USA FIVB Men's World League Volleyball Results/USA Women's Volleyball Pan Am Cup/World Grand Prix results

USA Men's FIVB World League Volleyball Results:

At Novi Sad, Serbia

June 2 - Serbia L 1-3, 18-25, 25-23, 20-25, 21-25
June 3 - Canada L 2-3, 25-23, 19-25, 25-18, 23-25, 11-15
June 4 - Belgium L 1-3, 23-25, 16-25, 25-22, 26-28

At Pau, France

June 9 - Italy W 3-0, 25-22, 25-23, 25-23
June 10 - Russia W 3-0, 25-20, 25-22, 25-22
June 11 - France L 1-3, 20-25, 25-18, 20-25, 21-25

At Katowice, Poland

June 15 - Iran W 3-0, 25-17, 25-22, 30-28
June 17 - Russia L 2-3, 29-31, 25-17, 17-25, 29-27, 12-15
June 18 - Poland W 3-1, 29-31, 25-17, 27-25, 25-20

At World League Finals - Curitiba, Brazil

July 4 - France L 2-3, 25-27, 25-20, 24-26, 25-17, 12-15
July 5 - Serbia W 3-1, 25-22, 25-23, 19-25, 25-22
July 7 - Brazil L 1-3, 20-25, 25-23, 20-25, 19-25
July 8 - Canada L 1-3, 25-18, 20-25, 22-25, 21-25

USA Men finish 4th.

USA women's volleyball Pan Am Cup Results:

At Canete, Peru

June 17 - Venezuela W 3-0, 25-9, 25-16, 25-11
June 18 - Columbia, W 3-0, 25-8, 25-19, 29-27
June 19 - Puerto Rico W 3-2, 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 21-25, 15-12
June 20 - Mexico W 3-0, 25-13, 25-15, 25-13
June 21 - Argentina W 3-0, 27-25, 25-14, 25-23
June 24 - Peru W 3-0, 25-14, 25-17, 27-25
June 25 - Dominican Republic W 3-1, 25-16, 19-25, 25-20, 25-23


USA women's volleyball FIVB World Grand Prix 2017 results:

At Kunshan, China

July 7 - Russia W 3-2, 22-25, 25-19, 25-27, 25-16, 15-11
July 8 - Italy W 3-0, 25-21, 25-22, 25-19
July 9 - China W 3-0, 25-22, 25-22, 25-21

At Macau, China

July 16 - Turkey W 3-1, 25-21, 24-26, 25-19, 25-12
July 17 - Italy L 2-3, 22-25, 25-22, 21-25, 25-13, 13-15
July 18 - China L 2-3, 27-25, 23-25, 21-25, 25-23, 11-15

At Cuiaba, Brazil

July 20 - Netherlands - W 3-1, 25-15, 23-25, 28-26, 25-21
July 21 - Belgium - W 3-1, 25-14, 16-25, 25-19, 26-24
July 23 - Brazil - L 1-3, 20-25, 13-25, 25-18, 18-25

At Nanjing, China - Grand Prix Finals

August 2 - Serbia L 2-3, 22-25, 17-25, 25-23, 25-18, 11-15
August 3 - Italy L 1-3, 21-25, 25-22, 22-25, 21-25

USA women eliminated- finished 5th

2017 USA National Track and Field Champions/ 2017 USA Track and Field World Championship team

The 2017 USA National Track and Field Championships were held in Sacramento, CA from June 22-25, 2017.

Several past stars of USA Track and Field did not qualify for the Track and Field World Championships to be held in London from August 4-13, 2017.

Allyson Felix and English Gardiner did not qualify in the women's 100, Allyson Felix did not qualify in the women's 200, Shannon Rowbury did not qualify in the women's 1500, Shalane Flanagan did not qualify in the women's 10,000, Queen Harrison did not qualify in the women's 100 hurdles, Sharika Nelvis, Kristi Castlin, and Jasmin Stowers did not qualify in the women's 100 hurdles, Ashley Spencer, Georganne Moline and Sydney McLaughlin did not qualify in the women's 400 hurdles, Chaunte Lowe did not qualify in the women's high jump, Trayvon Brommell, Mike Rodgers and Tyson Gay did not qualify in the men's 100, Wallace Spearmon, Jr., Walter Dix and Justin Gatlin did not qualify in the men's 200, David Verburg, Bryshon Nellum and Tony McQuay did not qualify in the men's 400, Casimir Loxsom, Eric Sowinski, Charles Jock, and Clayton Murphy did not qualify in the men's 800, Leo Manzano, Clayton Murphy, Andrew Wheating and Ben Blankenship did not qualify in the men's 1500, Lopez Lomong, and Ben True did not qualify in the men's 5000, Galen Rupp did not qualify in the men's 10,000, David Oliver and Jason Richardson did not qualify in the men's 110 hurdles, Johnny Dutch and Bershawn Jackson did not qualify in the men's 400 hurdles, Kibwe Johnson did not qualify in the men's hammer throw.

