Unheralded Medina Spirit gives Baffert 7th victory ...
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FACES
Actor Lumbly returnsto heroic roots withrole on Marvel seriesPage 18
Volume 80 Edition 11 ©SS 2021 MONDAY, MAY 3, 2021 50¢/Free to Deployed Areas
stripes.com
MILITARY
Retiring Davidsonpasses Indo-PacificCommand reinsPage 3
MILITARY
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Unheralded Medina Spirit gives Baffert 7th victory ›› Kentucky Derby, Page 24
WASHINGTON — The Biden administra-
tion is charting a new course in an attempt to
end North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile
program, striking a balance between President
Donald Trump’s grand bargain, leader-to-
leader diplomacy and President Barack Oba-
ma’s arm’s length approach to the crisis, said
U.S. officials familiar with the plan.
The decision to pursue a phased agreement
that leads to full denuclearization follows a
monthslong review that was briefed to Presi-
dent Joe Biden last week by Secretary of State
Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Aus-
tin, national security adviser Jake Sullivan and
the chairman of the joint chiefs, Gen. Mark
Milley.
The plan represents a rejection of the strate-
gy devised by Trump’s national security advis-
er, John Bolton, who insisted that the United
States hold out for a “go big or go home” agree-
ment — a deal that would remove all sanctions
in exchange for the full dismantlement of
North Korea’s weapons program.
That approach was flatly rejected by North
Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a 2019
Photo courtesy Republic of Korea Marine Corps
The Joint Security Area, the only portion of the Korean DMZ where North and South Korean forces stand face-to-face, is seen in this April 3,2017 photo. The JSA is used for diplomatic purposes and is occupied by both North and South Korea.
Striking the right balanceBiden administration forges new path on North Korea crisis in wake of Trump and Obama failures
BY JOHN HUDSON
AND ELLEN NAKASHIMA
The Washington Post
SEE BALANCE ON PAGE 12
NORTH KOREA
INSIDE
North Korea:Biden speech‘big blunder’for US Page 12
KABUL, Afghanistan — Resi-
dents of Afghanistan’s capital on
Sunday expressed fears of more
Taliban-fueled killing and vio-
lence in the coming months, a day
after foreign forces officially be-
gan a full withdrawal from the
country.
Taliban attacks that focused on
Afghan forces and civilians in-
creased throughout the past year,
but now many are worried that the
militant group will resume attacks
on foreign forces as they leave the
country by Sept. 11 — and that
those attacks will kill bystanders.
The Taliban have in recent
months issued vague warnings of
a reaction if the U.S. didn’t with-
draw its forces by May 1, which
the former Trump administration
agreed to do last year in a pact that
also called for the Taliban to come
to peaceful terms with the govern-
ment in Kabul. On Saturday, the
group said in a statement it would
“take every counteraction it
deems appropriate against the oc-
cupying forces.”
Talha Hairan, 33, who owns a
grocery store outside the fortified
Green Zone that houses NATO’s
Afghanistan headquarters and the
U.S. Embassy, has previously
SEE FEAR ON PAGE 4
In Kabul, fearof more attacksas US militarydeparts nation
BY PHILLIP WALTER
WELLMAN
Stars and Stripes
AFGHANISTAN
“It’s a routine now.Anything canhappen anywhere.”
Talha Hairan
Afghan grocery store owner,
on Taliban-fueled violence
PAGE 2 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
BUSINESS/WEATHER
OMAHA, Neb. — Billionaire
Warren Buffett warned people not
to think investing is an easy way to
make a fortune as he answered a
variety of questions at Berkshire
Hathaway’s annual meeting Sat-
urday.
Buffett said it can be tough to
pick the long-term winners. He
pointed out that in 1903, there
were more than 2,000 car compa-
nies, and nearly all of them failed
even though cars have trans-
formed the country since then.
“There’s a lot more to picking
stocks than figuring out what will
be an incredible industry in the fu-
ture,” said Buffett, who is known
for his remarkably successful in-
vesting record. “I just want to tell
you that it’s not as easy as it
sounds.”
Buffett has said that most peo-
ple will fare better by owning an
S&P 500 index fund instead of be-
tting on individual stocks. He said
many of the novice investors who
jumped into the market recently
and drove up the value of video
game retailer GameStop are es-
sentially gambling.
Buffett said the stock trading
platforms that allow people to buy
and sell stocks for free, such as
Robinhood, are only encouraging
that gambling.
Buffett spent several hours an-
swering questions Saturday after-
noon at an online version of Berk-
shire’s annual meeting, held on-
line for the second year in a row
due to the coronavirus pandemic,
alongside vice chairmen Charlie
Munger, Greg Abel and Ajit Jain.
Buffett warns investors not to gamble on stocksAssociated Press
Bahrain74/64
Baghdad67/45
Doha93/79
Kuwait City93/71
Riyadh97/69
Kandahar88/66
Kabul84/61
Djibouti86/80
MONDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Mildenhall/Lakenheath
57/39
Ramstein59/44
Stuttgart68/37
Lajes,Azores65/58
Rota68/54
Morón71/48 Sigonella
79/60
Naples67/64
Aviano/Vicenza63/47
Pápa60/40
Souda Bay89/68
Brussels58/46
Zagan53/40
DrawskoPomorskie
49/38
MONDAY IN EUROPE
Misawa68/45
Guam88/80
Tokyo70/49
Okinawa72/64
Sasebo72/55
Iwakuni73/46
Seoul64/52
Osan67/52
Busan67/57
The weather is provided by the American Forces Network Weather Center,
2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb.
TUESDAY IN THE PACIFIC
WEATHER OUTLOOK
TODAYIN STRIPES
American Roundup ...... 11Classified .................... 13Comics .........................16Crossword ................... 16Faces .......................... 18Opinion ........................ 14Sports .................... 19-24
Military rates
Euro costs (May 3) $1.18Dollar buys (May 3) 0.8068British pound (May 3) $1.36Japanese yen (May 3) 106.00South Korean won (May 3) 1,079.00
Commercial rates
Bahrain (Dinar) .3770Britain (Pound) 1.3808Canada (Dollar) 1.2282China (Yuan) 6.4745Denmark (Krone) 6.1858Egypt (Pound) 15.6590Euro .8318Hong Kong (Dollar) 7.7670Hungary (Forint) 299.54Israel (Shekel) 3.2431Japan (Yen) 109.31Kuwait (Dinar) .3011
Norway (Krone) 8.3139
Philippines (Peso) 48.26Poland (Zloty) 3.79Saudi Arabia (Riyal) 3.7500Singapore (Dollar) 1.3309
South Korea (Won) 1,118.57Switzerland (Franc) .9135Thailand (Baht) 31.18Turkey (New Lira) �8.2783
(Military exchange rates are those availableto customers at military banking facilities in thecountry of issuance for Japan, South Korea, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.For nonlocal currency exchange rates (i.e., purchasing British pounds in Germany), check withyour local military banking facility. Commercialrates are interbank rates provided for referencewhen buying currency. All figures are foreigncurrencies to one dollar, except for the Britishpound, which is represented in dollarstopound, and the euro, which is dollarstoeuro.)
INTEREST RATES
Prime rate 3.25Interest Rates Discount �rate 0.75Federal funds market rate �0.073month bill 0.0130year bond 2.30
EXCHANGE RATES
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 3
JOINT BASE PEARL HAR-
BOR-HICKAM, Hawaii — Adm.
Philip Davidson took a parting
shot at Beijing on Friday as he
ended his 39-year Navy career
and handed the reins of U.S. In-
do-Pacific Command to the for-
mer head of the Pacific Fleet.
“Make no mistake, the Commu-
nist Party of China seeks to sup-
plant the idea of a free and open
international order with a new or-
der, one with Chinese character-
istics, one where Chinese national
power is more important than in-
ternational law,” he said during
an afternoon ceremony that in-
cluded remarks by Defense Sec-
retary Lloyd Austin and Army
Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of
the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Beijing’s approach to the re-
gion includes efforts to “coerce,
corrupt and co-opt businesses, or-
ganizations and the people of the
Indo-Pacific,” Davidson said.
INDOPACOM’s new leader,
Adm. John Aquilino, who took
command of the Pacific Fleet in
May 2018, is expected to maintain
that hard line regarding China.
During his confirmation hear-
ing earlier this spring, he told
senators the United States needs
to bolster funding for the Pacific
Deterrence Initiative to better
challenge Beijing’s influence in
the region. He also warned that
China was increasing its stockpile
of nuclear weapons “faster than
anyone previously believed.”
Austin told the audience in so-
cially distanced seating that Da-
vidson had done “an absolutely
superb job — at the helm of this
organization.”
“He is a so-called ‘old salt’ —
the Navy’s longest serving sur-
face warfare officer,” he said.
Austin praised Davidson for
the 40 freedom-of-navigation op-
erations conducted under his
three years at
the helm. The
missions, in
which ships are
sent through
contested inter-
national waters,
are intended to
underscore
America’s support for open ac-
cess to shipping lanes.
The operations have been pri-
marily directed toward China and
its contested claims of sovereign-
ty over most of the South China
Sea.
Davidson, who will now retire
to a lake home in upstate New
York with his wife, Tracy, spoke
of the “symmetry” of ending his
long Navy run at Pearl Harbor.
He noted that behind him was
the USS Arizona Memorial, a bat-
tleship whose sinking propelled
America into World War II.
Docked nearby is the battleship
Missouri, on which instruments
of surrender were signed by the
Japanese in 1945 to end the war.
“My first tour was here, and
now my last,” he said, referring to
his inaugural Navy tour aboard
the frigate USS Badger. “I can’t
help but reflect on how special
this place is to me and my fam-
ily.”
As a lieutenant during oper-
ation Desert Storm against Iraq
in 1990-91, Davidson “bravely led
a team in support of amphibious
operations that held a major Iraqi
force in place on the Kuwaiti
coast,” Austin said. “That pre-
vented the enemy from attacking
our ground forces and helped
swiftly end the war. He earned
the Navy Commendation Medal
for Valor for that operation.”
Aquilino, a naval aviator,
earned his flight wings in 1986,
and has flown F-14 Tomcats and
F-18 Hornets, according to his of-
ficial biography. He deployed for
numerous operations, including
in support of Enduring Freedom
and Iraqi Freedom.
“He’s commanded a squadron,
a wing and a strike group, which
means he knows a thing or two
about leading American forces
into combat,” Austin told the au-
dience.
He commanded Carrier Strike
Group 2 while aboard the aircraft
carrier USS George H.W. Bush.
Davidson hands over reins of INDOPACOM BY WYATT OLSON
Stars and Stripes
[email protected] Twitter: @WyattWOlson
ANTHONY RIVERA/U.S. Navy
Adm. John Aquilino, left, relieves Adm. Philip Davidson, center, asleader of U.S. IndoPacific Command, during a ceremony at JointBase Pearl HarborHickam, Hawaii, on Friday. Defense SecretaryLloyd Austin looks on at right.
Aquilino
qualified for, before an eight-year
career in marketing and time as a
stay-at-home mom of three.
The Space Force, as a young
service with 5,000 guardians and
11,000 civilians, is building a fam-
ily-friendly culture, Raymond
said.
“It’s a quality of life issue and a
retention issue,” she said. “Our
spouses aren’t only underemploy-
ed; they are overqualified for
many jobs.”
Department of Defense pro-
grams such as Military One-
Source and the Military Spouse
Employment Partnership are
useful resources, Raymond add-
ed.
Military OneSource helps fam-
ilies find child care, cope with
stress, help children deal with a
parent's deployment, move to a
new duty station and find services
in the local and military commu-
nities.
The Military Spouse Employ-
ment Partnership connects spous-
es with hundreds of employers
who have committed to recruit,
hire, promote and retain military
spouses.
It has been easier for Julie Hop-
kins, a registered nurse, to find
work than for most military
spouses, she said.
However, she had to re-take
boards as a nurse during an as-
The half-year that Space Force
wife Julie Hopkins has spent
apart from her astronaut husband
is something many military
spouses can relate to.
Col. Mike Hopkins, 52, who
transferred from the Air Force to
the Space Force on the Interna-
tional Space Station in December,
splashed down off the Florida
coast in the SpaceX Crew Dragon
Resilience early Sunday morning.
His wife had been waiting in a
state of nervous excitement at the
couple’s home in Houston. Like
other military spouses, she’s used
to her husband taking controlled
risks at work. And she’s experi-
enced the other challenges of mil-
itary life, such as frequent moves,
service overseas and the struggle
to find work.
Mike first rode into orbit in Sep-
tember 2013. His current mission
began in November.
“As you get close to launch you
are nervous because a lot of things
have to go right,” Julie Hopkins,
51, told Stars and Stripes during a
telephone interview Friday. “It’s
very surreal until the engine
lights. It’s a little scary but excit-
ing.”
A fatal T-38 Talon jet crash at
Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.,
while Mike was training there as a
test pilot brought home the risks
that service members take, she
said.
Space Force guardians, like
other troops, spend time away
from family, but Mike Hopkins
was the first to leave Earth on
temporary duty.
NASA does a wonderful job of
family support, Julie Hopkins
said.
“He can call me every day and I
can email,” she said. “On week-
ends we do a private family video
conference.”
The Space Force is making its
own efforts to support space
spouses, according to Mollie Ray-
mond, wife of the Chief of Space
Operations Gen. John “Jay” Ray-
mond.
An Air Force wife almost 33
years before the Space Force
came into being in December
2019, Mollie Raymond has been
holding online meetings with
Space Force spouses to provide
them with information on employ-
ment and other challenges, she
said during a phone interview
April 20.
Raymond has experienced her
own struggles since becoming an
Air Force wife in 1987. When the
couple made their first move, to
Vandenberg Air Force, Calif., she
worked at an auto hobby store,
something she admits she was un-
signment in Canada and didn’t
work while based in Italy due to
the language barrier. It’s been
tough to get promoted or save for
retirement due to frequent
moves, Hopkins said.
Astronauts aren’t the only
Space Force guardians who spend
time away from family. The ser-
vice has some remote ground sta-
tions such as Diego Garcia in the
Indian Ocean, Raymond said.
“The challenge is to stay con-
nected,” she said. “It’s important
to build your support community
where you are and reach out to
others in the same situation.”
Military spouses often have a
lot on their plate, Hopkins said.
One of her sons, Lucas, 19, is
studying statistics at the Universi-
ty of Notre Dame while her oldest,
Ryan, 22, was due to commission
as an Air Force officer on Friday,
she said.
There is a lot of support for mil-
itary spouses, probably more than
most realize, said Hopkins, who
planned to give her husband a
“big hug” when he gets home.
“Everybody (in the military
community) can relate to how you
are feeling,” she said she would
tell new spouses. “Everybody is
away from home and their family
(but) it is an adventure.”
The idea of Space Force spous-
es blazing a trail was echoed by
Raymond.
“I’m excited for our Space
Force families to be a part of
something new and watch a ser-
vice grow and evolve,” she said.
Space Force spouses grapple withearthly challenges of military life
BY SETH ROBSON
Stars and Stripes
[email protected] Twitter: @SethRobson1
Julie Hopkins
The first member of the Space Force to leave the Earth, Col. MikeHopkins, poses with his wife, Julie, and sons Ryan and Lucas.
MILITARY
PAGE 4 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
MILITARY
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran will free
prisoners with Western ties in
Iran in exchange for billions of
dollars from the United States and
the United Kingdom, state televi-
sion reported Sunday. The U.S.
immediately denied the report,
while the U.K. did not respond.
The state TV report quoted an
anonymous official just as Su-
preme Leader Ayatollah Ali Kha-
menei began giving what author-
ities earlier described as an “im-
portant” speech. However, Kha-
menei did not immediately
discuss any proposed swap amid
negotiations in Vienna over Teh-
ran’s tattered nuclear deal with
world powers.
The official quoted by Iranian
state TV said a deal made be-
tween the U.S. and Tehran in-
volved a prisoner swap in ex-
change for the release of $7 billion
in frozen Iranian funds.
“The Americans accepted to
pay $7 billion and swap four Ira-
nians who were active in bypass-
ing sanctions for four American
spies who have served part of
their sentences,” state TV said,
quoting the official in an on-
screen crawl.
U.S. State Department spokes-
man Ned Price immediately de-
nied the Iranian state TV report.
“Reports that a prisoner swap
deal has been reached are not
true,” Price said. “As we have
said, we always raise the cases of
Americans detained or missing in
Iran. We will not stop until we are
able to reunite them with their
families.”
Price did not elaborate.
Tehran holds four known
Americans now in prison. They
include Baquer and Siamak Na-
mazi, environmentalist Morad
Tahbaz and Iranian-American
businessman Emad Shargi. The
state TV report did not immedi-
ately name the Iranians that Teh-
ran hoped to get the in swap.
State TV also quoted the official
as saying a deal had been reached
for the United Kingdom to pay
400 million pounds to see the re-
lease of British-Iranian woman
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe. The
office of Prime Minister Boris
Johnson referred calls to the For-
eign Office, which could not be
immediately reached.
Iran says captives deal made; US deniesAssociated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan — A
searing blaze that roared through
dozens of fuel tankers on the
northern edge of the Afghan cap-
ital of Kabul killed seven people
and injured 14 others, the Interi-
or Ministry said Sunday.
Investigators were combing
through the tankers that lay in
smoldering ruins and a gas sta-
tion caught in the flames that lit
up the area late Saturday, said
ministry spokesman Tariq Arian.
There was no immediate indi-
cation of whether it was an acci-
dent or sabotage. It came on the
same day the U.S. and NATO offi-
cially began the final phase of a
withdrawal from Afghanistan,
ending a nearly 20-year military
engagement.
All 2,500-3,500 American sol-
diers and about 7,000 NATO al-
lied forces will be out of Afghan-
istan at the latest by Sept. 11, the
20th anniversary of the terrorist
attacks in the United States that
first brought them into the coun-
try.
Arian said the fire began when
a spark set a fuel tanker ablaze.
Nearby tankers were quickly en-
gulfed, sending giant flames and
plumes of smoke into the night
sky. The fire in the northern edge
of the city engulfed several
homes and a nearby gas station.
Several structures were de-
stroyed and electricity to much of
Kabul, which usually has only
sporadic power, was knocked
out.
Massive tanker firetears through Kabul
BY AMEEM AKHGAR
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Afghan gov-
ernment forces face an uncertain
future and, in a worst-case scena-
rio, some “bad possible outcomes”
against Taliban insurgents as the
withdrawal of American and coa-
lition troops accelerates in the
coming weeks, the top U.S. mili-
tary officer said Sunday.
Gen. Mark Milley described the
Afghan military and police as
“reasonably well equipped, rea-
sonably well trained, reasonably
well led.” He cited Afghan troops’
years of experience against a re-
silient insurgency, but he declined
to say they are fully ready to stand
up to the Taliban without direct in-
ternational backing during a po-
tential Taliban offensive.
The chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff, a veteran of the
war in Afghanistan, spoke in an in-
terview with Associated Press and
CNN reporters flying with him
from Hawaii to Washington just
hours after the formal kickoff of
the withdrawal.
Asked whether he believes the
Afghan forces can hold up under
increased strain, Milley was non-
committal.
“Your question: The Afghan ar-
my, do they stay together and re-
main a cohesive fighting force or
do they fall apart? I think there’s a
range of scenarios here, a range of
outcomes, a range of possibili-
ties,” he said. “On the one hand,
you get some really dramatic, bad
possible outcomes. On the other
hand, you get a military that stays
together and a government that
stays together.”
“Which one of these options ob-
tains and becomes reality at the
end of the day? We frankly don’t
know yet. We have to wait and see
how things develop over the sum-
mer.”
He said there is “at least still the
possibility” of a negotiated politi-
cal settlement between the gov-
ernment in Kabul and the Taliban.
This, he said, would avoid the
“massive civil war” that some fear
could happen.
Milley says Afghan forcescould face bad outcomes
Associated Press
been injured twice in nearby at-
tacks, once by a suicide bomb and
the other time by a rocket.
