According to the World Health Organization , 130 to 150 million people worldwide suffer from chronic infections of Hepatitis C (HCV), a blood borne virus that primarily attacks the liver and can be spread through needle-sharing, contaminated medical equipment, and less often through sexual relations. These sufferers are especially vulnerable to later liver damage, either through cirrhosis or cancer, and 350,000 to 500,000 people die as a result of these diseases every year. While there are available drug treatments for acute Hepatitis C infection and its hardier chronic version, they vary in effectiveness, accessibility, and tolerance, often needing to be received via injection and coming saddled with side effects. Soon enough however, we might be looking at an entirely new playing field, with two studies in this month's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reporting the extraordinary success of an experimental multi-drug oral therapy for chronic HCV infection, even among those who hadn't responded to previous treatment. The history of Hepatitis C treatment has revolved around interferon therapy. While different in their specific functions, interferons are essentially a class of naturally occurring proteins that when released by the body, prompt the increased creation and fortification of immune cells needed to fight infection, and are named for their ability to interfere with viral infection. The drugs developed for Hepatitis C infection has thus relied on promoting interferon activity or finding other indirect means to prevent the infection from taking root. While useful, they've come with their own aforementioned burdens. But the past few years have marked a dramatic shift in drug development, with a new group of drugs created which directly target the Hepatitis C virus, inhibiting or interfering with replication, hence the ever catchy term direct-acting antivirals (DAAs). The two JAMA studies specifically looked at a three-drug combination of these DAAs over a twelve week period on a variety of circumstances; people who were suffering from Hepatitis C-associated cirrhosis; people who had never been exposed to drug therapy, and those whose previous treatments had failed. In the cirrhosis group, totaling 202 patients, when given fixed doses of daclatasvir, asunaprevir, and beclabuvir, 93 percent of patients who hadn't received treatment before were considered free of infection after 12 weeks, with an 87 percent clear rate of those previously treated. Notably, when the drug combination was paired with ribavirin, an existing drug, these percentages continued to increase, with 98 percent and 93 percent treatment rates respectively. Similar rates of around 90 percent were found in the larger study of 415 patients who weren't suffering from cirrhosis, though there was no intervention of ribavirin included. Perhaps most importantly, the drugs came free of severe side effects, a problem that has stymied past efforts to reach out to HCV sufferers. "Those with more advanced disease were unlikely to tolerate interferons, and many patients would decide against even getting treatment," said Dr. Andrew Muir in a press release , lead author of the cirrhosis study and chief of the division of gastroenterology at Duke Medicine, "For those who could tolerate it, it was only moderately effective." These new interferon-free drug regimens have led to an outpouring of optimism among the medical community. "The development of interferon-free treatments has been a tremendous step forward in the standard of care," Muir said. "These drugs are highly effective and well-tolerated by patients at all stages of liver disease." There's a lot of ground to cover before we can wave the victory flag over Hepatitis C though, not only in certifying the safety and the effectiveness of these therapies (neither study was randomized nor controlled, but other studies involving these specific drugs have been), but in solving the underlying problems that surround Hepatitis C care. "Despite the progress and success of viral eradication, numerous questions remain unanswered such as response based on race, still difficult-to-treat situations such as patients with end-stage liver disease or undergoing hemodialysis, access to and affordability of these therapies, improvements in quality of life, and cost effectiveness," wrote Dr. Hari Conjeevaram, a gastroenterologist at the University of Michigan Health System, who commented on the studies in an JAMA editorial , " It is time to reflect on these challenges and find solutions because the influence of HCV infection on global society is an ongoing challenge." Still, for the millions of Hepatitis C sufferers, it appears brighter days are looming ahead. Source: Muir A, Poordad F, Lalezari J, et al. Daclatasvir in Combination With Asunaprevir and Beclabuvir for Hepatitis C Virus Genotype 1 Infection With Compensated Cirrhosis. Journal of the American Medical Association . 2015 Poordad F, Sievart W, Mollison L, et al. Fixed-Dose Combination Therapy With Daclatasvir, Asunaprevir, and Beclabuvir for Noncirrhotic Patients With HCV Genotype 1 Infection. Journal of the American Medical Association . 2015


So when does the Stanley Cup parade down Woodward start? Hey, no pressure, Steve Yzerman. All we're expecting from the Detroit Red Wings' new general manager is three or four Stanley Cups and a perennial playoff contender. Is that so much to ask? More on Yzerman: Mitch Albom: Steve Yzerman back in Detroit. Happy days are here again Shawn Windsor: Here's why Steve Yzerman's return made you misty Jeff Seidel: Yzerman's return would have made Mike Ilitch proud It better not be, because I'm asking for it. And I'm pretty sure everyone around Hockeytown is. So are the good people at the Big House. And the Izzone. And Comerica Park and Ford Field. Because right now we need someone to save us from our playoff pathos. If not for the deep runs of the Michigan and Michigan State basketball teams this season, we would have little to celebrate around here. Sure, the Pistons grabbed the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, only to play Washington Generals to the Milwaukee Bucks' Harlem Globetrotters . Kudos to the Pistons for returning to the playoffs for the first time in three years. But without Blake Griffin, the Pistons didn't have a chance. On Wednesday night, as the Pistons took a 59-58 lead into halftime at Milwaukee, I thought: Is this happening? Are the Pistons going to even the series coming back to Detroit? What will Little Caesars Arena's first taste of an exciting playoff game feel like? Then Giannis Antetokounmpo happened in the second half. So did another blowout, followed by two more in Detroit. And that leaves us with a Tigers rebuild and a death march toward 90 losses. Year 62 of the Lions rebuild continues in earnest with the draft this week . So we turn to St. Yzerman, who was delivered unto us on Good Friday so that we may have many Great Aprils and Mays and Junes for years to come. U-M and MSU's basketball teams should be good again, but they're 11 months away from our next March Madness. ESPN used something called the Football Power Index to predict that Michigan will be among the four teams in this season's College Football Playoff , which is great … but also months away. For now, we're left mostly with wishful thinking. And some soul searching. How did this happen? In the late 1990s and the 2000s, it seemed a Michigan team was winning a champion every time you turned around. The Wolverines' 1997 national football championship was sandwiched by the Wings' Cups in '97 and '98. In 2001, Tom Izzo and Mateen Cleaves led MSU to the hoops title. The next year, the Wings won another Cup. Two years later, Chauncey Billups and the Pistons went to work on the Los Angeles Lakers and won the 2004 NBA title. Four years after that, the Wings hoisted their fourth Cup in 12 years. And the Tigers played in the 2006 and 2012 World Series. We hosted a Super Bowl and a Final Four and an All-Star Game in the 2000s. It seemed it would never end. And then it ended. Now? Now we've gone from Motown to Notown. From the Motor City to Idle Town. We can't even land a lousy MLS team . We're suddenly not good enough for soccer? Really? Soccer? So I spent the last week living vicariously as I flipped around the Stanley Cup and NBA playoffs. There was Keith Tkachuk sitting in the Pepsi Center stands rooting on his son, Matthew, as the Calgary Flames and their 37-year-old goalie, Mike Smith, went to overtime against the Colorado Avalanche. I watched the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs do battle in an Original Six matchup and could only think about a dark and quiet Little Caesars Arena and an even darker and quieter Joe Louis Arena. I watched the Los Angeles Clippers stun the Golden State Warriors in Game 2 with the largest comeback in NBA playoff history. I watched the Philadelphia 76ers' Ben Simmons play better than "average" and score 31 points to torch the Brooklyn Nets and shut Jared Dudley's mouth. I love it all in the playoffs. The trash talk gets trashier. The moments, mic drops and the memes are magnified. Give me some cotton-mouthed, end-to-end overtime playoff hockey. I want the urgency of the baseball playoffs with managerial shenanigans like having a starting pitcher face one batter. For now, I'll settle for Yzerman coming back home . How soon Stevie Y. and Wings bring the Stanley Cup back to Hockeytown is anyone's guess. But I'll be waiting. After all, haven't we all gotten pretty good at that? Contact Carlos Monarrez at cmonarrez@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @cmonarrez. This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Steve Yzerman represents new hope in Detroit sports drought


Red flags are flying at Oceanfront beaches Sunday due to rough surf, officials said. The city of Virginia Beach said in multiple tweets that swimmers should check with lifeguards before attempting to go in the water.


Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha has told the club of his desire to leave for Arsenal - the team he supported as a boy. After selling teammate Aaron Wan-Bissaka to Manchester United in a £50m deal, Palace are determined to keep the Ivorian international on their books for next season, setting a lofty £80m price tag on his head. And, with no Champions League football to their name, that is a price the Gunners cannot rise to thanks to a budget of just £45m this summer - making player sales the only way they'd be able to get their man other than convincing Steve Parish to lower the asking price. However, as reported by the Daily Mail , Zaha has now spoken to the south London club's hierarchy, making his desire to swap south for north in the capital known. And, while Zaha 's declarations may not change Parish's stance - especially given United's retention of their 25% sell-on clause in the Wan-Bissaka negotiations - they will surely help bolster Arsenal's chances of signing the 26-year-old, with Unai Emery desperate for the club to recuperate the money in whatever fashion they can in order to land the winger. A potential solution would be to sell Golden Boot-winning striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to free up funds, though 90min understands there is nothing to his recent links with Manchester United. Lorenzo Insigne could be out the door at Napoli - but where would he go? 樂 https://t.co/UeuuEG4384   90min (@90min_Football) June 28, 2019 Another name linked with a move has been Lucas Torreira, last summer's signing from Sampdoria, with the Uruguayan's name garnering plenty of attention once more in Italy, especially from AC Milan. Again though, while every player has their price, Torreira is a man the Gunners are none too keen on losing, with the midfielder equally happy to stay. But, with a budget as small as theirs, sacrifices will have to be made at some point if Zaha is to be signed.


