Pope Leo tells Villanova and Notre Dame basketball teams he is neutral. Prevost has other ideas

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV on Saturday told the basketball teams from his alma mater, Villanova, and fellow Catholic university Notre Dame — in Rome for their season opener — that in matters of sport, the pontiff is neutral.

Then the pope, who was born Robert Prevost, said his former self might disagree.

“Prevost has another opinion, but we won’t do that now,” he said to laughs during a whooping, cheering audience of 7,000 people from both schools — players, coaches, fans and their families — in the Vatican audience hall.

The teams were in town for the U.S. college basketball season opener in Rome. The Villanova and Notre Dame men’s and women’s teams will play a doubleheader on Sunday at the 11,000-seat Palazzo dello Sport, about a half-hour drive from the Vatican.

The event has been dubbed the Eternal City Tip-Off and was created to honor the first American pope.

The audience had been up in the air after the 71-year-old pope underwent lung cancer surgery on Oct. 13 and is still recovering. But Leo kept the appointment ahead of Sunday’s opener.

Leo graduated in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics from Villanova, the Augustinian school near Philadelphia. He was born in Chicago — not all that far from Notre Dame, which is located in South Bend, Indiana.

Leo, an avid sports fan and tennis player, dribbled a golden basketball presented to him by the Villanova women’s team. And when the towering players from Notre Dame presented him with a jersey and another golden ball, Leo stepped up to the podium where his chair sits to try to gain a few inches (centimeters) on them.

He gamely posed for a photo with the Fighting Irish, holding the banner they gave him “Pope Leo, Play like a champion today” — a riff on the famous Notre Dame sign at the university stairwell between the locker room and the stadium.

But he gave the Wildcats equal time, making the Villanova "V'" gesture with his hand as chants of “Let’s Go 'Nova” erupted in the audience hall.

After mistakenly starting out in Italian, Leo switched to his mother-tongue English and spoke off the cuff recalling that in his native Chicago, he grew up hearing “Go Irish,” the Notre Dame chant.

“But as you all know, Prevost graduated from Villanova,” Leo said referring to his past self in the third person.

“So the pope doesn’t take sides,” he said to laughs, before revealing that “Prevost has another opinion."

In his prepared remarks to the crowd, Leo urged the teams and their families to embrace sports as a way to grow in saintliness.

“No one is born a champion, just as no one is born a saint,” Leo said.

He warned against letting sporting rivalries get out of hand and he said he hoped the fans in Rome this weekend would actually get to know one another as they cheer, “even passionately.”

“In any competition, the members of two teams, even when they have a competitive rivalry, are certainly not enemies,” he said. “I hope, therefore, that despite the competitive nature of college basketball, there will be opportunities for the players and the fans of both teams to get to know each other in your days here in Rome.”

He noted that the game will take place on All Saint’s Day, and that the church teaches Christians to pursue saintliness in every aspect of their lives, including in sports.

“Our true goal, beyond emerging victorious in any one event, is to win the prize of everlasting life,” he said.

Like popes before him, Leo has praised the value of sport for both physical and spiritual development, calling sport a “school of fraternity” that nurtures friendship, respect and teamwork. But he also warned about how the win-at-all-cost mentality of sport has contributed to episodes of doping, match-fixing and other forms of corruption.

The Rev. Robert Dowd, president of Notre Dame, acknowledged Villanova had something of an edge in Sunday’s game, considering it counts the pope as an alumnus. But in an interview Saturday, he said the occasion to bring both teams together with all their fans in Rome for a papal audience and season opener was “amazing.”

“I know that the pope is a pope for all of us, and so I’m grateful,” he said. “I know in a particular way the pope talks about the importance of bridge building, and I’m sure he’ll be a bridge builder when we play each other.”

Villanova’s president, the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, said there was “a little extra pride” being with Leo, given his allegiance. But he said what happens on Sunday was not the point.

“No matter what happens on the court, this is the true highlight of the trip,” he said in his introductory remarks to the the audience. “Tomorrow we will cheer, we will compete, but today we are simply grateful.”

Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson Perez celebrated a private Mass for traveling fans in St. Peter’s Basilica on Saturday morning, and asked the thousands of people in the pews to give a round of applause to the players. The English-language liturgy was unusual in that it had all the trappings of a papal Mass celebrated at the main altar and televised live by Vatican Media.