Hairan, a father of two whose
family has owned the store for 28
years, said he expects more at-
tacks. He takes security measures
but has become largely used to the
absence of security since 2001.
“The main thing is that you have
to not think all the time about the
incidents and the attacks,’ Hairan
said. “It’s a routine now. Anything
can happen anywhere.”
At a nearby bakery, Zalmai Fa-
qirzada, 26, said “everyone was
worried” about the situation. He
shouted the words as he and his
colleagues busily prepared bread
that people would soon buy for
their iftar dinners, which mark the
end of the daily fast during the
Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
Since the U.S.-Taliban deal was
signed over a year ago, targeted
attacks have increased in capital,
but the large explosions that were
once common became rare.
Many fear that could change.
It’s not just Afghans who are
concerned. The U.S. Embassy on
Tuesday ordered all employees
who are able to work remotely to
leave the country. Some nonprofit
and humanitarian groups have al-
so sent staff abroad.
Nasir Ahmad, 34, the owner of a
large grocery store in central Ka-
bul frequented by foreigners, said
he’s seen a marked drop in cus-
tomers in the past week.
There has been a noticeable up-
tick in helicopter and cargo plane
traffic, which Abdul Khabir, 35,
described as a sign that his coun-
try was being left behind.
Khabir, who said he worked for
the U.S. military for 10 years and
recently had his U.S. visa applica-
tion rejected, exchanges money
and sells phone cards on a busy
street outside the Green Zone.
“Everyone is concerned about
the withdrawal, and I know this is
the most dangerous place to work,
but what else can I do?” Khabir
said. “This is the only place I can
work.”
Khabir, like many people who
spoke with Stars and Stripes, said
he didn’t mind if the Taliban came
to power after foreign forces
leave, as long it brought an end to
fighting and ushered in peace.
Sadiqa Halim, 26, who teaches
at a girls school in Kabul’s affluent
Qala-e-Fathullah area, disagreed.
Halim worries that if the Taliban
come to power, they will stop girls
from going to school as they did in
the past, though the group has said
it won’t do so again.
But that’s a long-term worry,
Halim pointed out, saying most
people are predominantly con-
cerned with the months ahead.
“Nothing has changed when it
comes to peace” over the last two
decades, said Halim’s colleague
Fatima Ravi, 40, the headmaster
at the school. “We haven’t felt the
presence of the foreigners here in
Afghanistan in that regard.”
Nevertheless, that presence is
getting smaller. On Sunday, U.S.
troops turned over Camp Antonik
in Helmand province to Afghan
special operations soldiers on
Sunday morning, the Afghan De-
fense Ministry said. Camp Anto-
nik, renamed from the former
Camp Bastion, served as a base for
U.S. special operations troops.
The turnover came a day after
an attack on Kandahar Airfield,
which prompted a U.S. airstrike,
military officials said. No group
claimed responsibility for the at-
tack, which did not cause any in-
juries or damages.
PHILLIP WALTER WELLMAN/Stars and Stripes
Zalmai Faqirzada, left, makes bread with colleagues at a bakery close to Kabul’s Green Zone on Sunday.
Fear: Many feel abandoned amid exitFROM PAGE 1
Zubair Babakarkhail contributed to this [email protected]: @pwwellman
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 5
MILITARY
Some U.S. military personnel
and their families in Europe hit
the books during more than a year
of various coronavirus restric-
tions.
This year, 1,360 students re-
ceived diplomas from the Univer-
sity of Maryland Global Campus
Europe — about 200 more gradu-
ates than last year, an increase
university officials attribute in
part to students signing up for
more classes during lockdowns. A
pivot from in-person to live-
streaming instruction also opened
more courses for students across
UMGC Europe’s footprint in Eu-
rope, the Middle East and North
Africa, officials said.
Capt. Jawaan Thomas, 32, an
Army reservist on active duty
with a medical brigade in Sem-
bach, spent more time on his mas-
ter’s program in business admin-
istration “because I wasn’t travel-
ing,” he said.
Being in Germany during the
lockdowns “has been difficult, but
I had this extra project on the side
to occupy my time,” he said of his
studies.
Thomas was among more than
100 UMGC Europe graduates who
walked the stage Saturday on an
Army airfield as family and
friends honked horns from parked
cars.
The ceremony was the universi-
ty’s second drive-in movie style
graduation in less than a year, a
new normal in the current pan-
demic.
The unusual backdrop of Satur-
day’s ceremony on Clay Kaserne
shows “the unprecedented times
we’ve all been living in over the
last 18 months almost,” said Gen.
Christopher Cavoli, the com-
mander of U.S. Army Europe and
Africa and the keynote speaker.
“It’s certainly my first experi-
ence participating in a drive-
through graduation,” he said,
while commending the graduates
for “the long journey they took,”
spending weekends and late
nights “writing and rewriting and
proofreading plenty of essays and
on and on.”
More than 650 students earned
bachelor’s degrees, while nearly
550 associate's and more than 200
master’s degrees were awarded.
Air Force Master Sgt. Marlynn
Cruz, 31, earned straight A’s for
the first time while finishing her
accounting degree.
“I was able to be more focused
for sure,” said Cruz, who works in
finance at Ramstein Air Base and
began her studies eight years ago.
“There was no going out, no late
nights.”
Some graduating parents, how-
ever, said they struggled to bal-
ance their studies with helping
their kids with homework when
schools went remote. More than
50% of this year’s graduates have
children.
Jada Tarver, 37, a former sol-
dier from Wiesbaden, said due to
pandemic-related office closures,
she had to finish some of the 440
hours of field work required for
her degree in social work virtual-
ly.
“I’m also a mom and I work full
time. So, yeah, COVID fatigue is
real but I made it.”
Tony Cho, UMGC Europe vice
president, said when the pandem-
ic hit, the college tried to maintain
its on-site classes, particularly
downrange, where internet ser-
vice can be spotty. Before the pan-
demic, about 50% of UMGC Eu-
rope’s classes were online.
Staff worked to convert outdoor
spaces into classrooms, such as
the open pool deck of a swimming
pool at a base in Kuwait. Most on-
site classes eventually went re-
mote and were live-streamed,
which gave students in different
time zones more options, Cho said.
UMGC Europe hopes to bring
back on-site classes this fall. The
intent is to live-stream those class-
es, “so whoever wants to take it re-
mote, from the convenience of
their home, they can,” Cho said.
Spec. Joseph Yeboah, 25, a com-
bat engineer in Grafenwoehr who
earned an associate’s degree in
computer science, juggled five
classes with two weeks of field
training in Hohenfels.
Instructors gave him extra time
to finish assignments. He man-
aged four A’s and one B.
Lockdowns fuelsurge in UMGCgraduations
BY JENNIFER H. SVAN
Stars and Stripes
PHOTOS BY JENNIFER H. SVAN/Stars and Stripes
Jada Tarver, an Army spouse and substitute teacher, helps Capt. Jawaan Thomas, an Army reservist onactive duty, adjust the hood on his graduation gown on Saturday, at the class of 2021 commencementceremony for the University of Maryland Global Campus Europe in Wiesbaden, Germany.
[email protected]: @stripesktown
Army Gen. Christopher Cavoli,the commander of U.S. ArmyEurope and Africa, was thekeynote speaker.
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan —
Teenagers are zooming around a
newly renovated skate park at the
home of U.S. Forces Japan in
western Tokyo after convincing
the base commander to approve
the work.
The skate park, on the east side
of the base, was torn down last
year after damaged asphalt and
rusting equipment rendered it un-
safe. No funding was available to
restore the park.
However, Yokota High School
freshman and Boy Scout Thomas
Vogeley, 15, and Yokota Middle
School seventh-grader Ben Wel-
lons, 13, managed to reverse that
decision. Both are avid skaters
and Boy Scouts.
Vogeley, with Wellons’ help,
gathered nearly 250 signatures on
an online petition calling for a new
park or dedicated skate spot that
he presented to Col. Andrew
Campbell, commander of Yoko-
ta’s 374th Airlift Wing, in Febru-
ary.
The petition jump-started a pro-
ject to refurbish the skate park
that reopened April 9, Lt. Col.
Bradly Bucholz, commander of
the 374th Civil Engineer Squad-
ron, told Stars and Stripes in an
email April 21.
“Their getting involved and ad-
vocating for the needs of the com-
munity in a polite and diplomatic
fashion was a great initiative and
catalyst for outside-of-the-box
thinking that linked our training
mission to a community need and
brought the project to reality,” he
said.
Craftsmen from the squadron
removed and replaced the old
skate park asphalt, using the pro-
ject as an opportunity to practice
concrete finishing, a critical skill,
base spokesman 1st Lt. Stuart
Thrift said in the April 21 email.
He said the concrete is 5 inches
thick with wire mesh reinforce-
ment.
The engineers used concrete
and other materials left over from
previous projects to restore the
skate park at no cost to mission-re-
lated funding, he said.
In addition to a smooth concrete
surface, the renovated park in-
cludes improved drainage, light-
ing and a fence. Plans call for fur-
ther park improvements, includ-
ing larger ramps and obstacles,
and parts are on order to repair
the park’s lights, Thrift said.
On Friday afternoon, Wellons
and Vogeley were at the skate
park trying out some tricks on the
ramps and rails.
Both boys said they’re excited
about the new facility and looking
forward to watching skateboard-
ing in its first appearance at Olym-
pic Games in Tokyo this summer.
Wellons, who has been skating
about 18 months, was stoked to try
out some ollies and 180s.
“I’m pretty happy with it,” Vo-
geley said. “The concrete is awe-
some.”
Teens’ petition gets them new skate park at Yokota baseBY SETH ROBSON
Stars and Stripes
THERON GODBOLD/Stars and Stripes
Ben Wellons, 13, performs a trick at a renovated skate park at YokotaAir Base, Japan, on Friday.
[email protected] Twitter: @SethRobson1
PAGE 6 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
MILITARY
WASHINGTON — Shivering in
freezing temperatures, about 50
U.S. soldiers braced for the worst.
Hundreds of Chinese soldiers
were about to launch a series of
bloody attacks on the hill the
Americans had just taken under
fire, and no reinforcements were
within a mile.
The clash that then-1st Lt. Ralph
Puckett and his soldiers experi-
enced that night on “Hill 205”
came at the outset of the Battle of
the Chongchon River, a pivotal
moment in which senior U.S. com-
manders were surprised by Chi-
na’s full-scale entry into the Ko-
rean War.
Thousands of U.S. soldiers died
in following days as they withdrew
hundreds of miles back into South
Korea in what the Army now de-
scribes as the longest retreat in
U.S. military history.
Puckett, who commanded the
Eighth Army Ranger Company,
was wounded by a hand grenade in
the first attack on the hill on Nov.
25, 1950, but stayed in command.
American and South Korean sol-
diers absorbed five more chaotic,
armed assaults through the night
before Puckett ordered his sol-
diers to withdraw the following
morning as the Chinese threat-
ened to overrun them.
“I had been wounded three
times by then, and I was lying there
in my foxhole unable to do any-
thing,” Puckett would later recall
for an oral history project. “I could
see three Chinese about 15 yards
away from me, and they were
bayoneting or shooting some of my
wounded Rangers who were in the
foxholes.”
More than 70 years later, Puck-
ett, 94, will receive the Medal of
Honor, the nation’s highest award
for valor in combat, for his actions.
President Joe Biden called Puck-
ett at home in Columbus, Ga., on
Friday to inform him of his deci-
sion to approve the award, said
John Lock, a retired Army officer
who began petitioning the Army
for reconsideration of Puckett’s
actions in 2003.
The Army credits Puckett with
leading his soldiers across an open
field to take the hill under intense
fire, braving enemy fire repeated-
ly to check on his soldiers after he
was wounded the first time, and di-
recting “danger close” artillery
strikes near his own position to
ward off advancing Chinese sol-
diers.
Puckett has said he told his sol-
diers to leave him behind after he
was incapacitated, but two pri-
vates first class, Billy Walls and
David Pollock, carried him to safe-
ty.
Puckett would go on to earn the
Distinguished Service Cross, the
nation’s second-highest award for
valor in combat, for his actions in
the battle. The recognition came
near the outset of a 22-year career
that also included a second Distin-
guished Service Cross and two Sil-
ver Stars for valor in Vietnam.
Puckett was awarded five Purple
Hearts for injuries suffered in
combat and two Bronze Star Med-
als with “V” device for valor.
With an upgrade to the Medal of
Honor, Puckett will be one of the
most highly decorated service
members for valor in U.S. military
history, Lock said.
Among those who assisted in
Puckett’s case were Sen. John
McCain, R-Ariz., who contacted
the Army on Puckett’s behalf a few
months before dying of cancer in
2018, and retired Gens. Joseph Vo-
tel and Stanley McChrystal, who
know Puckett through their mu-
tual service as Rangers, according
to documents that Lock provided
to The Washington Post.
“Then First Lieutenant Puck-
ett’s actions on Hill 205 in 1950 ex-
emplified personal bravery be-
yond the call of duty, risking his
own life as he drew enemy fire so
his men could locate, engage, and
destroy an enemy machine-gun
nest and kill a sniper,” Votel wrote
in a 2018 letter to Army officials in
support of Puckett’s nomination.
Puckett’s wife, Jean, said in a
phone interview that the family
hopes to visit the White House for a
ceremony. Considering her hus-
band’s advancing age and some
health problems, she expressed
concern about how long it was tak-
ing.
“He is not the one who has been
pushing it. It has been John and our
immediate family, who want him
to be able to receive it personally if
he is going to be awarded that med-
al,” she said, referring to Lock.
“He felt the Distinguished Service
Cross was honor enough.”
For years, Puckett has been a
spiritual and cultural leader of
sorts for the 75th Ranger Re-
giment, the elite fighting force that
specializes in raids, airfield sei-
zures and other difficult missions
in combat. As an “honorary colo-
nel” for the regiment, he traveled
overseas in his 80s with U.S. com-
manders, including to Iraq and Af-
ghanistan, and regularly met with
soldiers at Fort Benning, Ga., the
home of both the Ranger Regiment
and much of Ranger School.
Votel, who retired as chief of
U.S. Central Command in 2019,
was commander of 1st Ranger Bat-
talion when he got to know Puckett
during an exercise in South Korea.
Puckett shared details about his
experiences fighting in the Korean
War, connecting to the soldiers
with his “down-to-earthiness,” he
said.
“He’s a very noble individual.
He adds a level of dignity, a level of
stalwartness, to everything that he
is a part of,” Votel said in an inter-
view. “He’s just really a revered
figure in the Ranger Regiment.”
Rangers’ mentorto receive Medalof Honor at 94
BY DAN LAMOTHE
The Washington Post
HENRY VILLARAMA/U.S. Army
Retired U.S. Army Col. Ralph Puckett stands alongside troops April 16 as they prepare to start a footmarch during the 2021 David E. Grange Jr. Best Ranger Competition at Fort Benning, Ga.
Family photo
Retired Col. Ralph Puckett isshown as an Army captain in1952. Puckett, 94, will receivethe Medal of Honor.
guarding national sovereignty, security
and development interests, as well as
maintaining regional peace and stability.
“We hope the outside world will view it
in an objective and rational way. In the
future, the Chinese navy will continue to
hold similar exercises as planned,” said
Gao.
BEIJING — China’s Shandong aircraft
carrier group recently conducted routine
annual exercises in the South China Sea,
the People’s Liberation Army said Sunday,
after Beijing criticized the U.S. for sending
Navy ships into the strategic area.
The Chinese Defense Ministry last week
urged the U.S. to restrain its front-line
forces in the air and seas near China. U.S.
reconnaissance aircraft and warships have
become more active around China since
President Joe Biden took office, it said.
The South China Sea is particularly con-
tentious because China’s smaller neigh-
bors also have competing claims to one of
the world’s busiest sea lanes, which Beij-
ing claims virtually in its entirety. China
has constructed several man-made islands
in the disputed waters in what the U.S.
says is a move to militarize the area.
Navy spokesperson Gao Xiucheng said
in a statement that the exercises were
completely legitimate and part of safe-
China’s carrier group conducts exercises in South China SeaAssociated Press
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Some-
one in the U.S. Air Force apparently
watches the cartoon “Rick and Morty.”
An Air Force KC-10 Extender that flew
out of Al-Dhafra Air Base in the United
Arab Emirates on Sunday used the call
sign “PIKLRICK” on a mission that saw it
fly east over the Gulf of Oman, according
to flight-tracking data. The KC-10A is an
aircraft that refuels warplanes in flight.
The call sign appears to be a nod to an
episode in which one of the titular charac-
ters in the Cartoon Network show turns
himself into a pickle to escape a family
therapy session. In it, the typically foul-
mouthed, drunken scientist Rick Sanchez
shouts “I’m Pickle Rick!” as his grandson
Morty stares at him with a sad look.
Asked about the call sign, U.S. Air Force
spokeswoman Maj. Kay Magdalena Nis-
sen said it came from “no particular rea-
son other than a bit of morale for the
crew.”
“We acknowledge that the call sign is
not in accordance with our operational
guidance and we’ve provided that feed-
back to the airmen involved,” Nissen said.
US Air Force flight in Mideast uses call sign ‘Pickle Rick’Associated Press
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 7
VIRUS OUTBREAK
Only 22% of Italians and a quar-
ter of Germans have been vacci-
nated so far, compared with more
than 40% of the much larger U.S.
population, according to statistics
compiled by Oxford University’s
Our World in Data team.
The rollout to military commu-
nities in Europe has been slow
compared with bases in the United
States and the population at large.
But a recent boost in vaccine
availability has helped relieve
supply pressure and speed things
up for military members in Eu-
rope.
The single-dose Johnson &
Johnson vaccine was back in use
at military clinics in Europe after
a pause to allow investigators to
look into reports linking it to rare
but sometimes deadly blood clots.
Medical providers will be on
hand at vaccination sites where
the J&J shot, also known as Jans-
sen, is being administered to dis-
cuss patients’ concerns, Erickson
said.
The two-dose Moderna vaccine
will also be available at most plac-
es where the J&J vaccine is being
offered, but at different times, she
said.
“The Defense Health Agency
has directed that we need to sep-
arate the vaccines by place and
time,” Erickson said. “During a
given time frame, they’re only ad-
ministering one vaccine. It may be
one day they’re doing Moderna;
the next day they’re doing Jans-
sen.”
Individuals will know when
they book their appointment for a
first dose of the vaccine which shot
they will be receiving, she said.
EUCOM expects to receive
more of the two-dose Pfizer vac-
cine next month. It is the only shot
authorized for use in teens aged 16
and older, and Pfizer last month
asked the U.S. Food and Drug Ad-
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germa-
ny — The U.S. military in Europe
has ramped up its COVID vacci-
nation effort, pledging that anyone
who wants the shot will be able to
have a first dose by June, officials
said Friday.
“We are moving very quickly to
get shots in arms,” said Lt. Col. El-
izabeth Erickson, the command
surgeon for U.S. European Com-
mand.
Nearly 150,000 doses have been
administered to the U.S. military
community in Europe, and EU-
COM expects to receive about
20,000 vaccine doses per week for
the foreseeable future, she said.
Some locations, including Ram-
stein Air Base in Germany and
Aviano Air Base in Italy, have
started inoculating local nationals
as vaccine supplies have become
more readily available.
Ramstein became the first U.S.
air base in Europe to start vacci-
nating local nationals Thursday
when it inoculated some 300 Ger-
mans who work at the installation.
The U.S. military provided all the
doses of the vaccine and supplies
for the inoculation effort at the
base, and local health care provid-
ers from the Kaiserslautern area
helped to administer the shots, of-
ficials said.
“Vaccinating our local national
population alongside our U.S. pop-
ulation will help protect the entire
community,” said Brig. Gen. Josh
Olson, commander of the 86th Air-
lift Wing at Ramstein.
COVID inoculations were ad-
ministered Friday at Aviano to lo-
cal nationals over the age of 60
who work at the base, Staff Sgt. Va-
lerie Halbert, a spokeswoman for
the 31st Fighter Wing, said. Hal-
bert was unable to say how many
Italians received the shot.
ministration to extend the shot’s
emergency use authorization to
adolescents as young as 12.
