SWIMMING
McKeown on a record roll
Kaylee McKeown on Saturday smashed a second world record in as many days, with the star Australian swimmer bettering her own 100m backstroke mark. The 22-year-old touched in 57.33 seconds at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Budapest to shave 0.12 seconds off the time she set in Adelaide before the Tokyo Olympic Games. McKeown now has the five fastest times in history as she builds up to next year’s Paris Olympics. The new mark comes a day after she clocked 26.86 seconds for a new 50m backstroke world record, improving on the previous best of 26.98 seconds set by China’s Liu Xiang in 2018. That made her the first woman ever to hold world records in all three backstroke disciplines and the first swimmer since the US’ Lenny Krayzelburg set all three men’s marks in 1999. “No, I honestly didn’t think about swimming a world record,” McKeown said after her 100m exploit. “I was really relaxed coming into tonight. I tend to swim better when I go out a bit faster, I am trying to learn to swim a bit sharper... I’m happy that some of the things we are trying are working.”
SKATEBOARDING
Teen wins gold in Santiago
Brazil’s 15-year-old skateboarding sensation Rayssa Leal, one of the favorites to win a gold medal in the street event at the Paris Olympics next year, won her first Pan American Games crown on Saturday. The sport is debuting in the largest multisport event on the continent. The teen has become one of the biggest names in the sport since she won a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She showcased her board flips, slides and grinds to score a total of 236.98 points in Santiago. Her compatriot and friend, Pamela Rosa, finished with the silver medal, 25 points behind. The US’ Paige Heyn, another 15-year-old, won the bronze . Dressed in black, Leal looked effortless throughout the competition, spending more time on her cellphone than watching her adversaries. A different scenario awaits her in Paris, with her most likely rival being once again 16-year-old Momiji Nishiya of Japan, the gold medalist at the sport’s Olympic debut in Tokyo. “This does help me get more confidence for Paris,” Leal said. “The Olympics and the Pan American Games are different from the tournaments I usually compete. It is less about being playful. Being here today helps me prepare better for what is to come next year.”
ICE HOCKEY
Vegas break Cup record
Nicolas Roy, Mark Stone and Paul Cotter scored in the third period, as the undefeated Vegas Golden Knights beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3 on Saturday night. The Golden Knights became the first Stanley Cup champions to begin their title defense with six consecutive victories. “We’re playing good hockey,” Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb said. “We have some stretches where we don’t like our games, but we’re finding ways to win.” William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault also scored for Vegas, who extended their franchise-record start. Adin Hill made 21 saves. “We knew after two periods that we were going to have to be better if we expected to win, and I thought we responded well,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. Connor Bedard, Reese Johnson and Corey Perry scored for Chicago, while Arvid Soderblom made 19 stops.
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
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