Leo is an avid Chicago White Sox fan, and has been known to follow basketball, too.

Asked about the upcoming games on the papal plane during a recent trip to France, Leo said, “They tell me that the people coming to the match, 90% are Villanova and 10% Notre Dame, so the voice of the people of God will be very strong on the Villanova side.”

Pope Leo XIV arrives in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, for an audience with some 7,000 university representatives and supporters from Villanova University and the University of Notre Dame, including members of their men's and women's basketball teams, ahead of the Eternal City Tip-Off, a men's and women's college basketball doubleheader in Rome on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

From left, Notre Dame's guards Braeden Smith and Logan Imes present Pope Leo XIV with a personalized Notre Dame's jersey and basketball as they meet in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, during an audience with some 7,000 university representatives ahead of the Eternal City Tip-Off, a men’s and women’s college basketball doubleheader in Rome on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) CORRECTION: Corrects player at left to Braeden Smith and Logan Imes instead of Elijah Crawford, and Brady Muller

Pope Leo XIV examines a basketball he received as a gift in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, during an audience with some 7,000 university representatives and supporters from Villanova University and the University of Notre Dame, including members of their men's and women's basketball teams, ahead of the Eternal City Tip-Off, a men's and women's college basketball doubleheader in Rome on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

From left, Villanova's guards Elijah Crawford, and Brady Muller present Pope Leo XIV with a personalized Villanova's jersey as they meet in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, during an audience with some 7,000 university representatives and supporters from Villanova University and the University of Notre Dame, including members of their men's and women's basketball teams, ahead of the Eternal City Tip-Off, a men's and women's college basketball doubleheader in Rome on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

From right Villanova basketball player Jasmine Bascoe along with Villanova University President Peter M. Donohue, present Pope Leo XIV with a basketball in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, during an audience with some 7,000 university representatives ahead of the Eternal City Tip-Off, a men's and women's college basketball doubleheader in Rome on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

A boy wearing a makeshift papal costume waits for Pope Leo XIV to arrive in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, for an audience with some 7,000 university representatives and supporters from Villanova University and the University of Notre Dame, including members of their men's and women's basketball teams, ahead of the Eternal City Tip-Off, a men's and women's college basketball doubleheader in Rome on Nov. 1. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

St. Thomas of Villanova Church is seen through autumn leaves at Villanova University in Villanova, Pa., Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Villanova basketball team's Luigi Suigo talks to journalists prior to the start of the men's basketball team training session in Rome, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Students walk past an image of Pope Leo XIV at Villanova University in Villanova, Pa., Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

The Villanova men's basketball team takes part in a training session in Rome, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Villanova University is seen in Villanova, Pa., Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

CHERNIHIV REGION, Ukraine (AP) — Residents evacuated from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky have crossed into Ukrainian-held territory after a humanitarian mission and localized ceasefire.

The residents traveled by bus and plane through Russia and Belarus, following a deal brokered by U.S. first lady Melania Trump.

The crossing took place under restrictions imposed by Ukrainian authorities that did not permit the disclosure of the number of evacuees or the location of the border crossing.

Ukrainian organizers said the restrictions were imposed in part to safeguard residents who chose to remain in Oleshky as well as to protect the safety of similar humanitarian missions that may occur.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back for updates. AP’s earlier story follows below.

Evacuees from Russian-occupied Oleshky in Ukraine arrived in Belarus on Saturday on their way back to Ukraine, part of a major rescue operation carried out under the most significant truce since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine 4½ years ago.

The ceasefire in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region, which the White House says was brokered with help from U.S. first lady Melania Trump, began at 3 a.m. Tuesday and is expected to continue through Sunday evening.

It was a rare joint Russia-Ukraine humanitarian effort, a brief respite in the grim war.

Civilians from Oleshky, on the Dnipro River, began the long journey out of the war-ravaged region in bus convoys on Friday. The estimated 2,000 remaining residents were offered the choice of traveling to Ukrainian- or Russian-held territory, or remaining in the city with replenished food and medical supplies.

Russia's Ministry of Defense said those who chose to travel from Oleshky to Ukrainian-held territory were taken to the Russian city of Anapa and flown to the Belarusian city of Homel. They were accompanied by Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s commissioner for human rights, it said.