With the growth in student loans continuing to soar, politicians and borrowers are struggling with an issue that's become both a financial and political problem. Presidential candidates are proposing to cancel student debt and make public college free, state legislators are cracking down on student-loan companies and, recently, government agencies have offered another approach   teaching students and borrowers more about finances. The Treasury Department recommended earlier this month that colleges should require students to take financial-literacy courses and representatives from the Department of Education told a group of financial-aid professionals this week that the agency is planning to add robust financial literacy tools to the app students can use to apply for financial aid and manage their student loans. These proposals come after years of colleges across the country experimenting with ways to teach their students good financial habits and provide them with more information about their loans. The idea behind these efforts is to help students manage their finances while they're in school and once they graduate. Ultimately, it's a laudable goal to help college students better understand their loans and their finances, but the question of how much to emphasize financial education underpins a broader debate about student debt, its causes, consequences   and possible solutions. Robert Kelchen, a Seton Hall University professor who studies higher education finance, said lawmakers and experts often ask whether people are making bad financial decisions or if they simply don't have enough money. "The answer is probably some of both   but it's hard to tell how much is a literacy issue versus how much is a lack of money issue." Is providing students and families with more information enough to curb our nation's $1.5 trillion student loan problem? So far, the research indicates that it's probably not. Here's why: What we often think of as financial literacy doesn't match many people's economic lives Part of the challenge with using financial education to address the college-affordability and student-loan problem is that broadly, increases in financial literacy do little to change behavior, data show . That has a lot to do with the disconnect between the curricula in most financial-literacy and education programs and people's lived experience, said Timothy Ogden, the managing director of the Financial Access Initiative at New York University. Much of what is taught and measured in traditional financial literacy and financial-education courses is how to evaluate relatively good choices through understanding concepts like interest rates or the difference between certain types of investment opportunities, he said. But the consumers who deal with the most dire consequences from a poor financial decision   low-income Americans with financial constraints   typically aren't facing these choices. Instead, they may be deciding between a high-interest payday loan or bouncing a check, Ogden said. Part of the reason why financial education is irrelevant to so many Americans, he says, is because the curricula were developed during a time when most workers could count on a biweekly paycheck at a stable job. These days, more than 40% of Americans regularly see large swings in their income. Related video: What to consider when paying off student loan debt (provided by CBS News) Very basic financial education concepts, like compound interest, "are based on a belief about a way income works   it starts low in your 20s and then steadily goes up over time," Ogden said. If that's the economic trajectory of your life, then the typical advice   to stash away as much money as possible in retirement and other investment vehicles   makes sense, he said. But "if your income is bouncing up and down month to month and year to year it's not clear at all that that's the best way to manage your money." Even when students are provided with financial information that's relevant to their lives, they're still constrained by the cost of college These days, some colleges are adapting to students' financial realities and working to send them information that's relevant at a time when it may be most useful. For example, over the past several years more colleges have started sending student "debt letters," which provide students with information like how much they've already borrowed, their future monthly payments and other personalized information about their loans. But the data on these programs so far indicates that they're not doing much to change students' borrowing behavior. "Students are making financing decisions based on the prices and the constraints they face," said Drew M. Anderson, an associate economist at the RAND Corporation. A lack of information about student debt isn't necessarily the problem. In fact, Anderson's research shows that students with loans actually understand them the best. And for some students, the "right" financial decision is actually to borrow more. It's not uncommon for students to need loans in order to complete school and/or avoid working so much that it interferes with their progress. In other words, requiring students to learn more about their debt may do little to change the overall balance of outstanding student loans, Anderson said. "When the federal student-loan borrowing decision is discussed sometimes it's discussed as you either take on the loan or you don't   and everything else is the same," said Lesley Turner, an economist at Vanderbilt University who has studied education financing decisions. "In the current structure of grants and loans and college costs, the trade off is, 'Do I finance these costs through a federal loan? Or do I finance them with another option?'" Colleges, the government and companies make the system for paying for college and repaying loans confusing Trying to determine the cost of a given college and what tools are available to foot the bill can be a formidable challenge for students and families. That's because financial-aid offer letters   telling prospective students how much they're expected to pay and whether they qualify for any grants and loans   are often confusing. In some cases, colleges do little to differentiate between scholarships, loans and work-study in these letters, according to a report released last year by New America, a think tank. In other cases, they describe loans parents can use to finance their children's education as "awards." And those are just some of the examples of terminology that could cause confusion, New America found. How colleges package such information does influence students' and families' approach to financing college. Research from Turner and her co-author found that community-college students who received a financial-aid letter where loans were included as part of the package were more likely to borrow than those who received no loan offer in their financial-aid letter, but were told via email other communications that they qualified for student loans. "The design of the award letter, the way loans are presented, the way the information is delivered right at this point in time can be really important," Turner said. What's more, her research also suggests that more information isn't always better. Turner and her co-author compared students who received more context surrounding their borrowing decision to those who didn't. The found that students with more information were more likely to punt on whether and how much to borrow for college. "It was a cautionary finding for us   you have to be very careful with interventions that are supposed to provide information," she said. "We think it overwhelmed students." Deciding how much to borrow isn't the only opaque part of the student loan process: Repaying debt can be confusing too. Federal student-loan borrowers have access to a suite of programs that allow them to manage their debt, but the high number of student-loan repayment plans can make it difficult for borrowers to determine their best option. In addition, because borrowers have to re-certify their income from year-to-year to stay enrolled, they're regularly at risk of being kicked out of their payment plan and bumped to a higher monthly payment amount. "A different way to approach it would be to make the income-based repayment system simpler so people need less financial education up front," Anderson said. Company malfeasance is a factor in students' and borrowers' challenges Consumer advocates have complained for years that the student-loan companies hired by the government to work with borrowers are making it more difficult than necessary for borrowers to access the debt-management tools they're entitled to under the law. No amount of budgeting advice or tools comparing college costs is enough to help borrowers overcome those challenges, these advocates say. When Seth Frotman read complaints from student-loan borrowers during his time as the student-loan ombudsman at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, he said he observed said most students were responsible and took accountability for their debt: "This wasn't people who had made bad decisions, it wasn't people who were trying to walk away from their loans." In fact, some complaints came from borrowers who were trying to be responsible and put more than the minimum payment towards their student loan and struggling to convince their student loan company to apply the extra money in the way that was most favorable to them. "These were tens of thousands of people who were desperately trying to pay their debt stymied at every opportunity by private sector companies," Frotman said. In addition, when students are deciding where to attend, they're at risk of signing up for colleges run as for-profit businesses that research has indicated have poor graduation and job placement outcomes and often require students to borrow more than average. Banning these schools from the federal financial-aid program would be a major step in the right direction for those concerned about the challenge of student debt, Ogden said. "You're going to get massively more benefit from just that one regulatory decision than investing $3 billion for financial education," he said. Information can be helpful, but mandatory financial-literacy classes may not be the right answer There are other, broader benefits to providing students with personalized financial guidance at the right time. "Part of the experience in college is to help these people   that are going to get these degrees and graduate   become good citizens of the world," said Phil Schuman, the senior director of financial literacy at Indiana University. "This is just another one of those life skills that they have access to." At Indiana University, Schuman has been pioneering this type of programming. IU began sending students a debt letter in 2012. In addition, the school has a robust peer counseling program around finances and launched an online tool in 2017 that students can use to determine the impact of different financial decisions, such as the frequency of vacations or trips home or bringing a car to campus. These programs are part of a broader initiative at the school called Affordability at IU , which also includes efforts to make tuition more standardized and predictable and guarantees that   if students follow an outlined degree path can't access a required course to complete their degree on time   they're entitled to that course for free in a future semester. These efforts have reduced students' overall debt burden by 19% since 2012, according to Indiana University. Schuman said he thinks of these initiatives as part of a two-way street of financial responsibility in college. On the one hand, colleges need to do what they can to drive down costs, he said. At the same time, students should be gathering as much information as they can about how to make the experience affordable for them. In addition, the school and more specifically peer counselors, can sometimes be a better source of information for students looking to manage their finances, than say parents or other mentors, because they have a more accurate understanding of the financial constraints today's students face, Schuman said. "We hear it on repeat all the time, all of these older generations say, 'When I was in college, I had a part-time job and worked my way through school,'" Schuman said. "The reality is those part-time jobs, they don't pay for school anymore, they pay for part of it." It's hard to argue that these types of efforts to arm students with more information about how to manage their finances in college and beyond are a bad idea. But making financial education mandatory comes with a cost   particularly if it can hold students up from making progress towards their degree, Anderson said. "The college student population is a really broad swath of Americans who aren't just people right out of high school   they have other things on their plate often times," he said. "Researchers and practitioners and educators want to find good ways to inform students, but there's just so many ways it can go wrong."


