(LOS ANGELES) — Los Angeles Rams’ wide receiver Van Jefferson has a lot to celebrate after he and his wife, Samaria Jefferson, welcomed their second child — a son — following Jefferson’s historic Super Bowl win Sunday.
Jefferson, 25, shared a photo on Instagram of him hugging his newborn, writing, “x2!!!!!” The Jeffersons are also parents to daughter Isabelle, 5.
Samaria Jefferson went into labor during the Super Bowl and the NFL shared a video clip on Twitter of Van Jefferson “hustling out of the stadium to get to his wife” after the Rams’ game against the Cincinnati Bengals concluded. The Rams had clinched the title with a 23-20 win at SoFi Stadium.
Samaria Jefferson said she was expecting back in September 2021, with an Instagram video and heartfelt message marking the anniversary of when they started dating in high school. She shared her excitement about her husband’s first Super Bowl appearance on Friday, tweeting, “Cant believe i’m about to watch my husband play in his first Super Bowl in a couple days AND welcome our new baby in the same week. Thank You, God 🤍.”
Ahead of Sunday’s big game, Samaria Jefferson had told The Athletic that she wasn’t planning on missing her husband’s first Super Bowl game. “Just like any other game, I’m going to be there this Sunday and I’m going to stay calm … and pray to God my water doesn’t break,” she told the sports website.
Van Jefferson joined the Rams in 2020 and is the son of Shawn Jefferson, a former wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals and now a coach for his former team.
(BEIJING) — Russian figure skating star Kamila Valieva will be allowed to continue competing at the Winter Olympics despite failing a drug test, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled on Monday.
“On the basis of the very limited facts of this case, and after consideration of the relevant legal issues, [the court] has determined that no provisional suspension should be imposed on the Athlete,” CAS said in a two-page decision.
Denying Valieva a chance to compete “would cause her irreparable harm,” the court said.
It was revealed on Friday that 15-year-old Valieva tested positive for a banned drug in December ahead of the Russian Figure Skating Championships, according to the International Testing Agency.
“The late notification is extremely unfortunate, as it affects not only the athlete, but also the organizers of the Olympic Winter Games,” Matthieu Reeb, director general of CAS, said in a press conference in Beijing on Monday. “In other words, we would not have this case and I would not be here if these anti-doping test procedures would have been completed in one week or 10 days, as it is generally the case, for example, at the Olympic Games.”
Fridays news had thrown into question the ROC’s gold win in the figure skating team event, because of her participation, and her ability to continue competing in the Olympics. The United States won silver in the team event and Japan won bronze.
Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a heart medication, in a sample tested at a World Anti-Doping Agency accredited lab, according to the International Testing Agency. The drug is classified by WADA as a hormone and metabolic modulator, according to the ITA.
The Russian Anti-Doping Agency was notified of the result of the test on Feb. 8, one day after the Team Event ended, according to the International Testing Agency. Valieva was provisionally suspended from participating in the Olympics, the ITA said. She is scheduled to participate in the women’s singles event on Feb. 15.
Because she is a minor, and with the case was not under the jurisdiction of the International Olympic Committee, the ITA did not reveal the banned substance was found in Valieva’s blood when it was notified.
Valieva appealed the suspension before the Russian Anti-Doping Agency on Feb. 9 and the body decided to lift the suspension, allowing her to compete, according to the ITA, which is in charge of drug testing in sports.
The ITA was notified of the test result on Feb. 8 after the Figure Skating Team Event, which Valieva participated in, was over, the body said on Friday.
The ITA led the appeal of the decision to lift the suspension along with the IOC and the International Skating Union to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the ITA announced on Friday.
A decision on the results of the team figure skating event will be made by the International Skating Union, according to the ITA.
The ITA said the current appeals procedure will only look into the provisional suspension placed on Valieva, not the full case. CAS said on Saturday it planned to hold a private video conference to examine the case of Valieva on Sunday and announce its decision on Monday.
Valieva made history in Beijing when she became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Winter Olympics. She won the women’s portion of the team event, earning the ROC 10 points.
Russian athletes are competing under the name “Russian Olympic Committee” due to an ongoing ban against Russia participating in the games due to its previous doping violations. This is the second Olympics in a row that Russia has been banned from.
The World Anti-Doping Agency banned the country from all international sporting events because of its doping violations.
The agency allowed Russian athletes who could prove they are clean and unconnected to the cover-up to compete.
ABC News’ Alexandra Faul contributed to this report.
