Games

ST. LOUIS — Time is running out for the pitchers at the back end of the Dodgers’ rotation to prove that they should stay once left-hander Blake Snell returns from the injured list.

Right-hander Roki Sasaki strengthened his case Saturday with a quality start, despite some hiccups, as the Dodgers fell 3-2 to the Cardinals, extending their losing streak to four games.

Sasaki not only recorded an out in the sixth inning for the first season, but finished the inning to tie the deepest start of his MLB career, as he limited the Cardinals to three runs and five hits.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing. Sasaki labored early. But despite issuing two walks and hitting a batter in the first two innings, he escaped both unscathed.

No such luck in the third. Sasaki gave up back-to-back doubles to Iván Herrera and Alec Burleson, and a home run to Jordan Walker — who’s been swinging the hottest bat of any hitter this series — for a quick three runs.

Sasaki rebounded to throw three perfect innings to finish his outing.

The Dodgers’ offense, however, didn’t score until the ninth inning. Kyle Tucker and Teoscar Hernández hit back-to-back infield singles, testing Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn’s range to both sides.

Then Max Muncy shot an RBI single over the head of second baseman JJ Wetherholt. And Andy Pages drove in another run with a ground ball just past the glove of diving third baseman Ramón Urías. but their late rally stalled there.

The star-studded Dodgers lineup hasn’t scored more than two runs in a game since Monday.

Sasaki is one of three young pitchers at the back end of the rotation, along with right-hander Emmet Sheehan and left-hander Justin Wrobleski, who are competing for two spots once Snell returns.

Snell (left shoulder fatigue) is scheduled to make his third minor-league rehab start on Sunday for triple-A Oklahoma City. He’ll likely need at least a fourth before returning, manager Dave Roberts said Friday.

Sheehan gave up four runs in 4 2/3 innings Friday, his velocity wavering as his delivery fell out of sync.

Wrobleski is scheduled to start Sunday, as the Dodgers try to avoid a three-game sweep. He’s pitched the best out of all three pitchers, but his proven ability as a long reliever as well could actually work against him as the Dodgers decide how to free up a spot in the rotation.

A request from Los Angeles police officials to boost staffing and purchase new vehicles in time for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games has been met with deep skepticism by City Council members who worry about committing funding amid uncertainty around the plan to secure the venues.

During an hours-long budget hearing Tuesday, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell repeated a warning he has issued in recent months, suggesting that public safety will suffer if the city doesn’t hire more officers to replace the hundreds expected to leave the department in the next two years.

Despite recent recruitment gains, McDonnell said the council needs to fund the new hires now, so the department can staff up in time for the Olympics. Under the current security plan, the LAPD would supply about 2,400 officers, or just under a third of the total officers needed to police the Games.

The LAPD is requesting 520 new police recruits for the next fiscal year, which would grow the 8,600-member department by about 10 officers, with projected attrition at 510 officers.

The department is also requesting nearly $100 million from the city to purchase more than 500 new vehicles, as well as equipment such as an upgraded radio network, new computers and more than 1,600 body cameras, for the Games. LAPD officials said that after the Games, the vehicles would be used to upgrade the department’s aging fleet.

LAPD Cmdr. Mario Mota told council members at the Tuesday hearing that hundreds of the new vehicles would police the eight Olympic venues within city boundaries. The additional patrol cars and other specialized vehicles would also allow police to continue normal operations elsewhere over the 66 days between the July 14 start of the Olympic Games and the end of the Paralympic Games, he said.

LAPD officials said there was a misconception that federal authorities will take the lead on all security operations at Olympic venues. In fact, the federal priority will be safeguarding international delegations and protecting high-security areas, while the LAPD and other state and local agencies will be responsible for securing areas where most Olympic-related events are being held. The LAPD will still respond to 911 calls within city limits.

The U.S. Secret Service has not yet released details on how many federal agents will flood secure zones around venues, which include Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Exposition Park and Crypto.com Arena.

Some L.A. officials have expressed growing fears that taxpayers and the city treasury could be hit with a round of crippling costs if the city doesn’t ink a rigorous deal with LA28, the nonprofit that is organizing the Games, to ensure a “zero-cost” event.

