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Mike Tyson has resumed training and is expected to return to the boxing gym at the end of the month, his agent told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday.

The former heavyweight champion had been recuperating from an ulcer flareup that postponed his fight with Jake Paul to Nov. 15 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Tyson, 58, has been doing resistance training and cardio work for the past couple of weeks, said Andrew Ruf, Tyson’s agent. He said Tyson, who suffered the ulcer flareup on May 26, has been under the care of Danny Issa, a gastroenterologist at UCLA.

“Everything is on track,’’ Ruf said. “His doctor over at UCLA, they’ve been monitoring him really closely. They’re super happy with the progress. Everything is kind of full track to get back in there end of July and get working.

“I’ve been told that everything is completely on track and he is on pace to have no limitations at all. His physicians, Dr. Issa in particular, don’t believe there’ll be any limitations at all.’’

Tyson, 58, and Paul, 27, were originally scheduled to fight Saturday. Instead Paul will fight Mike Perry, a former MMA fighter who more recently has thrived as a bareknuckle fighter.

It’s unclear how Paul losing to Perry would affect his fight against Tyson. But Ruf said the decision to fight Perry was made by Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, Paul’s manager, and Tyson supports it.

“Look, everyone is very interested,’’ Ruf said. “And certainly there were a lot of conversations and this was Jake’s and Nakisa’s decision and Mike supports it 100 percent and we’ll see how it plays out. We’ll be watching very intently.’’

Tyson has been training in Las Vegas, where he has a home, and in France, where his daughter Milan has been playing tennis, according to Ruf.

The goal during his more than a month off was to be healthy enough to resume training at full strength.

“So really right now it’s been a focus on getting him back in shape to go do that, which he is,’’ Ruf said. ‘Health comes first and that’s something that his physicians were very focused on and making sure that he’s in the best position to come back completely 100 percent ready to go. And so that first moment that was the focus was on our camp, to make sure that he would be healthy and ready to go for Jake Paul.’’

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LONDON − More than two-thirds of Russian athletes and over a third of Belarusians expected to compete at the Paris Olympics have violated the International Olympic Committee’s neutrality rules by supporting Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine or by working for the Russian military or intelligence services, according to a new report.

‘It’s unconscionable from a moral perspective to expect a Ukrainian athlete to stand on a world stage next to another athlete who supports the violent commission of crimes against them,’ said Jeremy Pizzi of human rights law organization Global Rights Compliance, which released the report.

Pizzi said Russia has killed at least 450 Ukrainian athletes since its 2022 invasion, including some former Olympians.

As part of an international campaign to isolate Russia and its ally Belarus, athletes from those countries are only permitted to take part in the Olympics as independent, neutral competitors. They can’t use their country’s flag, colors or anthems. The IOC also vets athletes to make sure they don’t actively support Russia’s invasion or have connections to Moscow’s armed forces or intelligence services. No Russian or Belarusian state officials have been invited to the Games.

Meet Team USA: See which athletes made the U.S. Olympic team and where they are from

But GRC’s dossier, released Wednesday evening, said that, despite these apparent safeguards, 17 of the 31 Russian and Belarusian athletes who have accepted invitations to compete in Paris don’t meet the IOC’s so-called Principles of Participation.

Those rules were established in 2023 after Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine. They prohibit Olympic athletes from supporting the war, including in the media and on social media, or from being contracted to the Russian and Belarusian military or security agencies.

GRC found that 10 − 67% − of the Russian and 7 − 44% − of the Belarusian Paris-bound athletes should be ineligible to compete under IOC rules.

Among them were a Russian cyclist who violated neutrality rules by ‘liking’ a number of pro-war posts on social media, including posts questioning Ukraine’s right to exist and posts supporting the annexation of Donetsk and Luhansk, two eastern Ukrainian territories held by Russia.

A Russian tennis player, GRC found, broke the IOC’s rules by ‘liking’ posts about the ‘military feats’ of Russian soldiers killing Ukrainians, as well as posts displaying the pro-war “Z” symbol.

At least two Belarusian athletes who will compete in Paris serve in that country’s armed forces, according to GRC, which relied primarily on open-source information for its investigation.

‘We cannot comment on individual cases and the decisions of the independent review panel,’ an IOC spokesman said in a statement to USA TODAY. ‘It has reviewed all the athletes in accordance with the IOC Executive Board decision and the principles for participation for individual neutral athletes in the Olympic Games Paris 2024.’

‘Beyond that, we have nothing further to add.”

