The 2024 WNBA All-Star roster is set, with rookies Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark both heading to Phoenix to face Team USA.
The All-Star Game will be the first time the two fan-favorites have linked up on the same team, having previously gone up against each other in college with Clark representing Iowa and Reese playing for LSU and Maryland.
"I don't think I've ever been her teammate before, even at USA Basketball. I know people will be really excited about it, but I hope it doesn't take away from everyone else," Clark told reporters after Tuesday's announcement. "This is a huge accomplishment for everybody on Team USA and everyone on Team WNBA. They all deserve the same praise. I don't want it to take away from any of that and be the focal point of All-Star weekend because that's not fair to them."
When she got the news, Reese became emotional about being named an All-Star. The Chicago Sky forward, who extended her double-double record to 11 games on Tuesday, was also named Rookie of the Month for June.
"I'm just so happy. I know the work I put in," Reese said. "Coming into this league, so many people doubted me and didn't think my game would translate and I wouldn't be the player that I was in college or better or would be worse and wouldn't be where I am right now.
"But I trusted the process and I believed and I'm thankful that I dropped to [pick No. 7] and was able to come to Chicago. And like, it's just a blessing. I can't thank my teammates and my coaches enough for just believing in me and trusting me. I know all of them are going to come to Phoenix and support me. So I'm really happy right now."
Also named to Team WNBA was nine-time All-Star Nneka Ogwumike and six-time All-Star DeWanna Bonner alongside Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell of Indiana. The Fever led all teams with three All-Star selections.
Clark was the top vote-getter, followed by Boston and Team USA's A’ja Wilson.
Kansas City's pioneering CPKC Stadium has been tapped to host the 2024 NWSL Championship, the league announced Wednesday morning.
The stadium opened earlier this year as the first venue to be built specifically for an NWSL team. So far this season, the unbeaten Current have been selling out the 11,500-seat capacity stadium for every home game.
It will mark the first time that Kansas City has hosted the NWSL Championship, and the Current's first-place perch in the league standings means they could very well feature in the match come November. The Current are one of just two teams to have not lost a game yet this season.
The 2024 Championship will take place on November 23rd — the latest-scheduled NWSL final in league history.
"CPKC Stadium epitomizes the explosive growth and investment we are witnessing in the NWSL, women’s soccer, and women’s sports around the world," NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman said in a press release.
"It was a natural choice to stage the league’s marquee event in a venue that exemplifies the profound impact of infrastructure, investment, and community support on the continued development and success of our sport."
Considering the team's track record of selling out home matches, it’s almost guaranteed that this year's Championship game will sell out. Last year’s league final, held at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, set a Championship attendance record with 25,011 fans.
"The NWSL Championship is one of the premier global sporting events in the world," said Current co-founder and owner Chris Long. "We're absolutely thrilled that Kansas City and CPKC Stadium were chosen to host this prestigious event."
The WSL summer transfer window is heating up, with a number of big names on the move.
One of the biggest stars on the market is Dutch international Vivianne Miedema. The storied striker's contract with Arsenal — her team of seven years — expired on Sunday, with the Gunners choosing back in May not to offer the WSL’s leading scorer a new deal.
At the time, former England star Ellen White called the decision "shocking that [Arsenal] haven't shown her the love to want to keep her at the club… she's still got records to break. It's just outrageous."
Manchester City is reportedly in the market to land Miedema, who doesn’t appear to be leaving the WSL despite prior interest from outside of the UK.
Meanwhile, 2023 World Cup Golden Glove winner Mary Earps officially left Manchester United for a two-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain, the club announced on Monday.
And in other speculative news, five-time Champions League winner Lucy Bronze is reportedly set to sign with WSL side Chelsea, departing Barcelona after two seasons with the decorated Spanish team. The potential move follows ex-Barcelona coach Jonatan Giraldez's departure for the NWSL’s Washington Spirit, while Chelsea brought on former Lyon boss Sonia Bompastor following Emma Hayes’s departure.
World No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka is out of Wimbledon, withdrawing due to a shoulder injury sustained in Berlin.
Sabalenka also recently pulled out of the Olympics, citing injury concerns with the change of surface.
