Panipak “Tennis” Wongpattanakit of Thailand in action against Lena Stojkovic of Croatia in the women’s 49kg semi-final on Wednesday at the Grand Palais in Paris. (Photo: Reuters)PARIS - Taekwondo star Panipak Wongpattanakit is once more within reach of Olympic gold for Thailand after defeating Lena Stojkovic 2-0 in the women’s 49kg semi-final on Wednesday. A win by the reigning Olympic champion would be a fitting birthday president for Panipak, who will turn 27 on Thursday. Also competing in Paris are the men’s 68kg 2022 Asian Games gold medallist Banlung Tabtimdang and women’s 67kg fighter Sasikarn Tongchan. Thai lifters last competed at the Olympics at Rio 2016 where they won two gold, one silver and one bronze medal.

Nam Talu closed to the public since June because of flood dangerListen to this articleTourists rescued from flooded Nam Talu cave arrive at the Rajjaprabha Dam reservoir pier in Surat Thani on Tuesday night. (Photo: Supapong Chaolan)SURAT THANI - A tour guide drowned when a flash flood swept into Nam Talu cave in Khao Sok National Park as a group of tourists was leaving it on Tuesday evening. A flash flood poured into the cave about 7.30pm as the group of 22 tourists and two guides were walking out of it. Nam Talu cave is 600 metres long and 30 metres wide at its mouth. Tourists rest at KriSorn raft hotel after being rescued from flooded Nam Talu cave on Tuesday.

Algerian beats Thai in women's Olympic boxingImane Khelif of Algeria (left) in action against Janjaem Suwannapheng of Thailand. (Reuters photo)Imane Khelif, the boxer at the centre of a gender dispute, beat Thailand's Janjaem Suwannapheng in a semi-final fight at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday. The International Olympic Committee has rejected the results of the IBA-ordered tests. Khelif and Janjaem touched gloves in a sign of respect after the fight, and when Khelif was announced as winner a deafening roar erupted from the fans. Khelif will face Yang Liu of China in the final on Friday.

Imane Khelif, the boxer at the centre of a gender dispute, beat Thailand's Janjaem Suwannapheng by unanimous decision in a welterweight semi-final fight at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday (August 6) and advance to the women's final at Roland Garros.

Supplementary budget bill sails through SenateFood vendors register for the digital money handout scheme in Phra Nakhon district, Bangkok, on Aug 1. (Photo: Apichart Jinakul)The supplementary bill, which seeks to increase the budget for the current fiscal year by 122 billion baht to partially fund the government's digital wallet handout scheme, sailed through all three readings in the Upper House on Tuesday. In the debate before Tuesday's vote on the bill, several senators expressed doubts over whether the digital handout scheme would work as claimed by the government. Speaking in the Upper House, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin defended the 122-billion-baht supplementary bill, saying the need to inject money to stimulate and strengthen the economy was too urgent for the government to wait until the 2025 fiscal budget comes. Considering Thailand's slow economic growth, which is coupled with high household and corporate debt and an extremely volatile world economic situation, the government is in urgent need of a budget to fund its efforts to stimulate economic growth, the PM said.

The southern Land Bridge megaproject will proceed as planned, as several companies from China, the United Arab Emirates and the United States have expressed their interest in investing in the project, the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy Planning (OTP) said yesterday. Once completed, the Land Bridge will provide an alternative route for ships heading from the Gulf of Thailand to the Andaman Sea and vice versa. He also revealed that international investors, including Dubai Port World (DP World) and other companies from the United States and China, have shown interest in investing in the Land Bridge project. As such, the OTP is confident that the Land Bridge project will proceed, said Mr Panya. The OTP is also pushing for the approval of the SEC Act in a bid to drive the Land Bridge project forward.

Does height matter in badminton? Tall and small have tactical advantagesKunlavut "View" Vitidsarn is 177 centimetres tall. The Thai lost to 194-cm-tall Viktor Axelsen of Denmark on Monday. Viktor Axelsen of Denmark towers over most of his opponents at about 194 centimetres. (Photo: Reuters)Paris men's singles Olympic champion Viktor Axelsen of Denmark towers over most of his opponents at about 194 centimetres.

Listen to this articleThailand's Janjaem Suwannapheng will face Algeria's Imane Khelif in the women's 66kg semi-finals tonight. Sudaporn lost 3-2 to top seed and eventual champion Kellie Harrington of Ireland, but only after becoming Thailand's first female boxer to win a Games medal. Janjaem, however, is also in top form after her stunning victory over top-ranked Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey in the quarter-finals. Thailand have sent eight boxers -- three men and five women -- to Paris and Janjaem is the only one left in the tournament. There were 27 runners competing in three semi-finals, and Puripol came ninth in third semi-final.

