Category: 6. Sports

USADA announced today that an independent arbitrator has rendered a decision in the case of track and field athlete Shadrack Biwott of Folsom, Calif. After an evidentiary hearing on May 7, 2025, where both Biwott and USADA were provided a full opportunity to present their cases and witnesses to the independent arbitrator, the arbitrator determined that Biwott, 40, will receive a four-year sanction as the result of a positive test for erythropoietin (EPO) during an out-of-competition drug test on January 25, 2024. The arbitrator agreed to delay the hearing while Biwott remained provisionally suspended so that he could investigate the source of his positive test.

“EPO use remains a popular method for those looking to cheat, as we have seen by several recent cases,” said USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart. “It’s so important to conduct strategic special analysis and blood testing to catch doping and protect clean athletes’ right to a fair playing field.”

EPO is a non–Specified Substance in the class of Peptide Hormones, Growth Factors, Related Substances, and Mimetics. It is prohibited at all times under the USADA Protocol for Olympic and Paralympic Movement Testing, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee National Anti-Doping Policies, and the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules, all of which have adopted the World Anti-Doping Code and the World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List.

Biwott’s four-year period of ineligibility began on February 23, 2024, the date he was provisionally suspended. In addition, Biwott has been disqualified from any competitive results on and after January 25, 2024, the date of his positive test, including forfeiture of any medals, points, and prizes.

The decision, as well as all other arbitral decisions, can be found here.

In an effort to aid athletes, as well as support team members such as parents, coaches, and medical professionals in understanding the rules applicable to them, USADA provides comprehensive instruction on its website on the testing process and prohibited substances, how to file and update athlete Whereabouts, how to obtain permission to use a necessary medication, and the risks and dangers of taking supplements, as well as performance-enhancing and recreational drugs.

In addition, USADA manages a drug reference hotline, Global Drug Reference Online (GlobalDRO.com), conducts educational sessions with National Governing Bodies and their athletes, and distributes a multitude of educational materials, such as a supplement guide, a nutrition guide, a clean sport handbook, and periodic alerts and advisories.

USADA makes available a number of ways to report the abuse of performance-enhancing drugs in sport in an effort to protect clean athletes and promote clean competition. Any tip can be reported using the USADA Play Clean Tip Center, by text at 87232 (“USADA”), by email at playclean@USADA.org, by phone at 1-877-Play Clean (1-877-752-9253) or by mail.

USADA is responsible for the testing and results management process for athletes in the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movement and is equally dedicated to preserving the integrity of sport through research initiatives and educational programs.

---

For more information or media inquiries, email media@usada.org.

 

With over 5,000 players in NBA history, at least one player was born on every day of the calendar year – including three leap day ballers. Our day-by-day breakdown of the players born on each day of the year continues.

Below are the most notable NBA players born on March 23. 

---

Kyrie Irving (1992)

Kyrie Irving is widely regarded as one of the best ball-handlers of all time, but that doesn’t do this All-Star justice. Irving was the first overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers after a short collegiate career at Duke University. He immediately lived up to the billing, taking down Rookie of the Year in that debut campaign. Irving followed that up with his first of nine All-Star appearances in his sophomore season and took down All-Star MVP in 2014. His biggest accomplishment was in 2016 when Irving helped LeBron James win a title for Cleveland.

Irving left to play with the Boston Celtics a year later and has spent time with the Brooklyn Nets and Dallas Mavericks since then. Irving has made three All-NBA teams throughout his 14-year career, averaging 23.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

---

Moses Malone (1955)

Nicknamed the “Chairman of the Boards” for his rebounding prowess, Malone averaged 20.6 points and 12.2 rebound per game over 19 NBA seasons. It all started when he joined the ABA in 1974, but he didn’t fully harness his powers until he joined the NBA two years later.

