LA 2028 Chair CASEY WASSERMAN, PGA Tour Commissioner JAY MONAHAN and MLB Commissioner ROB MANFRED are among the guests invited to Allen & Co.'s annual media conference in Sun Valley in July. Other sports figures on the guest list include Bills and Sabres co-Owners KIM and TERRY PEGULA, Activision Blizzard CEO BOBBY KOTICK and CBS' BILL COWHER. Among the other A-listers expected to attend are Apple CEO TIM COOK, Comcast Chair & CEO BRIAN ROBERTS, Disney Chair & CEO BOB IGER and Disney Direct-to-Consumer & Int'l Groups Chair KEVIN MAYER (VARIETY.com, 5/29).
Romero is suing the company after testing positive for Ibutamoren in a February '16 drug test GETTY IMAGES
BY UNANIMOUS DECISION: UFC fighter YOEL ROMERO "won a lawsuit based in New Jersey against Gold Star Performance Products," with total damages of $27.45M. The middleweight "sued the company after a failed drug test caused him to be suspended from competition" by USADA. Romero in February '16 was informed by USADA that he "tested positive for the banned substance Ibutamoren." He "immediately claimed innocence and pointed to a tainted supplement for the issue" (MMAJUNKIE.com, 5/29).
THE GOOD STUFF: NHL Jets RW BLAKE WHEELER and his wife, SAM, are putting their support behind a CancerCare Manitoba Foundation fundraiser. The Wheelers "have lent their name and profile to Ride Inside: Come Wheel with the Wheelers, an indoor cycling challenge that raises funds in support of children and their families living with and beyond childhood cancer" (WINNIPEG SUN, 5/30)....Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment auctioned off a "pair of tickets" to tonight's Warriors-Raptors NBA Finals Game 1 to "support an employee whose son was the victim of a hit and run." Four-year-old RADIUL CHOWDHURY, the son of MLSE employee RUHUL CHOWDHURY, was hit Sunday and is in "critical condition" (CP, 5/29).
GET TECHY: USWNT F MEGAN RAPINOE is profiled in the WALL STREET JOURNAL's "Technology Essentials" feature. She said, "Our team uses a lot of apps, including Fit For 90, a daily wellness check-in app. Every day you tell it your mood, how sore are you, what’s your stress level, how well you slept at night." Rapinoe: "I always travel with a Rains backpack that’s waterproof and has a sleek design with a flap on the top and not a lot of pockets." She also said her "newest, biggest, baddest, coolest piece of tech is my new Tesla Model 3" (WSJ.com, 5/29).
NAMES: The U.S. Department of Justice is "repaying" the NBA Kings the $13.4M that a former club official "stole to buy luxury beachfront homes" (AP, 5/29)....Thirty-seven former Ohio State athletes "have filed suit for abuse they say they suffered at the hands of former university athletic doctor RICHARD STRAUSS." The lawsuit in federal court in Ohio "seeks to hold the university responsible for years of sexual abuse they say Strauss inflicted upon them." Of the athletes, more than two dozen "played football in the 1980s and 1990s, while others were wrestlers and swimmers" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 5/30)....Bears coach MATT NAGY will be the commencement speaker for his alma mater, the Univ. of Delaware, on Saturday (SUNTIMES.com, 5/29)....Former Ravens coach BRIAN BILLICK and former player HALOTI NGATA were announced as inductees into the team's Ring of Honor, in '19 and '20, respectively (AP, 5/28)....Pro Football HOFers MEL BLOUNT and FRANCO HARRIS "will serve as honorary chairs of the Steelers Charity Walk and Steelers 5K race, respectively" (TRIBLIVE.com, 5/29)....Patriots coach BILL BELICHICK was the "honorary fan banner captain" for last night's Blues-Bruins Stanley Cup Final Game 2. Patriots Owner ROBERT KRAFT was "shown in a separate section of the Garden, proudly waving a yellow rally towel" (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/30).
