Reuters Sports News Summary

Following is a summary of current sports news briefs. NFL notebook: Multiple contenders lose players for season

Week 14 proved to be a particularly painful one in the NFL, as numerous players went down with season-ending injuries. And contenders weren't immune from the damage -- particularly in the NFC West. San Francisco starting center Weston Richburg will miss the rest of the season after sustaining a torn right patellar tendon in his team's 48-46 road win over the New Orleans Saints, coach Kyle Shanahan announced Monday afternoon. Demand for Tokyo 2020 tickets unprecedented, says IPC chief

There have been more than three million requests for Tokyo 2020 Paralympics tickets via the first lottery phase, three times the demand seen a year out from the London 2012 event which went on to post record sales, Paralympics chief Andrew Parsons has said. London is seen as the benchmark for the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) in terms of interest in the Games with a record total of 2.7 million tickets sold. Russia banned from next Olympics and World Cup soccer

Russia was banned from the world's top sporting events for four years on Monday, including the next summer and winter Olympics and the 2022 soccer World Cup, for tampering with doping tests. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) executive committee acted after concluding that Moscow had planted fake evidence and deleted files linked to positive doping tests in laboratory data that could have helped identify drug cheats. Sanctions have emboldened Russia, says Tygart

Travis Tygart, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency chief, says Russia has only been emboldened by previous sanctions for its doping violations and the four-year ban imposed on Monday will do nothing to change its behavior. Russia was banned from the world's top sporting events for four years on Monday, including the next Summer and Winter Olympics and the 2022 soccer World Cup, for tampering with doping test data. I did not cheat, says Reed, as Presidents Cup gets personal

American golfer Patrick Reed has denied cheating in a tournament last week and hit out at International team players for saying he had, as a little edge entered proceedings on Tuesday ahead of the Presidents Cup. Reed received a two-stroke penalty for improving his lie when he moved sand with his practice swing on Friday at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas. The incident has dominated the run up to the biennial contest, which begins on Thursday. Els crunches the numbers in search of Presidents Cup edge

Captain Ernie Els hopes that crunching the numbers will help give his International team the edge over the United States at the Presidents Cup this week as they look to halt the Americans' dominance in the biennial event. The South African, who was part of the International team's only victory in the 25-year history of the tournament in 1998, said the data had thrown up some surprises. NBA roundup: AD drops 50, Lakers beat Wolves

Anthony Davis scored a season-high 50 points, sparking the Los Angeles Lakers to a 142-125 victory over the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night. Davis connected on 20 of 29 shots from the floor and converted all 10 of his free throws in 39 minutes. It was his fourth career 50-plus scoring game. Davis also had seven rebounds, six assists and four steals. Russia banned from Olympics but door open to Tokyo Games

Russia may be banned from the next two Olympics but the door is open for Russian participation at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games if athletes can meet the rigid criteria laid out by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The road to the Olympics may not be as straightforward after Russia was on Monday banned by WADA for four years from the world's top sporting events for tampering with doping tests. Rapinoe wins Sports Illustrated's top prize to cap stellar year

Megan Rapinoe collected another accolade in a stellar year by claiming Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year honor on Monday for her performance on the U.S. women's World Cup-winning soccer team and for her campaigning off the field. Rapinoe rocketed to household fame this year, taking home the Golden Boot and Golden Ball from the World Cup as top scorer and best player, as the U.S. retained the trophy and on the way became advocates for gender pay equity in sport. Rapinoe adds a goal for 2020: helping Democrats win White House

From award shows to magazine covers, it can often feel as though Megan Rapinoe is everywhere - and soon, that might include rallies for Democratic presidential candidates. The U.S. women's national soccer team's fiery co-captain is not running for office. But after helping the Americans clinch a second consecutive World Cup title, the 34-year-old winger is setting her sights on helping the 2020 presidential field.