Buffalo Bills safety Micah Hyde made his retirement official after 11 NFL seasons by posting a note on his Instagram account. The 34-year-old Hyde had already made clear this past season would be his last after signing to the Bills practice squad in early December. He spent the remainder of the season and playoffs on the practice squad in serving more of a role as on-field mentor to Buffalo’s young safeties. Hyde spent seven years in Buffalo and his first four seasons with Green Bay.

The 30th season of Big 12 football will kick off with a conference game in Dublin, Ireland. That season-opening game between Kansas State and Iowa State on Aug. 23 had been announced previously. The Big 12 on Tuesday released the rest of its conference schedule. Each of the 16 teams will play nine conference games. The league’s championship game is Dec. 6 in Arlington, Texas. There are only two weekends when all 16 conference teams will be in action. Those are Labor Day weekend, and then eight conference games that will be played Thanksgiving weekend to end the regular season.

The New York Islanders have placed Mathew Barzal on injured reserve with a lower body injury. Barzal, who missed 21 days earlier this season due to an upper body injury, was hurt in the third period of the Islanders’ overtime win at Tampa Bay on Saturday. He left in the final minute of regulation after taking a shot by the Lightning’s Darren Raddysh off his left leg. Barzal has six goals and 14 assists in 30 games this season.

The Daytona 500 is coming up on Feb. 16 as NASCAR launches its season with its biggest event of the year. Denny Hamlin will be trying to win his fourth Daytona 500 and William Byron will go for the repeat. They are part of a field that includes Chase Elliott, Bubba Wallace, Kyle Larson, Kyle Busch and Ryan Blaney. Four-time Indianapolis 500 winner Helio Castroneves will be driving for Trackhouse Racing in hopes of making his NASCAR debut at 49.

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid is available for Tuesday night’s game against the Dallas Mavericks after missing the last 15. Embiid has appeared in just 13 games in an injury-plagued season. The left knee injury was the latest ailment to sideline the seven-time All-Star. Coach Nick Nurse said there are no minutes restriction on the 7-footer and expects him to play around 30 minutes, depending on how Embiid feels and how the game is going.

Florida point guard Walter Clayton Jr. won’t play against Vanderbilt. The sixth-ranked Gators ruled Clayton out about an hour before the opening tip. Denzel Aberdeen is expected to start in his place. Clayton rolled his ankle late in the first half of a lopsided loss at then-No. 8 Tennessee on Saturday. He returned to start the second half but slipped in front of the bench to give coach Todd Golden and his teammates another scare. Florida plays at top-ranked Auburn on Saturday.

Wisconsin cornerback Nyzier Fourqurean says he would earn “hundreds of thousands” of dollars in compensation if he receives an injunction enabling him to maintain his eligibility and play for the Badgers this fall. Fourqurean testified during a U.S. District Court hearing. Fourqueran has argued that the two seasons he played at Division II program Grand Valley State shouldn’t count against his college eligibility. Fourqurean is hoping to get a decision on his request before Friday’s deadline for opting out of consideration for the NFL draft.

Free agent forward Natasha Howard signed with the Indiana Fever for one primary reason — she's chasing a fourth championship ring. She believes it could happen this year as she prepares to team up with superstar Caitlin Clark. The two-time WNBA All-Star and the league's 2019 Defensive Player of the Year is the face of an offseason overhaul that has turned one of the league's youngest and most promising teams into a title contender. Howard was re-introduced Tuesday in the city where she started her pro career.

Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt sees his first opportunity to play in a Super Bowl as a product of his approach to second chances. Hunt says he was determined to make the most of his second stint with Kansas City this season and told the Chiefs they wouldn't regret signing him in the early weeks of the 2024 season. Hunt began his career with Kansas City in 2017 and rushed for 1,327 yards as a rookie, but was cut in November of 2018 after a video surfaced of him kicking a woman in a hotel hallway. Hunt spent the past five seasons in Cleveland. He underwent sports hernia surgery and was without a team when this season began.

Houston Astros all-time saves leader Billy Wagner will have his jersey number retired. It's an honor that coincides with his induction into the Hall of Fame. No. 13 will be the 10th number retired by the Astros. A ceremony will be held Aug. 16. The Astros retire numbers for players who make the Hall of Fame. Wagner will be inducted July 27 with Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Dave Parker and Dick Allen. Wagner saved 225 games for the Astros from 1995-2003. He went on to save 197 games for the Phillies, Mets, Red Sox and Braves.