(BEIJING) — American bobsled athletes Kallie Humphries and Elana Meyers Taylor took gold and silver respectively in the first monobob competition in Olympics history.
Meyers Taylor’s silver was especially impressive considering she spent a week in quarantine after a positive COVID-19 test.
Humphries, meanwhile, who was competing for the United States in the Olympics for the first time after winning two golds for Canada in the two-person bobsled, dominated the competition, winning by more than 1.5 seconds.
Canada’s Christine de Bruin, who had held second entering the fourth and final run, earned the bronze. Meyers Taylor saved her best run for last, passing de Bruin to claim second.
Meyers Taylor, who had been selected as a flag bearer for Team USA at this year’s Winter Olympics, was forced to isolate after testing positive for the virus on Jan. 29 and missed the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games on Feb. 4.
Athletes inside the closed loop at the Olympics, which separates athletes, team officials and members of the press from the rest of the Chinese population, live under a daily regimen of temperature checks and COVID tests administered by workers dressed in full-body personal protective equipment.
She spent isolation away from her teammates, husband and young son, who has Down syndrome and is still nursing, she told ABC News earlier this month.
During that time, she missed crucial training days but was able to get an exercise bike dropped off to train in isolation.
Meyers Taylor was permitted to reenter the Olympic village on Feb. 5 after receiving two negative COVID-19 tests, per Olympics regulation.
Meyers Taylor ranks No. 1 in the world in two-man and monobob and is the only woman to win four Olympic bobsled medals for the U.S.
Going into her fourth Olympics, she had two silver medals and one bronze.
ABC News’ Ibtissem Guenfoud and Maggie Rulli contributed to this report.
(LOS ANGELES) — It began with a chance encounter at a resort in Cabo. Two men who were both at a proverbial fork in the road in their respective careers.
Matthew Stafford. The 12-year veteran quarterback who just finished up another losing season with the Detroit Lions. With little team success and suffering through several rebuilds, the 34-year-old Stafford could sense his window to win the biggest prize of all, the Super Bowl, was closing quickly. He knew a change of scenery was needed.
Sean McVay is the charismatic 36-year-old head coach of the Los Angeles Rams. The grandson of former NFL head coach and executive John McVay, Sean was coming off another tough playoff exit in the NFC Divisional round, just two years removed from his first Super Bowl appearance against the New England Patriots. The man many around league referred to as the “offensive guru” felt he had to shake up his team.
Stafford and McVay were introduced by a mutual friend. Over drinks, the two hit it off and bonded over their careers.
Now, one year later, both men finally reached the top of the hill that at one point seemed so fleeting and illusive: celebrating their first Super Bowl title, a thrilling 23-20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. And to cap it all off, it was Stafford, with the ball in his hands, who delivered the eventual game winning touchdown pass to Super Bowl MVP Cooper Kupp with under two minutes to play to secure Los Angeles’s first Super Bowl title since 1999.
Talk about a perfect ending to an unbelievable story only fit for Hollywood.
“You put the ball in your best player’s hands when it matters the most, and that’s what we did with Matthew,” McVay, who became the youngest head coach to win a Super Bowl, said following the game.
“And he (Stafford) delivered in a big way and is a world champ.”
Despite this being his first-ever Super Bowl, the bright spotlight certainly didn’t faze Stafford.
“I love those kind of drives… you’re sitting in the huddle and the belief that I have and in the teammates that I have is just unwavering,” Stafford said.
“I believe in those guys so much and we got it done.”
But there looked like a time where the Rams would come up short in the big game yet again.
After a back-breaking interception closed out the first half, Los Angeles held on to a tight 13-10 lead. Cincinnati capitalized on this momentum swing to begin the third quarter. In less than five minutes, the Bengals came roaring back, thanks to a one play, 75-yard touchdown pass from Joe Burrow to Tee Higgins, and a field goal by rookie Evan McPherson.
But if there is one thing fans who have watched the Rams this season have come to realize, it’s that you can never count this team out. They have been in this spot before many times, including in the divisional round against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, and two weeks prior against the 49ers in the NFC Championship game.
The Rams defense clamped down, not allowing the Bengals to score a single point the rest of the way and sacking Burrow seven times.
Then, Stafford and Kupp rallied the offense after losing key receiver Odell Beckham Junior to a knee injury, finishing off one last comeback with the go-ahead touchdown to keep the Lombardi trophy in Los Angeles.
Finally, vindication for a team that went all-in, acquiring big name players like Stafford, Beckham and former Broncos All-Pro Von Miller to add to the main stays led by Kupp and arguably the league’s top defensive end Aaron Donald.
