Sports category, Page 531
Browns’ Deshaun Watson to sit out preseason opener as he continues recovery from surgeryVideo
CLEVELAND — Deshaun Watson might be ready to play. The Browns aren’t ready to let him. Watson will sit out Cleveland’s exhibition opener Saturday against the Green Bay Packers as the team continues to take a cautious approach after the quarterback underwent right shoulder surgery in November. Coach Kevin Stefanski...
Billy Bean, 2nd openly gay ex-MLB player who later worked for commissioner, dies at 60Video
NEW YORK — Billy Bean, who became the second former MLB player to come out as gay in 1999 before becoming the sport’s senior vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion, has died. He was 60. MLB released a statement confirming his death. Bean died at home on Tuesday after...
NASCAR drivers use break to watch Olympics, support American athletes in Paris Games
Turns out NASCAR’s best are just like many of us. They like watching the Olympics, too. From Kyle Busch pulling for U.S. gold medal-winning sprinter Noah Lyles, Chase Elliott eager to watch Olympic golf and Joey Logano shouting out Sha’Carri Richardson, several Cup Series contenders have their eyes on Paris....
Steelers inside the ropes: Interceptions prominent as reserve defensive backs have their day
Ben Roethlisberger once left Saint Vincent College proud of himself for accomplishing his self-dictated goal for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2017 training camp. “Didn’t throw an interception all camp,” Big Ben beamed when camp broke that August. “So that was good.” Not so good, then, during Tuesday’s practice was when Steelers...
Feeling ‘a little old’ at 21, Pitt RB Rodney Hammond likes sharing knowledge
When Rodney Hammond walks in the Pitt running backs’ meeting room, his teammates call him “Unc.” Not because he’s old. “I do feel a little old,” said the 21-year-old senior. It’s because he’s been there before, all the way back to the Kenny Pickett/Mark Whipple/Izzy Abanikanda days that only seem...
Pirates manager Derek Shelton gets taste of practice intensity at Steelers training camp
Derek Shelton got his first taste of a Pittsburgh Steelers training camp at Saint Vincent College on Tuesday, and the Pirates manager was more fascinated by their coach than the old-fashioned campus setting. After an off day Monday, Shelton and general manager Ben Cherington accepted an invitation from Steelers coach...
U.S. men’s basketball rolls into semifinals after easing past BrazilVideo
PARIS — All the favored teams in the first three men’s basketball quarterfinals at the Paris Olympics had problems. Canada lost to France. Serbia erased a 24-point deficit to beat Australia. Germany had to shake off a double-digit deficit before beating Greece. So, going into the fourth and final game...
U.S. edges Hungary in a physical women’s water polo quarterfinal at OlympicsVideo
NANTERRE, France — Ashleigh Johnson made 17 saves, and Rachel Fattal snapped a tie in the fourth quarter, helping the U.S. women’s water polo team edge Hungary, 5-4, in a physical quarterfinal at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday night. U.S. captain Maggie Steffens scored two goals and played terrific defense...
Imane Khelif advances to gold-medal bout with another win amid gender misconceptionsVideo
PARIS — Boxer Imane Khelif of Algeria advanced to the gold-medal bout in the women’s welterweight division at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday night, moving one win away from what she calls the best response to the worldwide scrutiny she has faced over misconceptions about her gender. With one more...
Russian disinformation slams Paris and amplifies Imane Khelif debate to undermine the Olympics
WASHINGTON — The actor in the viral music video denouncing the 2024 Olympics looks a lot like French President Emmanuel Macron. The images of rats, trash and the sewage, however, were dreamed up by artificial intelligence. Portraying Paris as a crime-ridden cesspool, the video mocking the Games spread quickly on...
Top pick Troy Fautanu gets 1st-team reps at right tackle as Steelers build toward preseason opener
What transpired Tuesday could be a watershed moment in Troy Fautanu’s first NFL training camp. Or it could mean little in the grand scheme of his development. Fautanu wasn’t trying to read anything into his getting his most significant work at right tackle with the first-team offense since training camp...
Rookie John Rhys Plumlee embraces shot to return punts, focuses on duties as No. 4 QB
While a rumor about Justin Fields returning kickoffs dominated the Pittsburgh Steelers social-media news cycle for a time this spring, when training camp opened, it wasn’t Fields back for kickoffs but a different quarterback fielding a different sort of kick. Rookie John Rhys Plumlee has been a regular in the...
