Newsmakers
Died Former Pittsburgh Steelers great Jack Butler, who helped revolutionize the way cornerbacks played in the NFL during his Hall of Fame career, died Saturday. He was 85 and had spent the last several months in the hospital dealing with a staph infection that plagued him since his career ended in 1959. The Pittsburgh native became one of the NFL’s top defensive backs, a 6-foot-1, 200-pound wrecking ball known for his physical play and uncanny knack for getting to the ball.
Resigned Longtime Oakland Raiders chief executive officer Amy Trask resigned her position, ending the tenure of one of the highest-ranking women in American professional sports. Trask spent 25 seasons with the Raiders starting during their time in Los Angeles and continuing after the move to Oakland. She became CEO in 1997 and was one of late owner Al Davis’ most trusted advisers before his death in October 2011.
• Texas Tech women’s basketball coach Kristy Curry left to take over at Alabama. Curry guided the Raiders to a 21-11 mark this past season which ended in a first-round loss to South Florida in the NCAA tournament. She was 130-98 in her seven years at Texas Tech.
Announced Mylute will run in next weekend’s Preakness Stakes, giving Rosie Napravnik a chance to become the first female jockey to win the middle jewel of the Triple Crown. Trainer Tom Amoss says he talked with Mylute’s owners, and they decided to take on Kentucky Derby winner Orb next Saturday at Pimlico. Mylute finished fifth in the Derby, giving Napravnik the highest finish by a woman rider in that race.
• The head of the America’s Cup planning effort said he expects sailing’s most prestigious event to go forward after the death of a sailor on a training run in the San Francisco Bay. Stephen Barclay said he would await the results of an internal examination of Thursday’s accident before making the formal decision public. Barclay also said a decision on whether to make safety changes to the boats or the course will be made after the final results are released.