"I tried everything to get myself ready but unfortunately my shoulder is not cooperating," Sabalenka said on Instagram. "I pushed myself to the limit in practice today to try my best, but my team explained that playing would only make things much worse.
"This tournament means so much to me and I promise I'll be back stronger than ever next year."
Since winning the Australian Open to kick off the season, Sabalenka has struggled with a back injury. She also dealt with illness at the French Open, falling in the quarterfinals to 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva.
Sabalenka has been replaced in the draw by Mira's older sister Erika Andreeva, who lost in qualifiers last week.
Chicago forward Angel Reese continues to make WNBA history, setting a new league record for consecutive double-doubles this past weekend.
Reese had her 10th-straight double-double against Commissioner's Cup champs Minnesota, finishing with 10 points and 16 rebounds in the 70-62 loss. The streak one-ups the previous record set by then-LA Sparks star Candace Parker in 2015.
"She's gonna continue to do what she does, that's who she is, she's always gonna come out and play hard and confident and give you everything that she has," Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon said of Reese’s performance on Sunday, which included going 4-of-16 from the floor. "She's the hardest person on herself, so proud of what she's doing and what she'll continue to do."
With three more double-doubles, Reese could break the longest streak in W history, also currently held by Parker, who put up 12 straight between 2009 and 2010. The only other player in Chicago history to put up more than seven consecutive double-doubles is Sylvia Fowles, who had two runs of eight in 2011 and 2012.
This marked the third time in the last four games that Reese registered at least 15 rebounds. She currently leads the league with 11.4 per game.
After 15 games as head coach, the Utah Royals have dismissed Amy Rodriguez with 11 games left in the season.
Currently, the team is in last place in the NWSL with one game to play before the league pauses for the Paris Olympics. Jimmy Coenraets, who was recently appointed an assistant coach, will serve as interim head coach while leadership searches for a permanent replacement.
Goalkeeper coach Maryse Bard-Martel has also been released from her position, while the team president Michelle Hyncik has been reassigned to a legal role within the family’s front office.
"This expansion season has been full of lessons and learnings, and we are now focused on reorganizing leadership efforts on and off the pitch," acting Royals’ operations leader and Real Salt Lake president John Kimball said in an official team statement. "We are grateful and appreciative of Amy, Michelle, and Maryse and their efforts in helping re-introduce the Royals to Utah's incredible fans and the international soccer community.
"We believe women's sports are a vital part of Utah's culture. Our club and ownership group are committed to delivering a product our fans will be proud of. While we have faced adversity this season, we are focused on building a team off and on the field that can compete at the highest levels for years to come."
Former USWNT star Rodriguez, who played for the Royals from 2018 through 2020, came on as the team's first head coach after an assistant coaching stint at USC. Utah returned to the NWSL this season as an expansion team after being moved to Kansas City at the end of 2020.
The Royals have conceded a league-worst 27 goals so far this season while scoring just seven of their own.
Simone Biles is headed to her third Olympics, headlining a Team USA that includes a number of familiar faces.
Joining her are Suni Lee, Jordan Chiles, and Jade Carey — both Lee and Chiles were on the Olympic team three years ago, while Carey competed as an individual qualifier in Tokyo and won gold on floor. Teenager Hezly Rivera is the team’s only newcomer.
"This is definitely our redemption tour," Biles said at the US Olympic Gymnastics Trials on Sunday. "I feel like we all have more to give.
"I knew I wasn’t done after Tokyo," Biles added. "Getting back to the gym, trusting the process, I knew I’d be back."
Biles spent much of the Tokyo Olympics on the sidelines after getting the Twisties. Lee went on to win Olympic gold in the all-around, but has struggled in the last year with kidney disease. She was emotional Sunday, telling reporters she "didn’t think I’d be here."
"I’m so, so glad I kept going," she said. "There were so many times I thought about quitting and walking away from this sport."
Joscelyn Roberson and Leanne Wong were named alternates, while leading contenders Shilese Jones, Skye Blakely, and Kayla DiCello all exited with injuries.