Is the NCAA playing a game of championship-extortion with California lawmakers? And is it a game that will ultimately backfire? In a new letter to the California Senate, NCAA president Mark Emmert warns that if the Fair Pay to Play Act becomes law, it would become "impossible" for the NCAA to deem California colleges eligible to participate in national championships. A brief primer on the Fair Pay to Play Act As explained in a Sports Illustrated story published last month , the Fair Pay to Play Act would require that California colleges treat its student-athletes along the lines envisioned by former UCLA basketball star Ed O'Bannon in his historic case against the NCAA. Specifically, California colleges that receive an average of $10 million a year in media rights revenue would be statutorily prohibited from denying their student-athletes the chance to earn compensation derived from the use of their names, images and likenesses. Consequently, UCLA men's basketball players, Stanford women's volleyball players, USC football players, Cal women's swimmers and other athletes at California schools would be authorized by law to join advertising campaigns, sign endorsement deals, negotiate for inclusion in video games and sign countless other types of licensing contracts. They would also be able to hire agents to represent them in these dealings. Under the act, university administrators and athletic department compliance officers would be denied the chance to meaningfully argue that NCAA rules tie their hands. The act tells colleges, in so many words, their hands must be untied. In fact, the act contemplates that a school would be held liable under the law if it pulled or reduced an athlete's scholarship on account of the athlete profiting from his or her identity. Understanding what the act is   and isn't To be clear, the act would not convert college athletes into full-time employees, part-time employees, independent contractors, vendors or any other conceivable classification of university "worker." They would continue to be students. Nor would the act require that colleges pay their athletes a salary, stipend or other dollar figure. The act is not about the student-athlete's relationship with his or her school, conference or the NCAA. It's about the athlete's relationship with the myriad businesses that profit from college sports and, in turn, the athlete's identity. To that end, the act would empower college athletes to individually, or collectively, profit from the use of their name, image and likeness in commercial products. These athletes would be able to sign contracts with any number of third parties including video game publishers, clothing stores, apparel manufacturers, retailers of memorabilia and collectibles, equipment and sporting good companies and car dealerships. For elite college athletes whose marketability is maximized while in school and who play sports that lack lucrative professional leagues such as swimmers and track athletes the opportunity to monetize their identities while in school is particularly valuable. Colleges in California might regard the prospect of the act becoming law as potentially damaging to their finances. This would be particularly true if those schools worry that their business partners would shift some of the compensation currently directed to schools towards the athletes. For instance, if a university sponsor must pay the university's athletes for use of their names or likenesses, the sponsor might demand that it pay the university less. After-all, the athletes' value would be recognized as apart from that of the university, meaning the university's collection of intellectual property assets would be diminished. Of course, universities worrying about sharing money with the athletes who play the games and whose intellectual property is used in marketing isn't a particularly compelling justification to deny those athletes the opportunity to be paid. The act's legislative process The Act has steadily advanced through the California legislature and appears poised for eventual passage. Senators Nancy Skinner and Steven Bradford introduced the act as Senate Bill 206 on Feb. 4. Three months later, the act easily passed the California Senate by a vote of 31 5, with all 28 Democratic senators voting in favor. The act then moved to the California Assembly, where it was initially reviewed by two committees: the Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, Tourism, and Internet Media (Arts) and the Committee on Higher Ed. The act is now before the Committee on Arts, with a committee vote scheduled for Tuesday. Five of the seven members of the Committee on Arts are Democrats, which suggests it will probably pass the committee. It would then be reviewed by the Committee on Higher Ed, whose members include nine Democrats and three Republicans. Further, the California Assembly features a super-majority of 61 Democrats and 19 Republicans, another factor suggesting the act will advance in the legislative process. The California legislature, however, adjourns for a one-month summer recess on July 12, and it's unclear if a vote on the act would occur before that date. If the act is passed, it is likely that California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, would sign it into law. The significance of a multi-year delay in implementing the act Assuming the act is eventually passed and signed into law, it would not take effect until Jan. 1, 2023. A multi-year delay between signing and implementation would leave the NCAA with plenty of time to undertake reforms that render the act obsolete or unnecessary. As explained below, the delay would also furnish the NCAA with ample opportunity to challenge the act in court. The NCAA recently formed a working group to contemplate changes to NCAA rules that prohibit college athletes from profiting off of their names, images and likenesses. Many commentators are skeptical that the working group, which is led by Big East commissioner Val Ackerman and Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith, will propose recommendations that, if adopted, would meaningfully alter NCAA rules. The NCAA is not known as an engine for reform, and the working group consists of institutional stakeholders. Still, the group could recommend that college athletes be able to profit from their names, images and likenesses in ways that do not betray core NCAA ideals. For instance, college athletes might be able to deposit licensing monies into trust accounts that are only accessible after college ends. Or college athletes could reap profits through carefully defined methods and in narrowly-construed circumstances (similar to rules for college athletes who are also Olympic athletes and who, within certain parameters, can keep stipends and prize money). Legislative proposals in Congress, such as Congressmen Mark Walker and Cedric Richmond's Student-Athlete Equity Act , which would condition the NCAA's eligibility as a non-profit on the NCAA permitting student-athletes to monetize their identities, could also alter the legal landscape long before 2023 comes to pass. Why the NCAA has leverage over California Emmert's letter contemplates a scenario where California passes the Fair Pay to Play Act and, for an undefined period of time, college athletes in California receive superior rights to those in other states. The act, as explained above, would compel California colleges to allow their athletes to profit from the commercial use of their names, images and likenesses. This means those colleges couldn't forbid their athletes from signing endorsement deals or licensing contracts on account of NCAA rules. California law would explicitly permit such signings, and law trumps the internal rules of a private entity such as the NCAA. California colleges would thus gain a comparative recruiting advantage over colleges in other states. All things being equal, a high school athlete who could earn thousands of dollars in endorsement opportunities that would be unavailable to him or her if they instead went to college in Oregon, Texas, Alabama or Florida would presumably be more inclined to go to college in California. This is why Emmert's letter expresses concern about the creation of "local differences that would make it impossible to host fair national championships." Emmert is correct on that point: California schools would play by a different and more favorable set of rules. NCAA amateurism which, as an overarching concept, refers to NCAA rules and policies that purport to distinguish college athletes from professional athletes could not credibly function if some of the NCAA's 1,200-plus member institutions play by one set of rules and other members play by another. Therefore, if the act becomes law, the NCAA would face a stark choice: change its rules so that all member institutions across the country adhere to the act's requirements, or contemplate other measures that segregate or even expel California schools from other NCAA members. For now, it appears the NCAA is focused on the latter. If the NCAA carried through on Emmert's threat to revoke the eligibility of California schools to participate in championships, the NCAA would essentially punish California schools and their students for the act becoming law. The NCAA also wants California lawmakers to consider that hotels, restaurants and similar businesses that profit from the state hosting NCAA tournament games would suffer. Essentially, Emmert is warning state lawmakers that the NCAA will take its business elsewhere. State lawmakers, then, would be to blame for student-athletes at California colleges losing the chance to compete in major collegiate tournaments. This dynamic might give some California lawmakers cold feet before voting "aye." Why California has leverage over the NCAA The problem for the NCAA would be the risk of adverse fallout and unintended consequences from carrying out this plan. Of all states to punish, California is probably the best positioned to strike back. California has, by far, the largest economy of the 50 states. In fact, according to the American Enterprise Institute , California would have the fifth-largest economy in the world if it were a separate country. California and its colleges would not surrender the opportunity to profit from the enormously lucrative world of college sports merely because the NCAA excludes them from championship activities or even strips them of their NCAA memberships. Likewise, if the Pac-12 conference banishes UCLA, USC, Stanford and Cal on account of those schools playing by a different set of rules, those schools wouldn't suddenly drop big-time athletics and wave the white flag. Most likely, California colleges with large athletic programs would launch their own collegiate league, with its own set of rules and its own TV and merchandise contracts. Perhaps other states would join, too. Therein lies an existential threat for the NCAA: If it takes steps to unwittingly encourage one segment of its membership to break off, the separation could actually happen and prove successful. Meanwhile, schools and conferences in other states and regions would notice, learn and potentially pursue similar initiatives. The NCAA's main purpose for existing is to organize athletic contests across the country and in ways that ostensibly maintain a balance between academics and athletics. If those same functions could be provided just as effectively by state or regional entities, and in ways that offer athletes greater opportunity to take advantage of their names, images and likenesses, the NCAA would have a more difficult time articulating its purpose. How the Fair Pay to Play Act could be challenged in court Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, it's worth stressing that the Fair Pay to Play Act is not yet law. Further, even if the act becomes law, a lot can happen before 2023. To that end, the NCAA and member schools would be poised to challenge the legality of the act before it goes into effect. As detailed in another Sports Illustrated story , the act could be challenged under the Commerce Clause as contained in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution. This clause makes it illegal for states to unduly interfere with interstate commerce. Given that NCAA games are played in different states, given that athletes, coaches and fans travel to different states to play games and given that games are broadcast and marketed across state lines, the NCAA would have a credible argument that California adopting the act would pose substantial economic consequences for other states. Likewise, the NCAA might assert that the act would essentially force it an entity that does business across state lines into a choice between two unwanted options: change its rules to follow those required by California law or possibly lose California schools as members. Michael McCann is SI's Legal Analyst. He is also an attorney and Director of the Sports and Entertainment Law Institute at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law.


