Top-class action in store at the four-day Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships in Iowa

Arguably the best-standard championships after the Olympics and Worlds will again be high-calibre thanks to the cut-throat selection procedure of which they form a part.

The first three athletes in every event at the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships, taking place from July 25-28 in Des Moines, Iowa, will win selection for the IAAF World Championships in Doha provided they have gained the IAAF qualifying standard by this weekend.

Such is the depth of standard in the world’s No.1 athletics nation that this means podium placings in most events will be crucial.

Noah Lyles (pictured above), who produced a stunning 19.50 200m earlier this month, will compete only in that event despite being world ranked No.2 in the 100m. However, Christian Coleman, who leads the world rankings in the short sprint, will be going for the double.

Over 100m, world champion Justin Gatlin will be his main opposition, while Cravon Gillespie, who was second at the NCAAs with 9.93, will also be one to watch.

Michael Norman hinted at 2019 being a world record year with his 43.45 in April and is the standout in the men’s 400m. The top two at the NCAAs, Kahmari Montgomery and Trevor Stewart, plus Fred Kerley, will be chasing.

Perhaps more likely to threaten the world record is Rai Benjamin in the 400m hurdles. The world No.1 has clocked 47.16 this season, although he may need stronger competition than here to spur him on to beat Kevin Young’s 46.78.

World junior record-holder Sydney McLaughlin heads the women’s event, with Olympic and world champion Dalilah Muhammad (pictured below) challenging. Kori Carter goes in the 200m instead, knowing she has a bye for selection as defending champion.

In a repeat of the NCAAs, Grant Holloway and Daniel Roberts battle over 110m hurdles. In the women’s 100m hurdles, world record-holder Kendra Harrison takes on Olympic champion Brianna McNeal and NCAA runner-up Chanel Brissett.

New world under-20 record-holder (10.75), Sha’Carri Richardson looks to do the NCAA/USATF double over 100m. In the 200m she is set for another close battle with collegiate champion Angie Annelus, who ran a winning 22.16 there.

World 100m champion Tori Bowie is entered for both sprints. World 400m champion Phyllis Francis opts for the half-lap as her selection in her main event is already in the bag.

The men’s triple jump should see a great match-up between Will Claye, who leads the world rankings with 18.14m, and Olympic and world champion Christian Taylor.

Claye will also attempt to win the long jump, where Olympic champion Jeff Henderson is looking for better form than of late.

In the women’s jumps, four-time world long jump champion Brittney Reese could be challenged by triple jump favourite Keturah Orji.

The in-form world champion Sam Kendricks (pictured below) goes in the pole vault, where Christopher Nilsen is expected to offer the main threat. The women’s event should be more open as world No.1 Jenn Suhr, world indoor champion Sandi Morris and Katie Nageotte, who won in Lausanne, square off.

After her recent return to form, former world indoor champion Vashti Cunningham should be a class apart in the high jump.

World steeplechase champion Emma Coburn lines up her event with London 2017 silver medallist Courtney Frerichs and Colleen Quigley. However, due to a foot injury, Evan Jager will not be going for an eighth straight US title.

Shelby Houlihan will defend her 1500m title against former world champion Jenny Simpson.

In the men’s 800m, Donavan Brazier is quickest this year as Olympic bronze medallist Clayton Murphy looks to challenge. Ajee Wilson will be favourite in the women’s two-lap race.

In the throws, Ryan Crouser, who earlier this year produced the best shot put in 29 years, and Chase Ealey, who won a Diamond League fixture this year, star in the shot circle. Deanna Price and Brooke Andersen go head to head in the women’s hammer, while Valarie Allman will be favourite in the discus.

In the longer distances, Emily Sisson and Molly Huddle meet over 10,000m, as Olympic bronze medallist Paul Chelimo headlines the 5000m.

The event will also be used as the basis for selection for the Europe v USA match in Belarus and Thorpe Cup combined events match in Germany in September.

An event schedule can be found here, while start lists are here.

CALGARY, Alberta -- The Calgary Flames and forward Sam Bennett avoided arbitration by agreeing to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $2.55 million on Wednesday.

