(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Wednesday’s sports events:
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Boston 92, Orlando 79
Cleveland 107, Portland 104
Indiana 111, New York 98
Philadelphia 103, Chicago 98
Toronto 109, Washington 100
Brooklyn 117, Atlanta 108
LA Clippers 126, Minnesota 115
Memphis 108, Denver 106
Dallas 109, San Antonio 108
Sacramento 112, New Orleans 99
Golden State 114, Charlotte 92
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Carolina 4, Chicago 3
Edmonton 5, Nashville 2
Columbus 5, Colorado 4 (OT)
Final SO Los Angeles 3 St. Louis 2
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
CF Montreal 2, Houston 0
Atlanta 0, New York 0 (Tie)
Austin FC 3, Sporting Kansas City 1
Portland 3, Real Salt Lake 1
(GREEN BAY, Wis.) — Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will miss this Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs after being put on the NFL’s COVID-19 list, the team said.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur told reporters during a press briefing Wednesday afternoon that he is unsure how long Rodgers, 37, will be out beyond this week, and that backup quarterback Jordan Love will start at Kansas City in his place.
LaFleur said he couldn’t comment on whether Rodgers tested positive for COVID-19 and was unsure if the athlete is experiencing any symptoms. He also wouldn’t confirm whether Rodgers was vaccinated against COVID-19.
“I think everybody has to make their own personal decision, and that’s just what it is,” the coach said.
The announcement sparked some confusion around Rodgers’ vaccination status.
ESPN reported Wednesday, citing sources, that the reigning NFL MVP purportedly petitioned the NFL to have an alternative treatment allow him to be considered vaccinated.
The league ultimately ruled that Rodgers would not be considered vaccinated, according to ESPN sources. However, Rodgers has not been wearing a mask while in-person at news conferences. The Packers have put unvaccinated players on Zoom during media sessions, ESPN reported.
In August, Rodgers responded that he’s been “immunized” when asked about his vaccination status during a media session.
“You know, there’s a lot of conversation around it, around the league, and a lot of guys who have made statements and not made statements, owners who have made statements,” Rodgers said at the time. “There’s guys on the team that haven’t been vaccinated. I think it’s a personal decision. I’m not going to judge those guys. There are guys that’ve been vaccinated that have contracted COVID. It’s an interesting issue that I think we’re going to see played out the entire season.”
Each team is responsible for enforcing COVID-19 protocols, an NFL spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News.
“Failure to properly enforce the protocols has resulted in discipline being assessed against individual clubs in the past,” the spokesperson said. “The league is aware of the current situation in Green Bay and will be reviewing with the Packers.”
Under NFL protocols, unvaccinated players are tested daily, while vaccinated players are tested weekly. Unvaccinated players who test positive for COVID-19 must isolate for at least 10 days. NFL teams could face potential forfeits and lost paychecks for outbreaks among unvaccinated players.
From Oct. 3 to 16, the most recent COVID-19 reporting period from the NFL, there were 14 new confirmed positive tests among players and 26 among personnel, with an overall incidence rate of 0.6%.
As of Oct. 21, 94.1% of NFL players were vaccinated, the league said.
ABC News’ Katie Conway contributed to this report.
(LAS VEGAS) — NFL wide receiver Henry Ruggs III was driving 156 mph seconds before he slammed his Corvette into the back of a Toyota SUV in Las Vegas early Tuesday morning, killing the driver, according to a police report.
Ruggs, who was released by the Las Vegas Raiders the same day as the accident, made his first court appearance on Wednesday showing visible cuts to the bridge of his nose and wearing a neck collar. The 22-year-old, who police said appeared impaired at the crash scene, has been charged with DUI resulting in death and reckless driving resulting in death. He did not enter a plea.
“It’s about choices, and if someone decides to drive under the influence, and drive in excess of 150 mph, we’re going to seek justice,” Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said at a press conference after Ruggs’ hearing. “This is a tragic and sad day. It’s a tragedy because a woman lost her life and a lot of other people are suffering. It’s also sad and tragic that Mr. Ruggs is potentially losing an entire career and facing a stiff prison sentence.”
The 23-year-old driver of the Toyota Rav4 who died in the crash has not been identified. A dog in the vehicle also was killed, according to a police report.
The police report tells of several eyewitnesses to the accident rushing to pull the woman from the burning vehicle, but she was trapped and rescuers were unable to help her as they were overcome by smoke and flames.
Ruggs refused a field sobriety test, according to police, but prosecutor Eric Bauman said in court Wednesday that he had a blood alcohol level of 0.161% — more than twice the legal limit in Nevada.
Prosecutors also said they found a loaded handgun on the floor of Ruggs’ Corvette.
