ATHLETICS

On July 28, the 2022 Commonwealth Games officially opened in Birmingham, United Kingdom. It is the 22nd edition of the competition. This is the third time that England has hosted the Commonwealth Games after London in 1930 and Manchester in 2002, and the seventh edition to take place in the UK.

Joey Chestnut turned in a dominant, if personally unimpressive performance at the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest Monday. While on crutches in 81-degree weather, Chestnut netted his 15th championship and seventh in a row by eating 63 hot dogs in 10 minutes, about 15 ahead of second-place finisher Geoffrey Esper.

Just six days short of his 50th birthday, surfing legend Kelly Slater has won the Billabong Pro Pipeline in Oahu, Hawaii. Slater defeated 24-year-old Seth Moniz in the final on Saturday at a location where he has won eight Championship Tour events, with his first coming back in 1992.

At least five competitors at this weekend’s U.S. Figure Skating Championships have tested positive for COVID-19. Alysa Liu is the biggest name so far to test positive. The 16-year-old star dropped out of the competition Friday.

Concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic — along with a wave of shutdowns across the league — has forced the NHL to prohibit its players from leaving for the 2022 Winter Olympics.