The pilot of the helicopter that crashed while carrying Kobe Bryant and his daughter to a basketball tournament in California did not have alcohol or drugs in his system, according to the autopsy report.
Ara Zobayan, 50, was taking the Bryants and six others to a youth tournament when the chopper slammed into the mountains west of Los Angeles, killing all nine on board instantly.
"Toxicological testing did not detect the presence of alcohol or drugs of abuse," the Los Angeles County coroner's report released on Friday said.
The clinical report described the carnage at the January 26 crash scene and said that all the victims died of blunt force trauma. The manner of death for each was listed as accidental.
The investigation showed the helicopter was traveling at 296 kilometers per hour (184 mph) when it crashed into the hillside after running into heavy fog and cloud cover. Police said the helicopter plunged several hundred feet before impact.
The report said the 41-year-old Bryant had 

Kobe Bryant chopper crash pilot had no drugs in system: autopsy

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Lionel Messi believes the long break caused by the coronavirus pandemic will be a boon for Barcelona.
Maybe this stoppage will end up benefiting us, but we will have to see if we are restarting the competitions and then we will know the truth, Messi told Spanish sports daily Sport on Friday.
Barcelona and Spain's soccer leagues have not played since March 12, when La Liga halted action as the country's COVID-19 virus outbreak picked up speed. More than 27,000 Spaniards are known to have died from the disease.
Messi did not cite his reason for thinking the stoppage would be good for Barcelona, but the return of strike partner Luis Surez from injury is surely one, and resetting another.
Another boost could be more rest. Barcelona has suffered big losses in key matches in the Champions League in the last three seasons, including last season's 4-0 debacle at Liverpool in the semifinals. In those matches it appeared that Barcelona was worn down by a long season.
When played was stopped in .

Messi says pandemic stoppage can benefit Barcelona

Two Spanish first-division clubs have denied media reports that link them to alleged match-fixing.
Getafe and Villarreal issued statements on Friday supporting their players and denying any involvement in the possible attempt to fix a match as reported by Spanish radio COPE.
COPE reported it had access to police investigation files that included transcript of a conversation between two former players talking about arranging payoffs to some Villarreal players to lose the final match of last season. The transcript is part of a larger investigation into an alleged match-fixing ring in Spanish football.
The match ended 2-2 between Getafe and Villarreal. Getafe finished two points behind Valencia in fifth place, missing out on a Champions League berth. Villarreal finished in the middle of the table.
Getafe specifically defended its captain Jorge Molina, whom the two former players on the transcript appear to mention.
Last month in a separate case, a Spanish court sentenced nine former ...

iga clubs Villarreal, Getafe deny match-fixing report

The 2023 Women's World Cup host will be picked by FIFA's ruling council on June 25.
The contest is between Brazil, Japan, Colombia, and a joint bid from Australia and New Zealand.
In an open vote of the 37-member FIFA Council, the result of each round of balloting and each voter's choice will be made public.
FIFA inspection teams visited the four bid candidates in January and February before international travel was restricted due to the coronavirus pandemic.
FIFA is now finalizing the evaluation report, which will be published in early June, FIFA said in a statement on Friday.
The 2023 World Cup will be the first to feature 32 teams. There were 24 at the 2019 edition won by the United States in France.

FIFA to pick 2023 Women's World Cup host next month

The National Football League says teams can reopen their facilities with strict health guidelines in place and as long as state and local governments allow it, US media reported.
In a memo to the general managers of all 32 clubs, commissioner Roger Goodell said the doors for specific personnel can start swinging open on Tuesday.
"Clubs may reopen their facilities beginning on May 19 if they are permitted to do so under governing state and local regulations," Goodell said in the memo obtained by the NFL Network.
He added they must be "in compliance with any additional public health requirements in their jurisdiction, and have implemented the protocols that were developed by (NFL Chief Medical Officer Dr. Allen Sills) and distributed to all clubs on May 6."
All NFL facilities were ordered to be shut down beginning March 25 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The league is prohibiting coaching staffs from the team facilities during the "Phase 1" reopening.
Teams can have only 50 percent of 

