champion

Fabio Wardley tells BBC Sport how he went from playing football for Ipswich Town’s academy to stepping into the ring in white collar boxing.

The Ipswich-born fighter, now WBO world champion, will defend his title for the first time when he faces Daniel Dubois in Manchester on Saturday.

READ MORE: Wardley v Dubois – all you need to know

Zanardi, who lost his legs in a racing crash, was credited with helping transform the perception of disability in Italy.

Alex Zanardi, the Italian Formula One driver who became a Paralympic cycling champion after losing both legs in an accident, has died aged 59, his family announced.

Zanardi, one of his country’s most loved and respected sportsmen, who was credited with helping transform the perception of disability in Italy, died on Friday evening.

In a statement issued on Saturday through the charity he founded, Obiettivo3, his family said he died “suddenly”, but also “peacefully, surrounded by the love of his family and friends”.

“The family would like to express ⁠their heartfelt thanks to all those who are showing their support at this time and ⁠asks that their grief and privacy be ⁠respected during this period of mourning.”

Zanardi’s death comes six years after the four-time Paralympic gold medal winner suffered a second horror crash in June 2020, when his handbike crashed into an oncoming truck during a race in Tuscany.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni hailed Zanardi as “a great champion and an extraordinary man, capable of turning every trial of life into a lesson in courage, strength and dignity”.

Cordiano Dagnoni, head of the Italian Cycling Federation, said he “transformed the culture of our country, bringing joy and happiness to those fortunate enough to know him, and hope to so many in Italy and around the world”.

He said there would be a minute’s silence observed at this weekend’s races in tribute to the athlete.

Zanardi raced for Jordan, Minardi and Lotus in F1 in the early 1990s before switching to the CART championship in the United States where he was series champion in 1997 and 1998.

He returned to F1 with Williams in 1999 before heading back to CART.

Zanardi almost died in a horrific accident in 2001 at the Lausitzring track in Germany, after which he had both legs amputated.

His car had stalled in the middle of the track after a spin and was struck by another car at a speed of more than 300km/h (186mph).

Yet he went on to become one of the best-known figures in Paralympic sports, winning two gold medals at the 2012 London Games and two more in Rio de Janeiro, four years later.

In June 2020, he was involved in another terrible accident, this time in Tuscany. He suffered serious head injuries and only returned home 18 months later.

Zanardi, born in Bologna on October 23, 1966, leaves his wife Daniela and son Niccolo.

Zanardi returned to motorsport after his crash, winning four times for BMW in the World Touring Car Championship from 2005-09.

In addition to his handcycling success at the Paralympics, he became a 12-time world champion and won the men’s para-cycling race at the New York marathon in 2011.

Zanardi suffered serious head injuries in 2020 when he lost control of his handbike during a road race in Tuscany and crashed into an oncoming truck.

Formula 1’s governing body the FIA said, external Zanardi’s “journey from life-changing accident to Paralympics gold medallist made him one of sport’s most admired competitors and an enduring symbol of courage and determination”.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said, external her country had lost “a great champion and an extraordinary man, capable of turning every trial of life into a lesson in courage, strength, and dignity”.

She added: “Alex Zanardi knew how to get back in the game every time, facing even the toughest challenges with determination, clarity, and a strength of spirit that was truly exceptional.

“With his sporting achievements, with his example, and with his humanity, he gave all of us much more than a victory: he gave hope, pride, and the strength to never give up.

“On behalf of myself and the government, I extend my heartfelt thoughts and the sincerest closeness to his family and to all those who loved him.

“Thank you for everything, Alex.”

Bob Olinger rode off into retirement with victory in the Champion Stayers Hurdle on day three of the Punchestown Festival.

Ridden by Darragh O’Keefe, the Henry de Bromhead-trained 11-year-old (4-1) saw off Willie Mullins’ Jimmy Du Seuil (9-1) and pre-race favourite Teahupoo (5-4) who was seeking a third consecutive triumph in the race.

It capped a remarkable 11-win career that produced three at Cheltenham, as he rolled back the years to go out on a high.

Teahupoo led as they headed down the final stretch of the three-mile circuit, but Bob Olinger had closed the gap by the final fence and had more in the tank to open a gap.

While Jimmy Du Seuil applied late pressure, it just was not enough as Bob Olinger had three-quarters of a length to spare.

The Novice Chase went the way of Salvator Mundi (13-2) who took advantage of a fall from favourite Kopek Des Bordes.

With Mullins’ new retained jockey Harry Cobden onboard, it was a case of taking advantage of his stablemate’s misfortune two fences from home to claim the win.

Kopek Des Bordes seemed to be in full control before the fall with Salvator Mundi, who was on his coattails, galloping to a 12-length win from second place Irish Panther (15-2) and Jacob’s Ladder (18-1) in third.

