U.S./World Sports category, Page 243
Medina Spirit heads to Preakness, minus trainer Bob Baffert
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit is headed to Baltimore for the Preakness Stakes while trainer Bob Baffert said Monday that he won’t attend the race to avoid being a distraction in the wake of scrutiny following the colt’s failed postrace drug test. Medina Spirit’s Derby win by...
Access, fans returning to NASCAR after quiet yearVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kevin Harvick crossed the finish line at Darlington Raceway a year ago and was struck by the stillness and silence of the empty grandstands. NASCAR was one of the first major sports to resume competition early in the pandemic, setting its own path in a strange new...
Optimism rising about future of Pimlico with rebuild looming
Frankie Brothers walked into the grandstand at Pimlico Race Course in the late 1980s and early ’90s with his head on a swivel. “I always made sure I knew where the exit was because if somebody dropped a cigarette or something like that, that place would’ve went up in flames,”...
Martin Truex Jr. dominates at Darlington to 3rd win of year
DARLINGTON, S.C. — Martin Truex Jr. powered his way around Darlington Raceway, sweeping both stages and leading the final 105 laps Sunday. Kyle Larson cut into Truex’s often large lead over the final 30 laps, coming as close as two car-lengths down the stretch. But the Joe Gibbs Racing driver...
DK Metcalf turns in respectable 100 time, finishes last in heatVideo
WALNUT, Calif. — Seattle Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf couldn’t catch the field in his heat of a 100-meter race at the USA Track and Field Golden Games on Sunday, finishing ninth out of nine but in a respectable time of 10.37 seconds. Although Metcalf didn’t earn a spot in the...
Rory McIlroy ends 18-month streak without a victory
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy found his comfort zone at Quail Hollow and left with a trophy he badly needed. McIlroy closed with a 3-under-par 68 and made it tough on himself at the end Sunday, driving into the hazard left of the 18th fairway and needing two putts from...
Alexander Zverev beats Matteo Berrettini to win his 2nd Madrid Open titleVideo
MADRID — Alexander Zverev continued his impressive form going into the French Open by winning his second Madrid Open title on Sunday. After beating top-seeded Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals and fourth-ranked Dominic Thiem in the semifinals, Zverev rallied to defeat Matteo Berrettini 6-7 (8), 6-4, 6-3 for his second...
Medina Spirit could lose Ky. Derby win; track bans Bob BaffertVideo
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Medina Spirit’s victory in the Kentucky Derby is in serious jeopardy because of a failed postrace drug test, one that led Churchill Downs to suspend Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert on Sunday in the latest scandal to plague the sport. Baffert denied all wrongdoing and promised...
Penn-Trafford grad Hannah Dobrinick ends college career on high note
Hannah Dobrinick played her final collegiate softball game May 9. The senior first baseman at Otterbein could have played one more season after the NCAA allowed an extra year of eligibility because of the coronavirus pandemic, but Dobrinick said she’s ready to pursue her career. “We’re going to miss her,”...
Bryson DeChambeau takes 1,800-mile detour between rounds
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Bryson DeChambeau went through an ordinary routine between the second and third rounds of the Wells Fargo Championship. He went out to dinner. He got in a workout. He slept about seven hours. There’s just one minor detail: He flew home to Dallas because he thought he...
Keith Mitchell bogey-free at Quail Hollow, leads Rory McIlroy
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Golf hasn’t had this much noise, this much energy, since before the covid-19 pandemic. Maybe it’s just a coincidence Rory McIlroy is right back in the thick of it at the Wells Fargo Championship. He is playing in the final group for the first time since Riviera,...
Kevin Harvick looks to jumpstart winless year again at Darlington
DARLINGTON, S.C. — Kevin Harvick is hoping his winless start to the season will end at Darlington Raceway — just like last year. Harvick hadn’t taken the checkered flag in 2020 until winning at the “Lady in Black” last May 17 in NASCAR’s return to racing after more than two...