The federal government has set aside $1 billion for Olympics security spending, including for local and state law enforcement, but has given few details about when and how it will distribute those funds, amid concerns that President Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress might not follow through with its funding pledge. The exact costs to L.A. and other local governments remain unknown, as officials wait to hear from federal security agencies about what services will be needed.

Police officials previously told the department’s civilian watchdog that the city has to allocate the money to the LAPD before the federal government can say how much it will reimburse.

That uncertainty didn’t sit well with some council members.

“What is LAPD’s role inside the perimeters of the venues?” Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, who heads the budget committee, asked at one point during the meeting. “The fact we haven’t nailed this down and it feels like we’re having two conversations — it’s confusing and frustrating.”

Some council members questioned whether the new vehicles in the budget proposal were necessary — and fiscally responsible.

When asked why the department can’t lease squad cars or repurpose existing vehicles, an LAPD official admitted that those options hadn’t been explored — which drew an exasperated response from Councilmember Tim McOsker.

Some of the concerns raised by the City Council echoed activists and other observers, who point to the LAPD’s increased militarization after the 1984 Summer Olympics — when it acquired new equipment that some say was disproportionately used against communities of color in the years that followed.

Security preparations for the Olympics have been ongoing for years. The LAPD has sent delegations to Italy and France to observe security measures in those host nations. But in other ways, progress has been slow. Several months ago, McDonnell quietly replaced the department’s Olympics czar, Cmdr. Hamed Mohammadi, with Deputy Chief Billy Brockway.

“We’re going in the wrong direction as far as personnel,” McDonnell said. In all, police officials estimated that 30,000 law enforcement employees from various state and local agencies will be involved in the security operations.

Mayor Karen Bass, who is running for reelection, once hoped to bring the LAPD back to 9,500 officers — its size when she took office. But amid a continuing budget crunch, she recently said she is more focused on keeping the department from getting smaller.

Overtime for Los Angeles police officers, and any other major expenses, would be acutely felt by a city government that recently closed a nearly $1-billion budget deficit, in part by slowing police hiring. The police union may try to negotiate for bonus, hazard and standby pay for officers who work the Games when their contract expires next June.

The last U.S. host city, Salt Lake City, had a much smaller police department but benefited from an infusion of federal funding and mutual aid agreements with neighboring agencies. Under California law, LAPD officials said, law enforcement agencies can enter mutual aid agreements only after a state of emergency has been declared, such as after a natural disaster.

Several council members asked whether the department has considered lobbying for changing the state law; LAPD officials admitted that they haven’t.

Some on the council also questioned whether the department should be doing more to reassign sworn officers working administrative jobs that could be handled by civilian employees.

Times staff writer James Rainey contributed to this report.

Isaac Martinez has been as a cook at SoFi Stadium for four years. He’s worked dozens of NFL games, a Super Bowl, Taylor Swift concerts, Wrestlemania and the college football national championship game, among dozens of other events.

And he’s never been afraid to come to work. Until now.

He’s not alone. With the World Cup kicking off at the Inglewood venue next month, Martinez says he and many of the people who work in food services and other jobs at the stadium won’t feel safe if federal immigration agents are present during the tournament.

“Most of the workers are afraid. They fear for their safety,” Martinez said in Spanish. “This is also about the fans. People come from everywhere, even from Iran. So we’re concerned about their safety.”

Workers and activists begin their march from MacArthur Park to downtown Los Angeles on Friday in recognition of May Day. The group stopped at the FIFA local organizing offices to protest ICE’s presence at World Cup matches.

(Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times)

So concerned, Unite Here Local 11, the hospitality union that represents Martinez and about 2,000 others who are working at SoFi without a contract, said it may strike ahead of the World Cup if ICE agents aren’t kept away from the stadium.

Last month Unite Here Local 11 filed an unfair labor practice complaint with the National Labor Relations Board charging Legends Hospitality, which operates the premium food, beverage and retail services at SoFi; Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, owner of the stadium; and FIFA, organizer of the World Cup, with creating an unsafe work environment by refusing to restrict the presence of ICE officials at the eight World Cup games to be played in Inglewood.

“We are concerned about the safety of guests and workers,” said Kurt Petersen, co-president of Local 11. “ICE has become more and more out of control and violent. We saw what happened in the killings in Minnesota. So I don’t think anyone is safe when ICE is around.”