Demis Hassabis, the co-founder of Google DeepMind, reunited Wednesday with South Korea’s legendary baduk player Lee Sedol, who went up against the company’s AlphaGo AI in a legendary human-versus-machine match 10 years ago.

“It’s great to be back here kind of the center of where it all started” Hassabis said at the event held by Google in central Seoul, saying that the historic five-game match “signaled the beginning of these incredible advances that happened in the last decade.”

When asked about the Lee-AlphaGo match in 2016, the Google executive pointed to the AI’s move 37 as the “most incredible moment” that demonstrated that AI can show creativity.

During game two of the 2016 match, AlphaGo made an unconventional shoulder hit on the fifth line for its 37th move, widely considered a pivotal move that secured its victory against Lee.

Such AI creativity can usher in a new “renaissance” of humans flourishing in science, he said, as it did in helping him solve the 50-year-old “protein folding problem,” which led to a Nobel prize in 2024.

“I think we could maybe even like solve all diseases in the next 10 to 20 years. We can use these technologies to help the environment and new energy sources,” he said.

The father of AlphaGo also mentioned South Korea’s potential to become one of the leaders in the AI sector.

“It’s amazing at manufacturing from chips to robotics, incredible strength in industry, fantastic universities and research institutes,” he said. “So I think it has all of the ingredients to be one of the world leaders in this technology.”

Hassabis, who has been in Seoul since Monday, has met with President Lee Jae Myung and signed a memorandum of understanding with the science ministry technology partnerships program.

The executive is also said to have held separate meetings with chiefs of local conglomerates, including LG Group and Hyundai Motor Group.

Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency prohibits its content from being redistributed or reprinted without consent, and forbids the content from being learned and used by artificial intelligence systems.

Neil Robertson established a narrow 5-3 lead over John Higgins in a fiercely contested opening to their quarter-final.

Higgins compiled breaks of 61 and 56 to take the first frame and the fourth to draw level at 2-2.

However, the emotional and physical toll of defeating Ronnie O’Sullivan 13-12 in an all-time Crucible classic on Monday appeared to weigh on the 50-year-old Scot at times.

The four-time champion made six unforced errors before reaching the mid-session interval and was far from his best in a scrappy affair.

Australia’s Robertson, who won the world title in 2010, also failed to hit the heights despite enjoying runs of 77 and 70 and, at one point, he even had to have his chair repaired, adding to the protracted nature of their contest.

While he took the final two frames of the session, his pragmatic approach and an unfortunate run of the balls contributed to a drawn-out eighth frame that lasted almost 52 minutes and delayed the start of the evening session.

Robertson and Higgins get back under way on Wednesday at 10:00 BST.

In contrast, Hossein Vafaei and Wu Yize are level at 4-4 after an entertaining start to their best-of-25 encounter.

With both players seemingly focused on attacking snooker, Iran’s Vafaei knocked in a break of 66 to lead 2-1 before Wu underlined his status as one of the game’s burgeoning talents with runs of 90, 56 and 56 to pull 4-2 ahead.

Vafaei, who had to win two qualifiers before advancing past Si Jiahui and then world number one Judd Trump in a final-frame thriller, responded with a break of 71.

And he drew level when Wu failed to knock in a presentable long black to the top left corner, clearing the table up to, and including, the pink.

They return for the second session of their best-of-25 encounter on Wednesday at 14:30 BST.

UCLA women’s basketball team has added some star power as its revamped roster begins to take shape.

Former Iowa State forward Addy Brown announced Thursday she is committing to UCLA, giving the Bruins one of the top players in the portal.

Brown averaged 11.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 43.1% from the floor and 33.8% from three-point distance with the Cyclones last season. She played just 21 games due to injury, but she is one of the better two-way players in the nation on the transfer market.

The 6-foot-2 forward co-starred with Audi Crooks for Iowa State the past few seasons and was a part of the mass exodus from the Cyclones’ program.

The Bruins reeled in former North Carolina junior guard Elina Aarnisalo and former Texas Christian senior guard Donovyn Hunter a few weeks ago, adding two more experienced players to the depleted starting lineup after a record six UCLA players were selected in the WNBA draft.

UCLA also signed Arkansas sophomore guard Bonnie Deas earlier this month. She is likely to start at point guard for the Bruins and is one of the best rebounding guards in the nation.

Along with returner Timea Gardiner, the Bruins are starting to form somewhat of a core to defend their national championship. Gardiner was a starter during UCLA’s 2024-25 Final Four run, but missed all of this past season with injury and has one season of eligibility left.

A lineup with Deas and Aarnisalo in the backcourt, Hunter at the three and Gardiner or Brown at the four and adding another big or Sienna Betts at the five would be a competitive lineup in the Big Ten.

