Formula 1 returns to Malaysia in October after nine years of absence

With victories in open water swimming, rowing, sport shooting and figure skating, Mexico consolidated its first place in the 2026 Central American and Caribbean Games on Sunday.

The great blow of the Mexican delegation occurred on the beach of Sans Soucí. Paulo Strehlke and Dalia Moreno won the gold medals in the 3 kilometer open water races.

Melissa Márquez and Aylin Ibarra (double pair of short rows), Luis Gallardo (skeet shooting) and Valentina Loma (figure skating free event) also climbed to the top of the podium.

Updated medal table

At the close of Sunday, Mexico has 16 gold, 15 silver and 12 bronze (43 total), well ahead of Colombia (6-8-5, 19) and Cuba (6-2-6, 14). Venezuela is in fourth place with 4-5-8 and the Dominican Republic is fifth with 3-2-8.

The emotional day

The emotional note was provided by the Venezuelan judoka Anriquelis Barrios, who won gold in the -63 kg category by defeating the Mexican Olympic runner-up Prisca Awiti in the final fight. Barrios won by ippon.

“This victory is for all of you, for all those children, all those affected people. May you feel a little happiness,” said Barrios, dedicating his victory to those affected by the two earthquakes that hit Venezuela on June 24.

Awiti recognized the competitive level of the region:

“I feel a little sad but also proud to have reached the final. Obviously I would have been happier with the gold, but my category always has a high level. That’s sport, sometimes you win and today I had to lose; we have to move on.”

Mexico maintains a comfortable advantage in the medal table, with Colombia and Cuba as its closest pursuers. The competition will continue in the coming days.

Fifth scepter for Pogacar

Tadej Pogacar confirmed his place among cycling legends by winning his fifth Tour de France. The 27-year-old Slovenian equaled Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault as the only ones with five titles.

“I’m left speechless. It’s an incredible day,” he declared after the last stage in Paris. His final lead over Remco Evenepoel was 6 minutes and 26 seconds.

Mexican Isaac Del Toro, 22 years old and Pogacar’s teammate on the UAE Team Emirates XRG, made his debut in the Tour and finished third overall, 9:42 behind.

The final stage, an 88.7km circuit around Paris, included the climb to Montmartre three times. Victory of the day went to Mathieu van der Poel, who overtook Jasper Philipsen and Mads Pedersen in the final sprint. “I thought the sprinters would catch up with us, so I launched my attack from very far away,” explained the Dutchman.

Pogacar tried to win the stage, but gave in to the power of Van der Poel and finished in 30th place. “Now I have to find a new goal to pursue,” said the Slovenian, without ruling out the Vuelta a España that starts on August 22.

The Dane Jonas Vingegaard, two-time Tour champion and Pogacar’s main rival, abandoned after a fall in the 15th stage. “It’s a shame that Jonas and others fell. I hope we can all fight again next year,” lamented Pogacar.

Richard Carapaz took the polka dot jersey as best climber. “I fought hard to win it, it’s the best feeling,” said the 33-year-old Ecuadorian.

With five stage victories in this edition, Pogacar has 26 in total. His dominance in the mountains and his cold blood made the difference. The crowd roared on the Champs-Elysees as his teammates posed with him after confirming the title.

Physical discomfort forced us to stop

Noah Lyles stopped midway through the 200-meter final at the U.S. track and field championships in New York on Sunday. The four-time world champion in the distance felt a muscle pull and decided not to force it. “I thought: this is the time to stop. There is no reason to force this,” he declared. Garrett Kaalund, 22 years old and fresh from the NCAA college title, took advantage of the opportunity and took the win with a time of 20.04.

Lyles, who a week earlier had won the 100 meters, explained that the discomfort was “kind of like a cramp.” He assured that he is fine and just needs to stretch and replenish electrolytes. This was just the fourth time Lyles has lost the 200 since dominating the event in 2018. His other losses occurred in the last two Olympic Games. Still, he remains tied with Michael Johnson with five national titles in the distance.

In the women’s division, world champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden defended her title with a time of 21.69, her best mark of the season. Her main rival, Gabby Thomas, did not participate in nationals. Jefferson-Wooden was optimistic about the future: “I feel like women’s sprinting today is interesting from the moment we get to the starting line. These next few years are going to be interesting to watch.”

There are no world championships this year, but World Athletics is preparing the Ultimate Championships, with a first prize of $150,000. The Los Angeles Olympics are two years away, and the competition in the 200 meters promises to be intense.