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Volume 80 Edition 61 ©SS 2021 MONDAY, JULY 12, 2021 50¢/Free to Deployed Areas
stripes.com
MILITARY
Marines: Reporton wastewater inJapan ‘inaccurate’Page 3
MILITARY
Former US ArmyEurope commanderMeigs dies at 76Page 4
FACES
Latest film in sagatakes ‘Purge’ toUS-Mexico borderPage 14
No. 1 Djokovic claims 20th major with Wimbledon victory ›› Tennis, Page 19
CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea — The U.S.
military in South Korea reimposed a mandatory
mask policy and restricted travel to Seoul as the na-
tion recorded another record-breaking number of
coronavirus cases Friday.
The U.S. Forces Korea directive, which lasts
through July 23, came as the South Korean govern-
ment announced 1,316 new patients Friday, bringing
the country’s number of known infections to 165,344.
“To protect our communities and our mission, we
are implementing an immediate, aggressive ap-
proach to prevent the virus’ spread any further,”
USFK commander Gen. Paul LaCamera said in a
statement.
Seoul reported 583 cases Wednesday, the highest
number of daily transmissions there since the pan-
AHN YOUNG-JOON/AP
People wait in line for coronavirus testing at a Public Health Center in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday. South Korea will enforce its strongestdistancing restrictions in the capital area starting next week as it wrestles with what may be the worst wave since the start of the pandemic.
US military mandates ‘immediate,aggressive’ restrictions in S. KoreaDirective comes as the South Korean government deals with record-setting number of new cases
BY DAVID CHOI
Stars and Stripes
SEE RESTRICTIONS ON PAGE 6
VIRUS OUTBREAK
1,316Number of new coronavirus patientsannounced by the South Koreangovernment on Friday. Seoul reported583 cases Wednesday, the highestnumber of daily transmissions theresince the pandemic began. There were503 new patients on Friday.
Legal training provided to com-
manders may be inadequate, a
government watchdog agency
found in a report released as Con-
gress determines whether to re-
move commanders from prosecu-
torial decision-making in cases in-
volving suspected sexual assault.
The Government Accountabili-
ty Office, after analyzing legal
training and holding discussions
with commanders and legal sup-
port staff, found that “perspec-
tives varied on the general prepa-
redness of commanders to ad-
dress legal issues.
“In addition, GAO found that
the timing, amount, and mix of le-
gal training provided to com-
manders may not be meeting their
needs,” said the report released
Thursday.
Commanders may be respon-
sible for many legal duties, includ-
ing making criminal justice deci-
sions, conforming with interna-
tional law and complying with the
rules of engagement in combat.
Legal training is generally re-
served for mid-level command-
ers, but “commanders from all
four services indicated that they
would have benefited from dedi-
cated legal training earlier in their
careers,” the report said.
However, commanders of simi-
SEE TRAINING ON PAGE 3
Report findslegal traininglacking forcommanders
BY NANCY MONTGOMERY
Stars and Stripes
“GAO found that thetiming, amount, and mixof legal training providedto commanders may notbe meeting their needs.”
Government Accountability Office
report, released Thursday
PAGE 2 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
BUSINESS/WEATHER
BEIJING — China on Sunday
said it will take “necessary mea-
sures” to respond to the U.S. black-
listing of Chinese companies over
their alleged role in abuses of
Uyghur people and other Muslim
ethnic minorities.
The Commerce Ministry said
the U.S. move constituted an “un-
reasonable suppression of Chinese
enterprises and a serious breach of
international economic and trade
rules.”
China will “take necessary mea-
sures to firmly safeguard Chinese
companies’ legitimate rights and
interests,” the ministry’s statement
said.
No details were given, but China
has denied allegations of arbitrary
detention and forced labor in the
far western region of Xinjiang and
increasingly responded to sanc-
tions against companies and offi-
cials with its own bans on visas and
financial links.
The U.S. Commerce Depart-
ment said in a statement Friday
that the electronics and technology
firms and other businesses helped
enable “Beijing’s campaign of re-
pression, mass detention and high-
technology surveillance” against
Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.
The penalties prohibit Ameri-
cans from selling equipment or
other goods to the firms. The Unit-
ed States has stepped up financial
and trade penalties over China’s
treatment of Uyghurs and other
Muslim minorities, along with its
crackdown on democracy in the
semi-autonomous city of Hong
Kong.
China vows reprisal as US blacklists companiesAssociated Press
Bahrain97/92
Baghdad113/80
Doha114/86
Kuwait City114/92
Riyadh113/85
Kandahar108/75
Kabul94/57
Djibouti102/88
MONDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Mildenhall/Lakenheath
66/59
Ramstein73/57
Stuttgart76/55
Lajes,Azores69/66
Rota77/69
Morón97/71 Sigonella
94/69
Naples86/71
Aviano/Vicenza84/63
Pápa82/64
Souda Bay82/74
Brussels71/60
Zagan77/65
DrawskoPomorskie
79/61
MONDAY IN EUROPE
Misawa68/65
Guam84/81
Tokyo79/72
Okinawa93/80
Sasebo81/76
Iwakuni78/74
Seoul88/76
Osan87/75
Busan78/75
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 .......................... 14Opinion ........................ 15Sports .................... 18-24
Military rates
Euro costs (July 12) $1.16Dollar buys (July 12) 0.8221British pound (July 12) $1.35Japanese yen (July 12) 107.00South Korean won (July 12) 1,119.00
Commercial rates
Bahrain (Dinar) .3770Britain (Pound) 1.3890Canada (Dollar) 1.2456China (Yuan) 6.4789Denmark (Krone) 6.2623Egypt (Pound) 15.6901Euro .8421Hong Kong (Dollar) 7.7660Hungary (Forint) 299.45Israel (Shekel) 3.2810Japan (Yen) 110.17Kuwait (Dinar) .3010
Norway (Krone) 8.6847
Philippines (Peso) 50.14Poland (Zloty) 3.83Saudi Arabia (Riyal) 3.7508Singapore (Dollar) 1.3513
South Korea (Won) 1,145.48Switzerland (Franc) .9141Thailand (Baht) 32.52Turkey (New Lira) �8.6610
(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 �0.093month bill 0.0630year bond 1.98
EXCHANGE RATES
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 3
MILITARY
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa —
The Marine Corps has pushed
back against Japanese public
broadcaster NHK, which report-
ed Wednesday that the U.S. mili-
tary wants to release harmful con-
taminants into a local river on Oki-
nawa.
The report, which cited un-
named officials from Japan’s Min-
istry of Defense, said the U.S. mil-
itary informed the Japanese gov-
ernment of its intention to release
treated sewage containing conta-
minants known as PFOS into a riv-
er near Marine Corps Air Station
Futenma.
The report said the Japanese
plan to turn down the request.
In a statement Thursday, Ma-
rine Corps Installations Pacific
said water would be treated and
then released through the public
wastewater system.
“The story reported by NHK on
July 7 was inaccurate,” the state-
ment said.
“Marine Corps Installations Pa-
cific and United States Forces Ja-
pan have been coordinating with
the Ministry of Defense and the
Ministry of the Environment to re-
lease treated water through the
public wastewater system; this
wastewater is fully compliant with
Japanese drinking water guide-
lines to include target levels for
PFOS and PFOA, which are stric-
ter than U.S. Environmental Pro-
tection Agency and Department of
Defense guidelines.”
PFOS and PFOA are found in
aqueous firefighting foam, air-
craft grease, water-repellant ma-
terials and fluorine chemicals.
They have been known to cause
tumors, increases in body and or-
gan weight and death in animals.
The treatment process is a
“safe, efficient, and proven meth-
od” to reduce levels of the harmful
compounds in contaminated wa-
ter until it’s safe for release and
complies with Japanese standards
for drinking water, according to
the Marines’ statement.
The plan would be “fully coor-
dinated” with Okinawan officials
prior to the release of any waste-
water, the statement added.
Marine Corps Installations Pa-
cific did not responded to a re-
quest for further information
Thursday about where the treated
wastewater would ultimately be
disposed of.
MCAS Futenma is storing the
contaminated water in tanks, the
NHK report said.
A spokesman from the Okinawa
Prefectural Enterprise Bureau,
the agency responsible for the is-
land’s water supply and quality,
told Stars and Stripes by phone
Thursday that the water would be
released into the sea around Oki-
nawa and not into a river. He add-
ed that the water would likely not
be PFOS-free.
Government officials in Japan
customarily speak to the media on
condition of anonymity.
PFOS and PFOA are virtually
identical synthetic, fully fluorinat-
ed organic acids, though their con-
centrations differ depending on
the product.
The compounds have been
found in high concentrations
around MCAS Futenma and Ka-
dena Air Base on Okinawa. U.S.
military officials in Japan say the
source of the PFOS and PFOA pol-
lution on Okinawa is not necessar-
ily U.S. military facilities. They
have also begun phasing out air-
craft firefighting foam with one
featuring a new formulation.
Japan has a combined safety
threshold of 0.05 micrograms per
liter for PFOS and PFOA for its
drinking water. The threshold is
not law, but a quality standard gui-
deline. The United States’ thresh-
old is 0.07 micrograms per liter.
Manufacture and importation
of items containing the acids have
been prohibited in Japan since
2010.
An unknown quantity of waste-
water containing firefighting
foam spilled June 9 at the Army
base Torii Station when an above-
ground reservoir holding contam-
inated water overflowed in heavy
rains, according to a June 12 state-
ment from U.S. Army Garrison
Okinawa. The water spilled into
an adjacent drainage ditch lead-
ing off-base.