The Columbus Blue Jackets have overcome plenty of adversity to find themselves climbing into playoff contention in a season they began by mourning the death of Johnny Gaudreau and brother Matthew. The Blue Jackets enter their game at Buffalo on Tuesday night enjoying a 14-5-2 roll that has them holding the Eastern Conference's eighth and final playoff spot. They're winning despite a lineup that's missing numerous key players, including captain Boone Jenner. Also out against Buffalo were star defenseman Zach Werenski and forward Kirill Marchenko. Forward Adam Fantilli says Gaudreau's death has brought the team closer together.

Two-time Gold Glove shortstop Nick Ahmed and outfielder Sam Haggerty will go to major league spring training with the Texas Rangers. The team said Tuesday that both players have agreed to minor league contracts. Ahmed started games at shortstop last season for San Francisco, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego after playing for Arizona from 2014-23. He's the Diamondbacks’ career leader with 789 starts at shortstop and won Gold Gloves in 2018 and 2019. Haggerty played in 191 games over parts of the past five seasons for Seattle.

A person familiar with the agreement tells The Associated Press that Tim Hill is staying with the New York Yankees, agreeing to a $2.85 million, one-year contract. Hill gets a $2.5 million salary this year and the deal includes a $3 million team option for 2026 with a $350,000 buyout. The person spoke Tuesday on condition of anonymity because the contract was subject to a successful physical. New York does not currently have a left-handed reliever on its 40-man roster. Hill signed with New York midseason and went 1-0 with a 2.05 ERA in 35 outings.

Coach Andy Reid doesn’t plan to leave the Kansas City sideline any time soon. As Reid prepares the Chiefs for their fifth Super Bowl appearance in six seasons, the 66-year-old put to rest any talk that he was ready to hang it up if Kansas City wins a third straight title. Reid says he will be back and that he enjoys the teaching and the players. Reid has a chance to become the third coach with four Super Bowl wins. His 301 wins in the regular season and playoffs rank fourth all time.

Santiago Castro had an immediate impact off the bench as he scored the goal to send Bologna into the Italian Cup semifinals for the first time in 26 years. Bologna won 1-0 at last year’s runner-up Atalanta and will play either holder Juventus or Empoli in the final four. Juventus hosts Empoli in their quarterfinal on Feb. 26. The last time Bologna was in the semifinal was in 1999 when it lost 4-2 to Fiorentina. Bologna broke the deadlock 10 minutes from time when Castro escaped his marker at the far post to headed in a free kick. The 20-year-old Argentinian had come off the bench less than two minutes earlier.

Nell Fortner has been given a three-year contract extension after leading Georgia Tech to an 18-4 start this season and the No. 17 spot in the AP poll. The extension continues through the 2029-30 season. Fortner, in her sixth season, has led the Yellow Jackets to a 106-69 record. The team’s record is the best for the program through 22 games. Freshman Dani Carnegie has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Rookie of the Week five times. Fortner led Georgia Tech to three NCAA tournaments in her first five seasons, including the Sweet 16 in 2021.

Deniz Undav has fired Stuttgart into the German Cup semifinals with a 1-0 victory over Augsburg. The Germany forward scored in the 30th minute after being set up by former Augsburg forward Ermedin Demirović. Stuttgart ended a three-game losing streak. Defending champion Bayer Leverkusen hosts local rival Cologne in a quarterfinal on Wednesday. Stuttgart next faces Borussia Dortmund away in the Bundesliga on Saturday.

The Tennessee Titans have hired Travis Smith as their defensive run game coordinator and promoted Lori Locust to a defensive assistant coach. The Titans announced the moves Tuesday. Smith spent the past three seasons as Chicago’s defensive line coach with the Bears leading the NFL in fewest yards rushing allowed and fifth in yards per carry and gave up the second-fewest rushing touchdowns with eight. Smith also spent 10 seasons with the Raiders in a variety of roles. Locust goes into her third season with the Titans in a new role as Brian Callahan tinkers with his coaching staff after his first season.