“You got to be relentless,” said Donald.
“You know it was right in front of us…all offseason you work, you train, you got camp, you got a long season just for this one game. You know we the last team standing.”
Just the way McVay had envisioned his return trip to the big game ending.
“You get over it (loss in last Super Bowl appearance). You know, as a competitor, you have to be able to do that,” said McVay.
“But certainly, this was really satisfying to see these guys and to see the looks on their faces.”
As for Stafford, all the ups and downs and heartbreaking seasons he endured early in his career was all worth it.
“For 12 years, that goal wasn’t reached and it tore me up inside,” said Stafford.
“But I knew I could keep playing and try to find a way. You know, the fact that we reached that goal is so special.”
(LOS ANGELES) — Fifty-five years ago three men attended the first Super Bowl. Every year since, they’ve had a seat at the biggest football game of the year, and in more recent years, a seat together. But this Super Bowl Sunday will be their last time together in the crowd.
“I’m moving a little slower. I am the old guy in this club,” Don Crisman, an 85-year-old Maine resident, told ABC News Live.
Crisman said multiple health challenges has made it more difficult for him to not only attend an event so large, but also take the trip to the stadium. He said there’s only one condition that he’ll go back on his Super Bowl retirement plan.
“If my Patriots make it next year, I might have to change that plan,” said Crisman, as his two friends agreed that he can attend just another year.
Gregory Eaton, 82, of Michigan, and Tom Henschel, 80, said they aren’t giving up their spot at future games just yet. Eaton said he looks to Crisman as an example of what it means to be a dedicated football fan.
“I want to go as long as Don has been at it. If I could go as long as I am 85, I’ve got three more years,” said Eaton.
Eaton was the last to join the “Never Miss a Super Bowl Club.” Crisman and Henschel helped create the club after they met at the 1983 Super Bowl. Eaton met his friends decades later, during the mid-2010s.
“We thought we were the only two, and we ran into Tom. He was member number three,” said Crisman.
Their small club of fans has grown even smaller over the years as other members have become too ill to travel or have died. The club, which made a commitment to always sit together at the Super Bowl, once numbered six members.
The three remaining members describe their relationship as more than just a few friends who enjoy their favorite pastime together. They stay in touch throughout the year, even when football is in its offseason.
“Now I got two guys that we have something in common and we respect each other,” said Eaton. “It’s like Don and I talk year round, and it’s something that it’s fun and I love to do it.”
This year’s game is even more significant than past years because they’ll be able to sit with each other again. During last year’s game, the pandemic disrupted their common practice. To follow social distancing protocols, they were seated several rows apart at the game in Tampa, Florida. This year’s game will look more like past years, just in time for Crisman’s retirement from the club.
The friends have already met up in Los Angeles, and are planning how they’d like to spend their last trip together — unless the Patriots play in next year’s championship.
Crisman said he’d like to see the Bengals win on Sunday, but he has a feeling it won’t play out that way.
“I think the Rams are going to win by four,” Crisman confidently told ABC News Live.
Henschel also said he’ll be rooting for the Bengals. Eaton will be the only one in the group rooting for the Rams.
Although this is set to be their last game together, they believe their bond will continue — just the same as their love for football.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Friday’s sports events:
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Philadelphia 100 Oklahoma City 87
Final Charlotte 141 Detroit 119
Final Cleveland 120 Indiana 113
Final San Antonio 136 Atlanta 121
Final Boston 108 Denver 102
Final Chicago 134 Minnesota 122
Final Utah 114 Orlando 99
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final OT Dallas 4 Winnipeg 3
Final Edmonton 3 N-Y Islanders 1
Final Tampa Bay 4 Arizona 3
Final Seattle 4 Anaheim 3
TOP-25 COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Final (25)Xavier 74 (24)UConn 68
Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images
(LOS ANGELES) — The California School for the Deaf in Riverside’s football team brought pride and triumph to the state last year, and now the high school football team is set to be recognized on the national stage Sunday at Super Bowl 56 in Inglewood, California.
The co-captains of the Riverside Cubs are set to join Billie Jean King and and other local football stars as honorary captains of the coin toss, the NFL announced Friday, as the league honors inclusion.
The four co-captains attending the Super Bowl are Trevin Adams, Christian Jimenez, Jory Valencia and Enos Zornoza.
The Cubs players and coaches use American Sign Language to communicate. Once considered underdogs, Riverside’s football team defied the odds with a nearly undefeated season last year that electrified spectators in California and beyond.
