Reuters Sports News Summary

Los Angeles Angels head trainer Mike Frostad said Wednesday that the 10-time All-Star has been diagnosed with a costovertebral dysfunction at his T5 vertebrae. Report: NBA will not have vaccination mandate in 2022-23 After some high-profile vaccine-related absences from games last season, the NBA will not have a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for players in 2022-23, Yahoo Sports reported Tuesday, citing a memo from the league office it had obtained.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Soccer-Popp double sends Germany into Euro final

Prolific striker Alexandra Popp scored twice as Germany beat France 2-1 in their Euro 2022 semi-final on Wednesday to set up a clash with hosts England in Sunday's final at Wembley. The Germans, eight times European champions, will take on an England team on a high after their 4-0 thrashing of Sweden in Tuesday's other semi.

Motor racing-Mercedes have many more upgrades in the pipeline

Mercedes have many more upgrades to come as they seek to close in on Formula One leaders Red Bull and Ferrari, strategy boss James Vowles said on Wednesday. The defending world champions brought new parts to last weekend's French Grand Prix and Vowles said they were 'incremental'.

U.S. says 'substantial offer' on the table for Russia to release detainees Griner, Whelan

The United States has made "a substantial offer" to Russia to release U.S. citizens detained there, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday, adding he would press his Russian counterpart to respond in a conversation planned for the coming days. Washington offered Moscow a deal to bring home WNBA star Brittney Griner and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan weeks ago, Blinken told reporters, and hoped to advance the process when he speaks to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Cycling-Jubilant Danes celebrate Tour-winner Vingegaard in Copenhagen

Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard was clearly moved as he was celebrated by thousands of jubilant Danes on Wednesday in Copenhagen where the world's biggest cycling race kicked off nearly a month ago. "It's fantastic. I'm almost completely speechless. I don't know what to say," Vingegaard said, before stepping onto a balcony where he was greeted by a throng of flag-waving Danes on Copenhagen town hall square.

Golf-Trump to play LIV Golf pro-am with Johnson and DeChambeau

Former U.S. President Donald Trump and son Eric will play a LIV Golf pro-am event with major championship winners Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau at his Bedminster, New Jersey, course on Thursday, a source with the Saudi Arabia-funded series said. The pro-am at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster will be held the day before the third event of the LIV Golf Invitational Series -- which is already disrupting the dynamics of men's professional golf -- takes place on the same course.

Golf-LIV plan for 2023 includes 14-event league schedule and relegation

LIV Golf announced plans on Wednesday for a 14-event league schedule in 2023 while also introducing promotion and relegation through its International Series along with an end-of-season qualifying tournament. The full LIV Golf League schedule was not announced but the Saudi Arabia-funded breakaway circuit said events will be played across North and Latin Americas, Asia, Australia, the Middle East and Europe.

'No one explained any of it' - Griner relives her arrest in Russian trial

U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner told a Russian court on Wednesday she was not read her rights when detained at a Moscow airport in February, as she stands trial for drug charges that could see her face up to 10 years in prison. The 31-year-old, a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) star who has played in Russia during the league's offseason, was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on Feb. 17 with vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage.

Mike Trout suffers from rare back condition

Three-time Most Valuable Player Mike Trout has been diagnosed with a rare back condition that will likely affect him for the rest of his playing career. Los Angeles Angels head trainer Mike Frostad said Wednesday that the 10-time All-Star has been diagnosed with a costovertebral dysfunction at his T5 vertebrae.

Report: NBA will not have vaccination mandate in 2022-23

After some high-profile vaccine-related absences from games last season, the NBA will not have a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for players in 2022-23, Yahoo Sports reported Tuesday, citing a memo from the league office it had obtained. The league will "strongly suggest" team personnel stay up-to-date with vaccinations, per the report. Discussions between the league and the NBA Players Association remain ongoing about whether unvaccinated players will be subject to periodic COVID-19 testing during the upcoming season. Last season, the NBA did not require that all players be vaccinated against COVID-19, but unvaccinated players or players who did not receive a booster dose were subject to certain protocols, such as game-day testing. Players were also held accountable for mandates from states with their own vaccination requirements. While the NBA said 95 percent of its players were vaccinated heading into last season, one of the players who was not made frequent news. The Brooklyn Nets' Kyrie Irving refused to be vaccinated and missed the first three months of the season. Even when Irving did return on Jan. 5, he could only play in road games because of local mandates in New York. He finally played his first home game on March 27, but the Nets were eventually bounced from the first-round of the playoffs by a Boston Celtics sweep. Another player who was not vaccinated was the Philadelphia 76ers' Matisse Thybulle, who had to miss three games of his team's first-round playoff series against the Toronto Raptors. While a majority of the most stringent COVID-19 rules and mandates have been lifted throughout the United States, Canada still requires all persons entering the country to have been vaccinated against COVID-19. --Field Level Media

Soccer-Proud Popp leads Germany to Euros final

Alexandra Popp missed the last two women's European Championships through injuries but the German skipper has more than made up for it with six goals in this edition following a double in Wednesday's semi-final win over France. Eight-time champions Germany beat France 2-1 with Popp scoring the opener in the first half and the winner in the second to book a spot in Sunday's final at Wembley against hosts England.