Kentucky
Starting 5: Olympic champions highlight Kentucky’s 2024 Hall class, Jay Bilas to lecture
Kentucky’s 2024 Hall of Fame inductees include Olympic and NCAA champions.
Jasmine Camacho-Quinn (2016-2018 track and field), John Cropp (administrator/coach), Henrik Larsen (2018 rifle), Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (2018 track and field), Jodie Meeks (2007-2009 men’s basketball) and Corey Peters (2006-2009 football) recently were chosen.
The new Wildcats Hall of Famers will be inducted during Hall of Fame Weekend on Sept. 20-21.
Camacho-Quinn is the first athlete in Puerto Rico history to win two Olympic medals. She won gold in the 100-meter hurdles at the Tokyo Olympics and bronze at the Paris Olympics. At UK, she was a two-time NCAA champion in the 100 hurdles and was part of the 2017 4×100 relay team that finished first at the national meet. She holds the program record in the 100 hurdles.
Cropp worked in multiple roles in UK athletics during his 22-year tenure. One of his most prominent accomplishments was being a founding administrator for the Kentucky softball program in 1997. After he retired, the softball stadium was named after him in 2013.
Larsen won a gold medal in the smallbore competition at the 2022 ISSF World Championships. In one year with the Wildcats, he won the 2018 NCAA air rifle individual national championship and set program records in smallbore, air rifle and aggregate. He was named the 2018 NCAA Shooter of the Year and NCAA Freshman of the Year.
McLaughlin-Levrone is a four-time Olympic gold medalist and holds the 400 hurdles world record. In one year at Kentucky, she was an NCAA champion in the 400 hurdles and broke the collegiate record (52.75 seconds). She was an SEC champion in the indoor 400 and outdoor 400 hurdles and 4×400 relay.
Meeks played on seven teams in 10 seasons in the NBA. He holds Kentucky’s single-season record for 3-pointers made (117) and has the second-most points scored in a season (854).
Peters played 13 years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals and Jacksonville Jaguars. In his senior year at Kentucky, he recorded 56 tackles, including 12 for loss, and four sacks. He earned All-SEC first-team honors and was named UK’s Outstanding Defensive Player.
Louisville women’s golf head coach Whitney Young will be inducted into the Class of 2024 Kentucky Golf Hall of Fame.
Young competed for Glasgow High School in the 1994 Kentucky State Championships as a fourth grader. At 13 years old, she became the youngest winner of the Kentucky Amateur in 1998. She also won the 1999 and 2000 titles.
She was a four-time AJGA Polo Golf All-American and represented the United States in the 2002 PING Junior Solheim Cup.
Young was a three-time National Golf Coaches Association All-American at Georgia and a four-time first-team All-SEC honoree.
Young started as an assistant coach with the Cardinals, but she has been the head coach for the last five years. Young has led the Cardinals to two regionals. In 2021, they hosted the regional for the first time in program history.
More information on the ceremony will be released later.
More: Louisville’s Valhalla Golf Club to host Solheim Cup. What to know about LPGA Tour event
ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas will give a lecture Sept. 6 at Bellarmine’s Frazier Hall.
Bilas plans to discuss name, image and likeness activities in Division I sports, the transfer portal and the evolving landscape of college sports.
The lecture is scheduled to start at 4 p.m., and admission is free. Those who plan to attend are asked to register by Sept. 2 at the Wyatt Lecture registration site.
Louisville basketball mailbag: Which players stood out in Pat Kelsey’s unofficial debut?
Trinity High School senior pitcher Colton Cravens recently announced his commitment to Northwestern.
As a junior, Cravens struck out 26 batters and recorded four wins with a 2.30 ERA in 24 ⅓ innings.
Kentucky high school football preview: What to know about Louisville-area teams, players
- Racing Louisville FC will host Chicago Red Stars at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
- Louisville City FC will visit Hartford Athletic at 7 p.m. Saturday.
- The Louisville Bats will host the Gwinnett Stripers in a six-game series. Games begin at 6:35 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and at 7:15 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The last game of the series is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. Aug. 25.
- Louisville men’s soccer will host Jacksonville at 5 p.m. Thursday.
- Louisville women’s soccer will host New Hampshire at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Then, the Cardinals will visit Northern Kentucky at 5 p.m. Aug. 25.
- Bellarmine men’s soccer will host Evansville at 7 p.m. Thursday. Then, the Knights will visit Northern Kentucky at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 25.
- Bellarmine women’s soccer will host Asbury at 3 p.m. Aug. 25.
Know of a story you think should be included in our weekly Starting 5 notebook? Send your idea to sports reporter Prince James Story at pstory@gannett.com for consideration. You can follow him on X at @PrinceJStory.
Kentucky
Kentucky lawmakers hold town hall on AI data centers in Louisville
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – Kentucky state lawmakers held a town hall Wednesday night at the South Central Regional Library in south Louisville to hear directly from residents about concerns over hyperscale AI data centers — one of several public meetings on the issue in recent months, but the first organized by legislators themselves.