A representative from the Russian National Olympic Committee, which has been suspended by the IOC since 2020, did not immediately return a request for comment. Belarusian athletes were similarly banned from competing in Paris, unless as neutrals, because Belarus has allowed Russia to use its territory to carry out attacks on Ukraine. A representative from Belarus’ National Olympic Committee also did not return a request for comment.

Pizzi said GRC has repeatedly shared its evidence with the IOC but that the Olympic body had so far refused to act on it.

‘The IOC consistently proclaims that its guiding principles are peace, solidarity and human dignity − and these aren’t just words I’m taking out of nowhere. They are in the IOC charter.’ IOC chief Thomas Bach ‘says them all the time,’ he added.

A recent report in the Moscow Times said that for the first time in 40 years Russian television may not broadcast the Olympics because of the near-total absence of Russian athletes.

Some 330 Russians and 104 Belarusians competed at the last Summer Olympics, in Tokyo in 2020. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine occurred just a few days after the Winter Olympics in Beijing wrapped up in late February 2022.

In March of that year, because of Russia’s unprovoked Ukraine invasion, 71 athletes from Russia and 12 from Belarus were re-classed as neutral athletes at the Paralympics Games, which also took place in Beijing.

In January 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy objected to the inclusion of any Russian athletes in Paris. ‘We know how often tyrannies try to use sports for their ideological interests. It is obvious that any neutral flag of Russian athletes is stained with blood,’ he wrote on social media.

Zelenskyy invited Bach to visit Bakhmut, then the sight of intense fighting that cost tens of thousands of lives, ‘So that he could see with his own eyes that neutrality does not exist.’

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Texas entered the nation’s fiercest, richest, deepest and most boastful conference like a steer in a china shop.

“We’re not just coming to compete. We’re coming to win,” Texas school president Jay Hartzell said on the eve of the Longhorns’ entrance into the SEC.

You thought the SEC had some kind of ego? You haven’t seen the SEC with Texas yet.

“We believe the SEC is where we belong,” Texas board of regents chairman Kevin Eltife said recently.

I believe he’s right.

The SEC enjoys football, money and stroking its ego. So does Texas.

These birds of a feather are finally flocking together.

Some have suggested the SEC will rein in Texas’ ego. I disagree. The SEC will give Texas’ ego room to breathe. Think Dennis Rodman with the 1990s Bulls. Never did Rodman’s ego find a more accommodating home.

SEC sure seems giddy to have Texas Longhorns

The SEC bent over backward to welcome the Longhorns. Not even the queen receives a reception like this.

On July 1, the SEC’s league office tweeted an official welcome to Texas before posting a welcome to Oklahoma. The SEC Network posted up in Austin for a live broadcast before broadcasting from Norman the next day.

Can you tell who’s playing second fiddle?

The SEC also chose Dallas as host for the conference’s media days, marking the first time the event has ever been hosted west of Birmingham.

As excited as the SEC is to have added blue-blooded Oklahoma, I sense that it’s especially thrilled to have nabbed Texas. Why? Well, Texas oozes revenue. It’s one of college athletics’ richest brands.

But, also, maybe the SEC realizes Texas is poised to become one of the biggest, baddest, boldest programs in this big, bad, bold conference.

Nick Saban endorses Texas football

Even the GOAT respects the Horns.

Nick Saban used to command the Wednesday spotlight during media days. Now, Saban occupies the SEC Network set, and he praised the Longhorns prior to their turn on stage Wednesday.

Saban questioned how the interior of Texas’ defense will hold up after it lost some important pieces from a unit that ranked 15th nationally for scoring defense last year. Otherwise, Saban approves of Sarkisian’s roster.

‘I really like Texas,’ Saban said.

Apparently, Alabama retained Saban on the payroll to feed Texas rat poison.

And what of Texas’ influence off the field? Texas wielded the biggest stick at the Big 12’s decision-making table. Saban suggested that stick won’t carry as much thwack inside the SEC’s board room.

“They’re not going to run the SEC,” he said. “There’s a whole lot of arrogant people in a lot of places in the SEC, so they can forget all about that.”

Hmm, we’ll see about that. I expect Texas’ clout will remain mighty.

As for Texas’ football team, Saban thinks they’ll get on fine in their new digs.

“They’ll be a good team and a great program,” Saban said, “and Sark will do a great job.”

And Texas will become the SEC’s best addition ever.

Texas played a role in the Southwest Conference’s demise. Its overbearing grip on the Big 12 contributed to that conference’s yearslong distrust and dysfunction.

In the SEC, though, Texas’ bravado won’t be out of place. The Longhorns found a conference that will embrace their ample ego.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s SEC Columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

ARLINGTON, Texas – Mason Miller and Garrett Crochet throw the baseball harder than almost anyone on the planet, play for two of the worst teams who compete at the game’s highest level and still are years away from determining their fate through free agency.

