CRISTIANO RONALDO was "accused of raping a woman in Las Vegas" in '09, and then "paying her $375,000 to keep it secret, according to a civil complaint filed in Nevada district court" last week. KATHRYN MAYORGA said in the complaint that the "alleged assault nine years ago continues to cause her severe distress and that she was coerced into signing a nondisclosure agreement at the time." The complaint "seeks damages and penalties in excess of $200,000." News of the suit was "first reported by the German magazine Der Spiegel" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 10/1).
THE INTERN: Giants S MICHAEL THOMAS is "no longer kneeling" during the anthem in protest of racial inequality. Thomas spent three weeks during the offseason as an intern for U.S. Rep SHEILA JACKSON LEE (D-Texas), "learning how to take activism and turn it into law." Thomas also was named to the NFLPA Exec Committee. He said, "I'm doing everything I can in my power, while I have a platform and a voice, to try to make change" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/29).
CAPITAL GAINS: ISP Sports Founder BEN SUTTON's Teall Capital Partners has closed its fund, raising more than $68M in committed capital. Teall, formed in fall '17 by Sutton, had most of the initial investment commitments in place by the end of last year. While it received significant interest from institutional investors, the fund kept its focus on specific individuals and family investments. To date, Teall's investment portfolio includes Dyehard Fan Supply, Riddle & Bloom, Sunshine Beverages and Tailgate Guys (Teall Capital Partners).
TOO MUCH CELEBRATING: Brewers Owner MARK ATTANASIO tore his Achilles' tendon on Sept. 1, and found it is "not easy to celebrate" with the injury as the Brewers clinched a playoff berth Wednesday night. Attanasio had "strict orders from the doctor for complete non-weight bearing on his left leg, which he ignored in the excitement of the moment while watching on TV" in L.A. Attanasio said, "I jumped off the couch and landed on my feet, which the doctor wasn't too happy about. He said, 'Don't do that again.' I said, 'Well, if we do that again, I'm doing it again'" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 9/29).
NAMES: SERENA WILLIAMS "shared a topless video of herself singing the DIVINYLS' 'I Touch Myself,' as part of a project to raise awareness for breast cancer" (NYPOST.com, 9/30)....PRESIDENT TRUMP in a video filmed during his visit with the U.N. “gushes” about retiring Mets 3B DAVID WRIGHT, “calling him a winner multiple times.” The video was sent out by Wright’s agency, ACES (NYDAILYNEWS.com, 10/1)....AP sports columnist TIM DAHLBERG was inducted into the Nevada Newspaper HOF on Saturday (REVIEWJOURNAL.com, 9/28)....The Univ. of North Texas "unveiled a statue" of Pro Football HOFer JOE GREENE outside Apogee Stadium on Saturday (DENTON RECORD-CHRONICLE, 9/30)....A proposal to change the name of Dartmouth’s Forest Hills Parkway in Halifax -- Penguins C SIDNEY CROSBY’s hometown -- to Sidney Crosby Parkway will not move forward because Crosby does “not meet the criteria for commemorative naming because he has not yet retired” (AP, 9/29)....Singer ALESSIA CARA will perform the Grey Cup halftime show at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton on Nov. 25 (EDMONTONJOURNAL.com, 9/29).
IN MEMORY: Int’l Boxing HOFer DON CHARGIN died Friday at the age of 90 in San Luis Obispo, Calif., after a "brief battle with lung and brain cancer." Besides running his own promotional company, Chargin “served as a senior adviser to OSCAR DE LA HOYA and his staff for most of the past 16 years.” He promoted his first event at 23 in ’51 and “went on to promote more than 3,000 fights” (ESPN.com, 9/29). Chargin “earned the nickname ‘War a Week’ for his propensity to make evenly matched slugfests.” His late wife, LORRAINE, is also a HOFer. Among his proteges are Golden Boy Promotions President ERIC GOMEZ and Top Rank VP BRUCE TRAMPLER (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 9/28).
