Athlete compensation
FILE - Then-USA Hockey women's General Manager Reagan Carey is interviewed in Plymouth Township, Mich., Dec. 15, 2016. Reagan Carey is bringing her Olympic gold-medal-winning resume to lead the Premier Hockey Federation through a critical offseason of expansion and the looming threat of competing for talent with a second North American pro women’s hockey league. The PHF announced Tuesday, April 26. 2022, that the former head of USA Hockey’s women’s programs is its new commissioner heading into it eighth season. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
Former USA Hockey women's director named PHF commissioner

By John Wawrow Apr. 26, 2022 08:00 AM EDT

Auburn gymnast Sunisa Lee gathers with teammates before performing at a meet at the University of Michigan, Saturday, March 12, 2022, in Ann Arbor, Mich. A record crowd came out to watch Lee, the reigning Olympic champion, and Auburn take on defending national champion Michigan. The arrival of Lee and several of her Olympic teammates at the collegiate level is helping fuel a spike in interest and participation in NCAA women's gymnastics. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
'Beacon of goodness': NCAA women's gymnastics is booming

By Will Graves Mar. 29, 2022 06:07 PM EDT

FILE - In this Nov. 9, 2018, file photo, Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Jayna Hefford shakes hands with people associated with the hall before a hockey game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the New Jersey Devils in Toronto. Two officials with direct knowledge of discussions tell The Association Press that talks with select NHL teams and major corporate sponsors have intensified in the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association’s bid to form a pro league within the next calendar year. In a text to The AP, PWHPA executive Jayna Hefford would only say she is not in a position to comment at this point. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP, File)
PWHPA inching closer to forming women's pro hockey league

By John Wawrow Mar. 02, 2022 04:22 PM EST

In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping tours the National Speed Skating Oval, a competition venue for the 2022 Winter Olympics, in Beijing, Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. Competition for the Winter Olympics is scheduled to begin on Feb. 4. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via AP)
China spends billions on Olympics with longer-term goal

By Graham Dunbar Jan. 27, 2022 04:14 AM EST

FILE - NWHL interim Commissioner Tyler Tumminia poses for a photo before a WNHL playoff hockey playoff game in Boston, Friday, March 26, 2021. The Premier Hockey Federation is more than doubling each teams’ salary cap to $750,000 and adding two expansion franchises next season in a bid to capitalize on the wave of attention women’s hockey traditionally enjoys following the Winter Olympics. “It’s an amazing investment by the ownership, and it really reaffirms the strength of their commitment to being a difference-maker in women’s hockey,” PHF Commissioner Ty Tumminia told The Associated Press.(AP Photo/Mary Schwalm, File)
Women's hockey league to increase salary cap, add 2 teams

By John Wawrow Jan. 18, 2022 07:02 AM EST

FILE - Germany's Claudia Pechstein competes in the women's 5,000 meters during the world single distances speedskating championships Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020, in Kearns, Utah. At 49, Pechstein will be the oldest woman to compete at a Winter Olympics and the second athlete — and only woman — to compete in eight. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
'Grandma' Claudia Pechstein skates into 8th Olympics

By Beth Harris Jan. 14, 2022 02:05 AM EST

FILE - Russia forward Vladimir Tarasenko wraps the puck around the goal against Slovakia forward Branko Radivojevic in the first period of a men's ice hockey game at the 2014 Winter Olympics, Sunday, Feb. 16, 2014, in Sochi, Russia. A handful of NHL players are voicing frustration over the decision not to allow them to go to the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing. Tarasenko said on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021, he would have gone if given the choice. Keeping the season going while allowing individual players to choose whether to go was not something that was ever considered.(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)
NHL players vent frustration over being barred from Olympics

By Stephen Whyno Dec. 29, 2021 05:54 AM EST

FILE -Canada defenseman Shea Weber, left, trips over USA forward David Backes during the third period of a men's semifinal ice hockey game at the 2014 Winter Olympics, Friday, Feb. 21, 2014, in Sochi, Russia. NHL players will not take part in the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing after all. A person with direct knowledge of the decision tells The Associated Press the league is going to withdraw from the Olympics after the regular-season schedule was disrupted by coronavirus outbreaks, Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2021.(AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
NHL announces players won't be allowed to go to Olympics

By Stephen Whyno Dec. 22, 2021 10:53 AM EST

FILE - Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Alex Cobb throws to the plate during the first inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021 in Anaheim, Calif. Right-hander Cobb is close to finalizing an agreement with the San Francisco Giants, a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations said Monday, Nov. 29, 2021. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because Cobb still must pass a physical to complete the deal. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
Giants, Cobb finalize $20M, 2-year deal with club option

Nov. 30, 2021 11:46 PM EST

Wolfsburg's Dominique Janssen, center left, celebrates with teammates after scoring during the Women's Champions League group A soccer match between VfL Wolfsburg and Servette FC Chenois at AOK Stadion in Wolfsburg, Germany, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2021. (Swen Pf'rtner/dpa via AP)
Ellis says biennial Women's World Cup can help grow the game