Ruggs’ passenger, Kiara Je’nai Kilgo-Washington, 22, also suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the crash.
“Life is about choices. Mr. Ruggs made a choice,” Wolfson said. “And the difficulty I have is there’s so many alternatives. There’s ride-sharing. There’s a designated driver, there’s a taxi, there’s so many alternatives, but Mr. Ruggs made a choice and he’s going to have to live with the consequences.”
Wolfson said the minimum sentence for Ruggs would be two years, with a possible maximum of 46 years, though that could increase if gun charges are filed.
The former first-round pick, considered a rising star in the league, was leading the team in receiving yards and tied for the lead in receiving touchdowns.
Ruggs posted $150,000 bail. His next court appearance is Nov. 10.
ABC News’ Jennifer Watts and Bonnie McLean contributed to this report.
(HOUSTON) — It’s been almost 30 years since the Atlanta Braves won a World Series and, on Tuesday night, the drought officially ended — hammering the Houston Astros 7-0 in Game 6 at Minute Maid Park.
The start of the Braves’ season looked rough, with the team dropping their first four games and being plagued by injuries. There were also moments where the team didn’t spend a day over .500.
Despite the rocky start, the Braves turned the season around and the team, assisted by Jorge Soler and Freddie Freeman took home their first WS in 26 years.
Max Fried’s dominant pitching took over six innings, with Soler smashing his third homer against the Astros, with one resulting in a monster three-run shot.
Freeman and Dansby Swanson also homered, bringing the score to 7 – nothing.
And, while the Braves now head into a mighty victory parade — as they are the only team to bring TWO championship titles to the city of Atlanta — the Astros now have spring training to think about, which starts February 26.
To date, the Atlanta Falcons have yet to take home a Super Bowl trophy while the Hawks have yet to declare victory in the NBA championships — not to mention the college football scene.
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Tuesday’s sports events:
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL PLAYOFFS
Atlanta 7, Houston 0 (Atlanta wins series 4-2)
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Milwaukee 117, Detroit 89
Miami 125, Dallas 110
Utah 119, Sacramento 113
Phoenix 112, New Orleans 100
LA Lakers 119, Houston 117
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Toronto 4, Vegas 0
Philadelphia 3, Arizona 0
Montreal 3, Detroit 0
Minnesota 5, Ottawa 4 (OT)
Winnipeg 4, Dallas 3 (SO)
Nashville 3, Calgary 2 (OT)
Vancouver 3, NY Rangers 2 (OT)
Anaheim 4, New Jersey 0
San Jose 5, Buffalo 2 (In progress)
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
Vancouver 1, Los Angeles FC 1 (Tie)
(LAS VEGAS) — Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III has been charged with DUI resulting in death connected to a car crash Tuesday morning, according to police.
Ruggs, the team’s leading receiver, was driving a Chevrolet Corvette at about 3:30 a.m. on Rainbow Boulevard when his car hit the rear end of a Toyota Rav4, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said.
The Toyota burst into flames, and police said they recovered a dead body inside the SUV.
Police said Ruggs, 22, stayed on the scene, but “showed signs of impairment.”
The wide receiver was taken to University Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
The Raiders were on their bye this week, so they did not play on Sunday.
In a statement, the team said, “We are aware of an accident involving Henry Ruggs III that occurred this morning in Las Vegas. We are devastated by the loss of life and our thoughts and prayers go out to the victim’s family. We are in the process of gathering information and will have no further comment at this time.”
Ruggs was a first-round pick of the Raiders in 2020, taken No. 12 overall. He was a star at Alabama, crossing 700 yards in his sophomore and junior seasons before entering the draft.
He has 24 catches for 469 yards in 2021. He also has two receiving touchdowns, which is tied for the team lead.
The speedy receiver had 452 receiving yards in his rookie season, with two touchdowns, but appeared to be breaking out in 2021 as the team’s top threat.
ABC News’ Jennifer Watts contributed to this report.
(ATLANTA) — The Atlanta Braves are one win away from potentially securing their fourth World Series title, but their name and a gesture used by fans have come under scrutiny from Native American advocates around the country.
The gesture is known as the “tomahawk chop” and has been used by fans of various teams — from the high school level to the pros — to cheer on teams with Native American names or mascots. The tomahawk is an axe that is native to the indigenous people of North America and at Braves games many fans hold up red foam tomahawks or wear Braves gear displaying the image.
Former President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump were among the fans who did the chop at Game 4 of the World Series on Saturday night.
Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said last week that the Native American community in the Atlanta region “is wholly supportive of the Braves program, including the chop. For me, that’s the end of the story.”