State senators and representatives convened the meeting on their own time, during the legislative off-season, ahead of January’s session.
“This is a time to bring people together, allow community to have their voice heard, and us take that information back so when it does come time for January, we have the right information in order to create policy that is going to be good for our constituents,” said Sen. Keturah Herron.
Residents, advocates, and organizers packed the library to raise concerns about energy demand, water use, noise, transparency, and whether costs would be passed to everyday utility customers.
Rep. Lisa Wellner cautioned that the legislative fight ahead would be difficult.
“The utilities lobby is very, very powerful in Frankfort…These are going to be the same powerful moneyed forces we’re going to be up against with these hyperscale data centers,” Wellner said.
Sen. Gary Clemons, a 30-year chemical industry veteran, drew a comparison between the potential impact of AI data centers and the effects of factories already bordering some Louisville neighborhoods.
“I negotiate with multi-million, billion dollar companies every day. I’m ready to go toe-to-toe with them now, if we’re ready to do it,” Clemons said.
U.S. Rep. Morgan McGarvey also attended the meeting.
“I am sick and tired and done with out-of-state corporations coming into our state, our home, our community — and using our resources, wasting and exploiting our people for their gain,” McGarvey said.
Attendee Virginia Bush, who came with a list of concerns about the city’s draft regulations, said halting data centers entirely was not realistic but that inaction was not an option.
“We know it’s not realistic to stop all of them, because people use the data in their everyday life…but they need to be regulated so that these things aren’t causing damage to the communities and to the environment,” Bush said.
Copyright 2026 WAVE. All rights reserved.
Kentucky
Cyclospora parasite cases in Kentucky, health officials warn
LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) – Health officials are warning residents about a rise in Cyclospora cases, a parasite that causes an intestinal illness known as cyclosporiasis and can leave people sick for weeks.
The Kentucky Department for Public Health reported 67 cases between June 14 and July 2 — nearly double the approximately 35 cases the state typically sees in an entire year. While cases normally rise in the spring and summer months, Kentucky is among several states seeing a larger-than-typical increase.
Cases likely undercounted, health official says
Cassie Prather of the Woodford County Health Department said the reported numbers are likely an undercount.
“At this point, we have an underreported number of cases because a lot of people will deal with this and their immune system can kick it in a few days,” Prather said. “For those with a suppressed immune system it can lead to quick dehydration or even a hospital visits if they’re dealing with symptoms that don’t go away for 3-5 days.”
How the parasite spreads
People can become infected after eating or drinking contaminated food or water. Fresh produce has been linked to outbreaks in the United States, but the CDC says it is still working to pinpoint the cause of the current increase.
Symptoms and timeline
Symptoms often begin about a week after exposure but can appear as soon as two days or more than two weeks later. The most common symptom is watery diarrhea. People may also experience stomach cramps, nausea, fatigue, bloating, and weight loss. Symptoms can last weeks and sometimes return after improving.
“You’re going to endure stomach cramps, nausea, sometimes you can have a low-grade fever with that,” Prather said.
Prevention guidance
Public health experts urge people to follow food-safety guidelines to reduce the risk of cyclosporiasis and other intestinal illnesses. That includes washing hands with soap and water before and after handling raw fruits and vegetables, and refrigerating cut, peeled, or cooked fruits and vegetables within two hours.
Health officials say people whose symptoms last more than a few days, keep returning, or cause signs of dehydration should contact a healthcare provider for evaluation and possible testing.
Copyright 2026 WKYT. All rights reserved.
Kentucky
Kentuckians deserve honesty about McConnell’s health | Letters
What is going on with Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell’s health?
The 84-year-old senator is still hospitalized after nearly three weeks, according to staff. Staff members still have not said why he was admitted.
Like many Kentuckians, I have been following the recent questions surrounding Senator Mitch McConnell’s health and ability to carry out the responsibilities of his office. Every elected official deserves privacy regarding personal medical matters. But when legitimate questions arise about an officeholder’s ability to serve, the public deserves transparency.
Unlike the presidency, the Constitution provides no mechanism for addressing the incapacity of a sitting member of Congress. That makes accountability even more important. At a time when every vote and committee decision can have significant consequences, Kentucky cannot afford uncertainty about whether one of its two senators is fully able to represent the Commonwealth.
Governor Beshear, Senator Rand Paul and Kentucky’s six members of the U.S. House should insist on transparency on behalf of their constituents. Kentuckians deserve an honest assessment of whether Senator McConnell is able to fulfill the duties of the office to which he was elected.
If he is well enough to continue serving, that should be communicated clearly. Weeks of unanswered questions are not fair to Senator McConnell, nor are they fair to the people he was elected to serve. I hope my fellow Kentuckians will join me in urging our elected officials to be transparent and put the interests of Kentucky first.
— Kate Caverno, 40245
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