The Moderna and Johnson &
Johnson shots are authorized for
use, starting at age 18.
As more and more people get
vaccinated, the number of corona-
virus cases in U.S. military com-
munities has dropped, Erickson
said.
“The more people we have vac-
cinated, the less virus that is circu-
lating in the community,” she said.
“That decreases the risk of the
virus mutating and having new
variants,” Erickson said, encou-
raging “as many people as possi-
ble to get vaccinated to allow us to,
hopefully, move out of the pan-
demic and get back to normal
life.”
Stars and Stripes reporters Norman Llamas andKarin Zeitvogel contributed to this [email protected]: @stripesktown
Military in Europe increases pace of vaccinationsBY JENNIFER SVAN
Stars and Stripes
TOKYO — U.S. military travel-
ers returning to Japan should
avoid downloading COVID-19
tracking applications or signing
pledges to follow tracking proce-
dures, according to a policy update
Friday by Yokota Air Base in west-
ern Tokyo.
But don’t pick that hill to die on,
the senior enlisted leader for U.S.
Forces Japan said recently. If air-
port authorities insist that return-
ing travelers download apps and
sign a pledge, do so rather than
spend time arguing the case.
“Just because you have the right
to cross a crosswalk and you have
the right of way, do you really want
to step in front of a car?” Command
Chief Master Sgt. Richard Wine-
gardner Jr. said April 22 on Amer-
ican Forces Network Radio.
Do not create an international
incident, Winegardner said. In-
stead, download the app and sign
the pledge and then delete and dis-
regard them later.
At Japan’s international air-
ports, the Ministry of Health, La-
bour and Welfare requires anyone
entering the country to install
tracking apps like the Overseas
Entrants Locator, install Skype or
WhatsApp for video calls and set
their smartphones to save location
information, according to the min-
istry website.
Japan requires a 14-day quaran-
tine period of new travelers to en-
sure they are not carrying the coro-
navirus. The apps help Japanese
authorities enforce the quarantine.
“The airport quarantine will
check your smartphone when you
arrive in Japan,” according to the
ministry. Travelers without a
phone may be asked to rent one at
their own expense. Arriving with-
out the apps already downloaded
may mean delays at the airport.
But Yokota, headquarters of
U.S. Forces Japan, said anyone
covered by the status of forces
agreement is “not required to
download COVID-19 tracking ap-
plications nor sign pledges to fol-
low [government of Japan] CO-
VID-19 procedures.”
SOFA establishes the rights,
privileges and responsibilities of
U.S. forces and of individual U.S.
service members, Defense De-
partment civilians and their fam-
ilies in Japan. People covered by
SOFA may travel to and from Ja-
pan with the appropriate approval
even though Japan has generally
banned incoming foreigners dur-
ing the coronavirus pandemic.
Operational security is one rea-
son U.S. forces should avoid those
apps, according to the amended re-
striction-of-movement policy
signed Friday by Yokota com-
mander Col. Andrew Campbell.
Restricted movement is what the
U.S. military calls the minimum
14-day quarantine Japan requires
of all arriving travelers.
“Some evidence suggests for-
eign entities have collected user lo-
cation information and smart-
phone data from similar applica-
tions,” the policy states. “Because
of this risk, SOFA individuals are
discouraged from downloading
such software/apps.”
Winegardner suggested show-
ing the airport authorities the SO-
FA passport stamp and explaining
that the app requirement does not
apply. If that fails, he suggested go-
ing with the flow.
“It’s not worth that extra time at
the airport,” he said. “It’s not worth
dying on the stake for saying, ‘You
can’t make me do this.’ Just under-
stand, it’s not a requirement.
Please don’t make your stand at the
airport alone and afraid.”
US troops exempt from Japan’s tracking apps, but with limitationsBY JOSEPH DITZLER
Stars and Stripes
[email protected]: @JosephDitzler
PAGE 8 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
VIRUS OUTBREAK ROUNDUP
MOBILE, Ala. — With demand
for COVID-19 vaccinations lag-
ging at an immunization clinic set
up at the Alabama Cruise Termi-
nal, an official said the site could
shut down soon as the cruise in-
dustry prepares to restart.
The Centers for Disease Con-
trol and Prevention issued guide-
lines recently that would allow
companies that meet certain
benchmarks to resume operating
around mid-July, and officials are
hopeful Carnival Cruise Lines can
resume its trips to the western Ca-
ribbean from Mobile.
The city’s cruise terminal near
downtown is currently being used
as a mass vaccination site by the
Mobile County Health Depart-
ment, but Health Officer Dr. Bert
Eichold told WALA-TV he ex-
pects the operation to wrap up in
the next couple of weeks.
“The mega-clinic site seems to
be decreasing in demand, so we
will be out of that facility when the
cruise industry starts back,” he
said. “It was a great site. The city
was a great partner. Good use of
space.”
More than 22% of the residents
of Mobile County are fully vacci-
nated, according to CDC statis-
tics. But the county, with about
413,000 residents, also has one of
the higher levels of community
disease transmission in Alabama,
according to the state.
The area tourism agency said
cruises account for 35,000 hotel
nights and $150 million annually,
and the more than yearlong shut-
down of the industry has taken a
chunk out of the local economy.
“It’s been a big blow. Tourism’s
never, ever seen what they’ve
seen in terms of disaster in the
economy, from travel, or the lack
of travel,” said David Clark, chief
executive of Visit Mobile.
Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson,
who has pushed for a resumption
of cruising, said he was happy the
CDC had provided the industry
with a roadmap for resuming
business.
Alaska ANCHORAGE — Alaska Gov.
Mike Dunleavy on Friday ended
the state’s COVID-19 disaster dec-
laration, saying the state is in such
a good position that he doesn’t
need emergency powers be-
stowed by the Legislature.
Dunleavy acted on the recom-
mendation of health commission-
er Adam Crum, who concluded
the emergency disaster declara-
tion is no longer necessary.
Last month, Alaska became the
first state in the nation to make
COVID-19 vaccinations available
to anyone over the age of 16 who
lives or works in the state. Of the
state’s 733,391 residents, 255,876
are considered by the state to be
fully vaccinated.
Dunleavy also signed a bill that
the governor’s office said ensures
the continuation of COVID-19 fed-
eral relief to impacted Alaskans
and liability protections for Alas-
ka businesses.
Arizona PHOENIX — Arizona on Satur-
day reported 1,047 additional con-
firmed daily cases, the largest sin-
gle-day increase in three weeks
amid a rising trend in new cases
and a slowing in additional deaths.
The additional cases and 14 ad-
ditional deaths reported Saturday
on the state’s coronavirus dash-
board increased Arizona’s pan-
demic totals to 863,571 cases and
17,388 deaths.
COVID-19-related hospitaliza-
tions in recent days have hovered
above 600, with 635 as of Friday,
after ranging between 500 and 600
during most of April, according to
the dashboard. The numbers re-
main well below the pandemic
peak of 5,082 on Jan. 11.
Arizona’s seven-day rolling av-
erage of daily new cases rose over
the past two weeks from 624 on
April 15 to 736 on Thursday, while
the state’s rolling average of daily
deaths dropped from 16.2 to 12.3
during the same period, according
to Johns Hopkins University data.
Georgia ATLANTA — Georgia’s gover-
nor is removing many remaining
requirements for social distanc-
ing and masked employees from
businesses, saying that the state’s
efforts to control COVID-19 have
been successful even as its vacci-
nation rate lags and federal offi-
cials continue to warn that the in-
fection rates remain relatively
high.
While Gov. Brian Kemp was
touring the Mexican border in
Texas on Friday, the Republican’s
office released a new executive
order that takes effect Saturday
and runs through May 30. But
public health experts fear another
surge, possibly driven by more in-
fectious variants of the virus.
More than 6 million doses of
vaccines have been given in Geor-
gia, but the state ranks 44th in dos-
es administered per capita to peo-
ple 18 and older.
Georgia still ranks among the 10
worst states per capita for newly
reported deaths and among the 10
worst states per capita for hospi-
talized COVID-19 patients. There
was a big increase in school-based
clusters in mid-April, right after
Easter, when many students got
their spring break. One Augusta
elementary school sent all its in-
person students home for a week
on Friday, citing high COVID-19
infections.
IndianaINDIANAPOLIS — Gamblers
will have to keep wearing face
masks inside Indiana’s casinos at
least through the end of May.
Updated health guidelines is-
sued by the Indiana Gaming Com-
mission said operators of the 13
state-licensed casinos decided to
keep the mask rule in place to
stem COVID-19 spread even
though Gov. Eric Holcomb lifted
the statewide mask mandate as of
April 6.
The casino rules require cus-
tomers to wear masks except
when eating, drinking or smoking
while seated at a slot machine, bar
or restaurant table. Gamblers
must wear masks at table games
and employees are required to
have masks on at all times.
The gaming commission said
casinos will review whether to
continue the mask requirement
past June 1.
MississippiJACKSON — Mississippi Gov.
Tate Reeves on Friday erased
most restrictions he had set to try
to slow the spread of the coronavi-
rus.
The Republican governor left
one restriction in place — a man-
date for students who are 6 or ol-
der to wear masks in schools for
the rest of the current academic
year. The school year ends within
the next few weeks in most parts
of the state.
The governor’s new executive
order removes capacity restric-
tions for sports events. Previous-
ly, indoor arenas could only fill
two-thirds of their seats to allow
for social distancing. School sport-
ing events and other activities
were limited to 50% capacity for
both indoor and outdoor events.
Now, both indoor and outdoor
school activities are no longer un-
der capacity restrictions.
Reeves had already removed
mask requirements in public
spaces and all capacity restric-
tions for restaurants, bars and oth-
er businesses.
The governor said he still en-
courages people to wear face cov-
erings, maintain social distance
and wash their hands while
around other people. He said peo-
ple who feel sick or have symp-
toms of COVID-19 should not at-
tend social events.
Missouri CARTHAGE — A gathering
that traditionally has drawn tens
of thousands of Vietnamese Ca-
tholics from across the United
States to southwest Missouri has
been canceled for a second
straight year because of the pan-
demic.
The Joplin Globe reported that
the city of Carthage and the Con-
gregation of the Mother of the Re-
deemer in Carthage have decided
that the risk of COVID-19 trans-
mission is still too great to hold the
Marian Days celebration. Before
2020, the event had taken place in
the city every year since 1978,
reuniting families and friends
separated after the fall of Saigon.
The Rev. John Paul Tai Tran,
provincial minister of the congre-
gation, said the decision not to
hold the celebration during the
first week of August was again dif-
ficult.
Carthage police Chief Greg
Dagnan said the leaders of the
congregation met with city offi-
cials Tuesday about the event, but
had pretty much decided before-
hand that it would still be too dan-
gerous.
Nebraska OMAHA — A Nebraska com-
munity college is using federal
COVID-19 relief funds to pay for
tuition and books for high school-
ers from the state to take courses
this summer.
The Omaha World-Herald re-
ported that officials at the Metro-
politan Community College hope
their newly approved offer will
pull in thousands of students. The
college saw about a 15% drop in
summer enrollment from 2019 to
2020, said Bill Owen, the college’s
vice president for strategic initia-
tives.
Typically, high school students
who enroll in a program called
CollegeNow that is designed for
high school students to jump-start
their college education pay $33
per credit hour — half the full rate.
While students will be allowed
to attend courses for free this
summer, they will be responsible
for tools or other required suppli-
es.
WashingtonREPUBLIC — About 10% of the
population of Republic, a small
city in north-central Washington,
has tested positive for COVID-19
in an outbreak traced to large in-
door events last month at the local
Fraternal Order of Eagles hall.
Ferry County Memorial Hospi-
tal officials have confirmed more
than 100 cases, with one reported
death, since the April 9-11 events,
including a membership drive
that featured dinner, live music
and a 1980s-themed karaoke
night. Some patients have had to
be transferred to Wenatchee and
Yakima because of a lack of ca-
pacity at the 25-bed hospital — the
only hospital in a 50-mile radius —
and other closer facilities.
The county previously had rela-
tively few COVID-19 cases, and
many in the conservative, rural
community saw mask mandates
as infringing on their liberty. Less
than one-quarter of the county’s
residents have received a vaccine
to date, according to the health
district, but officials said the out-
break has increased interest in it.
The situation should serve as a
warning to other communities
about the danger of large indoor
events with unvaccinated people,
they said.
JOHN LOCHER/AP
Crowds walk along the Las Vegas Strip on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Mobile looking toreturn of cruisesby mid-summer
Associated Press
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 9
VIRUS OUTBREAK
NEW DELHI — With Indian
hospitals struggling to secure a
steady supply of oxygen, and more
COVID-19 patients dying amid the
shortages, a court in New Delhi
said it would start punishing gov-
ernment officials for failing to de-
liver the life-saving items.
On Sunday, India recorded a
slight drop in new infections with
392,488 from a high of 401,993 in
the previous 24 hours. It also re-
ported 3,689 additional deaths,
bringing the total to 215,542. Ex-
perts believe both figures are an
undercount.
The government has been using
the railroad, the air force and the
navy to rush oxygen tankers to
worst-hit areas where over-
whelmed hospitals are unable to
cope with an unprecedented surge
in patients gasping for air.
Twelve COVID-19 patients, in-
cluding a doctor, on high-flow ox-
ygen, died Saturday at a hospital in
New Delhi after it ran out of the
supply for 80 minutes, said S.C.L.
Gupta, director of Batra Hospital.
The Times of India newspaper
reported another 16 deaths in two
hospitals in southern Andhra Pra-
desh state, and six in a Gurgaon
hospital on the outskirts of New
Delhi because of the oxygen short-
age.
With the government unable to
maintain a steady supply of ox-
ygen, several hospital authorities
sought a court intervention in the
Indian capital where a lockdown
has been extended by a week to
contain the wave of infections.
“Water has gone above the head.
Enough is enough,” said New Del-
hi High Court, adding it would
start punishing government offi-
cials if supplies of oxygen allocat-
ed to hospitals were not delivered.
“We can’t have people dying,’’
said Justices Vipin Sanghi and
Rekha Patil.
The court said it would start con-
tempt proceedings.
New Delhi recorded 412 deaths
in the past 24 hours, the highest
since the pandemic started.
The army opened its hospitals to
civilians in a desperate bid to con-
trol the massive humanitarian cri-
sis. Prime Minister Narendra Mo-
di’s government also gave emer-
gency financial powers to the ar-
my set up new quarantine
facilities and hospitals and buy
equipment.
The military also called up 600
doctors who had retired in the past
few years. The navy deployed 200
nursing assistants in civilian hos-
pitals, a government statement
said.
On Saturday, India said all
adults 18 and over could get shots.
Since January, nearly 10% of Indi-
ans have received one dose, but
only around 1.5% have received
both, although the country is one of
the world’s biggest producers of
vaccines.
India has so far given more than
156 million vaccine doses. Some
states have already said they don’t
have enough for everyone, and
even the ongoing effort to inocu-
late people above 45 is sputtering.
The United States, Britain, Ger-
many and several other nations
are rushing therapeutics, rapid vi-
rus tests and oxygen to India,
along with some materials needed
for India to boost its domestic pro-
duction of COVID-19 vaccines.
Indian court urgesgovernment to helpstruggling hospitals
BY ASHOK SHARMA
Associated Press
R S IYER/AP
Indian policemen check the credentials of commuters as they enforce a weekend lockdown to curb thespread of coronavirus Sunday in Kochi, Kerala state, India.
PAGE 10 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
NATION
GREEN BAY, Wis. — A gun-
man killed two people at a Wiscon-
sin casino restaurant and serious-
ly wounded a third before he was
killed by police late Saturday, in
what authorities said appeared to
be a targeted attack.
Brown County Sheriff’s Lt. Ke-
vin Pawlak said investigators be-
lieve the gunman was seeking a
specific person he was angry at.
“He was targeting a specific vic-
tim who was not there, but he de-
cided to still shoot some of the vic-
tim’s friends or co-workers, it ap-
pears,” Pawlak said.
Neither the gunman nor the
shooting victims were immediate-
ly identified.
Pawlak wasn’t sure if the shoo-
ter was a former employee of the
restaurant, but said “it appears
there’s some relationship that had
to do with employment.”
“Whether or not they all worked
there, we’re still working on,” he
said.
The wounded person was being
treated at a Milwaukee hospital,
Pawlak said.
The attack happened around
7:30 p.m. at the Oneida Casino, op-
erated by the Oneida Nation on the
western side of Green Bay, with
the casino tweeting that an active
shooter was on the scene.
Jawad Yatim, a witness, said he
saw at least two people shot.
“I know for sure two, because it
happened right next to us, literally
right next to us,” Yatim said. “But
he was shooting pretty aggressive-
ly in the building, so I wouldn’t
doubt him hitting other people.”
Yatim said the shooting began
in a casino restaurant.
“We got the hell out of there,
thank God we’re OK, but obvious-
ly we wish the best for everybody
who’s been shot,” he said.
Attorney General Josh Kaul
tweeted shortly before 10 p.m. that
the scene was “contained. There is
no longer a threat to the communi-
ty.”
Gambler Max Westphal said he
was standing outside after being
evacuated for what he thought
was a minor issue.
“All of a sudden we hear a mas-
sive flurry of gunshots — 20 to 30
gunshots for sure,” Westphal told
WBAY-TV. “We took off running
towards the highway ... There had
to have been 50 cop cars that came
by on the highway. It was honestly
insane.”
Gov. Tony Evers issued a state-
ment late Saturday saying he was
“devastated” to hear about the
shooting.
“Our hearts, thoughts, and sup-
port go out to the Oneida Nation,
the Ashwaubenon and Green Bay
communities, and all those affect-
ed by this tragedy.”
The Oneida tribe’s reservation
lies on the west side of the Green
Bay area.
Gunman slain after 2
killed at Wis. casinoBY MIKE ROEMER
Associated Press
NEW YORK — Newsmax apol-
ogized on Friday for airing false
allegations that an employee for
Dominion Voting Systems ma-
nipulated machines or tallies on
Election Day to the detriment of
former President Donald
Trump.
Eric Coomer, security director
at the Colorado-based firm, in
turn dropped Newsmax from a
defamation lawsuit.
The conservative news net-
work, in a statement published
on its website and to be read on
TV, said that while it aired the ac-
cusations against Coomer made
by Trump’s lawyers and support-
ers, it found no evidence that
they were true.
Newsmax, which ran Domin-
ion’s denials of the accusations
when they were made, also said it
had found no evidence that
Coomer had spoken to “Antifa”
or any partisan organization.
“We would like to apologize for
any harm that our reporting of
the allegations against Dr. Coom-
er may have caused to Dr. Coom-
er and his family,” the network
said. He said in his lawsuit that
he had gone into hiding because
of death threats.
Coomer’s lawsuit also targets
the Trump campaign, lawyers
Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Po-
well, columnist Michelle Malkin,
the website Gateway Pundit, Col-
orado activist Joseph Oltmann
and One America News Network.
Those claims are continuing, a
spokeswoman said.
Newsmax apologizes to Dominionworker for false election allegations
BY DAVID BAUDER
Associated Press
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Re-
publicans booed Sen. Mitt Rom-
ney but ultimately rejected a mo-
tion to censure him Saturday for
his votes at President Donald
Trump’s impeachment trials.
The measure narrowly failed,
798 to 711, in a vote by delegates to
the state GOP convention, The
Salt Lake Tribune reported.
Romney drew heavy boos when
he came to the podium earlier in
the day.
Davis County delegate Don
Guymon, who authored the reso-
lution, said Romney’s votes to re-
move Trump from office “hurt the
Constitution and hurt the party.”
“This was a process driven by
Democrats who hated Trump,”
Guymon said. “Romney’s vote in
the first impeachment embold-
ened Democrats who continued to
harass Trump.”
The proposal, among several
platform changes debated Satur-
day, also sought to praise the other
members of Utah’s congressional
delegation for their support of the
former president.
Others warned supporting the
censure risked defining the party
around Trump instead of the con-
servative principles most dele-
gates treasure.
