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Novak Djokovic advances, U.S. Open semifinals set

By OlympicTalkSep 5, 2018, 11:56 PM EDT
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FBI handling of Larry Nassar allegations reviewed by Justice Department Tabletop curling Team Shuster tabletop curling game to hit stores Wyomia Tyus remembers 1968 Olympics in ‘Tigerbelle’ excerpt

NEW YORK — Novak Djokovic reached his 11th straight U.S. Open semifinal, sweeping Australian John Millman on Wednesday night.

The sixth seed Djokovic won 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 over Millman, who took out Roger Federer to make his first Slam quarterfinal.

Djokovic, a two-time U.S. Open champion and 13-time Grand Slam winner, gets No. 21 Kei Nishikori in the semifinals.

Djokovic has made the U.S. Open semis every year since 2007, excluding last year when he missed the event with an elbow injury.

Earlier Wednesday, Nishikori ousted No. 7 Marin Cilic 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4 in a rematch of the 2014 U.S. Open final won by Cilic. That marked Nishikori’s deepest Grand Slam run.

Djokovic is enjoying a resurgent summer, taking his fourth Wimbledon title to end a two-year Grand Slam title drought.

He then won the Cincinnati Masters leading into the U.S. Open, entering as a co-favorite with top-ranked Rafael Nadal.

Nadal gets No. 3 Juan Martin del Potro in the other semifinal.

U.S. Open Semifinals
(17) Serena Williams vs. (19) Anastasija Sevastova: Thursday, 7 p.m. ET
(14) Madison Keys vs. (20) Naomi Osaka: Thursday, after Williams-Sevastova

(1) Rafael Nadal vs. (3) Juan Martin del Potro: Friday
(6) Novak Djokovic vs. (21) Kei Nishikori: Friday

Also Wednesday, Japan’s Naomi Osaka and American Madison Keys each won in straight sets to set up the second women’s semifinal.

The Osaka-Keys winner gets either Serena Williams, eyeing her record-tying 24th Grand Slam singles title, or Latvian Anastasija Sevastova (a first-time Grand Slam semifinalist) in Saturday’s final.

Osaka is the only woman left in the draw who has beaten Williams.

Wednesday was historic for Japan, which put a man and woman into the semifinals of the same Grand Slam for the first time.

Nishikori and Osaka are among the 2020 Olympic host nation’s most popular active athletes, a list topped by Shohei Ohtani followed by more baseball players.

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U.S. OPEN: Scores | Men’s Draw | Women’s Draw

FBI handling of Larry Nassar allegations reviewed by Justice Department

AP
Associated PressSep 5, 2018, 2:45 PM EDT
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department’s inspector general is investigating how the FBI handled sexual abuse allegations against former USA Gymnastics national team doctor Larry Nassar, a person familiar with the matter said Wednesday.

The investigation comes amid allegations that the FBI had failed to promptly address complaints made in 2015 against the once-renowned gymnastics doctor. Nassar is now serving decades in prison after hundreds of girls and women said he sexually abused them under the guise of medical treatment when he worked for Michigan State and Indiana-based USA Gymnastics, which trains Olympians.

USA Gymnastics contacted the FBI about the allegations in July 2015, but it took months before the agency opened a formal investigation. At least 40 girls and women said they were molested over a 14-month period while the FBI was aware of other sexual abuse allegations involving Nassar.

Nassar was ultimately charged in 2016 with federal child porn offenses and sexual abuse charges in Michigan.

In the last month, investigators from the inspector general’s office have contacted some of the victims whose cases had been reported to the FBI, including former Olympian McKayla Maroney, according to the person familiar with the matter who wasn’t authorized to discuss the situation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The FBI and federal prosecutors in Michigan, Los Angeles and Indianapolis have refused to meet with Maroney and her attorneys to explain why it took months for federal agents to open an investigation, her lawyer, John Manly, said.

He alleges the FBI “concealed” what they knew about Nassar by failing to notify local authorities in Michigan or contacting the medical board. Manly and several other victims Manly represents are “horrified” that dozens of other girls and women were abused after the FBI was told about the allegations, he said.

“They deserved better than what they got,” Manly said.

USA Gymnastics president Kerry Perry resigned earlier this week and was the latest person to face fallout in the wake of the Nassar allegations. Numerous other people have been criminally charged, fired or forced out of their jobs during the investigations into Nassar.

The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment and a spokesman for the Justice Department’s inspector general declined to comment on Wednesday.

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Team Shuster tabletop curling game to hit stores

Tabletop curling
Ambassador Games
By Nick ZaccardiSep 5, 2018, 2:36 PM EDT
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You’ve seen tabletop football and hockey, but what about curling?

The Team Shuster Gold Medal Tabletop Curling Set is set to hit TJ Maxx stores this fall, as first reported by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

The game is marketed as “developed and endorsed” by the U.S. Olympic men’s curling team of John Shuster, Tyler George, Matt Hamilton, John Landsteiner and Joe Polo that made a stunning run to gold in PyeongChang.

The game features little stones that curl and is similar to shuffleboard, plus a curling 101 guidebook.

The idea was hatched by an Ambassador Games employee in Hong Kong shortly after the Olympics.

Team Shuster competed two weeks ago for the first time since PyeongChang and has at least four events planned through the end of October.

The return followed a whirlwind six months that included honors at Minnesota sports events and golf tournaments, including meeting Jack Nicklaus. Shuster was invited to an April White House state dinner. Hamilton got his own bobblehead.

George has left the team for an indefinite break from the sport, replaced by veteran Chris Plys. It was Plys who replaced Shuster in the lineup at the 2010 Olympics, when Shuster was benched after an 0-4 start.

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