Before going to TCU, Hunter played two seasons at Oregon State where she earned All-Pac-12 Defensive Team honorable mention and All-Pac-12 Freshman team honors. This past season with a Horned Frogs team that went to the Sweet 16, she was third in scoring with 10.2 points per game and averaged 3.2 rebounds per contest. She also shot 45.7% from the field and was 33.7% from beyond the arc.

Aarnisalo played her freshman year in Westwood after she originally committed to UCLA in 2025. Due to injuries from point guard Kiki Rice at the start of the 2024-25 season, she was forced into action early her freshman season and finished the year averaging 5.1 points per game.

The Helsinki, Finland, native averaged 10.2 points per game for the Tar Heels as a sophomore last season while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.3% from the arc. The Bruins will desperately need to replace the three-point production lost with the departure of Rice, Gianna Kneepkens and Charlisse Leger-Walker.

UCLA coach Cori Close said she wanted to sign five players from the portal. She probably needs one more guard and a little more forward depth coming off the bench following the departures of Gabriela Jaquez and Angela Dugalic.

Lena Bilic and Amanda Muse are returners coming off the bench who got a little bit of playing time in the tournament and should have much larger roles, but they are still relatively unproven in late-game situations. They will get a chance to develop as backups with some more Power Four experienced starters now in the fold.

Williams’ cautiousness about going under the knife suggests he still has ambitions to continue on the baize for years to come – and who can blame him.

Last October, at the age of 50 years and 206 days, he beat the mark set back in 1982 by fellow Welshman Ray Reardon to become the oldest winner of a ranking event when he triumphed in the Xi’an Grand Prix.

Even now, having turned 51 last month, he is ranked sixth in the world going into the World Championship this weekend..

“When I was 45 I said I’d like to see where I am in the rankings when I’m 50,” Williams recalled.

“I’m not retiring, I made that decision years ago. Let’s see where I am in the rankings at 55, that’ll be interesting.”

He may have ruled out retirement but is not feeling quite so confident about his chances at the Crucible this year.

“I’m still fighting. I’m still trying and that’s all I can say,” he said.

“I try my best in every tournament and if you win, great, if you lose, that’s not the end of the world.

“I’ve been doing this since I was an eight-year-old kid. My father was going down the mines for 30 years, my grandfather for 50 years.

“I’m just travelling around the world playing the stupid game of snooker, getting paid well for it and enjoying it. You can’t put too much pressure on yourself.”

BBC Sport Northern Ireland’s Stephen Watson gets an exclusive interview with back-to-back Masters champion Rory McIlroy at Augusta National.

The 36-year-old from Northern Ireland became only the fourth player in history to win consecutive Masters titles on Sunday with a one-shot victory over American Scottie Scheffler.

READ MORE: Donald hails Europe’s ‘best’ as McIlroy nears majors record

The Northern Irishman becomes the first player to repeat at Augusta National since Tiger Woods back in 2001-2002.

Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo, Tiger Woods, and now, Rory McIlroy.

The Northern ‌Irishman emerged from a tight pack of contenders to win the 90th Masters Tournament on Sunday, joining the trio of golf icons as the only players in history ⁠to conquer Augusta National in back-to-back years.

McIlroy ⁠said earlier this week that winning one Masters would make it easier to win a second, and he dug deep into that belief on Sunday to rally from a three-shot deficit on the front nine to post a one-under-par round of 71 for the winning score of 12-under 276 – one better ⁠than Scottie Scheffler.

“I can’t believe that I waited 17 years to get one green jacket, and I get two in a row,” McIlroy told CBS in Butler Cabin. “I think that all of my perseverance at this golf tournament over the years has really started to pay off.”

McIlroy’s sixth career major also tied him with Faldo for the most by a European player in the modern era, and they are tied for 12th-most all-time by any player.

Cameron Young, Russell Henley, England’s Tyrrell Hatton and Justin Rose finished another shot back at 10 under.

McIlroy rallies

McIlroy began the final round tied for the 54-hole lead at 11 under with Young, who birdied the second hole to reach 12 under and take the outright lead. It appeared that McIlroy’s repeat quest might unravel when he went three over on the two par-threes on the front nine to fall to 9 under for the tournament.

Suddenly, McIlroy’s name was looking up on the leaderboard at Young and Rose, who reached 12 under with ‌four birdies in a five-hole stretch through No 9. Scheffler was also making a run several holes ahead, and Henley reached 10 under through eight holes.

This is when McIlroy kicked it back into gear for the first time since closing with six birdies over his final seven holes on Friday. A birdie on the seventh hole got McIlroy back to double digits under par, and he pulled within one shot of the lead with another on the par-five eighth.