“If the point of all this is to let
Mitt Romney know we’re dis-
pleased with him, trust me, he
knows,” said Salt Lake County
delegate Emily de Azavedo
Brown. “Let’s not turn this into a
Trump or no Trump thing. Are we
a party of principle or a party of a
person?”
Attempt to censure Romney forTrump impeachment votes fails
Associated Press
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. —
SpaceX safely returned four as-
tronauts from the International
Space Station on Sunday, making
the first U.S. crew splashdown in
darkness since the Apollo 8
moonshot.
The Dragon capsule parachut-
ed into the Gulf of Mexico off the
coast of Panama City, Fla., just
before 3 a.m., ending the second
astronaut flight for Elon Musk’s
company.
It was an express trip home,
lasting just 6½ hours.
The astronauts, three Ameri-
can and one Japanese, flew back
in the same capsule — named Re-
silience — in which they
launched from NASA’s Kennedy
Space Center in November.
“We welcome you back to plan-
et Earth and thanks for flying
SpaceX,” SpaceX’s Mission Con-
trol radioed moments after
splashdown. “For those of you en-
rolled in our frequent flyer pro-
gram, you’ve earned 68 million
miles on this voyage.”
“We’ll take those miles,” said
spacecraft commander Mike
Hopkins. “Are they transferra-
ble?” SpaceX replied that the as-
tronauts would have to check
with the company’s marketing
department.
Within a half-hour of splash-
down, the charred capsule — re-
sembling a giant toasted marsh-
mallow — had been hoisted onto
the recovery ship, with the astro-
nauts exiting soon afterward. NA-
SA and SpaceX managers mar-
veled at how fast and smooth the
operation went. The company’s
senior adviser, Hans Koenig-
smann, said “it looked more like a
race car pit stop than anything
else.”
Hopkins was the first one out,
doing a little dance as he emerged
under the intense spotlights.
“It’s amazing what can be ac-
complished when people come to-
gether,” he told SpaceX flight
controllers at company head-
quarters in Hawthorne, Calif.
“Quite frankly, you all are chang-
ing the world. Congratulations.
It’s great to be back.”
The 167-day mission was the
longest for a crew capsule
launching from the U.S. The pre-
vious record of 84 days was set by
NASA’s final Skylab station astro-
nauts in 1974.
BILL INGALLS, NASA/AP
Support teams work around the SpaceX Crew Dragon Resiliencespacecraft shortly after it landed in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast ofPanama City, Fla., on Sunday.
4 astronauts returnin rare night entry
BY MARCIA DUNN
Associated Press
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 11
AMERICAN ROUNDUP
240-pound sturgeon, age100, caught in river
MA DETROIT — Now
that’s a whopper — a
very old whopper!
A 240-pound sturgeon that
could be more than 100 years old
was caught in the Detroit River by
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The “real life river monster”
was nearly 7 feet long, the agency
said on Facebook, where the photo
was shared more than 24,000
times by late afternoon.
“Based on its girth and size, it is
assumed to be a female and that
she has been roaming our waters
over 100 years. She was quickly
released back into the river” after
being weighed and measured, the
Fish and Wildlife Service said.
The typical lifespan is 55 years
for a male sturgeon and 70 to 100
years for females, according to the
Michigan Department of Natural
Resources.
Rangers find marijuanagrow in national park
CA DEATH VALLEY —
Federal park rangers
discovered a large illegal marijua-
na grow in Death Valley National
Park near the border between Cal-
ifornia and Nevada, authorities
said.
The 40-acre grow was found in
Jail Canyon, a rarely visited ca-
nyon on the western side of the Pa-
namint Mountains, the National
Park Service said in a news re-
lease.
The illegal grow is one of hun-
dreds that authorities have found
in Death Valley over the last dec-
ade, officials said, and marijuana
grow sites can damage or destroy
parts of the national park.
While California legalized mari-
juana in 2016, it remains prohibit-
ed on federal lands.
State’s favorite guessinggame ends in twist
AK NENANA — The ice
has gone out on the Ta-
nana River, ending the annual Ne-
nana Ice Classic, one of Alaska’s
most famous guessing games.
Ice classic manager Cherrie
Forness said the game ended at
12:50 p.m. Friday when the ice
shifted and the clock inside a tri-
pod set up on the river ice tripped.
When the ice goes out, the tripod
usually starts going downriver or
toward the south bank. This year,
it went the other direction, upriv-
er, apparently just enough to trip
the mechanism that stopped the
clock.
It’s not known how many people
paying $2.50 per ticket correctly
guessed the day, hour and minute
the ice went out.
Wu-Tang Clan impostergets prison for scams
GA AUGUSTA — A Geor-
gia man was sentenced
to more than eight years in federal
prison for using stolen credit
cards to live large in hotels and
limousines while claiming to have
ties to the hip hop group Wu-Tang
Clan.
Walker Washington of Augusta
was sentenced to 100 months in
prison after pleading guilty to con-
spiracy to commit wire fraud, Da-
vid H. Estes, acting U.S. attorney
for the Southern District of Geor-
gia, said in a news release.
U.S. District Judge Dudley H.
Bowen also ordered Washington,
53, to pay about $300,000 to 19
businesses defrauded in the
scheme, according to the release.
Police praised for haltingscam on grandmother
MA DRACUT — Three
Massachusetts police
officers and a dispatcher are earn-
ing praise for preventing a Florida
grandmother from losing $25,000
to a scammer.
Dracut Sgt. Lawrence Flynn, Lt.
Wilmer Buote, Detective Megan
Farley and dispatcher Andrew
Talmacci went into action when a
woman called Dracut and Miami
police and said her mother had
sent the money to an address in
Dracut, Chief Peter Bartlett told
The Sun of Lowell.
The woman told police her
mother had received a call from
someone claiming that her grand-
son had been arrested and needed
$25,000 for a lawyer so he could be
released.
The package had not yet been
delivered, so the officers inter-
cepted it.
Young wrestler takes 1stplace in world contest
HI HONOLULU — A new
world wrestling cham-
pion is a 9-year-old girl from Ha-
waii.
Kaiulani Diamond Kekahuna of
Waianae won first place at the
World of Wrestling 2021 Reno
Worlds in the 65-pound weight
class April 17, KHON-TV report-
ed.
The third-grader at Kameha-
meha Schools Kapalama campus
competed in the 9 and under divi-
sion. She defeated Mireya Barra-
za of New Mexico in the quarterfi-
nal, Harley Miller of Oklahoma in
the semifinal and Mylah Henebry
of Idaho in the final, the Honolulu
news station reported.
She is trained in folk style, frees-
tyle and Roman Greco wrestling
by the Golden Back wrestling club.
FBI seeks forfeiture of 19 dogs taken in seizure
VA CHARLES CITY —
Federal authorities are
seeking the forfeiture of more
than a dozen pit bulls seized in Vir-
ginia during the investigation of a
multistate narcotics and dog fight-
ing network, according to court
documents.
The dogs were recovered by the
FBI, Drug Enforcement Adminis-
tration and Virginia law enforce-
ment agencies carrying out feder-
al search warrants in Sussex
County and Charles City County in
November, according to court re-
cords obtained by the Richmond
Times-Dispatch.
Now, federal officials are for-
mally asking the court to termi-
nate the unidentified suspects’
rights to 19 of the 41 dogs reco-
vered, according to a complaint
for forfeiture filed Monday. A civil
forfeiture warrant for the dogs
was entered in U.S. District Court
in Richmond, the Times-Dispatch
reported.
Man arrested after theftof thousands in chips
WA RIDGEFIELD — A
Kelso man who is
banned from a casino in southwest
Washington is accused of stealing
$12,500 in chips after a casino
break-in.
Police said Lucas Bunn entered
the ilani Casino Resort while dis-
guised in a gray wig and construc-
tion vest, The Columbian report-
ed.
Clark Regional Emergency Ser-
vices Agency advised authorities
that a man was in the casino’s high
limits area using a drill to break
into the chips table, according to
an affidavit of probable cause.
The man, thought to be Bunn,
ran when security approached
him, the affidavit said. A respon-
ding Clark County sheriff’s deputy
advised he was chasing the man
near a gas station and he was de-
tained shortly after, according to
the affidavit.
Man assaulted, spit onofficers during arrest
IA PLEASANT HILL — A
central Iowa man faces a
bevy of charges after being ac-
cused of attacking several officers
as they tried to arrest him on sus-
picion of driving drunk with his
young child in the back seat, police
said.
Christopher Greenwood, 33,
was confronted after witnesses
called police to report his pickup
truck hitting curbs and driving in-
to a ditch, Des Moines station
WHO-TV reported.
Pleasant Hill officers soon
found his truck crashed into a pole
and noticed a young girl in a boost-
er seat in the back seat. Police said
the girl was not injured.
When officers tried to arrest
Greenwood on suspicion of drunk-
en driving, police said, he head-
butted, kicked and spit on the offi-
cers.
JAKE MAY, THE FLINT (MICH.) JOURNAL/AP
Dashawn Brockway, 5, smiles as he plays in the backyard with his sister Ryanna Brockway, 8, in Flint, Mich.
Head over heels
THE CENSUS
10M The approximate amount in dollars won by a New Mexicotourist from a Las Vegas slot machine jackpot. The South
Point Hotel Casino & Spa said the Megabucks payout of $10.5 million wasNevada’s largest jackpot of the year. The player won on a $5 wager, accordingto a news release that said the winner did not want to be publicly identified.
From The Associated Press
PAGE 12 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
NATION
SEOUL, South Korea — North
Korea on Sunday warned the
United States will face “a very
grave situation” because Presi-
dent Joe Biden “made a big blun-
der” in his recent speech by call-
ing the North a security threat and
revealing his intent to maintain a
hostile policy against it.
Last week, Biden, in his first ad-
dress to Congress, called North
Korea and Iran’s nuclear pro-
grams “serious threats” to Amer-
ican and world security and said
he’ll work with allies to address
those problems through diploma-
cy and stern deterrence.
“His statement clearly reflects
his intent to keep enforcing the
hostile policy toward the DPRK as
it had been done by the U.S. for
over half a century,” Kwon Jong
Gun, a senior North Korean For-
eign Ministry official, said in a
statement. DPRK stands for the
Democratic People’s Republic of
Korea, the North’s official name.
“It is certain that the U.S. chief
executive made a big blunder in
the light of the present-day view-
point,” Kwon said. “Now that the
keynote of the U.S. new DPRK
policy has become clear, we will
be compelled to press for corre-
sponding measures, and with
time, the U.S. will find itself in a
very grave situation.”
Kwon still didn’t specify what
steps North Korea would take, and
his statement could be seen as an
effort to apply pressure on the Bi-
den administration as it’s shaping
up its North Korea policy.
The White House said Friday
that administration officials had
completed a review of U.S. policy
toward North Korea, saying Biden
plans to veer from the approaches
of his two most recent predeces-
sors as he tries to stop North Ko-
rea’s nuclear program. Press sec-
retary Jen Psaki did not detail
findings of the review, but sug-
gested the administration would
seek a middle ground between
Donald Trump’s “grand bargain”
and Barack Obama’s “strategic
patience” approaches.
Kwon’s statement didn’t men-
tion Psaki’s comments.
After a series of high-profile nu-
clear and missile tests in 2016-17,
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un
launched summit diplomacy with
Trump on the future of his grow-
ing nuclear arsenal. But that di-
plomacy remains stalled for about
two years over differences in how
much sanctions relief North Ko-
rea could win in return for limited
denuclearization steps.
In January, Kim threatened to
enlarge his nuclear arsenal and
build more high-tech weapons tar-
geting the U.S. mainland, saying
the fate of bilateral ties would de-
pend on whether it abandons its
hostile policy. In March, he con-
ducted short-range ballistic mis-
sile tests for the first time in a year,
though he still maintains a mora-
torium on bigger weapons launch-
es.
“If Pyongyang agrees to work-
ing-level talks, the starting point
of negotiations would be a freeze
of North Korean testing and devel-
opment of nuclear capabilities
and delivery systems,” Leif-Eric
Easley, a professor at Ewha Uni-
versity in Seoul, said. “If, on the
other hand, Kim shuns diplomacy
and opts for provocative tests,
Washington will likely expand
sanctions enforcement and mili-
tary exercises with allies.”
Also Sunday, an unidentified
North Korean Foreign Ministry
spokesman vowed a strong, sepa-
rate response to a recent State De-
partment statement that it would
push to promote “accountability
for the Kim regime” over its
“egregious human rights situa-
tion.” He called the statement a
preparation for “all-out show-
down with us.”
Kim’s powerful sister, Kim Yo
Jong, also slammed South Korea
over anti-Pyongyang leaflets
floated across the border by a
group of North Korean defectors
in the South. The group’s leader,
Park Sang-hak, said Friday thathe
sent 500,000 leaflets by balloon
last week, in a defiance of a new,
contentious South Korean law that
criminalizes such action.
“We regard the maneuvers
committed by the human waste in
the South as a serious provocation
against our state and will look into
corresponding action,” Kim Yo
Jong said in a statement.
She accused the South Korean
government of “winking at” the
leaflets. Seoul’s Unification Minis-
try responded later Sunday, say-
ing it opposes any act that creates
tensions on the Korean Peninsula
and it will strive to achieve better
ties with North Korea.
Easley said the North Korean
statements by Kwon and Kim Yo
Jong show that “Pyongyang is try-
ing to drive a wedge between
South Korea and the United
States” ahead of the May 21 sum-
mit between Biden and South Ko-
rean President Moon Jae-in.
N. Korea warns USof ‘grave situation’over Biden speech
BY HYUNG-JIN KIM
Associated Press
summit in Hanoi that collapsed af-
ter U.S. officials made clear they
would not lift sanctions unless
Pyongyang put its entire nuclear
program on the table.
“We are not seeking a grand
bargain or an all-or-nothing ap-
proach,” a senior administration
official said in an interview Thurs-
day. “What we’ve settled on is
what we think is a calibrated,
practical approach to diplomacy
with the North with the goal of
eliminating the threat to the Unit-
ed States.”
The administration has begun
sharing the review’s results with
allies and partners, including Ja-
pan and South Korea, as well as
members of Congress, who were
frequently consulted over the last
several months, officials said.
The specifics of the proposal
Washington will put forward re-
main unclear, and U.S. officials
are not using familiar terms that
previous U.S. administrations
have used, such as a “step-by-
step” agreement.
“We are not putting those kinds
of labels on our approach,” a U.S.
official said.
The conclusion of the review
comes amid increasing U.S. con-
cerns that North Korea may be
considering a fresh provocation,
such as the testing of another long-
range intercontinental ballistic
missile, or a submarine-launched
ballistic missile.
U.S. officials said they planned
to convey the new strategy to
North Korean officials, but ac-
knowledged that it was not likely
to change the regime’s near-term
calculus regarding nuclear provo-
cations.
“We do not think what we are
contemplating is likely to forestall
provocation from the North,” said
the senior official, who like others
interviewed, spoke on the condi-
tion of anonymity because of the
subject’s sensitivity. “We fully in-
tend to maintain sanctions pres-
sure while this plays out.”
One of the many challenges fac-
ing U.S. officials is whether they
can create momentum behind a
phased approach that exchanges
partial sanctions relief for partial
denuclearization until the pro-
gram is fully dismantled. One U.S.
official said the effort is a “careful,
modulated diplomatic approach,
prepared to offer relief for partic-
ular steps” with an “ultimate goal
of denuclearization.”
That would differ from the Oba-
ma administration’s approach,
which withheld serious diplomat-
ic engagement with North Korea
until it changed its behavior and
ceased its nuclear provocations.
“If the Trump administration
was everything for everything,
Obama was nothing for nothing.
This is something in the middle,”
the official said.
The Biden administration first
reached out to North Korea
through several channels starting
in mid-February before it had
completed its policy review. North
Korea’s first vice foreign minister
dismissed the outreach as a “de-
laying-time trick.” In March, the
regime fired two short-range mis-
siles during Blinken’s first trip to
the Asia-Pacific, and shot two bal-
listic missiles into the sea near Ja-
pan days later.
The removal of economic sanc-
tions is a key priority for Kim, who
conceded last year that his coun-
try faced “two crises at the same
time”: the spread of the coronavi-
rus and crippling U.S. and United
Nations sanctions banning many
of its exports, including textiles,
coal and iron ore. The virus also
forced the regime last year to
close the border with China,
which accounts for about 90% of
the country’s external trade.
One key question is what role
China will play in the diplomacy,
given its economic and political
leverage over North Korea.
U.S. relations with Beijing re-
main tense amid a growing list of
disagreements related to trade,
human rights and security. A se-
nior U.S. official said the Biden ad-
ministration will seek to “work
with China as we move forward,
both in terms of supporting our
diplomatic efforts as well as on liv-
ing up to our common obligations
to enforce U.N. sanctions.”
The first meeting between the
Biden administration and its Chi-
nese counterparts in March re-
sulted in an usual display of bitter
comments, and China has recoiled
at the U.S. accusation that it is car-
rying out genocide against Uygh-
ur Muslims.
Strong disagreements over hu-
man rights could also cause ten-
sion in the U.S. approach to North
Korea.
The Biden administration is ex-
pected to appoint a special envoy
for human rights in North Korea, a
position that would presumably
spotlight the Kim regime’s brutal
repression of its citizens through
mass surveillance, torture and po-
litical-prisoner camps. A senior
U.S. official declined to comment
on the impact the envoy might
have, but noted that there is a
“statutory requirement” for that
position to exist.
KCNA
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un poses with what some experts say is a possible nuclear warhead mockup in this undated photo released by the Korean Central News Agency on March 9, 2016.
Balance: Administration seeking ‘calibrated,practical approach’ in dealing with N. KoreaFROM PAGE 1
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 13
WORLD
BERLIN — At least 93 police officers
were injured and 354 protesters were de-
tained after traditional May Day rallies in
Berlin turned violent, the city's top security
official said Sunday.
More than 20 different rallies took place in
the German capital on Saturday and the vast
majority of them were peaceful. However, a
leftist march of 8,000 people through the
city’s Neukoelln and Kreuzberg neighbor-
hood, which has seen clashes in past dec-
ades, turned violent. Protesters threw bot-
tles and rocks at officers, and burned gar-
bage cans and wooden pallets in the streets.
“Violence against police officers and a
blind, destructive rage has nothing to do
with political protest,” Berlin state interior
minister Andreas Geisel said.
Geisel condemned the throwing of bottles
and rocks, the burning barricades on the
streets and especially the violence toward
police.
“The high number of injured officer leav-
es me stunned. I wish all of those who were
injured in the line of duty a quick recovery,”
he said.
There’s a nightly curfew in most parts of
Germany because of the high number of cor-
onavirus infections, but political protests
and religious gatherings are exempt from
the curfew.
In France, May Day marches in Paris and
the southern city of Lyon were also marred
by scattered violence, with riot officers tar-
geted by small groups of violent demonstra-
tors who tossed projectiles and trash bins.
Police made 56 arrests — 46 of them in Paris,
the Interior Ministry said Sunday. It said six
officers suffered injuries, three of them in
Paris.
The CGT labor union that organized the
main Paris march said violent demonstra-
tors also targeted its marchers at the end of
the rally, showering them with projectiles,
blows and homophobic, sexist and racist in-
sults. The union said 21 of its participants
were injured, four seriously.
May Day rallies turn violent in Berlin, FranceAssociated Press
MARKUS SCHREIBER/AP
Police officers stand in front of a fire setup by demonstrators during a May Dayrally Saturday in Berlin, Germany.
JERUSALEM — Officials came
under growing scrutiny Sunday for
ignoring warnings about safety
lapses at one of Israel’s most visited
holy sites, as the country mourned
45 ultra-Orthodox Jews killed in a
stampede at a festival there.
The disaster at Mount Meron also
heated up the debate over the role of
the ultra-Orthodox minority in Is-
rael and the refusal of some of its
leaders to acknowledge the author-
ity of the state. The festival had
drawn some 100,000 people, most of
them ultra-Orthodox Jews, after
powerful ultra-Orthodox politic-
ians reportedly pressured Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and
others to lift attendance restric-
tions.
