Understanding the science of sports tape
Mirai Nagasu of the United States competes during the Ladies Single Skating Short Program on day 12 of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Gangneung Ice Arena on Feb. 21, 2018, in Gangneung, South Korea. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
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Jamie Squire
In the summer, you can see it — stretched across Olympians’ skin as they compete on the world stage.
But in the winter cold, when athletes are covered from head to toe, it’s harder to see how kinesiology tape helped support Team USA in its quest for gold.
Where was the KT Tape?
“It’s very obvious in summer sports, but in winter sports, it’s still there,” said Dr. Christopher Harper, an orthopedic specialist and member of the KT Tape medical advisory board.
“If you take a close look you can see it in some of the figure skaters,” he said, explaining that while spectators do see a lot of kinesiology tape on athletes’ extremities, particularly in summer but also in winter, the more common use happens on their trunk.
Tape is often used on ribs, back muscles and shoulder blades, areas of the body covered with clothing, he said.
Winter athletes do have some unique use cases, however. Harper pointed to the extreme speeds of alpine skiers who hit speeds of 80–90 mph on their way down the mountain.
“Think about the G-forces on the neck, on the cervical spine. So, often you’ll see taping in the back of the neck.”
What is the strangest way Harper has seen kinesiology tape used? A trend during extra cold competitions when skiers put KT Tape on their faces to prevent frostbite.
“They were putting it on their nose. Just as a wind barrier … That’s not a marketed use, but it seemed to work pretty well for that,” he joked.
But KT Tape on the face was far from the most surprising thing Harper shared during a Deseret News interview.
“A lot of people think the primary use is bracing of a joint or something like that,” he said. “It can be used in subtle ways that way but that’s not really the primary function. The primary function is to improve proprioception, that proprioceptive feedback.”
United States’ Bryce Bennett starts an alpine ski men’s downhill official training at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Bormio, Italy. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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Julia Demaree Nikhinson
‘What is proprioception?’
Proprioception is the body’s “sixth sense” if you will. It’s mind-body coordination. The way your brain understands where your body is in space and how it’s moving, even if you can’t see it. And it happens thanks to little things called (you guessed it) proprioceptors in your muscles, joints and tendons, which send signals to your brain.
So how does tape, strategically placed on your body, enhance this mind-body connection? It’s because of your skin.
“Cutaneous feedback actually has a great influence on your proprioception, in other words, your sense of joint space. As well as your anticipatory motor planning,” Harper said. “Your ability to know that you have to do these fine motor adjustments. A lot of that feedback from your body to your brain actually comes from your skin. And so if you enhance that proprioception, it can actually improve your motor control, and that can make a big difference when we’re talking about these high speed, low margin winter sports where every little split second counts. It can give the athlete a bit of an edge.”
Turns out KT Tape is there to enhance an athlete’s coordination and timing. It’s not just a sticky knee brace. Who knew?
Jonna Sundling, of Sweden, left, embraces Krista Parmakoski, of Finland, after the women’s team sprint classic cross-country skiing competition at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
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Alessandra Tarantino
A neuromuscular bookmark
Remember those Olympians using kinesiology tape to cover their faces in the frigid cold? KT Tape does have some intended use for keeping things warm, but more in a readiness sense.
“In high level sports, especially the winter sports, if an athlete is between heats or events and they have to be in a staging area, having tape on specific muscles can actually help keep that proprioceptive feedback cued up a bit,” Harper said. “It’s almost like a bookmark for the nervous system.”
During international competitions, athletes can sometimes wait an hour or more in between races or heats. Their bodies go from extreme exertion to rest and sometimes move from very cold temperatures to very hot. All of those changes can take a toll on their ability to bounce back into the competition.
“It helps them hang onto their warm-up a little bit longer,” Harper said. “I do think of it as, like, a neuromuscular bookmark on certain muscles.”
Taping can also be done to alleviate pain or reduce muscle soreness between races.
