AP photographers always capture the most important moments at the world's biggest sporting events, but they also have an eye for the drama of the smaller moments that might go unnoticed amid the noise.
Last week was a packed week of events, including the men's and women's soccer finals, a Formula One race in Monaco, the climax of the Giro d'Italia cycling race in Rome, the Ice Hockey World Championships in Prague, basketball finals, baseball and volleyball.
Thibaut Camus captured the entire scene of Slovakian tennis player Rebecca Slamkova's match against Amanda Anisimova of the United States in their first-round match at the French Open on Sunday. The shadows of the spectators create a beautiful half-vignette balanced on the right side with the beautiful white lines of the court.
Brady Tkachuk of the United States was not thrilled to be punched in the face by Michal Kempny of the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals of the World Ice Hockey Championships, a blow captured by Associated Press photographer Petr David Josek.
Jose Breton photographed Barcelona midfielder Ingrid Sylsstad Engen celebrating as the team beat Lyon in the Women's Champions League final in Bilbao.
Steven Sene captured this amazing shot of Boston Celtics forward O'shae Brissett celebrating after dunking against the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals.
Also last week, AP photographers captured Manchester United defying the odds to beat rival Manchester City in the FA Cup final in London; Atalanta winning the Europa League to end Bayer Leverkusen's record 51-game unbeaten streak; Josef Newgarden winning the Indianapolis 500 car race; Iran playing India in the Asian Women's Volleyball Challenge Cup in Manila, Philippines; and Paris Saint-Germain players bidding a warm farewell to Kylian Mbappe after winning the French Cup final.
The gallery was curated by Milan-based Associated Press photographer Luca Bruno.
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