“This is indescribable,” Jimenez said in a video shared by CSDR upon being told about the invitation to the Super Bowl.
“I feel honored,” Valencia added.
Erika Thompson, a spokeswoman for CSDR told ABC News that the school is “thrilled” to have its players “defy stereotypes” and represent the deaf community at the Super Bowl.
“I hope this brings awareness of what the school has to offer for deaf and hard-of-hearing students, where they get the full range of experiences in academics, sports and leadership,” she said.
The NFL is also marking the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, a civil rights statute that bars discrimination based on sex.
King, a former world No. 1 tennis player and winner of 39 grand slam titles, including 12 in singles, is a longtime advocate for gender equality and inclusion in sports and beyond.
Members of the High School Girls Flag League of Champions and the girls youth tackle football players from the Inglewood Chargers and the Watts Rams will also join the coin toss, the NFL said.
“It is an honor to stand with these outstanding student athletes and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Title IX on one of the world’s biggest stages,” King said in a statement released by the NFL. “It’s hard to understand inclusion until you have been excluded, and I am proud to be part of this year’s Super Bowl Coin Toss and the NFL’s commitment to bring us together and make us stronger.”
After an undefeated season last year, the Cubs’ varsity football team won the division championship game, a first in the school’s 68-year history. And while they did not make it to the state championship after losing to Faith Baptist at the CIF Southern Section Division 2 championship, the team had already inspired many across California and beyond.
“This grit showcased to other football players and people across that country that the deaf community defies stereotypes, that they can do anything with hard work and dedication,” the NFL said in a statement.
Ahead of the division championship game, some of the players and their coach, Keith Adams, spoke with ABC News through an ALS translator.
“It’s inspiring for the deaf community quite honestly — 11 and 0. We’ve never experienced being this far in playoffs,” Adams said in the November 2021 interview. “The community is so excited, the morale has been uplifted, the self-esteem of our players — you can see a major difference.”
Asked what he hopes the Cubs’ story of triumph will teach others, Zornoza, who is taking part in the Super Bowl coin toss, said he hopes the attention they are getting nationwide will inspire other deaf kids and give them hope.
“We can do anything. Deaf people can do anything,” he told ABC News in November. “We’re not this stereotype that’s out there.”
“We’re breaking news that we can do it right,” Zornoza continued. “And not just our school here but other schools for the deaf can do it as well.”
The Super Bowl is set to take place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, just outside Los Angeles, where the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals will face off.
(LOS ANGELES) — Homeland Security Investigations has seized nearly $100 million in fake goods, including counterfeit Super Bowl merchandise, ahead of Sunday’s big game, a top HSI official told reporters on Thursday.
HSI is the Department of Homeland Security’s investigative arm.
Steve Francis, who serves as the agency’s executive associate director, said at a press conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center that stealing intellectual property is not a “victimless crime.”
“The illicit proceeds resulting from the sale of counterfeit or unlicensed products are more often than not funneled back to smart other criminal organizations,” Francis said. “But more importantly, the illegal manufacture and sale of these counterfeit goods represent predatory trade practices that endanger the public health and economy and restrict competitiveness of the United States products in the global market.”
“Millions” of dollars of merchandise from 261 vendors have already been seized leading up to the game, according to Lt. Geoff Deedrick with the LA County Sheriff’s Department.
Deedrick told consumers to be alert about counterfeit goods — look for official NFL holograms on the products and if it’s too good to be true than it is.
Pete Flores, the executive assistant commissioner at U.S. Customers and Border Protection, told ABC News that not only are counterfeit goods dangerous for national security but could cause bodily harm. He said the consumer doesn’t know what the product is made of and where the product is coming from,
Flores said there isn’t one particular place where it is coming from.
“It comes from multiple countries,” he said. “So multiple importers, it comes from all over the world. So it’s it’s an issue and it’s not only arriving here, it’s a no by sea by air by land. It’s coming across in different modes of transportation.”
(BEIJING) — Russian star figure skater Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance during December’s Russian Figure Skating Championships, the International Testing Agency confirmed Friday, as rumors of her positive tests swirled in reports for days. However, a decision on her competing in the women’s individual event at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing will now go to an appeal hearing.
Valieva was a heavy favorite in the women’s event after scoring a record-high total in the team competition.
A World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accredited lab found Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a heart medication, in a sample taken on Dec. 25, 2021, by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency, known as RUSADA. RUSADA was notified of the positive result Feb. 8, at which time Valieva was provisionally suspended. The sample was collected by RUSADA, not the ITA, according to the agency, and not under the direct jurisdiction of the International Olympic Committee and thus her identity was not revealed.