The 23-year-old Bennett had 13 goals, 14 assists and a team-high 93 penalty minutes in 71 games last season. He has 55 goals, 61 assists and 264 penalty minutes in 312 regular-season games in five seasons, all with the Flames. In 20 playoff games, he has six goals and five assists.

Bennett and the Flames were scheduled to have an arbitration hearing Saturday.

Pressure from broadcasters, clubs and a trend of declining attendances and television audiences has resulted in the addition of a fifth team to an expanded Big Bash League finals series for next summer, to be played over five matches after the regular season is compressed into 56 matches in 42 days.

The full BBL fixtures for 2019-20 were released on Thursday and in addition to a more condensed home and away schedule, which was confirmed on Wednesday, the finals series will now include five teams and feature five finals, in a similar set-up to the IPL, albeit with a slight twist.

Teams finishing fourth and fifth will play The Eliminator on Thursday January 30, three days after the final home and away game on January 27. The loser will be knocked out while the winner will progress to play the third placed team in The Knockout on Saturday February 1. First and second will play The Qualifier on Friday January 31 with the winner qualifying to host the BBL final on Saturday February 8.

The loser of The Qualifier will get a second chance and host the winner of The Knockout in The Challenger on Thursday February 6. All finals will be played at night, with the exception of games in Perth which will be twilight fixtures, after last year's epic final between Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars was played on Sunday afternoon.

ALSO READ: Big Bash pins hopes for overseas stars on shorter season

The BBL's rights holders Seven and Fox Sports are believed to have pushed hard for the addition of a fifth team in the finals to reduce the number of "dead" fixtures at the back end of the tournament, meaning 56 games will eliminate only three competing clubs from the competition. Their desire for change followed a season in which the vastly expanded competition continued a gentle slide in attendances and broadcast audiences that has been consistent since the BBL peaked in 2015-16.

That summer the tournament took up a lot of the slack left by a relatively low box office international schedule featuring New Zealand and the West Indies, and the BBL is again expected to take up much of the responsibility for drawing fans to the game, particularly given that the Australian ODI team will be completely absent in January due to a tour of India.

Clubs had also complained over several years that there was not enough reward for teams finishing higher up after the home and away season. Hobart Hurricanes dominated last season's BBL winning 10 of 14 matches to finish two games clear on top of the table, only to lose a knockout semi-final to the Stars, who made the finals with a 7-7 record.

Two teams have won the BBL after finishing fourth and winning two knockout finals, Brisbane Heat in BBL02 and Sydney Thunder in BBL05, while two other BBL's have been won by the third placed team. Perth Scorchers are the only side to ever win the title after finishing first, when they won BBL06 in 2016-17.

New head of the BBL, Alistair Dobson, said the finals revamp was the most important feature of the new fixture.

"The number one element is to make it the best chance for the teams finishing first and second to make it through," Dobson said. "It's an amazing quirk of history that the team finishing first at the end of the season has only won it once and the team finishing third or fourth has for some reason won it more often.

"So we want to reward the teams finishing first and second as well as we can. There is an element though of making the finals more accessible for the fans, and this model also gives us a chance for the team hosting the final to have more preparation going in."

Last season, there was less than 48 hours between second semi-final and the final, with groundsmen at both Marvel Stadium in Melbourne and the SCG unsure as to whether they would be hosting Sunday's final until the end of the semi on Friday night. The final was played on a used surface at Marvel during the day and slowed up significantly in the second innings.

The eight-day gap between the qualifier and the final allows for better pitch preparation as well as a chance to build-up ticket sales for the host venue.

"[It will be] a lot different around preparation time, the hype building into it and the finals structure itself leads to a lot more excitement," Dobson said. "It's been a big focus to end the season in the appropriate fashion."

Dobson said there were no concerns about five teams making the finals instead of four because it was much tougher for the lower ranked teams to win the title under the new format.

"It's actually harder for fifth to win this year than it was for fourth to win it in the previous season," Dobson said. "You have to win four finals to win it from fifth and if a team can go on a run like that at the end of a season they've probably earned the right to win it. But having another team being part of it keeps the season alive and we're really excited about the finals."

