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04/03 13:19 CDT The Latest: Raptors' Nurse wants to stay as Canada's coach
The Latest: Raptors' Nurse wants to stay as Canada's coach
By The Associated Press
The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the
world:
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Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse is "100% committed" to remaining Canada's
coach once qualifying for the Tokyo Games resumes after the coronavirus
outbreak.
Nurse led the Raptors to the NBA title in his first season as coach last year.
He took over the Canadian team two weeks after Toronto's NBA Finals win over
Golden State. He coached Canada at the 2019 FIBA World Cup in China.
Canada was to host a last-chance qualifying tournament in Victoria, British
Columbia, this June, but that was postponed.
"It's disappointing, but I can wait," Nurse said Friday. "Let's put it in
perspective. It's not nearly as disappointing as what's happening around in
daily life."
Nurse coached in the British Basketball League for more than a decade. He was
an assistant coach for the British team at the 2012 Summer Games in London.
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The Lawn Tennis Association is giving up to 20 million pounds ($24 million)
through grants and interest-free loans to help venues, coaches, officials, and
players in Britain during the coronavirus pandemic.
Singles players world ranked from 101 to 750 and doubles players ranked from
101 to 250 -- who are not already receiving funding -- are eligible for grants,
and there will be increased prize money for British tour events if the tours
resume. This week, Wimbledon was canceled and the tours suspended the British
grass-court season.
Most of the focus of the LTA package is on protecting the grassroots, including
continued funding for development centers and the two national academies, and
supporting full-time coaches.
Chief executive Scott Lloyd and the executive team will take temporary pay cuts
of 20%, while some staff will be furloughed next week but will be paid 80% of
their salary.
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Atlanta Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce says team employees have been tested after
exhibiting symptoms for the new coronavirus.
He says no players or members of the coaching staff have shown any symptoms or
been tested.
Pierce said Friday he doesn't know the identity of those who were tested. He
said at least 18 or 19 days have passed since any members of the team would
have had contact with the employees.
"Everyone that has been tested, the symptoms they had or reported, they do feel
better," Pierce said. He said he has "become a master of this Zoom app" while
having video conferencing with players, assistants and other NBA coaches.
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The NFL's Indianapolis Colts are giving season-ticket holders the option to
defer April's payment until June 15.
On Friday, team officials emailed letters to those with payment plans, giving
them a Wednesday deadline to accept the offer.
The final two installments were initially due April 15 and May 15. The Colts
have not announced any changes about the May payment.
"In light of the unique circumstances right now, we have decided to modify the
payment options for members of our season ticket family on payment plans," the
letter reads in part.
The move comes one day after the Indiana High School Athletic Association
canceled the entire spring sports season. State officials had previously
announced all schools would remain closed for the rest of the academic year.
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Mental health experts who were supposed to be available to help American
athletes at the Tokyo Olympics are being asked to start working now.
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee says the experts are leading
discussions about mental health and wellness for athletes and staff in the wake
of the coronavirus pandemic.
Those same experts will also be on hand at the Tokyo Games, which have been
postponed a year.
The USOPC also disclosed the 13 members of a new external mental health task
force created to support American athletes and coaches. It includes Olympians,
doctors and the head of The Speedy Foundation, a mental-health organization
named after the late Jeret "Speedy" Peterson, an Olympic silver medalist in
aerials.
That group is working with an internal group at the USOC being led by chief
medical officer Jonathan Finnoff.
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The world heavyweight title fight between Anthony Joshua and Kubrat Pulev on
June 20 has been postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak.
The fight was scheduled to take place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London
and will be Joshua's first defense of his IBF, WBA, WBO belts since he regained
them from Andy Ruiz Jr.
Joshua's promoter, Matchroom Boxing, says a new date for the fight is being
worked on.
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More than a dozen U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes received reassurance
this week when Toyota North America announced it would extend their endorsement
contracts through the rescheduled Tokyo Games in 2021.
The auto company and major Olympic sponsor has 17 U.S. athletes under contract.
They include swimmer David Boudia, gymnast Laurie Hernandez, Paralympian Oksana
Masters and sprinter Michael Norman.
