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NASCAR rallies around Bubba Wallace as FBI investigates noose – CTV News

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Bubba Wallace steered the No. 43 to the front of pit road, NASCAR champion Kyle Busch pushing the famous car on one side and close friend Ryan Blaney pushing on the other.

The entire 40-driver field and all their crew members followed. After the car came to a stop, Wallace climbed out, sat on the window ledge and sobbed. Richard Petty, his Hall of Fame team owner, gently placed a hand on Wallace’s shoulder.

As federal authorities descended on Talladega Superspeedway on Monday to investigate the discovery of a noose in Wallace’s garage stall, the entire industry rallied around the Cup Series’ only Black driver.

“The news has disturbed us all and of course we want justice and know who and why,” said seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson. “And we want to stand with our friend.”

The 82-year-old Petty, at his first race since the coronavirus pandemic began and at Talladega on race day for the first time in more than 10 years, stood side by side with Wallace during the national anthem before Monday’s rain-postponed event. Everyone stood behind the car while Brad Keselowski held the American flag at the front of the display of solidarity.

One by one, they hugged Wallace, who then had a long embrace with his owner. And then he went racing.

It was Wallace who successfully pushed the stock car series to ban the Confederate flag at its venues less than two weeks ago and he was the target when the noose was found hanging in the Richard Petty Motorsports garage stall Sunday afternoon at the Alabama track. A member of Wallace’s crew reported it to NASCAR, and by Monday morning U.S. Attorney Jay Town said his office, the FBI and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division were involved.

“Regardless of whether federal charges can be brought, this type of action has no place in our society,” Town said.

NASCAR President Steve Phelps said security has been stepped up for Wallace — his team was also granted unusual access to its car Monday morning to ensure it had not been tampered with overnight — and the FBI was “currently on site” at the track.

He said the FBI director had told agents in Birmingham to “use all their resources” to find the perpetrator.

“Unequivocally they will be banned from this sport for life,” Phelps said. “There is no room for this at all. We won’t tolerate it. They won’t be here. I don’t care who they are, they will not be here.”

The stock car series has tried to distance itself from the flag for years at the risk of alienating a core group of its fan base. At Wallace’s urging, it went ahead with the ban as the nation grapples with social unrest largely tied to George Floyd, an unarmed Black man who died in the custody of Minneapolis police.

NASCAR has not outlined how it will enforce the restriction and this week’s race at Talladega, in the heart of the South, presented the series with its biggest test in the early going. Disgruntled fans with Confederate flags drove past the main entrance to the track all weekend and a plane flew above the track Sunday pulling a banner of the flag that read “Defund NASCAR.”

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said she was “shocked and appalled” by the “vile act” against Wallace.

“There is no place for this disgusting display of hatred in our state,” Ivey said. “Bubba Wallace is one of us; he is a native of Mobile and on behalf of all Alabamians, I apologize to Bubba Wallace as well as to his family and friends for the hurt this has caused and regret the mark this leaves on our state.”

Petty said in a statement he was “enraged” by the “filthy act” of racism. Retired champion Jeff Gordon called it a “cowardly” act while retired champion and current team owner Tony Stewart seethed in a social media post: “Angry. Outraged. Disappointed. Those words don’t fully describe how I feel. .IStandWithBubba and I’ll damn sure stand up to anyone who engages in this kind of behaviour.”

Phelps said he was the one who told Wallace about the noose.

“It was a difficult moment for Bubba, a difficult moment for me,” he said. “He’s handled it with the grace that he has handled everything that’s happened over the last few weeks.”

The 26-year-old Wallace has not commented since a statement on social media late Sunday in which he declared: “T his will not break me, I will not give in nor will I back down. I will continue to proudly stand for what I believe in.”

Wallace has worn a shirt that says “I Can’t Breathe” over his firesuit and sported a Black Lives Matter paint scheme in a race last month in Martinsville, Virginia.

Talladega is one of the more raucous stops on the NASCAR schedule, but the pandemic prompted the series, like all sports, to ban or sharply limit fans. Up to 5,000 fans were allowed in, but there were far fewer than that Monday and none of them had access to the the infield or the Cup Series garage.

Under strict new health guidelines, a very limited number of people can access the garage. That would include crew members for each of the 40 teams, NASCAR employees, Talladega staff members and any contracted safety crews or security guards.

Phelps declined to discuss whether cameras in the garage area might have captured anything of value but noted NASCAR has an approved list of who is allowed access that has been turned over to authorities.

“It will be part of what the FBI is looking at,” he said.

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Forward Jade Kovacevic is the first player signing announced by Northern Super League

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TORONTO – Jade Kovacevic, a veteran forward who has scored goals at home and abroad, is the first player signing revealed by the new Northern Super League.

The 30-year-old from Acton, Ont., has joined AFC Toronto, one of six teams scheduled to kick off the fledgling women’s pro soccer league in April.

“I’m so excited. It’s a dream come true for me,” Kovacevic said.

Kovacevic, who spent a year playing collegiate soccer at LSU and had overseas stints in Hungary and Italy, has been waiting a long time to play professionally at home. While she bided her time, the former Canadian youth international set scoring records in League1 Ontario and has given back to the sport by coaching youth.

