Connect with us

Sports

Kentucky Derby favorite Renegade draws the dreaded rail

Syndication: The Courier-JournalPeople show up for the first day of horse racing on opening day of the Spring Meet ahead of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.
Apr. 25, 2026.

Early favorite Renegade was picked to start on the rail for the 152nd Kentucky Derby during the official draw on Saturday at Churchill Downs.

Renegade, the Arkansas Derby winner owned by American billionaire Mike Repole, opened at 4-1 as the 20-horse field became official for the Run for the Roses on Saturday, May 2, in Louisville, Ky.

Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher has raced Renegade just twice as a 3-year-old, but he has come through both times. He came from well back to capture the Sam F. Davis Stakes on Feb. 7 at Tampa Bay Downs, then he pulled away to win the Arkansas Derby by four lengths on March 28 at Oaklawn Park.

Renegade’s jockey, Irad Ortiz Jr., has not won a Derby in nine tries, but he has raced to victory in two Belmont Stakes (2016, 2022).

Renegade’s assignment to the first gate will have it fighting against history along with the other 19 horses. Ferdinand, the Derby champion in 1986, was the last horse to win from the rail. Seven other horses have won from Gate No. 1, but most were long ago when Derby fields were smaller.

Commandment, which will start from the No. 6 gate, and Further Ado, which will come from the outside at No. 18, both opened at 6-1. They are trained by Brad Cox.

Bob Baffert, the legendary trainer who returned to the Kentucky Derby last May after serving a three-year suspension, has two horses in the field: Potente and Litmus Test

Here’s the entire field with their opening odds:

1) Renegade 4-1

2) Albus 30-1

3) Intrepido 50-1

4) Litmus Test 30-1

5) Right To Party 30-1

6) Commandment 6-1

7) Danon Bourbon 20-1

8) So Happy 15-1

9) The Puma 10-1

10) Wonder Dean 30-1

11) Incredibolt 20-1

12) Chief Wallabee 8-1

13) Silent Tactic 20-1

14) Potente 20-1

15) Emerging Market 15-1

16) Pavlovian 30-1

17) Six Speed 50-1

18) Further Ado 6-1

19) Golden Tempo 30-1

20) Fulleffort 20-1

–Field Level Media

source

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sports

Vancouver wins first pick in PWHL draft

Syndication: Journal SentinelWisconsin defender Caroline Harvey handles the puck against Bemidji State during a WCHA first-round playoff game Feb. 27, 2026 at LaBahn Arena in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin won, 7-0.

The Vancouver Goldeneyes have secured the first pick in the 2026 Professional Women’s Hockey League Draft, with Olympic gold medal-winning defenseman Caroline Harvey expected to be their selection.

The PWHL awards its No. 1 draft choice in a manner that differs from other pro leagues, using what has been dubbed the Gold Plan. Instead of the pick being handed to the team with the worst record, or distributed through a lottery system, the PWHL team that earns the most points after being eliminated from postseason consideration secures the spot.

With their 4-3 overtime defeat of the Minnesota Frost on Saturday night coupled with the Seattle Torrent’s 2-1 shootout loss to the Montreal Victoire, the first-year Goldeneyes secured the first pick. Saturday was the last day of regular-season play.

The full draft order is still to be determined — as is the date of the draft, which is expected to be held in June.

Harvey, 23, turns pro after leading Wisconsin to three NCAA championships — plus one runner-up finish — in her four seasons with the Badgers. In 150 games, she produced 201 points (54 goals, 147 assists), 15 power-play markers and 12 game-winning goals.

The NCAA title capped a busy hockey season for Harvey. She won an Olympic gold medal with Team USA in the Milan-Cortina Games, adding it to the silver medal she won in Beijing in 2022 as a 19-year-old. She was MVP of the Olympic Tournament with nine points in five games, an Olympics mark for an American defender.

Harvey also was named Best Defenseman at the 2003 and 2005 World Championships, both of which the United States won.

