Sports
Keeping up with the Macugas, America’s next first family of the Winter Olympics
Forgive Dan and Amy Macuga if they have to consult a spreadsheet to figure out where their children are.
This is one of those things that happens when your three girls are all skiers on the inside track to make the U.S. Olympic team. There’s a boy, too, who also skis competitively and may eventually end up on the U.S. team, but not in 2026.
Ah, but we digress. For the next 16 months or so, the Macuga sisters of Park City, Utah (where else?), are going to be adding their own chapter to the story of standout sports siblings. You’ve heard of the Manning brothers (football) and the Williams sisters (tennis) and the Korda crew (golf and tennis). Alpine skiing had Phil and Steve Mahre way back when.
But here’s what makes the Macugas different: Through the combined forces of having different body types, different interests and probably a healthy dose of the self-preservation instinct that led them to not want to compete against each other, each Macuga pursued a different skiing discipline. The result: When you meet them, there is a bit of a “Sound of Music” vibe to the Macugas, if the Von Trapp family had been filled with skiers rather than singers.
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“I’m Sam, I’m 23, and I like to fly,” says Sam Macuga the ski jumper.
“I’m Lauren, I’m 22, and I like to go fast.” That’s Lauren Macuga, the alpine racer.
“And I’m Alli, and I’m 21, and I like all aspects, so I do moguls.”
Like Lauren, Daniel Macuga, the baby of the family at 19, skis alpine. He doesn’t compete internationally yet, so he’s a bit more manageable. He might even attend a U.S.-based college full-time first. Time, and results, will tell.
Their endeavors all have a bit of overlap. Alpine skiers fly 60 meters in the air over jumps. Mogul skiers go pretty darn fast while they race over massive bumps while incorporating flips and other tricks into their runs. And there may be no scarier starting gate than the one atop ski jumping’s large hill.
Three sisters on one Olympic team would be any parent’s dream. Three sisters in essentially three different sports in one Olympics is a parenting psychologist’s dream, since the girls have basically never competed against one another, except in Mario Kart and card games.
“When we play games together, it’s so competitive,” Lauren Macuga said. “If we were all in the same sport, it would not be possible.”
Lauren Macuga finished fourth in the downhill in Saturday’s World Cup event in Beaver Creek, Colo. (Sean M. Haffey / Getty Images)
It all happened very organically, too. After moving to Park City in 2007, the Macugas signed up their kids for the region’s Get Out and Play winter sports program, a legacy of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City that provides cheap access to winter Olympic sports for children in the region. Each sister liked something else. Their parents did not complain.
“They kind of self-selected,” said Dan Macuga, a marketing executive who has worked with Chevrolet and Usana. “We’ve always told them, ‘As long as you’re having fun, just keep doing what you’re doing.’ It’s not really our decision to make. It’s what makes them happy, and they chose the sport that they wanted to do.”
Logisticswise though, the Macuga family chronicles have long been an exercise in organizational mayhem.
For years, that meant relying on friends and other parents to get some of their kids to the right mountain at the right time. These days, the various U.S. ski teams take care of that part.
The parents just have to try to figure out what continent and country they need to be in to catch up with the children. There’s a Google Sheet filled out months ahead of time with everyone’s schedule.
What’s happening in the coming days?
According to the sheet, on Thursday, Sam is scheduled to be in Engelberg, Switzerland, preparing for qualification the next day. Lauren will be training in St. Moritz, getting ready for Saturday’s Super-G race; Alli is training for the weekend’s moguls competition in Georgia — the country not the state — after traveling from Alpe D’huez in France the day before; father Dan Macuga and Amy are flying to Zurich that afternoon. Daniel, the little brother, is home on duty with the dogs, Yuki, a Siberian husky, and Bowser, a “megamutt,” according to the girls. The four cats kind of take care of themselves.
The spreadsheet is largely for the parents’ use. The children have their own methods.
“My teammates will be like, ‘Oh, where’s your brother? Where are your sisters?’” Alli Macuga said. “I’m like, ‘I don’t know, somewhere across the world? I think they’re in Europe. Maybe like Japan, or like Norway or, I don’t know, Germany.’ It’s always just a guessing game. Or I’ll check Find My Friends (app) and be like, ‘Oh, that’s where they are.’”
“Yeah, Find My Friends is our hero,” Sam Macuga said.
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Alli and Lauren found themselves in the same hotel in Chile this summer for a week of training. That was weird. Basically never happens.
Once they figure out where each other is, sometimes they realize a sister is competing at that very moment. They will tap away on their various gadgets until they find a live stream of the competition somewhere and cheer along from thousands of miles away.
