AP Sports

Twila Kilgore will serve as interim coach of the U.S women’s national team following the resignation of coach Vlatko Andonovski. U.S. Soccer formally announced Andonovski’s resignation on Thursday. Kilgore, the first American-born woman to earn U.S. Soccer’s top-level Pro License, was an assistant under Andonovski for 1 1/2 years and will lead the team while a search for a permanent coach is conducted. Andonovski’s resignation comes less than two weeks after the United States was knocked out of the Women’s World Cup earlier than ever before.

Former Northwestern athletes send letter defending school’s athletic culture

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Approximately 1,000 former Northwestern University athletes have sent a letter condemning hazing while defending the school’s culture. The Associated Press obtained the letter Thursday. The athletes say allegations of abuse within the football program and other men’s and women’s teams do not reflect their experiences. They say they “strongly condemn hazing” and that the allegations are “troubling” but “do not represent or define the overall athletics culture at Northwestern.” Northwestern is facing more than a dozen lawsuits across multiple sports with allegations including sexual abuse of players by teammates as well as racist comments by coaches and race-based assaults.

Sidelines are crowded because NFL teams are carrying 90-man rosters throughout preseason

More NFL hopefuls are getting an opportunity to stick around a little longer to showcase their skills this summer. One cutdown deadline will make things more difficult for personnel staffs because 1,184 players will become available at the same time. Teams are relying on their scouting evaluations to be prepared to scoop up talented players who get cut. Plus, they’ll be busy assembling a 16-man practice squad so it’s going to be a hectic time. When the league eliminated the first two rounds of roster cuts in March, it allowed teams to carry 90 players throughout the preseason. Rosters have to be trimmed to 53 by Aug. 29.

NBA releases its schedule for the coming season, with an eye on player rest and travel

Maximizing player rest and limiting travel demands were again part of the NBA’s formula for the coming regular season. That’s what the league indicated Thursday when announcing the schedule for 2023-24. Teams have an average of 14 instances of back-to-back games this season, up slightly from last year’s rate of 13.3 per team. But back-to-backs involving travel are down to 9.0 on average. The rate of those last season was 9.6 per team. No team will play the day before or after high-profile national television games, such as Christmas matchups and all ABC weekend matchups.

Column: The Yankees are in last place with a losing record. What is the world coming to?

The franchise of Ruth and Gehrig, DiMaggio and Mantle, Jeter and Rivera is a pinstriped mess. The only recognizable thing about this storied club is the “New York” stitched across the chests. These are the Damned Yankees. Much of the baseball world is gloating about the misfortune of America’s most famous sports team, the one that always receives out-of-proportion media coverage and excessive slots in the national television lineup. But here’s the thing: It’s much more fun to pile on the haughty Yankees when they’re piling up pennants. This squad is in last place with a losing record as September beckons.

Bills’ Damar Hamlin has little more to prove in completing comeback, coach Sean McDermott says

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Damar Hamlin has little more to prove to Bills coach Sean McDermott in the third-year safety’s bid to resume his football career after a near-death experience during a game at Cincinnati in January. McDermott says the third-year player has “checked all the boxes” in the way he’s performed during padded practices and especially in Buffalo’s preseason-opening win against Indianapolis last weekend. Hamlin made three tackles in his first competitive setting since going into cardiac arrest and needing to be resuscitated on the field on Jan. 2. McDermott’s assessment comes as Hamlin prepares for a homecoming on Saturday, when Buffalo travels to play the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Sha’Carri Richardson among stars to watch heading into worlds in Budapest and next year in Paris

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The track and field world championships in Budapest are a chance for about 2,200 athletes representing 202 countries to see how everything is trending on the first step toward next year’s Olympics in Paris. It’s a chance to find out how training is going and how they stack up against many of the same competitors they’ll face next year. And it’s a chance for the world to find out who to watch over the next 11-plus months before track and field starts at the Stade de France on Aug. 2, 2024. The AP tracks 10 athletes to watch at this year’s championships.

Russia doping questions persist because of the war in Ukraine

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The task force created nearly eight years ago to chart Russia’s path back into track and field after its doping scandal holds its final meeting this week before being disbanded. That hardly means the country is in good standing. Questions remain over how to make sure future Russian track teams will be clean when they’re allowed back into the sport after the war in Ukraine ends. There are no Russians allowed at this week’s world championships in Budapest. Leaders expect a steep learning curve when they are welcomed back into the sport.

World chess federation bars transgender women from competing in women’s events

GENEVA (AP) — The world’s top chess federation has ruled that transgender women cannot compete in its official events for females until an assessment of gender change is made by its officials. The decision by Lausanne, Switzerland-based federation FIDE has drawn criticism from advocacy groups and supporters of transgender rights. It said the participation of transgender women would depend on an analysis of individual cases that could take up to two years. It acknowledged that questions regarding transgender players are an “evolving issue for chess” and that its policy may need to be revised in the future “in line with research evidence.”

Kansas City Superfan ‘ChiefsAholic’ charged with stealing almost $700,000 in bank heists

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Kansas City Chiefs superfan known as “ChiefsAholic” and familiar for attending games dressed as a wolf in the NFL team’s gear has been indicted by a federal grand jury that accuses him of armed robbery and money laundering in a string of bank heists across four states. According to the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, Xaviar Babudar robbed six banks and laundered the proceeds at casinos and sportsbooks. The 19-count indictment handed down Wednesday replaces and supplements a criminal complaint filed against Babudar in May. Babudar’s attorney says he is scheduled to be arraigned on Friday.