U.S./World Sports category, Page 304
NASCAR rallies around Wallace as FBI investigates noose
Bubba Wallace steered the No. 43 to the front of pit road, NASCAR champion Kyle Busch pushing the famous car on one side and close friend Ryan Blaney pushing on the other. The entire 40-driver field and all their crew members followed. After the car came to a stop, Wallace...
ESPYS focus on honors, pandemic and racial justice
No red carpet, no nattily dressed athletes, no house band or monologue poking fun at the past year’s top athletes and moments. This was a different version of The ESPYS. The focus of Sunday night’s show on ESPN was hope and inspiration in the time of coronavirus. NFL quarterback Russell...
Noose found in garage of Black NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace at Talladega
TALLADEGA, Ala. — A noose was found in the garage stall of Black driver Bubba Wallace at the NASCAR race in Alabama on Sunday, less than two weeks after he successfully pushed the auto racing series to ban the Confederate flag at its tracks and facilities. NASCAR announced the discovery...
Webb Simpson wraps up RBC Heritage victory in dark, sets recordVideo
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Nothing can top the first time Webb Simpson won on Father’s Day, a U.S. Open title eight years ago at Olympic Club and hearing his father’s laughter on the phone to share the joy. Harbour Town was special in its own right. Dressed in his...
3 takeaways from Tiz the Law’s Belmont Stakes winVideo
Tiz the Law kicked off the 2020 Triple Crown series with a four-length victory in the Belmont Stakes. Here are three takeaways from the race as we begin a long wait for the Sept. 5 Kentucky Derby and the Oct. 3 Preakness Stakes: 1. Tiz the Law delivered as classy...
Thunderstorms postpone NASCAR race at Talladega SuperspeedwayVideo
TALLADEGA, Ala. — Thunderstorms on Sunday forced NASCAR to postpone the Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway that was to mark the return of more fans to the track. The race, which was pushed back to 3 p.m. Monday, is the first amid the coronavirus pandemic in which NASCAR opened...
John Steigerwald: Transgender females belong in boys sports
Pick a side. Do you want transgender females (biological males) to be allowed to compete against biological females in sports? The fight has been overshadowed by a pandemic and massive demonstrations and rioting, but the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Tuesday that the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits...
4-way tie for lead at Heritage as another wild finish loomsVideo
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Webb Simpson managed only one birdie on the back nine Saturday at Harbour Town, and that was just enough for him to post a 3-under-par 68 and join a four-way share of the lead at the RBC Heritage. It sets up another Sunday of endless...
New York-bred Tiz the Law wins Belmont Stakes to open reconfigured Triple CrownVideo
NEW YORK — Eerily empty grandstands. Masked jockeys. Shuttered betting windows. For Tiz the Law trainer Barclay Tagg, no finer way to round out a career Triple Crown. “I’m not trying to be a jerk about it,” the 82-year-old said. “But I thought the quiet, to me, was very nice.”...
‘An absolute zoo’: Positive test, busy island rattle golfVideo
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Carlos Ortiz headed for dinner near the Harbour Town lighthouse and it felt like old times, which didn’t necessarily mean good times. This idyllic island is a summer destination, even during the covid-19 pandemic. “It’s a 30-minute wait, and once you get in there, there’s...
NASCAR has new rules, new feuds and more fans at TalladegaVideo
NASCAR’s return to racing shifts to Talladega Superspeedway, with new rules in place after Ryan Newman’s frightful crash in the season-opening Daytona 500. The Alabama track will admit up to 5,000 fans Sunday — with at least one NASCAR team facing a coronavirus scare — while NASCAR will be on...
Around sports world, Juneteenth celebrated like never beforeVideo
Bradley Beal grabbed a microphone and asked the crowd that joined the Washington Wizards and WNBA’s Washington Mystics on a march to collectively raise a fist into the air and join together in saying “Together we stand.” And they did. “We will stand for something bigger than ourselves,” Beal said....