Not a one-trick pony
Harper said the tape is actually used more in physical and neurological rehabilitation than on elite athletes or Olympians.
“In pediatric rehab, young kids with vascular accidents or stroke or tone issues, nervous system problems, the tape would be used to help correct posture and help train movement. So it was used in rehab much before sports in the U.S.”
And how you tape, matters. Different taping techniques can do different things, including reduce swelling, assist lymphatic drainage, or do that super basic joint stabilizing thing.
It can even help fix your posture. Not just when you’re wearing the tape, but thanks to that proprioception connection, taping can actually train your body to have better posture.
In today’s society, “87% of all jobs are sitting at a computer,” Harper said. “Some people end up with that forward head, forward shoulder posture. There’s ways to use the tape to help posturally cue you, and I don’t like to call it bracing because I think of it as, that tape is on you, and as you go through your everyday stuff and you’re putting things away from the dishwasher up to the cabinet, you know, the tape is actually training you to be in a better position. So it can counteract some of the bad habits that we have.”
There are many subtle ways to use the tape to create an effect in the body, he said. “There are 101-plus uses of KT Tape. It’s certainly not a one-trick pony.”
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/understanding-science-sports-tape-033054315.html
Newcomer João Klauss scores, but Galaxy’s season opener ends in a draw
João Klauss scores in his Galaxy debut but New York City FC scores late as season opener ends in a draw.
https://www.latimes.com/sports/soccer/galaxy/story/2026-02-22/galaxy-season-opener
Winter Olympics Day 16 recap: U.S. men win hockey gold; Eileen Gu defends freeski crown
The Athletic has live coverage of the final day and closing ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Of course, it went to overtime. But this time it was the U.S. that minted a “Golden Goal” as Jack Hughes rocketed a shot into Canada’s net 1:41 into the three-on-three extra period to set off the celebration of America’s first hockey gold medal since the “Miracle on Ice” squad of U.S. amateurs brought home the prize in 1980.
The 2-1 nail-biting win against archrival Canada came 46 years to the day after that “Miracle on Ice” team shocked the heavily favored and potent Soviet Union side in the 1980 semifinals in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Sixteen years ago, it was Sidney Crosby’s “Golden Goal” that beat the U.S. 3-2 in extra time and instantly became a fixture in Canadian hockey lore and legend.
Hughes’ winner, along with the brilliance of Team USA netminder Connor Hellebuyck, seems destined for the same reverence.
Matt Boldy put the U.S. in front at the six-minute mark of the first period when he split a pair of Canadian defenders and put the puck past goalie Jordan Binnington.
But that early U.S. momentum waned, and the Americans hung on for dear life as the Canadians unleashed a barrage of shots against Hellebuyck, who turned in an all-time-great performance in a game in which Canada outshot the U.S. 42-28. Canada pulled back even with a goal from Cale Makar late in the second period, but Hellebuyck continued to deny Canada’s greatest stars: Connor McDavid on a breakaway, Macklin Celebrini on the doorstep, and an outright robbery of Devon Toews’ attempted tap-in into an open net. It was a 41-save masterpiece.
Both teams failed to score on power-play chances in the third. Canada’s Nathan MacKinnon had the best scoring opportunity of the period, a quality look about 10 minutes in, but his shot missed the opening and found the side netting. When the horn sounded, the teams were still knotted at 1.
Sudden-death overtime is a stage designed for heroics, but Hughes and his linemates ended the drama quickly. After Team USA barely cleared the puck out of its end, Zach Werenski raced down the ice to reach it first, squaring it across to an all-alone Hughes, who took a moment to compose himself and ripped the winner past Binnington with less than two minutes elapsed in overtime.
The loss snapped an incredible run for Team Canada. It had won 15 consecutive games in best-on-best Olympics since losing to the U.S. in the 2010 round-robin. Canada won gold in Vancouver 2010, in Sochi in 2014 at the World Cup of Hockey in 2016 and at the 4 Nations last year.