The 2017 World Championship USA Track and Field Team:

Mens 10,000M - Hassan Mead, Shadrack Kipchirchir and Leonard Korir
Womens 10,000M - Molly Huddle, Emily Infeld and Emily Sisson
Womens 100M - Tori Bowie, Deajah Stevens and Ariana Washington
Mens Decathlon - Trey Hardee, Zack Ziemek and Devon Williams
Men's Shot Put- Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs and Ryan Whiting
Women's Long Jump - Tianna Bartoletta, Brittney Reese and Shakeela Saunders
Men's 400M - Fred Kerley, Gil Roberts, and Wil London III
Women's 400M - Quanera Hayes, Phyllis Francis and Kendall Ellis
Women's Discus - Gia Lewis-Smallwood, Whitney Ashley and Valarie Allman
Men's 100M - Justin Gatlin, Christian Coleman and Christopher Belcher
Women's High Jump - Vashti Cunningham, Liz Patterson and Inika Mcpherson
Men's 800M - Donovan Brazier, Isaiah Harris and Drew Windle
Women's 800M - Ajee Wilson,Charlene Lipsey, and Brenda Martinez
Men's Long Jump - Jarrion Lawson and Marquis Dendy and Demarcus Simpson
Women's Pole Vault - Sandi Morris, Jenn Suhr, and Emily Grove
Women's Triple Jump - Keturah Orji, Tori Franklin and Andrea Geubelle
Men's High Jump - Bryan McBride, Ricky Robertson, Jr. and Erik Kynard
Women's Hammer Throw - Gwen Berry, Maggie Ewen and Deanna Price
Men's Hammer Throw - Johnnie Jackson, Sean Donnelly and Rudy Winkler
Men's Javelin - Riley Doleezal, Cyrus Hostetler and Michael Shuey
Men's 3000M Steeplechase - Evan Jager, Stanley Kebenei Hillary Bor
Men's Pole Vault - Sam Kendricks, Andrew Irwin and Chris Nilsen
Men's Discus - Mason Finley, Andrew Evans and Rodney Brown
Women's 5000M - Shelby Houlihan Shannon Rowbury and Molly Huddle
Men's 5000M - Paul Chelimo, Eric Jenkina and Ryan Hill
Women's Shot Put - Raven Saunders, Dani Bunch and Michelle Carter,
Women's 3000M Steeplechase - Emma Coburn, Courtney Frerichs and Colleen Quigley
Men's Triple Jump - Will Claye, Chris Benard and Donald Scott
Women's 100M Hurdles - Kendra Harrison, Nia Ali and Christina Manning
Women's Heptathlon - Kendell Williams, Erica Bougard and Sharon Day-Monroe
Men's 110M Hurdles - Aleec Harris, Aries Merritt and Devon Allen
Women's 200M - Deajah Stevens, Kimberlyn Duncan and Tori Bowie
Women's 400M Hurdles - Dalilah Muhammad, Shamier Little and Kori Carter
Men's 400M Hurdles - Eric Futch, Michael Stigler and TJ Holmes
Men's 1500M - Robby Andrews, Matthew Centrowitz and John Gregorek
Women's 1500M - Jenny Simpson, Kate Grace and Sara Vaughn
Women's Javelin - Kara Winger, Ariana Ince and Rebekah Wales
Men's 200M - Ameer Webb, Christian Coleman and Elijah Hall-Thompson

Several new Olympic events will take place at the 2020 Tokyo Games/ 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games awarded together

Several new events have been approved by the IOC to take place in Tokyo. Three on Three Basketball, BMX Freestyle Cycling and Track Cycling are new events. New swimming events include the 4 by 100 mixed medley relay, men's 800 freestyle and women's 1500 freestyle. Track and Field has added a mixed 4 by 400 relay. This is in addition to sports already approved by the IOC for the Tokyo games which include Sports Climbing, Skateboarding, Surfing, Karate and Baseball/Softball.

The IOC also cut certain events/places from the Rio games to make sure the athletes are capped at 10,616 through 28 core sports, Track and Field will lose 105 places, Weightlifting will lose 64 places, Wrestling will lose 56 places, Shooting and Sailing will lose 30 places each, followed by Swimming, which will lose 22 places. In total, 285 athlete places will be cut.


