AP Sports

14 from figure skating community killed in plane crash, six of them affiliated with Boston club

NORWOOD, Mass. (AP) — Two young figure skaters, two of their parents and two highly-regarded Russian figure skating coaches were among those killed after an American Airlines flight collided with an Army helicopter and crashed into the frigid waters of the Potomac River. Doug Zeghibe, the chief executive at the Skating Club of Boston, said Thursday that skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane were among those killed, along with coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. U.S. Figure Skating previously confirmed that several skaters, coaches and family members were on the commercial flight after attending a development camp that followed the national championships, which wrapped up Sunday in Wichita, Kansas.

2 teens from a Boston skating club, their mothers, and coaches among passengers on downed flight

WASHINGTON (AP) — Passengers aboard the American Airlines flight that collided with an Army helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River included teen figure skaters returning from the U.S. Figure Skating Championships and their Russian coaches. U.S. Figure Skating said Thursday that several skaters, coaches and their family members were on the flight after attending a development camp that followed the championships that wrapped up Sunday in Wichita, Kansas. There were 60 passengers and four crew members on the American Airlines flight Wednesday and three soldiers aboard the training flight on the Blackhawk helicopter. The Kremlin confirms coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were on the plane. It’s believed there were no survivors.

Emotions pour from tight-knit skating community following DC plane crash carrying athletes, coaches

The tight-knit figure skating community was rocked Wednesday when an American Airlines flight carrying athletes, parents and coaches from a development camp in Wichita, Kansas, collided with an Army helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River. Sixty passengers and four crew members on the flight along with three soldiers aboard the Blackhawk helicopter are presumed dead. Among those killed were young skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane, their mothers and coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov, all of them representing the prestigious Skating Club of Boston.

The Chiefs will seek another Super Bowl sweep in a title game rematch against the Eagles

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs keep finding themselves on one side of a Super Bowl rematch. A year after beating the San Francisco 49ers for the second time in five seasons in the NFL’s championship game, Mahomes and the Chiefs will square off with the Philadelphia Eagles for the second Super Bowl in the past three seasons. Kansas City won the first meeting 38-35 in Glendale, Arizona, and will try to pull off another Super Bowl sweep on Feb. 9 in New Orleans.

IOC presidential candidates pitch to Olympic voters in quirky closed-door event

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Behind closed doors at the IOC seven candidates hoping to lead the Olympic body are making key pitches to an exclusive club of more than 100 voters. The only set-piece campaign event before the March 20 election in Greece lets each candidate make a 15-minute presentation that will not be broadcast. It is open only to IOC members and those voters also are barred from asking questions of their seven colleagues competing for perhaps the most influential job in sports. The candidates are Sebastian Coe, Kirsty Coventry, Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr, Prince Feisal al Hussein, Johan Eliasch, David Lappartient and Morinari Watanabe.

Wisconsin’s Fourqurean files injunction saying Division II years shouldn’t count against eligibility

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin cornerback Nyzier Fourqurean has filed an injunction saying the two seasons he played at Division II program Grand Valley State shouldn’t count against his college eligibility. Fourqurean completed his senior season at Wisconsin last fall. He filed a brief in support of his case Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Madison, Wisconsin. He brought his case to court after the NCAA denied him a waiver that would have given him an additional year of eligibility.

NASCAR champion Joey Logano tunes out critics and insists playoff format is ‘very entertaining’

NASCAR driver Joey Logano has found a way to tune out months of criticism surrounding his third championship. He says “I can’t hear it because my trophies, they kind of, like, echo around me.” Logano’s title in November sparked debate about whether NASCAR’s current playoff format is the best way to determine the series champion. Logano got two huge breaks in 2024. But NASCAR says no tweaks will be made to the championship format this year. Instead, officials plan to study it for another year. Logano, not surprisingly since he’s won two of the last three Cup Series titles, welcomed the decision.

Utah Hockey Club narrows the choice of a permanent name to three finalists. It won’t be the Yeti

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Utah Hockey Club has chosen three finalists for the permanent team name it will adopt beginning with the 2025-26 NHL season. Yeti isn’t one of them. The franchise will use a final round of fan voting to decide among the Utah Mammoth, Utah Hockey Club and Utah Wasatch. Fans in attendance the next four home games beginning Wednesday night against Pittsburgh will vote at designated iPad stations at the Delta Center to help decide the name and logo. Team officials backed away from including Yeti as a finalist after being unable to work out a co-existence agreement with Yeti Coolers to use the name in branding and merchandising.

Frustration boils over for Spurs’ Wembanyama after shove by Zubac sends him flying

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama has had enough. The San Antonio star charged after Ivica Zubac after the Los Angeles center shoved him to the court during the Clippers’ 128-116 victory over the Spurs on Wednesday night. The frustration with what Wembanyama sees as a lack of calls, and respect, from officials boiled over late in the third quarter — and during his postgame press conference. When asked if he believes he gets a fair whistle from officials, Wembanyama curtly said, “No.” Despite Zubac’s shove, no foul was called. Officials also did not call a technical foul on Wembanyama and, after a brief discussion, did not review the play.

Strength-sapping defense fuels No. 6 Houston’s 13-game winning streak

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Sixth-ranked Houston is riding a 13-game winning streak behind the stingiest defense in the nation. Houston has made a habit lately out of deflating opponents’ best scorers. The Cougars limited West Virginia to 49 points Wednesday and held Big 12 leading scorer Javon Small to eight points, nearly 12 less than his average. Earlier this month UCF’s Keyshawn Hall was held to six points against the Cougars one game after scoring a career-high 40. And Houston held BYU’s Richie Saunders to nine points after he scored a career-high 30 in his previous game. Houston is allowing 55.6 points per game, the lowest in the nation.