U.S. coach Mike Sullivan called this team the best collection of Americans he has ever seen, and offered some perspective to his players in the days leading up to Sunday’s final. He said that in the 100-plus years of U.S. men’s hockey teams participating in the Olympics, only 36 hockey players have earned that gold medal between the 1960 and 1980 victorious teams. Twenty-five more joined that select company Sunday after a victory, like that one at Lake Placid, that might resonate for generations to come.
You can find the final medal count here, and here you can view photos of every gold medalist from the 2026 Winter Olympics — more than 200 athletes who competed at the Milan Cortina Games.
Eileen Gu defends Olympic gold in women’s freeski halfpipe
Eileen Gu’s tears flowed freely Sunday after she successfully defended her gold medal in women’s freeski halfpipe. The tears were a testament to her victory and a tribute to her grandmother, Guozhen Feng, whom she learned not long after her performance had died.
“She was a steam ship,” Gu told the Associated Press. “This woman commanded life, and she grabbed it by the reins, and she made it into what she wanted it to be.”
“She inspired me so much,” Gu added. “The last time I saw her before I came to the Olympics, she was very sick, so I knew that this was a possibility.”
In Sunday’s competition, World No. 1 Zoe Atkin took the lead after the first run of the day to put the heat on the reigning Olympic champion.
Gu responded with the top two highest scores of the day on her second and third runs to defend her title. With the victory, Gu, who switched her allegiance from the U.S. in 2019 to represent China, further cemented her legacy as the most decorated freestyle skier in history with three gold and three silver medals.
Gu said she had promised her grandmother that she would be brave during her Olympic competitions. “That’s a testament to competitive strength, it’s mental strength,” she said. Sunday’s medal was her third of the Games.
World No. 2 Li Fanghui of China, Gu’s teammate, won the silver medal. Great Britain’s Atkin took bronze.
Sweden’s Ebba Andersson wins first women’s cross-country 50km mass start
Before Sunday, Sweden’s Ebba Andersson had been stacking the silver medals. She had finished runner-up three times earlier in these Games, but she finished her Olympics with a gold in the women’s cross-country 50km mass start.
“It’s really a dream come true. I’ve dreamed about this day for a long time now, and it’s almost unbelievable that everything went as planned,” Andersson said.
Heidi Weng of Norway won silver, while Nadja Kälin of Switzerland won the bronze. American cross-country legend Jessie Diggins finished fifth in what she had said would be her final Olympic race.
Germany wins gold and silver in four-man bobsled
Germany continued its bobsled dominance Sunday, winning the four-man bobsled with a team led by Johannes Lochner. The Germans won by more than half a second over another German team captained by Francesco Friedrich. A Swiss sled piloted by Michael Vogt captured the bronze medal. Lochner and Georg Fleischhauer won the gold in the two-man event Tuesday.
Sweden edges Switzerland for women’s curling gold
Sweden added to its curling success at the Milan Cortina Games, winning its fourth team gold medal in the women’s event with a 6-5 victory over Switzerland. Earlier in the competition, Sweden claimed gold in the mixed doubles competition.
“The girls have played unreal this week, and it’s just been such a privilege to be standing in the house and call the shots for them,” the team’s skipper, Anna Hasselborg, said. “I’m so proud of the journey we’ve been on and how much we have pushed the level of play and how we’re playing.”
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Olympics, Women’s Olympics
2026 The Athletic Media Company
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/winter-olympics-day-16-recap-024605988.html
Arizona Cardinals RB Corey Kiner 2026 offseason profile
onth. It officially begins on March 11, with the legal negotiating period beginning on March 9.
The Arizona Cardinals have many roster decisions to make before then.
Leading up to the new league year, we will profile every player on the roster, go over what they did last season, what their contract status is and what they face in 2026.
Next up is running back Corey Kiner.
Corey Kiner 2025 season
Kiner was signed from the Minnesota Vikings‘ practice squad at the beginning of December. He played in four games for the Cardinals, rushing for 58 yards in 12 carries, and he caught two passes for 15 yards. He also had one kickoff return for 22 yards.