It is an odd and almost unprecedented place to be, a walking Statcast phenomenon and trade rumor all at once.

Yet when you play for the 37-61, Sacramento-to-Vegas-bound Oakland Athletics and average 100.9 mph on your fastball while converting 15 of 17 save chances, you’re going to draw significant interest – and Miller most certainly has.

And when your first full season as a starting pitcher results in a major league-leading 150 strikeouts before the All-Star break, like Crochet, the fact your Chicago White Sox are off to a historically bad 27-71 start means he can figuratively pack his bags for Midway.

Never mind that Miller entered this season with less than a year of service time and will have five full seasons before free agency. Or that Crochet faces an unknown second half of usage and innings limit questions, and the White Sox control his rights for two seasons beyond this one.

Follow every MLB game: Latest MLB scores, stats, schedules and standings.

They are that good, and their teams that bad, that their otherworldly talents might be best served to triage two organizations bleeding out at all levels.

This week, Miller and Crochet shared a locker room as first-time American League All-Stars who share a similar tool: Compartmentalization.

Best to tune out the uncertainty and know that, deep down, it’s good to be wanted. Even if it means a change of address.

‘It’s not something I necessarily expected, just with my age,’ says Crochet, a 25-year-old like Miller. ‘At the same time, it’s a testament to the season that I’m having. When you’re having a season like this, maybe the potential returns outweigh what you’re receiving right now.

‘I don’t know. I’m not the guy to make that call. But I think it’s a huge compliment that the value I provide to my team right now, someone else wants.’

Crochet’s season has surprised himself and the White Sox; he lobbied general manager Chris Getz to join the rotation after spending the 2020-21 seasons as a reliever before April 2022 Tommy John surgery shelved him until this year.

Going back to the bullpen was on the table. So too was a trip to the minor leagues, he acknowledged, to get his starter legs back underneath him.

But Crochet won the job and soon blew away hitters, leading the majors in strikeouts, strikeouts per nine innings (12.6) and the AL in fielding independent pitching. And his 20 starts are more than any major leaguer, a surprise given his return from Tommy John.

The White Sox are already putting him on a diet; he pitched just two innings in his last start, and his 107 1/3 innings pitched are nearly double his career high of 54 ⅓ in 2021.

‘Would it be skipping a start, or would it be shortening starts to stay on the five-day routine? I expressed my belief that the five-day routine would make more sense getting through the year on a normal starter schedule,’ says Crochet.

‘Every time I get an out at this point, it’s a new career high. I don’t really want to put a ceiling on it.’

That adds a certain element of buyer beware for potential trade partners, but Crochet’s dominance could be deployed in a number of manners for a contending team: Short, dominant bursts of two or three innings or sporadic conventional starts to keep him viable for the stretch drive.

Miller, strangely, is in a similar yet opposite boat. A starter when he debuted in 2023, Miller suffered an elbow scare that compelled the A’s to move him to the bullpen. The A’s acknowledge Miller may eventually have a future as a starter.

But for now, he is among the game’s greatest relievers – a far better asset for a contending team than one in limbo until at least 2028, when the A’s hope to open a stadium in Las Vegas.

Miller usually toils before crowds of less than 10,000 in Oakland. Tuesday night, a capacity crowd at Globe Life Field and an international television audience was treated to his record-setting heat.

He admits breaking Aroldis Chapman’s All-Star Game velocity record of 103.5 mph was “a loose goal,” and mission accomplished: Miller hit 103.6 on a fastball to Trea Turner in the fifth inning.

It was a tour de force: Miller struck out Shohei Ohtani on four pitches, two of them 100-plus fastballs looking and then getting a weak swing on his wipeout backfoot slider.

Miller was the winning pitcher in the AL’s 5-3 win, also punching out Turner in his clean fifth.

‘To do it on this stage, in front of this crowd, against these talented players, is something I’ll have forever,’ he said in the victorious AL clubhouse.

His season-long sample suggests unparalleled dominance, ranking in the 100th percentile in fastball velocity (100.1 mph), chase (38.1%), expected batting average (.128) and strikeout percentage (46.7%).

Those numbers play particularly well in October. For now, they are the shiny hood ornament on a broken-down organization playing its final season in Oakland’s Coliseum.

‘None of it is anything I can control. I try to stay away from it as much as I can,’ says Miller of trade rumors and conjecture. ‘But family and friends are like, this is what’s new. This is the news. The online stuff that really doesn’t hold much water.