A spokesperson for FIFA, organizer of the World Cup, declined to comment on the record about the union’s complaint and Legends Hospitality, did not immediately respond to repeated requests for comment. The union, meanwhile, joined Friday with faith and labor leaders and members of the Fair Games Coalition to press their point at a May Day rally outside the FIFA host committee offices in downtown Los Angeles.

It’s unclear what role, if any, federal authorities will play at the World Cup but Todd Lyons, acting director of ICE, has said his agency will have a “key part” in security at tournament venues. And that ambiguous statement has raised alarms not just with workers but also with human rights groups such as Amnesty International, which issued a World Cup travel advisory for visitors planning on attending the tournament.

Petersen said the union, along with more than 100 human rights groups, has asked FIFA president Gianni Infantino to make a direct request to President Trump for a moratorium on ICE raids in U.S. — especially at World Cup venues — during the 38-day tournament.

“FIFA could tell the Trump administration ‘keep ICE out of the games. We don’t need them to run a soccer tournament,’” Petersen said. “So that is the demand that we’re continuing to insist on. And if we don’t get that, then we’re prepared to do everything up to a strike heading into the World Cup.”

Amnesty International’s concerns are far broader than those of Petersen’s union. The group said it is worried about “the deteriorating human rights situation in the United States” and “the absence of meaningful action and concrete guarantees from FIFA, host cities, or the U.S. government” to address that.

Amy Fischer, director for refugee and migrant rights at Amnesty International USA, warned that “there is a real risk for people traveling to these games because of the aggressive immigration enforcement tactics that we’ve seen from this administration.”

“I think there is a high likelihood of some chaos. Because that is what this administration thrives off of and it’s what they love to create,” she added. “At Amnesty we are really hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst.”

The travel advisory the group issued claims visitors may be arbitrarily denied entry to the country, detained in “inhumane” conditions or subjected to invasive phone and social media searches. It also cites aggressive immigration surges in cities including Los Angeles that led to accusations of racial profiling and the violent suppression of protests.

“We know at the games there will be immigrant fans, there will be immigrant workers,” Fischer said. “Nobody is safe in that environment with this lawless agency that is consistently violating the law and violating people’s human rights. It could make any game turn into a disaster.”

Anxiety is high among stadium workers, who are concerned about the threat of ICE detainment, regardless of their immigration status.

“We are asking FIFA to take care of this and now allow ICE to be present in the stadium,” Martinez said. “We’ve seen the violence isn’t limited to one particular group. The violence is widespread. People have been killed in Minneapolis, in Chicago even here in Los Angeles.

“We’ve seen everything that’s happened with ICE and that’s where the fear comes from for all of us.”

Saving pools from closure has long been a passion project for Scott, an erudite advocate for the importance of people learning to swim as well as the role such centres play as community hubs.

But while a refreshed Tollcross will contribute to that, it is the week or so when the pool will be unavailable for public use that are the key dates in Scott’s summer.

The Alloa swimmer clanked back up the road from the Birmingham Games four years ago with six medals around his neck – 200m free and 200m medley gold adding to four bronzes.

It took his tally to 13 across three Games and propelled his past the record held by shooter Alister Allan. And few would bet against him butressing it further this year.

Scott has yet to decide which events to enter in Glasgow, but concedes he is likely to take on a slightly less frantic schedule than in 2022 given he has “four more years in the legs and arms”.

“There’s a few individual ones I’d like to swim and I’m always willing to put my hand up for the relays, because that’s a big thing in Team Scotland,” he adds.

“But the records are not something that I ever get too caught up in, and it’s not something that really motivates me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m incredibly grateful that I’ve won the medals I have but it’s just about getting better all the time for me.”

The most decorated American Olympian in athletics, Felix won her only solo gold in the 200m at London in 2012, but also topped the 4x400m relay podium at every Games between 2008 and the delayed 2020 Tokyo Games.

She also won 4x100m relay titles in 2012 and 2016, and took 200m silver in 2004 and 2008, along with 400m silver and bronze in Rio and Tokyo respectively.

The LA native also won a record 20 medals at the World Championships, the most for any woman or man, including 14 titles.

Felix, who also has a daughter born in 2018, attended the 2024 Paris Olympics as a spectator and said she experienced “mixed emotions”.