The firefighting foam contained
both PFOS and PFOA, NHK re-
ported.
The reservoirs were “never in-
tended” to contain the foam and
were “not designed to contain
overflows of water,” the Army
statement said.
Approximately 60,000 gallons
of the toxic firefighting foam spill-
ed on MCAS Futenma on April 10,
2020. About 22,000 gallons was
contained on base. The remainder
traveled off base through a storm
drain and into a nearby stream
and neighborhood.
Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki,
speaking to reporters Thursday,
said the plan to release the waste-
water locally was unacceptable,
NHK said in an updated report
that day.
“We must demand that it be
treated within the military,” he
said.
The U.S. military was reported-
ly waiting for a response on the
matter from the Japanese govern-
ment when the NHK report was
released. The Okinawa Defense
Bureau told NHK that U.S. au-
thorities are considering their op-
tions.
Marines rebuke reportof toxic water in Japan
BY MATTHEW M. BURKE
AND HANA KUSUMOTO
Stars and Stripes
[email protected] Twitter: @MatthewMBurke1
Stars and Stripes
A sign posted by town officials in May 2019 warns people aboutpolluted spring water in Kadena, Okinawa.
lar grades and responsibilities
may not receive similar levels of
legal training.
For example, the 101st Airborne
Division’s company commander
course spent 90 minutes on legal
issues and U.S. Army Europe
spent 2.5 hours, the GAO found.
But at the National Training Cen-
ter at Fort Irwin, Calif., nine hours
were devoted to legal issues.
“Some commanders and legal
support staff expressed the view
that commanders would benefit
from additional legal training,”
the report said.
Other commanders said they
thought more training would be
detrimental because it might lead
commanders into thinking they
were experts, and not to rely on
staff judge advocates for advice.
The GAO also found that prob-
lems with recordkeeping made it
difficult to know whether com-
manders completed their re-
quired training. The training’s
usefulness was also unclear be-
cause the services primarily re-
lied on voluntary surveys to gauge
effectiveness.
The report comes as the Mili-
tary Justice Improvement and In-
creasing Prevention Act, which
would shift the decision to prose-
cute rape, sexual assault and other
felonies from the chain of com-
mand to military prosecutors, has
garnered support from 66 Senate
co-sponsors, as well as President
Joe Biden and Defense Secretary
Lloyd Austin III.
The bill is being held up in the
Senate Armed Services Commit-
tee, whose chairman, Democrat
Jack Reed of Rhode Island, and
ranking Republican, Jim Inhofe of
Oklahoma, oppose it.
Training: Courses varyfor leaders across basesFROM PAGE 1
[email protected] Twitter:@montgomery nance
ADAM BUTLER/U.S. Navy
Sailors practice moving injured personnel during personnel recoverytraining aboard Independencevariant littoral combat ship USSCharleston on Thursday in the South China Sea. The Charleston is ona rotational deployment, operating in the U.S. 7th Fleet area ofoperations in support of a free and open IndoPacific region.
Personnel recovery drills
PAGE 4 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
MILITARY
STUTTGART, Germany — Re-
tired Gen. Montgomery Meigs, a
combat veteran who commanded
the Army in Europe for four years
and hailed from a storied line of
military officers, died Tuesday in
Texas. He was 76.
Meigs led U.S. Army Europe
from 1998 to 2002, overseeing
about 60,000 soldiers on the Conti-
nent. He also commanded NA-
TO’s peacekeeping force in Bos-
nia, when thousands of U.S. sol-
diers fanned out across the Bal-
kans.
As the USAREUR boss in the af-
termath of the 9/11 terrorist at-
tacks, Meigs was in charge as gar-
risons across Europe went from
having relatively relaxed post-
Cold War security conditions to
becoming the highly secured com-
pounds of today.
An obituary from an Austin,
Texas, funeral home did not men-
tion the cause of Meigs’ death.
Meigs was an Annapolis, Md.,
native and a 1967 graduate of West
Point. His father, a lieutenant col-
onel, was killed during World War
II in France, months before he was
born.
Meigs also was a third great-ne-
phew of the Civil War general
Montgomery Meigs, who was a
quartermaster general for the
Union and was instrumental in the
establishment of Arlington Na-
tional Cemetery. He is also cred-
ited as “engineer of the Capitol” in
Washington.
Decades before assuming com-
mand in Europe, Meigs began his
Army career with cavalry units in
Germany and Vietnam.
He later came back to West
Point as an instructor and earned
his doctorate in history from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison
in 1982, said the Association of the
United States Army, where Meigs
was a life member. He also led the
Germany-based 2nd Brigade, 1st
Armored Division into Operation
Desert Storm in Iraq.
Four years after his Army re-
tirement, Defense Secretary Do-
nald Rumsfeld asked Meigs to
lead the Joint Improvised Explo-
sive Device Defeat Organization,
as roadside bombs became regu-
larly employed against U.S. troops
in Iraq.
Meigs had a common touch
when it came to relating to junior
soldiers, who expressed condo-
lences online for their former
commander.
“He was squadron commander
of 1/1 Cav when I was there in 85-
86,” wrote Raymond Anguiano, a
junior enlisted soldier who at that
time was trying to get a compas-
sionate reassignment because his
son was sick.
Anguiano had been trying for
months to get reassigned when he
had a chance encounter with
Meigs while pulling guard duty
and shared his story. Three weeks
later, he had orders with a hand-
written note from Meigs that read:
“The man must fly!”
Another former soldier, a driver
for Meigs when he was in com-
mand at 7th Army Training Cen-
ter in Grafenwoehr, Germany,
said the general understood his
goal of eventually becoming an
Army officer.
“To that end, he ensured I was
exposed to almost everything he
was involved with. This meant
that I went into the field with him
at Hohenfels to watch unit rota-
tions, gunnery ranges on Graf, and
senior leader meetings in Heidel-
berg,” wrote Christopher “Mac”
McGarry.
Years later, after McGarry’s en-
listment had ended and he had
gone on to graduate college, Meigs
offered to be there for his commis-
sioning.
“True to his word he was there
and pinned on my 2LT rank. In
many ways he treated me as one of
his sons,” McGarry wrote. “I felt
more like a family member than a
lower enlisted member.”
PHOTOS BY MICHAEL ABRAMS/Stars and Stripes
Gen. Montgomery Meigs, the outgoing commander of U.S. Army Europe, speaks at his change ofcommand ceremony at Campbell Barracks in Heidelberg, Germany, in 2002.
Retired general, combat veteranwho led USAREUR after 9/11, dies
BY JOHN VANDIVER
Stars and Stripes
Montgomery Meigs, center, then a major general and the 1st InfantryDivision commander, talks to Supreme Allied Commander EuropeGen. George Joulwan, left, and U.S. Army Europe commander Gen.William Crouch, at Tuzla Air Base in Bosnia, in 1996.
[email protected] Twitter: @john_vandiver
WASHINGTON — President
Joe Biden’s administration doesn’t
currently plan to send military as-
sistance to Haiti despite a request
by the government for U.S. troops
following the assassination of
President Jovenel Moise, a senior
administration official said Satur-
day.
Moise’s assassination has fur-
ther destabilized the already frag-
ile political structure in Haiti,
where gang violence, natural di-
sasters and the coronavirus have
all taken their toll on the hemi-
sphere’s poorest nation.
The request for U.S. troops to
protect Haitian infrastructure and
prepare for planned elections
came during a conversation
Wednesday between interim
Prime Minister Claude Joseph and
U.S. Secretary of State Antony
Blinken.
The White House announced
Friday it was dispatching senior
FBI and Department of Homeland
Security officials to Port-au-
Prince. That team will “assess the
situation and how we may be able
to assist,” White House press sec-
retary Jen Psaki told reporters.
The State Department remains
in regular contact with Haitian of-
ficials to discuss how the U.S. can
assist, according to a department
spokesman. The administration
official and the spokesman both re-
quested anonymity discussing
diplomatic conversations.
Haitian police say Moise was
killed by a hit team led by retired
Colombian soldiers, and that they
have detained 19 men in connec-
tion with the attack. It remains un-
clear who ordered the assassina-
tion.
Moise’s assassination further
destabilizes the poorest nation in
the Americas, which has been
gripped by gang violence, kidnap-
pings, protests and the pandemic.
It hasn’t had a functioning legisla-
ture since 2020 and the head of the
Supreme Court — who might have
replaced Moise — recently died
due to COVID-19.
Amid the request for assistance,
Interim Prime Minister Joseph’s
leadership position remains in
doubt. Haiti’s senate, currently
comprised of only a third of its usu-
al members, nominated its head
Joseph Lambert to be interim
president, Reuters reported.
Joseph said Friday that he had
spoken to Colombian President
Ivan Duque, who had “promised
full collaboration” in resolving the
crime. Colombian Defense Minis-
ter Diego Molano also acknowl-
edged that the international police
agency Interpol had made a formal
request for information about the
suspects.
At first, the raid seemed to be
meticulously planned and carried
out, as the heavily-armed killers
pretended to be U.S. Drug En-
forcement Administration agents
to gain access to Moise’s residence
in the hills outside of Port-au-
Prince. A judge who visited the
scene told local media that Moise
had been shot at least 12 times.
Moise’s wife was also wounded,
and was medically evacuated to
South Florida.