‘At the end of the day I don’t have a say in it all. That portion of it’s easy for me to dissociate with and say, I don’t have a dog in that fight and whatever will be, will be. I’m happy being with the guys I’m with and honored to be here representing them and excited to work with them in the second half.’

The A’s have carefully monitored his usage, not pitching him in back-to-back games until his ninth appearance and just three times overall. He’s come out of it wonderfully, his 33 appearances putting him on a similar pace as late-inning peers and his 70 strikeouts in 39 ⅔ innings worth salivating over.

‘The training wheels are off. He can go back-to-back. We’ve used him aggressively the past couple weeks. He’s being used as normal now,’ says A’s manager Mark Kotsay, a member of the the AL All-Star staff. ‘We’re just trying to get him to the finish line completely healthy and 60-plus appearances would be amazing.’

Preferably, from Kotsay’s perspective, on behalf of Oakland’s Athletics.

‘From Mason’s standpoint,’ he says, ‘the success he’s had in the role, the measurables and the data align with the desire that teams in need of a pitcher on the back end would absolutely pursue him.

‘But at the same point, we also know the value of having him. It provides for our club the stability on the back end. It comes with a high probability of winning baseball games and that’s important to us as well.’

Miller’s organization can’t help but look at the big picture. Their Las Vegas move, commissioner Rob Manfred says Wednesday, remains on track even as owner John Fisher continues lining up financing to pay for their new stadium.

From 2025-28, a minor-league park in Sacramento will be home, despite the scorching summer temperatures and artificial turf designed to accommodate two home teams and constant use.

For Miller, the daily rigmarole will be welcomed. Perhaps the A’s can say where they’ll be in a year, less so their uniformed personnel.

For now, it’s back to the Coliseum, Friday against the Angels, a second half unfolding, a new destination only in the abstract, but perhaps growing closer in reality.

‘Baseball players are lucky that we get to just care about the next day, the next week, this season,’ says Miller. ‘We have that to focus on. When we get to next year, we’ll see where it’s at and what we’re looking at.

‘I got loyalty to the guys I’m with and the work we’re doing over there. Until that day comes, that’s where my loyalty is.’

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

U.S. men’s basketball coach Steve Kerr is correct.

He can’t go wrong picking a starting lineup for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

But the question is: Can he be more right with one starting five over another starting five?

And more specifically, who should start at center for the U.S.? Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis or Bam Adebayo?

While Embiid has started in the USA’s three pre-Olympics exhibition games, including Wednesday’s impressive 105-79 victory against medal-contender Serbia in Abu Dhabi, Davis has emerged as the team’s best scoring, rebounding and shot-blocking big man.

Does that mean Davis should start? All three big men had their moments in the victory against Serbia and Nikola Jokic – the first opponent for the U.S. in Group C play at the Olympics.

In what was a close game in the second quarter, the U.S. began to pull away with Davis and Adebayo on the court. A 44-40 U.S. lead midway through the second quarter turned in to a 59-45 halftime lead. Davis had two blocked shots during that stretch and Adebayo showed off his offensive game – especially on 3-pointers – with 12 points in the first half.

The U.S. began the third quarter with a 12-0 run and extended its lead to 71-45 with Embiid, who started the game 1-for-5 from the field, on the court.

Lack of size, strength, rim protection and rebounding were issues for the U.S. at last year’s FIBA World Cup. That is not a problem at this summer’s Olympics.

That backline presence of Embiid, Davis and Adebayo allows the U.S. perimeter players to play aggressive defense. They can clean up mistakes, and that was on display against Serbia, a patient, well-coached and experienced team that won silver at the FIBA World Cup.

Serbia shot just 40.8% from the field, and 29.4% on 3-pointers, and Jokic, the three-time NBA MVP, had 16 points on 6-for-19 shooting and missed his four 3-point attempts.

Davis has a game that works well in international basketball with his ability to play inside and outside. He went to the bench in the fourth quarter with seven points, six blocks and six rebounds. Adebayo finished with 17 points and eight rebounds, and Embiid had eight points and eight rebounds. The U.S. outrebounded Serbia 38-26.

Adebayo was a plus-22, Davis a plus-21 and Embiid a plus-five against Serbia. With that production from the bigs and Steph Curry rebounding from a poor shooting game against Australia with 24 points (including 6-for-9 on 3-pointers), Anthony Edwards adding 16 points and LeBron James 11, the remaining 11 teams are playing for silver and bronze.

So how does Kerr manage his bigs? Right now, he likes Embiid in the starting lineup with Davis and Adebayo off the bench. That makes sense. Embiid is a force with his size and strength, which not only makes the game difficult on the opposing big man, but it wears him down. And then Kerr can bring in Davis and Adebayo.