On Sunday, a group of retired po-
lice commissioners called on the
prime minister to launch an inde-
pendent commission with wide-
ranging powers to investigate. The
body would have the authority to
probe senior politicians and deci-
sion-makers, going beyond a Jus-
tice Ministry inquiry now under-
way that is looking into possible mis-
conduct by police officers at the site.
The increasingly acrimonious
blame game comes during a politi-
cal power struggle between Neta-
nyahu and former allies-turned-
foes bent on toppling him. After in-
conclusive elections in March, Ne-
tanyahu's chances of forming a rul-
ing coalition and staying in power
seem to be waning. His ultra-Ortho-
dox political allies would feature
prominently in any Netanyahu-led
government.
The stampede, the deadliest civil
disaster in Israel's history, took
place early Friday during a festival
called Lag BaOmer on Mount Me-
ron in northern Israel. The site is be-
lieved to be the burial place of prom-
inent second century sage Rabbi
Shimon Bar Yochai. The annual
springtime celebrations are
marked by the lighting of large bon-
fires, singing and dancing.
Officials scrutinized as Israel mourns 45 killed in festival stampedeAssociated Press
PAGE 14 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
Max D. Lederer Jr., Publisher
Lt. Col. Marci Hoffman, Europe commander
Lt. Col. Richard McClintic, Pacific commander
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stripes.com
OPINION
“We delivered justice to Osama
bin Laden, and we degraded
the terrorist threat of al-Qaida
in Afghanistan,” Joe Biden declared in his
speech to Congress on Wednesday. And that,
he explained, was why we can now withdraw
the last U.S. troops from Afghanistan, as he
announced earlier this month.
Yes, bin Laden is dead — thanks to a daring
raid by U.S. special operations forces 10 years
ago in Pakistan. But the president’s statement
misses the mark. Its founder might have left
the scene, but al-Qaida hasn’t gone away —
and that has clear implications for our strate-
gy in Afghanistan and across the world.
Transnational terrorist groups, especially
those maintaining affiliates worldwide, are of-
ten greater than the sum of their parts. One
decade after bin Laden’s death, his organiza-
tion — including affiliates such as Somalia’s
al-Shabab and Syria’s Hurras al-Din — now
boasts between 30,000 to 40,000 fighters glob-
ally and maintains a presence in more coun-
tries than it did on 9/11. A celebrated martyr to
his followers, bin Laden remains an enduring
symbol for jihadi sympathizers from the
Maghreb to Mindanao. His legacy suggests
that his goal of spreading al-Qaida’s ideology
worldwide has been achieved.
Twenty-five years after bin Laden’s fatwa
declaring war against the United States, al-
Qaida survives, even as Washington and its al-
lies yearn to move on from two decades of the
so-called global war on terrorism. But al-Qai-
da’s persistence raises legitimate concerns
that a calendar-based withdrawal in Afghan-
istan will lead to a replay of what happened in
Iraq in 2011. Just three years after pulling out
its troops, the United States was forced to re-
turn to deal with the rise of Islamic State and a
state-building project that had attracted more
than 40,000 foreign fighters from more than
110 countries.
Proponents of withdrawal suggest that al-
Qaida has only several hundred fighters in Af-
ghanistan, despite its more robust franchise
groups in the Middle East and Africa. But
once the United States is out of Afghanistan,
al-Qaida will have an opportunity to regener-
ate its networks, particularly if the Taliban
come to militarily dominate large swaths of
Afghanistan, as many expect. The Taliban
have never broken with al-Qaida, and al-Qai-
da fighters even embed in Taliban fighting
units. Taliban sponsorship of al-Qaida and its
affiliates creates the potential for an al-Qaida
revival in the region.
In addition to what remains of its core in Af-
ghanistan and Pakistan, al-Qaida has branch-
es in India and Kashmir — al-Qaida in the In-
dian Subcontinent and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-
Hind, respectively. If jihadis in Afghanistan
can generate momentum, it could lead to an
influx of foreign fighters, resuscitating a
group looking for a lifeline.
By the time Navy SEALs killed bin Laden
in May 2011, some analysts had written him
off as a marginalized figure who spent his
time in hiding with little impact on the day-to-
day operations of al-Qaida’s global network.
But we now know that bin Laden actually re-
mained an active leader, providing important
input on tactics, operations and strategy. A re-
view of the documents found in his Abbotta-
bad compound demonstrates that he func-
tioned as a hands-on leader until his last days.
Yet even though he was still involved in group
decision-making, his actual degree of com-
mand-and-control was limited by al-Qaida’s
decentralized structure and the challenge of
communicating with affiliate leaders quickly
and efficiently.
Removing bin Laden had little impact on al-
Qaida’s affiliates in the Sahel. Both al-Qaida in
the Islamic Maghreb and Jama’at Nasr al-Is-
lam wal Muslimin remain highly active and
continue to recruit new members to conduct
terrorist attacks with impunity in countries
such as Mali and Niger.
In its earliest days, al-Qaida proved it could
operate as a hybrid entity, with its leadership
spread among different countries. Both be-
fore and after bin Laden’s removal, al-Qaida’s
senior leadership remained involved in plan-
ning operations. Midlevel commanders were
empowered to execute the organization’s
strategic vision as they saw fit. The group has
overcome significant challenges related to the
Arab Spring protests and internecine conflict
with ISIS. Al-Qaida has adapted, shifting its
focus to establishing political legitimacy in
West Africa and the Arabian Peninsula,
adopting the parochial grievances of local
tribes and clans.
In reviewing lessons learned from the past
two decades of counterterrorism operations,
the preponderance of evidence suggests that
targeting individual leaders has its limits.
We’ve learned that it’s more effective to focus
on disrupting terrorist networks by focusing
on dismantling supply lines, attacking logis-
tical capabilities and denying militants the
ability to enjoy external support, including fi-
nancing and sanctuary. This doesn’t mean
that killing high-value targets is ineffective,
but rather that decapitation is merely one of
many tactics that should be used as part of a
wider strategy.
Killing bin Laden 10 years ago was an im-
portant milestone. But it was more symbolic
than impactful, more tactical than strategic.
The United States might be leaving Afghan-
istan, but al-Qaida remains, long after bin La-
den is gone.
Bin Laden is long gone, but al-Qaida is thrivingBY COLIN P. CLARKE
Special to The Washington Post
Colin P. Clarke is the director of research and policy at TheSoufan Group.
President Joe Biden’s address to
Congress focused rather heavily on
domestic matters, particularly his
$2.3 trillion “infrastructure” pack-
age. We didn’t hear much about foreign af-
fairs. That’s because he’s put them on the
backburner to press forward with his “trans-
formative,” and unprecedentedly expensive,
domestic agenda.
We’ve seen this approach to governing be-
fore — from Lyndon B. Johnson, arguably one
of the nation’s least successful modern presi-
dents.
It’s a path that doesn’t seem to be working
out too well for Biden, either. At the mark of his
first 100 days in office, he is polling poorly with
almost half the electorate, despite an obsequi-
ous press lauding his every move. If Biden
wants to avoid the race for the bottom in presi-
dential rankings, he will have to rethink his ap-
proach to both domestic and foreign challeng-
es and, just as importantly, how he balances
both.
Thus far, the White House has pressed an
agenda to radically remake America. Federa-
lizing elections, expanding the welfare state,
and massively expanding the size, reach and
authority of the federal government are just
the tip of the iceberg. Meanwhile, major for-
eign policy problems have gotten short shrift.
While the administration has been heavy on
globalist rhetoric, its actions have been limit-
ed pretty much to reversing Trump policies on
climate change and the Iran nuclear deal.
A recent example of this lackluster foreign
policy is the U.S. response to Russia’s massive
military buildup near Ukraine. Finger-wav-
ing and the lame promise of a convening a
summit to talk things over won’t keep the Rus-
sian bear at bay.
Clearly, rather than deal with foreign
threats, the president wishes to concentrate
on jamming through the most radical domes-
tic agenda in modern history.
In this, history repeats. After his unexpect-
ed elevation to the Oval Office, Lyndon John-
son put together his Great Society agenda, an
ambitious splurge of federal spending and ex-
pansive bureaucracy meant to eliminate pov-
erty and end racism. To come up with the mon-
ey needed to launch the Great Society, John-
son tried to relegate the Cold War to a second-
tier issue. He sent a small number of troops to
South Vietnam to keep the North Vietnamese
at bay. But the main idea was to spend just
enough on “guns” to avoid suffering a humili-
ating loss (as had happened to President Har-
ry Truman when China went communist un-
der his watch), while funneling huge amounts
of money into Great Society programs.
But the incremental approach in Vietnam
failed to deter the North Vietnamese. The war
just kept getting bigger, even as Johnson spent
like a drunken sailor on his domestic agenda.
Meanwhile, the domestic economy went into a
tailspin.
Worse, the Great Society proved to be any-
thing but great. The pseudo-socialist experi-
ment failed abysmally, leading to a sharp de-
cline of race relations and the near collapse of
American inner cities, as described well in
Amity Shlaes’ “The Great Society: A New His-
tory” (2020).
Johnson’s time in the Oval Office left Amer-
ica angry, divided and dissolute — weaker at
home and disrespected abroad. We shouldn’t
assume it can’t happen again.
We live in an age of great power competi-
tion, one in which Russia and China are grow-
ing increasingly aggressive. Foreign policy
cannot be put on hold in this environment. Yet
when it comes to addressing these adversar-
ies, Biden’s instinct seems to be to start with
the minimalist, most passive position and
work from there. So he scolds Russia, but im-
mediately offers talks and demurs from send-
ing U.S. ships into the Black Sea. In Afghanis-
tan, he decides, against military advice, to pull
out and hope for the best.
Meanwhile, Biden races blindly ahead with
domestic policies that are increasingly prov-
ing divisive. Domestic discord and political vi-
olence are getting worse, not better. Like
Johnson, Biden is proving more skilled at driv-
ing Americans apart than bringing them to-
gether, making our homeland a more troubled
and unwelcoming place.
Will Biden channel LBJ’s ghost and prioritize poorly?BY JAMES JAY CARAFANO
Tribune News Service
James Jay Carafano is vice president of The Heritage Founda-tion’s Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy.
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 15
PAGE 16 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
ACROSS
1 Vat
4 Arcade pioneer
9 Prattle
12 “I love,” to Livy
13 Actress
Sarandon
14 Spanish gold
15 Satisfactory
17 Musician Yoko
18 Nintendo console
19 Part of TLC
21 School break
24 “No seats” signs
25 Scull need
26 Spanish aunt
28 Smooth fabric
31 Shade provider
33 Pt. of speech
35 Video-
streaming site
36 Red Cross
founder Barton
38 Moment
40 Untruth
41 Lion’s locks
43 Social blunders
45 “Call Me Maybe”
singer Carly Rae
47 Transcript no.
48 — Dhabi
49 Film fan
54 Dict. info
55 Less friendly
56 Aviate
57 Canine cry
58 Spassky’s game
59 French assent
DOWN
1 Greek cross
2 Diamond arbiter
3 Droid
4 Help
5 Libya neighbor
6 Tempe sch.
7 Flat floaters
8 Draws a con-
clusion
9 “Great idea!”
10 “Rule, Britannia!”
composer
11 Rude dude
16 Have bills
20 TV host Trevor
21 Campus mil.
group
22 — Grey tea
23 Patisserie
offering
27 Billboards
29 “Would — to
you?”
30 Worn-down
pencils
32 Historic times
34 Ratatouille
ingredients
37 Lacking vigor
39 Antics
42 Son of Cain
44 “Terrif!”
45 “Gotham”
actress —
Pinkett Smith
46 Hairstylist José
50 Compete
51 Flying saucer
52 Winter ailment
53 Memo letters
Answer to Previous Puzzle
Eugene Sheffer CrosswordFra
zz
Dilbert
Pearls B
efo
re S
win
eN
on S
equitur
Candorv
ille
Carp
e D
iem
Beetle B
ailey
Biz
arr
o
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 17
PAGE 18 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
FACES
When Marvel Studios reached out
to Carl Lumbly to ask if he would
be interested in joining the Cap-
tain America mythos with a key
role in the Disney+ series “The Falcon and the
Winter Soldier,” the veteran actor couldn’t
help but think about how often roles of a super
nature have come his way over his career.
“I frankly have been delighted, if not a little
surprised, by the number of times that I’ve got-
ten an opportunity to play superheroes,”
Lumbly said to The Washington Post.
Lumbly, 69, is one of the rare actors who has
performed through many eras of superheroes
on-screen. Well before the genre became
mainstream — and almost a quarter century
before Chadwick Boseman graced the screen
as the ultimate Black superhero, the Black
Panther — Lumbly was putting on a mask and
fighting crime in front of the camera. He has
recognized how the Black superhero has
evolved — and why “Falcon” is an important
milestone.
In 1994, he starred in “M.A.N.T.I.S.” as a sci-
entist who was paralyzed by police gunfire and
builds a high-tech suit to fight crime, corrup-
tion and racism. Debuting just two years after
the Rodney King verdict in Los Angeles, the
show was produced by Sam Raimi — who
would go on to direct the original “Spider-
Man” trilogy and help give birth to the modern
superhero era of cinema — and developed by
Sam Hamm, who had a hand in writing Tim
Burton’s “Batman” and “Batman Returns.”
“M.A.N.T.I.S.” did not create a television su-
perhero boom, however — it was canceled af-
ter one season.
The Justice League came calling in 2001
with what would go on to be a cult hit animated
series. Lumbly was the voice of J’onn J’onzz,
the Martian Manhunter, alongside some of su-
perhero animation’s greatest vocal talents, in-
cluding Kevin Conroy (Batman), Tim Daly
(Superman), Susan Eisenberg (Wonder Wom-
an) and Phil LaMarr (Green Lantern).
In “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,” he
was asked to be Marvel Studios’ first Black su-
per-soldier, Isaiah Bradley, with an origin sto-
ry that would serve as a prelude to Sam Wilson
(Anthony Mackie) becoming Captain Ameri-
ca.
Lumbly had perhaps the most impactful mo-
ment in “Falcon,” looking Mackie’s Sam Wil-
son in the eye before Sam’s ascension to the
role of Captain America and telling him he
wanted no part of it. Bradley felt what the Unit-
ed States had done to him in making him a su-
per-soldier and then locking him away for dec-
ades to hide the secret of his superpowered ex-
istence was an unforgivable act.
“You think things are different? You think
times are different?” he asked Sam. “They will
never let a Black man be Captain America.
And even if they did, no self-respecting Black
man would ever wanna be.”
Lumbly equates the scene with the conver-
sation many Black Americans were having as
Barack Obama became president, about the
fears for his safety given America’s history
with Black men with power. Bradley repre-
sents the old guard of Black men who would
never trust the United States. Mackie’s Falcon
has hope for a brighter and more inclusive fu-
ture, thinking more of positive possibilities and
not inevitable responses.
“Because of efforts of people who put their
head down and kept moving forward it leads
this generation today to a place where Anthony
Mackie [as Sam] can have agency and make a
decision” to become Captain America, Lumbly
said. “Isaiah had no agency. And with that
agency comes responsibility. He’s thoughtful
about it. It means something to him.”
When asked if his time as Isaiah Bradley is
complete, Lumbly says that it’s up to Marvel.
“I like Marvel,” Lumbly said. “If there’s
more, I’m here. If there’s not, I loved being
here.”
Marvel Studios and Disney+
Carl Lumbly, right, is Isaiah Bradley, a former soldier with a connection to the legacy of Captain America in “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.”
Return of the veteran superheroBY DAVID BETANCOURT
The Washington Post
Lumbly’s pivotal part on Marvel series comes decades after his first crime-fighting role
The Billboard Music Awards
nominations hit a much higher
note for The Weeknd than the
Grammys did.
The R&B superstar, who shock-
ingly didn’t receive a single Gram-
my nod in 2021 despite having a
prolific musical year, leads all
nominees at
this month’s
Billboard cere-
mony as a final-
ist in 16 catego-
ries.
His nomina-
tions, which
were unveiled
April 29, in-
clude top artist, top male artist and
top Hot 100 artist, while his album
“After Hours” is up for top Bill-
board 200 album and top R&B al-
bum.
The singer, whose real name is
Abel Tesfaye, vowed to boycott fu-
ture Grammys following this
year’s snub. “After Hours”
peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard al-
bum chart last year, while the
song “Blinding Lights” reached
the top spot on the singles chart.
Other top nominees for the 2021
Billboard Music Awards, which
take place May 23 at the Microsoft
Theater in Los Angeles, include
rapper DaBaby, who received the
second-most nominations with 11,
and Gabby Barrett, who led all fe-
male artists with nine.
The Weeknd, meanwhile, is
joined in the coveted top artist cat-
egory by Drake, Taylor Swift, Pop
Smoke and Juice WRLD.
Juice WRLD died at age 21 from
a seizure linked to drugs. The
Brooklyn, N.Y.-born Pop Smoke
was shot to death in 2020 in Holly-
wood Hills at age 20.
Other notable nominees at next
month’s award ceremony include
Megan Thee Stallion, who is a fi-
nalist in seven categories, includ-
ing top female artist. Swift is also
nominated in that category, as are
Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa and Bil-
lie Eilish.
Billboard Musicgives The Weeknd16 nominations
From wire reports
The Weeknd
A gentle check-in from longtime friend
Michael B. Jordan helped pave the way for
Lauren London’s return to work after the
death of her fiance Nipsey Hussle two years
ago.
“Well, Mike reached out to me personally
and I was like, ‘I don’t know, Mike. I don’t
know if it’s time for me to get back,’” she re-
called in a recent interview. “I wasn’t sure if
I felt ready.”
London plays Jordan’s wife in “Tom
Clancy’s Without Remorse,” and the cou-
ple’s relationship in the script drew her in.
Her character’s death is the catalyst for the
rest of the film, with Jordan’s character
seeking revenge against Russian ex-mili-
tary forces who killed her and members of
his Navy SEALS team.
“The character ... was real and it was gen-
uine: their love, her passing ... but still guid-
ing him and being with him rang true for
me.”
Filming the same year as Hussle’s death,
London called the process cathartic.
“(It was) one of many things that helped
in my healing,” she said. “I got to cry a lot. I
was away from my children for 11 days, so I
try to hold on really strong in front of them,
and so the 11 days away allowed me to really
be alone and grieve.
“I think when something really tragic
happens to you, you’re not sure your place-
ment in the world afterwards, and doing
this film and being able to work again made
me feel like I had something to give again,”
London said.
London, who starred in films like “ATL”
and the popular TV series “The Game,”
said now that she’s back to work, she’s
pursuing new projects, but her outlook is
much different now.
“I want to be more in a ownership posi-
tion. I want to create content that now aligns
with my voice and purpose.”
“Without Remorse” is now airing on
Amazon Prime Video.
‘Without Remorse’ role proved cathartic for grieving actressBY GARY GERARD HAMILTON
Associated Press
NADJA KLIER, AMAZON/AP
Michael B. Jordan, left, and LaurenLondon play husband and wife in “TomClancy’s Without Remorse.”
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 19
SCOREBOARD
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
NCAA FCS PlayoffsFirst Round
Saturday, April 24South Dakota St. 31, Holy Cross 3 S. Illinois 34, Weber St. 31 Delaware 19, Sacred Heart 10 Jacksonville St. 49, Davidson 14 James Madison 31, VMI 24 North Dakota 44, Missouri St. 10 North Dakota St. 42, E. Washington 20 Sam Houston 21, Monmouth 15
QuarterfinalsSunday, May 2
South Dakota St. (61) �vs. S. Illinois (63)Delaware (60) vs. Jacksonville St. (102)James Madison (60) vs. North Dakota
(51)North Dakota St. (72) vs. Sam Houston
(70)Semifinals
Saturday, May 8TBD
FinalsSunday, May 16
TBD
TENNIS
Madrid Open
SaturdayAt Caja Magica
MadridPurse: Euro 2,614,465
Surface: Red clayMen’s SinglesQualification
Yoshihito Nishioka (2), Japan, def. PabloCuevas, Uruguay, 64, 64.