But it appears their escape plan
fell through. Less than 24 hours af-
ter the crime, Haiti’s police had
killed a handful of suspects and
rounded up others. At least two
presumed mercenaries were
caught by angry mobs, tied with
rope and marched through the
streets. Eleven others were found
hiding on the grounds of the Taiwa-
nese Embassy, near Moise’s home.
US has no setplans to sendtroops to Haiti
Bloomberg News
MATIAS DELACROIX/AP
View of a densely populated neighborhood in PortauPrince, Haiti, onSaturday, three days after President Jovenel Moise was assassinatedin his home.
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 5
MILITARY
Air Force veteran and civilian employ-
ee Randy Wilson pulled a driver from a
burning truck before it blew up, an act of
courage the service has recognized with
a valor medal, the military said last
week.
Wilson and his wife were traveling on
the Ohio Turnpike outside Sandusky one
August morning three years ago, when a
semitruck ahead of them crashed into
another one parked on the right shoul-
der, sending a debris field into the road-
way and toppling one of the trucks.
“It seemed like we were in a 3D movie
with tires and gas tanks rolling down the
highway toward our vehicle,” Wilson
said in a statement. “I came to a stop on
the far left shoulder. My wife immedi-
ately got out her rosary and started pray-
ing for all involved. I got out and started
running to the semi that had flipped over
several times and was on fire.”
Wilson, the chief of plans and pro-
grams for the security forces squadron
at New York's Niagara Falls Air Reserve
Station, was the first and only one on the
scene for 10 to 15 minutes, the 914th Air
Refueling Wing said in a statement last
week.
As he ran up, he saw that the driver of
the other semi and a third truck seemed
to be OK, Wilson said. When he reached
the overturned rig, which was on its side,
that driver was going in and out of con-
sciousness and asking for help.
“At first, I tried to pull him out by lift-
ing him under his armpits, but he was
stuck by his seat belt and belt loop,” said
Wilson, who had over 36 years of securi-
ty forces experience. “I asked God to
give me one more minute.”
It all seemed to be happening in slow-
motion to him as he kept praying for one
more minute, he said, likening the feel-
ing of stretching time to the beach-
storming scene early in the film “Saving
Private Ryan.”
“After the incident, I asked my wife if I
was moving slowly and she said quite the
opposite, moving extremely fast,” the re-
tired master sergeant said in the state-
ment.
He eventually got the driver out and to
a safe distance “within minutes of the
truck exploding,” he said.
“The thought of being killed never
crossed my mind,” he said.
A bystander who was a nurse arrived
at some point, and when paramedics be-
gan treating the driver, Wilson and his
wife continued home to Getzville, N.Y.
Earlier this year, wing commander
Col. Carl Magnusson presented Wilson
with the Air Force Civilian Award for
Valor for his actions rescuing the
trapped driver. The medal recognizes
acts of heroism “with voluntary risk of
personal safety in the face of danger, ei-
ther on or off the job,” a regulation
states.
Wilson exemplifies the words of Win-
ston Churchill, who called reservists
“twice the citizen,” Magnusson said at
an April ceremony.
“Randy lives his dual lifetime commit-
ments to his community and to the de-
fense of our great nation every single
day,” he said.
Vet honored for rescuing driver after wreckBY CHAD GARLAND
Stars and Stripes
[email protected]: @chadgarland
PETER BORYS/U.S. Air Force
Col. Carl Magnusson, 914th Air Refueling Wing commander presents Mr. RandyWilson, 914th Security Forces Chief of Plans and Programs, the Air Force CivilianAward for Valor on April 27, 2021 at the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, N.Y.
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE,
Japan — Sailors aboard the air-
craft carrier USS Ronald Reagan
recently took a moment from
their routines to celebrate a spe-
cial anniversary with a sweet
treat.
In honor of the 100th birthday of
former first lady Nancy Reagan,
wife of the Reagan’s namesake,
sailors prepared chocolate chip
cookies on July 6 with a recipe
provided by the Reagan Founda-
tion’s Roland Mesnier, former
White House executive pastry
chef.
“As our ship’s sponsor, it is im-
portant that we keep the legacy of
Nancy Reagan alive,” Lt. Cmdr.
Dawn Stankus, spokeswoman for
the carrier, told Stars and Stripes
in an email on Tuesday. “She was
a true force in so many aspects of
her life — as an actress, wife,
mother, first lady and more.”
The recipe was Reagan’s favor-
ite cookie during her time as first
lady, according to Stankus. Re-
agan survived her husband and
died March 6, 2016, at age 94.
To honor her memory, the
ship’s culinary specialists used
the recipe to prepare hundreds of
cookies that were served on the
carrier’s mess decks.
The Reagan’s sailors enjoyed
the cookies in the Arabian Sea,
where the ship has been assisting
with the withdrawal of U.S. troops
from Afghanistan.
“Our talented culinary special-
ists recreated a treasured dessert
in her memory, and this is some-
thing that all of us can enjoy to-
gether,” Capt. Fred Goldhammer,
the Ronald Reagan’s commander,
said in a statement emailed to
Stars and Stripes on Wednesday.
One of the Reagan’s culinary
specialists, Petty Officer 2nd
Class Carllouis Obieta, said in the
statement that the cookies were
baked at a high heat to give them a
crispier texture. Aboard the Re-
agan five months, Obieta said it
“was an honor” to prepare them in
memory of Nancy Reagan.
“As a culinary specialist it is im-
portant that we help maintain the
morale of the ship, and, with that,
it’s also important to keep the tra-
dition and culture of USS Ronald
Reagan alive through efforts like
baking Nancy Reagan’s favorite
cookies on her birthday,” said an-
other culinary specialist, Petty
Officer 3rd Class Justin Padilla.
USS Reagan celebrates formerfirst lady with favorite cookies
BY ALEX WILSON
Stars and Stripes
JILLIAN GRADY/U.S. Navy
Petty Officer 2nd Class Carllouis Obieta, left, and Petty Officer 3rdClass Justin Padilla prepare cookies aboard the USS Ronald Reagan inthe Arabian Sea, on July 5, in honor of Nancy Reagan’s 100th birthday.
[email protected] Twitter: @AlexMNWilson
NAPLES, Italy — A U.S. Na-vy 6th Fleet sailor is underhouse arrest following a carcrash that left an Italian citizendead.
Navy officials last week
would not release the name orrank of the sailor, or detailsabout the May 23 crash, sayingthey could not comment on anongoing investigation.
The sailor was arrested byItalian authorities, who have
primary jurisdiction becausethe incident happened off base,said Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Comer,6th Fleet spokesman.
The Naval Criminal Investi-gative Service is cooperatingwith local law enforcement,
Comer said. Formal chargeshave not been filed, he said.
Fanpage.it and several otherItalian news outlets reported atwo-vehicle fatal crash involv-ing a U.S. sailor on the samedate at the Lago Patria-Giuglia-
no junction on Via Domitiana inNaples.
Those reports identified thevictim as a 56-year-old manfrom the commune of Qualiano.
US sailor under house arrest after fatal car crash in NaplesStars and Stripes
PAGE 6 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
VIRUS OUTBREAK
the memo are more restrictive.
The rules include wearing masks
and continuing to maintain a social
distance of 6 feet when indoors and
outdoors for those who haven’t
been fully vaccinated, with few ex-
ceptions.
Those who are fully vaccinated
must still wear a mask when on
public transport or inside public fa-
cilities such as the base exchange,
the commissary and hospital pa-
tient care areas. They must also
wear a mask indoors if they are un-
able to maintain social distance.
London’s decision to lift restric-
tions comes as infection rates
across the country and in many
parts of Europe have declined
sharply.
U.S. Air Force officials in En-
gland will consider whether base
coronavirus rules should be adjust-
ed if the United Kingdom lifts its
restrictions as planned on July 19.
British Prime Minister Boris
Johnson said in a televised address
July 5 that the time has come for
people to take “personal responsib-
ility” for their health, rather than
obey a “government legal diktat.”
The government is set to end the
legal requirement to wear masks,
although “guidance will suggest
where you might choose to do so,”
Johnson said. Social distancing re-
quirements, limits on gatherings
and QR code check-ins at restau-
rants would also end, he said.
The measures would only apply
in England because other parts of
the U.K. have their own rules.
The U.S. Air Force, which oper-
ates on several joint bases along-
side the Royal Air Force, says that
it generally follows host nation
rules. But U.S. forces in Europe al-
so follow Centers for Disease Con-
trol and Prevention guidelines.
“RAF Mildenhall will continue
following the guidelines set by our
host nation,” base spokeswoman
1st Lt. Paige S. Mehringer said in a
statement. “Additionally, in antici-
pation of U.K. guidance changes,
our leadership team continues to
review Defense Department and
CDC guidance in coordination with
our partner wings to ensure our
policies are aligned and adjusted as
needed.”
A command memo applying to
all RAF Mildenhall and RAF La-
kenheath airmen states that U.S.
personnel are required to follow
U.K. guidance, unless the rules in
USAF in England to review rules as UK set to end mask, distance mandatesBY KYLE ALVAREZ
Stars and Stripes
[email protected]: @Kal2931
BROOKE MOEDER/U.S. Air Force
An airman shops at the commissary at RAF Mildenhall, England.
demic began. There were 503 new
patients on Friday.
Travel to Areas I and II, which
includes the Seoul metropolitan
area, is limited to mission-essen-
tial and official duties for USFK
personnel until the directive ex-
pires. The command also reim-
posed a requirement that every-
one wear masks while indoors on
military installations, regardless
of whether they are fully vaccinat-
ed.