Alli, the mogul specialist, has posted the best results of the family so far, though Lauren showed signs that she might be coming on fast. Racing the famed Birds of Prey track at Beaver Creek in Colorado over the weekend, she finished fourth in the downhill and 12th in Super-G. In the downhill, she missed her first spot on a World Cup podium by 0.18 seconds.
If she keeps that up, she will be following in the footsteps of Alli, who has come a bit out of nowhere the past couple of years to become one of the U.S. team’s rising stars.
Mogul specialist Alli Macuga has been the top performer of the family so far, aiming for a spot on the 2026 Olympic team. (Sarah Stier / Getty Images)
She landed on two podiums last season and finished fifth in the world rankings and has two top-15 finishes to start this World Cup season. There’s not too much mystery surrounding her success. During her early teens, she liked freestyle skiing so much she competed in seven different disciplines, everything from “big air,” which is going off one huge jump and doing some flips and spins, to “big mountain,” which requires flying down a steep descent filled with cliffs and frightening drops.
“I was constantly competing and traveling and not training,” she said.
She decided to choose the two she liked most, which were moguls and big mountain. But at 17, at the junior world championships in big mountain in Switzerland, she crashed on a cliff and fractured her back. That pretty much ended her big mountain career.
Two seasons ago, she was supposed to just have a few starts on the top-tier World Cup circuit and spend the rest of the season competing a level down on the Nor-Am Tour. Then she finished 12th in her first World Cup start. She ended up getting the World Cup Rookie of the Year award and also winning the Nor-Am tour.
She’s pretty sure that not specializing in one discipline too soon and those early years trying out alpine and jumping with her sisters have played a big role in her success.
“They all contributed to each other,” she said.
Lauren Macuga said she got hooked on speed skiing when her coach threw her into a downhill race in Sugarloaf in Maine when she was 16. Nearly all kids start out skiing gates and don’t move into the speed disciplines until they are older.
Lauren had never raced downhill before. She quickly discovered that the race basically happens on ice, rather than snow. She did her first training run fully clothed, wanting some protection in case she fell. She wore pants during the second one.
Her coach told her to aim for finishing within two seconds of the leaders. She finished a little more than a second behind them and got hooked on the adrenaline rush.
The shift to competing in Europe at the highest level has been an education. American mountains, especially in the lower rungs of competition, don’t have the icy steeps of Europe, with jumps over waterfalls and other high-octane challenges. One look at the left-right combination of the “Hot Air” jump in Zauchensee, Austria, last year and she thought it might be the end of her.
“At the start and you’re like, ‘Oh my God, I just want to make it down,’” she said. “I guess the fear factor just kind of turned more into, it was fun.”
A season-best fifth-place finish in Super-G in Kvitfjell, Norway, last season went some distance toward that transformation.
Sam Macuga has further to go to get to that level. The U.S. doesn’t have the history of success in women’s ski jumping that it does in alpine and freestyle. Women didn’t compete in the Olympics until 2014, and funding for an American jumping team can be hard to come by.
But she’s already accumulating points toward a spot on the U.S. team for 2026. Her slight build has always been well-suited to jumping, where being light can help you soar. She’s also got a technical mind and studies electrical engineering at Dartmouth for a quarter each year.
Plus, there is this:
“I like to fly,” she said.
That’s not always the sort of thing a parent likes to hear. And there isn’t much comfort with the other kids, given Alli’s mid-slope flips and Lauren and Daniel tearing down sheets of ice at 80 mph.
Whatever, the Macugas are used to it.
Amy Macuga says she gets nervous for them in the starting gate but not out of fear of an injury.
“They hit the ground pretty hard, and like any parent, you can have that inkling to start running toward them, but you also know that with the team that they’re in good hands,” Dan Macuga said. “You know that people (are) taking good care of them and wouldn’t let them do something that they thought it was gonna hurt them.”
Plus, they have a spreadsheet to manage, which is enough to worry about.
“We used to operate off a whiteboard,” Lauren Macuga said. “We have upgraded.”
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(Top photo of, from left, Alli, Lauren, Amy, Dan and Sam Macuga at the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Gold Medal Gala in New York in October 2023: Michael Loccisano / Getty Images)
Sports
NBA player calls for Hawks to cancel their ‘Magic City’ strip club promotional night out of respect for women
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An NBA player has taken exception to an Atlanta Hawks promotional night, which is a nod to a famed strip club in the city.
The Hawks have “Magic City Night” scheduled for March 16 against the Orlando Magic, but a player for neither team isn’t too fond of paying tribute to a strip club, which has been famed for its late-night stories involving athletes, celebrities and more.
While the Hawks call it an ode to a “cultural institution,” San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet shared his displeasure in a letter posted on Medium.
