Rain cuts short Montreal's 1st outdoor pro-basketball game
Bad weather forced an early end to the Montreal Alliance game against the Ottawa BlackJacks on May 25. Despite that, the CEBL team was pleased with the turnout and motivated to try an outdoor game again next year.
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New York Times
33 minutes ago
- New York Times
F1 reveals 2026 schedule: Canadian GP to clash with Indy 500; Madrid debuts in September
Formula One has revealed its calendar for the 2026 season, featuring a record-tying 24 races, three visits to the United States and a new grand prix in Madrid in September. But F1 will also go head-to-head with the Indianapolis 500 next year after moving the Canadian Grand Prix to May 24, setting up a direct clash between the two races on Memorial Day weekend. Advertisement The 2026 calendar was revealed after the FIA's World Motor Sport Council approved the schedule during its latest meeting in Macau on Tuesday. F1 has taken steps in recent years to better regionalize its calendar, aiming to reduce its carbon footprint and meet its net-zero goal by 2030. The latest efforts include Canada's shift to late May from its traditional mid-June slot. It will take place three weeks after the Miami Grand Prix, pairing the first two North American races on the calendar. While the date change ensures the entire European leg of the season can run without leaving the continent between early June and mid-September, minimizing cross-Atlantic travel, it has created a clash with the Indy 500. This year's Indy 500 started at 12:45 p.m. ET, while this Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix will begin at 2 p.m. ET, creating a potential dilemma for racing fans. Traditionally, the Indy 500 has been held on the same day as the Monaco Grand Prix, but the different time zones have meant the F1 race typically finishes a couple of hours before the 500 goes green. As reported by The Athletic, the new F1 season will start once again in Australia, which moves forward by one week to March 8, heralding the debut of the overhauled car designs for 2026, the most significant in a generation. The first race in Madrid, as part of F1's new contract to race in the Spanish capital at the IFEMA complex, is scheduled for September 13 and will be the second of two races in Spain next season, subject to the circuit being signed off by Formula One's governing body, FIA. Barcelona is set to host the final grand prix under its existing contract on June 14. Unlike 2025, Japan is no longer part of a triple-header with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia; instead, it becomes a stand-alone race at the end of March. Advertisement The Dutch Grand Prix, which is set to drop from the calendar after 2026, is also not paired with any other races. This means the first triple-header does not occur until Rounds 19 and 21 of the season, which include races in the United States (Austin, Texas), Mexico and Brazil. This will, however, be followed by a second triple-header to close out the season, setting up a run of six races in the space of seven weeks to the final checkered flag in Abu Dhabi on December 6. The fourth running of the Las Vegas Grand Prix is scheduled for November 21, retaining its Saturday slot, although a new contract has yet to be formally announced beyond this year. As anticipated, the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola will not appear on the calendar after the expiration of its contract, being effectively replaced by the Madrid race.
New York Times
33 minutes ago
- New York Times
Key takeaways from F1's 2026 schedule: Streamlined start, a ratings test and a punishing close
The 2025 Formula One season hasn't even reached its halfway point yet, but the schedule for next year's campaign was released Tuesday, with a few notable changes as F1 works to regionalize the schedule and make progress toward its net-zero carbon goals. We'll still have 24 grand prix weekends, with Australia opening the calendar and the season finale taking place at Abu Dhabi once again. But there are changes, like the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix officially falling off the slate and Madrid's new circuit making its debut. Having two Spanish races meant that Barcelona and Madrid needed to be spaced out, with the well-known testing circuit near the start of the European stretch, while the newer track will end that portion of the calendar. Advertisement The Canadian Grand Prix is also moving from its June slot to May, a few weeks after the Miami Grand Prix and clashing with the iconic Indianapolis 500. This move comes after Montreal and Monaco swapped positions, and it does help from a logistical standpoint — the races are now geographically closer in sequence. And then there's the case of the schedule ending with consecutive tripleheaders, a run that starts with the United States Grand Prix on October 25 and ends with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on December 6. We dive into these and more developments in our 2026 F1 calendar takeaways below. It's a peculiar move to schedule the Canadian Grand Prix on Memorial Day weekend, the well-known home of the Indianapolis 500. For years, the Greatest Spectacle in Racing has been held on that weekend, whether it be on Sunday or actually on Memorial Day Monday. And for more than two decades, the Monaco Grand Prix has run on Sunday, creating what some call 'Motorsports Christmas.' F1 kicked it off with the Monaco GP during the East Coast morning while IndyCar held the midday slot with the Indy 500. NASCAR closed out the day with the Coca-Cola 600, creating a full day of racing for motorsports fans. However, to regionalize the calendar, F1 swapped the positions of Monaco and Montreal, the latter of which typically interrupted the European leg of the schedule. Monaco has moved to June, while the Canadian GP will take place in May, three weekends after the Miami Grand Prix and on Memorial Day weekend. The plot twist is that F1 and IndyCar will be racing on the same day, in the same time zone. The start times for next year's races are not yet public, but if the two series stick with this year's timings, the races will overlap. The green flag was scheduled to wave for the Indy 500 at 12:45 p.m. ET, and the 2025 Canadian GP starts at 2 p.m. ET this Sunday. Advertisement It's a choice to schedule the Montreal race on the same day, threatening to clash with the Indy 500. It's hard to imagine there won't be an impact on American audience viewership numbers. According to Nielsen's Fast National ratings, a whopping 7.05 million people tuned in to the Indy 500, the largest audience in 17 years, and Fox Sports reported that it peaked at 8.4 million viewers. According to ESPN, ABC's live broadcast of the 2024 Canadian Grand Prix drew a record 1.8 million viewers. The absence of any tripleheaders until the latter part of the season (we'll get to that shortly) will be welcome news for the F1 paddock, particularly off the back of what looks set to be an incredibly short winter. The all-new cars for 2026 will require more testing, meaning the first outings are set for the end of January in Barcelona, with three three-day run-outs planned. But once we get into the thick of the season, things do ease up a fraction. Australia and China coming forward a week means Japan can be a standalone race, instead of forming a tough tripleheader with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, as was the case this year. The Middle East pairing is then followed by Miami and Canada, which, separated by three weeks, also gives the paddock a bit of respite. Imola dropping off the calendar also opens up more space once the European season starts, meaning we again avoid a tripleheader before the summer break. And it's a gentle resumption with the final Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort also becoming a standalone instead of linking up with Italy and Madrid. There does end up being a price to pay, but compared to 2025, the first two-thirds of next year's schedule is at least a little bit kinder on the paddock. A run of six race weekends in seven weeks isn't new for F1. Advertisement The most recent time the sport had a stretch close to that at the end of the calendar was in 2024, though it was across eight weeks, as there was a two-week break between Brazil and Las Vegas. And there were concerns in 2023 about the sustainability of the F1 calendar given the realization it would end on a double tripleheader the following year, as the race weekend schedules get busier and busier. While this scheduling layout didn't repeat in 2025, with São Paulo breaking off into a standalone race, ending on a double tripleheader would have been hard to avoid next year. The two Spanish races required creative scheduling, as Barcelona and Madrid could not occur near each other during the European stretch of the season. This isn't unusual, either. With Italy's two races, Imola traditionally was earlier in the calendar, while Monza took place after the summer break in recent years. Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya's contract is through 2026, and it is staying within the same relative ballpark date, even with Monaco and Canada moving. This meant Madrid needed to be in the latter portion of the European calendar. Madrid becoming the closer pushed the remainder of the calendar back a week, as that's now three races in four weeks after the summer break. Austin, Mexico City and São Paulo become a triple once again, but only one week separates Brazil from Las Vegas — and then the paddock heads back to the Middle East for Qatar and Abu Dhabi. The sport's growing popularity creates a balance issue: Creating a globalized and regionalized schedule and factoring in the well-being of everyone working in the paddock. No matter what, it'll be a grueling and demanding end to the year.
Hamilton Spectator
36 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Vancouver takes defender Ashton Bell first overall in PWHL expansion draft
A long, anxious day of waiting paid off in a big way for Ashton Bell on Monday. The 25-year-old defender became part of hockey history when she was selected No. 1 by Vancouver in the Professional Women's Hockey League's first-ever expansion draft. 'It's just a huge honour,' she said. 'And I'm just super excited to be one of those first players in Vancouver. Could not be more thrilled to be part of that organization.' Hailing from Deloraine, Man., Bell heads to Vancouver following two seasons playing in Ottawa. She contributed three goals and three assists over 27 regular-season games with the Charge during the 2024-25 campaign, and added one more of each over eight playoff appearances. 'Not only is she extremely talented on the back end, she's played both offence and defence in her career,' Vancouver general manager Cara Gardner Morey said of the young defender who she briefly coach with Canada's U-18 development program. 'But she's also one of those great teammates and great human beings that's always showing gratitude and doing things the right way. Her work ethic is outstanding and, to me, that's the exact type of player we wanted to bring in.' Vancouver picked seven players on Monday, including forwards Brooke McQuigge (Minnesota Frost), Abby Boreen (Montreal Victoire), Izzy Daniel (Toronto Sceptres), Gabby Rosenthal (New York Sirens) and Denisa Krizova (Minnesota) and defender Sydney Bard (Boston Fleet). Heading into the draft, Gardner Morey was looking for undervalued players. 'I think we really went with a lot of grit, a lot of two-way forwards that can also score goals. Obviously we solidified the back end tonight,' the GM said. 'I just think we got a lot of players that were overachieving last year and those are the type of players we want to bring in.' Bell believes she has more to show, too. The five-foot-nine University of Minnesota-Duluth product believes she grew into her role as a shutdown defender at the end of the regular-season campaign. She embraced it further during a playoff run where Ottawa ousted Montreal from the semifinals before falling to Minnesota in the Walter Cup final. 'I've grown a lot just in the last couple of months of playing in this league,' Bell said. 'And I'm just excited to kind of continue that.' Bell and the six other draftees join five players Vancouver snapped up during last week's exclusive signing window for the PWHL's two expansion teams. Defenders Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques (both Minnesota), forwards Sarah Nurse (Toronto) and Jenn Gardiner (Montreal), and goalie Emerance Maschmeyer (Ottawa) will also be part of the club's inaugural roster. Gardner Morey, a former defender herself, said she's been building the team from the back end and stocking it with 'great skating, puck carrying defenders.' 'I was a defender, and I just really think it's such a valuable position. And finding the right D and having a great core, one through eight even, is what makes championship teams,' she said. Seattle, the PWHL's other expansion franchise, took former Ottawa defender Aneta Tejralova with the second pick Monday. General manager Meghan Turner then added forwards Hannah Bilka (Boston), Jessie Eldridge (New York) and Julia Gosling (Toronto) before claiming defenders Anna Wilgren (Montreal), Megan Carter (Toronto) and Emily Brown (Boston). They join forwards Hilary Knight (Boston), Alex Carpenter (New York), Danielle Serdachny (Ottawa), defender Cayla Barnes (Montreal) and goalie Corinne Schroeder (New York), who all inked deals with Seattle during the exclusive signing period. 'I think it's a great roster that we've built so far with the early signings and then just filling in tonight,' Turner said after Monday's draft. 'We've got the first two lines, I feel like, pretty solid. And then, obviously, defence is so important and wins championships, so not overlooking that at all. We got some good young talent. And then, two solid kind of league veterans for the past couple of seasons to round out the D core there.' Each of the PWHL's six founding teams picked three players to protect during the expansion process. A fourth was added to each list before or during Monday's draft, depending on how many players the club lost in the signing window. Only players under contract for the 2025-26 season — or those whose playing rights are held through that season — were eligible for the draft. Players on expiring contracts, including Toronto Sceptres forward Natalie Spooner, could not be selected, but teams can ink those athletes to new contracts when the free agency period opens Monday. A leaguewide entry draft will be held in Ottawa on June 24. Gardner Morey knows what she'll be looking for as she continues to build out Vancouver's roster. 'I think that we're going to look for a couple more top-six forwards in the free agency period and see who we might, I guess, lure to Vancouver and who wants to be a part of this amazing team,' she said. 'Because I think we have the building blocks in place.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2025.