He played 30 offensive snaps and six on special teams.
He was an undrafted rookie who signed orginally with the San Francisco 49ers.
Corey Kiner contract status
Kiner is under contract for 2026 with a $1.005 million salary. He will be an exclusive rights free agent in 2027, so the Cardinals will retain control if he remains with the team.
Corey Kiner offseason outlook
As a late-season addition and with a new coaching staff, he will have to prove himself. But being under contract means that he will likely get to compete all offseason.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: RB Corey Kiner’s contract status and 2026 offseason outlook
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/arizona-cardinals-rb-corey-kiner-024427562.html
Lakers player grades: L.A. gets completely outplayed by Celtics
The Los Angeles Lakers hosted the Boston Celtics on Sunday just after honoring legendary coach Pat Riley with a statue outside of Crypto.com Arena. Riley guided the Showtime Lakers past the Celtics in the NBA Finals for the first time in 1985 and once more in 1987, and the hope was that the leftover magic pixie dust from that era would rub off on this season’s iteration of the Purple and Gold.
But the 1980s ended a long time ago. Today’s Lakers are a college squad compared to those Showtime squads, and the surprising Celtics, who came in with a 36-19 record, completely dictated the pace and tone of this game.
A 12-4 run late in the second quarter allowed the Celtics to take a 60-50 halftime lead, and Los Angeles never recovered. L.A. had trouble hitting shots all day, and its offense seemed to be functioning in slow motion, while the Celtics moved the ball around with purpose. They had 29 assists compared to 18 for L.A., and L.A. shot just 39.1% from the field and 30% from 3-point range.
Guard Payton Pritchard lit up the Lakers with 30 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field and 6-of-9 from downtown, to go along with eight assists. The Lakers got outrebounded by 11, which illustrated how much more intense and aggressive Boston was.
Their 111-89 loss dropped their record to 34-22 and dropped them into sixth place in the Western Conference. They are, however, still just one game behind the third-place Denver Nuggets in the standings.
Marcus Smart: D-minus/D
Smart had four assists and no turnovers in 22 minutes, but he put up a bagel offensively. He missed all seven of his shot attempts and all five of his 3-point tries, and even though he wasn’t hitting, he kept firing from long range early in the fourth quarter until coach JJ Redick replaced him with Luke Kennard.
Deandre Ayton: D
The Lakers needed a lot more from Ayton in this game. While he grabbed a decent seven rebounds in 25 minutes, he scored just four points on 2-of-6 shooting. He allowed Neemias Queta, Boston’s starting center, to grab 12 rebounds in 26 minutes, while backup center Nikola Vučević had eight boards in 21 minutes.
Austin Reaves: D
Reaves simply couldn’t get into a good rhythm in this game. He wasn’t able to attack the basket off the dribble with regularity, and he wasn’t hitting from long range. He ended up shooting 4-of-10 overall and 1-of-4 from beyond the arc, and the only area in which he was effective offensively was getting to the free throw line, where he made six of seven attempts.
He finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block.
LeBron James: C
James made his first three shot attempts of this game, but he missed each of his next five. He missed a few shots near the rim, and he had two layup attempts blocked by Queta. He started to attack the basket more in the third quarter, but he didn’t make his usual impact on this game.
He ended up with 20 points on 9-of-21 shooting from the field and 1-of-5 from 3-point land, four rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block in 34 minutes.
Luka Doncic: C-minus
Doncic was another Lakers player who was out of rhythm in this game. The Celtics made him slow down and think while often making him play in a crowd when he got into or near the paint, much as they did during the 2024 NBA Finals when they defeated his Dallas Mavericks.
He shot 9-of-22 overall and 3-of-6 from the free throw line and was held to 25 points, five rebounds and three assists. He did manage to hit four of his seven 3-point attempts, and for all the criticism Doncic gets about his lack of defensive prowess, he actually played plenty of good defense in this game. He did a good job of staying in front of his man and displayed a relatively high level of energy and effort on that end of the floor.