Those who have been vaccinat-
ed will be allowed to remove their
masks while “actively” exercising
in on-post gyms, as long as they
observe social distancing mea-
sures, according to the USFK
statement.
Bars and clubs across the penin-
sula remain off-limits to anyone
associated with USFK. Military
police stepped up their patrols
near a popular beach in Busan re-
cently to ensure service members
complied with local and USFK
regulations against drinking and
large groups.
USFK announced Wednesday
and Friday that 25 people, six of
them new arrivals to the peninsu-
la, had tested positive for CO-
VID-19 between June 10 and July
3.
The surge of new cases prompt-
ed Seoul officials to extend their
mitigation efforts by deploying in-
spectors to businesses considered
to be a high risk for transmissibil-
ity and shortening public trans-
portation schedules in the eve-
nings.
More than 100 police officers
and 200 public employees will be
cracking down on safety violations
and nighttime drinking at the Han
River bordering Seoul for the next
17 days, the Seoul government an-
nounced Friday.
Seoul had also mandated an in-
door and outdoor mask policy, re-
gardless of a person’s vaccination
status. Violators are subject to a
fine of about $87 for individuals
and up to $261 for a building's
manager.
Health officials reported this
week that over 10% of South Ko-
reans were fully inoculated and
30% of the population had re-
ceived the first dose of a vaccine.
Surge stops Olympic torch relayThose taking part in the final
segment of the Olympic torch re-
lay, which was supposed to kick
off Friday in Tokyo, aren’t allowed
to run on public roads due to an in-
creasing number of COVID-19
cases, according to the Tokyo Met-
ropolitan Government website.
Instead, the flame is being
moved around the city in a series
of nonpublic ceremonies before it
arrives to a relatively empty stadi-
um on July 23 in central Tokyo.
Olympic organizers announced
late Thursday that most events
will take place without spectators
after Prime Minister Yoshihide
Suga declared a fourth state of
emergency for Tokyo and some
surrounding prefectures that will
last throughout the games.
Japan had reported 2,153 new
coronavirus infections as of 5:30
p.m. Friday, 822 of which were
from Tokyo, according to public
broadcaster NHK.
The country had administered
57.4 million vaccination doses as
of Thursday, according to the
Prime Minister’s Office. It said
16.8 percent of Japan’s population
is fully vaccinated, and 28 percent
have received one dose.
The U.S. military in Japan had
reported two new patients as of 6
p.m. Friday. One is from Marine
Corps Air Station Iwakuni near
Hiroshima and the other is at Na-
val Air Facility Atsugi, 27 miles
southwest of Tokyo.
Stars and Stripes reporter Hana Kusumotocontributed to this [email protected] Twitter: @choibboy
PIXABAY / Pixabay
Travel to Areas I and II, which includes the Seoul metropolitan area, is offlimits to most U.S. Forces Korea personnel due to a new surge ofcoronavirus infections.
Restrictions: USFK reimposes travel limits, mask rulesFROM PAGE 1
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 7
VIRUS OUTBREAK
JOHANNESBURG — Some in
wheelchairs, others on canes, hun-
dreds of South Africans waited re-
cently on the ramps of an open-air
Johannesburg parking garage to
get their COVID-19 vaccine shots.
Despite the masks, social distanc-
ing and blustery weather of the
Southern Hemisphere winter, a
celebratory atmosphere took hold.
“What a relief!” said Vincent
Damon, a 63-year-old electrical
technician, after getting his sec-
ond dose. “In the last four days,
I’ve lost four friends. All of them
under 60. This pandemic has got-
ten worse. It’s frightening.”
New infections in South Africa
rose to record levels in recent
days, part of a rapid rise across the
continent, and experts say the
surge here hasn’t yet peaked. To
fight the new wave, South Africa
reimposed several restrictions, in-
cluding shutting restaurants and
bars and limiting alcohol sales —
and its vaccination drive is finding
its feet after several stumbles.
But even as the campaign gath-
ers pace, experts say it’s too late to
reduce the deadly impact of the
current spike. Instead, South Afri-
ca is now rushing to vaccinate
enough of its 60 million people to
blunt the impact of the next inevi-
table surge.
“Our vaccination campaign is
gathering momentum, but obvi-
ously it’s too late to do much in
terms of reducing the impact of
this current resurgence we’re ex-
periencing, which by all accounts
is going to completely dwarf what
we experienced either in the first
or second waves in South Africa,”
said Shabir Madhi, dean of health
sciences and professor of vacci-
nology at the University of Witwa-
tersrand.
South Africa accounts for more
than 35% of the 5.8 million cases
recorded by Africa’s 54 countries,
although it is home to just over 4%
of the continent’s population. The
seven-day rolling average of daily
deaths in the country more than
doubled over the past two weeks to
more than 360 fatalities per day on
July 9.
Its troubles reflect a broader
trend. Neighboring Zimbabwe
went back into lockdown on July 6,
and Congo, Rwanda, Senegal and
Zambia are among the 16 African
countries battling the new surge of
infections sweeping across the
continent.
“Africa has just marked the con-
tinent’s most dire pandemic week
ever. But the worst is yet to come
as the fast-moving third wave con-
tinues to gain speed and new
ground,” said Dr. Matshidiso
Moeti, the World Health Organi-
zation’s regional director for Afri-
ca.
“The end to this precipitous rise
is still weeks away. Cases are dou-
bling now every 18 days, com-
pared with every 21 days only a
week ago,” she added Thursday.
Although South African Presi-
dent Cyril Ramaphosa was quick
to respond to COVID-19 and put
the country into one of the world’s
strictest lockdowns in March last
year, his officials were slow to
place firm orders for vaccines, say
critics.
South Africa ramps up vaccine driveAssociated Press
ALET PRETORIUS/AP
A patient receives a Johnson & Johnson vaccine against COVID19 lastweek in Hammanskraal, South Africa.
cooperate with the military-in-
stalled government.
Military hospitals continued op-
erating but were shunned by
many, while doctors and nurses
BANGKOK — Soe Win stood in
line at a plant to buy oxygen for his
grandmother, who is struggling
with COVID-19 symptoms.
“I have been waiting since 5 in
the morning until 12 noon but I’m
still in line. Oxygen is scarcer than
money,” said the resident of
Myanmar’s biggest city, Yangon.
Consumed by a bitter and vio-
lent political struggle since the
military seized power in Febru-
ary, Myanmar has been slow to
wake up to a devastating surge in
cases since mid-May. It has left
many of the sick like Soe Win’s
grandmother to suffer at home if
they cannot find a bed at an army
hospital, or prefer not to trust their
care to the widely disliked govern-
ment.
Under Aung San Suu Kyi, the ci-
vilian leader ousted by the mili-
tary, Myanmar had weathered its
second coronavirus surge begin-
ning in August last year by severe-
ly restricting travel, sealing off
Yangon, and curbing election
campaigning in virus hot spots
where lockdowns were imposed.
Suu Kyi appeared frequently on
television with stern but empath-
etic entreaties to the public on how
to deal with the situation. Vaccine
supplies were secured from India
and China. Her ouster came less
than a week after the first jabs
were given to health workers.
Suu Kyi’s removal by the mili-
tary sparked widespread protests,
and medical workers spearhead-
ed a popular civil disobedience
movement that called on profes-
sionals and civil servants not to
who boycotted the state system
ran makeshift clinics, for which
they faced arrest. The pace of vac-
cinations slowed to a crawl, threat-
ening an explosion in infections.
AP
People queue up with their oxygen tanks outside an oxygen refillstation Sunday in Pazundaung township in Yangon, Myanmar.
Myanmar caught off guard ascases surge, oxygen dwindles
Associated Press
PAGE 8 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
NATION
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — For
putting their health on the line
during the coronavirus pandemic,
prison guards in Missouri got an
extra $250 per paycheck. Teach-
ers in Georgia received $1,000 bo-
nuses. And in Vermont, nurses,
janitors, retail workers and many
others got as much as $2,000.
Over the past year, about one-
third of U.S. states have used fed-
eral COVID-19 relief aid to re-
ward workers considered essen-
tial who dutifully reported to jobs
during the pandemic. But who
qualified for those bonuses — and
how much they received — varied
widely, according to an Associat-
ed Press review. While some were
paid thousands of dollars, others
with similar jobs elsewhere re-
ceived nothing.
As society reopens, momentum
to provide pandemic hazard pay
appears to be fading — even
though the federal government
has broadened the ability of state
and local governments to provide
retroactive pay under a $350 bil-
lion aid package enacted by Presi-
dent Joe Biden in March.
So far, only a few states have
committed to paying workers ex-
tra with money from the Ameri-
can Rescue Plan.
Florida is giving $1,000 bonuses
to teachers and first responders.
Minnesota plans to distribute
$250 million in bonuses to essen-
tial workers, though a special pan-
el won’t determine who qualifies
until later this year.
This past week, Hawaii Gov.
David Ige vetoed a budget provi-
sion to pay teachers $2,200 bonus-
es. The Democratic governor said
lawmakers didn’t have the au-
thority to tell the state Depart-
ment of Education how to use the
federal money.
Some states remain reluctant to
enact bonus programs.
An Oregon proposal to use fed-
eral pandemic aid to provide bo-
nuses of up to $2,000 for essential
workers failed to make it into the
budget that took effect July 1, de-
spite a union lobbying campaign
that included thousands of emails
and hundreds of phone calls to
lawmakers. The proposal would
have covered workers in numer-
ous fields, including education,
health care, public safety and
transportation.