While Scheffler’s rally stalled for a long stretch with 11 consecutive pars, and Rose and Young struggled to hole putts on the back nine, McIlroy kept ratcheting up the pressure. He birdied the 12th and 13th holes to go 2 under through “Amen Corner” and build a two-shot lead.

Scheffler kept it interesting with birdies on numbers 15 and 16 to get to 11 under. Another birdie attempt on 17 stayed on the lip of ⁠the cup, and Scheffler parred out to post a 4-under round of 68, with McIlroy on the course with three holes to play.

The two-shot ⁠cushion proved helpful for McIlroy when he pushed his drive on the 18th hole well right into the trees. He was able to punch the ball forward into a greenside bunker and put it on the putting surface with his third shot.

From there, McIlroy easily converted the two-putt bogey, and became the fourth player in history to successfully defend at the Masters.

“It’s nice to have that two-shot cushion instead of the one [shot] like I ⁠had last year,” McIlroy said. “I looked at the [leader]board after I made the bogey on six, and I went back to 9 under at that point. And I said, ‘If I can get to 14 under, I think I’ve got a really good chance of winning this tournament.’

“I didn’t quite ⁠get there, I got to 13, but 13 was good enough standing on the 18th tee.”

After setting a Masters record ⁠with a six-shot lead after 36 holes, McIlroy played the final 36 holes in even par. That brought a host of players back into the mix, with at least four different players leading at some point during the final round.

McIlroy admitted that he kept a close eye on the leaderboard after falling back to 9 under to know where he stood in the tournament.

“It was a tough weekend,” he said. “I did the bulk of my work on Thursday and Friday, ‌but just so happy to hang in there and get the job done.”

To win last year, McIlroy needed to beat Justin Rose – who finished tied third on Sunday having led by two at the turn – in a sudden death play-off after bogeying the 72nd hole.

And he did not make it much easier for himself this time around. Having scorched the field to take a record six-shot lead after 36 holes, he stuttered to a one-over 73 on Saturday.

Tied with Young going into Sunday, Northern Ireland’s McIlroy heaped pressure on himself with a sloppy double-bogey five on the fourth after three-putting from eight feet.

He dropped another shot at the par-three sixth, but after mixing four birdies with seven pars to build a two-shot lead over world number one Scheffler heading to the last, he said his “greatest stress” on Sunday was not knowing where his ball ended up on the 18th after flailing his drive right and in among the trees.

“It could go anywhere. It could be anywhere,” added the world number two, who also drew level with Americans Phil Mickelson and Lee Trevino on six majors.

“There were a few others. I thought my second putt on 11 was huge to avoid making bogey there.”

Despite falling behind Young and Rose, and with Scheffler creeping up the leaderboard, McIlroy insisted he never felt as though his chance had slipped away.

“If I hadn’t birdied the seventh and eighth holes, I would have started to push a little bit,” added the 36-year-old, who became just the sixth wire-to-wire Masters winner.

“But I think the birdies on seven and eight, Justin bogeying 11 and 12, and then me birdieing 12, I never felt like I was out of it. I never felt like I had to press at all.”

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Rory McIlroy, defending Masters champion, finally belongs.

That’s how he feels in the Augusta National clubhouse, at least, even though this week marks his 18th start in the historic golf tournament.

“I always felt like I knew the week of the tournament that the clubhouse is for participants and their families,” he said, “but I still felt like I had to earn the right to be there a little more often.”

A year ago, McIlroy beat Justin Rose in a sudden-death playoff to become the sixth man to complete a career grand slam, winning all four major championships.

In the last 12 months, McIlroy has discovered that was more of a memorable mile marker than a monumental, life-changing milestone.

“I think the story as it relates to me is what do I do from now onwards?” he said Tuesday. “What motivates me? What do I still want to achieve in the game? I think that’s the story.

“And there’s still a lot I want to do. You think every time you achieve something or have success that you’ll be happy, but then the goalposts move. And they just keep nudging a little bit further and further out of reach.”

It’s a reminder, McIlroy said, to find enjoyment in the journey rather than finally achieving a specific goal.

“Honestly, I felt like the career grand slam was my destination,” he said. “I got there and realized it wasn’t the destination.”

The 36-year-old from Holywood, Northern Ireland, had gone 11 years between major championships and joined Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only playerswith a career grand slam.

What’s more, McIlroy was the first Masters winner to have four double bogeys over four rounds — two on Thursday, two on Sunday.

“I think panic is the wrong word, but I didn’t overreact on Thursday …” he said. “I didn’t overreact when I was only one-under through nine on Friday. I think not overreacting and not pressing too hard, I stayed patient or as patient as I could be, and I feel like that patience was rewarded.