Perhaps the only other team that can match that is France with Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert; Germany with Mo and Franz Wagner, Johannes Voigtmann and Daniel Theis; and Australia with Joe Ingles, Jock Landale and Will Magnay.

Kerr has the ability to play two of them or even all three at the same time, and against a team such as France or Germany, Kerr could start two of them.

He has options at that position that the U.S. didn’t have last year, and options that are difficult to combat this year. No matter who he decides to start.

Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

‘He’s kind.’

Wait. What? Senator J.D. Vance is ‘kind?’

That is what my guest—podcaster and one of the most influential Republican women in America, Mary Katharine Ham—told me about Vance Wednesday morning. (Her podcast, co-hosted with Vic Matus, ‘Getting Hammered’ is a joy to listen to.)

I first interviewed Senator Vance in 2016 when his book ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ debuted. It is a fabulous book and still a riveting read. Vance was not then in politics. He was a Yale Law grad making his way in Silicon Valley. The story hit close to the hearts of anyone from the abandoned steel and car towns of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.

What Mary Katharine revealed to me is not something a radio host could learn over the score of interviews I conducted with Vance over the years since 2016 or during the debate I moderated with him and five other GOP Senate candidates in 2022. I have never spent time with Vance off a real or virtual stage, so I had no idea what he’s like in non-public settings. 

I asked Mary Katharine to stay an extra segment to explain the ‘He’s kind’ observation. I am a big believer in people from across the political spectrum who act with respect towards everyone regardless of their politics, who display gratitude when no one is looking, who are, indeed, ‘kind.’ Cruelty repels me, even when the objects of cruelty more or less deserve it. This is a product of Catholic education, I am sure, and of the attempt to internalize the wisdom of C.S. Lewis:

There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously – no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.

If you have read Vance’s book, you know he knows Lewis’ statement  to be true. Strangers helped Vance often on his journey: The police of Middleton, Ohio; USMC gunny sergeants; Yale Law professors and Silicon Valley giants.  And the marks they have left on him—this kindness that Mary Katharine references, the level-headed manner of his very normal, civil responses to arguments and even deep disagreements I have observed on air and on stage—this is a powerful super-power for politicians who do not assume the role of ‘nice guy’ but who actually live it out. 

Harry Truman famously observed that if you want a friend in Washington, D.C., buy a dog. Even more rare than friends inside the Beltway’s ruling class are genuinely grateful people. Gratitude is an expression of virtue deeply embedded. It often manifests in civility and certainly does so in expressions of kindness. That J.D. Vance has this quality of kindness within his character is a very good thing for the GOP to advertise.

Our country is much blessed, but many within it are suffering greatly. Politics and social media have turned many formerly kind and generous people into permanently argumentative partisans. That Vance suffered in his early years cannot be argued. Suffering changes people, usually for the good. This makes Vance a wonderful emissary from the GOP to those communities and especially those families who are suffering. Pray that the campaign’s managers deploy that secret weapon. Genuine compassion is a powerfully attractive thing.

Hugh Hewitt is host of ‘The Hugh Hewitt Show,’ heard weekday mornings 6am to 9am ET on the Salem Radio Network, and simulcast on Salem News Channel. Hugh wakes up America on over 400 affiliates nationwide, and on all the streaming platforms where SNC can be seen. He is a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel’s news roundtable hosted by Bret Baier weekdays at 6pm ET. A son of Ohio and a graduate of Harvard College and the University of Michigan Law School, Hewitt has been a Professor of Law at Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law since 1996 where he teaches Constitutional Law. Hewitt launched his eponymous radio show from Los Angeles in 1990.  Hewitt has frequently appeared on every major national news television network, hosted television shows for PBS and MSNBC, written for every major American paper, has authored a dozen books and moderated a score of Republican candidate debates, most recently the November 2023 Republican presidential debate in Miami and four Republican presidential debates in the 2015-16 cycle. Hewitt focuses his radio show and his column on the Constitution, national security, American politics and the Cleveland Browns and Guardians. Hewitt has interviewed tens of thousands of guests from Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Kerry to Republican Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump over his 40 years in broadcast, and this column previews the lead story that will drive his radio/ TV show today.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

MILWAUKEE – Five days after surviving an assassination attempt, former President Trump on Thursday will formally accept the GOP presidential nomination during the culminating moment of the 2024 Republican National Convention.

The shooting, at Trump’s rally Saturday in western Pennsylvania where one spectator was killed, along with the gunman, instantly impacted the tone and message of the convention, and altered the former president’s address.