“There were moments where I was like, ‘Oh, this is so great. It’s so exciting to be in the stands and on the other side,'” Felix told Time magazine, external.

“And then there were moments where I was, ‘You know, I miss this feeling’.”

Felix, a member of the athletes commission for the 2028 LA Olympic organising committee, said she is realistic about her comeback.

“I know, at 40, I am not at my peak. I have no illusions about that,” she added. “I’m very clear in what it is and what I want to see. And so I hope it’s seen that way.

“When I was competing, you just heard this roar for host-country athletes at the Olympics. I would love to experience that.

“I would probably be upset at myself if I just didn’t give it a try. However it turns out, I’ll still be there with my kids, hanging out and cheering everybody on.”

Prestianni suspended ​for homophobic discriminatory conduct in Champions League match ‌against ​Real Madrid in February.

Benfica’s ‌Gianluca Prestianni has been handed a six-match suspension for discriminatory conduct ⁠that was deemed ⁠homophobic in a Champions League match against Real Madrid, UEFA announced.

Prestianni will be banned for two ⁠more matches after UEFA said on Friday that a further three-match suspension would be “subject to a probationary period of two years, starting from the date ⁠of the present decision”. He has already served a one-match provisional suspension.

The Argentinian winger was accused of directing a racist slur at Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr during the Spanish side’s 1-0 Champions League playoff first-leg win ‌in February.

The first leg was suspended for 11 minutes shortly after Vinicius gave Real the lead early in the second half.

Television footage showed Prestianni covering his mouth with his shirt repeatedly before making comments that Vinicius and nearby teammates interpreted as a racial slur against the 25-year-old.

Prestianni had denied the accusation that he had made ⁠a racist comment, saying Vinicius had misheard him. Real’s ⁠Aurelien Tchouameni said the Argentinian told him he did not call Vinicius a “monkey” but directed a homophobic comment at him.

UEFA also said they would request FIFA to extend the ⁠suspension worldwide.

The suspension includes the one-match provisional suspension Prestianni served during the second leg of ⁠their knockout playoff on February 25, which ⁠Real Madrid won 2-1 to advance.

Benfica said they had been notified about the sanction imposed on Prestianni.

“Of the three-match effective ban, one has already been served and the remaining two ‌must be served in UEFA matches or Argentina national team matches in a FIFA context,” Benfica said.

Prestianni has played for Argentina only once, ‌making ‌his debut as a late substitute in a friendly game against Angola in November.

It felt like the Olympics. Crowds cheering. The American flag standing tall above the bleachers. Trainers jumping with anticipation. A swimmer staring in disbelief at the clock after his final stroke. The Jumbotron announced: Kristian Gkolomeev — 20.89 seconds. A new world record in the 50-meter freestyle.

Well, kind of.

I’ve left out some details. There was only one swimmer. The crowd? Just doctors, trainers and filmmakers. This was not in an Olympic city nor an Olympic year, but in Greensboro, N.C., in 2025. And there were no iconic rings on the banners, just “Enhanced Games.”

Yes, Gkolomeev swam faster than César Cielo, the official record holder at the time (20.91 seconds). But he did it “enhanced” — a polite way to say that he used performance-enhancing drugs. At the Enhanced Games, doping isn’t punished. It’s required.

The concept, as described by the organization: “to create the definitive scientific, cultural and sporting movement that safely evolves mankind into a new superhumanity.”

Backed by investors such as Peter Thiel and Donald Trump Jr.’s 1789 Capital, the Enhanced Games embodies a techno-utopian ideal: athletes as canvases for chemical optimization, testing the limits of human health for a lot of money. Gkolomeev earned $1 million for his record.

So far, the competition has happened at one-off pop-up events. But in May, Las Vegas will host the first full-scale Enhanced Games, a four-day meet in swimming, track and field, and weightlifting. The group advertises a “potential prize purse of $7.5 million for just a single day of competition,” plus appearance fees.

Does it need to be said? Apparently yes: The Enhanced Games glorifies the risky use of enhancement drugs.

Steroids can harden arteries, elevate stroke risk, damage the liver and permanently alter hormone systems. They are not electrolyte tablets or a little preworkout creatine. If Lance Armstrong had been rewarded — rather than sanctioned — for doping, what would have happened to competitive cycling?