NFL says teams can begin reopening facilities next week, report

Maverick batsman Chris Gayle has said he "stands by his comments" against former teammate Ramnaresh Sarwan but conceded that his actions were damaging to West Indies cricket, prompting the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) organisers to close the controversial issue.
The 40-year-old Gayle, who was signed by St Lucia Zouks for the 2020 season of the CPL, had called Sarwan "worse than coronavirus" in a video post, accusing the Guyanese of plotting his exit from CPL outfit Jamaica Tallawahs.
The self-styled 'Universe Boss' admitted, in a statement issued by CPL Technical Committee (CTC) chief P J Patterson, that his description of Sarwan was "damaging Cricket West Indies, and to the CPL tournament and its brand".
"I made these videos with one single intention  to explain to the fans in Jamaica the reasons behind ... my second departure from the Tallawahs franchise. It was my greatest wish to finish my CPL career in Jamaica ... with the franchise that I had previously led to two CPL titles," 

Gayle "stands by his comments" against Sarwan but CPL decides to close controversial issue

Former England defender Kenny Sansom, who played in the infamous 'Hand of God' World Cup quarter-final in 1986, was in hospital after suffering a serious head injury, British media claimed.
A message on the 61-year-old former Arsenal player's Twitter account confirmed he was receiving treatment.
However, his family did not comment on the cause of his illness, except to clarify that he was not suffering from coronavirus.
"Kenny is currently ill in hospital. He is being well cared for and does not have COVID-19," said a statement on his Twitter account.
"Kenny's family and close friends kindly ask the media to respect his and their privacy, plus that of the healthcare workers treating Kenny."
Reports in some sections of the British media claimed he had suffered a serious head injury.
Sansom played 394 games for Arsenal and also featured for Crystal Palace, Newcastle, QPR, Everton and Watford.
He won 86 caps as left-back, playing at the 1982 and 1986 World Cups.
Sansom was in the England 

Former England defender Sansom in hospital with 'head injury'

James Anderson has insisted he is still excited about playing for England this season, even if matches are played behind closed doors.
England cricketers are set to return to limited individual training next week, with bowlers such as Anderson leading the way, amid assurances that health protocols will make their sessions less risky than going to a supermarket.
The England and Wales Cricket Board hope they can kickstart a season delayed by the coronavirus by rescheduling for July a three-Test series at home to the West Indies that was meant to take place in June.
But officials have conceded the only way international matches can be staged in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic is by barring spectators from what will be 'biosecure' grounds.
Anderson though has lost none of his enthusiasm when it comes to the prospect of adding to his England record tally of 584 Test wickets.
"It's exciting in a way we're actually talking about the possibility of playing cricket this summer," ...

No crowds, no problem for England's Anderson

Crew chief Chad Knaus won't get a look at the car Hendrick Motorsports built for Darlington Raceway until he gets to the track Sunday morning, a few hours before the race.
Kurt Busch? He's already sat in his Chip Ganassi Racing car and met with his crew chief.
The return to racing for NASCAR has brought with it a set of safety protocols that will be strictly enforced at the track Sunday when the Cup Series goes racing for the first time in more than two months after a pandemic-forced hiatus. The stock car series can only trust competitors to follow the guidelines away from the track  and teams appear to have different interpretations.
No face-to-face or contact with these guys whatsoever. Everything has been on (Zoom) team meetings, said Knaus, a seven-time championship winning crew chief.
"That's the recommendation by NASCAR for the traveling teams to stay as isolated as they can and try to keep everybody at the race track as healthy as we can. That's the protocol we put into place ..

NASCAR putting its safety plan to test as racing restarts

NFL teams can begin reopening their facilities on Tuesday if state and local governments will allow it.
In a memo sent to the 32 teams Friday by Commissioner Roger Goodell and obtained by The Associated Press, he stressed that the clubs must be in compliance with any additional public health requirements in their jurisdiction, and have implemented the protocols that were developed by (league medical officer) Dr. (Allen) Sills and distributed to all clubs on May 6.
Facilities have been closed since late March due to the coronavirus pandemic.  Each team was required to submit a plan to the league for reopening its training/practice facility this week.
Clubs unable to meet these criteria on May 19 may reopen their facilities on the earliest date thereafter on which they are able to meet the criteria, Goodell added.
Sills will conduct a training program for club infection control officers (ICO) on Monday night that is required.
Already established in the openings were these protocols: ...

NFL teams can reopen facilities Tuesday with provisos

Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has bought the bat put up for auction by Bangladesh wicketkeeper batsman Mushfiqur Rahim for USD 20,000.
Last month, Mushfiqur had announced he was auctioning the willow, with which he scored a double hundred against Sri Lanka in 2013, to raise funds for the COVID-19 relief work in his country.
Afridi bought the memorabilia for his foundation for USD 20,000.
"Shahid Afridi bought my bat on behalf of his foundation. I feel privileged and honoured that someone like him has joined our great cause," Rahim was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.
Last week, several fraud bidders had flooded the auction, leading to the suspension of the process. However, Afridi contacted Mushfiqur to buy the bat.
"We had to suspend the auction due to some fraud bidders, which was unexpected. Shahid bhai personally contacted me after seeing the news (of my bat put on auction). He sent an offer letter on May 13 that he was interested to buy for USD 20,000, which is ...