Malone won Kia MVP three times over the next decade (1978, 1982, 1983) and led the league in rebounding six times in a seven-year span. Most of that damage was done when he played for the Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers, but he also spent time with the Washington Bullets, Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks and San Antonio Spurs.

Malone made 13 All-Star appearances in total and won Finals MVP when he helped the Sixers win a title in 1983. He closed his 21-year career in 1995, averaging 20.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 blocks per game. Moses ranks 11th all-time in points scored and is third all-time with over 17,000 rebounds, which earned him a Hall of Fame induction in 2001.

---

Jason Kidd (1973)

There aren’t many dates that have three superstars with the same birthday, but that’s what we have on March 23. Kidd caps off the highlight players, establishing himself as one of the best point guards in NBA history. Kidd was selected second overall in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks, winning Rookie of the Year that season. He followed that up with his first of 10 All-Star appearances the next year before joining the Phoenix Suns in his third year. That’s when Kidd became a superstar, leading the league in assists in three of his five seasons with the Suns. 

A trade to the New Jersey Nets didn’t slow Kidd down, making three more All-Star appearances and leading the league in assists twice more. He closed his career by rejoining the Mavs for five seasons before retiring with the New York Knicks in 2013. Kidd received MVP votes eight times throughout his career while making six All-NBA teams as well. Kidd also made nine All-Defensive teams and won a title with the Mavericks in 2011. That earned Kidd a Hall of Fame induction in 2018, ranking third in NBA history in assists and steals. Throughout his 19-year career, Kidd averaged 12.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 8.7 assists and 1.9 steals per game.

---

Want to see every NBA player born on March 23? Here is the rest of the list in chronological order:

• Mickey Rottner (1919)
• Norm Mager (1926)
• Paul Walther (1927)
• Mel Peterson (1938)
• Rick Kelley (1953)
• Jeff Judkins (1956)
• Charles Pittman (1958)
• Michael Anderson (1966)
• David Vaughn (1973)
• Eric Washington (1974)
• Joseph Forte (1981)
• Gordon Hayward (1990)
• Facundo Campazzo (1991)
• Quinn Cook (1993)
• Trevor Hudgins (1999)

RIGA (Latvia) – The majority of the 8,151 fans in Arena Riga were signing their hearts out for Estonia, but Serbia had no mercy, opening their account in Riga with a 98-64 win.

Serbia flirted with the all-time FIBA EuroBasket assists record, dishing out 32 of them, but the previous mark of 33 still stands, set by none other than Svetislav Pesic’s Yugoslavia, against none other than Estonia, back in 2001.

Turning Point

The moment Maik-Kalev Kotsar got injured this summer. It was always going to be an uphill battle for Estonia against the size of Serbia, but without their star center, they were no match for Nikola Jokic and his compatriots.

Serbia opened up a 32-12 lead in the first quarter, and made it a one-way street from start to finish.

TCL Player of the Game

It could’ve been anyone, but Nikola Jovic had 18 points and 6 assists in just 16 minutes of work, giving Serbia that much needed energy to start the game on the right note.

Stats Don’t Lie

Serbia won every single category in the boxscore, but when they are moving the ball like this, it’s a joy to watch. It was the 14th time a team dished out 30+ assists in a EuroBasket game since FIBA began tracking the stat in 1995.

Bottom Line

Serbia took care of business, getting their largest win ever in a FIBA EuroBasket game (+34), while Nikola Jokic showed us once again why people consider him the best player in the world, getting 11 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists, barely breaking a sweat.

Estonia got 11 points from Henri Drell, but the real story are their fans, travelling in thousands from the homeland, rocking the house in Riga.

Serbia were a mountain to big to climb, but with this support from the stands, Estonia could shake things up in the upcoming games.

They Said

For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!

FIBA

The doubles team of time and biology is, of course, undefeated. But they don’t win at a consistent pace. Venus Williams can look aged as a 40-year-old and then spry as a 45-year-old—as she did in her three-set loss to Karolína Muchová in the first round at the U.S. Open on Monday night. Now it’s Novak Djokovic’s turn to roll back time.