Luke Kornet of the San Antonio Spurs reaches for the ball during the third quarter against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Feb. 26, 2026 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Ishika Samant/Getty Images)
Kornet, a nine-year veteran and 2024 NBA champion with the Boston Celtics, called for the Hawks’ promotional night to be canceled later this month, saying that it is disrespectful to women to honor the strip club.
“In its press release, the Hawks failed to acknowledge that this place is, as the business itself boasts, “Atlanta’s premier strip club.” Given this fact, I would like to respectfully ask that the Atlanta Hawks cancel this promotional night with Magic City,” Kornet wrote in his post.
“The NBA should desire to protect and esteem women, many of whom work diligently every day to make this the best basketball league in the world. We should promote an atmosphere that is protective and respectful of the daughters, wives, sisters, mothers, and partners that we know and love.”
The Hawks boasted about the theme night in its press release, including a live performance by famous Atlanta rapper T.I., a co-branded, limited-edition hoodie and even the establishment’s “World Famous” lemon-pepper chicken wings in the arena.
A general view of signage with the State Farm Arena logo on Nov. 14, 2025, outside State Farm Arena, in Atlanta, GA. (Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire)
“This collaboration and theme night is very meaningful to me after all the work that we did to put together ’Magic City: An American Fantasy’,” said Hawks principal owner, filmmaker and actor, Jami Gertz, said in a press release. “The iconic Atlanta institution has made such an incredible impact on our city and its unique culture.”
Kornet wrote that allowing the night to continue “without protest would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community, “specifically in being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society.”
Kornet wrote that “others throughout the league” were surprised by the Hawks’ decision to have this promotional night.
“We desire to provide an environment where fans of all ages can safely come and enjoy the game of basketball and where we can celebrate the history and culture of communities in good conscience. The celebration of a strip club is not conduct aligned with that vision,” he wrote.
Luke Kornet of the San Antonio Spurs defends against the Charlotte Hornets during their game at Spectrum Center on Jan. 31, 2026 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
The Hawks have seen good reception for the promotional night, as Tick Pick reported a get-in price was initially $10 for the game and has since skyrocketed to $94.
Kornet is in his first season with the Spurs, his sixth NBA team, where he has played mainly in a bench role. He averages 7.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game across 50 contests.
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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — How do you improve on the perfect ending?
Clayton Kershaw stood in the desert heat Monday, wearing a far darker shade of blue than the Dodgers do. He does not need a medal, or a chance to fail. His election to the Hall of Fame will be a formality.
In his farewell year, the Dodgers won the World Series, becoming baseball’s first back-to-back champions in 25 years. He secured a critical out. He bathed in adoration at the championship rally, and he told the fans he would be one of them this year.
“I’m going to watch,” he hollered that day, “just like all of you.”
Four months later, he was back in uniform.
He wore a dark blue jersey with red-and-white piping. As Team USA ran through its first World Baseball Classic workout, Kershaw participated in pitchers’ fielding practice and shagged fly balls during batting practice. He could have been home with his five kids, and instead he was rushing off the mound to take a throw at first base.
That November night in Toronto, as it turned out, was not the last time we would see him in uniform.
“Feels good,” he said Monday. “I wouldn’t put on a uniform for anything else. This is a special thing.”
He put the World Baseball Classic into red, white and blue perspective.
“It’s a bucket list thing for me,” he said.
He is either self-deprecating or painfully honest about his capabilities right now, or perhaps a little of both.
The last World Baseball Classic came down to Shohei Ohtani pitching to Mike Trout. This one could come down to Kershaw pitching to Ohtani.
“I think, for our country’s sake, it’s probably better if I don’t,” Kershaw said.
Former Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw fields a ground ball during a workout at Papago Park Sports Complex on Monday.
(Chris Coduto / Getty Images)
Never say never. Team USA planned to run a tremendous rotation of Tarik Skubal, Paul Skenes, Joe Ryan and Logan Webb, but now Skubal says he will pitch just once in the tournament. Skenes says he’ll pitch twice. Ryan says he won’t pitch in the first round, at least.
Kershaw might be needed beyond the role he was promised: save the team from using the current major league pitchers in blowouts or extra innings.
In 11 career at-bats against Kershaw, Ohtani has no hits. Kershaw won’t duck the assignment if gets it, but he considers it so unlikely he is happy to share his game plan publicly.
“It’s throw it, pitch away, play away, hope he flies out to left,” Kershaw said. “Don’t throw it in his barrel.
“I can’t imagine, if it comes down to USA versus Japan, with the arms that we have, that I’ll be needed. But I’ll be ready.”
