Browsing: parade

PASADENA, Calif. — NBA great Magic Johnson will preside over the 137th Rose Parade as grand marshal next year.

The 66-year-old retired Los Angeles Lakers superstar will ride down Colorado Boulevard as part of the 5½-mile route on Jan. 1.

“I’m going to be waving like crazy to all the great fans,” Johnson told the crowd gathered Wednesday on the lawn at Tournament House in Pasadena. “The Rose Parade is watched even more than the football game. Wow, a lot of pressure.”

He’ll be part of the coin flip for the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the 112th Rose Bowl game later that day. “I’m a big football fan, too,” he said.

Tournament of Roses president Mark Leavens announced Johnson for the 2026 parade, which has a theme of “The Magic in Teamwork.”

Johnson said he grew up “a poor kid” in Lansing, Michigan, and recalled turning on the TV on New Year’s Day to see who the grand marshal was.

“Who would ever think I would be grand marshal?” he said. “I’m glad my mother is still alive that she can witness this special day coming up on New Year’s Day. This is a true blessing for me.”

Johnson said he’s excited to share the experience with his children and grandchildren.

“I think I’ll be kind of cool in their eyes,” he said. “They didn’t watch me play basketball, but they’ll be able to see me in that car.”

He follows in the footsteps of Hall of Fame tennis star Billie Jean King, this year’s grand marshal, as part owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers to preside over the parade. He also has ownership interests in the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks, Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Football Club, the NFL’s Washington Commanders and the NWSL’s Washington Spirit.

Johnson was a five-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, three-time league MVP, and won a gold medal as part of Team USA’s “Dream Team” at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

Earlier this year, Johnson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award.

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Two weeks after his unanimous-decision victory over Canelo Ãlvarez, Terence Crawford celebrated Saturday with a parade in his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska.

The Ring magazine provided full coverage of Crawford’s parade, which saw the undefeated fighter show appreciation for his supporters while making his way down the streets of Omaha:

Once the parade was over, Crawford addressed the crowd while on stage and also spoke directly to his mother and grandmother, saying, “We made it.”

The mayor of Omaha, John Ewing Jr., presented Crawford with the key to the city, which made for a funny moment when Crawford asked what the key opens:

Several notable stars sent video messages to congratulate Crawford, which was played on a big screen. They included rapper Eminem, NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum, UFC president Dana White and volleyball player Brooke Nuneviller:

Despite being 41-0 and having held world titles across four different weight classes, Crawford was a decided underdog going into his clash with Canelo.

That was largely due to the fact that Crawford had to move up in weight in order to face Ãlvarez.

That didn’t seem to matter for Crawford, as “Bud” was the decidedly quicker and more effective fighter, taking the action to Canelo en route to winning the WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO and The Ring super middleweight titles.

Crawford improved to 42-0 with that victory, and he may have cemented himself as the unquestioned No. 1 pound-for-pound boxer in the world.

It is unclear what’s next for Crawford, or if he even plans on fighting again, but he finally has a signature win under his belt against a boxer who was the face of the sport for the past several years.

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With the race run in a downpour Botswana, anchored by 400 gold medalist Collen Kebinatshipi, metaphorically drowned Team USAâ€s  hopes. (KEVIN MORRIS)

MEET THE NEW BOSS — definitely not the same as the old boss.

For 9 of the previous 10 Worlds, the United States had owned the menâ€s 4 x 4, sometimes running four laps almost solo. This edition looked more like that exception, â€17, when tiny Trinidad ran down the U.S. with 50m left.

This time, it was tiny Botswana taking down Goliath.

When Botswana (with a population under 3 million) qualified three for the 400 final and medaled two, they seemed a lock for the podium, maybe the top. Other ingredients for an upset: the U.S. struggled even to reach the final and Botswanaâ€s fourth runner was none other than Letsile Tebogo.

Botswana did just that, in 2:57.76. In a driving rainstorm, 400 champ Collen Kebinatshipi narrowly edged out Rai Benjamin just before the line. South Africa nearly pushed the U.S. all the way down to bronze, with both clocking 2:57.83.

The Americans†road to the final was hard. In heat 1, they collided with Zambia and ended up a non-qualifying 6th. Meet officials ruled Zambia impeded the U.S. on the second exchange and that the Americans should advance. Zambiaâ€s relayists actually handed off between the U.S.â€s Demarius Smith and Bryce Deadmon.