Anthony Davis gave up a $6 million bonus as part of the seismic trade that brought him to the Dallas Mavericks and sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in a rare swap of superstars. Perhaps it was the first small step for the 10-time All-Star in trying to illustrate his understanding of the magnitude of a move that infuriated fans of his new team. Most of the ire has been directed at general manager Nico Harrison. Still, Davis is at risk of being viewed by Dallas fans as the guy in the deal that cost them their beloved Doncic. Davis seems well aware of it.

Carson Wentz once again will mostly be a spectator on the sidelines for a Super Bowl appearance by the Philadelphia Eagles. Seven years after he watched his backup Nick Foles win the MVP after delivering the Eagles their first Super Bowl title, Wentz is back on the big stage as a backup to Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes as the Chiefs prepare to take on his former team and his former backup, Jalen Hurts. Wentz describes his journey that took him to Kansas City after stops in Indianapolis, Washington and Los Angeles as a “whirlwind” but he is thankful to be on a team still.

Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen underwent knee surgery in New York on Tuesday. Stars coach Pete DeBoer told reporters before Tuesday night’s game against the Anaheim Stars that Heiskanen’s status is classified as “month to month,” possibly leaving a window for him to return late in the regular season or during the playoffs. Heiskanen was slated to play for Finland in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off tournament but was ruled out late last week. Heiskanen was injured in the third period of the Stars’ 4-3 overtime victory over Vegas on Jan. 28 after taking a hit from Mark Stone, who fell toward Heiskanen’s left knee and thigh after getting tripped.

Canada wing back Alphonso Davies has finally signed a contract extension with Bayern Munich. The Bavarian powerhouse says the 24-year-old Davies has signed a deal through June 2030. His contract was set to expire at the end of this season. Talks between the club and player were protracted amid reported interest from Real Madrid. But the Spanish team failed to act decisively on its supposed interest and Davies opted to stay at the club that he joined in 2018 for a then-record MSL fee from the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Howie Roseman’s journey to becoming one of the top executives in professional sports began as an unpaid summer intern with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2000. He rose to become the youngest general manager in the NFL at age 34 in 2010, fulfilling a childhood dream that began in elementary school when he would evaluate college players and put together a draft board. There may be no other team executive who has been criticized more severely and loved more passionately than Roseman. Eagles fans once vilified Roseman but now refer to the offseason as “Howie Season” because of his ability to manage the salary cap and add players.

The Los Angeles Lakers’ acquisition of Luka Doncic has altered the future of a franchise that had been trying to squeeze one more championship run out of 40-year-old LeBron James’ partnership with Anthony Davis. The Lakers’ next decade suddenly looks much brighter with Doncic at center stage, and they could even contend for a ring this year if Doncic makes a quick connection with James. Doncic is out with a strained left calf, but he is expected to be healthy fairly soon. He will practice with the Lakers this week before they make a firm plan for his debut.

The NFL is stenciling “Choose Love” in the back of one of the end zones at the Superdome for the Super Bowl on Sunday in an effort to encourage the country after a series of tragedies over the first six weeks of the year. “It Takes All of Us” will be stenciled in the other end zone as it’s been since the league began using field stencils in 2020 for the NFL’s Inspire Change initiative. Teams this season have selected “Vote,” “End Racism,” “Stop Hate,” or “Choose Love” for the other end zone.

Nebraska senior guard Brice Williams is the Associated Press men's college basketball national player of the week. It comes after he had two big games in wins against ranked foes Illinois and Oregon in the Big Ten. He had 27 points in the win against the Illini, then 28 against the Ducks. Monmouth's Madison Durr was runner-up after scoring 67 points in two wins last week, including making all 33 of his free throws. Auburn's Johni Broome and Duke's Cooper Flagg earned honorable-mention status. Both of them have claimed the honor multiple times this year.

North Carolina coach Hubert Davis is planning changes to the staffing of the blueblood men’s basketball program. That includes hiring a general manager to navigate the era of players being able to profit from their athletic fame. The fourth-year coach talked about plans during his radio coaches’ show Monday night. It comes at a time when the Tar Heels are at risk of missing the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years. Davis had passed on hiring a general manager when he took over for retiring Hall of Famer Roy Williams in 2021.

