U.S./World Sports category, Page 167
Pittsburgh native Chip Ganassi goes to Indy with 5 strong shots in 500Video
INDIANAPOLIS — Chip Ganassi skipped his 1982 graduation ceremony at Duquesne to qualify for the Indianapolis 500. The Pittsburgh native made the field but turned out to be just an OK race car driver. His strengths were outside the car and inside the boardroom. In the 40 years since, Ganassi...
NASCAR hub Charlotte gets sellout for Memorial Day weekendVideo
CONCORD, N.C. — NASCAR still is a hot ticket in its Charlotte hub. Charlotte Motor Speedway announced a sellout for the Coca-Cola 600 on Sunday, meaning approximately 100,000 fans are expected to attend NASCAR’s longest race of the season. Grandstand seats sold out earlier this week, and officials announced Saturday...
AP source: Lakers choose Darvin Ham as next head coachVideo
LOS ANGELES — A person with knowledge of the decision says Darvin Ham has accepted an offer to be the next head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. The person spoke with the Associated Press on Friday on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been publicly announced. The...
Scott Stallings among trio tied for lead after 2nd round at ColonialVideo
FORT WORTH, Texas — This has been a good week in North Texas for Scott Stallings, first qualifying for the U.S. Open that will be played less than an hour from where he was born and now sharing the lead at Colonial with top-ranked Scottie Scheffler and Beau Hossler. Stallings...
Rafael Nadal to meet Felix Auger-Aliassime at French OpenVideo
PARIS — Rafael Nadal knew this was bound to happen. So, too, did his uncle, Toni Nadal, who coached Rafael to most of the nephew’s men’s-record 21 Grand Slam titles. Also well aware this moment would come, of course, was Felix Auger-Aliassime, the promising player who brought aboard the man...
Don’t count Juan Pablo Montoya out, he’s only at Indianapolis to winVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Oh, that’s just Juan. That’s what they say about Juan Pablo Montoya when he doesn’t want to do something, pushes back on a request or simply pretends he can’t hear what he’s been asked. He is back at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for what might be the last time...
Indy 500 driver helmets provide high-speed artVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Stefan Wilson’s first racing helmet was a hand-me-down from his older brother, Justin. So was his second one. And his third. The Wilson brothers designed the pattern together as youngsters growing up racing go-karts in England. When Stefan finally got a chance to style his own protective headgear,...
Scottie Scheffler part of crowded Colonial leaderboardVideo
FORT WORTH, Texas — Scottie Scheffler did something last weekend that he rarely does, watching a golf tournament at home after missing a cut. The world’s No. 1 player is back on the course and tied atop a crowded leaderboard at Colonial. Scheffler was among eight players who shot 4-under-par...
Helio Castroneves seeks historic 5th Indianapolis 500 victory
INDIANAPOLIS — Helio Castroneves lost his first battle for position in the parking lot of Global Preparatory Academy, a dual-language school located less than 10 minutes from Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He’d been to the school before, knew he was supposed to park in an alley around back and knew he’d...
Former tennis prodigy Leolia Jeanjean advances at French Open; Alison Riske losesVideo
PARIS — Grand Slam losses by high-ranked, well-known and accomplished players to, well, lower-ranked, lesser-known and less-accomplished opponents offer a rare opportunity for those unheralded winners to enjoy the spotlight. And for the first time in nearly a half-century, just three of the top 10 seeds in the French Open...
Simona Halep experiences panic attack during French Open matchVideo
PARIS — Two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep said she had a panic attack while leading her second-round match that she eventually lost at the French Open on Thursday. The 2018 Roland Garros winner said she “lost it” and couldn’t regain focus while playing 19-year-old Qinwen Zheng, who won 2-6,...
WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle recovering from double knee replacement
Kurt Angle won an Olympic gold medal with a broking neck, so the double knee replacement this week should be a piece of cake. At least that is what fans probably wish for the WWE Hall of Famer, Mount Lebanon native and 1996 Olympic gold medalist are hoping. But Angle...