At 27 years old, Biles is Team USA’s oldest Olympic gymnast since 1952. And as a whole, this year’s squad is the oldest to ever represent the US at the Olympics, with Carey (24), Chiles (23), and Lee (21) all over the age of 20.
With 2016 all-around gold medalist Biles and defending champion Lee, the roster will be the first from any country in Olympic history to have two Olympic all-around champions on the mat as the quartet hopes to improve on their 2021 silver-medal team finish.
"Of course, gold is the goal," Chiles said. "But this redemption tour is not about that. It’s about us. We all went through so much in Tokyo, and to be back, I’m so proud of all of us."
Biles, however, is taking things one step at a time.
"I feel like success is just what I make it," she said. "I feel like right now I’ve been successful of competing at Olympic trials and making the Paris Olympic team. So then we’ll see from there on out."
Wimbledon will begin on Monday, with French Open-winner Iga Swiatek looking to take her first grass court major title.
Others looking to challenge her include Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka, Ons Jabeur, and 2023 Wimbledon champ Marketa Vondrousova.
Grass isn't the strongest surface for some of the world’s heaviest hitters, including Swiatek, Gauff, and Sabalenka. Jabeur, meanwhile, will be looking to win her first Grand Slam singles title after falling short in last year’s final.
But the tournament’s proximity to the Paris Olympics — combined with the fact that the Olympics will be played on clay courts — has resulted in a number of key players dropping out of the Summer Games.
Sabalenka, Jabeur, and American Madison Keys are among a group of top players declining to participate in the Summer Games, citing health and fitness concerns in relation to a tight schedule played on multiple surfaces.
"We have decided that the quick change of surface and the body’s adaptation required would put my knee at risk and jeopardize the rest of my season," Jabeur posted on social media regarding her Olympic withdrawal.
"It’s too much with the scheduling," Sabalenka echoed. "It’s just too much. I made the decision to take care of my health."
Both Swiatek and Gauff, who excel on clay courts, are still planning to participate this summer in Paris.
Despite a recent slump, the Aces are off to a three-game winning streak following Thursday’s 95-83 victory over Chicago.
Star point guard Chelsea Gray, who spent the first part of the season rehabbing from a lingering injury suffered in last year's WNBA Finals, has provided some much-needed depth in her return to the starting lineup. A'ja Wilson, Jackie Young, and Kelsey Plum all scored 20+ points in the win, with Wilson extending her league record of consecutive regular season games with 20+ points to 20.
But all was not lost for Chicago rookie Angel Reese, who tied Candace Parker's WNBA record for longest double-double streak in a single season with her ninth double-double in a row.
Compliments abound for the Aces after the whistle blew on what was Theresa Weatherspoon and Becky Hammon’s first WNBA matchup as head coaches. The WNBA legends played together on the New York Liberty from 1999 to 2003.
"Look at [Hammon's] team," Weatherspoon told reporters in a joint press conference with her former teammate. "What they’re doing, where they’re going, how they play, and how much fun they have — that’s how we play. It’s beautiful to see, and of course a measuring stick."
The 2024 US Olympic Track & Field Trials returned to action on Thursday, with track stars Sha’Carri Richardson and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone both in the mix.
Richardson is competing in the 200-meter after winning the 100-meter and securing her spot on the Olympic team. McLaughlin-Levron, meanwhile, is competing in the 400-meter hurdles — an event in which she currently holds the world record.
McLaughlin-Levron won Thursday's heat handily, and will now advance to Saturday's semifinal. Her time of 53.07 bested Anna Cockrell's second-fastest time by 1.64 seconds.
"[That] felt good," she told NBC after the win. "I'm honestly excited to be out here and shake off the nerves. My stride pattern felt good. Just getting the feel of the rounds again; I really feel good."
Richardson also made light work of Thursday's heats, winning the 200-meter hurdles with a time of 21.99 — the second-fastest recorded this year — and advancing with ease to the semifinals.
"I’m really just focusing in on executing the curve to make the straightaway much, much easier," she told reporters. "Any time I touch the track it's an opportunity for me to work on my best self."
Elsewhere, discus thrower Valarie Allman confirmed that she too would defend her Tokyo medal in Paris this summer, winning her event on Thursday by more than eight meters.