“I don’t think anyone was op-
posed to it,” said Melissa Unger,
executive director of Service Em-
ployees International Union Lo-
cal 503. But “no one prioritized
it.”
Although states have until the
end of 2024 to decide how to spend
the latest federal aid, some advo-
cates worry the realistic window
for providing worker bonuses
may be closing as more parts of
society re-open.
“Unfortunately, the longer you
delay doing it, the less it’s going to
be on the top of minds of voters
and those policymakers,” said
Molly Kinder, a fellow at the non-
profit Brookings Institution who
tracks pandemic hazard pay pol-
icies.
Premium pay is one of just sev-
eral options provided to states un-
der Biden’s aid package. States
can also use the money to backfill
budget holes, help businesses and
households affected by the eco-
nomic downturn, fund certain in-
frastructure projects and pay for
public health programs such as
COVID-19 testing and vaccina-
tions.
SHAFKAT ANOWAR/AP
Crosby Smith, care provider at Ludeman Developmental Center, a state home for the developmentallydisabled, and his fiancee were among staff and residents at the center who contracted the virus last year.He said the hazard money helped pay down credit cards and avoid further debt.
Bonus pay for essential workershas varied widely across states
BY DAVID A. LIEB
Associated Press
TRUTH OR CONSEQUENC-
ES, N.M. — Swashbuckling entre-
preneur Richard Branson hurtled
into space aboard his own winged
rocket ship Sunday in his boldest
adventure yet, beating out fellow
billionaire Jeff Bezos.
The nearly 71-year-old Branson
and five crewmates from his Vir-
gin Galactic space-tourism com-
pany reached an altitude of about
53 miles over the New Mexico des-
ert — enough to experience three
to four minutes of weightlessness
and see the curvature of the Earth
— and then safely glided to a run-
way landing.
“The whole thing, it was just
magical,” a jubilant Branson said
after the trip home aboard the
sleek, white space plane, named
Unity.
The brief, up-and-down flight —
the rocket ship’s portion took only
about 15 minutes, or about as long
as Alan Shepard’s first U.S. space-
flight in 1961 — was intended as a
confidence-boosting plug for Vir-
gin Galactic, which plans to start
taking paying customers on joy-
rides next year.
Branson became the first per-
son to blast off in his own space-
ship, beating Bezos by nine days.
He also became only the second
septuagenarian to go into space.
(Astronaut John Glenn flew on the
shuttle at age 77 in 1998.)
With about 500 people watch-
ing, including Branson’s family, a
twin-fuselage aircraft with Unity
attached underneath took off in
the first stage of the flight. Unity
then detached from the mother
ship at an altitude of about 8½
miles and fired its engine, reac-
hing more than Mach 3, or three
times the speed of sound, as it
pierced the edge of space.
Spectators cheered, jumped in-
to the air and embraced as the
rocket plane touched down. He
pumped his fists as he stepped out
onto the runway and ran toward
his family, bear-hugging his wife
and children and scooping up his
three grandchildren in his arms.
“That was an amazing accom-
plishment,” former Canadian as-
tronaut Chris Hadfield, a one-time
commander of the International
Space Station, said from the side-
lines. “I’m just so delighted at
what this open door is going to lead
to now. It’s a great moment.”
Billionaire Bransonreaches spaceaboard own ship
Associated Press
ANDRES LEIGHTON / AP
Virgin Galactic founder Richard Branson carries crew member SirishaBandla on his shoulders while celebrating their flight to space atSpaceport America near Truth or Consequences, N.M., on Sunday.
LAKELAND, Fla. — A U.S. Army Air
Corps veteran who helped capture the
Japanese island of Iwo Jima during
World War II turned 100 on Sunday.
Andy Bosko, who lives in a Lakeland
nursing home, spent weeks on the des-
olate volcanic island, the 1945 battle
made famous by The Associated Press
photo of American soldiers raising the
flag atop a hill. He was so sure he was
going to die, he wrote his wife asking her
to take care of herself and their daughter.
“I went over on a troop ship and had to
go down ropes — a rope ladder — to get
into the landing ship,” Bosko told The
Ledger recently, saying they slogged
through several feet of water in full battle
gear to reach the beach. “As soon as I
landed, the shells were going over. I
didn’t think I’d ever come back.”
He slept in foxholes, using his duffel
bag as protection from the Japanese sol-
diers.
“They used to sneak in and cut the
guys’ throats and you wouldn’t know it,”
he recalled. “I didn’t think I’d ever come
back. I did pray to God.”
But Bosko survived and returned home
to Warren, Pa., where he worked as a ma-
chinist in a forge. He and his wife, Soph-
ia, added four sons to their daughter. The
couple moved to Florida in the 1980s af-
ter he retired. She died in 2017.
“She was a wonderful, wonderful wife
— very good for me and the children,”
Bosko said. When asked if he had a girlf-
riend now, Bosko said no. “My girlfriend
is up in heaven. I miss her and say a
prayer for her every day.”
Iwo Jima veteran turns 100 years old; thought he wouldn’t survive warAssociated Press
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 9
NATION
SURFSIDE, Fla. — The man-
gled concrete and twisted rebar
from the collapsed high-rise near
Miami triggered flashbacks for
retired Oklahoma City Fire Chief
Greg Marrs, who spent weeks
with his crew digging through the
rubble of the Alfred P. Murrah
federal building in 1995.
From afar, Marrs empathized
with the Florida teams searching
the debris that was once the 12-
story Champlain Tower South
condominium complex. The
scenes in Surfside brought back
memories of the urgent search for
survivors after the Oklahoma City
bombing, followed by the heart-
break of pulling out nothing but
bodies, he said.
It was the same for other res-
cuers who responded to past trag-
edies. They say the crews in Surf-
side will carry on with the same
commitment and care, even
though authorities this past week
officially gave up on finding any
survivors.
Joseph Pfeifer, former counter-
terrorism and emergency prepa-
redness chief for the New York
Fire Department, was one of the
first commanders on the scene af-
ter the World Trade Center towers
came down in 2001. He said the
Florida crews will preserve any
human remains and separate any
building pieces that provide clues
to the cause of the collapse.
“They are literally going to peel
off every layer. They will clean the
site right to the very last piece,”
said Pfeifer, who teaches crisis
leadership at Harvard and Colum-
bia universities and has a 9/11
memoir, “Ordinary Heroes,” set
for publication Sept. 7.
When Marrs first saw photos of
the Florida collapse, he said, the
images were reminiscent of the
destruction at the federal building
after a truck filled with explosives
was detonated outside. The blast
killed 168 people.
In the aftermath, the shells of
both buildings were still standing,
or teetering, above mounds of bro-
ken concrete and twisted metal,
with the interiors exposed.
The confirmed death toll from
the tragedy in South Florida is 90,
the mayor said Sunday, with an-
other 31 people listed as missing.
Authorities concluded that there
was “no chance of life” in the re-
maining rubble, but the pressure
has not waned for the crews to find
victims so families can lay their
loved ones to rest.
Recalling his own experience,
Marrs was sure the Florida crews
would be just as respectful in
searching for the dead as they had
been in looking for the living.
“They’re certainly not going in
there with bulldozers and moving
that stuff out, you know, not caring
about whether they run across a
body or not — that’s not something
that’s even considered,” Marrs
said.
The shift from a rescue mission
to a recovery effort does not ease
the urgency, Marrs said.
“They’re just doing it in a way
that is more cautious” and safer
because there is no longer a race
against time, he said. Crews are
likely being encouraged to take
fewer risks.
Pfeifer agreed: “It’s a difficult
task. First responders know this is
something very important to the
families. They want to do the job
even though it’s a difficult job.”
Sometimes, no identifiable re-
mains are found. About 40% of the
more than 2,600 people killed at
the World Trade Center on 9/11
still have not been physically iden-
tified, Pfeifer said.
Crews in Florida, using their
hands with help from heavy ma-
chinery, have removed 13 million
pounds of concrete and debris
from the site.
Heavier equipment has rolled
in, making it easier to remove lay-
ers of debris, Miami-Dade Fire
Chief Alan Cominsky said.
“We are expecting the progress
to move at a faster pace with our
recovery efforts,” Cominsky said.
He has said that recovering all the
victims could take weeks.
Retired Miami-Dade County
Fire Chief Dave Downey was part
of a crew from South Florida that
was dispatched to help in Oklaho-
ma City — perhaps crossing paths
with Marrs. He also rushed to the
World Trade Center after terror-
ists attacked.
“Every disaster is different. Ev-
ery disaster has its unique wrin-
kle,” Downey said.
For the past two weeks, Downey
has been in Surfside to help coor-
dinate the rescue mission and now
the recovery operation.
“What happens now is that you
change your mindset,” Downey
said, describing the transition
from seeking survivors to “know-
ing that we’re going to bring clo-
sure to these families, but not in a
positive way that we had all
hoped.”
“That doesn’t mean we’re not
going to work as hard as we can,”
he said.
Collapse search revives thoughts of past tragediesBY BOBBY CAINA CALVAN
Associated Press
AL DIAZ, MIAMI HERALD/AP
Search and rescue team members climb the debris field of the 12story oceanfront condo Champlain Towers South along Collins Avenue inSurfside, Fla., on Wednesday.
