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ByDavide Piatti

Published 04:34, 14 Sep 2021

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CHICAGO -- Chase Boykin, a 10-year-old White Sox fan from the South Side of Chicago, had a plan in mind when he stood in the aisle and perfectly mimicked reliever Craig Kimbrel during the eighth inning of Friday’s 4-3 victory over the Red Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.

“Well, I wanted to help him get through the inning,” Boykin said as he stood near the White Sox dugout prior to Wednesday’s contest against the Angels. “And he had a big strikeout. I helped him.”

Kimbrel walked Xander Bogaerts in that eighth, but he struck out Hunter Renfroe and Bobby Dalbec during his lone scoreless frame of the series. So, Boykin’s plan clearly paid dividends.

Boykin smiled when one of the fans sitting near his family showed that imitation made its way to the White Sox broadcast. And on Wednesday, Boykin actually had the chance to meet Kimbrel in person.

MATCH POINT: Y. Putintseva def. J. Cristian; Portoroz 1R

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Joined by his mother, father and grandmother, the fifth-grader spoke to Kimbrel for about five minutes before batting practice. Kimbrel signed a baseball for Boykin, took pictures and went to the clubhouse to retrieve a pair of cleats to give to him. Kimbrel said it was a pleasure meeting Boykin.

“He said, 'I saw the video you did,' and I was so surprised,” Boykin said of his talk with Kimbrel.

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While Kimbrel is Boykin’s favorite White Sox pitcher, shortstop Tim Anderson is his favorite White Sox player. He also spoke with Anderson on Wednesday, along with pitching coach Ethan Katz and executive vice president Ken Williams, while picking up numerous autographs.

As a player for the West Englewood Tigers, Boykin rotates between second base, shortstop and pitcher. He has never employed Kimbrel’s unique pitching style.

“No, but I will,” Boykin said. “I’m going to try it.”

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Leaping into record books on debut Paralympics… Luca Ekler becomes Hungary's first woman to win a Paralympic athletics gold medal after she breaks her world record twice in long jump T38 in the Olympic Stadium on Day 7 at Tokyo 2020.

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Luca Ekler has become the first woman from Hungary to win a Paralympics athletic gold medal after breaking her own world record twice in the T38 high jump on Day 7 at Tokyo 2020.

From her opening jump, the world and three-time European champion made her intentions clear with a record-breaking leap of 5.60m. By her third attempt she had stretched this to 5.63m, and after that there was no looking back for her at the Olympic Stadium.

“It’s a dream come true. I can’t find any words to express myself. I am incredibly happy. It was my biggest win," said Ekler. “I wanted to beat my world record and when I did it the first time, I was like, ‘oh my God', I really did this."

On being the first Hungarian woman to win a Paralympic athletics gold medal, she added: “I have an amazing team, they have supported me during the whole competition and I am so thankful for them. I am really glad that my gold is the first important one.”

The win was also a dream start to Ekler’s Paralympic career. The 22-year-old, who was making her debut, cheered with delight at the end of the competition after beating off a formidable field.

Her nearest rival was London 2012 Paralympic champion and six-time world champion, Margarita Goncharova from the Russian Paralympic Committee. The 30-year-old’s best jump was 5.29m to claim silver. Great Britain’s two-time world champion, Olivia Breen, claimed bronze in 4.91m.

Ekler, who came fourth in the 100m T38, will be back in the Olympic Stadium on Friday, 3 September, to compete in the 400m T38. The European champion in the event said: “Now I will have a little rest and after that I have to train for the 400m because I have a third event left. The stadium is so beautiful and I was happy the whole time during the competitions. I want to enjoy every moment.”

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\Find your top moments, replays and more from the equestrian competition here. \

There were plenty of memorable moments from the equestrian competition at Tokyo 2020, in 2021.

Dressage extraordinaire Isabell Werth and rising star Julia Krajewski came together for Germany in what was a very successful equestrian Olympic campaign for the country. They claimed three out of the six golds available in Japan with Jessica von Bredow-Werndle adding individual dressage gold.

Behind them Great Britain, Sweden and the United States also produced some impeccable rides to round off a compelling 15 days of action.

Read on for equestrian's top five moments, highlights and where you can watch replays from Tokyo 2020 free and on-demand.

