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Transgender sports initiative halted by invalid signatures

PORTLAND, Maine — A Maine initiative intended to limit transgender students’ ability to participate in sports has been removed from the ballot because of invalid signatures, the secretary of state ruled Tuesday. The proposal from parents’ group Protect Girls Sports in Maine was slated to go before voters in November. It would have asked voters if they wanted to require public schools to restrict access to bathrooms and sports based on the gender denoted on a child’s birth certificate. Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who is running for governor as a Democrat, said ...

Team USA announces World Cup roster

NEW YORK — Tim Ream was filled with anxiety, right up until 1 p.m. Friday. “Leaving the training ground and walking to my car with a box full of bobbleheads to take home to my kids,” the 38-year-old defender recalled, “my WhatsApp started to go a little bit crazy.” Ream was among ...

Thunder top Spurs, 127-114, in Game 5

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points, Alex Caruso led another strong bench effort with 22 and the Oklahoma City Thunder moved one win away from a return trip to the NBA Finals by beating the San Antonio Spurs 127-114 on Tuesday night. Jared McCain — getting the call with Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell both sidelined — scored 20 in his first playoff start for the defending NBA champion Thunder, who lead the Western Conference finals 3-2. Chet Holmgren scored 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Thunder, while Isaiah Hartenstein had a 12-point, 15-rebound night in Oklahoma ...

Jodar makes quite a debut at French Open

PARIS — Two-time reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz is out injured. Promising 21-year-old French player Arthur Fils also pulled out with a physical issue. Jack Draper has been bothered for months by a right knee problem. The list of candidates capable of challenging top-ranked Jannik Sinner, ...

Franco criminally responsible for abuse, but will not be punished

PUERTO PLATA, Dominican Republic — Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco was declared criminally responsible for the sexual and psychological abuse of a minor, but he will not serve a sentence for it, a Dominican judge ruled Monday. Judge José Antonio Núñez, in his decision, considered ...

Messi hurts hamstring

MIAMI — Inter Miami confirmed Monday that Lionel Messi has a left hamstring issue, though did not say when the problem is expected to be cleared up. And that adds a bit of intrigue for defending World Cup champion Argentina, which is scheduled to open its training camp for this year’s tournament on June 1 in Kansas City. Messi underwent testing on Monday — which almost certainly means an MRI exam, though the team did not divulge what procedures were involved — and was ultimately diagnosed with “an overload associated with muscle fatigue in his left hamstring.” Typically, ...