NASCAR Cup race will run at Texas with fans in the stands
FORT WORTH, Texas — Texas Motor Speedway plans to open its massive grandstands to thousands of fans for a rescheduled NASCAR Cup Series race next month. Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday approved a plan submitted by the track to allow spectators for the race July 19. The governor had previously...
Nick Watney first on PGA Tour to test positive for covid-19Video
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — In the second week of returning to golf, Nick Watney became the first player to test positive for covid-19. Watney withdrew from the RBC Heritage on Friday, the PGA Tour said. Watney missed the cut last week in the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial, the...
Twins remove statue of ex-owner Calvin Griffith over racist remarks
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins on Friday announced they removed a statue of former owner Calvin Griffith at Target Field, citing racist remarks he made in 1978. Griffith’s statue was one of several installed when the team opened the ballpark in 2010. Its removal came on Juneteenth, the traditional commemoration...
Mt. Lebanon native Leah Smith moves forward with training for postponed Olympic trials
After producing one of this year’s fastest swimming times in the world, Oakland Catholic graduate Leah Smith looked forward to making her second Olympic Games. But her momentum came to a halt after the rest of the season was called off because of the coronavirus. “It was definitely difficult to...
Belmont sets pace for Triple Crown, with Tiz the Law favored
It has been 17 years since Jack Knowlton and his Sackatoga Stable pals rode yellow school buses to the Belmont Stakes. It was a rollicking party on wheels for the group that came to watch their colt, Funny Cide, try to sweep the Triple Crown. It didn’t happen that day....
Pittsburgh-area UFC fighter Khama Worthy itching for a fight June 27 in Las VegasVideo
Local fighter Khama Worthy is ready to step back into the octagon. Actually, the Moon native is more than ready. On June 27, Worthy (15-6) will take on 6-foot-3 Californian Luis Pena (8-2) at UFC on ESPN 12, and it’s been a long time coming. Worthy was scheduled to fight...
Birdies galore at Hilton Head, and Jordan Spieth needed them badlyVideo
The RBC Heritage began two month later than usual with a little rain, a little sunshine and a lot of birdies, most of them from Jordan Spieth to turn a rough start into a furious finish. Ian Poulter holed a 30-foot birdie putt and followed with a 5-iron to 4...
Netflix documentary focuses on courage of U.S. gymnasts in Larry Nassar sex abuse scandalVideo
A Netflix documentary will focus on the gymnasts who survived abuse at the hands of USA Gymnastics and Michigan State University doctor Larry Nassar and the journalists who helped expose the culture that allowed it to continue for so long, according to People. Allegations against Nassar go back to the...
Florida Sen. Rubio introduces NIL bill to push NCAA changesVideo
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio introduced a bill Thursday that would protect the NCAA from being challenged in court if the association changes its rules to allow athletes to earn money for endorsement deals and personal appearances. Earlier this week, the NCAA was hit with a federal antitrust lawsuit seeking damages...
NCAA approves plan for basketball players to work with coaches
The NCAA Division I Council on Wednesday approved a plan to allow college basketball players to start working with their coaches for the first time since the pandemic wiped out March Madness. The summer access period for men’s and women’s players will begin July 20. The NCAA Tournaments were canceled...
Prepping on new court, Serena Williams will enter U.S. OpenVideo
Here’s how all-in Serena Williams is on participating in the 2020 U.S. Open: She set up a practice area at her home with the new brand of hard courts being used at Flushing Meadows this year. For all the doubts about which top players will actually enter the first Grand...
Report: Kobe Bryant pilot may have been disoriented in fog
LOS ANGELES — The pilot of the helicopter that crashed in thick fog, killing Kobe Bryant and seven other passengers, reported he was climbing when he actually was descending, federal investigators said in documents released Wednesday. Ara Zobayan radioed to air traffic controllers that he was climbing to 4,000 feet...
Drivers excited for return of racing at Lernerville Speedway
At last, the drivers can start their engines. Friday night will be an exciting time in Sarver because for the first time in 2020, race car drivers will take to the track at Lernerville Speedway. “Absolutely through the roof,” Lernerville track announcer Eric Westendorf said about the excitement level heading...