Scottie Scheffler puts the green jacket on Master winner Rory McIlroy last year.

(David J. Phillip / Associated Press)

“I played a 14-hole stretch at 10-under par after that, and that was literally the stretch of golf that won me the tournament. So I think in years past I would have went for a pin I shouldn’t have went at, missed in the wrong spot, made another bogey, and then all of a sudden the round starts to get away from you, especially around here.

“Last year, I didn’t let that happen to me, and that was a big difference.”

As is tradition, he wore his green jacket as he spoke to reporters from the dais in the media auditorium. He has brought that sports coat around the world in the last year, but was too protective of it to have it dry cleaned or have a tailor change a stitch of it.

“I think for the past 17 years I could not wait for the tournament to start,” he said, adding with a laugh: “This year, I wouldn’t care if the tournament never started.”

UCLA coach Cori Close refused to call the Bruins’ national championship win Sunday personally validating. She said it didn’t matter what people had thought about her as a coach.

Her players, though, were as excited for their coach as they were for themselves after defeating South Carolina 79-51 to claim the first NCAA national title in program history.

“I’m super proud of her as well, the way she responded as a leader last year,” UCLA senior guard Gabriela Jaquez said. “We responded well. Obviously we’re here now. I think it started with Coach Cori and the way she wanted to make a change in our program and get us back here, get this result.”

Close, who has been with the Bruins since 2011, got UCLA close last season, when the Bruins reached the Final Four and were blown out by Connecticut in the semifinal.

But they turned the tables on South Carolina on Sunday, and Close said the best feeling was knowing that her process could work.

“This has been a calling, not a job,” Close said. “I’ve been saying it all day, but I don’t even know how else to say it, it’s immeasurably more than I could ask or imagine. I’m really grateful.”

UCLA coach Cori Close points across the court and talks with guard Kiki Rice during a win over South Carolina in the NCAA national title game Sunday in Phoenix.

(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)

At times during her career, Close was viewed as an excellent recruiter and strong motivational speaker, but her tactical decisions were easy to question every time her team faltered during big moments. During the course of UCLA’s win over South Carolina, Close demonstrated every weakness her team showed during the past four years had been corrected. The result, was a lopsided victory that announced her arrival as one of women’s college basketball’s top coaches.

WNBA star Caitlin Clark on posted on X, “Not many care about the game as much as Coach Close … couldn’t be happier for her!!”

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said Close and her Bruins deserved all the praise.

“Cori is one of those people who really works at making our game better. Not just UCLA, but our entire game,” Staley said. “She’s always speaking out, uplifting our game in so many areas that it’s hard to continue to do that while maintaining the job that you have to do every day. But she finds the time.

UCLA coach Cori Close hugs South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley before their teams faced off for a national title Sunday in Phoenix.

(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)

“Although we didn’t win, I can swallow it because we lost to a really good human being and a good team that represent women’s basketball well.”

Close will have to face a rebuild and likely have to work the transfer portal hard in the coming weeks to replace her six seniors and graduate students. But now, it might be a little bit easier since she’s proven her players bought in and she can win.

“Coach Cori really stayed patient with me,” said senior Lauren Betts, who was named the tournament’s most outstanding player. “She wanted to see me accomplish everything that I’d ever dreamed of. They just continued to remind me, they want me to see myself the way they all see me. I feel like now at this point I can finally truly do that. I think that’s what I’m most proud of.”

Not only win, either, but in such joyous fashion that it kept many of the players committed to the program and each other. Close’s approach ultimately carried them to a national championship.

UCLA forward Gabriela Jaquez dribbles under pressure from South Carolina forward Joyce Edwards Sunday in Phoenix.

(Ronaldo Bolanos/Los Angeles Times)

“It’s about their work and their habits yielding,” Close said while tearing up. “We say this, we want to recruit courageous. There were a lot of times we wondered if it could be true. I said I wanted to find uncommon, courageous women that were willing to make uncommon choices that maybe possibly could yield an uncommon result, and today it did.”

More love for the national champions

The UCLA women’s basketball team’s win sparked celebrations throughout the country.

UCLA two-sport star Megan Grant, who spent part of the fall practicing and playing on the Bruins’ basketball team, helped the softball team sweep Indiana before catching a flight to Phoenix. She greeted the basketball team at its hotel and joined the celebration, getting decked in UCLA national championship gear and receiving a piece of the title net from Close.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, a proud UCLA alum, recorded a video congratulating the team on its title win from one champion to another. “You guys made the entire Bruin nation so proud,” he said.

Lakers legend Magic Johnson, former U.S. Soccer star Abby Wambach, former President Obama, former Vice President Kamala Harris, Gov. Gavin Newsom, Mayor Karen Bass and many others congratulated the Bruins on social media. The state capital was lit in UCLA colors Sunday night in honor of the Bruins’ win. Fans greeted the team when the Bruins’ bus from the airport arrived on campus Sunday night.

