Wales will play in the the China Cup in March, along with Uruguay and the Czech Republic. The competition was held for the first time in January between Chile, Croatia, Iceland and host China. The prospect of Real Madrid footballer Gareth Bale traveling to the Far East to take part is "thought to be a major factor in Wales being invited." The games will take place in Nanning, China (BBC, 11/8).
Tennis line judges will be replaced by computerized calls on the opening day of the Next Gen ATP Finals on Tuesday. Hawk-Eye review technology has been a "long-standing feature of professional tennis." But the ATP has "taken it a step further this week with all lines at the innovative Milan showpiece" for players aged 21 and under "controlled solely by the state-of-the art system originally invented for missile tracking" (REUTERS, 11/7).
North Korea is "not on the list of entrants" for the World Weightlifting Championships, which will take place in the U.S. from Nov. 28-Dec. 5. The country's lifters, who have won five Olympic Gold Medals since '08, "were expected to shine" in Anaheim, Calif., but "did not feature on the entry list" released by the Int'l Weightlifting Federation on Tuesday. North Korea "gave no explanation for not entering a team for the championships" (REUTERS, 11/7).
The Rugby League World Cup is viewed as a "third-tier competition" in Australia, Wales coach John Kear said. Kear believes the tournament is "viewed as inferior" to the State of Origin and the National Rugby League. He said, "You have got to have wake-up calls and I think we are getting one. I get the impression from speaking to people involved in the game in the southern hemisphere that this is looked upon as a third-tier comp" (BBC, 11/7).