FOX LAKE, Ill. (AP)   The Illinois police officer whose fatal shooting last month set off a massive manhunt was shot twice with his own weapon, and there were signs of a struggle at the scene, the lead investigator said Thursday in releasing what he called carefully vetted details. Authorities, who have until now revealed little about their investigation, confirmed for the first time that Fox Lake police Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz was shot with his own weapon. He was struck by two rounds, one that hit his ballistic vest with the force of a "sledgehammer" and another that pierced his upper chest, said Lake County Major Crimes Task Force Commander George Filenko. But gunshot residue found on his hands was inconclusive as to whether Gliniewicz fired any shots himself, according to results that came back from the Illinois State Police crime lab in the last week or two. "The weapon could have been fired by Lt. Gliniewicz or he could have been in a close proximity of the weapon being fired," Filenko said. At a news conference Thursday, authorities revealed details they said they had concluded wouldn't harm the investigation. But Filenko refused to reveal other key information, including how many times Gliniewicz's gun was fired in total and whether any of the DNA they are examining was found on his gun. He also would not provide any details on what the signs of the struggle were. Gliniewicz was found Sept. 1 after he radioed that he was pursuing three suspicious men in a remote area of the village south of the Wisconsin-Illinois state line. Investigators believe he was in the area because the village recently purchased the property and there had been reports of vandalism and trespassing. Despite a wide search and a month of detective work, police haven't made any arrests, identified any suspects or come up with a possible motive. Questions have swirled around the investigation   particularly since the county coroner said he has been unable to rule the 52-year-old Gliniewicz's death a homicide, suicide or an accident. Filenko said Thursday that the coroner and the pathologist who examined the officer's body both concluded the first shot struck his vest with such force that it likely incapacitated him. The second shot is believed to have been the fatal hit. Filenko emphasized the investigation was "strictly" being conducted as a homicide probe, though he acknowledged detectives weren't ruling anything out, including the possibility of suicide. The commander also said nine unidentified DNA samples were found at the scene on a variety of items that the officer had with him. Detectives working to identify the sources of that material have taken more than 100 samples from anyone who might have had contact with the officer, including from police who were close to the scene, Filenko said. They were also running some of those samples through a national database in hopes of a match. It was impossible to tell whether the traces of DNA were from the day of the officer's death or prior to it, he said. Asked whether any of it could have been left behind by someone walking a dog in the area, Filenko said, "Not likely." Investigators have also returned to the scene to recreate possible escape routes, including hunting trails, Filenko said in a newspaper interview a day earlier. It is a marshy area that Filenko described as being like quicksand in some types of weather. He became defensive when a reporter asked why police had not discovered footprints or tire marks that could point to people fleeing the scene. "Sir, if you went out and looked at the area, you tell me where you could see footprints," Filenko said.


Eli Manning indicated there are no formal plans laid out for his future beyond next season while speaking publicly for the first time on Monday about the New York Giants drafting his heir apparent in Daniel Jones. Manning, 38, is in the final year of his contract as he enters his 16th NFL season, so anything beyond 2019 remains up in the air. "Play this year and go from there," Manning said at Giants OTAs, via ESPN . The Giants' decision to select Jones out of Duke with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft was a controversial one, though the rookie has handled the scrutiny, though no fault of his own , with a level head. Manning weighed in on Monday about the Giants opting to bring in Jones, and the veteran signal-caller simply stated, "Fine with it." When asked whether he would take on a mentor's role for his new protégé   something that has proven problematic for other veteran quarterbacks   Manning indicated he has no issues with helping along Jones in his development. "I've been doing that for the last 11 years, 12 years," Manning said. "I don't know when you become a mentor, when that is official. When you've been in the league longer than any other guy in the quarterback room, you should be a mentor in that sense where you know a little bit more." Giants head coach Pat Shurmur also attempted to downplay how Jones' presence could be a distraction   which a handful of Giants players have already dismissed   by suggesting he anticipates a "healthy" quarterback room. Despite the Giants using such a high draft pick on Jones   a move that quickly became the source of consternation , if not ridicule   Manning remains the team's quarterback of the present, if not even further into the near future, according to bold comments from embattled Giants GM Dave Gettleman. At this point, it appears that Manning is taking everything in stride, although that could change should he struggle at any point next season and calls for Jones to replace him become louder and louder.


The #Lions gave DL Mike Daniels a 1-year deal worth $9.1M with $7.8M guaranteed… and of the 13 teams who called, four other teams were willing to do that deal or better. But the former #Packers star wanted to play for coach Matt Patricia… and stay in the division. - Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 26, 2019 The Detroit Lions made a Friday night splash by reportedly signing Pro Bowl defensive tackle Mike Daniels to a 1-year $9.1 million deal . According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Daniels was offered and turned down more money from other teams so that he could play in Detroit because he wanted to play for coach Matt Patricia. You read that correctly, just a year after it was reported that Patricia had lost the locker room, he has suddenly become a coach Pro Bowlers from other teams - division rivals at that - want to come play for. The truth of the matter is, that false narrative was an overblown story that too many people on a national level believed. Wanting to play for Patricia isn't an isolated situation either. Just this past offseason, when Trey Flowers was a free agent looking for a new home, Patricia was a big reason he landed with the Lions. Here's an excerpt from an interview with Lions multimedia journalist Tori Petry: "I knew Matty P (Patricia) was here (Detroit) and he's the guy that brought me into New England and developed me there, so that's when I got the idea it might be cool to be a Detroit Lion." When asked if playing for Patricia influenced his decision to sign with the Lions, Flowers responded: "Being able to reunite with someone that you're familiar with, that knows your strengths, your weaknesses, and can definitely take your game to the next level, so, I'd say he had a pretty significant role." Flowers wanted to play for Patricia. Daniels wanted to play for Patricia. Maybe this is another false narrative about Detroit that can be put to bed. MORE: Bear bites woman in tent at Yellowstone, prompts action Behind the scenes with new-look Nets: 'We got stars without mortgaging everything'' Sherra Wright pleads guilty in killing of LeBron's former teammate Lorenzen Wright Theo Riddick release means it's Ty Johnson time Report: Kelvin Benjamin did not attend Giants' WR workouts


