How many feet are in 500 miles? Nobody knows, at least Nate Bargatze doesn't at the Daytona 500

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Nate Bargatze considered squeezinga big, dumb jokeinto his command for drivers to start their engines at theDaytona 500.

Associated Press

"At first, I thought about doing like, how many feet are in 500 miles," Bargatze said. "Nobody knows."

Bargatzelaughed when he said the proposed joke, which is a riff on his popular "Washington's Dream" sketches on "Saturday Night Live," fell flat when he tested it Saturday night during a gig in Indianapolis.

"I was going to do another one withJimmie Johnsonbeing older to let the younger drivers know that his left blinker will be on the whole race," Bargatze said. "Then when I got here and talked about it, it's like, I think you just need to do, normal? You have all these hopes and dreams to do something funny."

Bargatze kept it straight in his role as grand marshal for Sunday'sDaytona 500.

"It's going to be insanity," Bargatze said. "It's been a dream to be asked to do this."

Bargatze's day at Daytona — where he mingled with drivers such as Denny Hamlin — is just the latest dream job for one of the most popular stand-ups currently working. He hosted theEmmy Awards, released threeNetflixspecials and just won a Best Comedy Album Grammy Award for "Your Friend, Nate Bargatze."

His "Big Dumb Eyes World Tour" set a record for biggest one-year gross by a comedy performer in history and has set more than 40 arena attendance records.

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They served as warm-up acts for his first starring role in a movie, "The Breadwinner." Bargatze co-wrote the script for the film he said was influenced by his stand-up and old-school funny, family movies such as "Mr. Mom" and "Home Alone."

"You want it to be broad, the whole family can come," Bargatze said. "It's like what I do with stand-up, you kind of just want everybody to come."

Mandy Moore plays Bargatze's wife in the comedy, which also includes Colin Jost and Will Forte and opens May 29.

"Obviously overwhelming," Bargatze said. "I don't know how to act. Learning that on the fly was a good time."

The 46-year-old Bargatze resumes his stand-up tour this week in Rockford, Illinois, and he's set to host the ABC game show, "The Greatest Average American."

The title seemed fitting when Bargatze was gifted one of only 500 specialty Daytona 500 hats. The hat was numbered 302. Average.

"It's not bragging," Bargatze said. "I'm right in the middle. That's where the average American would be. It's humility. It's how you go."

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How many feet are in 500 miles? Nobody knows, at least Nate Bargatze doesn't at the Daytona 500

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Nate Bargatze considered squeezinga big, dumb jokeinto his command for drivers to start their...
Bart Simpson, Nancy Cartwright Alamy; Rodin Eckenroth/Getty

Alamy; Rodin Eckenroth/Getty

NEED TO KNOW

  • Nancy Cartwright, the voiceover actress who plays Bart on The Simpsons, shared her thoughts on AI potentially taking over the role when she ultimately retires

  • Cartwright, 68, has been voicing Bart for over 35 years

  • She recently caught up with PEOPLE exclusively at the show's 800th episode party in Hollywood, Calif.

Nancy Cartwright, the woman who has voicedBart Simpsonfor over 35 years, shared her candid thoughts on how she feels about AI potentially taking over her role some day.

Cartwright, 68, recently spoke to PEOPLE exclusively atThe Simpsons'800th episode party in Hollywood, Calif. During the conversation, she shared that she does not want AI to be used to recreate her voice when she ultimately retires.

"I think I would choose a successor[instead of AI], and I'll tell you why — because AI has no heart and I think that's a missing ingredient," she explained.

Nancy Cartwright at 'The Simpsons' 800 episode party in L.A. on feb. 6, 2026 Alberto E. Rodriguez/Variety via Getty

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Variety via Getty

"[AI] might sound pretty close to Nancy Cartwright, but I got passion," she added. "We're spiritual beings, we can emote passion and uplift people and stuff. And I don't know that a computer can do something like that."

Cartwright also revealed that she initially was supposed to audition for the voice of Lisa when she first tried out for the series in 1987 (at the time it was just intended to run as a weekly short on theTracey Ullman Show), but decided to try out for Bart at the last minute.

"I go in and for the voice of Lisa Simpson, who's the middle child, and I saw it there, and then I saw the picture of Bart — 10-year-old school-hating underachiever and proud of it. And I'm like, 'Wait a minute, that's more interesting.' … So I auditioned and I got it," she recalled.

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"He [series creator Matt Groening] hired me on the spot, but I drove away going, 'It's not even a show. I was degrading it. I was thinking, 'What is this anyway?' And it started airing onThe Tracey Ullman Show.And again, it was just this little hiccup, but that little hiccup started to grow," she continued.