But views on the gesture are varied and some Native American tribes in Georgia pushed back on Manfred’s claim.
ABC News’ request for comment to the MLB and the Atlanta Braves were not returned.
The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the country’s oldest and largest American Indian and Alaska Native tribal government organization, issued a response on Wednesday that disputes Manfred’s statement.
“In our discussions with the Atlanta Braves, we have repeatedly and unequivocally made our position clear – Native people are not mascots, and degrading rituals like the ‘tomahawk chop’ that dehumanize and harm us have no place in American society,” NCAI President Fawn Sharp said.
Heather Whiteman Runs Him, a law professor and director of the Tribal Justice Clinic at the University of Arizona in Tucson, told “Good Morning America” that using Native American imagery in sports dehumanizes the community and behavior like the tomahawk chop “indicates a fundamental misunderstanding of who Native Americans are.”
“I think the team needs to condemn that behavior,” Whiteman Runs Him said, “and to begin the process of educating and taking a lead in raising awareness about our actual identities, the actual complexities of our cultures, our present-day reality, as well as the many problems in our mutual history.”
Although the Braves dropped Chief Noc-A-Homa as its mascot in 1985, the team’s name originates from a term that is used to describe a Native American warrior.
Sundance, a member of the Muskogee tribe, is the director of the Cleveland branch of the American Indian Movement — one of the organizations that has been urging national and local teams with indigenous names and mascots to change their names for more than 50 years.
He told “Good Morning America” that appropriating Native American imagery in sports is “a way for the dominant culture to pretend that atrocities against native peoples did not happen.”
“We are a marginalized and victimized population. And that appropriation is being done by the same culture that marginalized and victimized [us],” he added.
The Cleveland branch of the American Indian Movement was one of the groups that was instrumental in advocating for the name change of the Cleveland Indians — now known as the Cleveland Guardians.
Following decades of backlash from the Native American community, Cleveland’s Major League Baseball team announced in December 2020 that the franchise will change its name and revealed in July that the new name is now the Guardians.
This came after Dan Snyder, owner of the Washington Redskins, said in July 2020 that the team would change its name to the Washington Football Team, after FedEx, which has naming rights to the stadium, requested a change.
Sundance previously told ABC News that the movement to remove Native American imagery from sports teams has been going on for decades but gained new momentum over the past year amid nationwide protests and an energized civil rights movement sparked by the police killing of George Floyd.
According to a FiveThirtyEight analysis, hundreds of schools across the country still use Native Americans as their team mascots.
“We would like to see [the Atlanta Braves] step up to the plate, change the team name, get rid of that logo and, I figure, the Tomahawk chop will chop will itself,” Sundance said.
(BASEL, Switzerland) — The International Handball Federation has updated its uniform rules after backlash over its women’s bikini requirements.
After being called out for fining the Norwegian women’s handball team 1,500 euros (about $1,740) for opting to wear shorts — which were listed as “improper clothing” — the governing authority has revised its rules to allow for “short tight pants with a close fit” to be worn, as opposed to the previously required bikini bottoms.
This change comes after some activists and celebrities, such as singer Pink, called the federation’s rules “sexist” and offered to pay the team’s fines.
It also comes after Norway-based Australian activist Talitha Stone and the gender equality organization Collective Shout garnered over 61,000 signatures in support of updating the women’s handball uniform rules.
“I hope this is the beginning of the end of sexism and objectification of women and girls in sport, and that in [the] future ALL women and girls will be free to participate in sport without fear of wardrobe malfunctions and sexual harassment,” Stone said in a Facebook post.
The Collective Shout also shared a before and after image of the uniforms along with the hashtag #letthemwearshorts and a statement saying, “International Handball Federation scraps sexist bikini rule!”
In addition to Norway’s women’s handball team, other top athletes have used their platforms to stand against sexualization in sports.
In July, the German gymnastics team sported full-length leotards while competing in the 2020 Olympics, as opposed to traditional bikini bottoms.
“It’s about what feels comfortable,” three-time Olympian Elisabeth Seitz said in a statement. “We wanted to show that every woman, everybody, should decide what to wear.”
(NEW YORK) — Here are the scores from Monday’s sports events:
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Indiana 131, San Antonio 118
Philadelphia 113, Portland 103
Cleveland 113, Charlotte 110
Toronto 113, New York 104
Chicago 128, Boston 114
Atlanta 118, Washington 111
Memphis 106, Denver 97
Orlando 115, Minnesota 97
LA Clippers 99, Oklahoma City 94
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Tampa Bay 3, Washington 2
Chicago 5, Ottawa 1
Edmonton 5, Seattle 2
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Kansas City 20, NY Giants 17