This Date in Sports History: May 8
1915 — Regret, ridden by Joe Notter, becomes the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby, with a 2-length wire-to-wire victory over Pebbles. 1937 — War Admiral, the favorite ridden by Charles Kurtsinger, wins the Kentucky Derby by 1 3/4 lengths over Pompoon. 1943 — Count Fleet, ridden by Johnny...
Rough day for Mickelson, most of field at PGA’s Wells Fargo ChampionshipVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Phil Mickelson was 11 shots worse than his previous round at Quail Hollow. Bryson DeChambeau made an 8 on his 16th hole and headed straight for the exit. Turns out nothing was as bad as it seemed Friday in the Wells Fargo Championship. Morning gusts gave way...
Pelicans’ Zion Williamson out indefinitely; team rips NBA
PHILADELPHIA — New Orleans star Zion Williamson is sidelined indefinitely with a fractured left finger, a major blow to the Pelicans’ run at a Western Conference play-in spot. The 20-year-old forward averaged 27 points and 7.2 rebounds in 61 games, and the injury comes before the Pelicans opened a five-game...
Pocono Raceway prepared for full house for its NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader
Ben May said he continues to be surprised by the administration of Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf. But at least this time, it was a pleasant surprise. May is the president of Pocono Raceway and after the coronavirus pandemic prevented any fans from attending last year’s historic NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader...
Alexander Zverev beats Rafael Nadal in straight sets in Madrid Open quarters
MADRID — Alexander Zverev ended his winless streak on clay against Rafael Nadal on Friday, keeping the Spaniard from winning a sixth Madrid Open. Zverev defeated Nadal 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals, picking up his third consecutive win over the 20-time grand slam champion — but first on clay. His...
UEFA deal with 9 Super League clubs; 3 rebels face sanctions
MANCHESTER, England — Nine of the 12 Super League clubs have formally renounced the breakaway and committed to the existing European competitions but they will have to give up 5% of UEFA revenue for one season as a punishment for the rebellion that briefly split football. But Barcelona, Real Madrid...
Riverhounds set to debut new ‘dynamic’ attack in season opener against Tampa Bay Rowdies
Two years ago, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds were the talk of USL Championship as they captured the Eastern Conference title with 68 points. The Black and Gold have changed a lot since that season. Defender Jordan Dover and USL Championship all-time assists leader Kenardo Forbes are the only two players who...
Tokyo Olympic head says IOC President Thomas Bach visit to Japan could be ‘tough’
TOKYO — The president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee said Friday that a visit to Japan this month by IOC President Thomas Bach seemed unlikely with a state of emergency order being extended by the government to Tokyo and other areas until May 31. Canceling the trip could be...
Blast from past as Mickelson opens with 64 at Quail HollowVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Phil Mickelson has gone nine months since he finished among the top 20, and it looks as though that streak is about to end at the Wells Fargo Championship. The 50-year-old Mickelson kept his focus Thursday at Quail Hollow and blistered the course for a 7-under-par 64...
Mandaloun and Essential Quality won’t run in PreaknessVideo
Kentucky Derby favorite Essential Quality and runner-up Mandaloun will not run against Medina Spirit in the Preakness, trainer Brad Cox said Thursday. Cox said he will skip the second jewel of the Triple Crown with those two horses and Caddo River, who was scratched from the Derby for spiking a...
U.S. women’s soccer team to play Summer Series in Texas ahead of Olympics
The U.S. women’s national team will play Portugal, Jamaica and Nigeria during a five-match Summer Series next month in Texas. U.S. coach Vlatko Andonovski will use the matches as a final evaluation before he names an 18-player Olympic roster. The United States also plans to play two as-yet unannounced Tokyo...
Golf super league resurfaces as McIlroy puts stock in legacyVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy returned to the site of his first PGA Tour victory and made it clear Wednesday that he is more interested in creating his place in history than chasing Saudi-backed money in a proposed super league. Justin Thomas wasn’t far behind in that line of thinking....
Next Gen car finally arrives, ushers NASCAR into futureVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — NASCAR’s next generation race car finally is here after two years of hype and hope that it will revolutionize the stock car series. How can a spec car radically change a sport? Competition. Cost containment. Manufacturer relevance. The Next Gen car, first proposed in 2018 and originally...