Afridi buys Mushfiqur's bat for USD 20,000

Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain became the final Juventus player to return to Italy as Serie A prepares to return to action on June 13.
Higuain arrived in Turin by private jet on Friday afternoon after a stopover in Las Palmas and was driven away by a waiting car.
The former Real Madrid, Chelsea and Napoli player will now spend two weeks in quarantine, according to media reports.
The 32-year-old international left Italy on March 19 to be with his sick mother in Argentina after a test confirmed he was negative for coronavirus despite three of his teammates testing positive.
Star attacker Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Turin from Portugal on May 4, the day individual training resumed in Italy, and has been in quarantine since.
Higuain was the last player to return after French midfielder Adrien Rabiot on Wednesday night.
Top-flight group training sessions will resume in Italy next Monday, with a return to competition slated for June 13.
Juventus were leading Serie A, one-point ahead of 

Higuain final Juventus player to return to Italy

The Premier League's bid to restart the season in June is in danger of being derailed by a heated debate between players about the risks of playing amid the coronavirus crisis.
While Premier League chiefs believe completing the campaign is essential to safeguard the financial and sporting future of the game, some stars are not so convinced.
AFP Sport looks at both sides of the row: "I'm not going to put my family at risk"
========================================
Watford captain Troy Deeney has been one of the loudest voices against returning to the pitch so soon.
Although the Premier League has agreed to fund regular testing for players and staff, there is no guarantee of keeping the virus at bay while vaccine trials remain in the early stages.
Adding to Deeney's concern, black and ethnic minorities are statistically more at risk of dying from the virus, leaving him adamant he will not gamble with his family's life just to satisfy the desire for football to resume.
"I'm not even ...

Player divide threatens Premier League's restart plan

Novak Djokovic said he is confident he will end his career as the greatest Grand Slam title winner of all time and break the record for weeks in the world number one spot.
The Serb has 17 majors, three back from the record of Roger Federer's 20 and two behind the 19 of Rafael Nadal.
Before the coronavirus brought the 2020 season to a halt, Djokovic had captured an eighth Australian Open and was on an 18-0 winning streak for the year.
"I think that I still have things to do in this sport. I believe that I can win the most Slams and break the record for most weeks at No. 1. Those are definitely my clear goals," Djokovic told the 'In Depth with Graham Bensinger' TV show.
Djokovic has been on top of the rankings for a combined total of 282 weeks.
Federer leads the way on 310 with the long-retired Pete Sampras on 286.
However, time is comfortably on the side of Djokovic who will celebrate his 33rd birthday on May 22.
Federer will be 39 in August while Nadal turns 34 in June.
Djokovic even .

Djokovic: 'I can beat Slam titles and world number one record'

Football in Germany returns to the pitch on Saturday as the Bundesliga becomes the first of Europe's top leagues to swing back into action since the coronavirus lockdown.
The German Football League (DFL) convinced Chancellor Angela Merkel and the country's regional leaders to allow play to resume by agreeing to submit to an extraordinary set of guidelines to prevent infection.
The stadiums will be empty and silent except for the players' shouts and the referees' whistles -- Germany has suffered far fewer deaths from coronavirus than other large European countries, but it is still too dangerous for crowds to return.
Borussia Dortmund will take on local rivals Schalke 04 in the Ruhr Derby on Saturday.
That fixture would normally have attracted an 82,000 crowd to Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park but supporters will be locked out.
On Sunday, Bayern Munich, who were four points clear at the top of the table when the season was suspended in March, will resume their quest for an eighth ...

German football returns under intense scrutiny

Bundesliga giant-killers Union Berlin will be without head coach Urs Fischer for Sunday's home clash against Bayern Munich after he broke the team quarantine following a family bereavement.
The Bundesliga becomes the first top European league to resume this weekend behind closed doors despite the coronavirus pandemic.
The guidelines for the German top flight's restart include a week-long quarantine for every club, which Fischer broke on Monday to join his family after the death of his father-in-law.
The Swiss plans to return to Berlin on Saturday, but will not rejoin the team, because he broke the German Football League (DFL) guidelines, the club said Friday.
"All our sympathy goes to the Fischer family in this difficult time," said Union president Dirk Zingler.
In the build-up to Sunday's game, Fischer's assistant coach Markus Hoffmann will take charge of Union and be on the bench for the match.
According to DFL guidelines, Fischer will only return to the team after two negative ...