Fans — and especially kids — mimic their idols. As risky as the drugs are for athletes at the Enhanced Games, with its “medical commission” to give the illusion of safety, the substances are even more dangerous when used by people without medical supervision.

The games also expose the economic neglect that drives athletes toward such competition. As Benjamin Proud, the British silver medalist who recently joined the Enhanced Games, put it: “It would have taken me 13 years of winning a World Championship title in order to win what I could win in one race at these games.”

Indeed, the Enhanced Games might look like an easy way out. Only nine swimmers worldwide received prize money and performance bonuses above $75,000 in 2025, according to World Aquatics.

Investors clearly hope to make money off the games as well. The organization is moving closer to becoming a publicly traded company. The economics are not mysterious.

But the Enhanced Games are not just another sporting event. They are an arena for biomedical experimentation and should be regulated as such. The games should face limits similar to those imposed on other high-risk industries, including age restrictions and strict advertising rules.

We already know how to govern legal, profitable activities that carry serious health risks.

In the United States, that means oversight from the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission — bodies that regulate drug protocols and police misleading commercial claims. A steroid-based competition should not be treated as a sport but as a medical experiment and a marketing stunt.

Regulations on pharmaceutical advertising offer a useful model for the Enhanced Games. Prescription drugs are advertised every night on television, but only under strict rules. They require fair balance (content must present benefits and risks with comparable prominence, readability and duration) and a “major statement” of risks (most serious risks must be spoken aloud and not obscured by visuals or music).

Right now, when you play Gkolomeev’s “world-record” video on YouTube, a medical-risk warning appears for barely five seconds — then vanishes. If a cholesterol drug must audibly warn viewers of stroke risk, why shouldn’t a steroid-based competition do the same?

Enhanced Games content should be accompanied by clear warnings of the risks of performance-enhancing drugs and be clearly labeled, age-gated and distributed as high-risk content more akin to pornography than to a boxing match.

Prohibition is not the answer. Trying to shut down these games only fuels a controversy-driven brand. Just recently, the Enhanced Games sued organizations such as World Aquatics and the World Anti-Doping Agency, alleging antitrust violations and that blocking athletes from participating at the Enhanced Games is illegal. As those organizations fight back, they will be seeking to protect the integrity of mainstream sports, but they will also inadvertently be promoting the Enhanced Games.

If we want kids to admire clean athletes rather than those using banned drugs, the Las Vegas launch must not reach the world as a Super Bowl would. The Enhanced Games should not be televised or allowed to stream online to minors. Otherwise, Las Vegas, in May, risks becoming an unregulated public-health experiment mislabeled as a sporting event.

Fabricio Ramos dos Santos is a lawyer, entrepreneur and sports investor.

With 13 medals between them, Alex ‘Tattie’ Marshall and Paul Foster lead the Scotland bowls team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this summer.

The vastly experienced duo will link up in the men’s pairs event, which they won at Glasgow 2014.

Marshall, who has seven Commonwealth Games medals in his collection, said of his eighth selection: “It is always such an honour and privilege to be selected to represent Team Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.

“To have another opportunity to be a part of a home Games is also not lost on me, and I know that Paul and I will give it our very best to try and win a medal for the team.”

Marshall’s niece Beth Riva, who won 2025 World Championship mixed pairs gold with Jason Banks last year, joins Caroline Brown in the women’s pairs.

Banks will make his Team Scotland debut in the singles event.

Bowls Scotland announced the host nation’s squad on Tuesday, with the Commonwealth Games bowls events running from 24 July to 2 August.

For the first time in Commonwealth Games history, all of the bowls and para bowls events will be played indoors, taking place at the SEC Centre.

In the para team, Pauline Wilson, Garry Brown, Robert Barr and his director Sarah Jane Ewing are all aiming for repeat golds after topping the podium at Birmingham 2022.

Fans are frustrated with LA28. City Council members are battling over billions of dollars and overdue contracts. But in front of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee board of directors, LA28 found support for the private organizing committee’s progress with a little more than two years remaining before the Games open in L.A.

