VANCOUVER (Reuters) – The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) said on Friday it will back a possible Toronto bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics ahead of a potential Quebec City bid for the 2022 Winter Games.

“There is no doubt, no doubt that what the country needs most is a Summer Olympic Games,” COC chief Marcel Aubut told Reuters ahead of the organisation’s Sochi media summit this weekend.

VANCOUVER, May 10 (Reuters) – The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) said on Friday it will back a possible Toronto bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics ahead of a potential Quebec City bid for the 2022 Winter Games.

“There is no doubt, no doubt that what the country needs most is a Summer Olympic Games,” COC chief Marcel Aubut told Reuters ahead of the organisation’s Sochi media summit this weekend.

TORONTO (Reuters) – David scored in overtime to complete a hat trick that gave the Boston Bruins a 4-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday and a commanding lead in their playoff series.

the Maple Leafs, back in the postseason for the first time in nine years, are now staring at an early playoff exit as they trail the best-of-seven first-round series 3-1 with Game Five set for Boston on Friday.

TORONTO (Reuters) – A massive billboard with the smiling face of Toronto Maple Leafs sniper Phil Kessel looks down on all those who enter the Air Canada Centre.

But the reclusive winger had little reason to smile on Monday as his team’s first home playoff game in nine years ended in a 5-2 loss to the Boston Bruins, leaving Toronto trailing the best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarter-final 2-1.

TORONTO (Reuters) – The National Hockey League (NHL) has been preparing for years for the first gay player to come out in public and that groundwork may be about to pay off after the NBA’s Jason Collins opened the door to a new era.

Collins, a veteran basketball player, stepped into the national spotlight on Monday when became the first male athlete in a major U.S. professional league to publicly reveal he is gay. That is expected to be the first of many similar announcements in the coming months in major sports leagues.

TORONTO (Reuters) – The playoffs for a National Hockey League (NHL) season that nearly never was open on Tuesday with memories of a bitter labor dispute all but forgotten in favor of an intriguing race for the Stanley Cup.

A compacted 48-game schedule that began in January with NHL players and owners apologizing to disgruntled fans and promising a season packed with unpredictable results delivered in spades, setting the stage for an equally fascinating playoffs.

TORONTO (Reuters) – Toronto fans filled the Air Canada Centre ready to celebrate their team clinching an NHL playoff spot for the first time in nearly a decade on Thursday but the Maple Leafs’ 5-3 loss to the visiting Islanders left many poised to push the panic button.

The Leafs are clinging to fifth place in the Eastern Conference on 53 points but their grip on a playoff spot is starting to slip.

AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) – Australia and New Zealand may be mortal sporting enemies but the two countries shared an historic Masters victory on Sunday with caddie Steve Williams showing Adam Scott the way.

“I’m a proud Australian and I hope this sits really well back at home, even in New Zealand,” Scott told reporters with a laugh. “We had the kind of trans-Tasman combo out there with Steve on the bag.

AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) – It is a place where dreams come true for both golfers and fans alike the place where Australian prayers were answered on Sunday.

It is, as the old-timers say, where the four-day Masters tournament really begins in Sunday’s final round, the place where green jackets are won and lost.

AUGUSTA, Georgia, April 14 (Reuters) – It is a place where dreams come true for both golfers and fans alike the place where Australian prayers were answered on Sunday.

It is, as the old-timers say, where the four-day Masters tournament really begins in Sunday’s final round, the place where green jackets are won and lost.