What it costs to retire, per state Build up your retirement fund The amount you need to to save to fund your retirement depends on a host of factors. One of the biggest? Where you plan to live. After all, your choice of residence impacts just about all your basic expenses, from housing to food to gas prices. And that's before you make plans for travel and other kinds of fun. Recently, personal finance site GOBankingRates crunched the numbers to estimate how much money you'd need to live, per year, in all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia. In order to determine its rankings, GOBankingRates came up with an annual spending amount, based on the average per capita spending on groceries, healthcare, gas and fuel, housing and utilities, and personal consumption expenditures. They then tacked on an additional 20% to account for the "comfortable" aspect of retirement. GOBankingRates also used this data to come up with a suggested savings goal to cover a 20-year retirement. However, that number doesn't include Social Security payouts, potential pension income, or interest earned on savings. You can find more information on each state in the list below, ranked from least to most expensive. 1. Mississippi Annual spending in retirement: $37,750 Savings needed: $755,000 What makes Mississippi so cheap? Mainly the low overall cost of living the lowest of any state in the U.S. 2. Arkansas Annual spending in retirement: $38,896 Savings needed: $777,925 Though expenses like housing and utilities and groceries are generally less expensive in Arkansas than in Mississippi, it's healthcare and transportation costs that are more expensive and account for higher expenses in The Natural State. 3. Alabama Typical annual spending in retirement: $39,170 Estimated savings needed: $783,400 Alabama happens to be among the best places to live if you're planning on getting by in retirement on a Social Security check alone. 4. Oklahoma Typical annual spending in retirement: $41,223 Estimated savings needed: $824,450 Thanks to the low cost of groceries, Oklahoma ranks among the most affordable states to retire. It's worth exploring your options for a fuel efficient vehicle in retirement if you plan on driving, however, since Oklahoma residents spend more on gas and fuel than elsewhere. 5. South Carolina Typical annual spending in retirement: $41,583 Estimated savings needed: $831,650 South Carolina's relatively low healthcare costs, coupled with a lower-than-most average cost of senior care , makes The Palmetto State the fifth most affordable state to live post-retirement. 6. Kentucky Typical annual spending in retirement: $41,610 Estimated savings needed: $832,200 While Kentucky may be an affordable state in which to retire (thanks in part to low housing costs), a recent Wallethub study rated Kentucky poorly on quality of life. 7. Idaho Typical annual spending in retirement: $42,066 Estimated savings needed: $841,32 While Idaho is generally an affordable place to live, residents do face higher grocery expenses than other low-cost states. By GOBankingRates's estimate, Idaho residents spend more than $2,934 on groceries annually. 8. North Carolina Typical annual spending in retirement: $42,224 Estimated savings needed: $844,475 If you are worried about high medical bills, North Carolina may be an attractive place to retire. The average annual spending on healthcare in this state is the seventh lowest in the country, at $5,690 a year. 9. Louisiana Typical annual spending in retirement: $42,726 Estimated savings needed: $854,525 While you're spending only roughly $500 more per year to retire in Louisiana than North Carolina, that compounds to nearly $10,000 more over a 20-year retirement period. 10. Tennessee Typical annual spending in retirement: $42,774 Estimated savings needed: $855,475 Though you only need $855,475 to maintain a lifestyle where you're spending $42,774 a year, Tennessee is one of the states where $1 million lasts longest in retirement , meaning your dollar goes further. 11. West Virginia Typical annual spending in retirement: $43,023 Estimated savings needed: $860,450 West Virginia boasts the second-lowest housing costs per year in the country. Those savings, however, are outweighed by the fact that annual healthcare spending is higher here than in most states. Moreover, GOBankingRates nominated West Virginia as one of the worst states to retire rich , thanks to factors like tax rates and banking costs. 12. Arizona Typical annual spending in retirement: $43,225 Estimated savings needed: $864,500 A balancing act between higher housing costs and lowest annual healthcare spend puts Arizona toward the more affordable end of the spectrum. Just make sure you're comfortable with dry heat most of the year first. 13. Georgia Typical annual spending in retirement: $43,321 Estimated savings needed: $866,425 The Peach State is among the cheapest places to retire in the country thanks to lower housing costs (which, unlike Arizona, are offset by higher healthcare spending). 14. Utah Typical annual spending in retirement: $43,893 Estimated savings needed: $877,850 Utah has both the second-lowest annual grocery spending $2,487 and healthcare spending $5,201 in GoBankingRates's rankings. 15. Indiana Typical annual spending in retirement: $44,541 Estimated savings needed: $890,825 Indiana retirees should keep an eye on their gas and healthcare costs, which are higher here than in more than half the other states around the country. 16. New Mexico Typical annual spending in retirement: $44,624 Estimated savings needed: $829,475 The Land of Enchantment's capital city, Santa Fe, is often cited as one of the most desirable places to retire anywhere in the country, despite the fact that the state has the 10th-highest annual spending on gas and fuel at $1,198. 17. Kansas Typical annual spending in retirement: $44,980 Estimated savings needed: $899,600 Based on what percentage of income is left after living expenses, Kansas is included within the states where you're least likely to live paycheck to paycheck . 18. Nevada Typical annual spending in retirement: $45,221 Estimated savings needed: $904,425 The state actually has the lowest annual healthcare spending $5,153, and also ranks among the least expensive states for gas and fuel spending. But those are offset by higher housing costs. 19. Texas Typical annual spending in retirement: $45,671 Estimated savings needed: $913,425 Though you need roughly $50,000 in annual expenses to retire comfortably in the Lone Star State, Texas is also home to a number of the best cities to retire on a budget of $1,000 a month thanks to a low cost of living. 20. Iowa Typical annual spending in retirement: $46,256 Estimated savings needed: $925,125 Iowan retirees might enjoy lower healthcare spending than their fellow retirees elsewhere, but higher grocery costs and the seventh-highest spend on gas and fuel pushes an Iowan retirement to be more expensive. 21. Ohio Typical annual spending in retirement: $46,811 Estimated savings needed: $936,225 Ohio ranks among the top half of states for healthcare spending, which can be a burdensome expense for retirees. 22. Missouri Typical annual spending in retirement: $46,908 Estimated savings needed: $938,150 Though not the cheapest by any means, Missourian retirees can get by with less in savings thanks to the ninth-least expensive grocery costs per year. 23. Florida Typical annual spending in retirement: $48,305 Estimated savings needed: $966,100 Florida is one of seven states with no income tax  which means residents can hang on to more of their money. An added bonus: Tampa is considered one of the best cities for retirement anywhere in the country, thanks to factors that allow your dollar to stretch further. 24. Wisconsin Typical annual spending in retirement: $48,485 Estimated savings needed: $969,700 Annual housing spending is less than elsewhere around the country, but other expenses, including those for groceries and healthcare, place Wisconsin within the middle of the list for where to retire comfortably. 25. Nebraska Typical annual spending in retirement: $48,713 Estimated savings needed: $974,250 It is possible to live in retirement on less than $50,000 a year in Nebraska, though you can expect to pay quite a bit for expenses like gas. 26. Michigan Typical annual spending in retirement: $49,165 Estimated savings needed: $983,300 This midwest state is squarely in the middle of this ranking, thanks to relatively affordable housing costs coupled with slightly higher expenses in other areas. 27. South Dakota Typical annual spending in retirement: $49,344 Estimated savings needed: $986,875 South Dakota, like Florida, has no income tax , meaning residents can hang onto more of their retirement income. But South Dakota also has some of the highest healthcare and gas costs in the nation. 28. Oregon Typical annual spending in retirement: $49,678 Estimated savings needed: $993,550 Groceries and housing costs are pricey in Oregon, but those who love driving, take note: Oregon has the ninth-lowest spending on gas and fuel. 29. Wyoming Typical annual spending in retirement: $50,409 Estimated savings needed: $1,008,180 Thanks to having the second-highest annual spending on gas and fuel, plus higher grocery costs than in 50 other states, GOBankingRates calculates that Wyoming retirees must clear the $1 million benchmark in savings to live comfortably for 20 years. 30. Pennsylvania Typical annual spending in retirement: $51,108 Estimated savings needed: $1,022,150 Pennsylvania's annual grocery, gas, and housing costs rank near the middle relative to elsewhere around the country, but Keystone State residents pay for more for healthcare. 31. Montana Typical annual spending in retirement: $51,505 Estimated savings needed: $1,030,000 Montana has the eighth-highest grocery spending and gas spending per capita, which makes it a more expensive place to retire than you might expect. 32. Virginia Typical annual spending in retirement: $52,040 Estimated savings needed: $1,040,000 Virginia is a relatively expensive state to retire, despite muted healthcare and gas spending, due to the high cost of housing. Spending on housing and utilities per capita in Virginia is the ninth highest in the U.S. 33. Illinois Typical annual spending in retirement: $52,215 Estimated savings needed: $1,040,000 Nearly as expensive as Virginia, Illinois is marginally more expensive for retirees, mostly due to higher housing costs. Still, Illinois has the sixth-lowest grocery spending and gas spending per capita. Plus, it ranks in the bottom half of states for healthcare spending. 34. California Typical annual spending in retirement: $52,284 Estimated savings needed: $1,050,000 Surprisingly, California didn't make the top ten when it comes to annual spending. Just don't expect $52,000 per year to go very far in some of the more glamorous parts of the state. 35. Rhode Island Typical annual spending in retirement: $53,068 Estimated savings needed: $1,060,000 In Rhode Island, $1 million in retirement savings may not feel like enough. High housing and healthcare spending are in part to blame. 36. Colorado Typical annual spending in retirement: $53,310 Estimated savings needed: $1,070,000 High housing costs, not to mention the 10th-highest spending on housing and utilities, ranks Colorado among the most expensive states to live in. 37. Delaware Typical annual spending in retirement: $53,585 Estimated savings needed: $1,070,000 High healthcare spending, fourth highest according to GOBankingRates's ranking, plays a major factor in this states' costs. 38. Washington Typical annual spending in retirement: $53,653 Estimated savings needed: $1,070,000 Though Washington has the fifth-lowest spending on gas and fuel in our rankings, just $651 annually, grocery and housing costs are so high that the Northwest state is perhaps out of reach for many Americans to live comfortably. 39. Maine Typical annual spending in retirement: $53,776 Estimated savings needed: $1,080,000 Housing costs in Maine are about $2,000 less than in the state of Washington, according to GOBankingRates, but other living expenses, like gas spending, add up to more. 40. Minnesota Typical annual spending in retirement: $54,913 Estimated savings needed: $1,100,000 Living expenses in Minnesota are relatively high. For example, annual healthcare spending in Minnesota is $7,816 (compare that to, say, North Carolina, where that figure is $5,690), giving it the 10th-highest annual healthcare spending per capita. 41. Maryland Typical annual spending in retirement: $55,935 Estimated savings needed: $1,100,000 High housing costs contribute to why it's so expensive to retire in Maryland: the state has the third-highest annual spending on housing per capita at $9,738. 42. Hawaii Typical annual spending in retirement: $56,404 Estimated savings needed: $1,130,000 Hawaii is oft-cited as the most expensive place to live in the U.S. (toilet paper apparently costs more here than anywhere else in the world ). But it's not all bad: Hawaii has the lowest annual spending on gas and fuel per capita at $522, while annual healthcare spending is lower here than in almost half of the other states. 43. New York Typical annual spending in retirement: $58,633 Estimated savings needed: $1,170,000 It's no secret that life in glitzy New York City is pricey, and the exorbitant cost of living in America's largest city pushes the spending benchmark up for this east coast state. 44. Vermont Typical annual spending in retirement: $59,560 Estimated savings needed: $1,190,000 Vermont, home to some of the country's best maple syrup, is unfortunately not enough to sweeten the fact that the state has the second-highest annual grocery spending per capita at $4,210 a year. 45. North Dakota Typical annual spending in retirement: $60,281 Estimated savings needed: $1,200,000 Considering a move to North Dakota? Keep in mind that the state has the highest annual spending per capita on gas and fuel (you'd spend roughly $2,300 a year on this expense alone) . 46. Connecticut Typical annual spending in retirement: $60,621 Estimated savings needed: $1,200,000 Marginally more expensive than North Dakota is Connecticut, due to things like housing and groceries, not gas and fuel, which is among the least expensive in the country. 47. New Hampshire Typical annual spending in retirement: $61,013 Estimated savings needed: $1,220,000 New Hampshire is pricey, but quality of life in the state is considered about the best in the country, according to GoBankingRate's ranking of the best states for families to live a richer life . 48. New Jersey Typical annual spending in retirement: $61,215 Estimated savings needed: $1,220,000 New Jersey's high housing costs make it one of the most expensive places to retire. Most people spend roughly $9,846 a year on housing and utility expenses. 49. Alaska Typical annual spending in retirement: $61,934 Estimated savings needed: $1,240,000 Whether due to its distance from the contiguous U.S. and the cost of shipping goods there, or other factors like housing and gas expenses, Alaska is the second most expensive state to retire in the country. 50. Massachusetts Typical annual spending in retirement: $64,976 Estimated savings needed: $1,300,000 It's tough to be a retiree in Massachusetts. The Bay State's annual spending on groceries, healthcare and housing is among the top in the country, which together caused it to sink to last place on this list. This article originally appeared on Considerable.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.


