French security forces began locking down large parts of central Paris on Thursday ahead of the hugely complex Olympics opening ceremony next week on the river Seine.

The ceremony, staged for the first time outside a stadium, will involve around 80 boats ferrying international athletes on a six km (3.7 mile) route along the river Seine towards the Eiffel Tower, said the official, Lambis Konstantinidis.

"I thought my father had never asked for anything and this might be his last request. So I gathered all my strength and agreed."

Otherwise, the marathon swimming event will take place at the reserve site of Vaires-sur-Marne

Ateequr Rahman, the first international gold medal-winning shooter from Bangladesh, breathed his last at the Suhrawardy Medical College at around 10:00am today.

Sports stars have started voicing their support for the quota protests and condemning the violence unleashed on the protesters across the country over the last two days.

The 38-year-old Spanish left-hander has a protected ranking of ninth to put himself into the field for the Flushing Meadows fortnight, which begins on August 26.

Robiul Islam will become the ninth shooter from Bangladesh to compete in the Olympic Games through wild-card entries. The multiple-medal winner in junior and senior level, in bot air rifle and air gun events, dreams of becoming the first shooter from the country to make it into the final round of the Olympics.

"I don't have any limitations in my mind. I still want to keep going and play as long as I feel like I can play on this high level."

National chess champion FIDE Master (FM) Manon Reja Neer narrowly missed out on attaining the title of International Master (IM) after finishing second in the Under-18 Open Group of the 7th Western Asian Youth Chess Championship in Sri Lanka today.

"So let's see if at the end of my career it's going to be 25, 30, 15, four (Slams). I don't know. All I want to say is I want to keep enjoying and let's see what the future brings to me."

It’s an incredible honour to represent Bangladesh on the world’s biggest stage. The wildcard entry is a recognition of the hard work and dedication I've put into my sport, and it’s a great opportunity to showcase my abilities and make my country proud.

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz produced an utterly ruthless performance to dismantle Serbia's Novak Djokovic 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/4) in a rematch of last year's Wimbledon final to successfully defend his title on Sunday.

Djokovic will be playing in his 10th Wimbledon final and 37th at the 75 majors in which he has played.

Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic defeated Italy's Jasmine Paolini to win the Wimbledon women's title on Saturday for her second Grand Slam singles triumph.

Daniil Medvedev bizarrely called umpire Eva Asderaki a "small cat" during the Wimbledon rant that earned the Russian a code violation in his semi-final loss against Carlos Alcaraz on Friday.

Italy's Jasmine Paolini has set her sights on capping a "crazy" run to Saturday's Wimbledon final against Barbora Krejcikova by winning a maiden Grand Slam title. Meanwhile, Krejcikova will be hoping to win a second Grand Slam final of her career after winning the French Open in 2021.

Carlos Alcaraz wants to play his part in a "perfect" sporting Sunday for Spain as he targets Wimbledon final victory against Novak Djokovic before his country face England in the Euro 2024 title match.

Novak Djokovic has backed Carlos Alcaraz to rack up more Grand Slam titles, but the Serb hopes that run doesn't start when they clash in a blockbuster Wimbledon final on Sunday.

I have been working really hard in Thailand, sometimes I have even broken down in tears from the intensity of the training. If I can clock less than 52 seconds, all the pain will be worth it.