Kershaw’s average fastball velocity dropped to 89 mph last season, but he led the majors in winning percentage. He could eat innings for some team — maybe even the Dodgers, with Blake Snell and Gavin Stone all but certain to be unavailable on opening day.
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw, right, celebrates with teammates after the Dodgers defeated the Toronto Blue Jays for the 2025 World Series title.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
But, even with his success last year and even with the joy of wearing a uniform once again, he insists he isn’t interested in pitching beyond the WBC.
“I don’t want to,” he said. “You can’t end it better than I did last year. I had a great time last year. It was an absolute blast and honor to be on that team. I think that was the perfect way to end it. Honestly, I don’t know if I would have enough in the tank to pitch for a full season again. I’m really at peace with that decision.
“This is kind of a weird one-off thing, but you can’t really turn down this opportunity. It wasn’t easy to get ready for this, with no motivation for a season, but I actually am in a pretty good spot with my arm. I’ll be fine. If they need me, I’ll be ready.”
Kershaw said he has kept in touch with his old Dodgers teammates, with some connecting on video calls from the weight room or clubhouse at Camelback Ranch. He arrived in the Phoenix area two days before the workout, but he skipped a trip to Camelback Ranch.
“I’ve thought about it,” he said. “I miss the guys. I think it’s probably just better, at least for this first year, for me mentally to just stay away, just for spring training.”
Kershaw said he would be at Dodger Stadium for the championship ring ceremony March 27.
He is content with what he calls “Dad life.” He and his wife, Ellen, just welcomed their fifth child, and Dad life includes lots of shuttles to baseball and basketball practice.
“I run an Uber service,” Kershaw said.
This wouldn’t be a Dodgers story these days without some reference to the team’s big spending so, for what it’s worth, Kershaw spent some time Tuesday chatting with Skubal, who will be the grand prize on the free-agent market next winter, or whenever the likely lockout might end.
That’s a rational explanation, Kershaw says, for Skubal pitching just once in the WBC.
“Everybody knows the situation he is in, contract-wise,” Kershaw said. “Any innings we can get out of him is a huge bonus to this team. He’s great. Super competitive. We’re honored to have him.”
Should we assume Skubal will be pitching for the Dodgers next season? Kershaw laughed.
“No comment,” he said, then walked away to get ready for the first game of his post-retirement life.
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Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley sounded off on the frenzied reactions to the U.S. men’s hockey team getting invited to the White House by President Donald Trump.
Trump talked to the Olympic gold medal-winning team immediately after they defeated Canada in overtime last weekend. He said they would be invited to his State of the Union address and added that he needed to invite the women’s team as well or he would be “impeached.”
Charles Barkley sits courtside against the Minnesota Timberwolves during an NBA Cup game at Mortgage Matchup Center on Nov. 21, 2025. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
Trump critics took the joke as a shot at the women’s team, which sparked questions from NHL and Professional Women’s Hockey League reporters as the players returned to their respective club teams.
“I’m proud of the United States men. I’m proud of the United States women. You should have invited both of them to the White House, but it shouldn’t have been disrespect, misogyny,” Barkley said on the “Steam Room” podcast. “Like, yo, man, why do y’all have to mess everything up? Everything isn’t Democrat, Republican, conservative, liberal. That’s why we got this divided, screwed up country. Stop it man. Because, you know, the public, they’re idiots. They’re fools. They can’t think for themselves. I know y’all say stuff to trigger them. Y’all say stuff and y’all know they’re going to be fools.”
Barkley lamented that the average person would get riled up over the supposed controversy.
The U.S. team poses for a group photo after defeating Canada in the men’s ice hockey gold medal game at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Milan, Italy, on Feb. 22, 2026. (Luca Bruno/AP Photo)
“We don’t have to fall for stupidity. But we do – that’s my point. These people out here are stupid. They need something to trigger them. Just because they want us to be stupid. We don’t have to be stupid. He should have invited both teams to the White House. Simple as that. Guys who didn’t want to go shouldn’t have to explain why they didn’t go.”
The former Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets and Phoenix Suns star made clear he would go to the White House regardless of whether Trump was in office.
“I’ve said this before, I’m not a Trump guy. But if I got invited to the White House, I would go. I’m not a Trump guy – I want to make that clear. But I respect the office,” Barkley said. “He’s the president of the United States. But if guys don’t want to go, I understand that too. It doesn’t have to be a talking point. It doesn’t have to be un-American.
Megan Keller (5) celebrates with a flag alongside Cayla Barnes (3) of Team United States after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime during the women’s gold medal match against Canada on Day 13 of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milan Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 19, 2026. (Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
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“I just wish y’all would stop falling for the stupidity.”
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