Union coach Fischer to miss Bayern clash after quarantine breach

The Cyprus Football Association (CFA) on Friday officially ended the 2019-2020 season after saying it could not meet government coronavirus guidelines for clubs to return to playing behind closed doors.
In a statement issued on Friday, the CFA said the current protocols would not allow for teams to properly prepare for games, which could lead to players being seriously injured.
"Our main concern from the outset was the health of all those involved, from footballers, technical staff of teams, and other employees at stadiums," said the CFA statement.
The championship was suspended on 15 March after Cyprus' first COVID-19 cases were reported.
The first division was at the play-off stage with another nine rounds of fixtures to go. Omonia Nicosia and Anorthosis Famagusta were tied at the top with 46 points each, champions APOEL were six points behind.
The CFA said ending the season would allow clubs, which have seen their balance sheets crumble, some breathing space to maintain their ...

Cyprus calls an end to football season

The coronavirus shutdown of top-level tennis was extended on Friday when the ATP cancelled eight tournaments and the WTA eliminated four.
Wimbledon, which was due to end on July 12, had already been scratched as had the Olympics where the tennis was due to run from July 25 to August 2.
The ATP, which runs the men's tour, will not now host an event until the first week of August in Washington.
They have cancelled July tournaments in Bastad, Hamburg and Newport, Rhode Island, as well as Los Cabos in Mexico, Gstaad, Umag, Atlanta and Kitzbuehel in Austria.
"The extended suspension also applies to the ATP Challenger Tour and to men's events on the ITF World Tennis Tour," said the ATP on its web site.
A WTA spokesperson said that its events in Bastad, Lausanne, Bucharest and Jurmala in Latvia "will not be held, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic".
However, WTA tournaments in Palermo, from July 20-26, and in Karlsruhe, Germany, July 28 to August 2, are still on, for now.
"A decision ...

ATP cancels eight more events and WTA scratches four

FIFA's The Best awards ceremony, scheduled to be held in Milan on September 21, has been postponed as a result of the coronavirus crisis, world football's governing body confirmed on Friday.
It is unclear if or when the ceremony will be rearranged, with a FIFA spokesperson saying that "the consequences and different alternatives are being considered".
Lionel Messi and Megan Rapinoe won the best male and female prizes last year. The duo also took the honours at the 2019 Ballon d'Or.
Milan and the Lombardy region have been the epicentre of Italy's coronavirus outbreak, one of the worst in Europe in terms of deaths and infections.

FIFA postpone The Best awards ceremony scheduled for Milan in September

Team Chess Gurukul comprising young GM R Praggnanandhaa and national champion Aravindh Chithambaram took the lead on day one of the Indian chess.com League on Friday.
With 16 points after five rounds, Chess Gurukul is atop the points table.
Desi Boys is in second spot with 14.5 points followed by Undercover Agents and Superkids, both with 14 points.
Chess Gurukul, captained by noted coach and GM R B Ramesh, rode on impressive performances by Praggnanandhaa and Chithambaram, who both scored four points each.
After a 3-2 win over Chess Gyan in round one, Chess Gurukul had to share honours with Desi Boys in a 2.5-2.5 result as Chithambaram was outwitted by fellow GM Vaibhav Suri.
In other games, Chess Gurukul beat Chess Pathshala 3-2 before thrashing Cheeky Cheetahs 4-1 and Superkids 3.5-1.5.
Young GM D Gukesh, turning out for Five Fighters, picked up three points from his five matches but his team lies in sixth spot with 11.5 points.
Around 25 Indian Grandmasters are taking part in the .

Chess Gurukul seizes lead on day 1 of Indian chess league

South African Rugby announced significant pay cuts on Friday in its efforts to save up to 1.2-billion rand (USD 62 million) from its budget for a year in which rugby fixtures have been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jurie Roux, chief executive of SA Rugby, said the sport's salary bill for employees, players and officials had been reduced by 25 percent, with those on the highest pay scales losing up to 43 percent of their income.
Those earning less than 20,000 rand (about USD 1,025) a month would not be affected.
Some players opted to cancel their contracts after being given a window which expired on Thursday.
SA Rugby did not reveal how many players had taken this option but Springbok hooker Malcolm Marx is among them, according to local reports.
But Springbok wing Makazole Mapimpi, who scored South Africa's first try in their World Cup final win over England last year, has turned down an estimated USD 460,000 a year offer from a Japanese club, according to the Sport24 ...

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