Sports
Pro basketball player running youth camps after returning to Israel: ‘A way to brighten their day'
The last time Fox News Digital spoke with Jared Armstrong, a Jewish American playing professional basketball in Israel, the Philadelphia-born Armstrong wasn’t sure of his next steps following the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks.
Following the attacks, Armstrong left the city where he lives, about 20 minutes from Gaza, to stay with a friend north of Tel Aviv as the conflict escalated.
Jared Armstrong plays basketball in Israel. (Jared Armstrong )
Armstrong returned to the United States not long after the start of the conflict, but he has since returned to Israel to continue playing basketball and to help Israeli youth as the war rages.
JAB Camp, a nonprofit Armstrong started in 2023 in Philadelphia, is being run in Israel as Armstrong attempts to give kids a respite from the conflict through basketball.
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“Before the attacks, I planned on doing it down the road,” Armstrong told Fox News Digital about launching the JAB Camp in Israel. “It wasn’t to be doing this at such an early time. But, since the war, I felt it was a great way to shed light, it was a great way to inspire kids. Kids’ families, not only them, have been impacted. Kids from ages five all the way to 15, 16.
“Some kids have dads that are in the reserves, have family members that are in the reserves or are fighting in Gaza. So, I wanted to use sports as a perfect way to be transformative, not only with learning but also in spirit. A lot of kids’ spirits may be down, and I feel that this could be a way to brighten their day. They can look forward to going to JAB Camp every week for eight or nine weeks in a row.”
Armstrong’s nonprofit was created to “bring together Black and Jewish youth through the game of basketball” and to “speak out against anti-Black racism and antisemitism.”
“My goal with JAB Camp is to really shed light on a dark time. I want to use basketball as a mechanism to bring kids together — whether they’re from the south of Israel, from the north of Israel — and give them an outlet to forget for an hour or two hours about what’s happening in the world,” Armstrong said.
Jared Armstrong runs JAB Camp. (Jared Armstrong)
“Use this time as a sanctuary. Use this time as your temple of peace to be able to work together, build community, have fun, enjoy [and] learn. And, at the same token, be able to be better. My biggest goal is to give an outlet for kids. I know the light will be shown at the end of the tunnel if they continue to come.”
In early January, Armstrong visited two communities in southern Israel that were decimated by the Hamas attacks, saying it was “emotionally tough” to see what occurred.
“I visited kibbutz Kfar Aza, and I visited Nir Oz. We were one of the first groups to visit Nir Oz. They weren’t allowing people in there. And the amount of burnt houses that we saw when we walked through was just really petrifying. Every house has its own story of how they tried to escape or how they came in there and they killed someone,” Armstrong said of his visit to the communities near the Gaza border.
“No human deserves that,” Armstrong added. “So, it was a very emotional day. For me, it made me want to do more advocacy and diplomacy while I’m here. Speak out about what’s going on. I know I’m one of the only athletes speaking out about it, and I just feel it’s much needed.
“My biggest speech is peace. It has nothing to do with if you agree with the state of Israel or not. It’s right or wrong. No kid deserves to be killed. No baby deserves to be butchered. No woman deserves to be raped. If you stand with that, then I don’t have an answer for you.”
Jared Armstrong recently opened the camp. (Jared Armstrong)
With the conflict in its third month, anti-Israel protests continue across the world. Over the weekend, protesters and rioters gathered outside the White House, with some demonstrators damaging security fencing and hurling objects at police.
“They’re all trying to understand why,” Armstrong told Fox News Digital when asked how Israelis react to seeing protests.
“They don’t really understand how many people can — I don’t want to use the word ‘side’ — but not have empathy for what happened. A lot of people don’t have that simple empathy about what happened on Oct. 7. Forget politics. Forget anything else. It’s just about humanity. And a lot of people don’t understand that. So, they’re really saddened by it.”
Armstrong plays for Elizur Ashkelon in Ashkelon, Israel.
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An internet rumor swirled last week that a longtime NFL reporter had died at the age of 40.
News of Jane Slater’s supposed death on social media, but she was quick to shut it down.
An X user posted a screenshot of a post on Facebook that showed Slater in black and white with the graphic “1980-2025” saying she had died at 40. Slater, 45, was born in 1980, but the years written in the post would mean she died at either age 44 or 45.
NFL Network sideline reporter Jane Slater stands on the sidelines prior to an NFL football game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Chicago Bears, at Soldier Field on Dec. 26, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)
“A veteran reporter who covered the Dallas Cowboys—having followed the team for over a decade—has passed away at the age of 40 after a tragic domestic violence incident, leaving behind a 5-year-old child. Her years of dedicated work, along with the heartbreaking circumstances surrounding her death, have left loyal fans stunned, devastated, and praying for her and her family,” the post read.