The status of endorsement contracts is a major concern to athletes because most
signed deals that were set to expire after this year's scheduled Olympics. They
have been rescheduled for 2021 and that has forced corporations to reset and
rethink the structure of their deals.
Visa is another major sponsor and has also told its global roster of nearly 100
Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls that it will extend sponsorships through 2021.
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World Triathlon has extended its suspension of all events from the end of April
to the end of June because of the coronavirus outbreak.
The latest events to be called off include the Yokohama leg of the world
series, three African Cups, three American events, four Asian Cups, one event
in Oceania and eight in Europe.
World Triathlon president Marisol Casado says "the suspension of all activities
doesn't mean at all that we stop working" on finding alternative dates.
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The WNBA has postponed the start of its season because of the coronavirus
pandemic.
The league was set to open training camps on April 26 and the regular season
was to begin on May 15. The WNBA will still hold a "virtual" draft on April 17.
Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement. "While the league continues
to use this time to conduct scenario-planning regarding new start dates and
innovative formats, our guiding principle will continue to be the health and
safety of the players, fans and employees."
The WNBA, which was set to begin its 24th season, is the longest running
professional women's sports league.
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The Premier League has pushed back its restart date and says play will not
resume at the beginning of May.
The league had given a return date of April 30 amid the coronavirus outbreak
but now says the season "will only return when it is safe and appropriate to do
so."
It says there remained a "combined objective" for all remaining domestic league
and cup matches to be played to maintain the integrity of each competition.
The league also says it has consulted players over a pay deduction or deferral
of 30%.
It also voted to advance funds of 125 million pounds ($150 million) to clubs in
the English Football League and fifth-tier National League.
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German soccer club Borussia Dortmund is converting part of its stadium into a
treatment center amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Bundesliga club says a space inside Germany's largest soccer stadium has
been made available for medical staff to examine people with virus symptoms.
The move comes after an influx of suspected coronavirus cases put existing
facilities in the city of Dortmund under strain.
The center will open on Saturday.
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The Tour de Suisse has been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic,
removing one of the few cycling events left on the calendar before the Tour de
France is due to start.
The nine-day Swiss race was scheduled to run from June 6-14 and is designed to
give riders a chance to prepare for the three-week Tour de France. The French
race is still scheduled to start on June 27.
Colombian rider Egan Bernal won in Switzerland last year ahead of his first
Tour de France title.
Organizers in Switzerland say its "the first time since the Second World War
that the traditional event will not take place."
They say "the risk of additional strain on the Swiss health system due to
possible crashes during racing is high."
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The Russian anti-doping agency is preparing to freeze all testing until May to
comply with new government measures shutting down work deemed non-essential.
RUSADA deputy CEO Margarita Pakhnotskaya tells The Associated Press that her
agency is looking for possible exemptions to instructions from President
Vladimir Putin for all Russians except those working in essential sectors to
stay home through April 30.
Pakhnotskaya says in a text message that she "will check on Monday the
possibility to receive special permission" from government bodies for staff to
collect samples from athletes. There will be no testing this month if that
isn't granted.
Testing has been suspended since March 27 under a previous round of measures.
Isolation measures around the world have led to a sharp drop in anti-doping
tests. That's led to warnings that some athletes could take advantage of the
situation. The World Anti-Doping Agency says it is trying to track gaps in
testing.
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Former marathon world record holder Wilson Kipsang was among 20 people arrested
in Kenya for locking themselves in a bar and drinking alcohol in breach of a
curfew imposed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Police say the 2012 Olympic bronze medalist was among those detained at a
police station in Iten, one of Kenya's famous high-altitude towns where
distance runners train. They were in breach of a 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew. The
group included a local politician.
Kipsang, who is also a police officer, was provisionally suspended this year
from track and field and charged with doping offenses that include tampering
with doping samples. He has also won the New York, London and Berlin marathons.
Twelve athletes were arrested in Iten earlier this week for breaching Kenyan
government regulations on social gatherings during the COVID-19 crisis. The
runners were arrested for training in a group, which has been banned in Kenya.
Training camps have been shut down and athletes must train alone.
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More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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