PEDRO PORTAL, MIAMI HERALD/AP
Rescuers walk away from the rubble of the Champlain Towers Southcollapse during a shift change in Surfside, Fla. on Thursday.
SHAWN BALDWIN/AP
A shell of what was once the facade of one of the twin towers of NewYork’s World Trade Center rises above the remaining rubble after bothtowers were destroyed in the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
PAGE 10 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
NATION
SAN FRANCISCO — Firefight-
ers struggled to contain an explod-
ing Northern California wildfire
under blazing temperatures as an-
other heat wave blanketed the
West, prompting an excessive
heat warning for inland and desert
areas.
Death Valley in southeastern
California’s Mojave Desert reac-
hed 128 degrees Fahrenheit on
Saturday, according to the Nation-
al Weather Service’s reading at
Furnace Creek. The shockingly
high temperature was actually
lower than the previous day, when
the location reached 130 F.
If confirmed as accurate, the
130-degree reading would be the
hottest high recorded there since
July 1913, when Furnace Creek
desert hit 134 F, considered the
highest measured temperature on
Earth.
About 300 miles northwest of
the sizzling desert, the largest
wildfire of the year in California
was raging along the border with
Nevada. The Beckwourth Com-
plex Fire — a combination of two
lightning-caused fires burning 45
miles north of Lake Tahoe —
showed no sign of slowing its rush
northeast from the Sierra Nevada
forest region after doubling in size
between Friday and Saturday.
Late Saturday, flames jumped
Interstate 395 and was threaten-
ing properties in Nevada’s Wash-
oe County. “Take immediate steps
to protect large animals and live-
stock,” the Truckee Meadows Fire
Protection District tweeted.
The blaze, which was only 8%
contained, increased dramatically
to 86 square miles as firefighters
sweltered in 100-degree temper-
atures.
It was one of several threaten-
ing homes across Western states
that were expected to see triple-
digit heat through the weekend as
a high-pressure zone blankets the
region.
Pushed by strong winds, a wild-
fire in southern Oregon doubled in
size to 120 square miles Saturday
as it raced through heavy timber
in the Fremont-Winema National
Forest near the Klamath County
town of Sprague River.
The National Weather Service
warned the dangerous conditions
could cause heat-related illnesses,
while California’s power grid op-
erator issued a statewide Flex
Alert from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Satur-
day to avoid disruptions and roll-
ing blackouts.
The California Independent
System Operator warned of poten-
tial power shortage, not only be-
cause of mounting heat, but be-
cause a wildfire in southern Ore-
gon was threatening transmission
lines that carry imported power to
California.
Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an
emergency proclamation on Fri-
day suspending rules to allow for
more power capacity, and the ISO
requested emergency assistance
from other states. On Saturday,
Newsom issued another procla-
mation allowing the emergency
use of auxiliary ship engines to re-
lieve pressure on the electric grid.
Palm Springs in Southern Cali-
fornia hit a record high temper-
ature of 120 F Saturday. It was the
fourth time temperatures have re-
ached 120 degrees so far this year,
the Desert Sun reported.
In California’s agricultural Cen-
tral Valley, 100-degree temper-
atures blanketed the region, with
Fresno reaching 111 degrees F,
just one degree short of the all-
time high for the date,
Las Vegas late Saturday after-
noon tied the all-time record high
of 117 F, the National Weather Ser-
vice said. The city has recorded
that record-high temperature four
other times, most recently in June
2017.
NV Energy, Nevada’s largest
power provider, also urged cus-
tomers to conserve electricity Sat-
urday and Sunday evenings be-
cause of the heat wave and wild-
fires affecting transmission lines
throughout the region.
In Southern California, a brush
fire sparked by a burning big rig in
eastern San Diego County forced
evacuations of two Native Ameri-
can reservations Saturday.
In north-central Arizona, Yava-
pai County on Saturday lifted an
evacuation warning for Black Ca-
nyon City, an unincorporated town
43 miles north of Phoenix, after a
fire in nearby mountains no longer
posed a threat. In Mohave County,
Arizona, two firefighters died Sat-
urday after an aircraft they were
in to respond to a small wildfire
crashed, local media reported.
A wildfire in southeast Wash-
ington grew to almost 60 square
miles as it blackened grass and
timber while it moved into the
Umatilla National Forest.
In Idaho, Gov. Brad Little de-
clared a wildfire emergency Fri-
day and mobilized the state’s Na-
tional Guard to help fight fires
sparked after lightning storms
swept across the drought-stricken
region.
Heat wave blankets West as fires rageBY DAISY NGUYEN
Associated Press
PHOTOS BY NOAH BERGER/AP
A firefighter sprays water while trying to stop the Sugar Fire, part of the Beckwourth Complex Fire, from spreading to neighboring homes inDoyle, Calif., on Saturday.
Flames consume a home as the Sugar Fire, part of the BeckwourthComplex Fire, tears through Doyle, Calif., on Saturday.
DAMIAN DOVARGANES/AP
Athletes John Richardson, left, and his wife, Sam, use a pair ofUVBlocking Sun protection umbrellas while speedwalking in ElysianPark in Los Angeles on Wednesday
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 11
AMERICAN ROUNDUP
Rancher pinned by ATVsurvives on beer, water
WY GILLETTE — A
Wyoming rancher
pinned by an all-terrain vehicle
survived on beer and bottled wa-
ter for two days.
Frank Reynolds, 53, was trying
to round up a cow and calf on a
neighbor’s pasture outside Gil-
lette when the vehicle tipped over
on him, Reynolds told the Gillette
News-Record.
“It was scary as hell is what it
was,” Reynolds said from a hospi-
tal room in Casper.
Family members thought Rey-
nolds had gone camping or was
with buddies, said Quentin Rey-
nolds, the Campbell County un-
dersheriff and Frank’s brother.
He was able to ration a couple
bottles of water and Keystone
Light beers from a cooler, Sheriff
Scott Matheny said.
Gator attack suspected indeath of woman in pond
FL VALRICO — An alliga-
tor apparently attacked
a woman whose body was found in
a retention pond near Tampa,
sheriff’s officials said.
The family of the 29-year-old
woman told WFLA-TV that she
was known to swim in the pond.
Sheriff’s officials said the wom-
an suffered injuries “consistent
with an alligator attack,” but the
medical examiner’s office would
determine the official cause of
death.
Deputies called the Florida Fish
and Wildlife Conservation Com-
mission and trappers to the scene
to try to catch the gator, the re-
lease said.
Colby may be officialstate cheese under bill
WI MADISON — In
cheese-obsessed Wis-
consin, which proudly touts itself
as America’s Dairyland, the dairy
cow is the official domestic ani-
mal, milk is the official state bev-
erage and cheese is the official
dairy product.
But believe it or not, in a state
that produces more cheese than
any other at 3.4 billion pounds
each year, there is no official state
cheese.
A bipartisan bill being heard by
a state Assembly committee
would change that.
The measure makes colby,
which was created in Wisconsin
more than 100 years ago, the offi-
cial cheese.
Colby also holds a special place
in Wisconsin cheese history. It
was created in the central Wiscon-
sin city of, you guessed it, Colby, in
1885.
Authorities seize over $1 billion in marijuana
CA LOS ANGELES — Au-
thorities said Wednes-
day that they seized $1 billion
worth of illegal marijuana in the
largest eradication effort in Los
Angeles County history.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva said a
recent 10-day operation seized
373,000 marijuana plants and
33,480 pounds of harvested pot
with an estimated street value of
nearly $1.2 billion.
The Mojave Desert area is
where authorities last month
launched a massive raid on what
they said were illegal marijuana
farms believed to be connected to
drug cartels.
That operation led to 23 arrests
and the seizure of millions of dol-
lars’ worth of pot in what was de-
scribed as the largest such oper-
ation in the sheriff’s department
history.
Girl, 6, snatched off bike;found 30 minutes later
KY LOUISVILLE — A 6-
year-old Kentucky girl
who was snatched from her bicy-
cle by a stranger was found quick-
ly, returned to her family and a
suspect was charged with kidnap-
ping thanks to the quick actions of
neighbors and police, authorities
said.
Those who witnessed the girl
being taken from her Louisville
neighborhood swiftly called 911
with a detailed description of the
vehicle and a partial license plate
number, police spokesperson
Beth Ruoff told news outlets.
Police found a car matching the
description within 30 minutes and
arrested Robby Wildt, 40, who
was charged with kidnapping a
minor. He has pleaded not guilty.
Neighbor Prentiss Weather-
ford, who witnessed the child be-
ing taken, told WHAS-TV he saw a
car come around a corner and
park in the middle of the street. He
said a man got out and grabbed the
girl “by the collar, threw the bike,
put her in the passenger seat, and
then took off.”
Rescuers ask residents toleave young seals alone
ME BATH — A marine
mammal rescue
group in Maine is asking beach-
goers to leave young seals alone
after documenting numerous re-
cent interactions between people
and the animals.
Marine Mammals of Maine is a
nonprofit group that responds to
distressed sea mammals, such as
seals and dolphins, as well as sea
turtles. The group said one seal
was subjected to repeated harass-
ment over several days in June.
Marine Mammals of Maine said
harbor seal pups are still small at
this time of the year, but they are
also fully independent. Many
beachgoers think the animals are
in trouble when they are in fact be-
having normally.
Man arrested for rifle athotel released, proposes
IL CHICAGO — An Iowa
man who was in custody
in Chicago after police found a ri-
fle with a laser sight in a hotel
room that overlooks a Lake Michi-
gan beach during the July Fourth
weekend made bond and then pro-
posed to his girlfriend upon his re-
lease.