The Trump campaign has said this week that the former president – following his brush with death – will use his speech to call for unity in the face of tragedy instead of criticizing his political adversaries.

Trump, in an interview Sunday with the Washington Examiner, said ‘honestly, it’s going to be a whole different speech now.’

‘It is a chance to bring the country together. I was given that chance,’ he emphasized.

And in an email to supporters on the eve of his address, Trump said ‘I will lay out my vision to UNITE OUR COUNTRY AND MAKE IT GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE!’

The push for party unity was on display during the first three days of the convention, with former GOP presidential rivals Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida and former U.N. ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley – who battled Trump in a contentious primary season – delivered speeches from the podium in support of the former president.

Republicans are using the convention as a venue to reunite the party and energize delegates and activists ahead of the final stretch of the campaign in Trump’s 2024 election rematch with President Biden.

‘This is obviously an opportunity to bring the country together,’ Trump co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita said earlier this week. ‘But let’s not forget we’re in the middle of a campaign, and we have to win that campaign.’

Trump is also expected to hit a major theme of his 2024 campaign – strength – and contrast it with what he argues is Biden’s weakness.

Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller, in an interview on Fox News’ ‘Jesse Watters Primetime,’ spotlighted the ‘strength and resilience from President Trump, especially only a few days after the assassination attempt.’

Miller also noted that the ‘tone’ and ‘approach’ of the former president’s speech ‘is going to be notably different.’ 

‘President Trump has spent much of the last several days dictating what he wants that speech to look like in real terms, saying ‘I want to say this and I want to go into the following,’’ Miller noted.

The Biden campaign isn’t buying the Republicans’ unity message.

Biden principal deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks told reporters this week that Trump and Republicans ‘will always choose big, greedy, anti-union extremists over the working men and women of America.’

Trump’s address to the roughly 2,400 delegates and thousands of other attendees packed inside Milwaukee’s Fiserv Arena, and the millions of Americans watching the GOP convention, also comes less than two months since he was convicted of 34 felony counts in the first criminal trial of a former or current president in the nation’s history.

But weeks later, Biden severely stumbled with a disastrous debate performance against Trump, which has led to a rising chorus of calls from within the Democratic Party for the president to end his 2024 re-election bid and bow out of the race.

And now, in the wake of this past weekend’s assassination attempt, the presidential rematch has been further altered.

On the eve of the convention’s final day, Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, acknowledged that ‘as we meet tonight, we cannot forget that this evening could have been much different. Instead of a day of celebration, this could have been a day of heartache and mourning.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

MILWAUKEE – Five days after surviving an assassination attempt, former President Trump on Thursday will formally accept the GOP presidential nomination during the culminating moment of the 2024 Republican National Convention.

The shooting, at Trump’s rally Saturday in western Pennsylvania where one spectator was killed, along with the gunman, instantly impacted the tone and message of the convention, and altered the former president’s address.

The Trump campaign has said this week that the former president – following his brush with death – will use his speech to call for unity in the face of tragedy instead of criticizing his political adversaries.

Trump, in an interview Sunday with the Washington Examiner, said ‘honestly, it’s going to be a whole different speech now.’

‘It is a chance to bring the country together. I was given that chance,’ he emphasized.

And in an email to supporters on the eve of his address, Trump said ‘I will lay out my vision to UNITE OUR COUNTRY AND MAKE IT GREATER THAN EVER BEFORE!’

The push for party unity was on display during the first three days of the convention, with former GOP presidential rivals Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida and former U.N. ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley – who battled Trump in a contentious primary season – delivered speeches from the podium in support of the former president.

Republicans are using the convention as a venue to reunite the party and energize delegates and activists ahead of the final stretch of the campaign in Trump’s 2024 election rematch with President Biden.

‘This is obviously an opportunity to bring the country together,’ Trump co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita said earlier this week. ‘But let’s not forget we’re in the middle of a campaign, and we have to win that campaign.’

Trump is also expected to hit a major theme of his 2024 campaign – strength – and contrast it with what he argues is Biden’s weakness.

Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller, in an interview on Fox News’ ‘Jesse Watters Primetime,’ spotlighted the ‘strength and resilience from President Trump, especially only a few days after the assassination attempt.’

Miller also noted that the ‘tone’ and ‘approach’ of the former president’s speech ‘is going to be notably different.’ 

‘President Trump has spent much of the last several days dictating what he wants that speech to look like in real terms, saying ‘I want to say this and I want to go into the following,’’ Miller noted.

The Biden campaign isn’t buying the Republicans’ unity message.

