SOCCER

GERMANY: Bayern Munich hired former Chelsea Manager Thomas Tuchel as coach to replace Julian Nagelsmann after losing the lead of the Bundesliga and ahead of a potentially title-deciding game.

Bayern chief executive Oliver Kahn blamed “big fluctuations in performance” and said the squad wasn’t showing its true potential under Nagelsmann.

Tuchel’s first game in charge will be April 1 against Borussia Dortmund, which is one point ahead of the 10-time defending Bundesliga champions.

EURO 2024 QUALIFYING: Kylian Mbappé set up a goal by Antoine Griezmann in the second minute and later slotted home two goals to headline France’s 4-0 win over the Netherlands in European Championship qualifying.

• Romelu Lukaku scored all three goals in Belgium’s 3-0 win at Sweden.

TENNIS

MIAMI OPEN: Carlos Alcaraz defeated Facundo Bagnis, 6-0, 6-2, to advance to the third round, and No. 9 seed Taylor Fritz began his tournament with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Emilio Nava.

Fritz, the top-ranked American, will next face No. 24 Denis Shapovalov.

On the women’s side, Bianca Andreescu came from a set down to oust No. 7 seed Maria Sakkari, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. Andreescu will face Sofia Kenin in the third round.

OLYMPICS

UKRAINE: Ukraine renewed its push to keep Russian athletes out of the Olympics ahead of an International Olympic Committee board meeting next week that is expected to set the framework for their return to international sports events.

Vadym Guttsait, who is Ukraine’s sports minister and leads the national Olympic committee, was sharply critical of the IOC’s push to reintegrate Russia and its ally, Belarus, into world sports. Any return, Guttsait said, would highlight the inequality caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“We do not have normal conditions for training and preparation for the Olympic Games. At the same time, the Russians have all the essentials to train and perform inside their country. They sleep at night, but we don’t sleep at night,” he told reporters.

The IOC is expected to set out criteria for Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as qualifying events for the Paris Olympics ramp up. The IOC argues for letting the two countries’ athletes compete as neutrals without national symbols.

HOCKEY

NHL: Columbus Blue Jackets forward Patrik Laine is out 2-4 weeks after straining a triceps muscle in practice, yet another blow to NHL’s worst team, which has been hampered by injuries all season.

GOLF

PGA: Matt Wallace of England birdied his last three holes for a 6-under 66, giving him a one-shot lead going into the weekend in the Corales Puntacana Championship in the Dominican Republic.

Wallace was at 11 under overall. He had a one-shot lead over Sam Stevens and Wyndham Clark, who each shot 65.

EUROPEAN TOUR: Nick Bachem led at the halfway stage of the Jonsson Workwear Open in Johannesburg after a second-round 66 took him one shot clear at 13 under.

France’s Romain Langasque and Finland’s Sami Valimaki were at 12 under. Langasque made two eagles in his 64, and Valimaki had eight birdies and just one bogey for a 65.

FIGURE SKATING

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: Kaori Sakamoto fended off a challenge from South Korea’s Lee Hae-in to become the first Japanese woman to defend her title.

Sakamoto, who led after the short program in Saitama, Japan, finished with a total of 224.61 points.

Lee finished first in the free skate with a spectacular performance that featured six triple jumps but came up just short in the overall standings with a total of 220.94 points.

Loena Hendrickx of Belgium, the 2022 world silver medalist, was third with 210.42 points.

In ice dancing, Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States took the lead with a personal-best score of 91.94 in the rhythm dance.

« Previous