⚽️ Axios Sports: Dark day for sports

Plus: Slap Fighting Championship | Monday, March 07, 2022

Open in app View in browser     Axios Sports By Kendall Baker ·Mar 07, 2022 👋 Happy Monday! Welcome back. Today's word count: 1,123 words (4 minutes). Let's sports...     1 big thing: ⚽️ A dark day for sports A flower and beer left as an altar near one of the entrances to Estadio Corregidora. Photo: Hector Vivas/Getty Images   Soccer fandom turned barbaric on Saturday in what is being called the "darkest day" in the history of Mexican soccer. Driving the news: A match between Liga MX clubs Atlas and Querétaro was abruptly suspended in the second half after a riot broke out in the stands and spilled onto the field. Fans attacked each other with knives, chairs, metal poles and other objects. Horrifying footage appeared to show people being beaten to death, or close. Blame has fallen mostly on hard-core Querétaro fans known as "barras bravas," or fierce gangs, per the L.A. Times (subscription), which notes that most, if not all, hospitalized fans were Atlas supporters. Guadalajara-based Atlas is the reigning league champion. Querétaro, based 226 miles to the east, has never finished better than sixth. An aerial view of Estadio Corregidora. Photo: Hector Vivas/Getty Images What they're saying: There are conflicting reports about how many people were injured or killed at Querétaro's Estadio Corregidora, which hosted World Cup games in 1986. Official reports said 26 people were hospitalized, and the local government said there were no deaths stemming from the violence. Yes, but: Local journalists have said at least 17 people died and far more than 26 were injured. Videos of bloodied and unconscious bodies, plus reports of missing people, suggest there were fatalities. Where it stands: Liga MX canceled games scheduled for Sunday and Tuesday and league president Mikel Arriolla has promised an investigation and possible sanctions. The investigation will likely examine why there were only 600 security personnel in a stadium that holds 34,000 people. As for sanctions, consider this: When a 2012 riot in an Egyptian soccer stadium left 74 dead, the government shut down the league for two years. The big picture: This unthinkable tragedy has sent shockwaves throughout the sport. Mexico is set to co-host the 2026 World Cup with the U.S. and Canada, and MLS has a close relationship with Liga MX.     2. 🥇 Paralympics: Ukraine off to fast start Flag bearer Maksym Yarovyi and Team Ukraine during the Opening Ceremony. Photo: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images   The Paralympics began Friday with IPC president Andrew Parsons rebuking Russia, Axios' Jeff Tracy writes. "I am horrified at what is taking place in the world right now. The 21st century is a time for dialogue and diplomacy, not war and hate. The Olympic Truce for peace ... must be respected and observed, not violated." — Parsons The backdrop: The Games opened a day after the IPC banned the Russian and Belarusian delegations from competing — a result of athletes using their voice to effect change. More Paralympics: 🇺🇦 Ukraine's fast start: Ukraine is the only nation with a podium sweep (men's biathlon sprint), and its eight medals are tied for third behind only China (25) and Canada (12). 🥇 Chasing history: Team USA's Oksana Masters, who was born in Ukraine, won biathlon gold and cross-country silver, giving her nine Winter medals. She's four shy of tying the American women's record and has up to five events left. 🇨🇳 Censorship: China's live broadcast didn't translate Parsons' remarks about Russia. China also pulled Premier League coverage this weekend over Ukraine support.     3. ⛳️ Florida Swing: Scheffler wins in Orlando Illustration: Lazaro Gamio/Axios   Scottie Scheffler won the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Sunday, as the PGA Tour's "Florida Swing" reached its midway point. State of play: The Sunshine State's four-tournament stretch is known for its difficulty, especially compared to the "West Coast Swing" that precedes it. After weeks of birdie golf, bogeys are back on the menu. Feb. 24–27: Honda Classic at PGA National (Palm Beach Gardens) March 3–6: Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club (Orlando) March 10–13: Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass (Ponte Vedra Beach) March 17–20: Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort (Palm Harbor) Looking ahead: This is a crucial time of year, as golfers sharpen their skills ahead of major season. Now that the PGA Championship is in May (moved from August in 2019), all four majors take place over a 15-week span from early April (Masters) to mid-July (The Open).     