As a huge computer outage on Friday impacted airports, hospitals and banks worldwide, the effects have begun to spill over into sports.
With a busy weekend ahead, some athletes in the WNBA, NHL, NASCAR and more are having to miss events on Friday due to delayed and canceled flights.
On Friday morning, Indiana Fever guard Erica Wheeler found herself stranded ahead of WNBA All-Star Weekend, saying in a since-deleted post on X that her flight was canceled and that she would not be able to make it to Phoenix.
Wheeler was supposed to participate in the All-Star Skills Challenge on Friday; as a result of her absence, the WNBA announced Friday evening that All-Star Kelsey Mitchell, Wheeler’s Fever teammate will replace her in the challenge.
In a video posted by the WNBA, Wheeler said that she was “hurt” that she would have to miss the event. “I really wanted to be there, I felt like it was going to be a great experience,” Wheeler said, before announcing that the “backup plan” was for Mitchell to replace her.
“Kelsey, go crazy,” Wheeler said to encourage her teammate. In the same video, Mitchell promised to try to “hold it down” on Wheeler’s behalf.
In another post on X, Wheeler wrote that she had tried to fly on Delta, which was one of multiple airlines that was affected by the outage. While stranded in Atlanta, Wheeler said, Indiana Fever and Pacers CEO Mel Raines attempted to get Wheeler a charter flight but could not find one that was available.
I am soooo hurt! But I do want to THANK @Delta employees Geraldine Bird and Pamela Palmer at ATL ✈️ for helping me thru out the whole day! Also Indiana Fever/Pacer CEO Mel Raines for calling all around the world to get me a charter flight but nothing was available! 💔
— Erica Wheeler (@EWeezy_For3eezy) July 19, 2024
Florida Panthers winger Kyle Okposo also found his plans disrupted by travel issues. The Saint Paul-born hockey player and recent NHL Champion was set to have his day with the Stanley Cup on Friday, with an event outside of Minneapolis. The Cup, after starting out in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, has traveled around the country for different Panthers to celebrate in their hometowns.
Unfortunately, ahead of Okposo’s event, the Cup is stuck in St. Louis because of the outage, causing the event to be canceled. Okposo told The Athletic’s Michael Russo that he was “crushed” to have to call off the event. Per Russo, the Panthers are still trying to get the Cup to Minnesota somehow in order to give Okposo at least some of his time with the trophy.
MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT especially if you’re driving from a long distance for Kyle Okposo’s public Stanley Cup appearance today at Pagel Arena.
It has to be CANCELLED due to the Stanley Cup being stuck in St. Louis because of the global IT outage affecting airlines.
“I’m crushed,”…
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) July 19, 2024
As the outage has dragged throughout most of Friday without a clear end in sight, it’s possible the issues will continue to affect travel — and, as a result, the sports world as well.
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