In search of his 25th career major singles title—pretty much his sole motivator right now, as he concedes—Djokovic did not play a match between Wimbledon and his first rounder at the U.S. Open on Sunday night. When he took the court against California’s Lerner Tien, a player precisely half his age, Djokovic looked more like a man nearing 40 who hadn’t played in six weeks than a legitimate contender. Compounded by a gnarly foot blister, he looked a half-step slow and a few kilos heavier than usual, and twigged together a straight-set win. 

But the operative word is “win.” This is a survive-and-advance business. In his second-round match, Djokovic faced another young American in 22-year-old Zachary Svajda. The 38-year-old once again looked sluggish in the opening set, before shaking off his slow start and claiming the following three sets, and the match, gutting out the win.

Novak Djokovic steadies the ship and sails into R3! pic.twitter.com/34LgoEpMBi

— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 27, 2025

Water bottle half full: Djokovic got the opportunity to shake off the tennis equivalent of ring rust and play himself into this tournament—a tournament he has won four times. He now finds himself with an extra day of rest and into the Round of 32, having pushed aside time and biology once again.

More Tennis on Sports Illustrated

TAMPERE (Finland) – Hosts Finland were made to work hard, but eventually got over the line to beat Sweden 93-90 in front of 11,865 fans in Tampere.

They had the star power of Lauri Markkanen with a team-high 28 points, but also a pivotal contribution from 18-year-old Miikka Muurinen down the stretch as the game went down to the wire.

Turning Point

Both teams matched each other, blow for blow and bucket for bucket, in a fiercely intense battle. Sweden edged ahead at 75-72 in the fourth, but Finland responded, thanks to consecutive scores from teenager Muurinen.

Pelle Larsson would narrow the gap to 83-81 with 3:44 remaining, but a triple from the wing by Mikael Jantunen in the next possession handed the hosts an 86-81 advantage. However, Sweden, led by the evergreen Ludwig Hakanson, retook the lead before Finland made sure they sank their all-important free throws at the most critical of times.

TCL Player of the Game

When Finland needed their star man, he delivered. Lauri Markkanen scored the majority of his first-half points at the free-throw line, as Sweden made life as difficult as they could.

Then an emphatic dunk to start the third gave his nation the needed boost, and despite more pressure from their neighbors in yellow, Markkanen helped Finland through the storm to lead all scorers with 28 points.

Edon Maxhuni added 15 points for the victors in what was a physical first test with Sasu Salin adding 11 points to 7 assists. Ludvig Hakanson led Sweden with 28 points including six triples.

Stats Don’t Lie

In a pulsating encounter that featured 20 lead changes, the most significant lead of the game was eight points, which Finland established in the first quarter, leading 21-13 with two minutes to play.

Despite Sweden shooting the ball better than their counterparts at an impressive 63 percent, they were let down by their free throw shooting with eight misses from 17 attempts.

Bottom Line

The hosts passed their first test on home court. They will face off against Great Britain on Friday, looking to improve to 2-0 against a spirited GB side that is looking to bounce back. Sweden’s next test will come against the world champions, Germany, who dominated their opener against Montenegro.

They Said

For more quotes, tune in to the official post-game press conference!

FIBA

By Ryder Cup Digital On August 27, 2025 19:21 UTC

“I want you on this Ryder Cup Team.”

Sam Burns received the call every golfer dreams of. On the other end of the line was U.S. Ryder Cup Captain Keegan Bradley, delivering the news that Burns had officially earned his place on the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup Team.

Burns was one of Bradley’s six Captain’s Picks that rounded out the 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup Team that will travel to Bethpage Black Sept. 26-28. Burns will compete alongside Scottie Scheffler, J.J. Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English, Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Ben Griffin, Cameron Young and Patrick Cantlay.

Check out the moment Bradley shared the amazing news with Burns.