The IOC has now officially proposed to award the 2024 and 2028 summer games at once. Los Angeles and Paris will be awarded games, in which order is still to be determined. Paris is the favorite to land the 2024 games while Los Angeles, showing more flexibility could be awarded the 2028 games. A vote by the full IOC membership on this proposal will be held on July 11-12 in Lausanne, Switzerland. The hosting order will be determined at the IOC's annual meeting in Lima, Peru on Sept. 13.

Olympic and athlete updates

USA men's Olympic water polo athlete Tony Azevedo will retire at age 35. Azevedo participated in five Olympic games. Azevedo will spend more time with his family.

USA men's Olympic diver David Boudia will skip the 2017 diving season as he ponders retirement. Boudia won gold in 10M platform and bronze in 10M synchro at the 2012 London games. Boudia also won bronze in 10M platform and silver in 10M synchro at the 2016 Rio games.

USA Ice Dancers Meryl Davis and Charlie White will not compete at the 2018 Pyeongchang games. The pair have not competed in three seasons. They have ruled out competing next season as well.

USA women's Track and Field athlete Dawn Harper Nelson was banned for three months for taking banned blood pressure medication. She took the medication on December 1. It contained a banned substance. The medication was prescribed by her doctor after she was diagnosed with high blood pressure. Harper-Nelson's suspension ended March 1, 2017.

The 2017 World Figure Skating Championships were held in Helsinki, Finland from March 29-April 2. Americans Maia Shibutani/Alex Shibutani were the only ones to medal, winning bronze in Ice Dance. Americans Madison Chock/Evan Bates finished 7th while Madison Hubbell/Zachary Donohue finished 9th. Nathan Chen of the USA finished 6th in the men's short program and free skate combined, American Jason Brown finished 7th. Karen Chen, of the USA finished 4th, Ashley Wagner, of the USA finished 7th and American Mariah Bell finished 12th in the women's short program and free skate combined. In the pairs competition, Americans Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim finished 10th.

NBC will show the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic games live across all time zones. Primetime will start at 8pm eastern time, 7pm central time, 6pm mountain time and 5pm pacific time. Local news will follow primetime coverage. Primetime Plus will follow local news and will be live as well. After Primetime Plus airs, it would be followed by a replay of primetime coverage. This change is from NBC's usual policy of "tape delay" coverage.

NBC Sports is now offering a 2017 Track and Field Pass for $69.99. This live and on demand streaming and TV service will cover all of the Diamond League events, the 2017 World Championships in London and USATF events as well. The service can be accessed at nbcsportsgold.com.

Bershawn "Batman" Jackson, an American men's 400 hurdles track athlete, has announced his retirement from the sport. Jackson will retire at the conclusion of the 2017 outdoor track season. Jackson won bronze in the men's 400 hurdles at the 2008 Beijing games.

Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park will be renovated over the next two years. The upgrades, which include, a pedestrian plaza, interactive games, and a renovated Southern Amphitheater will be completed by January 2019.

The 2021 outdoor Track and Field World Championships will be held in Eugene, Oregon from August 6-15.

USA women's 100 hurdler Brianna Rollins was suspended for the entire 2017 Track and Field outdoor season for missing three drug tests during 2016. Rollins missed the tests because of previous engagements and travels that left USADA unaware of her whereabouts. Athletes are supposed to notify USADA of their travel plans and Rollins did not do so. Rollins has never tested positive and is a clean athlete. The suspension will end on December 19, 2017.

USA women's beach volleyball legend Kerri Walsh Jennings ended her partnership with April Ross. Walsh Jennings did not renew her contract with the AVP. Walsh Jennings is the only athlete not to renew with the AVP until after the 2020 Tokyo games. She claims that the AVP is holding her and other beach volleyball athletes back. April Ross will partner with Lauren Fendrick for the 2017 AVP season. Walsh Jennings is not retiring so look for her on a beach volleyball court somewhere soon!

The AVP TV Schedule was released in early May. All times eastern.

Sunday May 7 - Huntington Beach, CA - NBCSN - 5pm
Sunday May 21 - Austin, TX - NBCSN - 5pm
Sunday June 11 - New York, NY - NBC - 4:30pm
Sunday June 25 - Seattle, WA - NBCSN - 6pm
Sunday July 9 - San Francisco, CA - NBCSN - 12:30am
Sunday July 23 - Hermosa Beach, CA - NBCSN - 4pm
Sunday August 20 - Manhattan Beach, CA - NBC - 2:30pm
Sunday Sept. 3 - Chicago, IL - NBCSN - 12am

Steven Holcomb, an Olympic gold medalist bobsledder, was found dead on May 6, 2017. He was 37. Holcomb died in his sleep. He had fluid in his lungs. Holcomb won gold at the 2010 Vancouver games in the 4 man bobsled. In the 2014 Sochi games, Holcomb won bronze medals in the 2 man and 4 man bobsled. He was one of 3 Olympic athletes following me on Twitter. He will be missed.

