as a struggle continued, one used his taser at least once with Hayes saying he wasn’t able to breathe at one point during the arrest.
The LAPD have launched an ongoing investigation to determine whether excessive force was used or not, while the LAPPL have blasted the NBA for failing to discipline their man.
“As for the NBA, their silence is deafening when it comes to one of their players assaulting an officer and thwarting a domestic violence investigation,” the union said.
“Apparently, their policy on preventing domestic violence was created more for SportsCenter than it is to actually hold its players accountable. Real classy.”
Golf pin-up Paige Spiranac has said she wants Team US captain Steve Stricker to put together bitter rivals Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau at the upcoming Ryder Cup, claiming they would be “unstoppable”.
The ex-pro golfer and social media sensation took to Twitter to voice her wishes for the epic competition against Europe, which will be played at Whistling Straits on the shores of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin from Friday onwards.
“Bryson/Brooks would be an unstoppable team. Pair them together. It’s what we all want,” she wrote.
As golf fans will know, Koepka and DeChambeau form one of the modern game’s fiercest rivalries.
Not just two of its most prolific winners, they share what is said to be a genuine dislike of each other.
Bryson/Brooks would be an unstoppable team. Pair them together. It’s what we all want.
More recently in May this year, while doing an interview at the PGA Championship, Koepka complained about noisy spikes on DeChambeau’s shoes as he walked behind him.
In a viral video, he told his interviewer: “I lost my train of thought, yeah. Hearing that bullsh*t.”
Though now backing their union, stunning Spiranac quipped that she would “pay an unlimited amount” to see the men physically settle their differences.
In the build-up to the sport’s most prestigious team tournament, however, Koepka has attempted to defuse the row this week.
“A lot of this social media stuff has definitely been driven by a lot of external factors, not necessarily us two,” he said.
“We had some great conversations during Tour Championship week when we had dinner. Then this week I sat down and had dinner with him last night, and it was fine.
“I think there may be something fun coming up here moving forward, but won’t speak too much more on that,” Koepka concluded.
Postponed from last year and therefore named Ryder Cup 2020 like other delayed spectacles such as the football European Championships and the Olympics this summer, this edition will be the 43rd in golfing history.
Stricker, who may not heed Spiranac’s advice, will attempt to win back the crown for the Americans after Europe won in France in 2018.
The US restored pride on home soil in Minnesota in 2016.
But this century, save for another rare American victory in Kentucky in 2008, has mostly seen European dominance with the outfit this time led by Padraig Harrington lifting the trophy seven times out of a possible nine.
Former undisputed world heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe has reportedly been pulled from a celebrity boxing match, following concerns over the fight featuring fellow veteran Evander Holyfield earlier this month.
Former heavyweight king Holyfield, 58, lasted less than one round in an exhibition comeback against former UFC champion Vitor Belfort in Florida on September 11, in an event organized by entertainment platform Triller which was widely condemned as a dangerous farce.
Bowe – whose only defeat in a 45-fight professional career came to Holyfield in 1993 – was slated to follow in the footsteps of his former rival as well as the likes of Mike Tyson by returning to the ring in search of a payday.
In the case of 54-year-old Bowe, that was due to come in the form of a showdown against former NBA champion Lamar Odom at James L. Knight Arena in Miami on October 2.
But according to TMZ Sports, Bowe has now been pulled out of the event and a new opponent will be sought for the 41-year-old Odom.
The decision will come as a relief for many fans and pundits who had been concerned by what transpired with Holyfield, and also by footage of Bowe looking labored in training for the bout.
The backlash and potential dangers appear to have proved too much for organizers Celebrity Boxing and founder Damon Feldman to stomach.
Here’s Riddick Bowe, in preparation for his upcoming fight, and he’s being told “good job” This makes me feel sick, another man should be no where near a boxing ring @loudibellapic.twitter.com/spPFBF85Uv
Bowe last fought professionallyin 2008, earning a unanimous decision victory in an eight-round contest with Germany’s Gene Pukall.
A former Ring Magazine Fighter of the Year, Bowe famously defeated Holyfield in two of their three fights.
Talk of his return has caused consternation, with promoter and producer Lou Di Bella tweeting that the proposed fight was “barbaric and beyond dangerous.”
“This is a human train-wreck waiting to happen,” added Di Bella.
No. Just NO!!!! This is barbaric and beyond dangerous. The fact that no regulatory body has already put the kibosh on this is shocking and unacceptable. This isn’t sport. This isn’t #boxing. This is a human train-wreck waiting to happen. WTF! pic.twitter.com/s8oUWk5RrQ
Bowe’s life has famously gone off the rails on several occasions outside the ring, including when the former heavyweight icon spent a 17-month stint in prison for kidnapping his family.
During an appeal into his sentence, Bowe’s legal team had argued that he had suffered brain damage from taking blows to the head, which impaired his decision-making.
The fighter known as ‘Big Daddy’ also endured financial woes after frittering away much of the fortune he earned inside the ring.
Former LA Lakers star Odom is one of a host of names from outside the world of boxing to cash in on the appetite for celebrity crossover fights in recent years.
He appeared in an exhibition match with singer Aaron Carter in June of this year, knocking him out in the second round in farcical scenes.
He will now await a new opponent in Miami in October.