“We will be home soon!” said a video post from Lubinets at Homel airport.

Four planes with the evacuees landed in Belarus and the passengers would be on Ukrainian territory “within hours,” said Ukrainian lawmaker Davyd Arakhamia.

Relatives waited on Saturday at the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, along with aid tents, coffee stands and even provisions to feed the pets the evacuees were bringing with them. Volunteers from organizations, including the Red Cross, Doctors without Borders and the World Central Kitchen, were also there.

Liza Paliy, 19, who last saw her father over 2½ years ago when she, her mother and sister fled from the occupied territory while he stayed behind, was among those waiting.

“We thought at that time that it would be a month, two maximum, and we would return, but unfortunately, two years have already passed," she said.

Daria Pavlyn also waited at the border in hopes of reuniting with her father, Mykhailo, whom she had not heard from in about a month.

He had planned to flee occupied territory with his family after a nearby strike killed two neighbors but stayed behind when arrangements to care for the family’s home and animals fell through.

“We realized that, well, there was no (other) way, and he walked us to the road and that was it — that was the last time” they saw him, Pavlyn said.

She said that since then, he had feared making the arduous journey out, particularly without Russian documents.

Russia’s ombudswoman and lead representative on the mission, Yana Lantratova, said buses also transported Oleshky residents who wanted to live in Russia. Russian media outlets on Saturday showed civilians arriving at a temporary accommodation site in Simferopol on the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014.

Russia and Ukraine have not specified how many people chose to leave the city, but the U.S. first lady posted on social media Friday that the humanitarian convoy could safely evacuate more than 750 people.

Apart from Melania Trump, Pope Leo XIV — the first American pontiff — also pressed Russian and Ukrainian leaders to allow aid deliveries and civilian evacuations.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday welcomed U.S. approval of Ukraine’s purchase of 500 PAC-3 Patriot interceptors but urged partners to supply the weapons from existing stocks to protect the country this winter, warning the newly authorized U.S. sale could take years to deliver.

“Right now, the Russians are attacking our energy infrastructure every single day. In just these past two weeks of October, there have already been more than 30 Russian strikes on critical parts of our power grid,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.

The Trump administration said Friday that it had approved a proposed $2.1 billion sale of Patriot air defense interceptors, after Kyiv had accused the Pentagon of delaying deliveries of the vital munition needed to stop Russian ballistic missiles.

The U.S. State Department said 500 Patriot missiles would be purchased for Ukraine with donations from Canada, Germany and Norway through a U.S. program and that no American funds were involved.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone attack killed a 30-year-old woman and a 41-year-old man in Russia’s western Bryansk region, local Gov. Yegor Kovalchuk said Saturday. Another five people were wounded, he said.

Local officials also reported Ukrainian drone attacks in the Russian republic of Bashkortostan. Russian media outlets said there was a fire in the region’s capital, Ufa, home to several oil refineries.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense said Saturday its forces had shot down 433 Ukrainian drones overnight.

Zelenskyy said Moscow launched drone attacks on energy and railway infrastructure across Ukraine overnight, leaving 280,000 households in Dnipro and Kyiv regions without power.

The attacks targeted combined heat and power plants in Kyiv and Sumy regions, four electricity substations and a gas distribution facility in the Dnipro region and railway infrastructure in Dnipro and Kharkiv, he said, adding that repair crews were working to restore power.

Zelenskyy urged partners to impose further sanctions on Russia and provide new support packages to Ukraine.

“The world sees Russia targeting civilian infrastructure every day. Everyone who does not want to see this Russian escalation spread further into Europe must help Ukraine,” he said in an online post.

Associated Press writer Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed to this report.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

In this screenshot from a video provided by the Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine, Ukraine's Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, left, speaks with residents of Oleshky during their evacuation to a safe area amid a local ceasefire connected to a humanitarian aid mission in Oleshky, Kherson region, Ukraine, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine via AP)

In this photo provided by the Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine, Ukraine's Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, center right, and Russian Ombudsman Yana Lantratova speak with journalists before departing for Oleshky to evacuate local residents to a safe area during a local ceasefire linked to a humanitarian mission in Ukraine's Kherson region, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine via AP) CORRECTION: change position of Dmytro Lubinets from center left to center right