Despite pushback from locals, LA28 leadership, including chief executive officer Reynold Hoover and chief executive officer responsible for revenue John Slusher, spoke to the USOPC on Wednesday about the ticket sale process, explained the superbloom-inspired look of the Games and celebrated the committee’s recent commercial success that surpassed more than $2 billion in sponsorship agreements.

“We were quite encouraged to hear from them,” USOPC chair Gene Sykes said during a conference call Wednesday after a board of directors meeting, “and quite confident in the direction of LA28 from an operational standpoint.”

The private group responsible for bringing the Games back to L.A. for the first time in four decades opened ticket sales this month after attracting a record number of interested fans. The first week of sales — reserved for locals in Southern California and Oklahoma City near competition venues — “significantly exceeded first-week sales for any previous Olympic Games,” LA28 said in a statement.

But many fans were shocked to see opening ceremony tickets topping $5,000. They complained about a shortage of options for the most in-demand sports and were surprised to see a 24% service fee. Global sales opened on April 9 and many of the problems, including website glitches and unavailable tickets, persisted.

The USOPC board discussed the fee with LA28, and recognized that it is “part of a framework that is a framework they accept,” Sykes said, “as opposed to challenging it or trying to make it something different.”

The fee is included in the listed price of the tickets, which start at $28. There will be 1 million tickets sold at $28 each, and nearly half of the Olympic tickets are under $200. More than 75% are under $400 and about 5% of tickets are more than $1,000.

“I know they’re thinking very, very seriously about how to manage the ticket activity so that it satisfies everybody,” Sykes said.

LA28 will have 14 million tickets available between the Olympics and Paralympics, which would break Paris 2024’s record of 12 million tickets sold. The current ticket drop, which is open to fans worldwide, ends April 19. LA28 expects to have a second drop this year, but has not released specific details about when.

Ticket headaches have added to a controversial run-up to the Games for LA28, which also faced backlash after chairman Casey Wasserman was mentioned in the Epstein files released in February. The LA28 executive committee backed Wasserman after a review with the assistance of outside counsel. Wasserman announced that month he would sell his talent agency but planned to continue working with LA28.

When asked Wednesday what the USOPC board believed Wasserman’s role with LA28 should be moving forward, Sykes said the organizations have had discussions and are monitoring the “impact on our community.” But it is ultimately the LA28 board’s decision to select its chair. Wasserman was appointed by former Mayor Eric Garcetti to lead the Olympic effort in 2014.

“Separate from the LA28 board … LA28’s leadership Reynold Hoover and John Slusher, but many other people among the hundreds of people who work for LA28 have continued to assemble a very strong team,” Sykes said, “and show measurable progress on all the fundamental things that they need to do to make the Games a very, very strong Games, and have a remarkable experience. We remain very confident that that progress is both evident and very solid and that [it] will involve the planning with partners, athlete engagement, public support and corporate interest, all of which remain very strong, and I think, very encouraging. The ongoing committee is executing effectively, and we’re very happy to work with them.”

You ask. We answer. Or at least we’re going to try.

The Times asked readers for their burning questions regarding the Olympics, and it’s the ticketing process that’s bringing the most heat. Locals in Southern California and Oklahoma City endured the presale headaches and sticker shock before the global audience got their shot at securing tickets this week. But with more than two years remaining until the Games open, expect that there will be more questions.

Here is what Times readers wanted to know:

Why are tickets so expensive?

A price tag of $5,000 to watch the opening ceremony or $2,500 for women’s artistic gymnastics finals shocked hopeful fans on the first day of ticket sales. But it’s not 1984 anymore.

Ticket sales and hospitality are expected to cover about $2.5 billion of the total $7.1 budget. LA28 will have 14 million tickets available across the Olympics and Paralympics, so taken in total, the average ticket for the Games would have to be roughly $179 to reach the budget estimate. Paralympic tickets, which will go on sale in 2027, are expected to be less expensive than Olympic tickets. LA28 said the average Olympic ticket — inclusive of the 24% fee — is less than $200. The math is mathing.

LA28 did not release a complete price list before tickets went on sale, likely fueling some of the sticker shock after fans just heard about the promise of $28 tickets. And a 24% fee raised additional eyebrows.

The fees “align with standard industry practices for ticketing live events in the U.S.,” LA28 said in a statement and cover the costs of secure processing and delivering tickets.

Are there still $28 tickets available?