Authorities said a member of
the cleaning staff at the W Hotel
told police they observed the rifle,
a handgun and ammunition in the
room held by Keegan Casteel, 32.
The weapons were found on a 12th
floor window sill. The window had
a view of Ohio Street Beach and
Navy Pier, a major tourist attrac-
tion.
Casteel of Ankeny, Iowa, was
arrested at the hotel and faces two
counts of aggravated unlawful use
of a weapon.
Casteel was released and pro-
posed to his girlfriend outside the
18th District headquarters, ac-
cording to WLS-TV. She appeared
to accept.
Invasive moths that causerash hatch early this year
ME WINTHROP— A spe-
cies of invasive moth
that can cause an itchy rash in hu-
mans hatched early this year in
Maine.
Forestry officials in Maine said
they expect this to be the worst
year in history for browntail moth
encounters in the state. Popula-
tions of the moth have been in an
outbreak phase for six years, and
recent dry conditions have helped.
Tom Schmeelk, an entomologist
with the Maine Department of
Agriculture, Conservation and
Forestry, told the Kennebec Jour-
nal that the moth hatch was more
than two weeks earlier than nor-
mal this year.
The caterpillars of the moths
have toxic hairs that can cause a
painful rash.
FRANCIS GARDLER, LINCOLN (NEB.) JOURNAL STAR/AP
Jalayeh Alford, 9, rides down the cool waters of the slide at Star City Shores Aquatic Center in Lincoln, Neb. Temperatures reached a high of97 degrees, as families converged on the pool.
Round and round she goes
THE CENSUS
6K The number of false eyelashes seized by officials after theywere determined to have been illegally imported from China
to New Orleans. The four boxes of long lashes seized at Louis Armstrong NewOrleans International Airport were destined for a local beauty supply store, U.S.Customs and Border Protection spokesperson Matthew Dyman said in a state-ment. There’s no way to tell whether the eyelashes had been exposed to dis-ease during manufacturing or whether they were stored properly and kept awayfrom insect-infested areas, Dyman told The Times-Picayune / The New OrleansAdvocate.
From The Associated Press
PAGE 12 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
WORLD
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet
Yellen said Sunday that deterring
the use of tax havens will let coun-
tries compete on economic funda-
mentals — instead of by offering
ever-lower tax rates that deprive
governments of money for infras-
tructure and education.
Yellen spoke after finance min-
isters from the Group of 20 major
economies endorsed a global mini-
mum corporate tax of at least 15%,
a measure aimed at putting a floor
under tax rates and discouraging
companies from using low-rate
countries as tax havens.
“This deal will end the race to
the bottom,” she said at a news
conference after the end of the
meeting in Venice.
“Instead of asking the question:
‘Who can offer the lowest tax
rate?,’ it will allow all of our coun-
tries to compete on the basis of eco-
nomic fundamentals — on the skill
of our workforces, our capacity to
innovate, and the strength of our
legal and economic institutions.”
“And this deal will give our na-
tions the ability to raise the neces-
sary funding for important public
goods like infrastructure, R&D,
and education.”
The global minimum proposal
faces political and technical hur-
dles before it would take effect.
Details are to be ironed out in com-
ing weeks at the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Devel-
opment in Paris, followed by a fi-
nal endorsement by presidents
and prime ministers of the Group
of 20 at an Oct. 30-31 meeting in
Rome.
Countries would then need to
legislate the rate into their own
laws. The idea is for headquarters
countries to tax their companies’
foreign earnings at home if those
earnings go untaxed in low-rate
countries. That would remove the
reason for using complex account-
ing schemes to move profits to sub-
sidiaries in low-tax nations where
the companies may do little or no
actual business.
US backs call for global minimum corporate taxAssociated Press
LUCA BRUNO/AP
Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen speaks Sunday during a pressconference at a G20 Economy and Finance ministers and Centralbank governors’ meeting in Venice, Italy.
the two countries to a new stage,”
KCNA said.
North Korea has been expect-
ed to seek greater support from
China, its major ally and aid ben-
efactor, as it grapples with eco-
nomic hardship exacerbated by
the coronavirus pandemic and
crippling U.S.-led sanctions over
SEOUL, South Korea — The
North Korean and Chinese lead-
ers expressed their desire Sun-
day to further strengthen their
ties as they exchanged messages
marking the 60th anniversary of
their countries’ defense treaty.
In a message to Chinese Presi-
dent Xi Jinping, North Korean
leader Kim Jong Un said it is “the
fixed stand” of his government to
“ceaselessly develop the friendly
and cooperative relations” be-
tween the countries, the official
Korean Central News Agency
said.
Xi said in his message that “he
is willing to provide greater hap-
piness to the two countries ... by
strengthening the strategic com-
munication with (Kim) to proper-
ly control the direction of the ad-
vance of the China-(North Ko-
rea) relations and by steadily
leading the relations of friend-
ship and cooperation between
its nuclear weapons program.
China, for its part, sees prevent-
ing a North Korean collapse as
crucial to its security interests
and would need to boost ties with
North Korea and other tradition-
al allies amid fierce rivalry with
the United States, some experts
say.
Leaders of North Korea, China vow to strengthen tiesAssociated Press
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 13
WORLD
SREBRENICA, Bosnia-Herze-
govina — Nineteen newly identi-
fied victims were honored and
buried Sunday in Bosnia as thou-
sands gathered to commemorate
the 1995 Srebrenica massacre,
Europe’s only acknowledged gen-
ocide since World War II.
The slaughter of more than
8,000 Muslim Bosniaks, most of
them men and boys, by Bosnian
Serb forces was commemorated
in speeches, prayers and song, fol-
lowed by the reburial of victims
whose remains were found in
mass graves and recently identi-
fied through DNA analysis.
The Srebrenica killings were
the bloody crescendo of the 1992-
95 war in Bosnia, which came af-
ter the break-up of Yugoslavia un-
leashed nationalistic passions and
territorial ambitions that set Bos-
nian Serbs against the country’s
two other main ethnic factions —
Croats and Bosniaks.
The massacre has been de-
clared a genocide by international
and national courts, but Serb lead-
ers in Bosnia and neighboring Ser-
bia continue to downplay or even
deny it despite the irrefutable evi-
dence of what happened.
Twenty six years after they
were brutally murdered, 16 men,
two teenage boys and a woman
were laid to rest at a memorial
cemetery at the entrance to Sre-
brenica, joining more than 6,600
other massacre victims already
reburied there.
Thousands commemorate
Srebrenica massacre in BosniaAssociated Press
DARKO BANDIC / AP
Mourners prepare for the funeral of newly identified victims inPotocari near Srebrenica, Bosnia, on Sunday. Bosnia marked the26th anniversary of the Srebrenica massacre, Europe's onlyacknowledged genocide since World War II.
ROME — Pope Francis on Sunday made
his first public appearance since major in-
testinal surgery last week, greeting well-
wishers as he stood for 10 minutes on a hos-
pital balcony, offering hearty thanks for all
the prayers for his recovery and calling
health care for all a “precious” good.
Francis, 84, has been steadily on the
mend, according to the Vatican, following
his July 4 scheduled surgery to remove a
portion of his colon which had narrowed
due to inflammation. But it hasn’t said just
when he might be discharged. On the
morning after his surgery, a Holy See spo-
kesperson said his hospital stay was ex-
pected to last seven days, “barring compli-
cations.”
At first the pontiff’s voice sounded on the
weak side as he began his remarks after
stepping onto a balcony outside his special
suite at Gemelli Polyclinic at noon.
That is the hour when traditionally he
would have appeared from a window at the
Vatican overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Exactly a week earlier, in his noon re-
marks he had given no hint that in a few
hours he would have entered the hospital
for surgery that same night.
“I am happy to be able to keep the Sun-
day appointment,” this time at the hospital,
the pope said.
“I thank everyone. I very much felt your
closeness and the support of your prayers,”
Francis said. “Thank you from my heart!”
exclaimed the pontiff.
Pope Francis makes first appearance since intestinal surgeryAssociated Press
PAGE 14 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
FACES
In “The Forever Purge,” the
bloodbath lasts more than 12
hours and takes place on the bor-
der between Mexico and the Unit-
ed States. Mexican director Ever-
ardo Gout uses the strengths of
fellow countrymen actors Ana de
la Reguera and Tenoch Huerta in
the film, now in theaters.
The first film in the horror saga
created by James DeMonaco was
2013’s “The Purge.’‘ In this install-
ment, de la Reguera plays Adela,
who along with husband Juan
(Huerta), tries to adapt as an im-
migrant recently arrived in the
United States.
But when the time comes to
fight the purge — an annual event
where murders, rapes and all
kinds of crimes are allowed— it
extends beyond the established 12
hours. Adela takes up arms and
fights alongside the men.
“Where are strong women in
movies?” said Gout in Spanish in a
recent video call interview about
his choice of the Mexican actress
for this character. “Where are the
women like my mother who raised
me with my brothers? 40 years old,
complex, complete, beautiful. I
was very excited to be able to do
that.”
The filmmaker, who makes his
debut as a Hollywood director
with this film, said he always had
Huerta in mind. The Mexican ac-
tor starred in his debut feature,
“Days of Grace” (“Días de gra-
cia”) in 2011, and has been vocal in
his stance against the violation of
immigrant rights and racism.