The date is 3 May 2017 and Cristiano Ronaldo is looking majestic, dressed in royal purple for Real Madrid. All that stands between Los Blancos and a second successive Champions League triumph is Massimiliano Allegri and his developing Juventus team. Cardiff is all set to host the competition's showpiece event and Ronaldo is all set to take centre stage. Few individuals in the game have ever been so feared, so renowned. He has been a match-winner during his whole career in Madrid, a decisive force for Real . No surprise, then, that he has a sizeable say on the destination of the trophy. The opening period is dominated by Juve , the Italians carve out several reasonable scoring opportunities as they push and probe for the first goal of the contest. They don't get it. Gonzalo Higuain - battling and bruising his former teammates - meets a lofted Mario Mandzukic cross, but can only guide a harmless header into the grateful arms of Keylor Navas. The Argentine gets more purchase on his next effort, though his rifled shot goes straight down the throat of the goalkeeper. Navas proceeds to frustrate the Old Lady yet again, athletically tipping a fierce Miralem Pjanic drive wide of his near post. Higuain and co. are more than holding their own and certainly look the likeliest to score. Ronaldo, however, has other ideas. The Portuguese star has a sharp interchange with Dani Carvajal before latching onto the full-back's trickling pass at the edge of the box, before unerringly sweeping beyond Gianluigi Buffon. The ball is ever so slightly diverted away from the legendary shot-stopper after nicking Leonardo Bonucci's boot, though it is doubtful whether he would have gotten anywhere near the original attempt, anyway. 1-0. A rousing response follows, Allegri's recruits rising to the occasion. Their challenge is fuelled with memories of their agonising Champions League final defeat at the hands of Barcelona two years ago. They want this victory so desperately, more than anything else. Regrettably, they fall apart and fall well short, though not before hope is restored by a moment of magic from the magnificent Mandzukic. One year ago today... Mario Mandzukic produced what was considered to be the best overhead-kick scored in a Champions League final 👀 Real Madrid would go on to secure their second of three European titles in a row. pic.twitter.com/dTeYQHXqBh   Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) June 3, 2018 The Croat expertly controls his strike-partner's knock down with his barrel chest. He's 15-yards from goal and facing away from Navas; there is absolutely no danger here. At least that's what Real thought, as well as most of their supporters celebrating in the stands. The roaring sea of white at the Principality Stadium is silenced by a jaw-dropping shot from Mandzukic, who instinctively manoeuvres his body and hooks an arcing effort over the helpless Costa Rican guarding the Madrid net. 1-1. Buffon leaps and bounds, looking a man possessed as he dances to the sound of Juve fans erupting. Could he be about to add that elusive European Cup to his trophy cabinet? For a while, it seems a very real possibility. His side reestablish themselves in the match, controlling play for the remainder of the first half. Once the game resumes after the break, it is Los Blancos who govern the tempo and press forward. On the hour mark, the ball ricochets a couple of times in Buffon's area, only to fall at the feet of the onrushing Casemiro a fair way out. The Brazilian unleashes hopeful hit, sending the ball clattering back into danger. Fortune once again smiles on the  La Liga club, with the blast ballooning off of Sami Khedira and looping devilishly into the corner of the net, leaving the 'keeper wrong-footed and ruing his luck. There is no second wind for the Bianconeri as they are ruthlessly carved open by their opponents, finding themselves two goals down having been level not five minutes prior. Their tormentor is a familiar face. Ronaldo bursts into a claustrophobically-small pocket of space between defender and 'keeper, nonchalantly redirecting Luka Modric's deftly-clipped delivery in to hand Zidane's men a healthy advantage with a quarter of the match left.. A glorious hat-trick is on the cards. Actually, no - everyone expects him to notch that third. However, he can only snatch at a Marcelo cut-back, firing it wildly into the crowd. There is still a faint trickle of light for Allegri. That trickle nearly becomes a bright beam, but Alex Sandro's towering header drifts marginally wide of the mark after looking destined to nestle snuggly in the bottom corner. If that was unlucky, Sergio Ramos' actions soon after were unacceptable. Real's captain sizes up Juan Cuadrado, only to collapse dramatically to the floor with an alleged injury as the referee brandishes a red card for the Colombian. Television replays show the falsity of Ramos' pain and his lack of class. It is a minor stain on Madrid's victory, but a stain nonetheless. We are into the closing stages now. Toni Kroos is like a puppet-master, orchestrating and organising the midfield. Gareth Bale is on and terrorising the Serie A champions with his terrifying pace. Marco Asensio? He hasn't read the script. Rather than Ronaldo completing his treble and sealing another European Cup for his prestigious employers, it is substitute Asensio who delivers the coup de grâce in the final minute of normal time. Marcelo squares to the unmarked Spaniard, who duly places a calm finish past two Juve defenders on the line. There is no longer any doubt who will have their name etched onto 'Old Big Ears' for 2017. Each payer holds the trophy aloft, proudly displaying his achievements for the world to see. Every one of them has played their part in creating history, every one of them has been immortalised.


The music star has the only one in all of North America. We cover celebrity content from time to time, especially when it involves an impossibly expensive luxury SUV parked on a runway in front of a freaking Boeing jumbo jet owned by the same person. We're talking about Drake , the Canadian rap star and all-around music mogul who has a penchant for showing off just a bit. Then again, if we had a private Boeing 767, we'd probably show off too. View this post on Instagram Runway Goals! G650L meets the 767 @champagnepapi Meet North America's first G650 Landaulet pilot Kevin A 📸 @theblacktrucknetwork A post shared by Tony Bet (@tonybet) on May 22, 2019 at 3:09am PDT Speaking of which, those rear-seat passengers can enjoy open sky courtesy of a folding roof while lounging in lavish seats flanking a massive console equipped with heated and cooled cup holders. A center divider can separate the front seat occupants from those in the back, and lest we forget the G650's off-road capability. It does have G-Class DNA, after all. View this post on Instagram @champagnepapi with his Awards Hauler the Maybach G650 Landaulet Another unicorn by : @drivingemotionstoronto A post shared by Tony Bet (@tonybet) on May 2, 2019 at 7:00am PDT It's unclear what Drake paid for the privilege of owning the opulent, exceedingly rare ride. Daimler never revealed an official price when the G650 initially launched back in March 2017, but unofficially it was thought to cost over half a million dollars. Take that with a grain of salt, however, since the last one built sold for $1.4 million in October of that year. Celebrity Life: Shaq's New Ford F-650 Extreme Costs A Cool $124K Kanye's Custom Lamborghini Urus Is A Cream-Colored Catastrophe As we can see from Tony Bet's Instagram page, Drake's certainly been enjoying it as-of-late so the high cost doesn't seem to be any concern. Then again, when you can afford your own airliner, a million-dollar SUV is the automotive equivalent to super-sizing your fast-food dinner. Source: Tony Bet on Instagram via The Drive


Your move, limpets. Earlier this year, the long-reigning champion of the Strongest Biological Material Competition, spider silk, was usurped by the upstart limpet teeth . But we all knew that the arachnids would not go quietly into the night. In an unorthodox move, the spiders have teamed up with human scientists to produce the strongest fiber ever known, incorporating graphene into their silk. In a paper published in ar.Xiv , researchers described how they sprayed a group of unsuspecting spiders with a mixture of water, carbon nanotubes and graphene, then measured the strength of the silk they produced. The results were basically a reverse of the Spiderman origin story. Instead of a human getting bitten by a radioactive spider and developing superpowers, the spiders were sprayed by humans, and got our amazing gift of...manipulating nano-materials? It might not seem that great, but the silk produced by the spiders is stronger than Kevlar. (The strength of limpet teeth, for the record, was 'comparable' to the high-tech silk. A head-to-head slugfest between the two is TBD.) The scientists still aren't sure how the spiders managed to get the graphene and nanotubes incorporated into the silk, but they think that the spiders drank the nanoparticle-laced water, and their bodies did the rest. Possible applications of high-tech spider silk could involve use in medical devices like sutures or even nerve regeneration, garments, or electronics. The details of how it worked, and whether it could work in other plants and animals (we're looking at you, limpets) remain the subject of future research projects.


Houston will see a return of last week's hot temperatures over the next few days, according to drone-powered weather forecasting service Saildrone . Temperatures will reach a high of 97 degrees on Thursday, then decline a bit on Sunday. Also look for cloudy skies today and tomorrow. Skies will become partly cloudy starting on Friday. Winds should reach a modest high of 15 mph on Saturday, with daily top speeds over 10 mph throughout the week. This story was created automatically using Saildrone's local weather forecast data, then reviewed by an editor. We also incorporate historic weather data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.


After being photographed about a month ago, the first-ever documented images of an albino giant panda have finally been released. China's Sichuan Wolong National Nature Reserve Administration shared photos of the all-white panda on May 25. The unique panda is about 1 or 2 years old, the nature reserve said in a statement on its website . The photos were taken by an infrared trigger camera, which captured the panda in its habitat at an altitude of about 6,561 feet. The panda has white fur, white claws and red eyes, leading experts to determine it is an albino. The phenomenon of "whitening" is rare, but can occur in numerous groups of vertebrate animals, according to experts from IUCN Bear Expert Group and the Peking University School of Life Science, the statement reads. This genetic mutation is caused when melanin cannot be synthesized normally, resulting in an external color a shade between white and light yellow. The color does not affect the animal's activity or reproduction but it could make it sensitive to direct sunlight, the nature reserve writes. The albino giant panda filmed at the Wolong National Nature Reserve is the first of its kind to be recorded in the wild. This discovery indicates there is "whitening" mutant gene in the giant panda population in Wolong. This particular panda appears strong, so the whitening likely doesn't affect its way of life. The mutation is a recessive gene that could be inherited. It is impossible to tell the gender of this panda, but if it successfully breeds offspring with a normal black-and-white panda, their babies will look normal, but will carry the gene. The camera that captured the first-of-its-kind image was installed in December, after Wolong National Nature Reserve decided to set up various infrared cameras to monitor the wildlife in the region. The nature reserve will now install even more cameras to continue to monitor the albino panda and track its growth, development, activity, and community relationship, Duan Zhaogang, secretary of the Wolong National Nature Reserve Administration of Sichuan Province and secretary of the Wolong District Party Committee, said in the statement.