Yes. LA28 chief executive officer Reynold Hoover said at a recent press event that there are $28 tickets that have not yet been released.

But expect the tickets to go quickly whenever they are available.

There are roughly 1 million $28 tickets total. Divide those tickets to ensure they can be distributed over a number of drops and then divide each drop’s $28 tickets across multiple sports. It’s quickly resembling a small number of needles in a big haystack.

The 1 million $28 tickets are spread across every sport, but not every session. So don’t expect $28 tickets for finals or knock out rounds to the most in-demand sports including women’s artistic gymnastics, basketball, swimming or track and field to be sold at all. Cross your fingers, look for qualifying rounds, especially sports that have a lot of early pool matches such as 3×3 basketball or field hockey, and be open to exploring a new sport you’ve never heard of. Handball is actually a lot of fun to watch.

How many tickets are available in each drop?

This is a question everyone wants to know. And trust me, we’ve asked. LA28 declined in multiple settings to release specific numbers. The lack of information likely contributed to much of the confusion about what to expect when fans logged into the portal for the first time, and it makes it difficult to project what the ticket distribution will look like in future drops.

I had a time slot but didn’t buy my full allotment of tickets. What now?

If you didn’t buy the maximum 12 tickets allowed, you’ll automatically be entered for the next ticket draw later this year. LA28 has not released any additional details about when exactly that next opportunity will be, but it will have the same steps as the first one: a period of open, free registration, a random lottery and assigned time slots during which fans can log in and purchase tickets.

Fans will be automatically rolled over into future lotteries until they’ve reached the maximum 12 general tickets. So you don’t have to do anything extra if you’ve already registered for the first drop. But if you’ve bought your 12 general tickets and not the additional 12 soccer tickets, you won’t be entered into the next draw.

I didn’t register for the presale/first drop. Can I still get a chance to buy tickets?

Don’t panic. You can register next time. The next drop, which will come later this year, will have the same registration period, lottery, time slot pattern, but there will not a presale period. Each lottery is random, so whether you are a first-drop rollover, a new registrant on the first day or someone who signs up on the last day, you all have the same chance to get a time slot.

There will be multiple time slot-based ticket drops before tickets move to a complete first-come, first-served sale.

How can groups get access to the tickets available through the donation program?

Last November, LA28 launched a donation program to help fund tickets for local organizations. The Rams were the first contributors to the program, pledging $5 million to the campaign. But LA28 has not released additional information yet about how the tickets will be handled or distributed in the future.

Will I be able to transfer tickets to friends/family?

Yes. Digital tickets for recent Olympics have been distributed through an app and when they hit your account, you can send them to friends and family using their email addresses/Olympic account information. Just be prepared to download yet another app on your phone.

Why are some events in Oklahoma?

The softball tournament will be in Oklahoma City’s Devon Park, which hosts the Women’s College World Series every year, and canoe slalom will take place at Riversport OKC, the official U.S. Olympic and Paralympic training center for rowing and canoe/kayak.

These Games were intended to use existing infrastructure instead of building new venues, which greatly cuts down on costs. Hosting the canoe slalom events near L.A. would have required an expensive temporary build. It’s true that Southern California has many great college softball teams with existing facilities, but it would be difficult to prepare to a scale suitable for Olympic athletes, stakeholders, media and fans. I’ve covered many softball games at UCLA. The fan capacity is less than 1,500 and there’s room for about seven people in the press box. Eight if you scrunch. You can’t build temporary stands there; the outfield touches Sunset Boulevard.

In Tokyo, the last time baseball and softball were at the Olympics, the sports shared a venue. But LA28 organizers heard feedback from softball athletes saying that converting a baseball stadium into a softball venue compromised some of the Games experience. Moving the softball and canoe slalom events outside of Southern California is a trade off though. Those athletes will not be able to have some of the same Olympic experiences as others, but organizers were mindful to make the competition schedule to ensure that athletes could still attend either the opening or closing ceremonies despite competing far away.

Every Olympics wrestles with finding the perfect venue, and for the L.A. Games, which have more sports and more athletes than any Olympics in history, that calculus is harder than most. There are no perfect solutions.

The Times will continue answering reader questions leading up to the Olympics. Use the form below to submit your questions and check back later for more responses.