CNN – Sports

By Don Riddell, CNN More than 10,000 athletes compete in the summer Olympics. There are gold medalists and athletes who’ll never get anywhere near the podium. There are global superstars and athletes who soon will be, all rubbing shoulders with competitors from countries that they’ve never heard of. There will be veterans of the greatest

By David Close, Taylor Barnes and Aqeel Najim, CNN Algerian judo athlete Fethi Nourine says he has chosen to withdraw from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics rather than face an Israeli competitor. Nourine told Algeria’s Echourouk TV that he “decided to withdraw out of conviction, because this is the very least we can offer the Palestinian

By Leah Asmelash, CNN The Tokyo Olympics — after a long delay — are finally happening. The opening ceremony formally kicked off the Games Friday and sporting events are underway. There’s nothing but excitement in the air, according to IOC Athletes’ Commission Chair Kirsty Coventry. In her statement Tuesday, Coventry painted a rosy picture, saying

By Teele Rebane, CNN Covid-19 has thrown more than a few curve balls at Tokyo Olympic organizers — but this isn’t the first Games to battle a pandemic. A century ago, the 1920 Antwerp Olympics were held only a few months after the Spanish flu ravaged the world, killing at least 50 million people. In

By Homero De la Fuente and David Close, CNN Players from the United States women’s national soccer team filed an appeal Friday to overturn a 2020 decision against their equal pay lawsuit, saying last year’s decision “defies reality.” In May 2020, Judge Gary Klausner ruled there was no basis to prove the players’ claims that

By George Ramsay, CNN With no fans in attendance and a reduced number of athletes joining the parade, the Tokyo Olympics‘ Opening Ceremony officially kicked off the Summer Games on Friday as tennis star Naomi Osaka lit the cauldron. Earlier on Friday, a request from Tokyo 2020 organizers to push back Osaka’s opening match of

By Seamus Fagan and Sara Spary, CNN Over 150 athletes, sports organizations, human rights and social justice experts have signed an open letter calling on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to allow athletes the “fundamental human right” to protest, including at the podium. As the Tokyo Games open, the signatories — including US hammer thrower

By Ben Morse, Jill Martin, Coy Wire, CNN Well over three quarters of the US athletes that are in Japan for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics have received Covid-19 vaccines, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) revealed on Friday. Team USA announced earlier this month that a total of 613 athletes were set to

By George Ramsay, CNN The Covid-19 pandemic has loomed large over the Tokyo Olympics ever since last year’s postponement, shaping a Games the like of which has never been seen before. When the opening ceremony gets underway on Friday, it will put an end to months of speculation over whether the Olympics would be even

By Eric Levenson, Jacob Lev and Homero De la Fuente, CNN If a National Football League game cannot be rescheduled and is canceled due to a Covid-19 outbreak among unvaccinated players, that team will have to forfeit and will be credited with a loss, the NFL said in a leaguewide memo obtained by CNN. The

By Ben Morse, CNN Defending Olympic champion Brazil defeated Germany on Thursday in what was a rematch of the 2016 Rio men’s football final. Striker Richarlison scored a stunning first-half hat-trick as Brazil beat Germany 4-2 in their opening game of the 2020 Summer Games in Japan. Brazil also got the better of Germany in

By Ben Morse and Ivana Kottasova, CNN Czech beach volleyball players Markéta Sluková-Nausch and Barbora Hermannova are coming to terms with being ruled out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games as the European team grapples with a growing Covid-19 problem. Sluková-Nausch’s positive result was announced on Thursday, as she became the fifth member of the

By Jacob Lev, CNN Legendary college football coach Bobby Bowden has been diagnosed with a terminal medical condition, he and his family announced on Wednesday. “I’ve always tried to serve God’s purpose for my life, on and off the field, and I am prepared for what is to come,” Bowden said in a statement. “My

By Seamus Fagan, David Close and Jill Martin, CNN The 2020 Summer Olympics are finally underway in Tokyo. Competition began Wednesday, more than a year after the original start date after the Games were delayed due to the pandemic. But with Covid-19 still spreading unchecked in Japan, organizers have been forced to take unprecedented steps

By Jacob Lev, CNN Five women’s soccer teams took a knee ahead of their opening matches at the 2020 Summer Games. Great Britain and Chile teams took a knee on the pitch before their match, and the United States and Sweden teams knelt ahead of their clash on Wednesday. It’s been almost five years since

By Ben Church and Aleks Klosok, CNN The Netherlands thrashed Zambia 10-3 to break the record for the most goals scored by a single team in a women’s Olympic football match. Wednesday’s action-packed encounter also made it the highest scoring game in women’s Olympics football since it made its debut at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

By Homero De la Fuente, CNN US men’s beach volleyball player Taylor Crabb will not participate in the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for Covid-19, according to NBC News. Crabb is the fourth US athlete to test positive for the virus. “The health and safety of our athletes, coaches and staff is our top priority.