One issue that hasn't been solved is how to decide the title should the final end in a tie and then a tied Super Over, as it did the 2019 World Cup when England were crowned World Cup winners by virtue of the boundary countback rule. An IPL game between Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014 was decided the same way. The BBL is currently working through what is the best solution for such an event and will announce that in due course.

"[There has been] lots of chatter about it," Dobson said. "It was an amazing game. If we could have a BBL season that could end with a tie and Super Over it would be a great way to finish. It's available to be discussed with the clubs. We haven't locked it in either way. At the moment it's a similar finish to what we saw at the World Cup and we'll work through that over the next period of time.

"The league and the clubs will collaboratively work on that alongside our broadcasters and there's a whole range of stakeholders we'll have to consult on that."

BBL finals structure

January 30: The Eliminator - 4th v 5th
January 31: The Qualifier - 1st v 2nd
February 1: The Knockout - 3rd v Winner of Eliminator
February 6: The Challenger - Loser of Qualifier v Winner of Knockout
February 8: Final - Winner of Qualifier v Winner of Eliminator

OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Baltimore Ravens safety Earl Thomas stands by his flipping the middle finger to Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll 10 months ago.

"I don't regret my decision," Thomas told ESPN's Josina Anderson. "If my teammates felt like it was toward them, I regret that part. But I don't regret doing that to Pete."

Thomas, in his first season with Baltimore, was carted off the field with his leg in an air cast in September, after he went down with a broken left leg that required surgery in the second half of a game against the Arizona Cardinals. He gave the middle finger in the direction of Seattle's sideline because he didn't think Carroll was being genuine when he showed concern on the field after the injury.

Thomas said he hasn't spoken to Carroll since the incident. The Ravens face the Seahawks in Seattle on Oct. 20.

"I gave Pete the middle finger because I felt like he wasn't being honest with me," Thomas said.

When Thomas took heat for the gesture last season, Carroll said people needed to cut him "a little slack."

"People that are criticizing whatever happened don't understand," Carroll said. "This was an earth-shattering moment for a kid. He's trying to play this game he loves, and all of sudden this happens again. He knew exactly what happened to him, so he went right to what it's going to take to get back."

Thomas was one of the best defensive backs in Seahawks history. He made six Pro Bowls in his nine seasons with the team and was named first-team All-Pro three times.

His 28 career interceptions rank third among all players since 2010, when he was drafted by Seattle with the 14th overall pick out of Texas.

Thomas left the Seahawks in free agency, signing a four-year, $55 million contract with the Ravens in March.

"I think my time just ran out," Thomas said. "Pete and the front office didn't value me like they used to, and I just talked to Coach Carroll, and he was saying how he was trying to get me in the plans of getting a new contract. But I got hurt the next week. I think I hurt myself too by my actions getting carted off the field."

Thomas won a Super Bowl with Seattle in February 2014, and signed a four-year, $40 million contract extension a few months later.

But his relationship soured over the past year. Thomas had a contract dispute with Seattle that led him to skip all offseason activities, training camp and preseason last season.

Thomas said he didn't see eye-to-eye with Carroll on many issues, including work ethic.

"We got to walk with each other the rest of our lives because we won a Super Bowl together," Thomas said. "But they'll love you one minute and then hate you the next. That was our relationship."

Don Mossi, a left-handed pitcher who won 101 games in more than a decade as a major leaguer and was an All-Star for the Cleveland Indians in 1957, has died. He was 90.

The Cremation Society of Idaho said Mossi died Friday in Nampa, Idaho.

Mossi made his big league debut in 1954 for the Cleveland team that won the American League pennant with 111 victories. Pitching mostly in relief, he went 6-1 with a 1.94 ERA that year and made three appearances in the World Series against the New York Giants.

He remained a reliever for most of his five seasons with Cleveland, but in 1957 he made 22 starts and earned All-Star honors. That was a sign of things to come, because the Detroit Tigers used Mossi primarily as a starter when he was with them from 1959-63. He went 17-9 with a 3.36 ERA in 1959, throwing 15 complete games.

After five seasons with Detroit, Mossi pitched for the Chicago White Sox in 1964 and the Kansas City Athletics in 1965.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Twins have made more changes to their ravaged bullpen, designating right-hander Blake Parker for assignment.