Jake LaRavia: C-minus
LaRavia showed good defensive effort and energy, but he was very quiet offensively. Despite playing 24 minutes, he attempted just two shots, both of which he made. He finished with four points, three rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block.
Luke Kennard: C
While Kennard hit three of his four shot attempts and scored nine points in 22 minutes, two of his made field goals came during garbage time. He needs to be more aggressive looking for his shot, and Redick needs to involve him more in the offense.
Kennard also got three rebounds and came up with one steal.
Rui Hachimura: D
Hachimura wasn’t involved much in the offense in his sweet spots, and when he did look to get himself involved, he was off. He shot 2-of-7 overall and 1-of-4 from 3-point range, and in 21 minutes, he finished with five points and two rebounds.
Jarred Vanderbilt: B-minus
Vanderbilt showed good energy and looked to apply defensive pressure in the backcourt. He came up with five rebounds and scored three points by hitting a trey, which was the only one of his three shot attempts that he made.
However, on one play early in the game, he got his ankles broken by Pritchard when Pritchard drove, backed up, caused Vanderbilt to lose his footing and drained a 3-pointer.
Jaxson Hayes, Dalton Knecht, Maxi Kleber, Kobe Bufkin: Incomplete
Hayes played just five minutes due to an ankle ailment that kept him out for the rest of the game. He had two points and one rebound.
Knecht, Kleber and Bufkin each played the 3:22 of this game. Knecht and Kleber went scoreless, and Knecht had one rebound while Kleber had one assist. Bufkin scored on a runner from mid-range for his only statistical contribution.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers player grades: L.A. gets completely outplayed by Celtics
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/lakers-player-grades-l-gets-023824817.html
Payton Pritchard erupts as Celtics win pick up third straight win
The Boston Celtics continued their West Coast trip coming out of the All-Star break, taking on the Los Angeles Lakers on a night where Pat Riley was honored with his own statue at Crypto.com Arena. While the fanfare and ceremony had a great atmosphere around the Lakers, the Celtics controlled the game and picked up their second straight win coming out of the break.
Boston was carried by Payton Pritchard who had an explosive game off the bench, as he was one of two Celtics players, including Jaylen Brown, who had at least 30 points in the victory. The NBA’s most historic rivalry came had it all, with plenty of physicality between superstar players on both ends, and in the end, Boston made an emphatic statement.
Here’s a quick recap of the Celtics win on Sunday night:
Final score: Boston Celtics 111, Los Angeles Lakers 89
Keys to the game:
Payton Pritchard: Coming off the bench once again, Pritchard set the tone and delivered a great performance against the Lakers. Playing 38 minutes and scoring 30 points on 10-14 shooting, adding 8 assists in the game, Pritchard did whatever he wanted through out the night and Los Angeles had no answer for him all game.
Three-point shooting: Boston’s pace and tempo on offensive was one of the biggest keys coming into the game and it proved to be in their favor with the 3-point ball. Boston made 5 more 3-point shots than the Lakers did, and shot 39% from deep compared to just 30% for Los Angeles.
Rebounding: One of the biggest standout points for the Celtics over their last few games has been their dominance in the paint, particularly in rebounding. Grabbing 50 rebounds compared to LA’s 39, Boston grabbed 10 more defensive rebounds and had 9 on the glass as well.
Highlight of the game: Payton Pritchard drops Lakers defender with nasty step-back
That’s NASTY 🤢 pic.twitter.com/OWE1VU9YT1
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 23, 2026
What’s next: @ Phoenix Suns, Tuesday, February 24, 9:00PM ET
The third game of Boston’s four-game trip will be their first matchup against the Phoenix Suns this season. Phoenix is one of the tougher teams in the Western Conference, but they’re going to be without both Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks who both suffered injuries coming out of the All-Star break. Boston should be the betting favorites coming into the first of two matchups between them this year,.
