Tampa Bay Rays to play in Havana during Obama visit
ReutersThe Tampa Bay Rays will become the first Major League Baseball franchise to play in Havana since 1999 when they face Cuba's national team in an exhibition this month coinciding with a historic visit by U.S. President Barack Obama.
The March 22 game, announced by MLB on Tuesday, has been planned for months. Major League Baseball, the organization that runs professional baseball in North America, said in November it would choose the Rays as the team to play in Havana if it could make a deal with the Cuban Baseball Federation.
"During a time of historic change, we appreciate the constructive role afforded by our shared passion for the game, and we look forward to experiencing Cuba's storied baseball tradition and the passion of its many loyal fans," MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement.
The game will be played at the 45,000-seat Latin American Stadium, site of a 1999 exhibition between the Baltimore Orioles and Cuba's national team. It has been undergoing improvements, including installation of a new infield, under MLB supervision.
Obama's visit on March 21-22 will mark the first by a sitting U.S. president since 1928 and the first since Fidel Castro's rebels overthrew a pro-American government in 1959.
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Venus ends Indian Wells boycott
Agence France-PresseVenus Williams will end her 15-year boycott of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells next week, following in the footsteps of sister Serena who returned to the event last year.
The 35-year-old former world number one has not played the prestigious Californian event since 2001, when she and Serena were booed by sections of the crowd.
Her father Richard Williams has long alleged the family was subjected to repeated racial slurs after Venus withdrew from a semi-final against Serena due to a knee injury.
Venus said she had been prompted to return after seeing the warm reception her sister received last year, when she was given a 57-second standing ovation before her opening match on Stadium Court.
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Male boxers to abandon headgear at Rio Games after 32 years
Karolos Grohmann, ReutersFor the first time in 32 years male boxers will be able trade punches without any headgear at this year's Rio Games after the International Olympic Committee sanctioned a change introduced by world boxing federation AIBA.
AIBA adopted the change for amateur fighters some three years ago but needed to bring it to the IOC Executive Board, which noted it without objection on Tuesday, essentially rubber-stamping the decision and clearing the way for Rio.
The IOC said AIBA had presented medical research that showed concussions were less likely to occur without headgear than with.
Women boxers, who first competed at the 2012 Olympics, will continue wearing their protective gear.
Mercedes unleash Rosberg in second test
Agence France-PresseWorld champions Mercedes sent another signal of their continued dominance to the rest of the Formula One paddock, as Nico Rosberg was fastest on the first day of the second pre-season test in Barcelona on Tuesday.
The German and defending world champion Lewis Hamilton are sharing driving duties on each of the four days in the Catalan capital this week due to the W07's remarkable reliability.
Rosberg registered the second best time of testing so far in 1min 23.022sec as Mercedes finally used the quicker soft tyres, after completing nearly 700 laps on the first four days of testing last week on the medium compound.
"It was nice for me to be able to push some more and produce some stronger lap times," said Rosberg. "That's when it's all the more enjoyable; taking the car to the limit and really pushing. It's been a good test, reliability has been good, the speed has been there - it's all working to plan."
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Ko hopes 'role model' Tiger will bounce back
Agence France-PresseWomen's world number one Lydia Ko paid tribute to her "role model" Tiger Woods on Tuesday, expressing hope that the golf legend will recover from injury and rejoin the tour.
Speaking to AFP before the HSBC Women's Champions tournament in Singapore, the 18-year-old said that Woods has been a top ambassador for the sport.
"No matter what Tiger is going through right now, Tiger will always be Tiger. Tiger grew the game, there's a lot of players that are playing on tour or are starting the game because of Tiger," said the New Zealander, who turned pro when she was 16.
"He's been a great role model, he still is... I think what he's done to grow the game is fantastic and hopefully he'll be able to get healthy and get back on the tour," she added.
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Ivy League gridiron teams eye tackle practice ban
Agence France-PresseAmerican football coaches of prestigious Ivy League college teams have voted to eliminate full-contact tackling during training in a radical measure aimed at mitigating the risk of brain injury, it was reported Tuesday.
The Ivy League, which includes Harvard, Yale and Princeton amongst its eight-member conference, had already reduced the number of full-contact practices a team could hold in a 2011 crackdown.
The latest safety measure, which would ban tackling during training in the regular season, comes against a backdrop of mounting concern over the health risks associated with America's most popular sport.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