According to OTP director-general Panya Chupanich, if all goes according to plan, construction will begin in 2026 and conclude in 2030. Once completed, the Land Bridge will provide an alternative route for ships heading from the Gulf of Thailand to the Andaman Sea and vice versa. He also revealed that international investors, including Dubai Port World (DP World) and other companies from the United States and China, have shown interest in investing in the Land Bridge project. As such, the OTP is confident that the Land Bridge project will proceed, said Mr Panya. The OTP is also pushing for the approval of the SEC Act in a bid to drive the Land Bridge project forward.

Thailand's Kunlavut gets silver in Olympic badminton men’s singlesSilver medallist Kunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand poses with his medal on Monday. The taller Viktor led by 13-6 with his quick and precise shots across corners. Viktor’s precise shuttlecock landings and Kunlavut’s missed shots gave him a greater lead; Kunlavut was behind at 2-6 with a smash at his opponent’s leg. A long rally that ended with Kunlavut’s smash gave him 8-19, with subsequent precise shots and smashes making it 11-19. But that was as far as Kunlavit got as Viktor won the gold medal at 21-11 in the one-hour match.

Possible Move Forward dissolution worries Thai senatorsThai senator Nantana NantavaropasA group of senators has voiced concerns about the potential dissolution of the main opposition Move Forward Party (MFP), saying Thailand’s democracy may take a step backwards. Sen Nantana Nantavaropas, a leading member of the so-called New Breed group, said on Monday that concern exists not only among the Thai public but also within the international community. According to Ms Nantana, their point of contention is that a public agency should not have the power to disband a political party and shape the country’s political landscape. Meanwhile, Democrat member Rachada Dhnadirek warned diplomats from 18 countries, who recently met with MFP members that their comments regarding the MFP dissolution case could be seen as interference in the country’s judicial process. She also said the Foreign Ministry should take action to protect the country’s judicial process.

Moriya Jutanugarn plays near-flawless round to win Portland titleMoriya Jutanugarn walks on the green at Honda LPGA Thailand in 2024. She won the Portland Classic in Portland, the United States, on Sunday. (Photo: Handout via SCG)Thailand's Moriya Jutanugarn birdied four of her last seven holes to pull away from the field and win the Portland Classic on Sunday in Oregon. Moriya shot a final-round, 6-under-par 66 at Columbia Edgewater Country Club, with her only bogey of the entire tournament coming at the 72nd hole. "Of course every win is special, and like kind of been a long time since my last win," Moriya said.

The Thai publishing market is expected to decline this year as economic woes hit people's pockets, but booksellers see a promising opportunity by targeting niche markets, according to the Publishers and Booksellers Association of Thailand (Pubat). Nattakorn Vuttichaipornkul, vice-president of internal affairs at Pubat, said booksellers and publishers experienced a slight drop in sales in the first half of the year. "The sales of textbooks dropped as people turned to watching and learning from video platforms like YouTube," Mr Theerapat said. As a result of the increasing popularity of yaoi novels over the past five years, Pubat has started to see a growing demand for girls' love novels, he said. To date, the association has 485 members, which consist of publishers and booksellers, up from 288 members during the pandemic, Mr Theerapat said.

Brit missing in BangkokBritish national Simon Robinson, 27, has gone missing in Thailand. (Photo: Sam Champ Facebook account)Help is being sought to find a 27-year-old British man who went missing in Thailand. He was supposed to board a flight back to the United Kingdom last Friday but lost contact with his family and friends. I need your help please‼️‼️ One of my dear friends has gone missing in Bangkok, he hasn’t been heard from since the 26th of July. If anyone could share this post onward to anyone in Bangkok or Thailand I’d be so grateful."

Thailand secures Olympic medals in badminton, boxingKunlavut Vitidsarn of Thailand in action during the match against Zii Jia Lee of Malaysia on Sunday. Kunlavut followed it up with a sterling show Sunday afternoon to give Thailand its first-ever Olympic badminton medal as he overwhelmed Malaysia's Lee Zii Jia 21-14, 21-15 in the men's single semi-finals at Porte de La Chapelle Arena in Paris. Fellow Thai boxer Chuthamat Raksat lost to China's Wu Yu 5-0 in the 50kg quarter-finals. Meanwhile, badminton has now become the fourth sport to produce an Olympic Games medal for Thailand after boxing, weightlifting and taekwondo. Boonsak was also beaten in the bronze medal match by Sony Dawi Kuncoro of Indonesia to finish in fourth place.