This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Payton Pritchard erupts as Celtics win pick up third straight win
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/payton-pritchard-erupts-celtics-win-023511923.html
Arizona Cardinals RB Michael Carter 2026 offseason profile
The 2026 league year is coming next month. It officially begins on March 11, with the legal negotiating period beginning on March 9.
The Arizona Cardinals have many roster decisions to make before then.
Leading up to the new league year, we will profile every player on the roster, go over what they did last season, what their contract status is and what they face in 2026.
Next up is running back Michael Carter.
Michael Carter 2025 season
Carter began the season on the practice squad for the second straight season. He became part of the active roster after James Conner’s injury.
He played 13 games, starting four times, and finished the season 333 yards and a touchdown, averaging 3.6 yards per carry. He also caught 33 passes for 267 yards.
Michael Carter contract status
Carter will be an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins on March 11, barring a contract extension. He made the league minimum of $1.17 million last season.
Michael Carter offseason outlook
Just looking at his production over the last two seasons and with the coaching staff changing, one would not expect the Cardinals to want him back. He was respected by teammates in the locker room, but that was under Jonanthan Gannon and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing.
However, there is an outside shot that he could re-sign with the Cardinals because he has played for new head coach Mike LaFleur. LaFleur was the New York Jets’ offensive coordinator during Carter’s first two NFL seasons, his two most productive seasons in the league.
He had 1,654 total yards with LaFleur as his offensive coordinator. Since then, in three seasons, he has gained 1,076.
In any case, re-signed or not, he will have to compete for a spot on the roster and will have to be a longshot to make the team.
Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: Michael Carter’s contract status and 2026 offseason outlook
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/arizona-cardinals-rb-michael-carter-023301368.html
LeBron James adds another milestone to the history books in loss vs. Celtics
LeBron James adds another milestone to the history books in loss vs. Celtics originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Los Angeles Lakers returned to action Sunday evening, facing the Boston Celtics and renewing the league’s most storied rivalry.
For the Celtics, it was all Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard as the two combined for 62 points, more than half of Boston’s 111 total.
As for the Lakers, it was their usual contributors that led the way. Luka Doncic scored 25, LeBron James added 20 and Austin Reaves was the only other Laker in double-figures with 15.
With a lack of scoring support from the rest of the team, Los Angeles’ offense fell flat, scoring just 89 in what ended as a 22-point loss.
That said, during the loss, James made more history.
The contest marked his 1,600th career game played, second most in NBA history.
James trails only Boston Celtics legend, four-time NBA Champion and Hall of Fame center Robert Parish for the most appearances in league history.
James could own that record soon, as he trails Parish by 12 games for the most all-time.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Vince Carter and Dirk Nowitzki round out the top-five.
12 games from now, the Lakers will be on the road against the Houston Rockets Mar. 16, assuming James doesn’t miss any games from now until then.
As far as minutes played is concerned, James already holds that record, ahead of Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett.
Los Angeles will have the next two days off before facing the Orlando Magic Tuesday. Road matchups against the Suns and Warriors follow soon after.
More NBA news:
Jordan Ott talks Devin Booker’s injury following loss vs. SpursVJ Edgecombe vows to be better after six-turnover performance in loss to HawksKon Knueppel reveals Larry Bird-like mindsetLonzo Ball calls himself the ‘scapegoat’ following trade from CavaliersSpurs’ Mason Plumlee deal foreshadows another move to comeGiannis Antetokounmpo praises Kon Knueppel: ‘One of the smartest rookies I’ve ever seen’
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/lebron-james-adds-another-milestone-023047531.html
Shakur Accepts Garcia’s Challenge…Under Two Conditions
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – FEBRUARY 21: Ryan Garcia poses for a photo after his unanimous decision victory over Mario Barrios duing the WBC Welterweight Title Fight at T-Mobile Arena on February 21, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Ryan Garcia achieved a huge milestone in his boxing career last night (Sat., Feb, 21, 2026) by defeating Mario Barrios via a lopsided unanimous decision to claim the WBC Welterweight championship (see it again here).