USA Gymnastics will not buy the famed Karolyi ranch in Texas. In July 2016, USA Gymnastics was supposed to buy the ranch, which includes three gyms, housing for athletes, a dance studio and a dining hall from Bela and Marta Karolyi. Larry Nassar, a physician, is accused of sexually abusing three gymnasts at the ranch in the late 1990's. USA Gymnastics is distancing themselves from the Karolyi's and their ranch. A lawsuit was filed against the Karolyi's and USA Gymnastics for failure to monitor and report abuse.

USA men's short track speed skater Chris Creveling received a 4 year doping ban and will not compete at the 2018 Pyeongchang winter games. He tested positive for clomiphene, which is not allowed by the USADA. This drug can affect testosterone levels. Creveling's ban has been in effect since Nov. 18, 2016. Creveling won the silver medal in the 5000m relay in Sochi.

Three time USA women's beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings has found a new partner. The partner is Nicole Branagh. Branagh, like Walsh-Jennings, is 38 years old. They briefly partnered in 2010 when then partner to Walsh Jennings, Misty May Treanor took a break before the 2012 London games. Once May-Treanor returned, Branagh and Walsh Jennings went their separate ways. The pair will compete in international tournaments only because Walsh-Jennings is still not signed by the AVP.

USA men's gymnast Jonathan Horton has announced his retirement. Horton is a two-time Olympic medalist. Horton plans to stay involved with USA Gymnastics and has plans to create a new training center for USA male gymnasts.

USA 800 meter track star Nick Symmonds has announced his retirement effective immediately after he was eliminated in the first round of the men's 800 at the USA National Track and Field Championships in Sacramento, CA. Symmonds won a total of six USA men's 800 titles, five consecutively. He finished fifth in the 800 finals at the London 2012 games. Symmonds also won a silver medal in the 800 at the 2013 Track and Field World Championships. Symmonds last professional race will be in December 2017 at the Honolulu Marathon.

USA men's 400 track star Jeremy Wariner has announced his retirement. Wariner won silver in the men's 400 at the 2008 Beijing games and again at the 2009 World Track and Field Championships in Berlin. In 2016, Wariner missed making the 2016 Rio games. Wariner will now focus on his Jimmy John's franchise business.

USA male gymnast Jake Dalton is retiring from gymnastics. Dalton competed at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic games and won four medals at the gymnastics world championships(2011, 2014 - team, silver on floor exercise in 2013 and vault bronze in 2014). Dalton will focus on running his gymnastics gyms located in Nevada.

USA men's decathlete Trey Hardee has announced his retirement. Hardee pulled out of the decathlon after hitting the hurdles in the decathlon 110 hurdles at the 2017 IAAF World Track and Field Championships.

Los Angeles 2024 vs. Paris 2024

In late February 2017, Budapest, Hungary dropped out of the running to host the 2024 Olympics. This leaves only Los Angeles and Paris as the only two cities left.

Los Angeles 2024 is the better bid based on the fact that no new permanent structures have to be built, whereas Paris 2024 has to build an Olympic village from scratch. The cost to Paris 2024 will be one to two billion dollars. Los Angeles 2024 has a budget of 5.3 billion dollars while Paris 2024 has a bid of 4.8 billion dollars but also up to 5 billion in infrastructure projects. The reason I bring this up is Los Angeles 2024's bid is privately financed while Paris 2024 will have their bid funded by the French government. Los Angeles bid theme is "Follow the Sun" while Paris 2024 theme is "Made for Sharing".

Ever since the IOC has passed 2020 reforms, cities have dropped out of bidding on games because of high bid cost and high cost of putting on the games themselves. Boston, Rome, Budapest, and Hamburg all pulled their 2024 Olympic bids due to unpopularity and cost. The Sochi winter games in 2014 cost over 50 billion dollars. The Tokyo 2020 summer games have big cost overruns, and their Olympic stadium had to be redesigned because of the original cost of a billion dollars. The 2008 Beijing summer games also had cost overruns but were awarded the 2022 winter games over Almaty, Kazakhstan based on the more stable, cost efficient bid. Very few permanent structures have to be built for the Beijing 2022 bid. Almost all Rio 2016 Olympic venues are now white elephants and lay in ruins less than a year after the games. These mistakes don't need to be repeated by the IOC. Awarding the 2024 Olympic games to Los Angeles makes sense based on the IOC reforms passed but there are a few hurdles for Los Angeles to clear.