Members of 'The Simpsons' crew: Hank Azaria, Matt Groening, Nancy Cartwright and Dan Castellaneta in 1992 Vinnie Zuffante/Getty

Vinnie Zuffante/Getty

"And we would go in every week to do these records and they were fun and they were funny … Now, I don't think anybody really knew what was going on. We were just making up rules and I'm glad I kept my big fat mouth shut because I feel like I could have told them how to do it, but this wasn't my job. It wasn't my place to do that. And I'm glad I shut up and I kept my job," she said.

Cartwright saidthatSimpsonsfansall over the world know her voice, revealing that she once got recognized while on a train in South America.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

"I'm not kidding. It's like we were on safari and it got recognized by this kid, a 12-year-old kid or something. Oh, I can't get away from it," she said.

Read the original article onPeople

Nancy Cartwright, the Voice of Bart Simpson, Shares Her Candid Thoughts on Being Replaced by AI When She Retires (Exclusive)

Alamy; Rodin Eckenroth/Getty NEED TO KNOW Nancy Cartwright, the voiceover actress who plays Bart on The Simpsons , shared her thoughts o...
JT Toppin puts on low-post masterclass in No. 16 Texas Tech's OT win over No. 1 Arizona

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Texas Tech's JT Toppin had already scored three baskets in overtime so the next time he got the ball, Arizona's defense collapsed, trying to make anyone besides thepreseason All-America selectionbeat them.

Associated Press Texas Tech forward JT Toppin drives past Arizona center Motiejus Krivas (13) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, in Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri) Texas Tech forward JT Toppin drives past Arizona forward Ivan Kharchenkov (8) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, in Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri) Texas Tech forward JT Toppin drives between Arizona center Motiejus Krivas, left, and forward Ivan Kharchenkov (8) during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026, in Tucson, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

Texas Tech Arizona Basketball

Toppin obliged.

The 6-foot-9 forward whipped the ball back out to the perimeter where Donovan Atwell was waiting. The guard made a 3-pointer that was crucial toNo. 16 Texas Tech finishing a 78-75 road victory over No. 1 Arizonaon Saturday.

"I knew he was going to be over there," Toppin said. "We work on that every day."

The pass to Atwell capped a sensational day for Toppin, who had arguably his best all-around performance of the season with 31 points on 13 of 22 shooting, 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. While the Red Raiders (19-6, 9-3 Big 12) have been slightly inconsistent this season, Toppin has been unshakable, scoring at least 10 points in 21 straight games.

Texas Tech beat the No. 1 team for just the third time in school history. The last time was a 65-62 win over Baylor on Jan. 11, 2022.

Red Raiders coach Grant McCasland said Toppin's pass was indicative of the team's dedication as they navigate a difficult conference schedule. Texas Tech has won three straight.

"We're not guessing — this isn't luck," McCasland said. "These dudes practice hard and put themselves in position every day. There's no shortcuts to this. It's a grind and you've got to love it. These dudes love it."

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Toppin finished with his 16th double-double of the season and 47th of his career and is now averaging 21.9 points and 11 rebounds per game. He played all but 41 seconds in Saturday's win, showing incredible stamina in a rugged game between two of the most physical teams in the country.

He was at his best during the opening minutes of overtime, scoring on an array of tip-ins and low-post moves that Arizona couldn't defend.

The Wildcats had nothing but good things to say about him postgame.

"He has a really quick second jump," Arizona forward Tobe Awaka said, who had 16 points and 12 rebounds. "He has great body placement, in terms of the ball and tracking it down. He seems to always be in the right place at the right time. Just kudos to him and the type of player he is."

Texas Tech wasn't a one-man show Saturday. Christian Anderson scored 19 points after making six 3-pointers. Atwell finished with 11, including the clutch 3 in overtime and another from behind the arc with 25 seconds left in regulation that capped a 9-0 Red Raiders run and helped push the game to overtime.

Still, Toppin is the team's All-America selection for a reason. He lived up to the billing on a huge stage in a raucous road environment.

"JT Toppin was not going to be denied at the end of this game," McCasland said.

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign uphereandhere(AP News mobile app). AP college basketball:https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-pollandhttps://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

JT Toppin puts on low-post masterclass in No. 16 Texas Tech's OT win over No. 1 Arizona

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Texas Tech's JT Toppin had already scored three baskets in overtime so the next time he got the...
No matter the stage, Anthony Kim's first win in 16 years is a comeback story we can all get behind

Put aside, just for a moment, the LIV Golf-PGA Tour's subtext of perpetual scuffling. Try not to think about the posturing and skepticism that accompanies virtually every LIV story. Focus, just for a second, on the simple facts:

Yahoo Sports 4Aces GC player Anthony Kim from the US celebrates after he won the LIV Golf Adelaide tournament at The Grange Golf Club in Adelaide on February 15, 2026. (Photo by Brenton Edwards / AFP via Getty Images) / -- IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE --

Anthony Kim won a golf tournament. Against Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau. In 2026.