The ITA was informed of the positive test on Feb. 8, after the team event was wrapped up with the Russian Olympic Committee winning gold.
The testing agency said it does not typically reveal the name of minors — Valieva is just 15 years old — but did so due to “the necessity for official information due to heightened public interest.”
The suspension prohibited her from competing further in the Beijing Games, and thus the individual event, however, Valieva appealed the suspension and RUSADA cleared her to compete on Feb. 9.
The ROC confirmed the chain of events and named Valieva in a statement Friday, saying the committee “considers it necessary to provide detailed explanations on the current situation.”
“The doping test of the Athlete who gave a positive result does not apply to the period of the Olympic Games,” the ROC said. “At the same time, the Athlete repeatedly passed doping tests before and after December 25, 2021, including already in Beijing during the figure skating tournament. All results are negative.”
However, the IOC is now challenging RUSADA’s decision, according to the ITA, and the IOC said a rushed decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will take place before the women’s event.
“The IOC will exercise its right to appeal and not to wait for the reasoned decision by RUSADA, because a decision is needed before the next competition the athlete is due to take part in (Women Single Skating, 15 February 2022),” the ITA said in a statement Friday.
The International Skating Union (ISU) later released a statement saying it “will exercise its right to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport the decision of the RUSADA Disciplinary Anti Doping Committee of February 9 to lift the provisional suspension and to ask CAS to reinstate the provisional suspension.”
The WADA also confirmed in a statement that it “intends to lodge an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in relation to the anti-doping case involving a Russian Olympic Committee figure skater who tested positive for a prohibited substance in an event prior to the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.”
“Under the terms of the World Anti-Doping Code (Code), WADA has a right to appeal the decision to lift the provisional suspension before CAS and does so on the grounds that the Code has not been correctly applied in this case,” the agency added.
The ROC noted in its statement that Valieva currently “has the right to train and take part in competitions in full without restrictions until the Court of Arbitration for Sport decides otherwise regarding her status in relation to the Olympic Games.”
“In any case, on the merits of a possible anti-doping violation, a disciplinary investigation will be conducted by RAA RUSADA in accordance with the applicable rules in the prescribed manner,” the ROC said. “Given that the Athlete’s positive doping test was not taken during the Olympic Games, the Athlete’s results and team competition results during the Olympic Games are not subject to automatic review. In addition, the Russian Olympic Committee draws attention to the fact that the Athlete’s doping test, taken after the European Figure Skating Championships in January 2022, as well as her doping test taken during the Olympic Games, gave a negative result.”
“The Russian Olympic Committee is taking comprehensive measures to protect the rights and interests of the members of the ROC Team, and to keep the honestly won Olympic gold medal,” the committee added. “The Russian Figure Skating Federation has no doubts about the honesty and purity of its Athlete, will make every effort to clarify the circumstances of the incident and provide the Athlete with the necessary comprehensive assistance and support.”
The reports began to grow in intensity after the medal ceremony for Russia’s gold medal-winning team, helmed by Valieva, was delayed. The ITA said Friday that a decision on whether the ROC will be able to keep its medals after the full appeal process for Valieva takes place, which will come once an analysis of her B sample is completed.
The figure skating team event medal ceremony was delayed due to what the IOC described as “legal issues.”
The medal ceremony was scheduled for Tuesday, before it was postponed. The athletes still have not received their medals.
Russia won gold in the team event, while the United States and Japan won silver and bronze, respectively.
Russian news outlets reported that Valieva tested positive for a banned drug before the Olympics, resulting in the ceremony being postponed. Russian newspapers RBC and Kommersant reported that Valieva tested positive for trimetazidine, a medication used to treat chest pain.
Valieva made history in the event when she became the first woman to land a quadruple jump at the Winter Olympics. She won the women’s portion of the team event, earning the ROC 10 points.
“I am glad that I was able to do the quad Salchow, quad toe and the triple Axel,” she said, according to the ISU. “Only the second quad toe did not happen, but I’ll work on that.”
The young skater is scheduled to compete again in the women’s singles event next week.
Valieva is the only minor on the ROC team who participated in the team event.
Russian athlete are competing under the name “Russian Olympic Committee” due to an ongoing ban against Russia participating in the games due to its previous doping violations. This is the second Olympics in a row that Russia has been banned from.
The WADA banned the country from all international sporting events because of its doping violations.
The agency allowed athletes who could prove they are clean and unconnected to the cover-up to compete.