Gianluca Mager, Italy, def. Egor Gerasimov (9), Belarus, 64, 63.
Lorenzo Musetti, Italy, def. Radu Albot(14), Moldova, 63, 64.
Roberto Carballes Baena, Spain, def.Emil Ruusuvuori (8), Finland, 62, 63.
PierreHugues Herbert, France, def. Tennys Sandgren (4), United States, 63, 62.
Marcos Giron, United States, def. ThiagoMonteiro (11), Brazil, 64, 67, 76.
Marco Cecchinato, Italy, def. FrancesTiafoe (5), United States, 76, 62.
Carlos Taberner, Spain, def. JordanThompson (3), Australia, 36, 76, 62.
Juan Ignacio Londero, Argentina, def.Laslo Djere (1), Serbia, 63, 36, 62.
Federico Delbonis (12), Argentina, def.Bernabe Zapata Miralles, Spain, 76, 76.
Arthur Cazaux, France, def. SebastianKorda (6), United States, 76, 64.
Alexei Popyrin (10), Australia, def. Federico Coria, Argentina, 67, 64, 63.
Stefano Travaglia (7), Italy, def. CarlosGimeno Valero, Spain, 57, 61, 75.
Pablo Andujar (13), Spain, def. MikhailKukushkin, Kazakhstan, 63, 64.
Women’s SinglesRound of 32
Ashleigh Barty (1), Australia, def. Tamara Zidansek, Slovenia, 64, 16, 63.
Anastasija Sevastova, Latvia, def. Johanna Konta (15), Britain, 63, 63.
Iga Swiatek (14), Poland, def. Laura Siegemund, Germany, 63, 63.
Petra Kvitova (9), Czech Republic, def.Angelique Kerber, Germany, 64, 75.
Ons Jabeur, Tunisia, def. Sloane Stephens, United States, 46, 61, 63.
Veronika Kudermetova, Russia, def. KikiBertens (7), Netherlands, 64, 63.
Paula Badosa, Spain, def. Jil Teichmann,Switzerland, 57, 61, 62.
Belinda Bencic (8), Switzerland, def. Bernarda Pera, United States, 36, 61, 76 (5).
Women’s DoublesRound of 32
RalucaIoana Olaru, Romania, and Nadiia Kichenok, Ukraine, def. Zhaoxuan Yang,China, and Ekaterina Alexandrova, Russia,75, 63.
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Russia, andJelena Ostapenko, Latvia, def. YaroslavaShvedova, Kazakhstan, and Makoto Ninomiya, Japan, 61, 57, 107.
Vera Zvonareva and Elena Vesnina, Russia, def. Lucie Hradecka, Czech Republic,and Laura Siegemund, Germany, 63, 64.
Renata Voracova, Czech Republic, andNao Hibino, Japan, def. Shuko Aoyama andEna Shibahara (4), Japan, 76 (4), 46, 107.
BMW OpenSaturday
At MTTC IphitosMunich
Purse: Euro 419,470Surface: Red clay
Men’s SinglesSemifinals
JanLennard Struff (7), Germany, def.Ilya Ivashka, Belarus, 64, 61.
Nikoloz Basilashvili (5), Georgia, def.Casper Ruud (2), Norway, 61, 62.
Estoril OpenSaturday
At Clube de Tenis do Estoril �Estoril, Portugal
Purse: Euro 419,470Surface: Red clay
Men’s SinglesSemifinals
Cameron Norrie, Britain, def. Marin Cilic(6), Croatia, 76 (5), 75.
Albert RamosVinolas (7), Spain, def.Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (8), Spain,61, 64.
Men’s DoublesSemifinals
Dominic Inglot and Luke Bambridge, Britain, def. Gonzalo Escobar, Ecuador, andAriel Behar, Uruguay, 63, 64.
AUTO RACING
Truck Wise Power 200
NASCAR TruckSaturday
At Kansas SpeedwayKansas City, Kan.
Lap length: 1.50 miles(Start position in parentheses)
1. (2) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 140 laps, 0points.
2. (34) Ross Chastain, Chevrolet, 140, 0. 3. (7) Austin Hill, Toyota, 140, 46. 4. (17) Christian Eckes, Toyota, 140, 33. 5. (1) John H. Nemechek, Toyota, 140, 50. 6. (6) Todd Gilliland, Ford, 140, 36. 7. (9) Zane Smith, Chevrolet, 140, 36. 8. (15) Raphael Lessard, Chevrolet, 140,
29. 9. (4) Johnny Sauter, Toyota, 140, 28. 10. (3) Ben Rhodes, Toyota, 140, 37. 11. (5) Chandler Smith, Toyota, 140, 26. 12. (26) Bayley Currey, Chevrolet, 140, 0. 13. (20) Hailie Deegan, Ford, 140, 25. 14. (10) Stewart Friesen, Toyota, 140, 32. 15. (13) Tyler Ankrum, Chevrolet, 140, 22. 16. (16) Austin Wayne Self, Chevrolet,
139, 21. 17. (29) Grant Enfinger, Chevrolet, 139,
20. 18. (18) Tanner Gray, Ford, 139, 19. 19. (30) Chase Briscoe, Ford, 139, 0. 20. (31) Ryan Truex, Chevrolet, 139, 17. 21. (22) Timothy Peters, Chevrolet, 139,
16. 22. (25) Timmy Hill, Chevrolet, 139, 0. 23. (11) Carson Hocevar, Chevrolet, 139,
14. 24. (12) Matt Crafton, Toyota, 139, 19. 25. (23) Chase Purdy, Chevrolet, 138, 12. 26. (21) Danny Bohn, Toyota, 138, 11. 27. (32) Bret Holmes, Chevrolet, 138, 10. 28. (14) Derek Kraus, Toyota, 138, 15. 29. (19) Spencer Davis, Ford, 137, 8. 30. (36) Jordan Anderson, Chevrolet, 137,
0. 31. (28) Dawson Cram, Chevrolet, 137, 6. 32. (8) Sheldon Creed, Chevrolet, 136, 21. 33. (24) Kris Wright, Chevrolet, 135, 4. 34. (40) Cj McLaughlin, Toyota, 133, 3. 35. (27) Spencer Boyd, Chevrolet, 133, 2. 36. (35) Tate Fogleman, Chevrolet, 130, 1. 37. (39) Jennifer Jo Cobb, Chevrolet, elec
trical, 106, 1. 38. (38) Jesse Iwuji, Chevrolet, garage,
73, 1. 39. (37) Norm Benning, Chevrolet, ga
rage, 42, 1. 40. (33) Ryan Reed, Chevrolet, garage,
27, 1.
Race Statistics
Average Speed of Race Winner: 119.585mph.
Time of Race: 1 hour, 45 minutes, 22 seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.665 seconds. Caution Flags: 5 for 25 laps. Lead Changes: 14 among 7 drivers. Lap Leaders: J.Nemechek 011; S.Creed
1225; K.Busch 2637; S.Creed 3839;K.Busch 4063; J.Nemechek 6468; K.Busch6974; S.Creed 7599; K.Busch 100;B.Rhodes 101102; C.Eckes 103105; J.Sauter 106118; K.Busch 119132; R.Chastain133138; K.Busch 139140
Genesys 300
IndyCar �Saturday
At Texas Motor SpeedwayFort Worth, Texas.
Lap length: 1.5 miles(Start position in parentheses)
1. (3) Scott Dixon, DallaraHonda, 212laps, Running.
2. (15) Scott McLaughlin, DallaraChevrolet, 212, Running.
3. (11) Pato O'Ward, DallaraChevrolet,212, Running.
4. (1) Alex Palou, DallaraHonda, 212,Running.
5. (13) Graham Rahal, DallaraHonda,212, Running.
6. (10) Josef Newgarden, DallaraChevrolet, 212, Running.
7. (6) Jack Harvey, DallaraHonda, 212,Running.
8. (16) Alexander Rossi, DallaraHonda,212, Running.
9. (12) Takuma Sato, DallaraHonda, 212,Running.
10. (5) Simon Pagenaud, DallaraChevrolet, 212, Running.
11. (23) Tony Kanaan, DallaraHonda,212, Running.
12. (19) Ed Jones, DallaraHonda, 212,Running.
13. (18) Felix Rosenqvist, DallaraChevrolet, 212, Running.
14. (2) Will Power, DallaraChevrolet,212, Running.
15. (14) Pietro Fittipaldi, DallaraHonda,212, Running.
16. (21) Ryan HunterReay, DallaraHonda, 212, Running.
17. (17) Ed Carpenter, DallaraChevrolet,212, Running.
18. (22) Dalton Kellett, DallaraChevrolet, 212, Running.
19. (9) Marcus Ericsson, DallaraHonda,211, Running.
20. (8) Rinus Veekay, DallaraChevrolet,211, Running.
21. (24) Conor Daly, DallaraChevrolet,211, Running.
22. (4) Colton Herta, DallaraHonda, 190,Did not finish.
23. (20) James Hinchcliffe, DallaraHonda, 158, Did not finish.
24. (7) Sebastien Bourdais, DallaraChevrolet, 55, Did not finish.
Race Statistics
Average Speed of Race Winner: 173.036mph.
Time of Race: 01:45:51.3417. Margin of Victory: 0.2646 seconds. Cautions: 2 for 29 laps. Lead Changes: 3 among 2 drivers.
Saturday’s TransactionsBASEBALL
Major League BaseballAmerican League
CHICAGO WHITE SOX — Activated RHPLance Lynn from the 10day IL. OptionedOF Luis González to alternate training site.
CLEVELAND INDIANS — Placed RF Franmil Reyes on the paternity list. Recalled RFDaniel Johnson from alternate trainingsite.
KANSAS CITY ROYALS — Optioned 1BRyan McBroom to alternate training site.Recalled LHP Kris Bubic from Omaha (TripleA East). Placed RHP Kyle Zimmer onthe 10day IL. Recalled RHP Jake Newberryfrom Omaha (TripleA East).
NEW YORK YANKEES — Placed RHP Darren O’Day on the 10day injured list, retroactive to April 30. Recalled RHP MichaelKing from alternate site.
SEATTLE MARINERS — Recalled RHPWyatt Mills from alternate training site.Designated C Jacob Nottingham for assignment.
TAMPA BAY RAYS — Optioned RHPsLouis Head and Trevor Richards to Durham (TripleA East). Activated LHPs RichHill and Cody Reed from the 10day IL.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS — Acquired RHPPaxton Schultz from Milwaukee as playerto be named later.
National LeagueATLANTA BRAVES — Recalled CF Chris
tian Pache from alternate training site.Placed CF Guillermo Heredia on the 10dayIL, retroactive to April 30.
CHICAGO CUBS — Optioned LHP KyleRyan to Iowa (TripleA East). Recalled RHPKeegan Thompson from alternate trainingsite.
COLORADO ROCKIES — Placed RHP Antonio Senzatela on the 10day IL, retroactive to April 30. Recalled LHP Lucas Gilbreath from alternate training site.
LOS ANGELES DODGERS — Recalled LHPAlex Vesia from alternate training site.Optioned RHP pitcher Edwin Uceta to alternate training site.
MILWAUKEE BREWERS — Placed C OmarNarvaez 10day IL. Recalled C Mario Feliciano from alternate training site.
PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES — Activated SSDidi Gregorius from the 10day IL. Optioned C Rafael Marchan to alternatetraining site. Recalled CF Mickey Moniakfrom alternate training site. Placed CF Romain Quinn on the 10day IL.
BASKETBALLNational Basketball Association
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS — Signed FMfiondu Kabengele for the remainder ofthe season.
Women’s National BasketballAssociation
LAS VEGAS ACES — Announced C KateCain cleared waivers.
MINNESOTA LYNX — Announced F AlexWittinger cleared waivers.
FOOTBALLNational Football League
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS — Exercised theirfifthyear option on T Mike McGlinchey forthe 2022 season.
HOCKEYNational Hockey League
ANAHEIM DUCKS — Recalled G LukasDostal and LW Maxim Golod from San Diego (AHL) loan. Assigned G Olle Erikssonand RW Jacob Perreault to San Diego(AHL).
BOSTON BRUINS — Recalled G JeremySwayman from the minor league taxisquad.
BUFFALO SABRES — Recalled G UkkoPekka Luukkonen from the minor leaguetaxi squad.
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS — Recalled RWJohn Quenneville from Rockford (AHL)loan.
COLORADO AVALANCHE — Recalled DDan Renouf from Colorado (AHL) loan.Reassigned G Jonas Johansson to Colorado (AHL) from the taxi squad and Gs AdamWerner and Hunter Miska from Colorado(AHL) to the taxi squad.
DETROIT RED WINGS — Recalled C JoeVeleno from the minor league taxi squad.
MONTREAL CANADIENS — Recalled CsAlex Belzile and Ryan Poehling from Laval(AHL) loan and placed on taxi squad.
PHILADELPHIA FLYERS — Recalled DWyatte Wylie from Lehigh Valley (AHL)loan to taxi squad. Reassigned D EgorZamula to Lehigh Valley (AHL).
PITTSBURGH PENGUINS — Assigned GMax Lagace to WilkesBarre/Scranton(AHL).
SAN JOSE SHARKS — Loaned D JacobMiddleton to San Jose (AHL) from taxisquad.
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING — Recalled GChristopher Gibson from the minor leaguetaxi squad. Signed G Hugo Alnefelt to anentrylevel contract.
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS — Assigned DMartin Marincin and G Veini Vehvilainento Toronto (AHL).
SOCCERNational Women’s Soccer League
NWSL — Suspended Chicago Red StarMF Morgan Gautrat onegame for unsportsmanlike conduct in a match on April27 against OL Reign and Kansas City F Mariana Larroquette onegame for unsportsmanlike conduct in a match on April 26against Houston Dash.
DEALS SOCCER
MLS
Eastern Conference
W L T Pts GF GA
New England 2 0 1 7 5 3
New York City FC 2 1 0 6 8 2
Orlando City 1 0 2 5 4 1
Montreal 1 0 2 5 6 4
Atlanta 1 1 1 4 4 3
New York 1 2 0 3 5 5
Inter Miami CF 1 1 0 3 4 4
D.C. United 1 2 0 3 3 6
Nashville 0 0 2 2 4 4
Columbus 0 0 2 2 0 0
Toronto FC 0 1 1 1 4 6
Philadelphia 0 2 1 1 1 4
Chicago 0 2 1 1 3 7
Cincinnati 0 2 1 1 2 10
Western Conference
W L T Pts GF GA
San Jose 2 1 0 6 8 4
Real Salt Lake 2 0 0 6 5 2
LA Galaxy 2 0 0 6 6 4
Austin 2 1 0 6 4 3
Los Angeles FC 1 0 2 5 4 2
Seattle 1 0 1 4 5 1
FC Dallas 1 1 1 4 5 4
Vancouver 1 0 1 4 3 2
Houston 1 1 1 4 4 4
Kansas City 1 1 1 4 4 5
Portland 1 2 0 3 3 6
Colorado 0 1 1 1 1 3
Minnesota United 0 3 0 0 1 7
Saturday, May 1
New York 2, Chicago 0Real Salt Lake 3, Sporting Kansas City 1Columbus 0, Montreal 0, tieLos Angeles FC 1, Houston 1, tieNew England 2, Atlanta 1Orlando City 3, Cincinnati 0New York City FC 2, Philadelphia 0Austin 1, Minnesota 0FC Dallas 4, Portland 1San Jose 4, D.C. United 1
Sunday, May 2
Miami at NashvilleLA Galaxy at SeattleColorado at Vancouver
Valspar ChampionshipPGA Tour
SaturdayAt Innisbrook ResortCooperhead Course
Palm Harbor, Fla.Purse: $6.9 million
Yardage: 7,340; Par: 71Third Round
Keegan Bradley 64-66-69—199 -14 Sam Burns 67-63-69—199 -14 Max Homa 66-68-66—200 -13 Ted Potter, Jr. 67-73-63—203 -10 Abraham Ancer 67-70-66—203 -10 Joaquin Niemann 68-68-67—203 -10 Cameron Tringale 69-67-67—203 -10 Charley Hoffman 68-66-70—204 -9 Brandt Snedeker 69-69-67—205 -8 Bubba Watson 70-67-68—205 -8 Troy Merritt 68-69-68—205 -8 Scottie Scheffler 73-67-66—206 -7 Louis Oosthuizen 73-67-66—206 -7 Viktor Hovland 69-69-68—206 -7 Vaughn Taylor 70-67-69—206 -7 Jason Kokrak 67-69-70—206 -7 Hank Lebioda 66-69-71—206 -7 Justin Thomas 69-71-67—207 -6 Bronson Burgoon 71-68-68—207 -6 Bo Van Pelt 71-67-69—207 -6 Kevin Na 68-69-70—207 -6 Danny Lee 70-67-70—207 -6 Matthew NeSmith 70-69-69—208 -5 Camilo Villegas 71-68-69—208 -5 Corey Conners 70-68-70—208 -5 Charles Howell III 70-68-70—208 -5 Pat Perez 68-68-72—208 -5 Jason Dufner 70-71-68—209 -4 Denny McCarthy 72-69-68—209 -4 Wyndham Clark 69-72-68—209 -4 Ian Poulter 69-71-69—209 -4 Russell Knox 69-70-70—209 -4 Kyoung-Hoon Lee 69-69-71—209 -4 Scott Stallings 67-69-73—209 -4 Tom Lewis 70-65-74—209 -4 Sungjae Im 68-67-74—209 -4 Zach Johnson 68-67-74—209 -4 Charl Schwartzel 70-65-74—209 -4 Jimmy Walker 72-69-69—210 -3 Vincent Whaley 69-71-70—210 -3 Ryan Palmer 70-70-70—210 -3 Jhonattan Vegas 70-69-71—210 -3 Scott Brown 67-72-71—210 -3 Chase Koepka 68-70-72—210 -3 Henrik Norlander 69-69-72—210 -3 Kyle Stanley 68-70-72—210 -3 Kramer Hickok 67-74-70—211 -2 J.T. Poston 68-73-70—211 -2
Alex Noren 73-68-70—211 -2 Ryan Moore 66-74-71—211 -2 Keith Mitchell 70-70-71—211 -2 Adam Schenk 71-69-71—211 -2 Paul Casey 68-71-72—211 -2 Michael Gligic 69-68-74—211 -2 Lucas Glover 69-65-77—211 -2 Byeong Hun An 70-71-71—212 -1 Luke Donald 69-72-71—212 -1 Wesley Bryan 69-71-72—212 -1 Branden Grace 69-68-75—212 -1 Brandon Hagy 74-67-72—213 EHenrik Stenson 71-70-72—213 ETyler Duncan 70-71-72—213 EPeter Uihlein 73-68-72—213 EDoc Redman 68-72-73—213 EDustin Johnson 71-68-74—213 EJ.B. Holmes 70-71-74—215 +2 Joseph Bramlett 71-70-74—215 +2 Beau Hossler 68-72-75—215 +2 Patton Kizzire 66-75-76—217 +4
HSBC World ChampionshipLPGA Tour
SaturdayAt Sentosa Golf Club
Tanjong Course
Singapore
Purse: $1.6 millionYardage: 6,772; Par: 72
Third RoundXiyu Lin 67-68-67—202 -14 Hannah Green 71-66-66—203 -13 Inbee Park 64-69-70—203 -13 Gaby Lopez 68-71-65—204 -12 In Gee Chun 71-69-66—206 -10 Lydia Ko 69-68-69—206 -10 So Yeon Ryu 67-69-70—206 -10 Madelene Sagstrom 69-70-68—207 -9 Amy Yang 68-69-70—207 -9 Hyo Joo Kim 67-68-72—207 -9 Patty Tavatanakit 70-70-68—208 -8 Sophia Popov 67-70-71—208 -8 Amy Olson 71-70-68—209 -7 Gerina Piller 72-67-70—209 -7 Carlota Ciganda 69-67-73—209 -7 Moriya Jutanugarn 71-70-69—210 -6 Ally Ewing 72-66-72—210 -6 Celine Boutier 73-69-69—211 -5 Brittany Altomare 68-71-72—211 -5 Caroline Masson 67-70-74—211 -5 Angela Stanford 74-70-68—212 -4 Minjee Lee 69-73-70—212 -4 Nicole Broch Larsen 72-69-71—212 -4 Megan Khang 72-69-71—212 -4 Emily Kristine Pedersen 71-70-71—212 -4 Chella Choi 71-70-71—212 -4
Charley Hull 69-72-71—212 -4 Su Oh 68-72-72—212 -4 Jodi Ewart Shadoff 70-68-74—212 -4 Hee Young Park 65-68-79—212 -4 Wei-Ling Hsu 71-71-71—213 -3 Brittany Lincicome 74-67-72—213 -3 Jasmine Suwannapura 71-70-72—213 -3 Marina Alex 69-72-72—213 -3 Pornanong Phatlum 69-71-73—213 -3 Katherine Kirk 69-71-73—213 -3 Bronte Law 70-68-75—213 -3 Ariya Jutanugarn 74-74-66—214 -2 Jin Young Ko 71-76-67—214 -2 Shanshan Feng 68-70-76—214 -2 In Kyung Kim 73-72-70—215 -1 Jeongeun Lee6 68-74-73—215 -1 Mel Reid 70-70-75—215 -1 Lizette Salas 73-72-71—216 EAlena Sharp 73-72-71—216 EAzahara Munoz 73-71-72—216 EAngel Yin 71-73-72—216 EA Lim Kim 74-70-73—217 +1 Jing Yan 72-72-73—217 +1 Nasa Hataoka 74-72-72—218 +2 Annie Park 71-68-79—218 +2 Sung Hyun Park 78-71-70—219 +3 Jaye Marie Green 75-73-71—219 +3 Eun-Hee Ji 73-75-71—219 +3 Yu Liu 74-73-72—219 +3 Georgia Hall 73-73-73—219 +3 Jenny Shin 76-69-74—219 +3 Sarah Schmelzel 70-74-75—219 +3 Anna Nordqvist 74-73-73—220 +4 Cheyenne Knight 70-74-76—220 +4 Cydney Clanton 75-71-75—221 +5 Mi Hyang Lee 75-71-75—221 +5 Nanna Koerstz Madsen 72-74-75—221 +5 Danielle Kang 72-73-76—221 +5 Ashleigh Buhai 72-76-74—222 +6 Mirim Lee 71-77-74—222 +6 Kristen Gillman 74-75-74—223 +7 Hinako Shibuno 76-73-76—225 +9 Amanda Tan 76-76-77—229 +13
GOLF
PRO BASEBALL
MLB CalendarJuly 1113 — Amateur draft, Denver. July 13 — AllStar Game, Denver. July 25 — Hall of Fame induction, Coo
perstown, N.Y. Aug. 12 — New York Yankees vs. Chicago
White Sox at Dyersville, Iowa. Aug. 22 — Los Angeles Angels vs. Cleve
land at Williamsport, Pa. Dec. 1 — Collective bargaining agree
ment expires, 11:59 p.m. EST.
