U.S./World Sports category, Page 218
Alabama preseason No. 1 in coaches poll; Penn State comes in at No. 20Video
Defending national champion Alabama is the preseason No. 1 in the USA Today Sports AFCA Coaches Poll released Tuesday. The Crimson Tide got 63 of the 65 first-place votes, and No. 3 Oklahoma got the other two. Clemson is No. 2, with Ohio State and Georgia rounding out the top...
Lionel Messi signs 2-year contract with Paris Saint-GermainVideo
Lionel Messi finally signed his eagerly anticipated Paris Saint-Germain contract on Tuesday night to complete the move that confirms the end of a career-long association with Barcelona and sends PSG into a new era. PSG said in a statement that the 34-year-old Argentina star signed a two-year deal with the...
Weather delay halts 2nd round of U.S. Amateur Championship
With lightning in the area and storms approaching, play was suspended Tuesday afternoon at the 121st U.S. Amateur at 1:34 p.m. There were 243 players that had not finished the second round of stroke play at Longue Vue Club and Oakmont Country Club when the stoppage occurred. The top 64...
This Date in Sports History: Aug. 10
1900 — The first Davis Cup is held with the United States beating Britain, 3-0. 1949 — Ezzard Charles knocks out Gus Lesnovich in the eighth round at Yankee Stadium in his first world heavyweight title defense. 1975 — Jack Nicklaus wins the PGA Championship for the fourth time with...
U.S. Amateur notes: Clemson golfer ties Longue Vue’s course record
Jacob Bridgeman didn’t know who Bob Ford was when asked. But the Inman, S.C., native was impressed when he heard the credentials of the former Oakmont Country Club and Seminole Golf Club (Florida) head professional. Bridgeman shot a 7-under-par 63 on Monday during Day 1 of stroke play competition at...
Greensburg’s Mark Goetz 1 shot off lead after Day 1 at U.S. Amateur
Mark Goetz could not have drawn up a better first round at the 121st United States Golf Association’s Amateur Championship. It was nearly flawless. The Greensburg native and West Virginia University senior shot a 6-under-par 64 on Monday at Longue Vue Club. His round consisted of four birdies and an...
Fewer medals, more heart for U.S. at a most unusual Olympics
TOKYO — Kara Winger is the American record-holder in the javelin throw who just wrapped up her fourth Olympics. She never has finished higher than sixth place. When she got the call over the weekend telling her she would be carrying the flag Sunday for the United States at the...
Japan’s prime minister thanks people for safe Olympics during pandemic
TOKYO — Japan’s prime minister thanked people for helping the country safely hold the Olympics despite the difficulties of the coronavirus pandemic. He noted the Games were delayed by a year and held under tight restrictions, but “I believe we were able to fulfill our responsibility as the host nation,”...
This Date in Sports History: Aug. 9
1936 — Jesse Owens becomes the first American to win four Olympic gold medals as the United States sets a world record in the 400 relay at the Berlin Games. The record time of 39.8 seconds lasts for 20 years. 1950 — Lusty Song, driven by Delvin Miller, wins the...
Tokyo’s Pandemic Olympics produces surreal mixed bagVideo
TOKYO — It began with a virus and a yearlong pause. It ended with a typhoon blowing through and, still, a virus. In between: just about everything. The Tokyo Olympics, christened with “2020” but held in mid-2021 after being interrupted for a year by the coronavirus, glided to their conclusion...
Lionel Messi breaks down, says tearful goodbye BarcelonaVideo
MADRID — Lionel Messi began crying before he even started speaking. The “most difficult” moment of his career had arrived and he wasn’t ready for it. It was time to say goodbye to Barcelona after more than two decades with the Catalan club. “I don’t know if I’ll be able...
Kyle Larson wins at Watkins Glen, eyes regular-season title
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y.— Kyle Larson won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Watkins Glen International on Sunday, building a big lead in the final stage and keeping Hendrick Motorsports teammate Chase Elliott at bay over the final laps. Elliott was seeking his third straight victory at The Glen but was...
Facts and figures for the 121st U.S. Amateur Championship
The United States Golf Association’a 121st U.S. Amateur Championship will be hosted by Oakmont Country Club and Longue Vue Club this week. Here are some facts and figures for the event: Stroke play (both courses): Monday and Tuesday Match play (Oakmont Country Club): Wednesday through Sunday Field: 312 cut to...
