Brazilian Jiu Jitsu great Leandro Lo shot in head in Sao Paulo club

One of Brazil's greatest Jiu Jitsu champions of all time, Leandro Lo, has been shot in the head in a nightclub in São Paulo, BBC reported.

Lo, 33, was at a club in the Saude neighbourhood when he was allegedly shot by an off-duty police officer who is now on the run, police said.

Lo was taken to hospital where he was declared brain dead hours later.

He was one of the most successful Jiu Jitsu athletes of all time, having won the World Championships eight times.

According to a police report seen by local media, Lo - whose full name is Leandro Lo Pereira do Nascimento - was approached by an off-duty police officer while out with friends at the Clube Sirio - a sports and social club to the south of the capital.

Witnesses said the police officer started making threatening gestures with a glass bottle at the table. Lo then immobilised him and told him to go away.

The police officer then allegedly pulled a gun out and shot Lo in the forehead, police said.

Lo was rushed to hospital, where he was declared brain dead, according to his family lawyer. His family said his condition is irreversible, according to Reuters.

An attempted murder investigation has been opened and police are searching for the suspect, police said.

Lo won the World Championships eight times in three different weight classes, an all time record.

Chelsea win at injury-hit Everton in scrappy game

Chelsea opened the Premier League season with victory over Everton as Jorginho's penalty decided a scrappy contest at Goodison Park, BBC reported.

Thomas Tuchel introduced summer signings Kalidou Koulibaly and Raheem Sterling from the start but it was one of Chelsea's established stars who settled affairs when Jorginho rolled a composed penalty past Jordan Pickford in first-half stoppage time following Abdoulaye Doucoure's foul on Ben Chilwell.

Everton, without a recognised striker following the sale of Richarlison and injury to Dominic Calvert-Lewin, battled gamely but were woefully short of quality and threat in attack.

Manager Frank Lampard's cause was not helped by a serious early injury to defender Ben Godfrey, who was taken off on a stretcher following a challenge on Kai Havertz and was later confirmed to have fractured his leg, with Yerry Mina another casualty in the second half, according to BBC.

Chelsea survived in relative comfort and were able to give a debut to new signing Marc Cucurella, the defender signed from Brighton in a deal that could eventually by worth £62m, as they made it a winning start.

Brittney Griner: US urges Russia to accept deal to free jailed basketball star

The US has urged Moscow to accept a deal to free basketball player Brittney Griner, who has been sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison, Associated Press reported.

The double Olympic winner was convicted of possessing and smuggling drugs after admitting to possessing cannabis oil.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said the US offer was "a serious proposal", but gave no details.

US media reports suggest Washington is offering a prisoner swap involving a Russian arms trafficker.

Viktor Bout - known as the "merchant of death" - is serving a 25 year-prison sentence in the US.

He could be transferred by Washington to the Russian authorities in exchange for Griner and former US Marine Paul Whelan, the reports say.

Whelan, who has US, British, Canadian and Irish passports, was sentenced in 2020 to 16 years in jail in Russia after being convicted of spying.

Mr Kirby told reporters that the duo were being wrongfully detained and needed to be let go.

On the subject of the US proposal, Mr Kirby said: "We urge them to accept it. They should have accepted it weeks ago when we first made it."

But according to Reuters news agency, one stumbling block is that Russia wants to add convicted murderer Vadim Krasikov, who is in prison in Germany, to the proposed swap.

When questioned about this possibility, Mr Kirby dismissed it, saying: "I don't think we go so far as to even call it a counter-offer."

Griner, 31, told the court she had made an "honest mistake" and had not intended to break the law.

Considered one of the best female players in the world, she was detained in February at an airport near Moscow when vape cartridges containing cannabis oil were found in her luggage. She had come to Russia to play club basketball during the US off-season, according to Associated Press.

Soon afterwards, Russia invaded Ukraine and her case has become subject to high-profile diplomacy between the US and Russia.

Her defence team said they would appeal against the verdict.

Griner's Phoenix Mercury teammates staged a gesture of solidarity on Thursday, when they and their Connecticut Sun opponents observed 42 seconds of silence before their game, in honour of her number 42 jersey.

US President Joe Biden called her sentencing "unacceptable", adding: "I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends, and teammates."

Meanwhile Secretary of State Antony Blinken added: "Russia, and any country engaging in wrongful detention, represents a threat to the safety of everyone travelling, working and living abroad."

Mr Blinken raised the issue in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov last week, in the first conversation between the two men since the start of the war in Ukraine.

Both are now in Cambodia for a meeting of the Association of South-East Asian Nations. The US says Mr Blinken will try to speak with Mr Lavrov again while they are there, Associated Press reported.

Cristiano Ronaldo & Harry Maguire most abused players on Twitter - report

Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Maguire have received the most Twitter abuse of any Premier League players, a new report has found, BBC reported.

Ofcom analysis of 2.3 million tweets in the first half of last season found nearly 60,000 abusive posts, affecting seven in 10 top-flight players.

Half of that abuse was directed at just 12 individuals - eight from United.

However, the study by the Alan Turing Institute also found the vast majority of fans use social media responsibly, according to BBC.

"These findings shed light on a dark side to the beautiful game," said Kevin Bakhurst, Ofcom's group director for broadcasting and online content.

"Online abuse has no place in sport, nor in wider society, and tackling it requires a team effort."