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RELATED: Chase Grid | Sunday’s full lineup DOVER, Del. — The track that has brought Jimmie Johnson so much success is also the site of one of his biggest disappointments. It was here at year ago at Dover International Speedway that Johnson’s No. 48 Chevrolet was felled by a broken axle seal, relegating the Hendrick Motorsports driver to a 41st-place finish. RECAP: What plagued Johnson at Dover last year One…

LONDON — A 14-year-old girl received a photo on Snapchat that showed a man holding a black placard with the message: “Are you British, or are you Muslim?” She eventually told a mentor on her soccer team, Shamender Talwar, who said the girl was being recruited by the Islamic State. He urged her to decide what was more important: soccer or the militant group. She picked soccer. Weeks earlier, reports…

RELATED: Live weather updates | Weekend schedule Saturday’s on-track action started well for the second Sprint Cup practice at Dover International Speedway — home of this weekend’s Sprint Cup Series and XFINITY Series races. But sprinkles turned to heavier rain with 15 minutes left in that practice, bringing out the red flag after 45 minutes of the 55-minute session. XFINITY Series qualifying was also off to a good start, but was scrapped…

Seventeen drivers will take part in a three-day tryout next month at New Smyrna (Fla.) Speedway to compete for spots in the 2017 edition of NASCAR’s Drive for Diversity driver development program. This is the 13th year of the combine, where promising ethnically diverse and female drivers from across North and South America are evaluated for inclusion in next season’s program. In a partnership with Rev Racing, drivers…

ON THE COVER Team USA won 16 Olympic gold medals in Rio—and 33 total medals, including at least one in 29 of 32 events! No fewer than 38 of its 45 swimmers won at least one medal, while 18 Americans went home with multiple medals. The standouts for the U.S. included the obvious names (Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky), some newer faces (Ryan Murphy, Maya DiRado, Lilly King,…

Play Facebook Twitter Google Plus Embed autoplay autoplay NEW YORK — Chants of “Allahu Akbar” are not what you’d expect to hear at a Brooklyn baseball diamond directly after “The Star-Spangled Banner.” But a 29-member all-Pakistan squad that last week visited the U.S. seeking a berth at the World Baseball Classic brought a new flavor to America’s pastime. As a former British colony, the world’s oldest Islamic republic is cricket…

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John Hanley has made a living by balancing his two childhood loves — baseball and art. The 54-year-old veteran sports artist has sold hundreds of Cubs-related paintings and prints to baseball fans across the country in a decadeslong career that began at a Chicago advertising agency. As a child in Crystal Lake, Hanley doodled on whatever he could get his hands on, from napkins to envelopes. But art really didn’t…

PRO FOOTBALL HOUSTON (AP) A person familiar with J.J. Watt’s condition said the Houston Texans’ star defensive lineman had back surgery and is expected to miss the rest of the season. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team hasn’t announced the surgery. Watt was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with a back injury. It’s his second back surgery in two months after he…

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PRO FOOTBALL HOUSTON (AP) A person familiar with J.J. Watt’s condition said the Houston Texans’ star defensive lineman had back surgery and is expected to miss the rest of the season. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team hasn’t announced the surgery. Watt was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with a back injury. It’s his second back surgery in two months after he…

Last Monday night, it’s estimated that over 81 million viewers tuned in for the first presidential debate of 2016, which would be a record number for any debate in U.S. history. A huge part of the reason for that is the spectacle put on during this election year between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, but a significant boost came from the fact that you didn’t have to be at home,…

To save articles or get newsletters, alerts or recommendations – all free. Don’t have an account yet?Create an account » Subscribed through iTunes and need an NYTimes.com account?Learn more » Need to connect your Home Delivery subscription to NYTimes.com?Link your subscription »

To save articles or get newsletters, alerts or recommendations – all free. Don’t have an account yet?Create an account » Subscribed through iTunes and need an NYTimes.com account?Learn more » Need to connect your Home Delivery subscription to NYTimes.com?Link your subscription »

PRO FOOTBALL HOUSTON (AP) A person familiar with J.J. Watt’s condition said the Houston Texans’ star defensive lineman had back surgery and is expected to miss the rest of the season. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team hasn’t announced the surgery. Watt was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with a back injury. It’s his second back surgery in two months after he…

Brad Keselowski inherited the pole for Sunday’s Chase for the Sprint Cup elimination race after rain forced the cancellation of qualifying Friday at Dover International Speedway. NASCAR set the starting grid off owner points, placing the 16 playoff drivers up front. Keselowski will share the front row with Martin Truex Jr. Defending Sprint Cup champion Kyle Busch lines up third, followed by Matt Kenseth and Joey Logano. Truex…

Sidney Crosby and Canada proved their dominance once again. USATSI The 2016 World Cup of Hockey reached its expected conclusion with Canada skating off the ice with the trophy for which the tournament is named Thursday night. Aside from the unsurprising, and in some ways, anti-climactic ending to the tournament, there was more than enough compelling competition for hockey fans to consume. It was not a rousing success by any…

USA Cycling today released its schedule for the 2017 national championships, including events in cyclocross, mountain bike, road and track. BMX events will be announced at a later date. Related Articles USA Cycling confirms Pro National Championships move to Knoxville The biggest change in the calendar is the pro road and time trial events’ move from the originally scheduled venue in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to Knoxville, Tennessee. The three-day US pro…

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For one Canadian woman, the line between reality and television briefly blurred. A woman who called into Luke Banack’s show on Canada’s 98.1FM CAM-FM thought Ginny Baker, the main character in Fox’s new show, Pitch, about the first woman to pitch in major league baseball, was a real person.  “On the sports this morning, you didn’t mention how the female pitcher did in major league baseball. She pitched last night, I thought,” complained the woman.  “No, that’s a…