Reigning MVPs Nikola Jokic and Nathan MacKinnon can be seen on television again by a majority of Colorado fans after Altitude Sports ended a long-running dispute with Comcast, the region’s largest cable provider. Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, the owner of Altitude Sports, and Comcast announced Tuesday that Altitude has returned to Xfinity TV customers. Comcast hasn’t carried Altitude since its previous contract expired in 2019. Comcast stopped carrying Altitude due to a disagreement over fees the cable giant was charging to carry the network. The live game broadcasts start Tuesday night with the Avalanche playing at Vancouver.

Two people with knowledge of the deal say the Dallas Mavericks are acquiring Caleb Martin in a trade with Philadelphia that sends Quentin Grimes to the 76ers. The Mavericks made the move three days after the seismic trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis in a rare swap of superstars. Martin and Grimes both were in their first seasons with their teams, who were playing each other Tuesday night in Philadelphia. Martin signed with the 76ers in free agency. Grimes came to Dallas in an offseason trade with Detroit.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid first met Brett Veach after he had been recommended for a coaching internship while Big Red was still with the Eagles. One of his tasks? Running out for Reid’s cheeseburger order. All these years later, Veach is still delivering the goods for Reid, only now it’s as the general manager of the Chiefs franchise chasing an unprecedented third consecutive Super Bowl title. Veach has managed to retain key players such as Patrick Mahomes and Chris Jones with massive contracts while also massaging the salary cap in such a way that he continues to fill holes each offseason. And his track record in the draft is the envy of GMs across the NFL.

President Donald Trump will attend the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Sunday, according to the White House. It will be his first trip as president to the game, as the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles. Trump’s trip was confirmed by a White House official that was not authorized to speak publicly about the president’s plans. Trump is also scheduled to sit for an interview with Fox News’ Bret Baier as part of the network’s pre-show programming, which is set to be taped from Florida before the game.

Big Charlie's Saloon is filled with Kansas City Chiefs fans and memorabilia and seems like it would fit just fine among the cluster of sports bars in Kansas City. But it sits on a corner in South Philadelphia, about a dozen blocks away from the home stadium of the Eagles. The banner that hangs outside on the brick wall of Big Charlie’s Saloon says it all in big, bold, red and yellow letters: CHIEFS. Citing safety concerns, the bar will close on Sunday when the Chiefs play the Eagles in the Super Bowl.

Mikayla Blakes is The Associated Press women's college basketball player of the week. The Vanderbilt freshman guard set the NCAA freshman single-game scoring record with 53 points against Florida. She's the only men's or women's Division I player to score at least 50 points this season. Hannah Hidalgo of Notre Dame was the runner-up. She averaged 32 points and five assists while shooting 57.9% from the field. The sophomore guard was the only player in the country to put together back-to-back 30-point performances last week to help the Irish beat Virginia Tech and Louisville.

A total of 373 3-year-olds have been made eligible to compete in this year’s Triple Crown series during the early nomination period. Led by Citizen Bull, last year’s 2-year-old champion male, each of the horses was nominated through a $600 payment to compete in the Kentucky Derby on May 3, Preakness on May 17 and Belmont Stakes at Saratoga on June 7. This year's total is a 7.8% increase from last year's 346 early nominations. A record 69 Japan-based horses were nominated. Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher has nominated 32 horses, followed by Bob Baffert with 21.

Cristiano Ronaldo approaches his 40th birthday with the same confidence and self-esteem as he has always boasted throughout his successful career. Ronaldo turns 40 on Wednesday and apparently has no doubt about who should be considered the best soccer player ever. In an interview with Spanish television channel La Sexta he says “I am the most complete player who has ever existed.” The Portugal star holds most scoring records in men’s international soccer, including most appearances with 217 and most goals with 135.

Big jumps. Lots of terrain. Steep pitches. The downhill course at the Alpine skiing world championships would have been a challenge for Lindsey Vonn’s aching legs before she retired in 2019. Now that she’s replaced part of her right knee with titanium? No problem. Vonn says after placing 20th in the opening training session that “this is probably the worst hill for someone with bad knees but I felt great.” She adds that “none of the landings hurt at all.” Vonn returned to the skiing circuit in December at the age of 40.

Chelsea has confirmed the signing of 19-year-old midfielder Mathis Amougou from Saint-Etienne. Amougou who made 17 top-flight appearances for the French club signed an eight-year contract at Stamford Bridge. He says “It’s an honor for me to sign for such a big club like Chelsea. They believe in young players and the process they have in place to develop us is fantastic.”

