EFE/David Fernández Life is good for tennis star Rafael Nadal from Spain. As previously reported by The Costa Rica Star through an EFE wire, Mr. Nadal was in top form at the Argentina Open, where he clinched his 65th career title against local favorite Juan Monaco.   As reported by national newspaper La Nacion, Mr. Nadal arrived in Costa Rica just hours after proving to the professi...

Real Madrid's Portuguese striker Cristiano Ronaldo (R) fights for the ball with Ivory defender Eric Bertrand Bailly (L) of Villarreal during the Primera Division soccer match played at Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, Spain on 01 March 2015. EFE Madrid, Mar 1 (EFE, with additional context by The Costa Rica Star).- Real Madrid could not take control on Sunday and had to settle for a 1-1 dra...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL The Under-23 Men’s National Football Team of Costa Rica wrapped up its participation in the IMG Suncoast Pro Classic with a loss to the Toronto Football Club of the North American Major League Soccer (MLS). As previously reported by The Costa Rica Star, the U-23 team took an opportunity to train for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro by accepting an invitation to match up a...

EFE/David Fernández Buenos Aires, Feb 28 (EFE).- Spain's Rafael Nadal played at his highest level to rout Argentine Federico Delbonis 6-1, 6-1 and advance to the semifinals of the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires. The top seed at this clay-court event needed just an hour and two minutes to defeat his 59th-ranked opponent on Friday night, using his full arsenal of shots and striking the ball w...

Chelsea F.C. fans celebrate their team's 1-1 draw against Paris Saint-Germain in Champions League action Tuesday in the French capital. EFE London, Feb 19 (EFE).- Chelsea F.C. said Thursday it is suspending three fans who are being investigated for a racist incident earlier this week on the Paris Metro and could bar them from Stamford Bridge permanently. “If it is deemed there is sufficient...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL On Day 2 of the IMG Suncoast Pro Classic, the U-23 Men's National Team of Costa Rica faced the Columbus Crew of the United States Major League Soccer (MLS), and lost by two goals to nothing. The Ticos are not looking good in this invitational tournament, which takes place at the prestigious IMG Academy in Bradenton, a Southwest Florida city that enjoys a strong football cult...

As part of the preparations for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the U-23 Football Team from Costa Rica chose to participate in the IMG Suncoast Pro Classic Tournament, which takes place at the prestigious IMG Academies in Bradenton, FL. Although the Men's National Football Team of Costa Rica is currently enjoying being ranked as number 13 by FIFA, the U-23 team clearly has lots of roo...

Playa Samara Triathlon Over the last few years, Costa Rica has become the number one destination for adventure sports and high-endurance athletic competitions. Many of these events take place in the Guanacaste region, and thus many athletes have already made this province their temporary home for training purposes. Runners, competitive cyclists, open water swimmers, and endurance hikers who tr...

The two coastlines of Costa Rica are blessed with abundant marine life, excellent weather, and very nice people who are eager to teach newcomers to the world of deep sea fishing the wonders of going offshore. First-timers who want to learn more about deep sea fishing should plan a trip to Costa Rica for the purpose of becoming acquainted with this recreational activity. To this effect, the followi...

One of the most grueling adventure races in the world is the Coastal Challenge, sometimes known as the Rainforest Run in Costa Rica. The Coastal Challenge is in the category of long-distance trail running, and this Friday the competition wrapped up with an absolute and dominating victory by South African adventure racer Iain Don-Wauchope. According to Fiorella Masis of national newpaper La Naci...

Wikimedia Commons For many young football fans from around the world, their most endearing dream is to one day meet Lionel Messi and Neymar da Silva Santos Jr., the star strikers of the stellar Futbol Club Barcelona team of La Liga in Spain. After all, Argentinian Messi and Brazilian Neymar are widely considered to be the closest embodiments to football legends Diego Armando Maradona and Pelé....

Quepos is one of the most important sites for world-class sportfishing in Costa Rica. Long renowned as one of Costa Rica’s prize fishing destinations, anglers have luck offshore of this popular Central Pacific port town just about any month of the year – though December through April mark the peak season for landing marlin and sailfish. Big game, luck, fame and prize money have lured hundreds o...

Source: Wikimedia Commons Quarterback Tom Brady of the New England Patriots is probably one of the most recognized professional athletes within the National Football League (NFL) of the United States for several reasons, and one of them is his connection to Costa Rica. The Super Bowl is one of the biggest sporting events in the entire world, and the honor of winning NFL Super Bowl XLIX, whi...