Biden principal deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks told reporters this week that Trump and Republicans ‘will always choose big, greedy, anti-union extremists over the working men and women of America.’

Trump’s address to the roughly 2,400 delegates and thousands of other attendees packed inside Milwaukee’s Fiserv Arena, and the millions of Americans watching the GOP convention, also comes less than two months since he was convicted of 34 felony counts in the first criminal trial of a former or current president in the nation’s history.

But weeks later, Biden severely stumbled with a disastrous debate performance against Trump, which has led to a rising chorus of calls from within the Democratic Party for the president to end his 2024 re-election bid and bow out of the race.

And now, in the wake of this past weekend’s assassination attempt, the presidential rematch has been further altered.

On the eve of the convention’s final day, Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, acknowledged that ‘as we meet tonight, we cannot forget that this evening could have been much different. Instead of a day of celebration, this could have been a day of heartache and mourning.’

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Lionel Messi wore a walking boot on his injured right ankle, and watched Inter Miami regain first place in the MLS Eastern Conference with a 3-1 victory against Toronto FC on Wednesday night.

Messi sat alongside his wife and children during the match at Inter Miami’s Chase Stadium. He was ruled out of the Toronto match, and won’t play in Inter Miami’s next match Saturday against Chicago as he continues to recover from his Copa America ankle injury.

Messi has a ligament injury, Inter Miami announced on Tuesday, after a full evaluation on the two-time Copa America and World Cup champion. He will be evaluated on a weekly basis, Inter Miami coach Tatar Martino said after the match. 

“The club’s medical report is out and the information is that regarding the times, it will surely be evaluated week by week,” Martino said of Messi. 

“We are going to see just how his recovery is without taking any kind of risk.”

Messi suffered the injury during Argentina’s 1-0 win in the Copa America final on Sunday against Colombia at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.

Messi did not travel with his Argentine teammates back to Argentina to celebrate the Copa America title, staying home to begin his recovery.

A timeline for Messi’s return to injury is indefinite. Inter Miami said Messi’s future availability “will be determined by periodic assessments and the progress of his recovery.”

Highlights: Federico Redondo, Diego Gomez score for Miami

Federico Redondo scored the first two goals of his MLS career in the 53rd and 59th minutes, and Diego Gomez scored in the 43rd minute to fuel Inter Miami’s 3-1 win.

Derrick Etienne Jr. scored in the 80th minute for Toronto, while Inter Miami’s Luis Suarez entered in the 61st minute after his third-place finish with Uruguay during Copa America.

Inter Miami goalie Drake Callender and striker Robert Taylor each played in their 100th match for the franchise in the victory.

Inter Miami retook the lead in the MLS Eastern Conference with 50 points following the win, thanks a 1-0 loss by FC Cincinnati (48 points) to the Chicago Fire.

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The final major championship of the PGA Tour is here.

The first round of the British Open will tee off Thursday in the battle for the Claret Jug, as the field of 158 golfers will convene at Royal Troon Golf Club in Troon, Scotland, located on the western coast of the country’s mainland.

Last year’s winner was Brian Harman, whose dominant performance at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Britain earned him his first career major championship. Among the notable players in the field are Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, who is one of the 18 past champions in the running.

Here’s everything you need to know about the first round of the Open teeing off on Thursday:

How to watch 2024 British Open on TV

The first round of The Open will be broadcast live Thursday on USA Network, with coverage also on NBC’s Peacock streaming service. The rest of the tournament will be broadcast on the NBC family of networks.

Here is the complete broadcast schedule for The Open:

Round 1: ThursdayJuly 18

1:30 a.m.- 4 a.m.: Peacock4 a.m.-3 p.m.: USA Network3 p.m.-4:15 p.m.: Peacock

Round 2: Friday, July 19

1:30 a.m.- 4 a.m.: Peacock4 a.m.-3 p.m.: USA Network3 p.m.-4:15 p.m.: Peacock

Round 3: Saturday, July 20

5 a.m.-7 a.m.: Peacock7 a.m.- 3 p.m.: NBC/Peacock

Round 4: Sunday, July 21

4 a.m.-7 a.m.: Peacock7 a.m.- 2 p.m.: NBC/Peacock

2024 British Open streaming info

Live coverage and featured groups can be followed on the live stream on Peacock.

When is 2024 British Open?

The 152nd British Open will be played July 18-21, 2024, on the Old Course at Royal Troon Golf Club in Scotland.

Royal Troon, founded in 1878, last hosted the British Open in 2016, when Sweden’s Henrik Stenson prevailed.