UCLA is inviting fans to a national title celebration at Pauley Pavilion on Wednesday night. The official start time has not yet been announced.

Gymnastics advances to NCAA championships

The UCLA gymnastics team was locked in a tight battle Sunday in Corvallis, Ore., for a spot in the national championship meet.

The Bruins, however, were confident their super-power event — the floor exercise, their final rotation — would keep alive their goal of winning a national title.

Ciena Alipio scored a 9.875; Mika Webster-Longin, Sydney Barros and Ashlee Sullivan all scored a 9.900; and Tiana Sumanasekera added a 9.925.

Then it was time for senior Jordan Chiles to close out the meet for the Bruins.

Chiles delivered the same dynamic floor routine that has earned high scores all season, bursting into tears as soon as she stuck the final landing. She was rewarded with her eighth perfect 10 of the season and clinched the regional victory for the Bruins.

It was UCLA’s 25th NCAA regional title and the program’s first since 2019.

UCLA’s final team score was 197.725. Minnesota was next in line with 197.625 and will join the Bruins as the teams advancing to the national title meet.

Longtime UCLA rival Utah placed third with 197.500 and Alabama was fourth with 197.175.

Louisiana State, Stanford, Florida, Georgia, Oklahoma and Arkansas are the other six teams that advanced to the national championships, which will be held April 16 and 18 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth.

No. 1 UCLA baseball sweeps No. 12 USC

The No. 1 UCLA baseball team completed a three-game sweep of No. 12 USC at Jackie Robinson Field, rolling to a 10-4 victory.

With the score tied 3-3 in the fifth inning, Will Gasparino hit a two-run homer. Mulivai Levu added a two-run homer in the sixth, and Roch Cholowsky tacked on a three-run blast in the eighth.

UCLA earned a 12-4 win over USC on Friday, then had to rally for a 9-8 win Saturday.

The Bruins (29-2, 15-0 Big Ten) are riding a 23-game win streak. The Trojans (27-6, 10-5) started the season on a 19-game win streak but have been challenged by Big Ten competition.

The UCLA football team kicked off spring workouts this past week. We’ll get our first chance to talk with players this week and promise to have more football coverage in the newsletters to come.

In case you missed it

Plaschke: Bruising Bruins dominate South Carolina, bring another NCAA national title to Westwood

Swanson: Gabriela Jaquez achieves the UCLA championship she always dreamed of

UCLA crushes South Carolina to win NCAA women’s basketball national championship

UCLA players say Cori Close has evolved from motivator to championship leader

UCLA fans gather in Arizona to proudly cheer on Final Four Bruins they admire

Plaschke: UCLA defies expectations with a TKO of Texas and isn’t backing down from title fight

Swanson: Becoming the next South Carolina was always UCLA’s goal. Now it must beat its inspiration

No. 1 UCLA baseball pulls away from No. 12 USC in highly anticipated showdown

UCLA defeats Texas to set up national title showdown with South Carolina

How viral videos sparked a women’s NCAA tournament revolution

UCLA knocks off Texas, reaches national championship game

It’s ‘all or nothing’ for UCLA seniors chasing NCAA women’s basketball title

UCLA coach Bob Chesney grades Bruins on effort not perfection as spring football opens

UCLA gymnasts say remaining calm, confident key to their push for a national title

UCLA confident it can turn last year’s hard lessons into Final Four success

Five concerns UCLA must address before facing Texas in the Final Four

Angela Dugalic surrendered a starting role and unlocked UCLA’s trip to the Final Four

Prep Rally: Former Southern California high school standouts fueling UCLA and USC baseball

Have something Bruin?

Do you have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future UCLA newsletter? Email newsletters editor Houston Mitchell at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.

World championship boxing returned to the historic Kensington venue for the first time in decades. The Olympia had previously staged headline fights involving stars such as Chris Eubank Jr and Prince Naseem Hamed.

Harper strode towards the centre of the 19th-Century grand hall, buoyed by her travelling Yorkshire faithful.

Dubois, who once pretended to be a boy named Colin so she could be allowed to box, also received a warm reception as she entered to “I’m Every Woman” by Whitney Houston.

The fight had been a long time coming, and the rivalry had grown increasingly tense in the build-up. Dubois repeatedly questioned Harper’s achievements and credentials, while Harper shoved Dubois during a fiery media face-off earlier in the week.

By the halfway stage, however, the contest had not quite lived up to the hype, with Dubois edging the rounds through steady work to the body.

Then, suddenly, the fight came alive. Dubois set up a knockdown with a sharp double jab followed by a left hook, sending Harper to the canvas.