By Anne M. Peterson Oct. 18, 2021 03:22 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 22, 2014, file photo, hockey pucks bounce off the wall during the warm up session before the USA vs Finland men's bronze medal ice hockey game at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. National Hockey League players are set to return to the Olympics in Beijing this winter after reaching an agreement with international officials. The league, NHLPA, International Olympic Committee and International Ice Hockey Federation struck a deal Friday, Sept. 3, 2021, that will put the best players in the world back on sports' biggest stage in February after skipping the 2018 Winter Games in South Korea. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)
NHL reaches agreement to send players to Olympics in Beijing

By Stephen Whyno And John Wawrow Sep. 03, 2021 11:20 AM EDT

Seattle Storm forward Breanna Stewart holds the MVP trophy after the Commissioner's Cup WNBA basketball game against the Connecticut Sun, Thursday, Aug. 12, 2021, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Matt York)
WNBA teams ready for sprint to the finish of regular season

By Doug Feinberg Aug. 17, 2021 02:04 PM EDT

Simone Biles, of the United States, waits to perform on the vault during the artistic gymnastics women's final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, in Tokyo. The American gymnastics superstar has withdrawn the all-around competition to focus on her mental well-being. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Simone Biles makes mental health the talk of the Tokyo Games

By Jenna Fryer Jul. 29, 2021 07:22 AM EDT

FILE - In this Thursday, Aug. 29, 2019 file photo, IAAF President British Lord Sebastian Coe at the award ceremony during the Weltklasse IAAF Diamond League international athletics meeting in the stadium Letzigrund in Zurich, Switzerland. The Diamond League will hold its season opener in Britain for the first time with Gateshead replacing Rabat as the 2021 campaign’s first host city, it was announced Friday, April 16, 2021. Diamond League chairman Sebastian Coe says it’s an “incredibly important year” with track-and-field athletes preparing for this summer’s Tokyo Olympics as well as next year’s World Athletics Championships in Oregon. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP, file)
Gateshead replaces Rabat for Diamond League season opener

Apr. 16, 2021 07:26 AM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 24, 2021, file photo, Jordan Larson participates in a volleyball workout at Fair Park Coliseum, in Dallas. Larson was a player and coach while winning the inaugural championship of a unique women's professional indoor volleyball league focused on individual stats over team results. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
U.S. women's pro volleyball league looks ahead to 2nd year

By Schuyler Dixon Mar. 31, 2021 05:05 PM EDT

FILE - In this Jan. 24, 2016, photo, National Women's Hockey League All-Star players take time for a photo before an All-Star game at Harborcenter in Buffalo, N.Y. The National Women's Hockey League semifinals and final will air on NBC Sports Network in early February 2021. It will be the first time professional women's hockey games are shown live on a major television network in the U.S. (AP Photo/Gary Wiepert, File)
NWHL semifinals, final to air live on NBCSN in February

By Stephen Whyno Dec. 22, 2020 08:34 AM EST

President of the Russian Olympic Committee Stanislav Pozdnyakov speaks during a news conference in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. The Court of Arbitration for Sport confirmed Russia's flag and anthem are barred from next year's Olympics in Tokyo and the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing on Thursday. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
Russia claims victory with loopholes in Olympic sanctions

By James Ellingworth Dec. 17, 2020 01:04 PM EST

Ben Hallock, right, of the U.S. and Dmitrii Kholod of Russia fight for the ball during the men's water polo Group D third round match of the 17th FINA Swimming World Championships in Hajos Alfred National Swimming Pool in Budapest, Hungary, in this Friday, July 21, 2017, file photo. Hallock, 23, is among 18 U.S. men’s water polo players who joined professional teams in Europe after COVID-19 hampered their training in California. (Szilard Koszticsak/MTI via AP, File)
US water polo players flock to Europe to prepare for Tokyo

By Jay Cohen Dec. 15, 2020 12:26 PM EST

NWHL season to last 2 weeks and played in Lake Placid bubble

By John Wawrow Nov. 25, 2020 12:10 PM EST
The National Women’s Hockey League season will be limited to a two-week run and played in a bubble in Lake Placid, New York, as a result of COVID-19...

FILE - In this March 3, 2018, file photo, Meghan Duggan, of the gold medal-winning U.S. women's Olympic hockey team, listens to a question from the media before an outdoor NHL hockey game between the Washington Capitals and the Toronto Maple Leafs in Annapolis, Md. U.S. women's hockey captain Duggan announced her retirement Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020, after a career in which she won the 2018 Olympic gold medal and seven world championship golds. (AP Photo/Nick Wass, File)
Meghan Duggan, a champion across women's hockey, retires

By Stephen Whyno Oct. 13, 2020 10:41 AM EDT