Source: OWC Twenty teams of competitive anglers from the United States, Canada and Central America (including Costa Rica) will participate in qualifying rounds ahead of the Offshore World Championship, which will take place in Puntarenas later this year. Nearly 200 anglers from around the world are vying for a spot in this major sports fishing tournament, which in 2014 was dominated by the tea...

Source: Wikimedia The star goalkeeper from the Real Madrid Club de Fútbol has found a new job. Nonetheless, fans from the legendary Merengue club need not worry: Keylor Navas is not transferring to a rival faction in La Liga; he is simply working on the side as the new Tourism Ambassador of Costa Rica. Such is the news from a recent press release issued by the Tourism Board of Costa Rica (Span...

Gilbert Brown Professional surfer and all-around waterman Gilbert Brown was a clear favorite at the first day of competition in Costa Rica's Kolbi National Surfing Circuit; after all, the heats took place in break that is very familiar to the native from Limón: Playa Cocles. Brown is the current champion, but it was Anthony Fillingim who took the lead in this highly competitive tournament. ...

Source: Wikimedia Commons The Arsenal Football Club of the Barclays Premier League and the Villareal Club de Futbol of La Liga Española have agreed on a loan transfer that will see striker Joel Campbell play out the rest of the season in Spain. Campbell played an important role for Costa Rica during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, and Arsenal fans were delighted to see him finally arrive...

Source: Flickr Commons Greeley, Colorado (PRWEB) January 08, 2015 - Icon Trips and broadcaster Roy Firestone are offering a Costa Rica vacation from June 20 – 27, 2015 with Buffalo football stars Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and Bruce Smith. This exclusive vacation allows a limited number of guests to interact with 3 football legends while experiencing Costa Rica’s diverse highlights. Former B...

Source: FEDESURF The ninth edition of the Central American Surfing Games resulted in a ninth consecutive victory for Costa Rica. This year, the games were hosted at the pristine breaks of Puerto de la Paz in La Libertad, Republic of El Salvador, and Tico surfers captured 10 out of 13 gold medals awarded to competitors.   According to a press release by the Surfing Federation of Cost...

The booming voice of play-by-play broadcaster Mario McGregor is well-known by football fans in Costa Rica who enjoy listening to live matches on the radio. When Mr. McGregor, who is an Afro Costa Rican from the Caribbean province of Limon, takes the microphone of Radio Columbia 98.7 FM, he gives it to you with as much love and emotion as he can muster.   While broadcasting from Brazil d...

Tica Boxer and World Champion Hanna Gabriels This weekend, the world of boxing in Costa Rica gained one world title and vacated another despite a victory in the ring. It just so happens that the boxing match action involved two boxers who are married to each other and have a precious daughter who may also train to be a fighter one day.   We are talking about Hanna Gabriel Valle, who...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL The Costa Rica Men’s National Football Team, affectionately known as La Sele, finished 2014 as the highest-ranked CONCACAF squad in the world, and they are now looking forward to the 2015 Gold Cup tournament, which will be hosted in the United States and Canada. La Sele will also play in the latter nation next year as Toronto will be the host city of the 2015 Pan American Ga...

It was blood, sweat and tears, and the blood part almost literally, for the Women's National Football Team of Costa Rica as they earned a well-deserved bronze medal in Mexico against their counterparts from Venezuela, who reacted very aggressively on the pitch and ignited a brawl that ensued a flurry of red cards. As reported by Fanny Tayver Marin of sports news daily Al Día, which is sadly nea...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL It was a difficult match for the Women's National Football Team of Costa Rica, fondly known as Las Ticas, who recently surprised fans with a strong performance at the 2014 CONCACAF Women's Championship and World Cup Qualifiers. Once again, Las Ticas met their counterparts from Mexico; alas, they did not taste victory this time as they fell by one goal to nothing. Costa Rica ...

The former Second Division of the professional football system in Costa Rica is now known as the “Liga de Ascenso,” a league that loosely serves two purposes: It is a minor, developmental league for “farm teams” such as the powerhouse Liga Deportiva Alajuelense (LDA) and Deportivo Saprissa; moreover, this league is also a platform for hopeful football clubs to advance to the potentially lucrative ...

Hainan. Source: ISA Thanks to the great performance of Costa Rica's National Surfing Team at the recent World Surfing Games in Peru, our professional surfers have another shot at high-level international competition. According to an official press release by the Surfing Federation of Costa Rica (Spanish acronym: FEDESURF), our Tico pro surfers are now in Hainan, the smallest and southernmost pro...