On the day of the EFL Cup match, Everton’s social media channels including the fan services account, external on X were inundated with supporters complaining about apparent ticketing issues.

The move to the new stadium from Goodison Park has seen physical tickets replaced by a digital app, but some fans said they had not received their match tickets into their wallet by Wednesday afternoon.

In a statement, the club said the match was delayed “to ensure all supporters have safe access into Hill Dickinson Stadium in time for kick-off”.

Club sources told BBC Sport both home and away supporters were affected in trying to get access into the stadium, though the problems were not related to the digital tickets on the app.

The small number that did have issues were able to have them resolved at the box office before making their way to the turnstiles, where extensive queues seemed to have formed.

EuroBasket tipped off on Wednesday with games across the continent, but being at home did not help Latvia in its opener, as it fell to Turkiye 93-73.

It wasn’t a good day for the Hawks’ Kristaps Porzingis, who shot 3-of-12 from the floor and ended up in a poster at the hands of Sehmus Hazer.

Hazer plays for Turkish power Anadolu Efes and played three games at the 2021 NBA Summer League for the Cavaliers.

Alperen Sungun had an impressive opening game with 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, leading a Turkiye team that looked like a real threat in this tournament.

NBA veteran Cedi Osman, who now plays for Panathinaikos in Greece, led Turkiye with 20 points, while former Maverick, Knick, Net and Celtic Shane Larkin added 15. The simple difference in this game: Turkiye shot 60% from the floor while Latvia shot 38.7%.

On her return to Flushing Meadows this year, significant tension and nerves followed Emma Raducanu as she attempted to finally secure her first win since her triumph here four years ago. Two matches in, she has shown that she has never been more ready for the challenges to come.

Raducanu continued to demonstrate the fruits of her recent labour by putting together another devastating performance, demolishing the qualifier Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-1 to return to the third round of the US Open.

The challenge for Raducanu on Wednesday was figuring out a talented but unheralded opponent whom few players in the tournament have had the opportunity to watch, let alone face in a match.

Once again, the British No 1 showed that she is playing her best tennis since winning the title here in 2021 here and that confidence is growing with every victory. Another dominant showing on Louis Armstrong Stadium was spearheaded by a supreme serving performance, which allowed her to step inside the baseline and dominate until the end.

“I’m particularly happy, because I felt like my opponent was playing really good tennis,” Raducanu said. “I thought that she was very dangerous and any ball that I put midcourt was going to be punished. So I’m very pleased with how I kept dictating the points, I kept dictating the play, and didn’t let her too often get her front foot on the court. She’s obviously been playing very well, done a lot of winning, and took out Veronika [Kudermetova] in the first round. I was on full alert playing today.”

This was a tricky challenge against an opponent whose ranking belies her form and quality. Despite being just six months older than Raducanu, the 23-year-old Tjen turned professional only last June after opting to take the US college route. Starting from the lowest rung of the ITF circuit, and receiving no wildcards, Tjen had compiled a 95-10 record over the past 15 months. From being unranked last June, she now stands at No 149.

Tjen’s playing style bears more than a passing resemblance to one of the most distinctive champions of the 21st century: Ash Barty. She similarly pairs a potent, spinny forehand with a nasty, varied backhand slice and a willingness for pushing forward to the net. She played a brilliant opening‑round match to topple the 24th seed Kudermetova, which made her the first Indonesian player to win a grand slam main‑draw match in 22 years.

Much like in her opening-round win against Ena Shibahara, however, Raducanu burst into the match producing a high level from the beginning. She served almost flawlessly, ending the set with 76% of first serves in, winning 84% of those first-serve points and firing down five aces in her four service games.

“I thought that I served very well and I put quite a few aces on the board,” Raducanu said. “It always helps me when I’m serving well. It just kind of seeps into the rest of my game.”