She is from Salem, N.H.

–Field Level Media

source

Continue Reading

Sports

Report: Minnesota's Anthony Edwards out 'multiple weeks'

NBA: Denver Nuggets at Minnesota TimberwolvesApr 23, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) works around Denver Nuggets guard Bruce Brown (11) in the fourth quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

Minnesota Timberwolves star guard Anthony Edwards will miss “multiple weeks” due to a left knee injury suffered Saturday night in his team’s 112-96 playoff win against the Denver Nuggets.

Per ESPN, Edwards was diagnosed with a bone bruise and hyperextension of the knee on Sunday. Testing did not reveal any ligament damage, and he is scheduled to begin rehab immediately.

The Timberwolves, the No. 6 seed, have a 3-1 lead over the No. 3 Nuggets. The best-of-seven series resumes Monday night in Denver.

Minnesota does not have an easy task closing out this series, however.

Donte DiVincenzo, Edwards’ backcourt mate, suffered a non-contact injury to his right leg 79 seconds into the game. ESPN reported Saturday night that DiVincenzo, who left the arena at halftime in a wheelchair, tore his right Achilles. That injury will put him out for several months.

In the absence of Edwards and DiVincenzo, Ayo Dosunmu came off the bench Saturday night to score 43 points with this line: 13-of-17 shooting, 5-for-5 from 3-point range and 12-for-12 from the foul line.

According to OptaSTATS, Dosunmu became the first player in NBA history to score at least 40 points, shoot at least 75% from the field, hit at least five 3-point attempts without a miss and convert at least 10 free-throw attempts without a miss.

“This is for Ant. This is for Donte,” Dosunmu told Timberwolves social media after the game. “I hope for a speedy recovery for them.”

After being acquired at the trade deadline from the Chicago Bulls, Dosunmu appeared in 24 regular-season games for Minnesota and averaged 14.4 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists. During this playoff series, he has delivered a team-high 22.8 points per game while shooting 64% from the field.

During the regular season, Edwards led the Timberwolves with 28.8 points per game and hit 39.9% of his shots from 3-point range over 61 games.

DiVincenzo started all 82 games and posted averages of 12.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists.

Timberwolves forward Julius Randle said postgame that Minnesota can withstand the loss of its starting backcourt.

“We’ve got more than enough talent in here to win,” Randle said. “We lost two guys who are big pieces to our team but we talked about it all year, you need depth in the playoffs to win.”

–Field Level Media

source

Continue Reading

Sports

Sabastian Sawe shatters 2-hour barrier to win London Marathon

Running: London MarathonApr 23, 2023; London, UK; Participants of the London Marathon seen in the finish area after completing the race. Mandatory Credit: Peter van den Berg-Imagn Images

Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe became the first runner to complete an official marathon in less than two hours as he broke the world record at the London Marathon on Sunday.

On a calm, sunny morning, the 31-year-old finished the marathon in one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds. That crushed the previous record — set by Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum in the 2023 Chicago Marathon — by 65 seconds.

“I am feeling good,” Sawe told BBC Sport. “I am happy. It is a day to remember for me.”

Not only did Sawe blast through a psychological and physiological barrier akin to the four-minute mile, he set the pace for Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha to go under two hours as well. Kejelcha finished in 1:59.41.

“We started the race well and approaching the end of the race, I was feeling strong and I remember (Kejelcha) was so competitive,” Sawe said. “I think he helped me a lot. Finally, reaching the finish line, I saw the time. I was so excited.”

Pushed by Kejelcha, Sawe ran a reverse split to defend his London Marathon title. After reaching the halfway point in 1:00.29, he needed just 59:01 to complete his second 13.1 miles.

Sawe wasn’t the only racer to set a world record in London on Sunday. Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa needed just 2:15.41 to break the tape, which placed her in the record books — again — for a marathon run only by women. Last year in London, she ran the marathon in a record 2:15:50.

–Field Level Media

source

Continue Reading