Pato O'Ward celebrates his second IndyCar victory in Toronto

▲ The Mexican won a race that was one of the most exciting on street circuits. Photo AP

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, July 21, 2025, p. 9

Just a week ago, Mexican driver Patricio O'Ward claimed his first IndyCar victory of the season. Eight days later, he did it again, returning to the top spot on the podium by winning the Toronto Grand Prix, thus narrowing the gap on championship leader Alex Palou. Palou had a 129-point lead over the Arrow McLaren driver, but now leads by just 99 with four races remaining.

O'Ward celebrated his second win of the season, following his July 12 victory at Iowa. The Arrow McLaren star took the lead on the Toronto street circuit after a pit stop with 27 laps remaining and overtook Rinus VeeKay and Kyffin Simpson at the finish line, completing the podium. Spaniard Alex Palou finished in twelfth place.

I can't say I saw it coming, but I felt really good. I knew I had a great car, and the guys got the strategy right , O'Ward said after his ninth career IndyCar win.

For his part, Palou, who has seven wins this year, finished twelfth at the Canadian circuit. Chasing his fourth IndyCar title in the last five seasons, the Spaniard saw his lead in the standings reduced from 129 to 99 points over O'Ward. The next round will be held on July 27 at Laguna Seca (California), and the final three will take place in August in Portland, Milwaukee, and Nashville.

Before the race, Pato had a feeling this Sunday would be a great day, especially considering it was a circuit that had been a challenge for the team. And he remembered this once he won.

I'm very happy for everyone on the team. I never expected to do so well in Toronto, because it's been the most challenging circuit for us in the past , admitted the Monterrey native.

O'Ward and his team made the smartest decisions. They started with alternate tires, but changed them before the third lap when a caution flag came out. He then made three more stops for the primary tires, allowing him to compete the rest of the way.

Palou, on the other hand, used the primary compound tires at the start, and the planned strategy for managing pit stops in response to the eventual flags seemed likely to yield a good result; however, he finished the final part of the race in the middle of the pack.

Well, I chose the strategy, so that's what we did wrong today. I was pushing for that strategy. I thought it would give us the best chance of winning; I wanted to be up front to avoid getting caught in traffic , Palou acknowledged.

Days like this happen in motorsport. We knew it would be a risky strategy instead of starting with alternatives. It more or less worked. We managed to open up a big lead after the first yellow, but it wasn't enough today. It wasn't our day , he added.

O'Ward won a race that was one of the most exciting ever held on street circuits. In the city center, the battle was a mix of strategy and daring, with the right tires, where the limited street space and 11 curves over 2.878 kilometers turned it into an adrenaline rush.

With information from AFP

From the Editorial Staff and AFP

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, July 21, 2025, p. 9

Isaac del Toro is in top form and will compete in the second edition of the Terres de l'Ebre Classic this Monday. The 21-year-old Baja California native continues his consolidation in international cycling after his second place in the Giro d'Italia and his recent victory in the Tour of Austria, where he won three stages and delivered a performance that shows him growing in maturity and reaching his full potential.

The Clásica, which starts today in Roquetes, consists of 185.78 kilometers with a pair of third-category mountain passes. The UAE Team Emirates riders are particularly prominent, with Spaniard Juan Ayuso, who had no luck in the Giro , and Mexican Del Toro among the stars. This pairing adds a special touch, as in addition to anticipating an exciting race due to the attacking potential of these riders, both are vying for prominence within their own teams.

Del Toro and Ayuso will be joined by top-level cyclists such as Italian Alessandro Covi, young Pablo Torres, and Basque climber Igor Arrieta; as well as a powerful roulade rider, Dane Julius Johansen, who was impeccable in supporting the peloton during the Tour of Austria, and Slovakia's Matthias Schwarzbacher.

This race will attract a lot of attention, as it coincides with the rest day of the Tour de France. It's a very demanding and technical route, allowing the most daring to challenge themselves on the climbs and fast sections, surrounded by the most representative landscape of the Terres de l'Ebre region.

This will allow the Mexican cyclist to remain in the competition this season after his magnificent performance at the Giro , which has established him not only as a promising rider but as a cyclist who recognizes the leading role he has earned. Although he will no longer participate in the Vuelta a Espana, allowing him to recover for greater challenges in 2026, these types of competitions keep him in shape and he gains experience and recognition.

Del Toro acknowledged that he's still very young, and after this intense and successful year, he must also take care to avoid injuries that could hinder his successful run. For now, he's earned a special place on his team, which boasts a wealth of top-class names, such as the current Tour de France leader, Slovenian Tadej Pogacar.

After winning the Tour of Austria a week ago, Del Toro admitted that he still hasn't fully grasped what he's been through this year. "I'm still dreaming ," he summed up.

Tour de France

Belgian champion Tim Wellens won stage 15 of the Tour de France, finishing in Carcassonne, on a day with no moves among the favorites.

With this fifth victory in 15 stages, a third of the stage wins so far in the Tour have gone to the Emirati team, although four have gone to Pogacar, who remains in the lead.

His Slovenian leader, who arrived with the rest of the favorites more than six minutes behind Wellens, retains the yellow jersey with more than four minutes over the Dane Jonas Vingegaard (Visma), and almost eight over the German from Bora, Florian Lipowitz.

▲ China claimed its fourth consecutive title and proved it has plenty of talent. Photo Xinhua

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, July 21, 2025, p. a10

The Mexican artistic swimming team opened up new ground unthinkable a decade ago by including Diego Villalobos in the free routine at the World Championships in Singapore, where the team finished sixth.

One day after winning the bronze medal in the technical solo event, the Guadalajara native competed alongside Regina Alférez, Fernanda Arellano, Miranda Barrera, Itzamary González, Glenda Inzunza, Joana Jiménez, and Pamela Toscano to become the first male member of a team in this type of competition.

