AP National Sports

BEIJING (AP) — Ren Ziwei of China survived a controversial finish to win the men’s 1,000 meters in short track speedskating. Liu Shaolin Sandor of Hungary crossed the line first Monday, but was penalized twice and earned a yellow card. That elevated Ren, who crossed second, to the gold medal. Li Wenlong of China earned

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Sports Writer BEIJING (AP) — Elsa Desmond knows she’s not going to medal at the Beijing Olympics. She isn’t even expecting to be in the top half of the field. Doesn’t matter. The first women’s luge Olympian from Ireland feels like she’s already prevailed. Desmond won’t be in China for long.

BEIJING (AP) — Arianna Fontana has burnished her legacy as short track’s most decorated skater with her second Olympic medal in Beijing. The 31-year-old Italian took the lead from Dutch world champion Suzanne Schulting late in Monday’s race and let out a yell as she crossed the line to earn her 10th career medal. Fontana

By DANIELLA MATAR AP Sports Writer BEIJING (AP) — Beat Feuz finally has the one major victory missing from his overflowing collection of downhill achievements by taking Olympic gold. The diminutive Swiss skier mastered a tricky course that had never been raced before by the world’s best and finished a slim 0.10 seconds ahead of

BEIJING (AP) — Some big names are out of contention in men’s 1,000-meter short track speedskating. The quarterfinals featured crashes and penalties galore. South Korea’s Park Janghyuk was carted off the ice on a stretcher, although he was advanced by the referee to the semifinals at Capital Indoor Stadium. Out of contention are Sjinkie Knegt

By ROB HARRIS AP Global Soccer Writer Doubts and disputes over FIFA’s push for biennial World Cups have contributed to Britain and Ireland dropping plans for a joint bid to host the 2030 edition, opting instead to try to stage the 2028 European Championship. A potential rival also moved aside with Italy switching its focus

By COSTAS KANOURIS and DEREK GATOPOULOS Associated Press THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Authorities in Greece have promised to toughen rules governing soccer supporters’ associations in the wake of a fatal attack last week on a 19-year-old man who was stabbed and severely beaten in the northern city of Thessaloniki. Nine people have been arrested in

By DANIELLA MATAR AP Sports Writer BEIJING (AP) — Everything has come late in life for Johan Clarey. Even winning an Olympic medal. The Frenchman turned 41 last month and has become the oldest man to win an Olympic medal in Alpine skiing after coming second to Beat Feuz to claim silver in the downhill

BEIJING (AP) — When most champions get off the slopes or the ice at the Beijing Olympics, they are handed Bing Dwen Dwen, the chubby panda mascot of the Games. Where are the medals? They usually come later at a special ceremony. But immediately after competition, the winning athletes receive a plush toy panda, stuffed

BEIJING (AP) — In a highly managed interview arranged by Chinese Olympic organizers, tennis star Peng Shuai has said she did not accuse a former high-ranking government official of sexual assault in a since-deleted social media post. AP journalists translated screenshots of the original post from November 2. 

By PAUL NEWBERRY AP National Writer BEIJING (AP) — Ireen Wüst skated into the record books at the Beijing Games by becoming the first athlete to claim individual gold medals at five different Olympics. The 35-year-old Wüst already was the most decorated speedskater in Winter Games history when she added to her haul with a

By PAT GRAHAM AP Sports Writer ZHANGJIAKOU, China (AP) — American snowboarder Maddie Mastro has sketched out a trick in her notebook that just may help her land on the podium at the Beijing Olympics. Maybe even on the top step. It’s called the front double 1080 and includes two flips and a 360-degree rotation

By MARTHA BELLISLE Associated Press ZHANGJIAKOU, China (AP) — Denise Herrmann missed only one of 20 shots in the women’s 15-kilometer individual biathlon race at the Beijing Olympics and took gold. The former Olympic cross-country skier won the race in 44 minutes, 12.7 seconds. Herrmann won bronze in cross-country at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Herrmann

BEIJING (AP) — Denise Herrmann has won Olympic gold in the women’s 15-kilometer individual biathlon. Her win came after a season of mixed results on the World Cup circuit. She led early and maintained it. She completed the course in 44 minutes, 12.7 seconds. Anais Chevalier-Bouchet of France missed her very last shot, which proved

LONDON (AP) — Former England all-rounder Paul Collingwood has been named as the team’s interim head coach for the three-match test tour of the West Indies next month. Assistant coach Collingwood takes over from Chris Silverwood who was fired last week following England’s 4-0 Ashes defeat in Australia. Collingwood is currently taking a break in

By SARAH DiLORENZO Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — The drama surrounding Peng Shuai is following a familiar script: Someone who has run afoul of China’s Communist government disappears from view. What happens next depends on the case. But it is not uncommon for the person in question to disavow the statements or actions that first

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Hockey Writer BEIJING (AP) — The Russians go into another Olympics without NHL players as the favorite to win gold. They won in 2018 with a star-studded roster that included Kirill Kaprizov, Ilya Kovalchuk and Pavel Datsyuk. None of those players or any of the goaltenders from Pyeongchang is on the

By BERNIE WILSON AP Sports Writer BEIJING (AP) — It was a miserable day on the mountains outside of Beijing for American stars Mikaela Shiffrin and Red Gerard. Shiffrin’s opening race in the Beijing Olympics ended quickly with a rare mistake and a rare Did Not Finish. Shiffrin was favored to defend her gold medal