Harper rose to her feet as Dubois leapt in celebration, prompting the referee to warn her for failing to return to her corner.

Dubois increased the pressure. She landed thudding southpaw left hands in the seventh and eighth as blood began to drip from a cut on the inside of ‘Belter’ Harper’s left eye.

Watching from ringside was pound-for-pound star Claressa Shields, shouting encouragement for Dubois.

A strong combination from Dubois in the ninth suggested a stoppage might be imminent, but Harper rallied to land shots to Dubois’ head in the 10th and final round.

“Terri is very tricky; she navigated herself very well and it was up to me to push the pace,” Dubois told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“She is a champion and she doesn’t like to lose, but neither do I.

“The better woman won tonight and I hope she can give me my respect.”

World boxing champion Lauren Price says the structure in her life is what gives her the “confidence” to win.

Price splits her time between her home in Wales and her training camp in Sheffield, living away from her family and partner in the build-up to a fight.

On Saturday she will fight in front of a home crowd in Cardiff to defend her titles against Stephanie Pineiro.

READ MORE: Price v Pineiro, Chisora v Wilder – all you need to know

Watch Price v Pineiro on Saturday from 17:00 BST on BBC iPlayer and from 22:00 on BBC Two.

The greatest legacy from the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles continues to be the LA84 Foundation, which has invested more than $250 million supporting youth sports organizations in Southern California through cash grants. It was created by receiving $93 million in profits from the 1984 Olympic Games under the vision of lead organizer Peter Ueberroth.

On Thursday, the LA84 Foundation sponsored its eighth Play Equity Summit, which is designed to find solutions to the challenges of access to youth sports activities. The theme was, “Play Because it Matters.”

Renata Simril, CEO of the LA84 Foundation, said, “The most powerful stadiums in America are the school yard and the block on your street.”

LA84 Foundation CEO Renata Simile.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

She said youth sports at the grassroots level are failing. The pay-to-play model is rising, making youth sports a $40-billion industry while leaving many behind.

“The only P.E. that belongs in youth sports is play equity,” Simril said.

She told those attending, “The task is to act and think differently.”

She remembers learning tennis on her neighborhood street and “the cracked court” at Carson High.

Simril said with the World Cup, Super Bowl and Olympic Games coming to Los Angeles over the next two years, “We have a generational opportunity to align the biggest moment in sports.”

She wants others to create legacy programs that last for youth sports through “more partnerships, more sponsorships, more access.”

“Purpose and profit can grow higher,” she said. “It should grow. It can lead to a legacy of investment in young people forever.”

She made it clear why participation in sports is so important for boys and girls.

“Play is how they become ready for life,” she said.

This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.

Can a Gladiator keep up with a world champion boxer in the gym? Lauren Price meets Phantom and puts him through his paces to find out.

READ MORE: Price v Pineiro, Chisora v Wilder – all you need to know

Watch Price defend her world titles against Stephanie Pineiro on Saturday from 17:00 BST on BBC iPlayer and from 22:00 on BBC Two.

Korir tested positive for a drug that stimulates red blood cell production during out-of-competition tests.

Kenya’s 2021 New York marathon champion Albert Korir has been banned for five years after he admitted using a banned performance-enhancing drug, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said.

The AIU said on Monday that Korir had received a one-year reduction from the original six-year suspension “based on an early admission and acceptance of the sanction”.

Korir, 32, tested positive for the synthetic form of erythropoietin (EPO) that stimulates red blood cell production during out-of-competition tests in Kenya in October 2025.

His five-year ban will run from January 8, 2026, the date he was provisionally suspended, until January 7, 2031.

Korir won the 2021 New York marathon in a time of 2hr 08min 22sec and came third in 2023 with a personal best time of 2:06:57.

He won the Ottawa marathon in 2019 and 2025.

Korir’s sanction comes nearly six months after compatriot Ruth Chepngetich, the current world marathon record holder was banned for three years after admitting the use of Hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), a banned diuretic used as a masking agent.

Kenya worked to clean up its image after a string of doping scandals around the 2016 Rio Olympics led to it being declared non-compliant by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

More than 140 Kenyan runners, mainly long-distance athletes, have been sanctioned for drugs offences since then.

In June 2024, Kenya handed out its first lifetime ban to marathon runner Beatrice Toroitich and a six-year ban to 10km record-holder Rhonex Kipruto.

Coaching high school basketball since the 1979-80 season and being the second-winningest coach in state history with 1,127 victories, Mike LeDuc is one of those old-school coaches who likes to push his players forward and fade into the background when team success comes.

This season at Damien, LeDuc can take a bow for guiding the Spartans to the state Division I championship with little size but a group of players who loved to shoot threes, never stopped hustling on defense and executed close to perfection on the biggest stage at Golden 1 Center and during his team’s playoff run.