The user asked Slater, “did you pass away??”
Jane Slater speaks with T.Y. Hilton of the Dallas Cowboys after the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at AT&T Stadium on Dec. 24, 2022 in Arlington, Texas. (Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
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“I don’t think so? But does this mean there is (a) glitch in the matrix? I’m gonna wrap myself in bubble wrap until NYE,” Slater joked.
If there is one thing the Facebook post got correct, it’s that Slater does mainly cover the Cowboys for the NFL Network.
NFL Network reporter Jane Slater on the sideline prior to an NFC Wild Card Playoff game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Dallas Cowboys at Raymond James Stadium on Jan. 16, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. (Perry Knotts/Getty Images)
Prior to joining in 2016, Slater worked for ESPN and the Longhorn Network, having attended the University of Texas. She also hosted a radio show in Dallas.
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Tennis legend Venus Williams wed Danish model and actor Andrea Preti over the weekend in Florida, the new bride announced in a shared post.
An Instagram post from Vogue Magazine’s Weddings section announced the nuptials, with the message garnering more than 30,000 likes as of Tuesday afternoon.
“We all love each other so much,” Williams, 45, said in the Vogue post. “It was just the happiest, most beautiful, sweetest day.”
The post was scant on details other than the event took place over five days in and around the couple’s home in Palm Beach Gardens.
An email for comment to representatives for Williams and Preti, 37, was not immediately returned.
The couple met at 2024 Milan Fashion Week and began texting shortly after, according to Vogue.
The couple eventually became engaged on Jan. 31 in Tuscany, according to Vogue. That detail was confirmed in July during what was a historic month for Williams.
The Compton native defeated 23-year-old Peyton Sterns 6-3, 6-4 in the first round action of the D.C. Open after a 16-month hiatus from singles matches.
In victory, Williams became the second-oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match, trailing only fellow legend Martina Navratilova, who was 47 when she won in 2004.
“Yes, my fiance is here, and he really encouraged me to keep playing,” Williams told the Tennis Channel’s Rennae Stubbs in a post-match interview. “There were so many times where I just wanted to coast and kind of chill. … He encouraged me to get through this, and it’s wonderful [for him] to be here. He’s never seen me play.”
Preti has written, acted and directed in a handful of films, primarily in Italy.
The wedding was the second for the couple, who also held a ceremony in Italy in September.
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As Philip Rivers has shown he could still tear up the NFL at age 44, American Olympic legend Lindsey Vonn has also proven that age is just a number.
Vonn, 41, qualified for the 2026 Milan Cortina Games, Team USA announced on Tuesday. It will be the fifth Winter Olympics that she competes in.
United States’ Lindsey Vonn reacts at the finish area of an alpine ski, women’s World Cup downhill, in Val D’Isere, France, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Pier Marco Tacca)
Vonn had an impressive run at the World Cup in France over the weekend. She was third in super-G, hitting a high speed of 71 mph. It was her second consecutive podium finish after she was third in downhill. It was the 142nd podium finish in her World Cup career.
“I am honored to be able to represent my country one more time, in my 5th and final Olympics!” she wrote in a post on Instagram. “When I made the decision to return to ski racing, I always had one eye on Cortina because it’s a place that is very, very special to me. Although I can’t guarantee any outcomes, I can guarantee that I will give my absolute best every time l kick out of the starting gate. No matter how these games end up, I feel like I’ve already won.
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United States’ Lindsey Vonn celebrates on the podium after taking third place in an alpine ski, women’s World Cup downhill, in Val D’Isere, France, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Pier Marco Tacca)
“I am grateful for how the season has gone so far, but I am just getting started. See you in Cortina!”
Vonn has already put together an enviable career in skiing.
She won a gold medal in the 2010 Vancouver Games and two bronze medals in Pyeongchang in 2018. She’s also taken home two gold, three silver and two bronze medals in the World Championships.
The Minnesota native also has 83 World Cup wins and several International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) Crystal Globes.
Notably, she’s back competing for gold after being away from the sport for five years.
Austria’s Cornelia Huetter, left, winner of an alpine ski, women’s World Cup downhill, celebrates on the podium with second-placed Germany’s Kira Weidle Winkelmann, left, and third-placed United States’ Lindsey Vonn, in Val D’Isere, France, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Pier Marco Tacca)
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The Winter Olympics will begin on Feb. 6 and run through Feb. 22.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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