NHL stars are set to return to Olympic ice hockey at Beijing next February after being forced to miss the 2018 Winter Games, it was revealed on Friday.
An agreement was struck after months of discussions between the NHL, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).
At the time of players being barred from competing at PyeongChang three years ago, it was reported the main sticking points were the cost of insuring and transporting players while on Olympic duty.
The International Olympic Committee said, in announcing the return of elite stars from the NHL, that it was "travel costs, television timings in North America, and league scheduling" that had prevented their participation last time out.
Full details of the new deal that will allow NHL stars to travel to China have yet to be disclosed, and players could yet be prevented from travelling if COVID-19 circumstances concern the league.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said: "We understand how passionately NHL players feel about representing and competing for their countries.
"We are very pleased that we were able to conclude arrangements that will allow them to resume best on best competition on the Olympic stage."
IIHF president Rene Fasel hailed the commitment, saying: "I know that I can speak for hockey fans around the world when I say that we absolutely welcome the decision to bring back best-on-best ice hockey to the Olympics.
"We had many constructive discussions, and a lot of hard work was put into making this happen within the time we set for ourselves, and I want to thank all parties involved for their support and commitment."
Players from the NHL had previously featured at each Games from Nagano 1998 through to Sochi 2014, before their absence was keenly felt in South Korea. The Winter Olympics ice hockey programme in 2022 is due to run from February 3-20, with the NHL having cleared a block in its season to allow for stars to compete.
The NHL and NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) indicated in a statement that any COVID-19 doubts could mean there is a change to their stance further down the line.
The statement read: "The agreement allows for the possibility of a later decision to withdraw in the event evolving COVID conditions are deemed by the NHL/NHLPA to render participation by NHL players to be impractical or unsafe."
With Canada and the United States hamstrung by having to field weakened teams in PyeongChang, it was the Olympic Athletes from Russia team who took gold in the men's final, beating Germany after overtime. Canada won bronze, with the United States exiting in the quarter-finals.
The 2021-22 NHL regular season is due to run from October 12 to April 29.
US venues for next year's T20 World Cup selected
The established Central Broward Regional Park Stadium has been announced as one of three venues which will host matches on the United States leg of the men’s Twenty20 World Cup next year.
Located in Lauderhill, Florida, the venue has already hosted six One-Day Internationals and 16 Twenty20 Internationals and will be joined by Grand Prairie in Dallas and the yet-to-be constructed Eisenhower Park in New York.
The T20 World Cup is being jointly hosted by West Indies and the United States from June 4-30.
“We’re delighted to announce the three USA venues that will host part of the biggest ICC Men’s T20 World Cup ever staged, with 20 teams competing for the trophy,” said ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice.
“The USA is a strategically important market, and these venues give us an excellent opportunity to make a statement in the world’s biggest sport market.
“We explored a number of potential venue options in the country, and we were hugely encouraged by the enthusiasm the event generated amongst prospective hosts, reinforcing the growing awareness around cricket’s massive fanbase and its power to unite diverse communities.”
He continued: “We are very excited about the opportunity to use modular stadium technology to present world class cricket in a location that has not previously hosted an ICC global event giving USA cricket fans the chance to watch the world’s best on their doorstep.
“This technology has been used at previous ICC events to increase venue capacity and it’s routinely used in other major sports around the world.
“In the USA, it will give us the opportunity to increase the size of the venues in both Dallas and Florida and create what is going to be a stunning venue in New York.”
The ICC said Wednesday the Eisenhower Park, to be constructed in Nassau County, would be built to a capacity of 34 000 and take the form of a purpose-built sports and events park.
Nassau County is an affluent area located on Long Island, on the outskirts of New York City.
“Whether it be PGA events, record breaking concerts in our parks, or the annual Belmont Stakes, we are no stranger to hosting large scale events on the world stage,” said Nassau County Executive, Bruce Blakeman.
“I look forward to bringing our many diverse communities together to watch some of the best cricket in the world, right here in Nassau County.”
Grand Prairie, meanwhile, came to cricketing prominence earlier this year when it hosted matches in the inaugural Major League Cricket tournament.
Fraser-Pryce suffers muscle strain, as Jamaica cop 4x100m silver behind United States
It was always expected to be an almighty clash between reigning women’s 4x100m relay champions United States and Olympic champions Jamaica. In the end, it was the Americans who prevailed in the final at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary on Saturday.
The American quartet of Tamari Davis, Twanisha Terry, Gabrielle Thomas and Sha’Carri Richardson, topped the event in a Championship record 41.03s Championship Record, ahead of their Jamaican counterparts – Natasha Morrison, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Shashalee Forbes and Shericka Jackson –who ended in season’s best 41.21s.
Great Britain’s quartet of Asha Phillip, Imani Lansiquot, Bianca Williams and Daryll Neita, was third in a season’s best 41.97s.
During the event, Fraser-Pryce who has been braving a chronic knee injury, suffered what is reported to be a muscle strain, but like a warrior, pushed through the difficulty to safely hand off the baton, ensuring the country ended with a medal.
Jamaican quartet clocks World Leading 3:22.74 to top qualifiers for women's 4x400m relays final; favourites United States disqualified
A prayer before making their way into the stadium was the perfect way for the Jamaican quartet to start their bid in the women’s 4X400m relays and they will indeed challenge for a medal at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
This, as they booked their spot in Sunday’s showpiece event, after finishing tops in their heat on Saturday.
Cherokee Young, running from lane eight, ran the lead leg for the Jamaicans handing off to Nickesha Pryce, who ran a well-paced leg to send Shiann Salmon on her way.
Salmon did well to maintain the gap for Stacey-Ann Williams, who only had to run steady and true to take the team home in a new world leading time 3:22.74.
They won ahead of Canada (3:23.29), with Netherlands (3:23.75) taking the third automatic qualifying spot.
Great Britain won the second heat in 3:23.33, ahead of the favourites United States, who were later disqualified via Technical Rule 24.7, as they passed the baton outside the takeover zone.
That meant Belgium (3:23.63) and Italy (3:23.86) got second and third respectively, while Poland (3:24.05) and Ireland (3:26.18) got the two fastest non-automatic qualifying spots.
The final will be the curtain-call event of the nine-day Championships at 2:47pm Jamaica time.
Catch live action of the 2023 World Athletics Championships by downloading the Sportsmax App.
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