Ricardo Gareca and Miguel Angel Russo are veteran football players and coaches from Argentina who could elevate the National Men's Football Team of Costa Rica, fondly known as La Sele, to higher international ranking within FIFA. These two football professionals are in line to replace current interim coach Paulo Cesar Wanchope, who took over coaching duties from Colombian tactician Jorge Luis Pint...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL It’s official: The National Men’s Football Team of Costa Rica is no longer an underdog, but still needs to match the brilliance of the defensive backline that put Tico players in the quarterfinals of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. La Sele, as the team is affectionately known in Costa Rica, gave fans plenty of reasons to cheer as they matched up against their counterparts...

Although stakes are high for the National Men’s Football Teams of Costa Rica and Uruguay as they match up later this afternoon at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo, betting action on this rematch between World Cup foes has been mostly subdued. Most of the attention for this match is on star striker Luis Suarez of Uruguay, who has gained accolades for his unmatched football skills and infamy for...

The National Men's Football Team of Uruguay is not taking any chances when they match up against Costa Rica in Montevideo this Thursday. Uruguay has called up as many star players as possible for this highly expected rematch, which calls to mind the beginning of what would be an outstanding performance by Costa Rica at the FIFA World Cup in Brazil earlier this year. Source: CONCACAF Interim...

Source: La Ruta Facebook Portuguese rider Luis Alberto da Costa Leão Pinto of Team Scotiabank conquered the 22nd edition of La Ruta de los Conquistadores in Costa Rica, one of the toughest mountain bike competitions in the world, by winning two of the three stages of this grueling race. Mr. Leão Pinto had a very strong first stage between Jaco Beach and Atenas, crossing the finish line at 4...

Source: Joel Campbell's Facebook Timeline Star striker Joel Campbell may be getting ready to exit the Arsenal Football Club of the vaunted Barclays Premier in England. Such have been recent reports published by Sports Vibe, the Daily Star and even Calcio Mercato. Transfer rumors are in full gear as the talented forward from Costa Rica, who was a magician on the pitch during the 2014 FIFA World...

Until a few days ago, one of the toughest mountain bike races in the world featured a route that would take competitors through a region affected by the ongoing magmatic eruptions of the Turrialba volcano in the province of Cartago. La Ruta de los Conquistadores is an adventure and endurance race that takes riders through some of the same routes that claimed the lives of thousands of conquistadors...

Source: National Surfing Federation For the first time in the history of professional surfing in Costa Rica, the national team is proudly returning from a major international tournament with medals. This is the second time that the National Surfing Team of Costa Rica participates in the World Surfing Games of the International Surfing Association (ISA), and it was a momentous tournament for Ti...

Source: Wikimedia A scandalous finding revealed by an internal investigation within the Office of Judicial Investigation (Spanish initials: OIJ) in Costa Rica is being reported and mocked by sports journalists around the world. The news concern Keylor Navas, the star goalkeeper of the National Men's Football Team, whose amazing performance in the FIFA World Cup in Brazil earlier this year prom...

Source: FEDEFUTBOL The United States Women's National Football Team is one of the best and most dominant in the world; this was clearly proven yesterday at PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania. Team USA won the CONCACAF Women's Championship by routing Costa Rica six goals to none. Las Ticas did not have high hopes going into this final game and should have parked the bus from early on; however, c...

Even though the National Women's Football Team of Costa Rica has delivered an amazing performance at the CONCACAF qualifiers and earned a spot for next year's FIFA World Cup in Canada, Las Ticas will not get a financial reward for their efforts. Such was the report by sports journalist Graciela Fonseca of online news daily CRHoy.com. By advancing to the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup for the first...

File photo At a grungy Chinese restaurant near downtown Alajuela this Friday afternoon, a group of construction workers are enjoying ice-cold bottles of Imperial and Pilsen beers with snack-sized portions of greasy fried rice and chicken wings; their eyes are affixed to a small flat screen television that hangs from the wall. They are watching the National Women’s Football Team of Costa Rica, ...

A well-behaved La Doce displays fan devotion Since the early afternoon of Thursday, October 23rd, the national police force of Costa Rica kept watch outside the Ricardo Saprissa Stadium in the suburbs of San Jose. Mounted police and special units of Fuerza Publica assembled hours before the match between the Deportivo Saprissa and the Sporting Kansas City, the latter of the United States Major...

Riding longboard skateboards in Costa Rica is nothing like surfing the Gold Coast beaches of Guanacaste. There are many more obstacles to negotiate on our dangerous roads, and skateboard wipeouts tend to be quite painful and will often result in weeks of road rash. Such matters do not seem to affect the Longboard Girls Costa Rica Crew, who actually enjoy hairpin turns that lead to downhill surpris...