Italy beat Switzerland to win the mixed team parallel event that opened the Alpine skiing world championships. Thomas Tumler was slow out of the gate in the decisive heat of the final and couldn’t catch up to Italy’s Alex Vinatzer. The final ended 2-2 and Italy won with an advantage of 0.45 seconds in total time. The defending champion United States lost the bronze-medal race to Sweden. Host Austria was eliminated early on by Sweden. The women’s super-G featuring Lindsey Vonn on Thursday is the first individual event of the championships.

Luka Doncic has officially joined the Lakers after the Dallas Mavericks sent the superstar scorer to Los Angeles in a seismic trade. Doncic and general manager Rob Pelinka met with the media Tuesday morning at the Lakers’ training complex. The Lakers traded Anthony Davis and Max Christie in a three-team deal to acquire Doncic, the NBA’s leading scorer last season before leading the Mavs to the NBA Finals. Stars of Doncic’s age and accomplishments are rarely traded, but Dallas made the deal to give up on its 25-year-old centerpiece — and the Lakers eagerly accepted.

For Rory McIlroy, it's all about location. He won at Pebble Beach and that was important to him. He already was looking ahead to major championship venues like Quail Hollow and Royal Portrush. The Masters is always on his mind. More than winning at Pebble Beach was the way he won. McIlroy showed more discipline than usual. He says that's one of the traits he saw in Scottie Scheffler. McIlroy says he's trying to be more of a thinker and less an impulsive player. He thinks that's how Scheffler has separated himself from the rest of golf.

Former Green Bay Packers kicker Mason Crosby says he is retiring from football. Crosby announced his decision Tuesday on his radio show after a 2024 season in which he didn't play. He ends his career as the Packers’ all-time leading scorer after kicking for Green Bay from 2007-22. The Packers opted against re-signing Crosby in 2023 and instead drafted Anders Carlson in the sixth round of that year’s draft. Crosby played three games for the New York Giants in 2023. Crosby's 1,939 career points rank 11th in NFL history. All but 21 of those points came with the Packers.

A police officer says he felt “belittled and upset” following an incident involving Chelsea forward Samantha Kerr, a court has heard. Australia captain Kerr is on trial charged with causing racially aggravated harassment to Metropolitan police officer Stephen Lovell in London in the early hours of Jan. 30, 2023. It is alleged that Kerr and her partner, West Ham midfielder Kristie Mewis, had been out drinking when they were driven to Twickenham Police Station by a taxi driver who complained that they had refused to pay clean-up costs after one of them was sick, and that one of them smashed the vehicle’s rear window.

Tyler Reddick would welcome a quiet offseason. The 29-year-old NASCAR driver feels like it’s been years since he’s been able to truly relax during the sport’s three-month hiatus. His most recent “break” was his most chaotic. Reddick was thrust into headlines as part of the ongoing legal battle between his 23XI Racing team, the one co-owned by NASCAR star Denny Hamlin and NBA great Michael Jordan, and the sanctioning body. A judge ruled in favor of the team and will allow it to compete with charter recognition in 2025. But the fight isn't over as Reddick turns his attention to the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 16.

Snowboarding. Skiing. And now windsurfing, too? Ester Ledecka already pulled off a stunning feat at the 2018 Winter Olympics when she claimed golds in two different sports in Pyeongchang with victories in Alpine skiing and snowboarding. The Summer Olympics could be up next for the multi-talented Czech athlete. Ledecka has already competed in the Defi Wind competition in France and she might be tempted to take a crack at qualifying in windsurfing for the 2028 Los Angeles Games. She’s been windsurfing since she was 5. Ledecka says “right now it’s more of a hobby.” Then she added "but yeah, why not?”

The Hall of Fame voter who declined to select Ichiro Suzuki remains a mystery. All 321 voters who allowed their ballots to be made public Tuesday by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America selected the Japanese star. Suzuki appeared on 393 of 394 ballots when voting was announced on Jan. 21. The Hall’s rules allow each voter the choice whether to make a ballot public. The BBWAA voted 80-19 at its December 2016 meeting to propose making all ballots public, but the Hall of Fame’s board of directors decided to leave the decision up to each voter.

