The wait is over: the first World Cup tickets will be released on September 10.

▲ At 42, the Mexican runner continues to rack up victories, including the gold medal in the masters category at the World Championships in Gothenburg. Photo @darth.barrios1

Adriana Díaz Reyes

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, p. a12

Thirty years after beginning his athletics career, Juan Luis Barrios still feels that tingling in his chest minutes before the start of a competition. The excitement remains, undiminished even though he now competes in the masters category and has traded middle-distance events for the marathon.

As I get older, I see things differently. At my peak, all I thought about was reaching the final of every competition I attended. Now that I look at everything from the outside, I understand that being among the best depends on many things, including the sports system in each country and the support for its athletes. It seems like we all have the same opportunities, but that's not always the case , he shared.

At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Barrios achieved what has been his best athletic result: a seventh place in the 5,000 meters, a competition in which Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele broke the Olympic record for the event. Four years later, he finished eighth at the 2012 London Games.

I don't run out of nostalgia or to fulfill some unfinished business. I do it because I still can, because I enjoy it, and because I feel active and alive in every race , he confessed.

Hunger for success

His hunger for success never ceases with the passing of the years. In addition to his Central American and Pan American medals, the 42-year-old athlete won gold in the masters category at the World Championships in Gothenburg last year.

Age is unforgiving. Sometimes your mind goes faster than your body, and there are difficult days when you just can't reach your goal. However, as long as my legs have the capacity to run, I'll do it because it's what I love.

In addition to staying active, Barrios created his own training group where he shares the knowledge passed down to him by the legendary Tadeusz Kepka.

I was very pleased to run with members of my team in the Mexico City Half Marathon and also to share the miles with the children of my high-performance opponents. Teaching others is also a facet I truly enjoy , added Barrios, who was part of pentathlete Emiliano Hernández's multidisciplinary team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

A few days ago, he presented his book Sueño Olímpico (Olympic Dream) , a project to which he dedicated a couple of years and which he wrote with the collaboration of Jorge Cuevas and the prologue by former sprinter Alejandro Cárdenas.

You'll find pages that recall the Olympic cycles in Athens, Beijing, and London, the reality I experienced, and the daily life of a Mexican athlete. There are also many anecdotes I experienced in high performance and the challenges I faced.

I don't know if I was the best, but I was the one who most believed I could achieve it, is one of the quotes from the book most treasured by the runner, considered by many to be the best long-distance runner in the history of Mexico.

I hope my story will inspire new generations, so they know what it's like to achieve a dream and that nothing is set in stone in sports.

Although international success in middle-distance events has been limited in recent years, Barrios is confident that Mexico has the talent to return to its glory days.

We have riders like José Luis Santana and Juan Joel Pacheco. We hope they can soon reach their full potential and create new success stories .

▲ As team owners prepare to clash with players over a salary cap in the major leagues, Dominican outfielder Juan Soto signed with the New York Mets for a historic $765 million. AP Photo

Ap

La Jornada Newspaper, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, p. a12

Atlanta. Commissioner Rob Manfred and players' union chairman Tony Clark confirmed they are moving forward with plans to make the possibility of having Major League Baseball players at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics a reality.

I think it's an opportunity to promote the game on a truly global stage. Obviously, clubs will have to approve this. I mean, it's a big deal , Manfred said at a meeting with the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

MLB met with Los Angeles organizers in Atlanta before the All-Star Game, and Manfred indicated that Olympic officials were in contact with the Major League Baseball Players Association.

"We know the players are interested in playing, whether for the U.S. national team or any other team around the world. There are many conversations that need to be had sooner rather than later to see how viable this is, but we're hopeful we can find a way to do it for the benefit of baseball ," Clark said.

The World Baseball Softball Confederation announced that the tournament will be played from July 15-20 at Dodger Stadium.

MLB eyes lockout

A likely lockout looms in Major League Baseball in December 2026 as team owners push to establish a salary cap, possibly resulting in the loss of regular-season games for the first time since 1995.

Nobody's talking about it, but we all know we're going to get stopped for it, and then we're going to lose time , said New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso. We're definitely going to fight to not have a salary cap, and obviously the league isn't going to like that .

Manfred and some owners have cited payroll disparity as a problem. At the same time, MLB is seeking to address declining revenue from regional sports networks. Unlike the NFL, NBA, and NHL, baseball has never had a salary cap because its players strongly oppose one.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets have boosted payrolls to record levels. The last small-market MLB club to win a World Series recently was the Kansas City Royals in 2015.

After signing outfielder Juan Soto to a record-breaking $765 million contract, New York opened this season with a $326 million payroll, nearly five times Miami's $69 million, according to MLB figures.

Using luxury tax payrolls, the Dodgers led the way with $400 million and are on track to cover a record luxury tax of approximately $151 million, breaking the previous mark of $103 million set by Los Angeles last year.