As Argentina legend Lionel Messi makes history at the World Cup, his father is experiencing a “health situation” that prompted family members to release a statement Thursday.

Jorge Messi is “under medical supervision” as he continues to recover from a medical condition that was not revealed. The family statement said he is “progressing favorably.”

Speculation about the star player’s 68-year-old father, Jorge, prompted a terse tone in the family statement.

“In light of the versions, rumors and speculation that have circulated in recent hours, the family wishes to express their profound discomfort at the lack of sensitivity, respect and scruples with which some individuals have treated a strictly private and family matter,” the statement read.

“The family also wishes to clarify that only his closest relatives have real and accurate information regarding Jorge’s condition. Therefore, any version, statement, or information that does not come directly from the family and its official channels should not be considered valid or truthful.”

Jorge Messi reportedly is involved in overseeing his son’s business interests.

In the opener of his record sixth World Cup, Messi was brought to tears over his three-goal performance in a 3-0 victory over Algeria on Tuesday. His first ever World Cup hat trick gave him 16 goals all-time in the tournament, tying Germany’s Miroslav Klose for the record.

He was asked about wiping away tears in the wake of the performance.

“Why did I cry? It was something completely unrelated to football. I went through some difficult days,” Messi said in Spanish after the game.

Argentina’s second match in Group J is against Austria on Monday at Arlington, Texas.

The complete Messi family statement:

The Messi family announces that Jorge is going through a health situation.

At this time, he is under medical supervision, recovering and progressing favorably given his current condition.

In light of the versions, rumors and speculation that have circulated in recent hours, the family wishes to express their profound discomfort at the lack of sensitivity, respect and scruples with which some individuals have treated a strictly private and family matter.

The family also wishes to clarify that only their closest family members have real and accurate information about Jorge’s condition. Therefore, any version, statement or information that does not come from the family itself and their corresponding channels should not be considered valid or truthful.

In moments like this, we ask for responsibility, prudence and humanity. A person’s health and the peace of mind of those around them should not be the subject of speculation or irresponsible media interest.

We sincerely thank everyone for the expressions of affection, respect and concern received, and we ask that Jorge’s privacy, confidentiality and intimacy – and that of his entire family – be preserved during this process.

Any relevant updates will be communicated in due course by the family and the corresponding channels.

Thank you for your understanding.

–Field Level Media

Wild card Alexandra Eala of the Philippines stunned No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan 7-5, 6-4 on Thursday in the second round of the Berlin Tennis Open.

Rybakina is the reigning Australian Open champion and won Wimbledon in 2022. She opened the match by taking a 4-1 lead, but Eala broke Rybakina’s usually strong serve twice to take the opening set.

Unseeded American Madison Keys defeated Czech No. 7 seed Karolina Muchova, 6-4, 7-5 to advance to the quarterfinals. In Thursday’s other matches, Czech eighth seed Linda Noskova defeated Diane Parry of France 6-2, 6-2, and sixth-seeded Ukrainian Elina Svitolina beat Germany’s Eva Lys, 6-3, 6-2.

Lexus Nottingham Open

Fifth-seeded American Ann Li charged past Taylah Preston of Australia 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 in the Round of 16 in the WTA 250 event in the United Kingdom.

Czech fourth seed Marie Bouzkova won 31 of 38 first-service points (81.6%) to take out home favorite Hannah Klugman of Great Britain 7-5, 6-2.

In other Round of 16 matches Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic defeated American Caty McNally 6-4, 7-6 (3), and Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic eliminated Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez 7-5, 4-6, 6-4.

–Field Level Media

A sometimes-raucous crowd estimated at more than 1 million people lined the streets of Manhattan on Thursday for an event 53 years in the making: a championship parade honoring the New York Knicks.

Past franchise legends such as Patrick Ewing rode in convertibles through the Canyon of Heroes and waved to the adoring crowd, an appetizer before fans saw captain and NBA Finals MVP Jalen Brunson emerge with the team, hopping off his ride to walk the parade route with his wife and daughter, cradling the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.

Most of the Knicks walked part of the route to City Hall, which was adorned with banners bearing the players’ names and numbers. They greeted fans before being presented with the key to the city by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and serenaded by Alicia Keys, who performed “Empire State of Mind.” Karl-Anthony Towns grabbed a mic to sing the other anthem of the city, “New York, New York.”

The Knicks’ celebrity fans, including Spike Lee, Tracy Morgan, Ben Stiller, Mariska Hargitay and Timothee Chalamet, also were there, some taking part in the official festivities. Martha Stewart took a photo with Brunson.

Mamdani brought New Yorkers together amid pride over the team’s first NBA title since 1973.

“For 53 long years we have watched, and we have waited. We have watched from nosebleeds and through gritted teeth on televisions in the windows of electronic stores, and from projectors balanced on fire escapes,” the mayor said.

“We have watched alone in our apartments with our heads in our hands, shoulder to shoulder at bars where the signal flickers, alongside friends and family who we wish more than anything could be here today, sharing this moment.”

And he relayed the point that the Knicks were New York tough when they came back from a 29-point deficit in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to defeat the San Antonio Spurs and close the series on their opponent’s home court. In the third quarter of the deciding game, analytics gave the Spurs a 99.6% chance of winning.

“What is New York if not 99.6% of the world stacked against you? And who are New Yorkers if not people who hear those odds and smile, who look at a point-four chance of success, and ask, ‘Why are you giving me a head start? This is our city, this is our team.’ For 53 years we watched, for 53 years we waited. Now we’ve won.”

Leon Rose, the team president for the past six years, congratulated coach Mike Brown for finally bringing the Larry O’Brien trophy to New York.

“Mike Brown and our entire coaching staff, you came in this season with enormous expectations and completely exceeded them, and you did it with so much class that resonated with New Yorkers,” he said.

Brown did not take the credit all by himself.

“I’m so proud of our guys from the top to the bottom. There was a lot of hard work that we put in, starting with the offseason, going into the season. A lot of stuff that you guys don’t see behind the scenes. Guys busting their behinds, not just our players, our medical staff, you know, keeping those guys healthy for sure.”

On the way to the championship, the Knicks had to address the doubters.

That included Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon, formerly a Spurs assistant coach, who said in a 2023 interview that when “your best player is small,” it did not bode well for a title. With the 6-foot-2 leader in Brunson closing in on a title, Hammon didn’t walk back her statement when given the chance.

Brunson, with his championship series MVP trophy nearby, savored the moment.

“There’s a lot of people who have a lot of negative stuff to say,” Brunson said. “There’s a lot of people who have their own opinions. But when you prove them wrong, you don’t have to say s–t to them. They don’t deserve it.”

–Field Level Media