PAGE 20 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
NHL
East Division
GP W L OT Pts GF GA
x-Pittsburgh 52 34 15 3 71 178 142
x-Washington 51 32 14 5 69 175 152
x-N.Y. Islanders 51 31 15 5 67 143 114
Boston 50 30 14 6 66 150 123
N.Y. Rangers 52 26 20 6 58 167 139
Philadelphia 51 22 22 7 51 144 186
New Jersey 51 17 27 7 41 136 178
Buffalo 52 13 32 7 33 126 185
Central Division
GP W L OT Pts GF GA
x-Carolina 51 34 10 7 75 166 121
x-Florida 53 34 14 5 73 175 148
x-Tampa Bay 51 34 14 3 71 170 130
Nashville 52 28 22 2 58 142 146
Dallas 51 21 17 13 55 140 133
Chicago 51 22 23 6 50 146 167
Detroit 53 18 26 9 45 117 162
Columbus 52 16 25 11 43 123 172
West Division
GP W L OT Pts GF GA
x-Vegas 50 36 12 2 74 168 110
x-Colorado 49 33 12 4 70 171 120
x-Minnesota 50 32 14 4 68 162 135
St. Louis 49 23 19 7 53 147 154
Arizona 52 22 24 6 50 139 163
San Jose 51 20 26 5 45 138 176
Los Angeles 49 19 24 6 44 130 147
Anaheim 52 16 29 7 39 116 166
North Division
GP W L OT Pts GF GA
x-Toronto 51 33 13 5 71 172 133
Edmonton 49 30 17 2 62 158 131
Winnipeg 50 27 20 3 57 153 143
Montreal 50 23 18 9 55 145 145
Calgary 50 22 25 3 47 132 144
Ottawa 51 19 27 5 43 141 177
Vancouver 45 19 23 3 41 119 147
x-clinched playoff spot
Friday’s games
Montreal 5, Winnipeg 3 Colorado 3, San Jose 0 Los Angeles 2, Anaheim 1 Arizona 3, Vegas 0
Saturday’s games
Boston 6, Buffalo 2 Detroit 1, Tampa Bay 0, SO N.Y. Islanders 3, N.Y. Rangers 0 Carolina 2, Columbus 1, OT New Jersey 4, Philadelphia 1 Toronto 5, Vancouver 1 Pittsburgh 3, Washington 0 Montreal 3, Ottawa 2, OT Florida 5, Chicago 4 Minnesota 4, St. Louis 3, OT Nashville 1, Dallas 0, OT Colorado 4, San Jose 3 Anaheim 6, Los Angeles 2 Edmonton 4, Calgary 1 Vegas 3, Arizona 2, OT
Sunday’s game
Tampa Bay at Detroit
Monday’s games
Boston at New Jersey Chicago at Carolina Dallas at Florida N.Y. Islanders at Buffalo Nashville at Columbus Pittsburgh at Philadelphia Toronto at Montreal Washington at N.Y. Rangers Winnipeg at Ottawa Anaheim at St. Louis Vegas at Minnesota Edmonton at Vancouver Los Angeles at Arizona Colorado at San Jose
Tuesday’s games
Boston at New Jersey Chicago at Carolina N.Y. Islanders at Buffalo Pittsburgh at Philadelphia
Edmonton at Vancouver
Scoring leadersThrough Saturday
GP G A PTS
Connor McDavid, EDM 48 28 56 84
Leon Draisaitl, EDM 48 24 43 67
Mitchell Marner, TOR 50 18 44 62
Patrick Kane, CHI 50 15 46 61
Nathan MacKinnon, COL 44 19 42 61
Brad Marchand, BOS 47 27 33 60
Auston Matthews, TOR 46 36 24 60
Jonathan Huberdeau, FLA 52 18 40 58
Artemi Panarin, NYR 40 17 39 56
Mark Stone, LV 48 19 37 56
Sidney Crosby, PIT 50 20 36 56
Mark Scheifele, WPG 50 19 36 55
Mikko Rantanen, COL 44 27 28 55
Jake Guentzel, PIT 51 22 31 53
Aleksander Barkov, FLA 46 24 28 52
Scoreboard
UNIONDALE, N.Y. — Anthony
Beauvillier scored twice and Se-
myon Varlamov stopped 28 shots
for his league-leading seventh shut-
out of the season as the New York
Islanders beat the rival Rangers 3-0
Saturday night to clinch a playoff
spot for the third straight year.
Mathew Barzal added a break-
away goal and Josh Bailey had
three assists to help the Islanders
beat the Rangers for the sixth time
in eight meetings this season, in-
cluding the last three by a com-
bined 13-1 margin.
The 33-year-old Varlamov, who
had three shutouts against the
Rangers at Madison Square Gar-
den, added another as the Islanders
dominated from start to finish.
Alexandar Georgiev finished
with 22 saves for the Rangers.
Bruins 6, Sabres 2: Craig Smith
scored three goals to help host Bos-
ton win for the ninth time in 11
games.
The Bruins remained in fourth
place in the East Division, a point
behind the third-place Islanders,
who beat the Rangers 3-0. Boston’s
next point will clinch a playoff
berth. It also will earn a spot if the
fifth-place Rangers don’t win all of
their final four games.
Devils 4, Flyers 1: Mackenzie
Blackwood stopped 30 shots as vis-
iting New Jersey got its third
straight win.
Jesper Bratt, Janne Kuokkanen,
Nico Hischier and Yegor Sharan-
govich all scored for the Devils,
who had lost 10 straight games be-
fore this recent stretch during a
four game series against the Flyers.
Hurricanes 2, Blue Jackets 1
(OT): Dougie Hamilton scored on a
breakaway 4:07 into overtime to lift
host Carolina past Columbus.
Goalie Alex Nedeljkovic picked
up the assist on the winning play as
the Central Division-leading Hurri-
canes extended their points streak
to 10 games.
Wild 4, Blues 3 (OT):Kevin Fiala
scored 2:16 into overtime and Min-
nesota rallied to beat visiting St.
Louis.
Nico Strum and Jonas Brodin
scored late in the third period to
force overtime for the Wild, who
won for the first time in three
games. Mats Zuccarello had a goal
and an assist.
Avalanche 4, Sharks 3: Nathan
MacKinnon bounced back from a
rare scoreless night with a goal and
an assist to lead host Colorado.
Mikko Rantanen scored his 28th
of the season and added an assist
for the Avalanche. Andre Burakov-
sky and Patrik Nemeth also scored,
and Devan Dubnyk stopped 22
shots against his former team.
Panthers 5, Blackhawks 4: An-
thony Duclair had two goals and an
assist and visiting Florida won its
third straight.
Aleksander Barkov scored his
team-leading 25th goal and had an
assist. Nikita Gusev and Owen Tip-
pett also scored as the Panthers im-
proved to 8-2-1 in its last 11 and re-
mained two points behind first-
place Carolina in the Central Divi-
sion.
Predators 1, Stars 0 (OT): Erik
Haula scored at 3:32 of overtime to
give the host Nashville its third win
in four games.
Golden Knights 3, Coyotes 2
(OT): Jonathan Marchessault
scored on a power play at 3:04 of
overtime, Marc-Andre Fleury
moved into a tie for the third on the
NHL’s all-time wins list and Vegas
won at Arizona.
Penguins 3, Capitals 0: Bryan
Rust scored two unassisted goals,
Tristan Jarry made 23 saves and
Pittsburgh won at Washington to
regain first place in the East Divi-
sion.
Canadiens 3, Senators 2 (OT):
Cole Caufield scored his first NHL
goal 2:25 into overtime and host
Montreal rallied to beat Ottawa.
Maple Leafs 5, Canucks 1: Aus-
ton Matthews scored twice to raise
his NHL-leading goal total to 38 as
host Toronto won its fifth straight.
Oilers 4, Flames 1: Connor
McDavid had a goal and two assists
to lead host Edmonton to a win.
Ducks 6, Kings 2: Ryan Miller
made 23 saves to win the final home
start of his 18-year NHL career, and
Anaheim ended a 23-game streak
without a home regulation victory.
FRANK FRANKLIN II/AP
New York Islanders left wing Anthony Beauvillier looks to pass during the second period of the Islanders’30 defeat of the Rangers Saturday in Uniondale, N.Y. The win clinched a playoff spot for the Islanders.
Islanders blank Rangersto secure spot in playoffsBeauvillier scores twice, Varlamov has 28 saves in team’s shutout victory
Associated Press
ROUNDUP
DETROIT — Sam Gagner
scored to end an eight-round
shootout and Thomas Greiss
stopped 33 shots, lifting the De-
troit Red Wings to a 1-0 win over
the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sat-
urday.
The defending Stanley Cup
champion Lightning were in con-
trol all afternoon, but it didn’t
show up on the scoreboard in reg-
ulation or overtime.
“We did everything we could to
win that game,” Tampa Bay
coach Jon Cooper said. “I’ll take
that game all over again. Tip your
hat to the goaltenders, including
ours.”
In the shootout, both teams
scored with their first two shoo-
ters before four in a row were de-
nied. Greiss stopped just enough
shots in the shootout to help his
rebuilding and banged-up team
beat one of the best in the league.
The Lightning’s Curtis McEl-
hinney made 15 saves over three
periods and overtime.
Detroit’s defense was stingy
throughout the game, including
early in the first when Danny De-
Keyser lay on the ice to take away
a scoring chance.
“We’re not playing for the play-
offs, but we had guys laying out to
block shots with three games
left,” coach Jeff Blashill said.
When the pucks did get past the
Red Wings’ skaters, Greiss stop-
ped them with some impressive
kick and glove saves.
Tampa Bay also missed oppor-
tunities such as Ondrej Palat fail-
ing to take advantage of having
the puck and an open net at the
end of an odd-man rush during a
4-on-4 situation.
“I got a couple big breaks
where they had a 2-on-1 and
couldn’t put the puck in the net,”
Greiss acknowledged.
Red Wingsslip pastLightningin shootout
BY LARRY LAGE
Associated Press
PAUL SANCYA/AP
Red Wings defenseman MarcStaal, left, and Lightning centerBrayden Point, right, chase thepuck in the Red Wings’ 10shootout win Saturday.
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 21
NBA
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
W L Pct GB
x-Brooklyn 43 21 .672 —
x-Philadelphia 42 21 .667 ½
New York 35 28 .556 7½
Boston 34 30 .531 9
Toronto 26 38 .406 17
Southeast Division
W L Pct GB
Atlanta 35 30 .538 —
Miami 34 30 .531 ½
Charlotte 31 32 .492 3
Washington 29 35 .453 5½
Orlando 20 44 .313 14½
Central Division
W L Pct GB
Milwaukee 39 24 .619 —
Indiana 30 33 .476 9
Chicago 26 38 .406 13½
Cleveland 21 43 .328 18½
Detroit 19 45 .297 20½
Western Conference
Southwest Division
W L Pct GB
Dallas 36 27 .571 —
Memphis 32 31 .508 4
San Antonio 31 31 .500 4½
New Orleans 29 35 .453 7½
Houston 16 48 .250 20½
Northwest Division
W L Pct GB
x-Utah 46 18 .719 —
Denver 43 21 .672 3
Portland 35 28 .556 10½
Oklahoma City 21 43 .328 25
Minnesota 20 45 .308 26½
Pacific Division
W L Pct GB
x-Phoenix 45 18 .714 —
L.A. Clippers 43 22 .662 3
L.A. Lakers 36 27 .571 9
Golden State 32 32 .500 13½
Sacramento 26 37 .413 19
x-clinched playoff spot
Saturday’s games
Charlotte 107, Detroit 94 Golden State 113, Houston 87 Miami 124, Cleveland 107 Indiana 152, Oklahoma City 95 Atlanta 108, Chicago 97 Orlando 112, Memphis 111 New Orleans 140, Minnesota 136, OT Dallas 125, Washington 124 Utah 106, Toronto 102 Denver 110, L.A. Clippers 104
Sunday’s games
Brooklyn at Milwaukee Portland at Boston Miami at Charlotte New York at Houston Philadelphia at San Antonio Phoenix at Oklahoma City Sacramento at Dallas Toronto at L.A. Lakers
Monday’s games
Indiana at Washington Orlando at Detroit Golden State at New Orleans Portland at Atlanta New York at Memphis Philadelphia at Chicago Denver at L.A. Lakers San Antonio at Utah
Tuesday’s games
Charlotte at Detroit Phoenix at Cleveland Brooklyn at Milwaukee Dallas at Miami Golden State at New Orleans Sacramento at Oklahoma City Toronto at L.A. Clippers
Leaders
Through Saturday
Scoring
G FG FT PTS AVG
Curry, GS 56 572 316 1751 31.3
Beal, WAS 55 607 374 1707 31.0
Rebounds
G OFF DEF TOT AVG
Capela, ATL 57 275 552 827 14.5
Gobert, UTA 63 210 635 845 13.4
Assists
G AST AVG
Westbrook, WAS 57 627 11.0
Young, ATL 56 527 9.4
Scoreboard
OKLAHOMA CITY — Domantas Sabonis
had a triple-double in the first half and the Indi-
ana Pacers flirted with the most lopsided victory
in NBA history before beating the Oklahoma
City Thunder 152-95 on Saturday night.
Sabonis finished with 26 points, 19 rebounds
and 14 assists, and the Pacers scored their most
points in a game since joining the NBA in 1976.
They led by 67 points with 4:12 remaining, be-
fore the Thunder scored the game’s next 10
points. The NBA’s largest victory margin re-
mains 68, set by Cleveland against Miami in
1991.
The Pacers’ previous record was 150 points
against Denver in 1982. Indiana shot 65.5% from
the field — the highest percentage for an oppo-
nent in Thunder history.
Sabonis returned after missing six straight
games with a sore lower back. He finished the
first half with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 11 as-
sists for his seventh triple-double of the season
the 11th of his career.
Hornets 107, Pistons 94: LaMelo Ball re-
turned from a 21-game absence with 11 points,
leading host Charlotte over Detroit.
A leading candidate for Rookie of the Year,
Ball had surgery to repair a broken wrist sus-
tained on March 20. The point guard played 28
minutes and added eight rebounds and seven as-
sists, including a nifty underhand pass from his
own backcourt to Miles Bridges.
Nuggets 110, Clippers 104:Nikola Jokic had
30 points and 14 rebounds, Michael Porter Jr.
scored 25 points and Denver won at Los Angeles
to take over the third seed in the Western Con-
ference.
The Nuggets, who are a half-game in front of
the Clippers at 43-21, have won five straight and
are 9-1 since Jamal Murray went down with a
torn ACL in his left knee on April 12. Murray,
who is rehabbing in Los Angeles, was at the
game.
Mavericks 125, Wizards 124: Dorian Fin-
ney-Smith hit a go-ahead three-pointer in the fi-
nal seconds, Luka Doncic ended his longest
stretch without a triple-double since his rookie
season and host Dallas won a thriller over Wash-
ington.
Doncic finished with 31 points, 12 rebounds
and a career-high 20 assists, the last to Finney-
Smith in the right corner for the lead with 9.2
seconds remaining.
Warriors 113, Rockets 87: Stephen Curry
bounced back from a rough first half with 23 of
his 30 points in the third quarter, and Golden
State won at Houston.
Curry was just 2-for-12 in the first half, then
didn’t even need to play in the fourth quarter af-
ter the Warriors outscored the Rockets 39-12 to
take an 88-67 lead.
Magic 112, Grizzlies 111: Cole Anthony
made a three-pointer with 0.1 seconds remain-
ing, giving him a career-best 26 points and Or-
lando a victory over visiting Memphis.
Anthony, a rookie who hit a game-winning
shot earlier in the season against Minnesota,
drilled the high-arching shot over the out-
stretched arm of Grizzlies guard Kyle Anderson.
Jazz 106, Raptors 102: Bojan Bogdanovic
scored 34 points — including six three-pointers
— to lead host Utah over Toronto.
Jordan Clarkson added 15 points for the Jazz,
Joe Ingles chipped in 15 points and nine assists
while Rudy Gobert added 13 points and 16 re-
bounds. Utah won for just the second time in five
games.
Hawks 108, Bulls 97: Trae Young scored 33
points, Clint Capela had 20 points and 11 re-
bounds and host Atlanta snapped a three-game
slide with a victory over undermanned Chicago.
Heat 124, Cavaliers 107: Kendrick Nunn
scored 22 points and Duncan Robinson had 20,
helping visiting Miami move into a tie for sixth
place in the Eastern Conference.
Sabonis leads Pacers’ rout of Thunder
SUE OGROCKI/AP
Indiana Pacers forward Domantas Sabonis,right, is fouled by Oklahoma City Thunderguard Theo Maledon in the Pacers’ 15296victory Saturday in Oklahoma City.
Associated Press
ROUNDUP
MINNEAPOLIS — Zion William-
son scored seven of his 37 points in
overtime and the New Orleans Pel-
icans came back to beat the Minne-
sota Timberwolves 140-136 on Sat-
urday.