Kim, one of sports' true prodigal sons, claimed LIV's Adelaide event in Australia on Sunday, riding a final-round, nine-birdie 63, turning a five-shot deficit into a three-shot victory. If nothing else — if Kim's story goes no further than this right here — it's a pretty incredible comeback for a guy who briefly ruled the golf world, then literally disappeared for more than a decade.

Every so often, golf produces one of these back-to-the-mountaintop stories, when a name from the past has a late-career week of their lives. Think Jack Nicklaus at the Masters in 1986, Tom Watson (almost) at the Open Championship in 2009, Tiger Woods at the Masters in 2019, Phil Mickelson at the PGA Championship in 2021. Everything comes together for one weekend, past meeting present, and it's remarkable to see.

Obviously, Kim's victory doesn't have anywhere near that historical resonance; about the only thing Adelaide and Augusta National have in common is a starting letter. But Kim's first professional win in nearly 16 years is an impressive story of facing down the demons of addiction and injury.

It's tough to remember now, but for a brief moment, Kim's popularity in golf was second only to Woods — and Woods' personal scandals erupted right as Kim was playing his best golf. Before Scottie Scheffler, before Brooks Koepka, before Jordan Spieth, before Rahm and DeChambeau, before Rory McIlroy had won a single tournament, there was Kim. He went toe-to-toe with Tiger, he hung with Michael Jordan, he was a SportsCenter darling back when SportsCenter was, well, the center of the sports universe.

Scanning leaderboards from Kim's prime 2009-10 era feels like looking at faded family pictures in a scrapbook. There's only one player from Kim's most recent win, the 2010 Shell Houston Open, still in the top 20: ageless wonder Justin Rose. The tee sheet at Kim's most recent Masters, 2011, included Ernie Els, Mark O'Meara, Craig Stadler and Watson.

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But after suffering an Achilles injury in 2012, Kim stepped away from the game. And not in the "showing-up-on-NBA-sidelines-and-ESPN-red-carpets" kind of way. No, he flat-outvanishedfor more than a decade. Rumors of Kim surfaced here and there — he was playing golf with buddies in Oklahoma, he was keeping in shape in California, he hadn't touched a club in five years — but no one managed to get even a picture of Kim, much less his story.

"I was around some bad people," Kim said in 2024. "People that took advantage of me. Scam artists. When you're 24, 25, even 30 years old, you don't realize the snakes that are living under your roof."

That's why Greg Norman'sdramatic 2024 reveal of Kimas a new LIV addition caused such a ripple in certain segments of golf fandom. Kim was once the coolest dude possible, the heir to Woods, the herald of a new era of golf. What would he have left after so many years away from the game?

Not much, to start. He failed to earn even a single point in his first two seasons on the tour, and was relegated. That could have been the end of his story, but he managed to place third in LIV's Promotions Event, posted a T22 in the first tournament of the season … and now this. A win is a win, especially when two of the world's best are in your final grouping.

It'll be interesting to see how the golf establishment views this victory. LIV players, as expected, haveralliedaroundKim. European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald was one of the first non-LIV players to praise Kim's achievement, unsurprising given that it occurred in the middle of the night for America:

For LIV, this is undoubtedly the most significant victory in the tour's history. This story will break wide in a way that, say, Rippers GC's latest team victory at Adelaide won't. The presence of Rahm and DeChambeau legitimizes the win, and LIV's challenge now is transforming this burst of fans' attention into longer-term connections.

For Kim, the takeaway is much more simple. Yes, he'll rise up to around 200th in the world rankings, but that's not the real story here. Kim picked himself up from life's floor, got his life back together, and returned to the top of the leaderboard. Right now, that's more than enough.

No matter the stage, Anthony Kim's first win in 16 years is a comeback story we can all get behind

Put aside, just for a moment, the LIV Golf-PGA Tour's subtext of perpetual scuffling. Try not to think about the pos...
See the Olympic medal count for the 2026 Winter Games

The United States is fielding itsbiggestWinter Olympics team ever for the2026 Games, with 232athletesgoing for the gold. The wins started early asBreezy Johnsonclaimed America's first gold medal of the Games in women's downhill andU.S. figure skaters won goldin the team competition. SpeedskaterJordan Stolzhas won two gold medals so far.

As the days go on, athletes in other sports have added a growing number of medals to the mix.

