Putin plays with f ire in his new doctrine
Of late Vladimir Putin has shifted Russia’s nuclear doctrine to a more directly and openly retaliatory posture in response to any attack by Ukraine or any NATO country using longer-range US missiles.
China’s Sun Yingsha and Lin Shidong got their championship trophies on Sunday at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Champions Macao 2024. Sun, also known as “ShaSha” among table tennis fans, won against her compatriot Wang Yidi 4-2, bagging her third WTT Champions trophy of 2024 after having emerged victorious in Incheon and Chongqing. It was also Sun’s fifth WTT Champions title.
Sun said this was an excellent start for the next Olympic cycle during a press briefing, adding that her form had improved a lot through each match, reports Xinhua. “There will be many changes and competition over the next four years, but I’m very happy to win the first championship, which has given me a lot of confidence,” Sun said.
Lin smashed Qiu Dang of Germany 4-0, lifting his first WTT Championship title. After the match, the 19-year-old told the press that his performance had exceeded his expectations.
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Sun fought her way into the finals with a 4-2 victory over Japan’s Miwa Harimoto on Saturday, while Lin had upset world No. 1 Wang Chuqin 4-1 in the semifinals.
Sun and Lin mentioned they were looking forward to the upcoming China Smash 2024, scheduled for September 26 to October 6 in Beijing.
Earlier, Sun Yingsha and Wang Chuqin of China both had advanced to the semifinals on Friday, with Sun defeating South Korea’s Joo Cheon-hui 3-1 and Wang smashing Joo’s compatriot Cho Dae-seong 3-0. In the men’s section, Chinese Taipei’s young player Kao Cheng-Jui edged Olympic runner-up Truls Moregard of Sweden 3-2, and China’s Lin Shidong upset Lin Yun-Ju of Chinese Taipei in straight games.
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