Sugar Bowl moved to Dec. 31 to avoid conflict with NFL game
The Sugar Bowl has been moved off its usual primetime spot to noon Dec. 31 to avoid a conflict with a Monday night NFL game. The bowl schedule for the upcoming season was released Thursday. The games begin on Dec. 16 with the Bahamas Bowl and The Cure Bowl in...
College sports eye gambling money amid safeguard concerns
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The NCAA stance against gambling on sports by its athletes and those who work in college athletics is summed up simply by the slogan on the posters the association provides to its member schools: “Don’t Bet On It.” The rules have been unambiguous for decades, part of...
Roger Penske ready for 300,000 guests at full-capacity Indy 500Video
INDIANAPOLIS — Roger Penske motioned toward the Turn 4 grandstands at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. His father took him to those seats in 1951, and a 14-year-old Penske was instantly hooked by the sights and the sounds of “The 500-Mile Sweepstakes,” won that day by Lee Wallard. It was the beginning...
French Open champ Barbora Krejcikova says she has covid-19
PARIS — Barbora Krejcikova, last year’s French Open champion in singles and doubles, said she tested positive for covid-19 and will withdraw from the tournament. She already lost in the first round of singles but said Wednesday in a posting on Instagram she will need to drop out of trying...
Brittney Griner’s wife tells ABC she wants Biden to help bring WNBA star homeVideo
Brittney Griner’s wife, Cherelle, wants President Joe Biden to secure her partner’s release, doing whatever is necessary to get the WNBA star home from Russia where she has been detained for more than three months. “I just keep hearing that, you know, he has the power. She’s a political pawn,”...
Carlos Alcaraz saves match point to remain in French Open
PARIS — This was the sort of point in the sort of contest that, if 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz eventually reaches the heights so many believe he will, the lucky folks on hand at Court Simonne Mathieu on Wednesday night just might regale dinner guests for years with tales that begin,...
Scott McLaughlin, family reunite at Indy after 31 monthsVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — The first thing Wayne McLaughlin noticed when he saw his son for the first time in 31 months was how much weight he had lost. Scott McLaughlin had moved to the United States in late 2020 to become an IndyCar driver, and pandemic restrictions in Australia and New...
France salutes injured, retiring Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at French Open
PARIS — Much as he wanted to avoid tears, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga simply could not. And, he said later, he knew he would not. So they flowed freely during the final moments of his final match at the French Open, the final singles match of his professional tennis career, and he...
Caddie gives Thomas an honest talk, leaves PGA with a flagVideo
TULSA, Okla. — The morning after was like any other after a week’s work as a caddie, with one exception. Jim “Bones” Mackay finished his laundry, packed his car and began the four-hour drive from Southern Hills to Colonial, this time with a special souvenir riding shotgun. He has been...
Column: Indy 500 a showcase of IndyCar’s growing strengthVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — The speeds have been insane — 234 mph for Scott Dixon in a record-breaking run for the pole — and Jimmie Johnson and Romain Grosjean are part of the fastest field in the history of the Indianapolis 500. Some 20 drivers, maybe more, are legitimate contenders to win...
Naomi Osaka loses in French Open 1st round, may skip Wimbledon
PARIS — A year ago, Naomi Osaka left the French Open of her own volition, never beaten on the court but determining that she needed to pull out before the second round to stand up for herself and protect her mind. On Monday, Osaka departed Roland Garros against her will...
Justin Thomas takes PGA Championship from uninspiring to unforgettable
TULSA, Okla. — Justin Thomas wrapped his arms around the 27-pound Wanamaker Trophy after winning his second PGA Championship, and thousands of fans ringing the 18th green amid the setting sun at Southern Hills showered him in adulation. Good thing they woke up in time for his Sunday charge. For...
Ryan Blaney wins All-Star race, $1M 2 laps after thinking he won
FORT WORTH, Texas — Ryan Blaney needed two extra laps after thinking he had already won the NASCAR All-Star race and $1 million, staying in front through a green-white-checkered finish after a caution came out just yards before he got to the line the first time. Blaney’s crew was already...