The problem was, officials said the same about Kenya, who also got crosswise with Zambia in an almost identical between-the-bodies move on the third exchange. Zambia was disqualified and the U.S. and Kenya were required to have a run-off the morning of the final to decide who got the lone available protest lane. The U.S. (Chris Bailey, Smith, Deadmon and Jenoah Mckiver) easily won in 2:58.48 to Kenyaâ€s 3:00.39.

That evening, a completely different quartet of Americans lined up for the final: Vernon Norwood, Jacory Patterson, Khaleb McRae and Benjamin.

Leg 1: Over the in-lanes opening circuit, Norwood seemed to have the U.S. in early control, running 44.60 ahead of South Africaâ€s Lythe Pillay (45.02), Qatarâ€s Ammar Ismail Yahya Ibrahim (45.04) and Botswanaâ€s Lee Eppie (45.16).

Leg 2: Patterson pushed to a big lead off the break, but Tebogo — seeking redemption after winning no individual medals — also pushed hard, putting Botswana in 2nd. He made up ground on Patterson, running 44.05 versus 44.22.

Leg 3: 400 bronze medalist Byapo Ndori ate a little further into the U.S. lead, clocking 44.41 to McRaeâ€s 44.61. WR holder Wayde van Niekerk, in his swan song, kept South Africa in contention with the raceâ€s fastest leg, 43.26.

Leg 4: Overtaking Benjamin is a big ask, but Kebinatshipi had the credentials to do it. In the 400, he stunned the world with a semifinal 43.61 that made him No. 10 all-time. He strengthened his hold on that ATL position with a 43.53 final. Here, he patiently let Benjamin pull away from him in the first 200.

In the stretch, it seemed Kebinatshipi was about to fade to 3rd, but as South Africaâ€s Zakithi Nene pulled even about 50m from the finish, it seemed to light a spark in the 400 champion. He found another gear and passed Benjamin with 15 to go. Nene came within 0.002 of catching Benjamin as well. Anchor times: Kebinatshipi 44.14, Benjamin 44.40, Nene 43.93.

“I had to run the most strategic leg because of the weather,†Kebinatshipi said. “I knew I had to go strong but still I wanted to save my energy for the last 100m. At the last 80m I pushed and started running faster. I am happy to be crossing the finishline first.â€

Said Tebogo, “This gold medal makes up for my individual non-medal performances. It took a lot of courage for me. The coach told me I will probably have the fastest split and I knew what I had to do.â€

“I wanted to bring gold for these guys,†a somber Benjamin said. “I am bit disappointed I couldnâ€t do that today. The guys put me in a great position. We were not supposed to be here, so taking a silver is pretty good. We have a great relationship on this team right now.â€

“For me it is a privilege to say I finished my 400-meter career with these guys,†said Van Niekerk. “It is my last one, but they are trying to convince me otherwise.â€

MENâ€S 4 x 400 RESULTS

FINAL (September 21)

1. Botswana 2:57.76

(Lee Eppie 45.16, Letsile Tebogo 44.05, Bayapo Ndori 44.41, Collen Kebinatshipi 44.14);

2. United States 2:57.83 (AL)

(Vernon Norwood 44.60, Jacory Patterson 44.22, Khaleb McRae 44.61, Rai Benjamin 44.40);

3. South Africa 2:57.83

(Lythe Pillay 45.02, Udeme Okon 45.62, Wayde van Niekerk 43.26, Zakithi Nene 43.93);

4. Belgium 2:59.48

(Jonathan Sacoor 45.19, Robin Vanderbemden 45.39, Alexander Doom 44.49, Daniel Segers 44.41);

5. Qatar 3:01.64

(Ammar Ismail Yahya Ibrahim 45.04, Bassem Hemeida 45.81, Ismail Doudai Abakar 45.21, Abderrahmane Samba 45.58);

6. Great Britain 3:03.05

(Lee Thompson 45.94, Toby Harries 44.81, Lewis Davey 46.94, Charlie Dobson 45.36);

7. Jamaica 3:03.46

(Delano Kenedy 45.63, Jevaughn Powell 45.35, Jasauna Dennis 46.36, Rusheen McDonald 46.12);

8. Netherlands 3:04.84

(Jonas Phijffers 46.31, Terrence Agard 45.30, Liemarvin Bonevacia 47.20, Ramsey Angela 46.03);

9. Portugal 3:09.06

(Pedro Afonso 45.81, Omar Elkhatib 45.32, João Ricardo Coelho 50.45, Ricardo Dos Santos 47.48).