For turning a group of players he fondly called “overachievers” into champions, LeDuc is The Times’ boys’ basketball coach of the year.

Through his many years of coaching at Damien and previously at Glendora, he’s mentored such outstanding players as Tracy Murray, Casey Jacobsen and Cameron Murray. Now Cameron’s sophomore son, CJ, plays for Damien. It’s a full circle moment for LeDuc, who was holding his granddaughter at the awards ceremony in Sacramento.

As the years go by and the game keeps changing, LeDuc continues to adapt, adjust and power on.

LeDuc‘s answer is, “Basketball is a real simple game. It’s a game of repetition and if you do it over and over, you expect it to be done perfectly.”

Belfast’s IBF world welterweight champion Lewis Crocker says he hopes that a victory over Australian Liam Paro in his next fight can open the door to a unification bout with another belt holder in the division.

Crocker is set to defend his title in Australia, with May the likely month for the contest and the Queensland city of Townsville seeming like the probable venue.

The 29-year-old won the title with a split decision verdict over Paddy Donovan at Belfast’s Windsor Park in September and his team had hoped to stage the defence against mandatory challenger Paro back in his home city.

However, with no agreement reached between both parties, the matter was resolved by a purse bid with No Limit outbidding Crocker’s promoter Matchroom by $27,000 (£20,000).

When asked by BBC Sport NI’s Thomas Kane where he hoped a potential win over Paro could lead, Crocker replied: “The biggest fight possible. Unification, which is something I feel I deserve if I get through Paro.

“You look at the names in the division as well, everything’s massive. You have Garcia [Ryan, WBC champion], Haney [Devin, WBO holder], Rolly [Rolando Romero, WBA champion] and Benn [currently ranked number one challenger by the WBC] there so there’s so much to gain from this fight for the winner.

“Any of the big boys because it will be easy to make. We all want a unification in the division, we all want to become undisputed.”

SEOUL, March 16 (UPI) — South Korea’s Ministry of Intellectual Property has appointed former Go champion Lee Sedol as its first ambassador, 10 years after his landmark competition with AlphaGo.

The ministry said Friday that the appointment would help it communicate its policy direction to the public in a more symbolic and accessible way.

A few years after the 2016 contest against AlphaGo, Lee retired from the strategic board game that is popular in Korea, Japan, and China. He is now a special professor at the country’s Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology.

Back then, AlphaGo ultimately beat Lee in the five-game series. However, Lee managed to secure a historic victory in the fourth game.

“Professor Lee is recorded as the first and also the last human to defeat AI,” Intellectual Property Minister Kim Young-sun said at the event.

“Regardless of the outcome of his match against AI, I believe that he demonstrated a desirable model for the AI era — not viewing AI merely as something to overcome or challenge, but as a partner with which we can cooperate and coexist,” he said.

Lee promised to support the ministry, the country’s government organization responsible for policies related to patents trademarks, and other intellectual property rights.

“Ten years ago, there was the match against AlphaGo. I think that may have been the starting point of AI. Now it has become difficult to imagine a world without AI,” Lee said.

“In line with these changes, I believe that an important task for the MOIP is how well it collaborates and adapts to this environment to continue developing and advancing,”

Duplantis, widely known by his nickname ‘Mondo’, has already won every major gold available to him, and became the first man in 68 years to retain the Olympic pole vault title at Paris 2024.

The US-born Swede, who chose to represent his mother’s homeland, has not lost a major final since the World Athletics Championship in Doha in 2019, where as a teenager he missed out to American Sam Kendricks on countback.

World record talk has largely replaced any discussion of the destination of men’s pole vault gold medals since he took the record off Lavillenie in February 2020.

How has he done it? A potent combination of lightning runway speed, technical precision in the take-off, explosive power and the bravery to embrace it as he travels far beyond the average height of a giraffe (5.5m).

It is his sprinting prowess in particular that his rivals pinpoint as a defining factor, with the higher approach speed generating greater kinetic energy and creating the foundation for greater heights.

That is something he has enhanced through specially-developed sprinting spikes which he wears for his world record attempts, which feature an unusual hooked spike in the forefoot.

His incremental centimetre-by-centimetre approach to improving the world record is by no means revolutionary; since Sergey Bubka became the first person to clear six metres 40 years ago, the record has been nudged no more than two centimetres higher at a time.

It helped that Duplantis grew up with a pole vault pit in the back garden of his childhood home in Louisiana, with his father a former elite competitor in the discipline.

The record-breaking dominance he has gone on to achieve has transcended the sport and established Duplantis – coached by his parents Greg and Helena – as the sport’s biggest star.