Shortly after his big win, Garcia called for a fight against current WBO and The Ring Junior Welterweight, Shakur Stevenson, who is fresh off a big win over Teofimo Lopez earlier this year (see it again here).
“You know who I want,” Garcia said to Ring Magazine. “He’s right there. Shakur Stevenson, let’s go. Let’s run that shit. I want to be a great champion, and I’m not scared of shit,” he said. “I fought Devin Haney, I’ll fight Shakur Stevenson… let’s fucking go!”
During the DAZN broadcast, Stevenson was asked about moving up to 147 pounds to fight the newly-crowned champion. And while he was open to the idea, he does have a couple of stipulations in place before the fight actually gets made including weight and drug testing.
“We’re gonna meet in the middle,” Stevenson said. “Two big stars; big fight; we don’t need a belt for the fight.”
Garcia moved up from 140 pounds to face Barrios at the 147-pound weight class. As for Stevenson, he moved up from 134 to 14- to face Lopez, so once can see how it wouldn’t take too much of a compromise for either man to find common ground.
Another, perhaps more important, stipulation that Stevenson has before a fight between the two goes down is they involvement of VADA when it comes to drug—testing.
“Was VADA involved in this fight? Because I seen against Rolly and he didn’t look like that. If he’s fighting me next, I’m all for the challenge but VADA will be involved.”
Of course, it’s an obvious dig at Garcia’s fumbled drug test for his fight against Devin Haney, which ultimately resulted in officials overturning the bout to a No Contest. In his comeback fight he lost to Rolly Romero before returning to the win column against Barrios.
For the record, VADA did conduct the drug-testing program for the Garica vs. Barrios title fight.
Garcia and Stevenson did compete against one another in the amateurs back in 2013 which ultimately saw Stevenson win the fight on the judges scorecards in what were the semi-finals of the 2013 U.S. Junior National Selection Tournament.
Anyone think it would go any different at the professional level?
For the latest boxing-related news and notes click here.
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/shakur-accepts-garcia-challenge-under-023000171.html
Joan Laporta takes aim at Barcelona presidential rivals – “We cannot let this club…”
Joan Laporta takes aim at Barcelona presidential rivals – “We cannot let this club…”
Barcelona election season is in full swing, with the countdown ongoing to the presidential vote next month. Joan Laporta is the overwhelming favourite to be re-elected, and right now, he is in the process of staking his claim to return to office.
On Saturday, Laporta was out-and-about in Barcelona, as he continued his campaign run. He made a speech at the Port Sitges Resort Hotel, and as per MD, he spoke during this on how he had helped stabilise the Catalan club’s financial woes.
“The club is objectively and indisputably better than five years ago, thanks to a management that has allowed the entity to save itself from a limit economic situation, recover its institutional credibility and put it back in the front line. Good management is not the result of chance, but of constant work, courageous decisions and the commitment of a management and executive team that has placed the shield above any other interest.”
Image via David Ramos/Getty Images
Laporta: Barcelona cannot fall into inexperienced hands
Laporta made it clear that he believes voters should back him because of his experience of running the club, as he aimed a small dig at the candidates also in the running to become Barcelona’s next president.
“The club does not it must fall into inexperienced hands. Institutional stability must be reaffirmed, social and economic, culminating the project of the new Spotify Camp Nou, consolidating a modern, professional and high-level governance model, maintain the sporting ambition in all sections, guarantee the ownership model of members and continue to defend the essence of the Club and the commitment with democracy, freedom and the Catalan language and culture.”
It has been two weeks since Laporta handed in his resignation, as per Barcelona rules for the election process. He is confident of being re-elected, and right now, it is clear to see why, given how popular he has been with the club’s members and supporters.
https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/joan-laporta-takes-aim-barcelona-023000295.html
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