Villalobos, 20, danced to the strains of "Monarch Butterflies" with the national team, earning 309.5349 points after obtaining 69.100 for difficulty, 135.1500 for artistic impression, and 174.3849 for execution. Mexico was the highest-ranking Latin American country.

Diego only joined the national team this year, but he's developed good chemistry with his teammates.

China was crowned with 348,4779, followed by Japan (334,7232) and Spain, third (321,1328).

Today, the competition will continue with the men's solo freestyle finals, featuring Villalobos and the women's technical duet, featuring Mexicans Arellano and González.

Maintains hegemony

The Chin team, coached by Spaniard Anna Tarrés, won its fourth consecutive title, and 17-year-old Xu Huiyan achieved her second gold in two days.

Although the team lost two key players due to injury after the World Cup Super Final, the Asians demonstrated that they have more than enough talent to fill the gap.

Tarrés arrived in China in 2023 after winning four Olympic medals with Spain. His most recent achievement with the Asian team was the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Spain returns to the podium

In Singapore, Spain returned to the World Cup podium after more than a decade of drought.

After finishing fourth in three consecutive world championships, the Europeans won a medal for the first time since Barcelona 2013, and they did so with a novel and risky approach, with a mixed team featuring Dennis González alongside Iris Tió, Txell Ferré, Paula Ramírez, Cristina Arámbula, Alisa Ozhogina, Marina García Polo, and Sara Saldaña.

The team free routines last three minutes and 30 seconds, making them the longest of the 11 artistic swimming programs at the world championships. China earned $50,000 for the victory.

Wellbrock, fourth gold

The German athletes regained the gold medal in the 4x1500m mixed relay after missing out on the podium at Fukuoka 2023 and Doha 2024, while Florian Wellbrock, one of their members, earned his fourth gold medal.

The team took no chances in Singapore, assembling their best possible lineup to reclaim the title they won at Budapest 2022. The team remained undefeated after winning gold medals in the 10, 5, and 3-kilometer sprint heats .

"I couldn't sleep well yesterday ," Wellbrock said. "I was also nervous going into today's relay. I'm very proud of my team; we did a great job. Four golds in four events is incredible ."

With information from Europa Press

Ap

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, July 21, 2025, p. a10

Zurich. England defender Jess Carter has said she has experienced online racism during the Women's European Championship. The player was heavily criticized after her team's opening defeat to France, despite the Three Lions remaining in the semifinals of the tournament.

"Since the beginning of the tournament, I've experienced a lot of racial abuse ," he wrote in an Instagram post yesterday. "While I feel every fan has the right to their opinion on the performance and outcome, I don't agree with or think it's right to attack someone based on their appearance or race ."

Carter has made 49 appearances for the national team and was part of the squad that won the Euro 2022, as well as an integral part of the World Cup runner-up team against Spain the following year.

As always, I'm grateful for all the support from the true fans, but I'm taking this step (staying away from social media) to protect myself and stay focused on helping the team in any way I can , she added.

The Football Association has contacted the police in the UK. Our priority is Jess and giving her all the support she needs , said FA CEO Mark Bullingham. As soon as we learned of the racist abuse she received, we immediately contacted the police .

Bullingham added that the FA had put in place measures to respond quickly, as sadly, this isn't the first time this has happened to an England player . Her teammates responded to her post with messages of support.

England defender Lucy Bronze wrote about the group's decision. "I think it was just a question of what we felt as a group: Is the message as strong as it used to be? Is it really having an impact? Because for us, it doesn't seem like it's happening, as these things still happen to our players in the biggest tournaments of their lives ."

▲ The Hidalgo team failed to secure its third consecutive title after the 2025 Clausura and the Campeon de Campeonas. Photo courtesy of Tuzas

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, July 21, 2025, p. a11

Pachuca's Tuzas saw their winning streak halted after being thrashed 3-0 by Brazilian club Palmeiras in the semifinals of The Women's Cup, played yesterday at Arena Barueri in Sao Paulo, preventing them from advancing to the final.

With this defeat in their debut in the competition, the Hidalgo team, which lost the opportunity to win its third consecutive title after recently winning the Clausura 2025 tournament of the Liga MX Femenil and the Campeón de Campeonas, will face Sao Paulo of Brazil next Thursday for third place.

Meanwhile, the Rio de Janeiro team will fight for the tournament title that same day against Racing Louisville of the United States.

Palmeiras' goals were the work of Brena Carolina Vianna (25th minute), Soll Oliveira (39th) and Taina Maranhão (60th, from a penalty).

The Brazilian team made the most of their home advantage and imposed their influence from the start of the match, while the Mexican squad, led by Óscar Torres, was unable to find a way into the opponent's box.

Palmeiras quickly opened the scoring. In the 25th minute, Brena headed a corner kick past Tuzas goalkeeper Esthefanny Barreras to make it 1-0.

The home side's second goal came in the 38th minute, after Oliveira took advantage of a defensive error by the Hidalgo side to send the ball into the back of the net and make it 2-0 before halftime.

In the second half, the game continued in the same vein. Palmeiras dominated possession, while the Tuzas, led by their striker Charlyn Corral, lacked clarity in attack and committed several defensive errors.

The lack of goals caused Pachuca's squad to fall into despair, which led to the Brazilian team's third blow. A foul in the box by Daniela Flores was awarded a penalty, which Taina correctly executed to make it 3-0 in the 60th minute.

In stoppage time, the Tuzas were reduced to one player less in the 91st minute after another foul by Flores, who, after blocking an obvious goal-scoring opportunity, earned himself a red card, further compounding his team's painful defeat.