British Open tee times for Round 1

All times Eastern

1:35 a.m. — Justin Leonard, Todd Hamilton, Jack McDonald

1:46 a.m. — Tom McKibbin, Alex Noren, Calum Scott

1:57 a.m. — Jesper Svensson, Vincent Norrman, Michael Hendry

2:08 a.m. — Younghan Song, Daniel Hillier, Ryosuke Kinoshita

2:19 a.m. — Min Woo Lee, Ryo Hisatsune, Abraham Ancer

2:30 a.m. — Nicolai Hojgaard, Adam Scott, Keita Nakajima

2:41 a.m. — Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose, Jasper Stubbs

2:52 a.m. — Justin Thomas, Sungjae Im, Matthew Southgate

3:03 a.m. — Nick Taylor, Matt Wallace, Laurie Canter

3:14 a.m. — Sebastian Soderberg, Matteo Manassero, Shubhankar Sharma

3:25 a.m. — Zach Johnson, Austin Eckroat, Thorbjorn Olesen

3:36 a.m. — John Daly, Santiago de la Fuente, Aaron Rai

3:47 a.m. — Stewart Cink, Chris Kirk, Dominic Clemons

4:03 a.m. — Stephan Jaeger, Adam Schenk, Joaquin Niemann

4:14 a.m. — Adam Hadwin, Lucas Glover, Christiaan Bezuidenhout

4:25 a.m. — Tony Finau, Russell Henley, Matthieu Pavon

4:36 a.m. — Jon Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre

4:47 a.m. — Ludvig Åberg, Bryson DeChambeau, Tom Kim

4:58 a.m. — Brian Harman, Viktor Hovland, Sahith Theegala

5:09 a.m. — Rory McIlroy, Max Homa, Tyrrell Hatton

5:20 a.m. — Keegan Bradley, Will Zalatoris, Gordon Sargent

5:31 a.m. — Harris English, Maverick McNealy, Alexander Bjork

5:42 a.m. — Guido Migliozzi, Sean Crocker, Tommy Morrison

5:53 a.m. — David Puig, John Catlin, Guntaek Koh

6:04 a.m. — Thriston Lawrence, Daniel Bradbury, Elvis Smylie

6:15 a.m. — Nacho Elvira, Minkyu Kim, Darren Fichardt

6:26 a.m. – Mason Andersen, Masahiro Kawamura, Sam Hutsby

6:47 a.m. — Ewen Ferguson, Marcel Siem

6:58 a.m. — CT Pan, Romain Langasque, Yuto Katsuragawa

7:09 a.m. — Rikuya Hoshino, Angel Hidalgo, Richard Mansell

7:20 a.m. — Corey Conners, Ryan Fox, Jorge Campillo

7:31 a.m. — Ernie Els, Gary Woodland, Altin van der Merwe (a)

7:42 a.m. — Henrik Stenson, Rasmus Hojgaard, Jacob Skov Olesen (a)

7:53 a.m. — Louis Oosthuizen, Billy Horschel, Victor Perez

8:04 a.m. — Sepp Straka, Brendon Todd, Jordan Smith

8:15 a.m. — Denny McCarthy, Taylor Moore, Adrian Meronk

8:26 a.m. — Jason Day, Byeong Hun An, Rickie Fowler

8:37 a.m. — Alex Cejka, Eric Cole, Kurt Kitayama

8:48 a.m. — Darren Clarke, JT Poston, Dean Burmester

9:04 a.m. — Phil Mickelson, Joost Luiten, Dustin Johnson

9:15 a.m. — Padraig Harrington, Davis Thompson, Matthew Jordan

9:26 a.m. — Wyndham Clark, Hideki Matsuyama, Brooks Koepka

9:37 a.m. — Tiger Woods, Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay

9:48 a.m. — Collin Morikawa, Sam Burns, Si Woo Kim

9:59 a.m. — Shane Lowry, Cameron Smith, Matt Fitzpatrick

10:10 a.m. — Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Cameron Young

10:21 a.m. — Akshay Bhatia, Tom Hoge, Sami Valimaki

10:32 a.m. — Emiliano Grillo, Ben Griffin, Mackenzie Hughes

10:43 a.m. — Yannik Paul, Joe Dean, Andy Ogletree

10:54 a.m. — Ryan van Velzen, Charlie Lindh, Luis Masaveu (a)

11:05 a.m. — Kazuma Kobori, Jaime Montojo Fernandez (a), Liam Nolan (a)

11:16 a.m. — Daniel Brown, Denwit David Boriboonsub, Matthew Dodd-Berry (a)

11:27 a.m. — Jeunghun Wang (Kor), Aguri Iwasaki (Jpn), Sam Horsfield

(a) – amateur

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