U.S./World Sports category, Page 204

NEW YORK — An estimated 17 million people in the United States watched the opening ceremony for the Tokyo Olympics held in a largely empty stadium, down 36% from the kickoff to the Rio de Janeiro Games five years ago. The 17 million includes people who watched the ceremony live...

BLAINE, Minn. — Cameron Champ fended off dehydration and crisply putted his way to a 5-under-par 66 on Sunday, winning the 3M Open by two strokes for his third career victory. The 26-year-old Champ had five birdies in a bogey-free round to finish at 15-under 269 at TPC Twin Cities....

SUNNINGDALE, England — Stephen Dodd birdied the final hole to win the Senior British Open by one stroke Sunday, holding off challenges from Miguel Angel Jimenez and Darren Clarke to secure his first major title. The 55-year-old Welshman closed with a 2-under-par 68 at Sunningdale for a four-day total of...

Barring a dramatic change of direction, Texas and Oklahoma are moving toward taking the Red River Rivalry to the SEC in a seismic shift that will have repercussions in college sports from coast to coast. According to multiple reports, the first and very significant formal step of the process could...

TOKYO — Anastasija Zolotic won the United States’ first gold medal in women’s taekwondo by beating Russian athlete Tatiana Minina, 25-17, on Sunday to claim the featherweight division title. The 18-year-old Zolotic lets out a primal scream as she pulls on her helmet before each round. The Largo, Fla., native...

TOKYO — The trouble started early. A step out of bounds on floor exercise here. A short landing there. Over the course of two hours Sunday, the mistakes — some almost imperceptible, some laid bare for the world to see — kept piling up, chipping away at the aura USA...

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France — Australian golfer Minjee Lee won a sudden-death playoff against overnight leader Jeongeun Lee6 to clinch the Evian Championship on Sunday for her first major title. Lee6 had to take a drop when her second shot on the first playoff hole flew into a pond. Lee’s second attempt,...

1902 — Jim Jeffries knocks out Bob Fitzsimmons in the eighth round to retain the world heavyweight title. 1941 — Lefty Grove of the Boston Red Sox wins his 300th and last game, beating the Cleveland Indians, 10-6. 1956 — Swaps sets an American record in a 1 5/8-mile race...

TOKYO — Chase Kalisz won the first American medal of the Tokyo Games, taking gold Sunday in the men’s 400-meter individual medley. Jay Litherland made it a 1-2 finish for the powerhouse U.S. team, rallying on the freestyle leg to claim the silver. Brendon Smith of Australia earned the bronze....

BLAINE, Minn. — The third round of the 3M Open was filled with shots into the rough and the water around the 18th green and sometimes both. Cameron Tringale stayed out of trouble that so many others didn’t Saturday and took the lead into the final round. Tringale made a...

TOKYO — French Open finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova grasped for an air tube during a medical timeout and grew frustrated at the lack of ice in a court-side container. German player Mona Barthel struggled with 10 double-faults in a loss to Iga Swiatek as a blinding sun made it nearly impossible...

TOKYO — Anyone who’s ever jacked up a fadeaway 3 in a pickup basketball game knows there are two sure ways to start a fight on the playground. Talk trash about someone’s mom. Or call an offensive foul. In the debut of 3-on-3 halfcourt hoops at the Olympics on Saturday,...

1908 — John Hayes wins the Olympic marathon in a record of 2 hours, 55 minutes, 18.4 seconds. Italian Dorando Pietri is the first athlete to enter the stadium, but collapses several times before being disqualified when officials help him across the line. 1931 — Paavo Nurmi sets the world...

BLAINE, Minn. — Adam Hadwin missed the cuts in his past three tournaments, continuing a disappointing stretch as he dropped to 120th in the FedEx Cup standings. The 33-year-old Canadian has put himself in position to get back in contention for the playoffs with a strong run at the 3M...

Catchers’ signals — and stealing them — could become a relic if an experimental electronic device is successful. MLB will give catchers in the Low A West league the option starting Aug. 3 to use a 12-button transmitter that can be strapped with Velcro around a catcher’s wristband. Receivers fit...

INDIANAPOLIS — There aren’t many revelations to be learned about Ohio State’s recent dominance in the Big Ten. But say the school’s name to Indiana senior wide receiver Ty Fryfogle and he smiles with anticipation. “I’m ready to beat ‘em,” Fryfogle said during Friday’s media days session at Lucas Oil...

You’ll soon be able to collect trading cards of your favorite college athletes, the latest offshoot of the NCAA’s milestone decision to allow student-athletes to monetize their fame without compromising their eligibility. Panini America is launching product lines for football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and Olympic sports for college...

INDIANAPOLIS — Conference realignment is back on the table in college sports just as three Power Five conferences are breaking in relatively new commissioners. While the Big 12 is trying to keep Oklahoma and Texas from being poached by the SEC, the Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC could be challenged...