Sports News Roundup: Tennis-Gauff keen to end claycourt trophy drought ahead of French Open; MLB roundup: Amed Rosario rallies Rays over Angels in 13 and more

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Olympics-France projected to nearly triple its gold medal haul at Paris 2024

Host nation France is projected to almost triple its gold medal total at the Paris 2024 Olympics from the 10 won at the Tokyo 2020 Games while also significantly increasing its overall medal haul, according to data company Nielsen Gracenote.

France is predicted to win 28 gold medals, 19 silver and eight bronze.

Hall of Fame skipper Whitey Herzog dies at 92

Whitey Herzog, the Hall of Fame manager of the 1982 World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, died Tuesday at the age of 92. "On behalf of the entire St. Louis Cardinals organization, I would like to offer our condolences to the family and many friends of Whitey Herzog," team chairman and chief executive officer Bill DeWitt Jr. said in a news release. "Whitey and his teams played a big part in changing the direction of the Cardinals franchise in the early 1980s with an exciting style of play that would become known as 'Whitey Ball' throughout baseball. Whitey loved the Cardinals, their fans, and St. Louis. He will be sorely missed."

Olympics-Team Canada goes for cool factor in Paris Games kit

Team Canada unveiled the kit athletes will wear at this year's Paris Olympics on Tuesday, a high-tech design focusing on thermal comfort while paying homage to the country's indigenous heritage. In designing their first Summer Games collection, Lululemon said it leaned heavily on product testing and feedback from 19 Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes across 14 different sports, including gold medal hopes such as tennis player Leylah Fernandez, decathlete Damian Warner and swimmer Summer McIntosh.

Olympics-World champion swimmers duel in 400 freestyle in Australia

The last three men's 400 metres freestyle world champions will battle for the Australian Open Championships title on the Gold Coast later on Wednesday as Kim Woo-min, Elijah Winnington and Sam Short look to make a statement ahead of the Paris Olympics. South Korean Kim, who edged 2022 world champion Winnington for the global title at Doha in February, led qualifying for the final with a time of three minutes, 44.75 seconds in the morning heats, pipping the home swimmer by 0.02 seconds.

NHL roundup: Capitals clip Flyers to land playoff berth

T.J. Oshie scored the winning goal into an empty net with three minutes remaining as the visiting Washington Capitals clinched a playoff spot with a 2-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday. Trailing the Capitals by two points, the Flyers needed to win in regulation to keep their playoff chances alive, so Philadelphia coach John Tortorella pulled goalie Samuel Ersson with 3:10 remaining in a 1-1 game. Seconds later, Oshie skated in along the right boards and shot into the empty net.

MLB roundup: Amed Rosario rallies Rays over Angels in 13

Amed Rosario's two-out infield single scored Richie Palacios from third base in the bottom of the 13th inning Tuesday, lifting the Tampa Bay Rays to a 7-6 victory over the Los Angeles Angels in St. Petersburg, Fla. An RBI single by Zach Neto in the top of the 13th gave the Angels a 6-5 lead, but the Rays scored twice in the bottom of the inning with two-out hits to earn the win.

Tennis-Gauff keen to end claycourt trophy drought ahead of French Open

World number three Coco Gauff is full of optimism heading into the claycourt season as she targets a first French Open crown but the American said her immediate focus was on ending her trophy drought on the surface over the coming weeks. Gauff last won a title on clay at the Emilia-Romagna Open in 2021, a year before losing in the Roland Garros final to Iga Swiatek.

Tennis-Nadal stays in control to make winning return in Barcelona

Rafa Nadal said it was a challenge to hold himself back on his return to the ATP Tour after three months on the sidelines but the fiercely-competitive Spaniard expects to continue with the controlled approach in Barcelona. Nadal had made a comeback to the tour in January at Brisbane after almost a year out with a hip injury that needed surgery but a muscle tear forced him to skip the Australian Open as well as tournaments in Doha, Indian Wells and Monte Carlo.

Olympics-US forecast to top medals table for fourth straight Games

The United States will top the medals table for the fourth straight Summer Games in Paris, while France will get a major host-nation bump from eighth to third, according to a forecast 100 days out from the opening ceremony. The Gracenote virtual medals table, which is compiled using results data from key global and continental competitions since the Tokyo Olympics, has the U.S. on top both on gold medal count (39) and total medal count (123).

Olympics-Australia have trust in France over Paris Games security

Australia's Chef de Mission Anna Meares said on Wednesday that while security was the first subject athletes raised with her about the Olympics, she had full confidence that Paris would put on a safe Games in 100 day's time. France raised its security alert to its highest level last month and President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that alternatives to holding the July 26 opening ceremony on the river Seine had been prepared in case they were needed.

(With inputs from agencies.)