(lanes: 1. United States; 2. Portugal; 3. Jamaica; 4. Netherlands; 5. Botswana; 6. Qatar; 7. Belgium; 8. South Africa; 9. Great Britain)

(reaction times: 0.133 Belgium, 0.147 South Africa, 0.156 Portugal, 0.168 Botswana, 0.171 United States, 0.183 Qatar & Netherlands, 0.208 Jamaica, 0.225 Great Britain)

HEATS (September 20)

I–1. South Africa 2:58.81 (Gardeo Isaacs 44.30, Okon 45.17, Leendert Koekemoer 45.26, Pillay 44.08); 2. Qatar 3:00.15 NR (Abakar 44.64, Abderrahmane Samba 44.58); 3. Netherlands 3:00.23 (Phijffers 45.07, Eugene Omalla 45.22, Angela 44.92, Bonevacia 45.02); 4. Kenya 3:00.76 (obstructed) (George Mutuku 44.82, David Kapirante 45.42, Dennis Masika 45.56, Kevin Kipkorir 44.96); 5. China 3:00.77 NR (Liang Baotang 44.87, Zhang Qining 45.72, Liu Kai 44.51, Guo Longyu 45.47); 6. United States 3:01.06 (obstructed) (Chris Bailey 43.11, Demarius Smith 48.17, Bryce Deadmon 44.76, Jenoah Mckiver 45.02); 7. France 3:01.64 (Muhammad Abdalla Kounta 45.74, Loïc Prévôt 44.67, David Sombe 45.33, Yann Spillmann 44.70);… dq[obstruction]—[8]Zambia [3:01.71] (Muzala Samukonga 44.59, Kennedy Luchembe 45.64, Sitale Kakene 45.74, David Mulenga 45.74).

II–1. Botswana 2:57.68 (Eppie 44.32, Leungo Scotch 44.48, Tebogo 44.18, Ndori 44.30); 2. Belgium 2:57.98 (Sacoor 44.37, Dylan Borlée 44.92, Segers 43.71, Doom 44.98); 3. Great Britain 2:58.11 (Thompson 45.27, Harries 43.93, Seamus Derbyshire 45.13, Dobson 43.78); 4. Jamaica 2:59.13 (Bovel McPherson 45.27, Powell 44.30, Dennis 45.17, Kenedy 44.39); 5. Portugal 2:59.70 NR (Pedro Afonso 44.46, Ericsson Tavares 45.71, João Ricardo Coelho 44.48, Omar Elkhatib 45.05); 6. Japan 2:59.74 (fastest non-qualifier ever) (Yuki Joseph Nakajima 44.65, Fuga Sato 45.12, Takuho Yoshizu 44.51, Kenki Imaizumi 45.56);… dq[zone]—[3]Australia [2:58.0] (Cooper Sherman 44.98, Reece Holder 43.86, Aidan Murphy 44.86, Thomas Reynolds 44.40); [8]Brazil[2:59.89] (Tiago da Silva 45.71, Matheus Lima 44.65, Lucas Vilar 44.97, Alison dos Santos 44.56).

Special runoff, winner advances to final (9/21)–1. United States 2:58.48 (Bailey 44.67, Smith 45.00, Deadmon 44.35, Mckiver 44.46); 2. Kenya 3:00.39 (Mutuku 45.12, Kapirante 45.89, Masika 44.88, Kipkorir 44.50).

Leg 1. USA 44.60; 2. South Africa 45.02; 3. Qatar 45.04; 4. Botswana 45.16; 5. Belgium 45.19; 6. Jamaica 45.63; 7. Portugal 45.81; 8. Great Britain 45.94; 9. Netherlands 46.31.

Leg 2: 1. United States 1:28.82; 2. Botswana 1:29.21; 3. Belgium 1:30.58; 4. South Africa 1:30.64; 5. Great Britain 1:30.75; 6. Qatar 1:30.85; 7. Jamaica 1:30.98; 8. Portugal 1:31.13; 9. Netherlands 1:31.61.

Leg 3: 1. United States 2:13.43; 2. Botswana 2:13.62; 3. South Africa 2:13.90; 4. Belgium 2:15.07; 5. Qatar 2:16.06; 6. Jamaica 2:17.34; 7. Great Britain 2:17.69; 8. Netherlands 2:18.81; 9. Portugal 2:21.58.

Since 1986, Lee Nichols has been the Rockdale (Texas) High School record holder in the mile and 2-miles. He followed those feats with a brief and highly undistinguished tenure with the Texas Longhorns. He has been writing for Track & Field News since 2004. When he’s not writing about track, he’s either writing about or drinking craft beer and watching Tottenham Hotspur play soccer.

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Merseyside Police have said 134 people were injured during the incident on Water Street in May. PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty ImagesA…