Lonzo Ball had a career-high 33
points, tying a career best with eight
three-pointers, and grabbed 11 re-
bounds. Willy Hernangomez added
12 points and 12 rebounds. His fol-
low shot with 21 seconds left com-
pleted New Orleans’ comeback
from down 10 in the fourth quarter
to force overtime.
“We’ve had games where we’ve
won good,” Pelicans coach Stan Van
Gundy said. “We’ve had games
where we’ve given up leads like to-
night, but this team has never quit
on anything.”
Anthony Edwards scored 29
points for Minnesota, which had its
four-game winning streak snapped.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points
and 14 rebounds, and D’Angelo Rus-
sell finished with 17 points and 11 as-
sists.
The Timberwolves were trying
for their longest winning streak
since January 2018 in Jimmy But-
ler’s first season with the team.
“It just bogged down,” Minnesota
coach Chris Finch said of the closing
stretch in the fourth. “I think guys
were just looking to do things all by
themselves a little bit too much and
we just got to trust the ball move-
ment.”
New Orleans closed with a 14-4
run over the final 4:22 of the fourth
to force overtime and then William-
son went to work in the extra ses-
sion. Williamson added nine re-
bounds and eight assists, while three
Timberwolves players fouled out
while trying to guard Williamson.
With Ball leading the way, New
Orleans finished 14-for-36 from be-
yond the arc.
Williamson carries Pelicans in OTSeven of team-high 37in extra period cap rallyin win over Timberwolves
BY BRIAN HALL
Associated Press
STACY BENGS /AP
New Orleans forward Zion Williamson (1) shoots against the Minnesota Timberwolves’ KarlAnthonyTowns, left, and Jarred Vanderbilt during the Pelicans’ 140136 overtime win Saturday in Minneapolis.
PAGE 22 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
KENTUCKY DERBY/SPORTS BRIEFS
Protests force Man. Uto postpone game
Manchester United’s Premier
League game against Liverpool
was postponed on Sunday in Man-
chester, Englad, after supporters
stormed into the stadium and onto
the pitch as thousands of fans
gathered outside Old Trafford to
demand the Glazer family owner-
ship sells the club.
Long-running anger against the
American owners has boiled over
after they were part of the failed
attempt to take United into a Eu-
ropean Super League. United and
Liverpool players were unable to
travel to the stadium.
Busch makes up for
restart to win truck race Kyle Busch blew a restart in
overtime that should have cost
him a race he’d dominated at Kan-
sas Speedway. Given a second
chance, Busch corrected his mis-
take and earned the 61st Truck Se-
ries win of his career Saturday in
Kansas City, Kan.
The win Saturday night was the
fifth straight for Kyle Busch Mo-
torsports and manufacturer Toyo-
ta has won all seven Truck Series
races this year. Busch has won
twice this year. Busch won the
first two stages and led a race-high
59 of the 140 laps.
Dixon wins again in
IndyCar race in Texas Scott Dixon finished first in a
race of two New Zealanders, the
veteran six-time IndyCar cham-
pion ahead of the series rookie
racing in his debut on an oval
track.
“Definitely the most happy I’ve
ever been finishing second,” Scott
McLaughlin said.
It was another dominating vic-
tory for Dixon at Texas Motor
Speedway in Fort Worth, winning
Saturday night in the first of two
races on consecutive days at the
series’ first oval this season. He
passed Chip Ganassi Racing
teammate and polesitter Alex Pa-
lou at the start of the third lap and
went on to lead 206 of 212 laps.
BARRINGTON COOMBS/AP
Fans hold up a banner as theyprotest against the Glazer family,owners of Manchester United,before their match againstLiverpool was canceled Sunday.
BRIEFLY
Associated Press
loun on his outside. Hot Rod Charlie was com-
ing fast outside of Mandaloun, with 5-2 favorite
Essential Quality giving chase on the far out-
side.
“I kept waiting for all those horses to pass
him,” Baffert said. “When he got to the eighth
pole, we said, ‘This guy has got a shot.’ ”
Velazquez knew he had plenty of horse left.
“We got to the 16th pole and he put his ears
down and kept fighting,” the jockey said. “I
was so proud of him.”
In the paddock, Baffert watched in amaze-
ment as one of the least heralded Derby run-
ners of his long career dug in at the front.
“You could tell he was laying it down and
Johnny was riding hard,” Baffert said. “He was
just relentless.”
Medina Spirit led all the way and ran 1 ¼
miles in 2:01.02. He paid $26.20, $12 and $7.60.
The victory was worth $1.86 million.
Velazquez earned his fourth Derby victory
aboard the colt that was purchased as a year-
ling for $1,000 and was a bargain-basement
buy at $35,000 for current owner Amr Zedan of
Saudi Arabia. By comparison, Zedan recently
paid $1.7 million for an unraced 2-year-old.
“He doesn’t know how much he cost,” Baff-
ert said, “but what a little racehorse.”
Baffert punched his right arm in the air after
watching the finish on the video board. He was
buried in celebratory hugs by his wife, Jill, and
youngest son, Bode. Jill Baffert had reason to
celebrate earlier, when a horse she co-owns
and is trained by her husband won a $500,000
race on the undercard.
“I’m really, really surprised,” the 68-year-
old trainer said of Medina Spirit.
It wasn’t false modesty. Baffert had been
low-key about his chances after two of his best
horses — Life Is Good and Concert Tour —
were derailed along the Derby trail.
Medina Spirit isn’t the typical high-priced
talent with a fancy pedigree in Baffert’s Cali-
fornia barn.
“I cannot believe he won this race,” the
trainer said. “That little horse, that was him, all
guts. He’s always shown that he’s been an over-
achiever. His heart is bigger than his body.”
Medina Spirit has never finished worse than
second in six career starts and two of his three
losses came to Life Is Good, who likely would
have been the Derby favorite had he not been
injured.
“I’ve rehearsed this speech in the shower
and treadmill,” Zedan said. “Never thought I
was going to do it, but here I am.”
Medina Spirit broke sharply out of the gate
while Essential Quality and 9-2 second choice
Rock Your World bumped shortly after the
start.
“We were done,” Rock Your World’s trainer
John Sadler said. “No chance.”
Essential Quality was five horses wide in
both the first and second turns before taking
aim at Medina Spirit in the stretch and coming
up short in fourth place.
“He didn’t get the greatest trip,” trainer
Brad Cox said of the favorite. “That can hap-
pen when you start from the 14-hole.”
Mandaloun — Cox’s other entry — finished
second and returned $23.00 and $13.40. Hot
Rod Charlie, partly owned by five former
Brown University football players, was anoth-
er half-length back in third and paid $5.20 to
show.
Trainer Todd Pletcher saddled four run-
ners, with his highest finish being ninth with
Known Agenda. Sainthood was 11th, Bourbon-
ic 13th and Dynamic One 18th.
Baffert won back-to-back, having tied Ben
Jones with his sixth victory last year when the
race was run in September without spectators
because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“The seven wins? I can’t believe I won two,”
Baffert said. “That’s what I love about this
business: Nobody knows for sure.”
A week earlier, Baffert sat in front of the Ar-
kansas Racing Commission appealing a 15-day
suspension that was part of his punishment for
a pair of drug positives involving two of his
horses from May 2020. He was successful, with
the commission voting unanimously to reduce
his fines and overturn the suspension.
“I’m just so grateful I can still compete at this
level,” Baffert said.
PHTOOS BY JEFF ROBERSON/AP
John Velazquez, riding Medina Spirit, right, leads Florent Geroux on Mandaloun, Flavien Prat riding Hot Rod Charlie and Luis Saez on EssentialQuality to win the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, Saturday, in Louisville, Ky.
Jockey John Velazquez holds the winner’strophy after his fourth Kentucky Derby victory, Saturday, in Louisville, Ky.
Colt: Medina Spirit most unlikelyof Baffert’s seven Derby winnersFROM PAGE 24
Monday, May 3, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 23
MLB
American League
East Division
W L Pct GB
Boston 17 11 .607 _
Toronto 13 12 .520 2½
Baltimore 13 14 .481 3½
New York 13 14 .481 3½
Tampa Bay 13 15 .464 4
Central Division
W L Pct GB
Kansas City 16 9 .640 _
Chicago 15 11 .577 1½
Cleveland 12 13 .480 4
Minnesota 9 16 .360 7
Detroit 8 20 .286 9½
West Division
W L Pct GB
Oakland 16 12 .571 _
Houston 15 12 .556 ½
Seattle 15 13 .536 1
Los Angeles 13 12 .520 1½
Texas 12 16 .429 4
National League
East Division
W L Pct GB
Philadelphia 13 14 .481 _
Washington 11 12 .478 _
New York 10 11 .476 _
Atlanta 12 15 .444 1
Miami 11 15 .423 1½
Central Division
W L Pct GB
Milwaukee 17 10 .630 _
St. Louis 15 12 .556 2
Cincinnati 12 14 .462 4½
Pittsburgh 12 14 .462 4½
Chicago 12 15 .444 5
West Division
W L Pct GB
San Francisco 16 11 .593 _
Los Angeles 16 12 .571 ½
San Diego 16 12 .571 ½
Arizona 14 13 .519 2
Colorado 10 17 .370 6
Friday’s games
N.Y. Yankees 10, Detroit 0Houston 9, Tampa Bay 2Boston 6, Texas 1Toronto 13, Atlanta 5Cleveland 5, Chicago White Sox 3Minnesota 9, Kansas City 1Baltimore 3, Oakland 2Seattle 7, L.A. Angels 4St. Louis 7, Pittsburgh 3Washington 2, Miami 1, 10 inningsPhiladelphia 2, N.Y. Mets 1Cincinnati 8, Chicago Cubs 6Milwaukee 3, L.A. Dodgers 1Arizona 7, Colorado 2San Diego 3, San Francisco 2
Saturday’s games
N.Y. Yankees 6, Detroit 4Kansas City 11, Minnesota 3Houston 3, Tampa Bay 1Chicago White Sox 7, Cleveland 3Baltimore 8, Oakland 4Texas 8, Boston 6Toronto 6, Atlanta 5, 10 inningsL.A. Angels 10, Seattle 5Washington 7, Miami 2Chicago Cubs 3, Cincinnati 2N.Y. Mets 5, Philadelphia 4St. Louis 12, Pittsburgh 5San Diego 6, San Francisco 2Colorado 14, Arizona 6Milwaukee 6, L.A. Dodgers 5, 11 innings
Sunday’s games
Detroit at N.Y. YankeesAtlanta at TorontoHouston at Tampa BayCleveland at Chicago White SoxKansas City at MinnesotaBoston at TexasBaltimore at OaklandL.A. Angels at SeattleMiami at WashingtonSt. Louis at PittsburghChicago Cubs at CincinnatiL.A. Dodgers at MilwaukeeColorado at ArizonaSan Francisco at San DiegoN.Y. Mets at Philadelphia
Monday’s games
Texas (Dunning 1-1) at Minnesota (Mae-da 1-2)
Cleveland (Civale 4-0) at Kansas City (Ju-nis 1-1)
Tampa Bay (Wacha 1-1) at L.A. Angels(Ohtani 1-0)
Toronto (Matz 4-1) at Oakland (Montas2-2)
Baltimore (TBD) at Seattle (TBD)Milwaukee (Houser 2-2) at Philadelphia
(Moore 0-1)L.A. Dodgers (Buehler 1-0) at Chicago
Cubs (Hendricks 1-3)N.Y. Mets (TBD) at St. Louis (Wainwright
0-3)San Francisco (Sanchez 1-1) at Colorado
(Márquez 1-2)Pittsburgh (Anderson 2-2) at San Diego
(TBD)
Scoreboard
PHILADELPHIA — Michael Conforto hit a
tiebreaking home run in the ninth inning and
the New York Mets benefited from a very ques
tionable call by the second base umpire to beat
the Philadelphia Phillies 54 Saturday night.
Conforto led off the ninth by connecting
against Hector Neris (13).
Conforto also had a tworun double in a four
run first inning against former teammate Zack
Wheeler. The Mets squandered the 40 lead but
recovered to win for just the fourth time in 12
games — even after center fielder Brandon
Nimmo and third baseman J.D. Davis exited
with hand injuries.
Alec Bohm tied it with a tworun homer for
the Phillies, who have alternated wins and loss
es in their past 10 games. Philadelphia hasn’t
won consecutive games since a threegame
sweep of Atlanta to open the season.
With one out in the bottom of the seventh, sec
ond base umpire Jose Navas ruled Andrew
McCutchen ran out of the baseline to avoid an
attempted tag by shortstop Francisco Lindor on
what became an inningending double play. Re
plays showed McCutchen ran in a straight line
from first to second.
Phillies slugger Bryce Harper, sitting out af
ter getting hit in the face by a pitch Wednesday,
was ejected for arguing from the top step of the
dugout.
Trevor May (21) pitched a scoreless eighth
and Edwin Díaz struck out two in a perfect ninth
for his third save. New York relievers have
thrown 19 straight scoreless innings.
Nationals 7, Marlins 2:Patrick Corbin ended
his 10game losing streak, pitching seven solid
innings and leading host Washington over Mia
mi.
Josh Bell hit a basesloaded double and drove
in four runs, Yan Gomes had a tworun homer
and Josh Harrison had three hits as the Nation
als won their third in a row.
Corbin (13), who opened the season on the
COVID19 injured list and began the afternoon
with a 10.47 ERA in four starts, limited the Mar
lins to two runs and four hits.
White Sox 7, Indians 3: Tim Anderson hit a
grand slam, Leury García drove in three runs
from the No. 9 spot in the lineup and host Chica
go beat Cleveland.
Lance Lynn (21) allowed three runs in five
innings in his return from the injured list for the
White Sox, who have won seven of nine.
Cubs 3, Reds 2:Nick Hoerner hit a goahead
single in the sixth inning and visiting Chicago’s
bullpen shut down Cincinnati.
Hoerner drove in Javier Báez with one of his
three hits, a twoout single off reliever Sean
Doolittle to complete the Cubs’ comeback from
a 20 deficit.
Rex Brothers (10) struck out all three batters
he faced in the sixth, the first three of eight
strikeouts piled up by five Chicago relievers in
five innings.
Royals 11, Twins 3: Andrew Benintendi hit
two homers, Salvador Perez homered and
drove in three runs, and visiting Kansas City
cruised past Minnesota.
Danny Duffy (41) continued his strong start
to the season in helping the AL Centralleading
Royals bounce back from Friday night’s 91
loss. He allowed one run and two hits in seven
innings while striking out seven.
Astros 3, Rays 1: Jose Urquidy scattered
four hits over seven shutout innings and visiting
Houston made an early lead stand up.
Jose Altuve doubled on the first pitch of the
game, leading to a threerun inning. The Astros
got three hits in the first inning and only one
more the rest of the game.
Orioles 8, Athletics 4: Matt Harvey won his
third straight start and Baltimore took advan
tage of host Oakland’s sloppy play to score six
runs in the third inning.
The Athletics made two errors and threw a
pair of wild pitches to help the Orioles break
loose.
Harvey (31) allowed two runs and four hits in
52⁄�3 innings. It marked the first time since 2018
with Cincinnati that the former AllStar had
won three starts in a row.
Yankees 6, Tigers 4: Jameson Taillon
earned his first win in exactly two years, Aaron
Judge had three hits and three RBIs, and host
New York beat Detroit.
Gleyber Torres also drove in three runs as the
Yankees won for the sixth time in seven games.
Blue Jays 6, Braves 5 (10):At Dunedin, Fla.,
Randal Grichuk lined an RBI single in the 10th
inning, George Springer hit his first two homers
with the Blue Jays, and Toronto rallied to beat
Atlanta.
Grichuk won it with two outs and the bases
loaded when he hit an 01 pitch from Nate Jones
(02) into center field.
The Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr. connected for
his ninth home run this season.
Rangers 8, Red Sox 6: Isiah KinerFalefa
homered and had an RBI triple among his trio of
hits, and Willie Calhoun’s three hits included a
tworun homer as host Texas topped Boston.
Ian Kennedy whiffed all three hitters in the
ninth for his sixth save in six opportunities.
Cardinals 12, Pirates 5: Jack Flaherty
pitched six solid innings to keep his record per
fect and Paul DeJong hit a threerun homer in
the first to send visiting St. Louis over Pitts
burgh.
Flaherty (50) struck out nine while winning
his fifth straight start. He gave up three runs on
six hits and two walks.
DeJong’s drive off Trevor Cahill (13) capped
afourrun first and helped the Cardinals win for
the seventh time in nine games.
Padres 6, Giants 2: Blake Snell earned his
first win for San Diego, backed by Manny Ma
chado’s early threerun homer against visiting
San Francisco.
Snell (10) gave up one earned run and five
hits in five innings, striking out six.
Rockies 14, Diamondbacks 6: Dom Nuñez
launched a grand slam, Trevor Story had three
hits that included a tworun homer and visiting
Colorado pounded out 18 hits in a win over Ari
zona.
It was a good start to May for the Rockies, who
had the most losses in the National League dur
ing April with a 917 record.
Brewers 6, Dodgers 5 (11): Travis Shaw
homered and hit a gamewinning single, and
host Milwaukee scored three runs in the 11th in
ning to beat scuffling Los Angeles.
In the 11th, Drew Smith hit a tworun triple off
Drew Rasmussen to give the Dodgers a 53 lead.
The Brewers loaded the bases with no outs af
ter Alex Vesia (01) started the inning with two
walks. Mitch White gave up a sacrifice fly to
Kolten Wong, an RBI single to Avisail Garcia
and the gameending hit to Shaw.
Angels 10, Mariners 5: Jared Walsh home
red in consecutive innings, and Los Angeles
star Mike Trout hit his 28th long ball in Seattle.
Walsh followed Trout’s 10th career firstin
ning homer in Seattle with a solo shot, then add
ed a tworun drive in the second that made it 80.
The Angels have won four of six.
Trout is the only Mariners opponent with
more than 20 home runs in Seattle.
ROUNDUP
Questionable call helps out Mets
LAURENCE KESTERSON / AP
The Phillies’ Andrew McCutchen, right, and manager Joe Girardi dispute a call at second basewith umpire Phil Cuzzi during the seventh inning on Saturday against the New York Mets inPhiladelphia. McCutchen was called out on the play for running out of the base line.
Conforto homers in ninthafter basepaths rulinghalts Phillies’ seventh
Associated Press
Top: Medina Spirit, right, with John Velazquez aboard, leads the field around the first turn on the way to winning the 147th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs onSaturday, in Louisville, Ky. Above: Hall of Fame Trainer Bob Baffert collected his record 7th victory, most of any trainer in the race’s history.
PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CONROY, TOP, AND JEFF ROBERSON, ABOVE/AP
The great unknown
PAGE 24 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, May 3, 2021
SPORTSZion delivers
Williamson powers Pelicans to winover Timberwolves in OT ›› Page 21
Islanders in playoffs with win over Rangers ›› Page 20
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — John Velazquez was in
a familiar place, in the lead aboard Medina
Spirit in the Kentucky Derby and holding off
the stretch bid of three challengers. This time,
Bob Baffert couldn’t believe what he was see-
ing.
Medina Spirit won by a half-length on Satur-
day, giving Baffert his seventh victory, the
most of any trainer in the race’s 147-year histo-
ry.
The jockey and trainer — both Hall of Fam-
ers — teamed up eight months ago to win a pan-
demic-delayed Derby in September with Au-
thentic, who raced to an early lead and hung on.
That wasn’t so surprising.
This one was.
Sent off at 12-1 — astronomical odds for a colt
trained by the white-haired, two-time Triple
Crown winner — Medina Spirit was in a street
fight thundering down the stretch.
The dark brown colt was pressed by Manda-
Unheralded colt Medina Spirit gives Baffert record 7th win in historic raceBY BETH HARRIS
Associated Press
SEE COLT ON PAGE 22
KENTUCKY DERBY
“I cannot believe he won this race. That little horse, thatwas him, all guts. ... His heart is bigger than his body.”
Bob Baffert
Hall of Fame trainer, on Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit