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Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
How masked veteran Tiffany Hayes has breathed life into the Valkyries' inaugural season
Tiffany Hayes breathes harder now. So hard, she can hear herself. Sometimes, she'll just be sitting, fully relaxed. But her breathing would sound as if she were running. Like she's mid-workout. Like it's a struggle. It's been some two months since Hayes took a blow to the nostrils on a post-up by Washington Mystics center Shakira Austin. The injury leaves her nasal passage still restricted. The wheeze lives with her for now, until she can address it comprehensively in the offseason. A black protective mask covers her face during games. Multiple hits to the face since then remind her of its necessity. 'The mask is staying for now,' said Hayes, affectionately dubbed 'Tip' by most. 'It's chippy out here. People just do a little too much sometimes. So, yeah, it's definitely going to stay. I like the mask. 'Masked Tip' be hooping.' The irony, though, is that Hayes is breathing easier than she ever has. Because what she's inhaling now isn't the stale, recycled air of others' expectations. The pressurized toxicity of outside validation no longer fills her lungs. That was another life. Another version of Tip. The Hayes who did what others thought was best. Who quietly pursued affirmation in praise and accolades, who found value in their attainment. This Hayes, the one who came out of retirement and won Sixth Woman of the Year in 2024, the one who assumed the leadership role of the expansion Golden State Valkyries, has found something rare in pro sports. Peace. 'I used to do things that were best for other people, and I regret it,' she says now. 'So I just try to do what's best for me. And it's been working out great.' The signing of Hayes, infusing her into the building blocks of this infant franchise, has been one of the best moves in this surprising season. It took Hayes a long time to reach this enlightenment. She'll be 36 in September. She's in her 13th season. But she looks and plays 10 years younger thanks to the fresh air she's found above the fray. Her value, she's convinced, is independent of accolades. Her game, her character, her contributions to whatever team she's on — they're valuable no matter who sees them. The peace she owns made jumping into the expansion life an easy call for Hayes. It explains why she seems to be loving it, why she embraces being in the center of this patchwork huddle. She came to the Bay without fanfare. No billboard. Just a lowkey deal between a veteran who'd seen it all and a franchise just opening its eyes. Golden State needed credibility. Someone who wouldn't flinch at what was to come. Hayes needed freedom to be herself, play her game. A place where she could be Tip. They found each other at the perfect time. 'To be a pioneer is hard,' Valkyries general manager Ohemaa Nyanin said. 'This was an opportunity to co-create an experience that would be beneficial for both. She has a beautiful entrepreneurial spirit. And what I pretty much told her was that this is a class in entrepreneurship — 101 to 501 in one year. To really put an idea to paper. To give us a precious year of her career to help build what we thought would be something amazing. … And she took a chance.' Expansion teams can be a mess. Overwhelmed to the point of disorganization. A locker room lacking cohesion from its hurried collaboration, loaded with misfit pieces and fringe players hoping to carve out relevance. But the Valkyries? They've been shockingly cohesive. Professional. Even joyful at times. They hit a rough patch before the All-Star break, losing five of six. But they're still in the playoff hunt. Somehow, Golden State has made it work. In part because of Hayes. Hayes starred at UConn — from the 90 straight wins era — and spent 10 years with the Atlanta Dream. She made her lone WNBA All-Star appearance in 2017. Should have been more than one, if you ask her. Hayes is now on her third team in three seasons. She retired and came back. She's started and come off the bench. She excelled at scoring and played defense. She's played for Team USA and the Azerbaijan women's national team. Her wealth of experiences made her ideal for this inaugural season. She came in equipped to deal with just about whatever would come. Including the warmth she's found. The camaraderie of being on a team furnished with overcomers. 'I still believe that I was an underdog in most of my career,' Hayes said, 'and kind of unseen for most of my career. I've been having my head down and being a good professional and playing my hardest every single season I've been in the league. So to be on a team full of people like that, and a team full of people who want everybody to the left and right to succeed, it's super dope to be part of. So I'm grateful.' Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase predicted this. She told Nyanin to go and get Hayes. Nyanin didn't know Hayes. She knew she'd never heard a bad word about her, and remembers appreciating her reasoning for opting out of the WNBA bubble in 2020. But Nakase was with Hayes last season in Las Vegas. Nakase was an assistant coach as Hayes came out of retirement to average 9.5 points in 21 minutes off the bench — shooting 50 percent from the field and 40.2 percent from 3. According to Nyanin, Nakase was certain Hayes would be ideal for the locker room. Nakase knew she'd need a true vet. She also knew Hayes deserved an opportunity like this, to be liberated as a player and leader. Nakase was proven right immediately. One illustrative moment came after she sustained a nose injury. Hayes missed the next three games. Upon her return, coaches were considering lineup combinations — including Hayes coming off the bench. An early chance to create tension in this new relationship. But Hayes was clear. She told coaches she didn't come to the Valkyries to start. She came to win. Whatever it takes. 'And to hear that from your ultimate vet, the person who took a chance on this new franchise,' Nyanin explained. 'There's been a ton of growth (in Hayes), and I'm just grateful to be a part of it.' Her teammates call her auntie. Auntie Tip. Auntie is a term of endearment, a reference to the mom-aged woman young people like being around. Aunties are cool, with their cocoa butter and classic music. They don't call her Auntie Tip just because she's the eldest on the squad and eight years above the league average. It's an appreciation of her sophistication and polish. Recognition of the swag that comes with her experience. 'I don't mind it though,' Hayes said. 'It's whatever. I don't look like your auntie. I probably look younger than you. But go off.' Hayes embodies the Valkyrie's personality. The urgency. The rebellious energy. The aggressiveness. It's the character of the roster and the foundation of the new franchise. The freedom to compete, to be uninhibited in pursuit of victory. One play in Minnesota earlier this month, she lost her shoe during a possession and tossed it aside. She ended the same possession by draining a 30-footer. The type of moment to laugh about in film sessions. The type of moment that's memorable because it meant more than it looked. It was gritty. Unorthodox. Unbothered. Just like this team. Hayes sets the whatever-it-takes tone. Whether being glued to Caitlin Clark — which is why she's 7 of 26 from the field against the Valkyries this season, including 2 of 12 from 3 — or lighting up Seattle like she did at Chase Center in June. Hayes' energy, which still seems endless, feeds the team. Mask on, motor humming, cutting through defenders like it's 2015 again. There's still fire in her game. She still boasts the first-step quickness that made her a menace in Atlanta. But what Hayes has now is a calm spirit to match. Hayes worked for this peace. Earned it. Built it brick by brick out of heartbreak, hard lessons, and a whole lot of self-reflection. Emotionally. Mentally. She's never been clearer. She meditates. She prays. She enjoys uplifting music. She savors good food. She consumes fashion. And that's not to say she likes nice clothes. She can rock gigantic fur pants, or shorts with a blazer, or incorporate 10 ties into her outfit — and make it all look fly. It's all part of her bent to stimulate her mind and body. 'I don't even like to be associated with negativity,' Hayes continued. 'Nowadays it's just like people feed off that, especially in the W. People, the fans, feed off of negativity, and it just seems like that's growing a little too much for me. And I don't really like that. So I try to stay out of it. I try to duck the smoke, like the kids say, whatever that is.' It's easier to breathe that way. This article originally appeared in The Athletic. Golden State Valkyries, WNBA 2025 The Athletic Media Company
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
🚨 Ter Stegen undergoes successful surgery, return date still unknown
The operation of Marc André Ter Stegen has been confirmed. The FC Barcelona goalkeeper underwent surgery this Tuesday to address his lumbar issues. "The first team player Marc Ter Stegen has successfully undergone surgery again for his lumbar problems by Dr. Amélie Léglise, under the supervision of the Club's Medical Services, at the Sports Clinic Bordeaux Merignac. He is out and his recovery will determine his availability", reads the Barça statement. The club has not provided information regarding his recovery time. This has sparked a debate focusing on the situation of the Barça goalkeeping position. The difficulties in registering Joan García have prompted discussions on how many months Ter Stegen will be sidelined. This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here. 📸 Alex Grimm - 2025 Getty Images
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Richard Bacon reveals he's now reliant on heartburn tablets and vitamin injections to cope with the fallout from his heavy drinking - and quit AA because it's 'boring'
Richard Bacon has opened up about his long-running struggle with alcohol addiction - admitting he's sleep-deprived and reliant on heartburn tablets and vitamin injections to cope with the fallout from heavy drinking. Richard was famously just 18 months into his dream job at Blue Peter when he was fired at the age of 22 after admitting he took cocaine in a London nightclub in 1997. He has since been open about his continuing addiction struggles, recently opening up in a candid podcast chat. The presenter, now 49, said that he struggles to take accountability after a doctor told him his addiction is a disease inherited from his alcoholic mother. 'I went to see an alcohol doctor not long ago,' he said in the chat. 'I'm not out of control or anything, but I do think I should drink less. It affects your sleep and I get bored of being tired. 'I don't get enough sleep because I drink too much. I enjoy drinking.' Speaking on The Perfect Day podcast with Jessica Knappett, he added: 'You know you drink too much when you have a lot of Rennie. You know you're middle aged and you drink too much and you're popping those things.' The father-of-two also confessed to a regular habit of having vitamin B12 injections to cope with the after-effects of drinking too much. 'A vitamin B12 injection in your bum is famously good for hangovers. It brings you back to life,' he said. 'At the end of last year and for the first few months of this year, I had one a week. I've got this doctor - he's a bit like Michael Jackson's doctor - he just gives me anything I ask for.' 'At one point I had eight prescriptions and there wasn't really much wrong with me. He's just like, 'you're a bit deficient in this, bit deficient in that. Bit of this, bit of that.' A lot of it's sort of vitamin based, but weirdly prescription based. But it did work… He's terrific.' Richard was sacked from children's TV programme Blue Peter in 1998 after admitting to taking cocaine. To this day he is the only presenter in the history of the show to have been sacked. 'I got a Blue Peter job at 21 and then lost it at 22 and it was a big scandal at the time,' Richard reflected. 'I suppose there's something about getting caught for taking drugs where you can just come back, can't you? It's not one of the worst ones. 'There are far worse ones that make you look like a malicious person. If you beat someone up, do something aggressively sexual, say something racist... those reveal something about you that people don't like. I think the desire to get drunk and get high is something people generally can get over.' Now a successful creator of TV formats and the man behind shows like This Is My House and I Literally Just Told You, Richard admits his lifestyle can still get in the way. 'What I find annoying about myself is if I have a night of not drinking, I'll go into the office - I work on ideas... and I'll just have so much energy, and I'll be better at it.' Despite still drinking regularly, he added he ditched Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) because he found the meetings 'boring'. 'I've gone through loads of periods of stopping, and I've done periods of AA. I admire AA. It's a strange combination of people telling the most dramatic stories you've ever heard that I find really boring. I'm not even joking.' He recalled one meeting in Chelsea with several famous faces in the room. 'This guy was telling this story - he'd come out of prison and he'd gone to prison because he'd got high and he'd stolen a car and he was chased by a police helicopter then he drove through a police barricade. And I remember just sitting there checking my watch going, 'boring!' 'Imagine someone you know telling you that story? But somehow it's just one dramatic story after another, and it became a bit numb to it.' Despite this, he praised the 'generosity' of long-term sober members who continue to attend meetings seemingly to help others. 'If I'd been sober for 15 years, I wouldn't still be going to AA, and listening to more stories,' he said. 'I think for some of them, they are fairly certain they won't drink again but they do want to help. So it's a very positive place. It just didn't work for me.' Richard, who said he was diagnosed with 'a particularly strong strain of ADHD' aged 42, recently consulted a specialist about why he drinks so much - and was told he inherited the destructive tendency. 'My mum's basically an alcoholic. My granddad died of alcoholism. He went, 'Well that's why, it's just genetics.' 'I said, some people think it's the result of childhood trauma or something you've been running away from or not dealt with. And he was like, 'Nah, it's just genetics. It's a disease.' 'So now I think I can just say to my wife: it's not my fault! It's grandad's fault. It's mum's fault.' He added: 'I drink and I enjoy it and I don't seem to get in trouble so it's fine. It's not so much that I'm worried about being dangerous. I just the calories and the sleep. That bit is annoying.' To slash calories in his drink, he said, he avoids beer and red wine and sticks to vodka - particularly in the form of a martini with a twist. 'When you go to a bar and order vodka and they go, what sort of vodka do you want? I think they all taste the same! It's so irrelevant.' The former Radio 5 Live and Capital FM host lives in north London with his wife Rebecca McFarlane and their two children, Arthur, 13, and Ivy, 11. He admits parenthood didn't quite sober him up the way people might expect. '[Rebecca] had always wanted to be a mum,' he explained. 'So it was a really wonderful thing, but I think she looks back with disappointment at me at that time because I was still going out and not pulling my weight and coming in late. 'I think those first few years, I didn't snap into what you're kind of required to do quickly enough. So there was too much of a burden on her.' He continued: 'I hadn't wanted to be a parent until I met her, and then we fell in love really intensely. And she would talk about kids a lot, and that made me think, oh, right, OK. 'I recently tried to imagine having another baby... I'm so pleased I'm out of that phase. Rebecca did the real work here, but it is definitely harder than people say. 'No one really says how hard it is. They're constantly relying on me to keep them alive. It's like, f***ing hell. When they're young - two, three, four - they're flat out annoying.'
The Herald
8 hours ago
- Automotive
- The Herald
Stellantis expects gradual recovery in second half and more ‘tough decisions'
Stellantis guided on Tuesday for increased net revenues and a low single-digit operating income margin in the second half despite increasing headwinds as the carmaker aims for a gradual recovery after a tough first half. The group also forecast an improved industrial free cash flow performance in the second half compared with the first six months of the year, when it burned cash for €3bn (R62.12bn ) . "Our new leadership team, while realistic about the challenges, will continue making the tough decisions needed to re-establish profitable growth and significantly improved results," said new CEO Antonio Filosa. Stellantis said its forecasts for the second half were based on tariff rules in place as of Tuesday and estimated an overall tariff impact for 2025 of about €1.5bn (R31.07bn ) , including €300m (R6.21bn ) incurred in the first half. For the first half, the maker of Jeep, Fiat and Peugeot cars broadly confirmed preliminary figures it released last week. They include: a 13% drop in net revenues to €74.3bn (R1.54-trillion ); an adjusted operating income margin of 0.7%; and a net loss of €2.3bn (R47.66bn ) .
The Herald
8 hours ago
- The Herald
20 pupils injured in scholar transport crash near West Park Cemetery
'The learners were treated and discharged into the care of their families,' the department said. One pupil from Greenside High remains in hospital and is scheduled to undergo surgery. Most of the pupils had been booked off from school for the rest of the week by doctors, the department added. Psychosocial support has been arranged for the pupils and their families. Education officials visited schools and hospitals on Monday to verify the pupils' conditions and offer support to the families. 'We are grateful there were no fatalities and we extend our gratitude to emergency personnel, school management teams and our officials who responded swiftly,' said education MEC Matome Chiloane. 'We continue to engage relevant authorities to determine the cause of the accident and ensure accountability. We urge scholar transport drivers, whether public or private, to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our learners remains a priority. We wish all learners a speedy recovery.' The cause of the crash is under investigation. TimesLIVE
