SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — The United States Hockey League on Saturday named Ethan Wyttenbach of the Sioux Falls Stampede the inaugural winner of the Gaudreau Award in honor of the late Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau.
The league established the award to pay tribute to the brothers who died last summer when they were struck by a car while riding their bicycles in their home state of New Jersey. Parents Guy and Jane Gaudreau surprised Wyttenbach in the locker room to deliver the news.
"This award was created to honor their legacy and to serve as a shining example of excellence, character, and heart both on and off the ice," said USHL President and Commissioner Glenn Hefferan, who is also a New Jersey native. “Johnny and Matthew left an immeasurable impact on the communities where they lived and played. They were not only exceptional players and teammates but, most importantly, extraordinary people. Their love for the game was only surpassed by their love for their families.”
Wyttenbach was Sioux Falls' top scorer this season despite missing time with an injury. Before getting hurt, he also led the team in community service hours. The league said he spent time filling food bags at Feeding South Dakota, served dinners at the St. Francis House and rung bells for The Salvation Army, along with school visits and youth hockey practices.
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FILE - Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau's family watches a #13 banner being raised during a ceremony before the start of an NHL hockey game between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Florida Panthers. Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete, File)
LONDON (AP) — Five years after COVID-19 triggered national lockdowns, economic uncertainty and killed millions, the World Health Organization’s member countries agreed on a draft “pandemic treaty” that sets guidelines for how the international community might confront the next global health crisis.
After the world’s largely disastrous response to the coronavirus, countries tasked the WHO with overseeing a pandemic treaty in 2021; negotiations concluded early Wednesday on an agreement expected to be adopted next month at the U.N. health agency's annual meeting in Geneva.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus heralded it as a historic moment, saying countries have proven that “in our divided world, nations can still work together to find common ground and a shared response.”
Following U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw the country from the WHO in January, American officials were barred from participating in the talks and are not expected to sign the treaty. During COVID-19, it was largely American research and development that produced the most effective vaccines and medicines.
Weeks after Trump’s decision, Argentina’s President Javier Milei also exited the WHO, citing “profound differences” with the U.N. agency.
Rachael Crockett, of the advocacy group Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative, described the draft pandemic treaty as “a product of compromise.” She said it contained strong provisions, but only if countries chose to implement them. “This could change what we saw in COVID, when some populations didn’t get access to what they needed.”
The draft treaty notably includes a provision to guarantee that countries that share critical virus samples receive any resulting tests, medicines and vaccines, with the WHO to hold up to 20% of such products to ensure poorer countries get supplies. Negotiations on this provision are expected to continue after the treaty is likely accepted by member countries in May.
Crockett acknowledged that as is often the case with international law, there are few consequences for countries that don’t comply: “There’s not much that can be done if countries choose not to ratify or abide by it.”
Yuanqiong Hu, of aid organization Doctors Without Borders, said that if disputes arise between countries, the treaty includes a mechanism for them to use diplomatic channels, followed by arbitration.
Countries are already legally bound by the International Health Regulations to do things like quickly report dangerous new outbreaks. But those have been flouted repeatedly, including by African countries during Ebola and other outbreaks, China in the early stages of COVID-19 and arguably the U.S. amid its ongoing bird flu epidemic.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
FILE -Angels Trepat, 59, says through a window goodbye to her mother Angelina, 91, after visiting her at the Icaria nursing home in Barcelona, Spain, Friday, Nov. 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)
FILE - Dolores Reyes Fernández, 61, hugs her father, José Reyes Lozano, 87, for the first time in nearly four months as visits resume at the nursing home in Barcelona, Spain, Monday, June 22, 2020. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)
FILE - Wearing protective suits, funeral home workers remove the body of an elderly person who died of COVID-19 at a nursing home while another resident sleeps in his bed in Barcelona, Spain, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)
FILE - A mortuary worker disinfests a coffin carrying the body of a person who died of COVID-19 ahead of a funeral at Memora mortuary in Girona, Spain, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)
