Category: Sports

“SUPER SPIKE!” the PA announcer bellows inside the electric party atmosphere of the North Arena on the outskirts of Paris. Arms outstretched wide, Morteza Mehrzad, sitting on the floor in his red top and black trousers, lets out a roar to celebrate yet another punishing blow which immediately ends the rally. It is just one…

Read More “How Morteza Mehrzad, the world’s second tallest man, spiked Iran to Paralympic gold” »

There is a point, as Fernando Rufino reels off the staggering list of mishaps and injuries that have shaped his life, when you begin to wonder whether you’ve been transported into some kind of alternate dimension. One of Brazil’s most famous Paralympians, thanks to his efforts in canoeing, Rufino goes by the nickname ‘Iron Cowboy’,…

Read More “Meet the Paralympic Iron Cowboy: ‘A bull broke my jaw, a bus ran me over – and I was hit by lightning’” »

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — In late June, the quietest time on the NFL calendar, Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach started receiving text message after text message while on a family vacation. Questions raced through his mind. Was there breaking NFL news? Did a member of the Chiefs organization need his attention? Did something…

Read More “The summer of Travis Kelce: Inside an action-packed offseason as a rising celebrity” »

Erling Haaland is frequently portrayed as a lethal Scandinavian footballing machine whose sole purpose is to compute the most effective way to score goals. It is a tempting way to describe a 6ft 4in (194cm) Norwegian whose goalscoring records are on another level — it’s now 97 goals in 102 appearances for Manchester City if…

Read More “The goals that show that Erling Haaland is an artist and not a robot” »

Follow live coverage of Day 9 at the 2024 US Open as the quarterfinals begin NEW YORK — Karolina Muchova already had shot of the tournament sewn up when she produced an early contender for the best performance of the U.S. Open so far. Muchova’s 6-3, 7-6(5) win over Naomi Osaka last Thursday night was…

Read More “Karolina Muchova’s U.S. Open run, and a blessing for women’s tennis” »

EDINA, Minn. — Dropped off at the front of Tavern 23, Stephane Veilleux walks in and looks for a familiar face in one of the booths. After spotting one across the restaurant, he approaches and says, “Bring it in,” before exchanging an extremely delicate hug. “Shocking, huh?” he says. Indeed. The strong-skating, hard-hitting blue-collar forward…

Read More “Stephane Veilleux on road to recovery after life-threatening car crash: ‘There is no room for self-pity’” »

INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Colts tight end Kylen Granson wore a Guardian Cap over his helmet during the preseason and plans to continue doing so in the regular season to further protect his brain from long-term damage. “At one point people thought seatbelts were f—ing stupid,” Granson told The Athletic on Thursday. “Why wouldn’t I (wear it)?…

Read More “‘No-brainer’: Colts’ Kylen Granson to wear Guardian Cap in regular season” »

The Kansas City Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowls, so the entire NFL will be looking to knock them off their perch atop the league. What’s surprising, though, is that despite winning two titles in a row, my NFL Projection Model does not see the Chiefs as the favorites to win it all this year….

Read More “Why each of the Top 10 Super Bowl contenders will (or won’t) hoist the Lombardi in February” »

Some things never change for Jayson Tatum. As his career has continued to ebb and flow, there has been one constant: Tatum finds himself at the center of conversation. He broke onto the NBA scene as an impressive role player when he was 19, only to oscillate in the public eye between auspicious and overhyped….

Read More “Jayson Tatum discusses ‘debate’ over Olympic benching, Celtics’ NBA title and more” »

The Champions League proper returns next month and this season it will have a brand new format. The ‘Swiss Model’ makes its debut and, as a result, the Champions League draw tomorrow (Thursday) is going to look rather different to the eight-groups-of-four setup we’ve all become used to in recent years. So let The Athletic take…

Read More “Explained: The Champions League draw, the Swiss Model, and how selection is going digital” »