The Nets will not make a qualifying offer to forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson , who will become an unrestricted free agent, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski tweets . After Brooklyn declines to make a qualifying offer, F Rondae Hollis-Jefferson will become an unrestricted free agent, league sources tell ESPN. Hollis-Jefferson, 24, defends multiple positions well. For now, Nets have $46M in cap space.   Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 17, 2019 By letting Hollis-Jefferson walk, the Nets will have approximately $46M in cap space this summer, Wojnarowski adds. Brooklyn would have needed to extend a $3,594,369 qualifying offer to Hollis-Jefferson to make him a restricted free agent. The Nets are looking to open up as much as cap space as possible to bring in two high-level free agents. A 2015 first-round selection, Hollis-Jefferson has spent all four of his seasons with Brooklyn. He averaged 8.9 PPG and 5.3 RPG in 20.9 MPG last season after posting career bests of 13.9 PPG and 6.8 RPG in 28.3 MPG during the 2017/18 campaign. Adductor and groin injuries limited him to 59 games this past season. In 234 career games, he's averaged 9.9 PPG and 5.9 RPG. The 24-year-old Hollis-Jefferson is well-regarded for his defensive versatility and should attract interest from multiple teams on the open market. Related slideshow: Raptors' championship parade (provided by imagn)


YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif.   Afternoon gave way to evening, and the parade of restless clouds and the occasional bursts of rain had moved on from Yosemite Valley. In their wake was the empty quiet of Taft Point, 3,000 feet above a famous green valley going gray in late-day shadow. There were no tourists, only a raven, black and unhurried, circling at the edge of the cliff. It spiraled upward, a silent signal of rising air. A good sign for BASE jumping and wing-suit flying. Dean Potter, a 43-year-old professional climber and jumper, considered one of the world's best in a wing suit, stood a few feet from Graham Hunt, 29, his apprentice and flying partner. About 20 feet to their right was Jen Rapp, Potter's longtime girlfriend, and the couple's dog, Whisper. Rapp held a camera. She framed the photos so that El Capitan, across the valley toward the setting sun, was in the background. BASE jumping is illegal in the national parks. But that did not keep people from surreptitiously doing it, at the risk of being caught, especially in Yosemite, where the sheer cliffs make it the best place on the planet to do it, some believe. "Anywhere else you go is a compromise," Potter would say. The men had jumped from dozens of spots around Yosemite Valley, but they knew this route well. At the end of a 1.1-mile downhill trail from a small parking lot on Glacier Point Road, Taft Point is marked by a railing meant to keep tourists from falling. Potter and Hunt preferred jumping from an edge about 100 yards left, to the west. They would drop hundreds of feet with their arms and legs spread, the webbing between their limbs and the baffles inside their suits filling with air until falling turned to soaring. They would fly right, toward the heart of the valley. There is a sloping rib of a ridge there, a relatively unremarkable feature called Lost Brother. It is not marked on the park maps handed to visitors. It juts downward into the valley before it ends abruptly into a vertical wall known mostly to climbers. In that ridge is a notch, a V like a rifle sight. Potter and Hunt had made the jump many times, sometimes together, sometimes not. Hunt had done it without Potter several days before. He would usually steer himself through the notch. Potter had been through the notch a couple of times, but he usually went around the ridge to the left. It depended on how well they maintained altitude once they began to fly. The men were zipped into their suits. They did not wait for the full cloak of dusk. A breeze from behind caught their attention but did not send a strong enough warning to pause. It was 7:25 on May 16. Yosemite's BASE-Jumping Culture "I don't mind if I'm on the record," Potter wrote in an email in March, discussing the decades-long fight to legalize BASE jumping within National Park Service sites, and especially at Yosemite, with its unique valley of sheer cliffs. "I've been flying in the park since 2003 and the N.P.S. knows it, but they haven't been able to catch me or prove anything," he added. Potter offered a tour of the BASE-jumping culture at Yosemite, allowing himself to be captured in video leaping, illegally, from the cliffs at dusk or dawn and landing before being detected. "There are at least 10 local guys who are regularly BASE jumping in Yosemite and probably 50 to 100 others annually traveling to Yosemite from around the world to experience the birthplace of big-wall BASE," he wrote. Potter knew the long history of enforcement at Yosemite. Robin Heid was arrested and charged with jumping off El Capitan in 1979, which helped lead to a midsummer trial run for legal parachuting there in 1980, aborted after six weeks of unruliness. BASE jumping took hold in the global extreme-sports culture of the 1990s, and stories of Yosemite rangers hiding in trees and using night-vision goggles became legend. In 1999, Frank Gambalie drowned in the Merced River after trying to escape rangers. Months later, in a protest of park policy and enforcement, Jan Davis fell to her death from El Capitan without her parachute ever opening ; she wore a borrowed rig, not wanting her own gear confiscated. In 2010, Ammon McNeely was caught and subdued with a stun gun. In between, dozens have been arrested, jailed and subjected to thousands of dollars in fines and have had their gear confiscated. Several have gone to court to challenge the National Park Service rules banning the activity, ultimately to no avail. It made no sense to Potter, and plenty of others, that climbing was legal, and that falling was legal, but that stopping a fall with a lifesaving parachute was illegal, a result of the application of an arcane law banning the delivery or retrieval "of a person or object by parachute, helicopter or other airborne means." But it was 2015. Potter was hopeful. He believed he could be both renegade and diplomat. "The N.P.S. and the law enforcement have changed a lot in the past year or two," Potter wrote in March. "Most all of the lead positions in the park service are now held by people who either don't have a huge problem with BASE or are quite lenient when it comes to catching and prosecuting jumpers. For sure the rangers enforce the law. If they see us, they pursue, but for the most part, they are not hunting us as before and there seems to be a lot more respect on both sides." A sport that began as a rebel offshoot of sky diving had evolved into a popular and respected derivative of rock climbing. Places in Switzerland, Norway and Italy welcomed BASE jumpers. And Yosemite, the best place   maybe the safest place, with its vertical cliffs and grassy landing areas   had only six known BASE-jumping deaths in its history, and none since 1999, despite thousands of jumps since. Into the Dusky Valley Potter jumped. Hunt followed, like a shadow. Rapp clicked photographs. The men fell out of the frame before her lens caught them falling away, soaring with wings spread. Hunt quickly passed Potter. His suit was made for speed. Potter had set records for long flights and preferred loft. He had been in Canada working on a design to allow him to land on his belly on glacial ice, no parachute necessary. "He's low," Rapp thought to herself. "Why is he going toward the notch?" She saw Hunt veer left, as if to go around the ridge, then quickly back to the right. Potter held his line for the notch. They disappeared into the hole that led to the dusky valley. Rapp heard a thwap. Her mind tried to tell her that it was the familiar sound of a parachute deploying. It was followed almost immediately by a duller, heavier sound. Rapp waited alone on the cliff's edge for more clues from below. None came. She clicked through her camera to retrace the flight paths in the photos. In two dimensions, without depth perception, it was hard to tell what happened to the shrinking specks in the frames. There was Hunt, who disappeared into the grayness of the rocks. There was Potter, who made it through the leading edge of the notch, a downward halfpipe, and fell out of sight. Somewhere far below was Rebecca Haynie, Hunt's girlfriend of a few months. She had been on a hike when Hunt called saying that he and Potter planned to jump at Taft Point. Meet at the meadow at 7:30, Hunt said. She aborted her hike and went to the lodge area in Yosemite Valley to get a drink and pass the time. She did not see a text message that Hunt sent at 6:55 until about 7:25 because of spotty cellular service in Yosemite. He had asked her to turn on her two-way radio so they could communicate. She quickly texted back that she would in a few minutes. She drove around the darkening, forested roads for 90 minutes, waiting to hear from Hunt again. "I was putting my faith in a lot of irrational places," she said in a phone interview. "Even though I knew what probably happened." In the dwindling light, Rapp rushed back up the trail to the parking lot. She drove her car the 13 miles or so back to Wawona Road, made a right and headed the 10 miles down to the floor of the valley. She went to El Capitan Meadow, but there was no one there. Her phone had no text messages. Unsure of what to do or where to go, she drove to the rented house that she and Potter shared in Yosemite West, a cluster of homes back up Wawona Road, past the Glacier Point turnoff. The couple recently bought 31 acres nearby and had plans to build their own home. That day, rainy and cool, had been spent clearing trees and brush, and Hunt was there to help, until the clearing skies led to the idea of making an evening jump off Taft Point. The house was dark and empty. Mind racing, Rapp studied the photos and scrolled through various outcomes in her head. Maybe the sounds she heard were Hunt crashing. Maybe Potter saw it happen and was searching for his friend. Maybe Potter crashed and was hurt. Maybe they were both O.K. but were hiding from rangers. Maybe they had been arrested. Her mind was a tug of war with hope. Maybe they would pull up to the house any minute. A car came at 9:30. Out stepped Haynie. She was alone. Discouraging the Spectacle A little more than a year earlier, in March 2014, one of Potter's best friends and flying partners, Sean Leary, was killed BASE jumping at Utah's Zion National Park . It was only the second known BASE-jumping death at Zion, but the first had come just over a month earlier. Leary, alone, had apparently jumped off a sandstone tower called West Temple and tried to fly through a gap in the Three Marys, a set of statue-like formations resembling chess pieces. Leary was missing for days, and Potter was among those who rushed to Zion to help find him. Potter and a few other climbers reached Leary's body, but the park service would not allow them to bring it down. Rangers packaged the body, and a helicopter, borrowed from Grand Canyon National Park, lifted it out. "There are places within the United States that one can BASE jump, but not in Zion," the park's then-superintendent said in a news release. "There are many reasons for this, from resource protection, to visitor and employee safety, to Wilderness mandates. BASE jumping is not congruent with the founding purpose of this park." Ray O'Neal, a longtime ranger at Zion, said that the problem with BASE jumping in national parks was not necessarily one of safety or rescue costs, as many jumpers presume. "The reason we would like to discourage it is not so much because of the danger of it, but the spectacle of it," O'Neal said during an interview at the park's Emergency Operations Center. "We like to think that people come here to enjoy the scenery, and not the spectacle of people jumping." Scott Gediman, a Yosemite park spokesman, agreed. On average, 14 Yosemite visitors die each year   from falls or drownings, car accidents or natural causes. Rarely are they BASE jumpers. "We're not against BASE jumping as a sport," Gediman said while sitting on a bench at Yosemite, where a rappelling accident had killed a climber the day before. "But we have to look at the big picture and its appropriateness in the park." The frustration for Potter and other BASE advocates has been the apparent lack of consistency in park policies. It is generally legal to catch a fish but not to pick flowers. Horses are allowed on many trails, but mountain bikers are not. The Merced River is a jumble of colorful rafts carrying tourists; El Capitan is a dot-to-dot slate of climbers and ropes; and Yosemite even allows hang gliding on a limited basis off Glacier Point, not far from Taft Point. Potter was allowed to string tightropes between formations. But if he fell, it was illegal, in theory, to prevent his own death with a parachute. In 2006, the last time the National Park Service updated its management policies, individual park superintendents were allowed the discretion to pursue approval of BASE jumping. None have. (The exception in the national park system is the annual Bridge Day at New River Gorge, in West Virginia, where hundreds take part in a one-day jumping celebration that dates back nearly 40 years.) Potter thought times were changing. He pondered ways to devise a permit system, to limit the number of BASE jumpers and to ensure that only well-trained jumpers would leap into the valley. He did not have that part figured out yet. But it was his goal. He wanted nothing more than to BASE jump and fly wing suits legally in Yosemite, the place that he loved more than anywhere else. Seeking Familiar Faces The women drove back into the black valley. They looked for people they knew   climbers camping or hanging around the village and the bar. There were no familiar faces. At about 10:30, they showed up at the door of Mike Gauthier, Yosemite's chief of staff, a conduit between park bureaucracy and the climbing community. A call to the Yosemite dispatcher quickly deflated hope that Potter and Hunt were in custody. There were no reports of BASE jumpers caught by park rangers. A late-night search was called. Rangers and volunteers from Yosemite Search and Rescue were told that a pair of BASE jumpers were missing off Taft Point. It was not until they saw Rapp that they realized that one of the men missing was Dean Potter. Everyone knew him. "I hoped he was just hurt," Rapp said. "Maybe he had two broken femurs. Maybe he was bleeding to death. We just needed to get up there." She tried to leave the searching to the experts. But at 4 a.m., helplessly waiting, she took binoculars and headed to the base of the canyon below Lost Brother. She scanned the darkness for movement or color. She screamed into the black void above her. She got no response. There were still no answers from above by daybreak. A helicopter took off and headed over the top of Lost Brother. Two bodies were quickly spotted. Neither man had deployed a parachute. Hunt had cleared the base of the notch, but having most likely entered the downward funnel on a diagonal path, he had crashed into the right wall. "Turns out the sounds I heard, I think, were the sounds of Graham hitting a tree and then the wall," Rapp said. Potter was found several hundred feet farther into the notch. Speculation began immediately that maybe the sight of Hunt, or the air disturbance caused by his maneuvers, had affected Potter's concentration or control. Neither man was wearing a GoPro video recorder, contrary to some news reports, but Potter had jumped with a smartphone strapped to his head. It was heavily damaged, but park service investigators have it, along with Rapp's photos, hoping to mine them for clues. Rapp returned to Taft Point three days after the accident. By then, there was a memorial at the cliff's edge, where Potter and Hunt had made their final jump. El Capitan sits across the valley a little to the left; Yosemite Falls can be seen a little to the right, over the top of the brown, down-sloping ridge with the notch. The memorial included feathers, a beer can, Tibetan prayer flags and a photograph of Potter. Rapp sat alone on a rock. A raven appeared. Unflinchingly, it approached and patiently ate a piece of salami out of her hand. It had never happened to her before. "The way the raven looked at me, so intently, so. …," Rapp said, the thought drifting, unfinished. "Yeah, it was Dean."


