Reuters Sports News Summary

Ross, who was part of the U.S. squad which won 4x400m relay gold at last year's Tokyo Olympics, will be suspended until 2025, meaning he will not be eligible for participation at the 2024 Games in Paris. Soccer-France into final with 2-0 win as Morocco go down fighting France set up a heavyweight World Cup final against Argentina after an early goal by Theo Hernandez and a late one from Randal Kolo Muani ended battling Morocco’s dream run via an action-packed 2-0 semi-final victory on Wednesday.

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs.

Ukraine's Zelenskiy opposes idea of Russian athletes at Olympics under neutral banner

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday opposed the idea of Russian athletes taking part under any kind of neutral banner at the 2024 Summer Olympics, saying "all their flags are stained in blood." Zelenskiy made his remarks after talking to International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, who last week said the participation of Russian and Belarusian sportsmen and women at the 2024 Paris games was still unclear.

U.S. soccer writer died of aneurysm at World Cup, his widow says

An aortic aneurysm caused the death of Grant Wahl, an American sportswriter who collapsed and died last week while covering a World Cup match in Qatar, his widow said on Wednesday. "Grant died from the rupture of a slowly growing, undetected ascending aortic aneurysm with hemopericardium," his widow, physician Celine Gounder, wrote in a statement.

Analysis-Soccer-Tactical masterplan, and grit, take France into World Cup final

Mike Tyson claimed that everybody has a plan, until they get punched in the face, which is precisely what happened to Morocco when they were bounced out of the World Cup in a 2-0 defeat by heavyweights France in their semi-final clash on Wednesday. Morocco, the first African side to reach the last four of the World Cup, had built their success on brilliant defending and fast counter attacks, but they got a taste of their own medicine when France abandoned possession early on and struck after five minutes.

Soccer-Paris celebrates win after high-stakes World Cup clash with Morocco

Supporters poured into Paris's freezing Champs-Elysees boulevard on Wednesday after a World Cup semi-final between France and Morocco which for millions tugged at the heartstrings, as "Les Bleus" won 2-0 to reach the final for a second time in a row. "We just want to celebrate our win and we can really feel it will get crazy," said student Kerene Massuka who came with a friend.

NBA roundup: Celtics edge Lakers in OT thriller

Jayson Tatum scored 44 points and Jaylen Brown added 25 points and 15 rebounds as the visiting Boston Celtics ended a rare losing skid with a 122-118 overtime victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. Marcus Smart scored 18 points and Derrick White had 10 as the Celtics rebounded after losing their previous two games. Boston was upended by the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers, while losing consecutive games for just the second time this season.

Soccer-FIFA to re-think 2026 format as they face spoiling winning recipe

Having just delivered the most exciting group stage ever seen at a World Cup, with a tried and tested format that keeps hundreds of millions of fans enthralled, FIFA now faces the prospect of ripping it all up. Instead, they risk a turgid fortnight of drab games and dead rubbers, plus the possibility of unwanted controversy, as they try to accommodate 48 teams at the 2026 edition in North America.

Soccer-Proud Moroccans hail World Cup team but rue defeat felt in Africa and Arab world

Moroccans slumped with disappointment on Wednesday after their team's semi-final defeat to France, but were still pumped with pride for a World Cup run that spurred tears of joy across Africa and the Arab world. As France's second goal went in, the deafening noise of Morocco's overwhelming support inside Qatar's Al-Bayt Stadium went suddenly quiet - a silence echoed not only in Rabat and Casablanca, but in Beirut, Cairo and Dakar.

Motor racing-After drivers, F1 team bosses get on the merry-go-round

Renault-owned Alpine had a cheeky response when four of their Formula One rivals replaced bosses in a managerial merry-go-round this week. Alpine posted a picture on Instagram of principal Otmar Szafnauer, appointed on Feb. 17, holding a mobile and looking quizzical.

Athletics-American Ross gets three-year ban over whereabouts violation

American 400 metres runner Randolph Ross has been handed a three-year suspension for violating whereabouts rules and falsifying an email sent to anti-doping authorities, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said. Ross, who was part of the U.S. squad which won 4x400m relay gold at last year's Tokyo Olympics, will be suspended until 2025, meaning he will not be eligible for participation at the 2024 Games in Paris.

Soccer-France into final with 2-0 win as Morocco go down fighting

France set up a heavyweight World Cup final against Argentina after an early goal by Theo Hernandez and a late one from Randal Kolo Muani ended battling Morocco’s dream run via an action-packed 2-0 semi-final victory on Wednesday. Full back Hernandez stretched high after five minutes to hook in the first goal Morocco have conceded to an opposition player in the tournament after a scramble in the box, but the holders offered only occasional glimpses of their class.