Porzingis career doubts, Bondare's retirement and Svitolina's divorce: the week in sport
The past week in Latvian sport was dominated by Kristaps Porzingis's health problems and talk that his career may be over. The roundup also covers Latvian clubs' European setbacks, Liene Bondare's retirement and Elina Svitolina's divorce announcement.
Kristaps Porzingis, Latvia's best-known basketball player, may already have played his last game in the NBA, the North American professional basketball league. This comes from a weekly sports roundup published by the Latvian portal Jauns.lv. Porzingis's health problems, his disappearance from the website of his former basketball agency and public talk that he may be considering retirement drew wide attention in basketball circles well beyond Latvia.
Basketball
It was a generally poor week for Latvian basketball, as three Latvian men's clubs suffered convincing defeats in European competitions. Positives included good performances by Kitija Laksa and Arturs Zagars, as well as a convincing win for TTT-Riga. The roundup also mentions the status of young talent Benjamins Janis Berue in the United States; it remains unclear which country he will represent in future. His U-16 national team teammate Markuss Jahovics, captain of the newly crowned European champions, has made his debut in the ULEB Eurocup.
Other sports
Liene Bondare, one of Latvia's leading alpine skiers and a two-time Olympian, has announced the end of her professional career. Meanwhile, Arnis Rumbenieks, Latvia's best race walker, has been disqualified for anti-doping violations.
In tennis, Ukrainian player Elina Svitolina announced on social media that she and her husband, fellow tennis player Gael Monfils, have decided to divorce.
In ice hockey, Arturs Silovs stood out in the NHL, while Vladislavs Gutkovskis scored an elegant goal. Martins Sesks and Renars Francis competed in the European Rally Championship, and football club Riga FC took valuable points in a match against Cyprus's FC Pafos.