She has also come back from a ruptured Achilles suffered in a game in May 2023.

“We’re thrilled to have Jade as our first signing,” AFC Toronto coach Marko Milanovic said in a statement. “She’s always trained like a professional, even without a domestic league to play in, and it’s that commitment, her goal-scoring ability and leadership that will help us establish our presence in the league.”

Kovacevic holds the all-time scoring record in League1 Ontario with more than 170 goals, earning five Golden Boot awards and four MVP crowns. Her League1 Ontario resume includes stints with FC London (twice), Vaughan Azzurri and most recently the North Toronto Nitros, where she doubled as coach of the club’s League1 reserves and League 2 program.

Bu she put coaching aside in March to focus on playing, with an eye to the new league coming on board.

“I don’t want to regret not doing something when I can’t do it any more,” Kovacevic said. “And I know I don’t have maybe as many years left in me as I wish I did and I want to take advantage of this opportunity. … I focused on my playing career, took this season as seriously as I could coming off of an Achilles rupture.

“And the stars aligned and the hard work paid off. I’m very very grateful to be sitting in this set.”

A cerebral forward, Kovacevic likes to operate on the shoulder of defenders, looking to make runs and anticipate passes.

“I like to think that one of my strong suits is being able to see things before they happen,” she said.

Born in Hamilton, Kovacevic spent 10 years in Flamboro before moving to Acton. She also played youth soccer in Georgetown and Oakville before joining the Toronto Lady Lynx.

“Jade’s leadership and her connection to the community will be an asset to AFC Toronto,” said NSL co-founder Diana Matheson.

Kovacevic spent one season at LSU where she was named to the2012 SEC (SouthernConference)All-Freshman Team and made Second-Team All-SEC. But she did not find the school a good fit and felt her football wasn’t progressing.

Plus she found she wanted to be closer to home. “Turns out I’m a big family girl,” she said.

Kovacevic found a home at Fanshawe College in London, Ont., loving both the school’s business program and football team.

“You were treated like a D1 athlete at Fanshawe and they put a lot of emphasis on making sure it felt like a professional environment,” she said.

Coming to classes of 15 to 20 students was also welcome after classes of 400 to 500 south of the border.

She had two stints on the Falcons soccer team, returning to do an advanced diploma after studying business marketing. In-between, in 2019, she spent half a season playing for Roma in the Italian second division.

“The time of my life,” she said with gusto. “I lived in the suburbs of Rome, about a 20-minute subway ride from Vatican City. It was just fantastic, I was there for six or seven months, helped the team grow a little bit, learned a little bit of Italian, fell in love with the lifestyle and the culture.”

But financially, it was not enough to support her. She had run into the same problem in an earlier three-month stint in Hungary in 2017 withGyori ETO, located about an hour outside Budapest.

Back home in Ontario, she settled in London where she began her own private coaching company during the pandemic. She also coached FC London’s youth sides while playing for the club.

“London has been incredible to me,” she said. “The fans there, the supporters of the game, FC London, they really helped feed the passion that I have for the game.”

Kovacevic represented Canada at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in 2010 in Trinidad and Tobago and the U-20 World Cup in 2012.

At one point she roomed with Canadian striker Adriana Leon. Kovacevic also grew up playing with and against current Canadian stars Kadeisha Buchanan and Ashley Lawrence.

And she would love to renew such acquaintances.

“I would love a shot at the (Canadian) senior level,” Kovacevic said.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

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Whitecaps, Timbers to face off in play-in match in Portland

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VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps will begin their post-season campaign with a play-in game against the Timbers in Portland on Wednesday.

The ‘Caps (13-13-8) ended the regular season with a 2-1 loss to Real Salt Lake on Saturday and finished eighth in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference standings.

The eighth and ninth spots from each conference meet in a play-in game this week, with the winner going on to face the No. 1 seed in the first round of the playoffs.

Each eighth-place team was set to host the play-in game, but Vancouver announced Friday that its home stadium, B.C. Place, is not available, so the club will cede home-field advantage to Portland (12-11-11), the ninth-place team.

The ‘Caps and Timbers split their three-game series during regular-season play, with each side taking a win, a loss and a draw.

The first round of the MLS playoffs is set to begin next weekend.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 19, 2024.

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Real Salt Lake beats visiting Whitecaps 2-1 to set single-season club record for points

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SANDY, Utah (AP) — Diego Luna scored a tying goal in the 73rd minute and Real Salt Lake added another on an own goal for a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night to set a single-season club record for points.

Real Salt Lake (16-7-11) secured the No. 3 spot in the Western Conference and will face Minnesota in the first round of the Major League Soccer playoffs. RSL reached 59 points this season, topping the 2012 team with 57.

Vancouver (13-13-8) will play the Portland Timbers on Wednesday in a wild-card game for a chance to play top-seeded LAFC.

Luna settled a long cross from Braian Ojeda before taking four touches to slot home a shot inside the far post for his eighth goal of the season.

RSL went ahead in the 83rd when Vancouver goalkeeper Isaac Boehmer misplayed a lofted ball that rolled into the back of the net.

Vancouver midfielder Ryan Gauld opened the scoring in the 58th to become the first player in club history to produce multiple seasons with at least 10 goals and 10 assists.

AP MLS:

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