Top 5 equestrian moments at Tokyo 2020

1- Isabell Werth: Gold for every decade

Germany’s Isabell Werth (Bella Rose) became the first rider ever to win seven equestrian gold medals after her and teammates Dorothee Schneider (Showtime FRH) and Jessica von Bredow-Werndl (TSF Dalera) took gold in the team equestrian competition.

The Germans clinched the prize with a total of 8178.0 points, besting the United States (7747.0) and the gold medallists from Rio 2016, Britain (7723.0).

Werth then grew her illustrious Olympic medal collection by one more after she won silver in the individual dressage competition the following day. With 12 Olympic medals, seven of which gold, Werth now holds the record for most Olympic medals won by any equestrian athlete ever.

Isabell Werth: My love for Bella Rose, the Kate Moss of equestrian

Seven-time Olympic champion Isabell Werth and her beloved mare Bella Rose 2 have been through a lot together. The German dressage queen, who has won medals at six Games editions, from Barcelona 1992 to Tokyo 2020 in 2021, calls it “love at first sight.” Find out why the horse has been compared to Kate Moss and Claudia Schiffer, and what's next for the chestnut mare and the most decorated equestrian in Games history.

2- Julia Krajewski: first woman to win individual gold in eventing

Werth was not the only German rider on song in Tokyo.

Julia Krajewski also made a slice of her own history in the individual eventing competition after she became the first woman ever to win gold in the event.

Krajewksi and horse Amande de B’Neville had finished fifth in dressage, but then moved up to second after the cross country. A near-flawless final jump round ensured the pair the gold medal.

3- Great Britain win first team eventing title since 1972

After 49 years and 11 months Team GB finally ended its eventing team medal drought.

Britons Oliver Townend, Larua Collett and Tom McEwen did so in some style after amassing a lead so great that after the dressage and cross country rounds they were all but uncatchable come the showjumping stage.

To put their dominance another way, Australia were 13.9 penalty points behind them in second, which is considerable given that at Rio 2016, the gap between the then gold and silver medallists was 3.8 penalty points.

4- Ben Maher and Explosion W soar in dramatic jump off

The individual showjumping final had all the makings of a Hollywood drama.

After qualifying for the final in top spot, Maher had to watch all 29 other riders complete their rounds before jumping the course clear in the third-fastest time to make it to the jump-off.

He would join six other riders to battle it out for the medals.

Peder Fredricson of Sweden looked all but certain to take the gold after putting down a time of 38.02 in a perfectly executed final round.

Rising to the occasion Maher and Explosion W pipped the Swede by just 17 hundredths of a second to take the gold from Fredricson's grasp leaving audiences everywhere breathless and in awe.

Flying Fredricson lifts Sweden

After a consolatory silver medal in the individual showjumping contest Peder Fredricson and All In were a combination not to be denied a second time come the team showjumping final.

The Swedish team found themselves in a golden jump-off against the U.S, featuring Jessica Springsteen, for a crown that had not been theirs since 1924.

After all five other riders went clear it was down to anchorman Fredricson to bring the gold home for Sweden. He had to beat the time of 39.92 put down by McLain Ward.

The clock, who had favoured his opponent previously, was firmly in Fredricson's corner and the Swede put down an astonishing time of 39.01 to seal the victory for his country.

One to watch

After winning bronze in the both the team dressage event and individual dressage competition Charlotte Dujardin became Britain's most decorated female Olympian.

Dujardin, to date, has now claimed three Olympic gold medals, one silver and two bronze medals.

What was perhaps most remarkable about Dujardin's rides in Tokyo was that she performed them on her horse Gio, who, before Tokyo, had never contested a major championship.

The 36-year-old posted 88.543 per cent to finish third in the individual event.

Hello Paris

Equestrian events at Paris 2024 Olympics are set to be held at the Chateau de Versailles.

The gardens of the palace, which are 20km outside of Paris, will provide a stunning backdrop for the competitions.

When and where to watch equestrian replays on Olympics.com

The answer is: olympics.com/tokyo2020-replays

When will the Olympic equestrian riders all compete next?

Be sure to look out for the World Equestrian Games taking place at Pratoni del Vivaro, Italy, from 14-18 September 2022. Five riders will represent each nation and will compete across three events: showjumping, dressage and cross country.