Before their game Wednesday against the New York Yankees, the AL Central leaders sent right-hander Kohl Stewart to Triple-A Rochester and promoted left-hander Devin Smeltzer and right-hander Carlos Torres from the International League club.

Parker, who signed a one-year, $1.8 million contract as a free agent with the Twins in January, had a 4.21 ERA in 37 games. He recorded one out in his last appearance on Tuesday, allowing three hits, four runs and one walk.

Parker became the fourth reliever dumped by the team in the past two weeks. Adalberto Mejia was claimed off waivers, and Matt Magill and Mike Morin were traded. In the past seven games, Minnesota's bullpen has allowed 32 runs (25 earned) in 26 innings.

The 36-year-old Torres was signed as a minor league free agent last month. He has appeared in 362 major league games in parts of 10 seasons, most recently with the Detroit Tigers. Smeltzer started two games for the Twins earlier this season, but he'll work in relief for now.

British pair Cameron Norrie and Dan Evans both won at the Atlanta Open on Wednesday to reach the quarter-finals.

Norrie, 23, enjoyed a straight-sets victory over South Korea's Kwon Soon-woo, with the British number two beating the world number 117 6-3 6-4.

Evans, ranked one place below Norrie at 55, then triumphed in a hard-fought match with world number 42 Radu Albot.

The 29-year-old, who reached the third round at Wimbledon this month, beat the Moldovan 7-6 (7-5) 5-7 6-2.

Norrie will now face Alexei Popyrin for a place in the last four after the 19-year-old Australian upset world number 39 Pierre-Hugues Herbert, beating the Frenchman 7-5 6-3.

Evans will play the winner of the last-16 match between Reilly Opelka and American number one John Isner, who won last year's Atlanta Open.

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum is celebrating the return of the Driven2SaveLives BC39 Powered by NOS Energy Drink USAC National Midget race to IMS with its second act of From Dirt Tracks to the Brickyard.

The event is an interactive panel discussion Tuesday, Sept. 3, with USAC racing legends and current stars.

From 4-6 p.m. in the IMS Museum gallery, join USAC legends Mel and Don Kenyon, along with current standouts Chad Boat, Michael Pickens and Chris Windom, for a two-hour trip through USAC racing history and current storylines.

Longtime USAC public address announcer and historian Pat Sullivan will serve as emcee.

The Kenyon brothers will be the featured guests for the first 40 minutes, and then Windom, Boat and Pickens will join the panel.

The early start time reflects a second invitation: Immediately following the Museum event, fans are invited to the BC39 draw party at USAC headquarters, 4910 W. 16th Street in Speedway, just west of IMS Turn 1.

The draw will determine starting positions for the first night of BC39 racing at The Dirt Track at IMS on Wednesday, Sept. 4.

Tickets for From Dirt Tracks to the Brickyard are now on sale, and the audience is limited to 75, first-come, first-served. IMS Museum member tickets are just $15, and non-members are just $20.

Kenyon finished fourth in the Indianapolis 500 twice (1969, 1973) and in eight starts he earned a total of four top-five finishes, but it’s his midget racing prowess that places him among short-track racing’s legends.

Mel and Don, who served as crew chief, won seven USAC National Midget Series championships, finished second in points eight times and won more than 110 USAC national midget features, plus many more races in other series.

Windom has three USAC 2019 National Sprint car wins to date, most recently July 20 at Kokomo, the third race of Indiana Sprint Week. It was a major milestone for the Canton, Ill., native, the 24th win of his USAC National Sprint Car career, breaking a three-way career wins tie with A.J. Foyt and Roger McCluskey.

Auckland, New Zealand-resident Pickens has eight New Zealand Midget championships and won the 2016 Australian Speedcar series, the first New Zealander to do so.

His most recent USAC midget victory was June 1 in the southern Illinois town of Wayne City, less than 24 hours after a 13-hour flight from Auckland to Chicago.

Boat, the son of 1998 Indianapolis 500 pole winner Billy Boat, finished second in the inaugural BC39 a year ago. He has competed in Indy Lights and in numerous NASCAR races, including the Xfinity Series race at IMS in 2014.