A message from Axios Advertise in Axios Sports     Are you a marketer looking to reach decision makers who care about sports? Consider advertising with us: Reach hundreds of thousands of people daily. Achieve your KPIs around business development, awareness, and product sales. Over 60% of our audience earns six figures per year and makes business purchasing decisions. Let's Chat     4. ⚡️ Lightning round Russian bronze medalist Ilia Burov hugs Ukrainian silver medalist Oleksandr Abramenko. Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images   🇺🇦 Podium to parking garage: Oleksandr Abramenko won Ukraine's only Olympic medal in Beijing, and his hug from a Russian rival (see above) went viral. Two weeks later, he's hiding out in a Kyiv parking garage. 🏁 Vacant F1 seat: The Haas F1 team has terminated its contract with Russian driver Nikita Mazepin and title sponsor Uralkali. 🏀 293 points: Houston Baptist beat McNeese, 149-144 (4OT), on Saturday in the highest-scoring men's Division I game in 31 years. All 10 starters had at least 10 points. ⚽️ Cone re-elected: Cindy Parlow Cone remains U.S. Soccer Federation president after narrowly defeating challenger and predecessor Carlos Cordeiro. 🎶 Must listen: The Dan Le Batard Show made a musical about the NFL season.     5. 🏀 Durant joins 25k points club Data: Basketball Reference; Chart: Axios Visuals Kevin Durant joined the 25,000-point club this weekend, while active scoring leader LeBron James extended his lead with a 56-point outburst. The big picture: Durant is the 23rd player in NBA history to hit the 25,000-point mark and just the third active one, joining James and Carmelo Anthony.     6. 🌎 The world in photos Photo: Lance King/Getty Images DURHAM, N.C. — Mike Krzyzewski bid farewell to Cameron Indoor on Saturday with an unexpected — and, frankly, pretty awkward — 94-81 loss to unranked UNC. He's now 50-47 against the Tar Heels. 🎥 Watch: Postgame speech (YouTube) Photo: Peter Zay/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images CHARLOTTE — Expansion club Charlotte FC set the MLS attendance record (74,479) in its home debut on Saturday, a 1-0 loss to the LA Galaxy. Go deeper: Charlotte FC's historic debut (Axios) Photo: Steph Chambers/Getty Images BEIJING — In the Paralympic version of ice hockey, players sit on sleds and use two sticks, which have a spike-end for pushing and a blade-end for handling the puck. 🎥 Watch: Highlights (YouTube) Photo: Federico Modica/NordicFocus/Getty Images OSLO, Norway — Ski jumping photos always deliver. Gorgeous. 🎥 Watch: Winning jump (YouTube)     7. 📺 Watchlist: Tickets to be punched Kentucky upset No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday to win its first SEC title in 40 years. Courtesy: Kentucky Basketball   11 teams punched tickets to the dance this weekend. Four more will join them today by winning their conference title games. Men: Furman vs. Chattanooga, SoCon (7pm ET, ESPN); Louisiana vs. Georgia State, Sun Belt (7pm, ESPN2) Women: No. 7 UConn vs. Villanova, Big East (8pm, FS1); UT Arlington vs. Troy, Sun Belt (2pm, ESPNU) More to watch: 🏀 NBA: Warriors at Nuggets (9pm, NBA TV) ⚽️ Premier League: Everton at Tottenham (3pm, USA) 🏒 NHL: Kings at Bruins (7pm, ESPN+); Oilers at Flames (9:30pm, ESPN+)     8. ✋ The Ocho: Slap fighting Karol "Pikolo" Wyłupek slaps Pater "Aligator" Truchlik. Photo: Gaelen Morse/Getty Images   The Slap Fighting Championship, hosted by Arnold Schwarzenegger, is a real thing that happened this weekend in Columbus, Ohio. How it works: One slap each per round. The winner is determined by KO or if a competitor doesn't proceed within 30 seconds of being slapped. 🎥 Watch: Full livestream (YouTube)     9. 🏀 NBA trivia Photo: Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images   LeBron James scored 56 points on Saturday, becoming the fourth player with a 50-point game at age 37 or older. Question: Name the other three. Hint: 2001, 2016, 2019 Answer at the bottom.     10. 🎥 Top plays: Weekend edition Source: Giphy 🏀 This. Is. March. 🥍 Goal of the decade ⚽️ Gorgeous goal 🥎 Elite awareness ⛳️ Ace 🏒 Filthy save 🏒 Filthy finish 🏀 Way too effortless 🏀 At the buzzer 🏀 Monk to LeBron Watch all 10.     A message from Axios Advertise in Axios Sports     Are you a marketer looking to reach decision makers who care about sports? Consider advertising with us: Reach hundreds of thousands of people daily. Achieve your KPIs around business development, awareness, and product sales. Over 60% of our audience earns six figures per year and makes business purchasing decisions. Let's Chat   Talk tomorrow, Kendall "Only thing I'm slappin' is da bass" Baker Trivia answer: Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Jamal Crawford 🙏 Thanks for reading. Be sure to follow us at @kendallbaker and @jeffreytracy, and tell friends to sign up here. Like this email style and format? It's called Smart Brevity®. 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