Steelers players trying not to be distracted by trade talk involving 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk
Based on the way he has progressed in training camp, Van Jefferson has taken steps toward becoming the No. 2 wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jefferson’s spot on the depth chart, however, would drop in the event the Steelers acquire Brandon Aiyuk in a trade with the San Francisco...
American Cole Hocker pulls Olympic shocker in men’s 1,500; Gabby Thomas wins 200Video
SAINT-DENIS, France — American Cole Hocker pulled the upset of the Olympics on Tuesday night, beating his personal-best time by almost 3 seconds to outrace favorites Jakob Ingebrigsten and Josh Kerr for the title at 1,500 meters. Hocker won the race in an Olympic-record 3:27.65, pulling from fifth to first...
France tops Canada in men’s basketball quarterfinals; Serbia, Germany also advanceVideo
PARIS — Guerschon Yabusele scored 22 points, Victor Wembanyama had 12 rebounds and France beat Canada, 82-73, on Tuesday to advance to its second straight men’s Olympic basketball semifinal. Isaia Cordinier added 20 points for France, which is looking to add to its medal haul after winning silver in the...
Sophia Smith’s extra-time goal tops Germany, sends U.S. women’s soccer into Olympic finalVideo
LYON, France — Glimpsing a sliver of the net, Sophia Smith’s aim was true. Smith’s extra-time goal earned the United States a spot in the gold medal match at the Paris Olympics with a 1-0 semifinal victory over Germany on Tuesday. The Americans, undefeated in France under new coach Emma...
QB Russell Wilson has busiest practice day of Steelers camp yetVideo
Russell Wilson still isn’t taking a full workload of practice reps. But he’s inching closer to it. Tuesday’s Pittsburgh Steelers training-camp practice was Wilson’s busiest yet in regards to his participation. Wilson took part in the fully-padded and tackling-permitted practice and for the first time threw passes during 11-on-11 drills....
Risk pays off for West Point in Little League Softball World Series elimination game
Load the bases. Live with the result. With one out and runners at second and third for Italy’s Emilia Romagna Little League in the bottom of the fifth, Tina Madison pulled her defense into the pitching circle for a talk — a rather calm talk, all things considered. “Relax,” the...
NCAA moving closer to financially rewarding women’s basketball teams that reach March Madness
Women’s basketball teams are about to move a step closer to getting financially rewarded for success in the NCAA Tournament. The Division I Board of Directors was expected to meet Tuesday and introduce a proposal to give performance units to teams that make March Madness. Units represent revenue. “Unless something...
Charles Barkley says he will not retire and remain with TNT Sports even if they don’t have the NBA
Charles Barkley intends to remain with TNT Sports through the remainder of his contract. The Hall of Fame player announced Tuesday that he will not retire next season, reversing the announcement he made in June during the NBA Finals. Barkley said at the time that the 2024-25 season would be...
Pitbull Stadium is the new home of FIU football. The artist has bought the naming rights
Welcome to Pitbull Stadium, the home of your FIU Panthers. Florida International announced what could end up as a 10-year agreement on Tuesday with international recording artist, Grammy winner and entrepreneur Armando Christian Pérez — the Miami native better known as Pitbull — to put his name on their on-campus...
Panthers observations: Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi points to a ‘War Daddy’ at WR, 5-8 RB with big heart
The sixth practice of Pitt’s summer camp Tuesday was a big day for the players who put on full pads for the first time and were permitted to do what most of them enjoy most — hit someone as hard as they can. It also was one of the hottest...
‘It’s been a lot more efficient’: Penn State coaches, players share reaction to in-helmet communication
College football teams’ spring games are typically defined by motifs relating to new things, whether it’s new players, coaching staffs, stadiums, etc. One of this year’s new things came in the form of offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki’s voice buzzing through a tiny speaker in the helmet of his quarterbacks —...
Olympic marathon swim test run canceled over water quality concerns for Seine River
PARIS — A test run meant to allow Olympic athletes to familiarize themselves with the marathon swimming course in the Seine River was canceled Tuesday over concerns about water quality in the Paris waterway. World Aquatics made the decision to cancel the exercise at an early morning meeting, the organization...
First Call: Steelers to see 1st-team offense from Texans Friday; Pirates get stiff test in series opener vs. Padres
The Steelers will get a strong challenge at Acrisure Stadium in Friday’s preseason opener, and the Pirates will get one on the mound Tuesday night. Also, a Steelers division rival is dealing with an injury issue along the defensive front, and a former Steeler loses out on a shot to...