Fans in Arizona will have a good number of chances to see quarterback Kyler Murray take part in his first NFL training camp. The Cardinals announced their practice schedule for this summer on Monday and it features 14 sessions open to the public. The first open practice will be held on July 25 and the final one will come on August 17, which is a couple of days after the Cardinals play the Raiders in their second exhibition game. The list of open practices includes the annual Red & White scrimmage on August 3. While some teams are cutting the number of open dates on their schedules, the Cardinals are moving in the other direction in head coach Kliff Kingsbury's first year. They had nine open practices last year and the hope in Arizona is that they'll be increasing their win total as well.


. @dh_simba7 ➡ @JDoc_son pic.twitter.com/3yQimNX6tC - Washington Redskins (@Redskins) May 23, 2019 The Washington Redskins still have hope for wide receiver Josh Doctson and even higher hopes for rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins. So it sure doesn't hurt to see them connecting in camp like they do above. While it's only May, plays like that could help Haskins get a head up in the battle with Case Keenum. Perhaps more interesting is Doctson, who had his fifth-year option turned down and watched as the Redskins added some talent at the position this off-season. But redemption could always be around the corner, especially if health and a passer like Haskins help Doctson realize his potential. The above is at least a small step in the right direction. MORE: This flying-knee KO just 10 seconds into a PFL fight had the MMA world in awe Spurs' DeMar DeRozan 'possibly could be on the trade block' for Lakers Mallory Edens: Five Things To Know About Bucks Owner's Daughter Source: Warriors brought in Terence Davis for pre-draft NBA workout New Packers OLB coach raves about rookie Rashan Gary


Police in Dallas said they are investigating whether the shooting deaths of two transgender women and the stabbing of a third are connected. "These cases, although not directly related at this time, do have some similarities the public needs to be aware of," Maj. Vincent Weddington told reporters at a news conference Tuesday. No arrests have been made in any of the cases. The most recent killing occurred over the weekend. Muhlaysia Booker, 23, was found shot to death Saturday morning . Her death came little more than a month after she survived a brutal beating in Dallas following a minor traffic accident that was captured on cellphone video and went viral. Edward Thomas, 29, was charged with assault in the April beating. He is not being held in jail, and police said over the weekend there is no evidence connecting him to Booker's killing. Weddington said police are working with federal law enforcement officers to determine if any of the attacks should be considered hate crimes. Investigators have not found a direct link among the attacks, he said. In October 2018, a transgender woman was found shot to death in a vehicle parked in southeast Dallas, police said. In April, a woman survived after she was repeatedly stabbed in south Dallas. She provided information about her attacker, but police have not released a detailed description of the man. In two of the three cases, the victims had been near an intersection   in the area of Spring Avenue and Lagow Street   just before the attacks, Weddington said. Two of the victims had gotten into a car with someone, and the third had let someone into her car. Booker is among at least five transgender people   all of whom black   who have been killed nationwide in 2019, according to the Human Rights Campaign advocacy group.


Will Power says that having seen the video evidence, he now realizes he hit his refueler in his second pitstop in the Indy 500, and that his initial reaction regarding his punishment was wrong. The 2018 Indy 500 winner was running second to eventual 2019 winner and teammate Simon Pagenaud for most of the first and second stints, when he slid slightly too far as he came into his pitbox under the second caution of the day. In doing so he knocked the leg of his refueler Quinton Washington who had to shuffle sideways to realign the fuel hose with the car's buckeye. IndyCar Race Control has strict guidelines on pitlane safety, particularly for crew members, and penalized Power so that he had to take the restart from the rear of the 30-car field still circulating at that time, although that was P21 due to eight lapped cars. With two very strong restarts following the two remaining cautions, and aided by the Sebastien Bourdais-triggered five-car pile-up, Power was able to pass Ed Carpenter for fifth place with five laps to go and finish only 1.6sec behind Pagenaud. At the Indy 500 banquet last night, Power said: "I didn't say much on the radio when I got the penalty but when I got out of the car, my team said, 'You didn't hit anyone, you didn't deserve the penalty'. "I was so mad I was telling people in the media how bad Race Control was. I was going on and on. "And then I went in to Race Control and they showed me the video   and I definitely hit the guy, no question. On the way out, I said, 'I may have said something in the media because I thought you guys made the wrong decision,'   and then I got out of there real quick! "It was my fault." Regarding his pace on race day, Power said: "I had an amazing car. I'd struggled all month, to be honest, but we made some changes overnight, the night before the race, and the car was great. "It's tough when you go 30 cars back in all that [dirty] air but we were able to make our way up and I was really happy with fifth at the end of the day, honestly, to get up there on a double-points day. But you want to come back and win the race. "I got a really good view of the battle that was going on at the front. I joined the party late but it was great." From the stage, Power went on to congratulate team owner Roger Penske for 18 wins in his 50 years at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, before addressing Pagenaud directly saying: "I know how it feels. It's just amazing to win this race in front of that many people. It's just an amazing event. "And you deserve it, winning the Grand Prix the way you did, and really you were just so strong all month   pole and race win [in the 500]   just fantastic. So really enjoy it and congratulations to all the team."