Team USA brought home themost medalsof any country at the 2024 Summer Olympics, but Norway came out on top in the medal count at the last Winter Games and also holds the all-time record for winter medals.

Here is a look at where the medal count stands as the competition heats up in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, thetwo host citiesfor the 2026 Winter Olympics in northern Italy.

Overall medal count for the 2026 Winter Olympics

One week into the Games, Norway and Italy topped the overall medal count, with Norway winning the most gold so far.

The chart below is updated hourly with the latest medal count of the 2026 Games. (There are87 teamstaking part in the Winter Olympics; only teams that have won medals are listed.)

Table showing the number of medals won by each country or delegation in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

Spotlight on Team USA's medal count for the 2026 Olympics

In the first two days after theopening ceremony, Team USA scooped up two medals, both of them gold.

Breezy Johnson won gold in the women's downhill, and American figure skaters won gold in the team event, helped by a dominant performance from Ilia Malinin, who isknown as the "Quad God"for executing the most difficult jumps.

Team USA poses with their gold medals after the figure skating team event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 8, 2026. / Credit: Ashley Landis / AP

On Tuesday, Ben Ogden became the first American man to win an Olympic medal in cross-country skiing since 1976,earning a silverin the sprint. Alex Hall took silver in the freestyle ski, while Jackie Wiles and Paula Moltzan won bronze in the team downhill event. Team USA had a shot at gold in mixed doubles curling, but fell short against Sweden and will go home with silver.

On Wednesday, skierElizabeth Lemleytook gold in moguls and speedskating starJordan Stolzwon gold in the 1,000 meters, setting an Olympic record in the process. Ice dancing duoMadison Chock and Evan Bateswon silver after being barely edged out of the top spot.

Thursday brought a silver forsnowboarder Chloe Kimin the halfpipe and a bronze for cross-countryskier Jessie Diggins.

On Saturday, Jalein Kauf and Elizabeth Lemley added to Team USA's tally with silver and bronze, respectively, in women's dual moguls. In speedskating, Stolz won hissecond gold medal and set his second Olympic record of these Gameswhen he won at the 500 meters. He's the first American since 1980 to win multiple speedskating gold medals.

Historic medal for South America

Brazilian ski racer Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, with a powerful final run in the Olympic giant slalom,won gold and earned South America's first-ever medal at a Winter Games.

Pinheiro Braathen, who comes from a family where his mother is Brazilian and his father is Norwegian, represented Norway until 2023 when he abruptly retired. He returned to the sport in 2024, representing Brazil and since then has accomplished plenty of "firsts" with his new country: first Brazilian Alpine racer to finish on a World Cup podium last year and first-ever World Cup win for the country this season.

Winter Olympics gold medal record set

Norway's Johannes Hoesflot Klaebowon a ninth gold medalin cross-country skiing on Feb. 15, setting a Winter Games record.

The 29‑year‑old came into the games with five gold medals and has since added four more to his count: Men's 10km Interval, Men's 4 x 7.5km Relay, Men's 10km + 10km Skiathlon and Men's 4 x 7.5-kilometer relay.

Fellow Norwegians, Marit Bjoergen and Bjorn Daehlie in cross-country skiing and Ole Einar Bjoerndalen in the biathlon, held the previous record with eight Winter Olympics gold medals. They have all retired.

What was the medal count for the 2022 Winter Olympics?

At the2022 Winter Games, Norway took home themost medals, winning 37 in all, including 16 gold.

Next came the ROC, the Russian Olympic Committee team, with a total of 32, followed by Germany with 27 and Canada with 26.

Team USA ranked fifth with 25 medals — nine gold, nine silver and seven bronze.

Who has the most Olympic medals of all time?

While the International Olympic Committee does not compile rankings, the Olympic Foundation for Culture and Heritage does keep a medal tally. It counts one medal for placing first, second or third in an event regardless of how many athletes were on a team.

In theoverall medal countfrom all previous Summer and Winter Games, the U.S. comes out on top with 3,103 medals.

The U.S. is followed in the medal count by the former Soviet Union, which earned 1,204 medals before its breakup in 1991. Germany comes third with 1,091 medals.

The U.S. has also won the most gold medals, with 1,220, according to the Olympic Foundation.

But when it comes to the history of the Winter Olympics alone, the U.S. dips to second place in the medal count behind Norway, a perennial winter sports powerhouse.

Athletes from Norway have taken home a total of 404 medals from past Winter Games. The U.S. has previously won 330, while Germany places third with 286.

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See the Olympic medal count for the 2026 Winter Games

The United States is fielding itsbiggestWinter Olympics team ever for the2026 Games, with 232athletesgoing for the gold....

 

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