The USA election of Donald Trump in the fall of 2016 could complicate the Los Angeles 2024 bid. President Trump's populist agenda might be popular in the USA but not with the IOC. The IOC could vote to defeat the Los Angeles 2024 bid based on Donald Trump's election as USA President. President Trump has proposed two Muslim travel bans from seven mid-eastern countries over the first 90 days of his administration. These bans would restrict Muslims visa holders from entering the USA from seven countries(Iraq, Syria, Iran, Somalia, Sudan, Libya and Yemen) for 90 days(Syrian refugees 120 Days) so that the Trump administration could find a way to vet them. When the first ban was struck down by the USA courts. President Trump devised another ban to replace the first ban. Luckily, both bans were overturned by the USA courts but are being appealed by the Trump administration. President Trump fully supports the Los Angeles 2024 bid.

On May 7, 2017 France had a Presidential election. The centrist Emmanuel Macron defeated far right candidate Marine Le Pen. Had Le Pen won the Paris 2024 bid would, in my opinion, taken a back seat to Los Angeles 2024 bid. Le Pen proposed the same anti-immigration policies that USA President Trump has proposed. Since Macron won, the IOC might favor Paris 2024 bid over Los Angeles 2024 despite the fact that it's is a better bid based on the IOC's 2020 reforms. Why? because the USA is anti-immigration and France is not. However, there is a silver lining for both bids.

Within the last year the IOC has discussed awarding both the 2024 and 2028 summer Olympics bid cities together. The stakes are high. The USA has had two failed bids in 2005 New York City and 2009 Chicago (2012 and 2016 games). The USA last held summer games in 1996. Paris has had three failed attempts (1992, 2008 and 2012.) Paris last held games in 1924 and it would be the 100th anniversary of the last Paris summer games. Several IOC members are opposed to the idea of awarding two Olympic games at once. They are afraid of other host cities that now cannot bid on the games for 2028. IOC President Thomas Bach thinks its a good idea because he feels there are too many losers in the bidding process. Both candidate cities vow they are only bidding on 2024. Paris had issued an ultimatum to the IOC saying they could only accept a 2024 bid because the land available to build the Olympic Village will not be available in 2028. Paris 2024 has since walked back that statement. Los Angeles 2024 has kept open a possible 2028 bid by not issuing an ultimatum to the IOC. Both cities would have to agree on it and the order of the cities bids in order for this idea to work. I am for this idea provided Los Angeles be awarded the 2024 games and Paris awarded the 2028 games.

This past week(May 10-12) the IOC visited Los Angeles and toured the venues and met with Los Angeles 2024 bid leaders, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and bid Chairman Casey Wasserman. Next week, May 14-16, the IOC will tour Paris 2024 venues and meet with bid officials.
In June 2017, the IOC will publish the Evaluation Commission report on the visits to the candidate cities and both cities will have a chance to respond to the report. On July 11-12, 2017 there will be a candidate city briefing for members of the IOC and Olympic Federations.
In early September 2017 Los Angeles and Paris will be submitted to the IOC session for election.
On September 13, 2017 in Lima, Peru The IOC will vote on the bid city as part of its session.

My vote is for two bid cities to be awarded at once! Los Angeles would be awarded the 2024 summer Olympic games and Paris would be awarded the 2028 summer Olympic games!

Only time will tell!

One year until Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics/ Bob Costas steps down

One year from today the world will gather in Pyeongchang, South Korea for the games of the XXIII Winter Olympiad. The games will be held from February 9-25, 2018. Looking forward to another great Olympics!


Also today, NBC Olympics studio host Bob Costas has stepped down as primetime Olympics studio host. Mike Tirico will take over Olympic studio duties starting with the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. Costas had been the NBC Olympics prime time host since 1992.
Bob Costas will be missed. I've been very critical of NBC's Olympic editing coverage in the past but NBC's strength is in its studio hosts, play by play announcing and analysts. I'm sure Mike Tirico will do a fine job!

15 years since Salt Lake City games

Today marks the 15th anniversary of the start of the 2002 winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah! In an earlier blog post I described my experience as a volunteer at these games. By the time the games started I had already left Utah. The opening ceremonies were held on February 8, 2002 and the games ended on February 24, 2002. 15 years just flew by!