Umpire Pat Hoberg is the latest professional sports figure caught in a betting scandal. The 38-year-old Hoberg was fired by Major League Baseball on Monday for sharing his legal sports gambling accounts with a friend who bet on baseball games and for intentionally deleting electronic messages pertinent to the league’s investigation. MLB opened its investigation last February when it was brought to its attention by the sportsbook, and Hoberg did not umpire last season. MLB said the investigation did not uncover evidence Hoberg personally bet on baseball or manipulated games, but Hoberg was fired anyway. It's far from the only betting scandals involving professional sports.

NASCAR is introducing a new rule that will award one point to the team and driver with the fastest single lap in each race. The “Xfinity Fastest Lap” is being added as part of a contract renewal between NASCAR and Xfinity. The new deal awards a point for the fastest lap in all three of NASCAR’s national series, continues Xfinity’s role as entitlement sponsor of the second-tier series through 2025 and includes a multiyear agreement for Xfinity to extend its premium partnership with the Cup Series. IndyCar has a fast-lap rule, but it was abolished in Formula 1 ahead of this season.

There was a lot of speculation during the winter transfer window that Paul Pogba would relaunch his career at Marseille. The Ligue 1 club’s president Pablo Longoria praised the former Juventus and Manchester United midfielder as an extraordinary player. Others at the club, including France international Adrien Rabiot, lobbied for Pogba. But Marseille bought someone else. Once one of the world’s top midfielders, Pogba's headlines in recent years have been more often for his off-field problems than for his on-field abilities. He doesn't come off a doping ban until March.

The International Ice Hockey Federation says it is not ready to allow the national teams of Russia and Belarus to participate in its competitions through the 2025/26 season. The decision on Tuesday effectively bars them from next year’s Winter Olympic Games in Italy although the IOC has the final say. The IIHF says “it is not yet safe to reintegrate the Russian and Belarusian national and club teams." They have been banned since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The IIHF council says it will next assess the issue in May 2026. The 2026 Olympics are scheduled for February in Milan and Cortina.

A’ja Wilson has come to realize what is delayed is not always denied. The two-time WNBA champion and three-time league MVP proudly released her long-awaited Nike signature shoe and collection in her hometown of Columbia, South Carolina, where she helped lead the South Carolina Gamecocks to their first national championship and had her jersey retired on Sunday. The release of the predominantly pink shoe and athletic gear collection — which she said reflects her “girly, girly side” — has been 10 months in the making since she signed the lucrative contract with Nike. Wilson says it all signals the continued growth and interest in women’s sports.

Spain men’s coach Luis de la Fuente has told a judge in the Luis Rubiales trial in Madrid that he did not get involved in discussions related to Jenni Hermoso following her World Cup kiss from the former Spanish soccer boss. Rubiales is accused of sexual assault for kissing Hermoso, the Spain forward, at the 2023 Women’s World Cup final presentation ceremony in Sydney, as well as of coercion for allegedly trying to convince the player to support his version of the kiss. De la Fuente has said during his brief appearance in court that he spoke with Hermoso only about two months ago at a gala. And when he visited the federation in the days following the scandal, he only “talked about football” and his job.

Tottenham defender Radu Dragusin has sustained anterior cruciate ligament damage to his right knee and will undergo surgery. The 23-year-old Dragusin was injured in Spurs’ Europa League game against Elfsborg last week. Tottenham did not add on Tuesday when he was likely to return to action but it can take up to a year for players to fully recover from ACL injuries.

Real Madrid's problems on defense have been compounded by a muscle injury to David Alaba. The club says Alaba has “ an adductor injury in his left leg.” Spanish media say Alaba is expected to be out for two to three weeks. He is likely to miss key matches against Atletico Madrid in La Liga on Saturday and Manchester City in the Champions League next week. Alaba returned to action only last month after being sidelined for more than a year because of a knee injury.

Zrinka Ljutic has won three of the past four World Cup slaloms and just turned 21. Lara Colturi is only 18 and has already been on the podium twice this season. American talent Lauren Macuga upstaged Lindsey Vonn when she won a super-G in January. Malorie Blanc came out of nowhere to finish second in her first World Cup downhill. With Mikaela Shiffrin injured for much of the last two seasons and Petra Vlhova still out a bunch of other athletes have made their breakthroughs on the women’s skiing circuit recently. And they’re all eager to back up their performances at the world championships starting this week.