Raducanu’s confidence behind her serve imbued her with the freedom to swing more freely on her groundstrokes. She put the excellent Tjen backhand slice under relentless pressure throughout the set with her cross‑court backhand, striking the ball early and cleanly as she repeatedly pinned the Indonesian in her backhand corner.

The straightforward opening set further inspired the most proactive version of Raducanu, who forced herself even further inside the baseline, taking bigger cuts of the ball earlier in the point. She smothered Tjen, who has no experience of competing against an opponent playing at such a high level and pace.

In recent months, Raducanu has stressed the importance of improving the quality of her shotmaking in order to play more matches on her own terms. Although she has established a level of consistency, she felt she was relying too heavily on her court sense and fighting spirit rather than the quality of her ball-striking. Raducanu’s serving, the cleanliness of her groundstrokes and the way she bullied a lower-ranked opponent from on top of the baseline from start to finish showed that she continues to make progress.

After two emphatic wins against two qualifiers, the third round will likely provide a far greater measure of Raducanu’s level. She awaits the winner of the second round match between Elena Rybakina, the ninth seed and 2022 Wimbledon champion, and another qualifier in Tereza Valentova.

Sports

Roneil Walcott

11 Hrs Ago

REIGNING Caribbean Premier League (CPL) champs St Lucia Kings came to the party on home soil on August 26 when they got a four-wicket victory over Guyana Amazon Warriors in a high-scoring affair at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Beausejour, St Lucia.

In what was a meeting between last year’s finalists, the Kings put on a royal display as a classy innings of 73 off 35 balls by young talent Ackeem Auguste saw the hosts chase down Guyana’s 203-run target with 11 balls to spare.

Towards the end of the first innings, it appeared as though the Amazon Warriors had seized all the momentum as a punishing innings from Romario Shepherd (73 not out off 34) saw them score 107 runs off the last six overs to end on 202 for six. The carnage started in the 15th over as Shepherd hit seamer Oshane Thomas (one for 63) for three sixes in an over which also had three no-balls and cost the Kings 33 runs. Keon Gaston (two for 57) also came in for rough treatment at the death as he bowled six wides in the 17th over, which went for a whopping 27 runs.

With their team stuttering at 78 for five at one stage, Shepherd and Iftikhar Ahmed (33 off 27) gave the innings much-needed impetus with their 102-run partnership for the sixth wicket.

At the halfway stage, Shepherd said he felt a score of 200 was par on the batting surface.

In their response, the Kings proved that statement to be true as the 21-year-old Auguste and New Zealand’s Tim Seifert (37 off 24) took their team to a splendid 86 for one at the end of the power play after the loss of Johnson Charles (13) in the second over. Auguste made his intentions clear when he hit Warriors captain Imran Tahir (one for 46) for a six and three successive fours to end the power play.

Auguste didn’t let up there as he brought up his fifty off just 19 balls and continued to dominate the 87-run stand with Seifert. The Kiwi batsman was dismissed by Tahir in the tenth over as the Kings still had work to do, needing 92 off the last ten overs.

New batsman Roston Chase (12) was the next man to be dismissed, while Auguste followed soon after as the Kings still required 63 off the last 44 balls. The-in form Tim David (25 off 12) wasted no time as he cracked two fours and a six in his cameo, with Aaron Jones chipping in with 16 off 12 as the St Lucian franchise cruised to 203 for six to get their second win of the season.

Jediah Blades and Gudakesh Motie led the Warriors attack with two wickets apiece.

Summarised Scores:

GUYANA AMAZON WARRIORS: 202/6 from 20 overs (Romario Shepherd 73 not out, Iftikhar Ahmed 33, Ben McDermott 30; Keon Gaston 2/57, David Wiese 1/30) vs ST LUCIA KINGS: 203/6 from 18.1 overs (Ackeem Auguste 73, Tim Seifert 37, Tim David 25; Gudakesh Motie 2/32, Jediah Blades 2/35). Kings won by four wickets.