Sports

Player-driven postponement an awakening for historically conformist NHL

Published

4 years ago

August 27, 2020

EDMONTON – It looked less like a protest than an awakening.

Nearly 100 National Hockey League players from four Western Conference teams trying to beat each other to go to the Stanley Cup, players from many countries and ethnicities, stood shoulder to shoulder Thursday in support of a two-day shutdown intended to shine a spotlight once again on systemic racism in the wake of the shooting of another unarmed Black man by a white police officer.

At the front and centre of the group, crowded into a press conference room inside the Edmonton bubble near the end of a historic day, stood Ryan Reaves, literally the biggest Black man in hockey.

This was a moment of empowerment – the manifestation of the players’ realization that on issues that are most important to them and their communities beyond hockey, they need not wait for their teams and league to tell them how they should feel and act.

“I think if you look around this room, there are a lot of white athletes in here, and I think that’s the statement that’s being made right now,” Reaves, the battering-ram forward from the Vegas Golden Knights who had been scheduled to terrorize the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday night, told reporters.

“It’s great that the NBA did this, and MLB and the WNBA. They have a lot of Black players in those leagues. But for all these athletes in here to take a stand and say: ‘You know what? We see the problem, too. And we stand behind you.’

“I go to war with these guys and I hate their guts on the ice, but I couldn’t be more proud of these guys. The statement they’ve made today is something that’s going to last.”

Racism is not a minority problem. It belongs to all of us. It is ridiculous to think the victims alone can fix it. Or should.

As the NHL allowed Wednesday night’s playoff games to go on even as players from the NBA and other leagues refused to perform after a Wisconsin police officer shot Jacob Blake seven times in the back while his three young children watched, Reaves wondered how he could possibly play Thursday.

If he sat out, he wondered if he would be the only one – and how would that look? Instead, 200 players walked out with him, and none will play again until Saturday as all eight teams left in the Stanley Cup tournament will postpone one game.

Reaves said he woke Thursday to a text from former St. Louis Blues teammate Kevin Shattenkirk, still playing in the Eastern Conference playoffs with the Tampa Bay Lightning, asking Reaves to speak to some players in the Toronto bubble.

Then he received a text from a player on the Canucks, tied 1-1 with the Knights in the second-round series, asking for a meeting.

Representing one of the most culturally and racially diverse cities in North America, Canucks players had talked early Thursday and were uncomfortable playing. They reached out to Reaves and then met with players from the Golden Knights.

Later, the group invited Evander Kane and Matt Dumba from the Hockey Diversity Alliance to speak to players, and more than 100 of them listened and asked questions. Players from the Canucks, Knights, Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars all decided not to play and informed the NHL and its Players’ Association.

The players decided.

“We were 100 per cent behind this from the moment it was brought up by the players,” Vegas coach Peter DeBoer said in a coaches’ press conference that followed the players’ video call. “Yes, it’s player-driven, but it’s team-supported.”

“There’s sports and then there are things that are bigger than sports,” Canuck coach Travis Green said. “I wasn’t surprised at all this morning when I spoke to our players and they wanted to talk to Ryan. These guys, they’re teammates within the league. They all care about each other, but when they go on the ice they still compete hard against each other. Yet they’re family. I felt that our group wanted to make sure the Vegas team knew, or Ryan knew, that they were behind him. I was behind them all the way, supported them 100 per cent with whatever decision they made. It’s hard not to be proud of them.”

Reaves was joined at the front of the room by Canucks captain Bo Horvat, Colorado Avalanche players Nazem Kadri and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, and Dallas Stars centre Jason Dickinson.

The sight of all these players standing together, surrounded by teammates, made for a powerful and lasting image. This defiance in the name of social consciousness felt like a watershed moment for a league in which conformity and compliance are hallmarks of its culture.

“We need to come together,” Horvat said. “Obviously, this kind of stuff can’t stand. We need to educate ourselves and realize what’s going on in the world. I think (Reaves) hit the nail on the head: there needs to be change, and us being all together here as one definitely shows the strength in the hockey community.”

Kadri said: “Some things are bigger than sports and there comes a time you’ve got to start acting on your word. You can put up signs and have all that stuff, but at the end of the day, what are you really doing to make a difference? It’s that time for action.”

Source: – Sportsnet.ca

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Sports

Champions Trophy host Pakistan says it’s not been told India wants to play cricket games elsewhere

Published

1 day ago

November 8, 2024

Anne Joseph

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.

“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”

Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.

The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.

Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.

“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”

Pakistan hosted last year’s Asia Cup but all India games were played in Sri Lanka under a hybrid model for the tournament. Only months later Pakistan did travel to India for the 50-over World Cup.

Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.

“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”

The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.

“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”

Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.

“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.

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AP cricket:

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Sports

Dabrowski, Routlife into WTA doubles final with win over Melichar-Martinez, Perez

Published

1 day ago

November 8, 2024

Anne Joseph

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.

Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.

The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.

The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.

Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.

Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

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Winger Tajon Buchanan back with Canada after recovering from broken leg

Published

1 day ago

November 8, 2024

Anne Joseph

Inter Milan winger Tajon Buchanan, recovered from a broken leg suffered in training at this summer’s Copa America, is back in Jesse Marsch’s Canada squad for the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Suriname.

The 25-year-old from Brampton, Ont., underwent surgery July 3 to repair a fractured tibia in Texas.

Canada, ranked 35th in the world, plays No. 136 Suriname on Nov. 15 in Paramaribo. The second leg of the aggregate series is four days later at Toronto’s BMO Field.

There is also a return for veteran winger Junior Hoilett, who last played for Canada in June in a 4-0 loss to the Netherlands in Marsch’s debut at the Canadian helm. The 34-year-old from Brampton, now with Scotland’s Hibernian, has 15 goals in 63 senior appearances for Canada.

Midfielder Ismael Kone, recovered from an ankle injury sustained on club duty with France’s Marseille, also returns. He missed Canada’s last three matches since the fourth-place Copa America loss to Uruguay in July.

But Canada will be without centre back Derek Cornelius, who exited Marseille’s win Sunday over Nantes on a stretcher after suffering an apparent rib injury.

The Canadian men will prepare for Suriname next week at a camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

“We are looking forward to getting the group together again with the mindset that there is a trophy on the line,” Marsch said in a statement. “We want to end 2024 the right way with two excellent performances against a competitive Suriname squad and continue building on our tremendous growth this past summer.”

The quarterfinal winners advance to the Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., with the two semifinals scheduled for March 20 and the final and third-place playoff March 23, and qualify for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Thirteen of the 23 players on the Canadian roster are 25 or younger, with 19-year-old defender Jamie Knight-Lebel, currently playing for England’s Crewe Alexandra on loan from Bristol City, the youngest.

Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies captains the side with Stephen Eustaquio, Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Alistair Johnston and Kamal Miller adding veteran support.

Jonathan David, Cyle Larin and Theo Bair are joined in attack by Minnesota United’s Tani Oluwaseyi.

Niko Sigur, a 21-year-old midfielder with Croatia’s Hadjuk Split, continues in the squad after making his debut in the September friendly against Mexico.

Suriname made it to the Nations League quarterfinals by finishing second to Costa Rica in Group A of the Nations League, ahead of No. 104 Guatemala, No. 161 Guyana and unranked Martinique and Guadeloupe.

“A good team,” Osorio said of Suriname. “These games are always tricky and they’re not easy at all … Suriname is a (former) Dutch colony and they’ll have Dutch players playing at high levels.”

“They won’t be someone we overlook at all,” added the Toronto FC captain, who has 81 Canada caps to his credit.

Located on the northeast coast of South America between Guyana and French Guiana, Suriname was granted independence in 1975 by the Netherlands.

Canada has faced Suriname twice before, both in World Cup qualifying play, winning 4-0 in suburban Chicago in June 2021 and 2-1 in Mexico City in October 1977.

The Canadian men, along with Mexico, the United States and Panama, received a bye into the final eight of the CONCACAF Nations League.

Canada, No. 2 in the CONCACAF rankings, drew Suriname as the best-placed runner-up from League A play.

Canada lost to Jamaica in last year’s Nations League quarterfinal, ousted on the away-goals rule after the series ended in a 4-4 draw. The Canadians lost 2-0 to the U.S. in the final of the 2022-23 tournament and finished fifth in 2019-20.

Canada defeated Panama 2-1 last time out, in an Oct. 15 friendly in Toronto.

Goalkeepers Maxime Crepeau and Jonathan Sirois, defenders Joel Waterman, Laryea and Miller and Osorio took part in a pre-camp this week in Toronto for North America-based players.

Canada Roster

Goalkeepers: Maxime Crepeau, Portland Timbers (MLS); Jonathan Sirois, CF Montreal (MLS); Dayne St. Clair, Minnesota United FC (MLS).

Defenders: Moise Bombito, OGC Nice (France); Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich (Germany); Richie Laryea, Toronto FC (MLS); Alistair Johnston, Celtic (Scotland); Jamie Knight-Lebel. Crewe Alexandra, on loan from Bristol City (England); Kamal Miller, Portland Timbers (MLS); Joel Waterman, CF Montreal (MLS).

Midfielders: Ali Ahmed. Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS); Tajon Buchanan, Inter Milan (Italy); Mathieu Choiniere, Grasshopper Zurich (Switzerland); Stephen Eustaquio, FC Porto (Portugal); Junior Hoilett, Hibernian FC (Scotland); Ismael Kone, Olympique Marseille (France); Jonathan Osorio, Toronto FC (MLS); Jacob Shaffelburg, Nashville SC (MLS); Niko Sigur, Hadjuk Split (Croatia).

Forwards: Theo Bair, AJ Auxerre (France); Jonathan David, LOSC Lille (France); Cyle Larin, RCD Mallorca (Spain); Tani Oluwaseyi, Minnesota United (MLS).

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

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