Signature holes, views make Oakmont, Longue Vue perfect venues for U.S. Amateur
There is no better golfer in Southwestern Pennsylvania than Sean Knapp to talk about what players will face at the 121st United States Golf Association’s Amateur Championship this week. The second oldest player in the field at 59, the Oakmont resident knows how to attack Oakmont Country Club, which is...
Tickets available for U.S. Amateur match play rounds
Fans can purchase tickets for the match play rounds of the USGA’s 121st U.S. Amateur Championship, being held this week at Oakmont Country Club. Spectators can buy weekly tickets for all five days of match play Wednesday-Sunday. Daily tickets, priced at $25, also are available. Round of 64 matches will...
Legendary Florida State coach Bobby Bowden dies at 91
Bobby Bowden, the folksy Hall of Fame coach who won more than 350 games and built Florida State into one of college football’s great dynasties with two national championships, has died. He was 91. Bobby’s son, Terry, confirmed to The Associated Press that his father died at home surrounded by...
U.S. women win 1st Olympic volleyball gold
TOKYO — The decades-long quest for the first Olympic gold medal for the U.S. women’s volleyball team ended Sunday when the Americans finally broke through with a 25-21, 25-20, 25-14 victory over Brazil. The United States, which had won three silver medals and two bronze since first getting on the...
U.S. women’s basketball team beats Japan to give Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi 5th golds
SAITAMA, Japan — Sue Bird capped off her unblemished 17-year Olympics run with a record fifth gold medal. All she and longtime U.S. teammate Diana Taurasi have done on the international stage is win and now stand alone with five gold medals — the first basketball players ever to accomplish...
Jimmie Johnson has sights set on bigger, better finishes in IndyCarVideo
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Jimmie Johnson dodged tractors and skirted around workers putting the finishing touches on the city-street track on his first laps riding a golf cart through the downtown course. Heavy machinery and employees failed to make it on the race simulator when Johnson took a seat as he...
Chasing history: Elliott goes for 3-peat at Watkins GlenVideo
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Three-peat at Watkins Glen? Not on Chase Elliott’s radar. OK, maybe a little bit. “I’m just excited to be going back. I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Elliott, the reigning NASCAR Cup champion, said this week on a Zoom call. “Every time you go to the...
‘Dream come true’ as Ty Gibbs wins Xfinity race at Watkins GlenVideo
WATKINS GLEN, N.Y. — Ty Gibbs passed road race ace AJ Allmendinger after a restart with four laps to go and won the Xfinity race at Watkins Glen International on Saturday. It was the third win in 10 Xfinity races this season for the 18-year-old grandson of team owner Joe...
Bryson DeChambeau lets clubs do talking at TOC Southwind
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Bryson DeChambeau let his clubs do most of the talking Saturday at TPC Southwind. DeChambeau shot a 7-under-par 63 to pull within two strokes of leader Harris English in the FedEx St. Jude Invitational, then declined to comment to most of the media following the round. DeChambeau...
‘I feel at peace’: Allyson Felix exits stage with record 11th medal
TOKYO — Allyson Felix knows the way to the Olympic medals stand better than any runner alive. She made her record-setting 11th trip there Saturday, after starring as the headliner on a 4x400 relay win that featured a who’s-who of American running. With the gold medal dangling from her neck...
Eddy Alvarez settles for silver, rare 2nd medal with U.S. baseball loss
YOKOHAMA, Japan — Not every Olympic dream ends in gold. Most don’t span ice and dirt, either. Speedskater-turned-second baseman Eddy Alvarez’s journey didn’t need to apex atop an Olympic podium to go down in history. Alvarez and the U.S. baseball team accepted their Olympic silver medals after losing the championship...
Japan beats U.S. to win 1st Olympic baseball gold medal
YOKOHAMA, Japan — A Japanese team of All-Stars fulfilled a determined national mission to win the Olympic baseball gold medal for the first time, beating the United States, 2-0, Saturday night behind Munetaka Murakami’s third-inning home run. Masato Morishita and four relievers combined on a six-hitter, and the Japanese men...