In “The Forever Purge,” Huer-
ta plays a horse trainer with al-
most magical abilities to control
animals but is nevertheless reject-
ed by the prejudices of Dylan
Tucker (Josh Lucas), the white
son of the owner of the ranch
where he works.
“I knew he was the best actor for
this role, so I stuck with my deci-
sion with the study saying ‘I love
Tenoch and I’m not going to see
anyone else until you show me that
there is a better actor out there,’”
Gout said. “That tape never came,
because there was no one better.”
Unlike Adela, who strives to
learn English, Juan does not want
to forget his origins.
“I think the authenticity that Te-
noch gives it is very important and
on the contrary, what I said to
James (DeMonaco) was ‘let’s use
his accent; let’s use his imperfec-
tion of English,’” said the director.
When the purge spirals out of
control, Mexicans and Americans
alike seek refuge in Mexico.
“It has a lot of ironies and a lot of
messages that I think are impor-
tant,” Gout said. “The movie nev-
er falls from its shell of being a
horror movie and a thriller ... (but)
with that shell the waves can be
political, it can be racial, it can be
anything because it is organic for
the characters.”
Though “The Purge” saga is fic-
tional, with the rising levels of di-
visiveness, intolerance and vio-
lence in the wake of the coronavi-
rus pandemic, could fiction be-
come reality?
“Obviously we shot it before all
the disaster that happened in
America in the last year, but I
think that’s the genius of James
DeMonaco, who has the clairvoy-
ance to see five minutes into the
future,” Gout said. “It is a current
film. If some aliens came to Earth,
I think it would be one of the 10
films that represent who we are.”
And when it seems that the com-
plicated relationship between
Mexico and the United States has
been introduced, the film reminds
that long before the border issues,
Native American people were in
the region. In a prominent role, an
indigenous ally (played by Grego-
ry Zaragoza) who guides them
through the desert points out that
they have been fighting oppres-
sion and extermination for 500
years.
Film saga bordering on insightful
JAKE GILES NETTER, UNIVERSAL PICTURES/AP
Director Everardo Gout, shown on the set of his film “The Forever Purge,” uses the latest chapter of thehorror/thriller series to raise some questions about border issues and immigration.
Director Gout givesMexicans, womengreater dimensionin ‘Forever Purge’
BY BERENICE BAUTISTA
Associated Press
For “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Mi-
randa, the inspirations for art and philan-
thropy are inextricably linked.
On July 7, Miranda announced a series of
donations to organizations that serve immi-
grants, whose experiences are central to the
new film version of his hit Broadway musi-
cal “In the Heights.”
“For me,” Miranda said, “philanthropy
and artistic inspiration kind of come from
the same place.”
He is forever drawn to what he calls “the
things that don’t leave you alone.” Immigra-
tion, he said, is both a passion and a founda-
tional element of his work. “In the Heights,”
he noted, centers on immigrants from the
Caribbean and Latin America living in New
York City. And “Hamilton,” he said, “is sort
of the proto-immigrant story.”
“I think I am in awe of people who can
make an impossible leap to leave every-
thing they know behind and start a new life
here,” he said. “And I think it’s one of the
great things about our country.”
In honor of the Fourth of July, the Miran-
da Family Fund awarded a total of $225,000
in grants to immigrant rights groups and
policy reform advocates. The recipients are
Arizona’s Pima County Justice for All, Cali-
fornia’s Coalition for Human Rights Los
Angeles, Colorado Immigration Rights
Coalition, Michigan’s Arab Community
Center for Economic and Social Services,
Texas’ Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy
Center, Utah Refugee Connection, Asian
Americans Advancing Justice in Washing-
ton, and both Alianza for Progress and Or-
lando Center for Justice in Florida.
Luis Miranda Jr., Lin-Manuel’s father,
said all the recipients were recommended
by friends of the family in the field of im-
migration.
It was important to the Mirandas to make
the grants unrestricted, so the money would
go to “whatever the organization believes is
important,” Luis said. “They know what
they need,” Lin-Manuel added.
Though the Miranda Family Fund has
been active for years in donations to the arts
community, last week’s donations mark an
expansion in its giving for immigration,
which previously included working with
the Hispanic Federation to establish the Im-
migrants: We Get the Job Done Coalition.
Lin-Manuel said it’s vital to showcase
both the successes and the struggles of be-
ing an immigrant. “The trick is not to look at
it through rose-colored glasses, but through
really clear eyeglasses,” he said. “It’s al-
ways something that we can be working on,
always something we can do better.”
Lin-Manuel Miranda sees art and philanthropy with same lensBY GLENN GAMBOA
Associated Press
MONICA SIMOES
LinManuel Miranda, left, laughs with hisfather, Luis Miranda Jr. The awardwinning“Hamilton” creator and his family'snonprofit made a series of donations July6 to organizations helping immigrants.
Queen Elizabeth II has visited
the set of “Coronation Street” to
mark the long-running television
soap’s 60th birthday.
The monarch was all smiles as
she met July 8 with veteran cast
and crew of the show, walked
along the storied cobbled street
and visited the studio where the
interior of the Rovers Return pub
is filmed.
It was the second time the
queen, 95, has visited “Coronation
Street” — the first time was in the
early 1980s, at the show’s original
studios in Manchester.
She told the cast it was “really
marvelous you’ve been able to
carry on” during the pandemic,
and took time to chat to backstage
staff including writers, camera
operators, set designers and
sound engineers.
The show, which focuses on the
lives of residents of the fictional
northern English town of Weath-
erfield, is the world’s longest-run-
ning drama series.
Actor Bill Roache, who has
played Ken Barlow for decades
since the soap’s early days, said
the royal visit was a “wonderful
bit of icing on the cake.”
“She just smiles. She listens, she
always has, and she loves to be
made to laugh,” Roache said.
SCOTT HEPPELL/AP
Queen Elizabeth II visits the setof the longrunning televisionseries “Coronation Street” onJuly 8 in Manchester, England.
Queen visits‘CoronationStreet’ TV set
Associated Press
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 15
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stripes.com
OPINION
WASHINGTON
Even if you belong in the basket of
deplorables — Americans unin-
terested in baseball — you should
be intrigued by the sport’s cur-
rent problems. At the all-star break, Major
League Baseball’s 2021 season is demon-
strating, redundantly, that the quality of the
game as entertainment is declining. Para-
doxically, the problems arise from reason-
able behavior based on abundant accurate
information.
Improved technology generates data
about pitches’ spin rates, the launch angles
of batters’ swings, particular batters’ tend-
encies on particular pitches and much
more. Improved kinesiology increases
pitching velocity. The results include a
slower pace of play, diminished action, few-
er balls in play and more of them handled by
radically repositioned infielders.
Five seasons ago, there were 3,294 more
hits than strikeouts. Three seasons ago,
strikeouts edged past hits. Writer Jayson
Stark notes that until 2018 there had never
been a month with more strikeouts than
hits. This April there were almost 1,100
more strikeouts than hits, and writer Tyler
Kepner says this season is on a pace for ap-
proximately 5,000 more strikeouts than
hits. Twenty-four percent of plate appear-
ances end in strikeouts (they are increasing
for the 16th consecutive season, partly be-
cause today’s average fastball’s velocity is
93.8 mph, 2.7 mph more than 14 years ago.
As of mid-June, the .238 collective major
league batting average was 15 points below
2019. In 2015, teams shifted infielders on
9.6% of all pitches. This season, teams are
shifting on 32% (usually an infielder in shal-
low right field), which will erase perhaps
600 hits.
With pitchers dawdling to recover be-
tween high-exertion, high-velocity pitches
and with 36% of at-bats ending with home
runs, strikeouts or walks, around four min-
utes pass, on average, between balls put in
play. Players spend much more time with
leather on their hands than with wood in
their hands, but have fewer and fewer op-
portunities to display their athleticism as
fielders. Home runs predominate because
scoring by hitting a ball far over defensive
shifts is more likely than hitting three sin-
gles, through shifts, off someone throwing
98 mph fastballs and 90 mph secondary
pitches. This means fewer baserunners. In
2021, there probably will be 1,000 fewer sto-
len bases than 10 years ago.
Writer Tom Verducci notes that in the
last 26 minutes of 2020’s most-watched
game, the final World Series game, just two
balls were put in play. In this game, the ball
was put in play every 6.5 minutes, and half
the outs were strikeouts.
More pitches and less contact. Longer
games (13 minutes 17 seconds longer than a
decade ago) and less action. No wonder fans
who have been neurologically rewired by
their digital devices’ speeds are seeking
other entertainments. Major league attend-
ance has fallen 14% from its 2007 peak.
Last season, MLB made an action-creat-
ing change — a runner is placed on second
base to begin each extra half-inning. And
MLB is experimenting with other changes
in various minor leagues.
Because pitching velocity is suffocating
offense, MLB could move the pitcher’s
mound back a foot (from today’s 60 feet six
inches) to give batters more reaction time.
The changed physiology of pitchers has, in
effect, moved the mound closer to home
plate: In the 1950s, the Yankees’ 5-foot 10-
inch Whitey Ford had a Hall of Fame ca-
reer. Today, 6-foot 4-inch pitchers, with
long arms and long strides, release the ball
significantly closer to the plate than Ford
did.
Requiring four infielders to be on the in-
field dirt — or, even bolder, requiring two
infielders to be on the dirt on each side of
second base — as the pitch is thrown, would
reduce reliance on home runs, which are
four seconds of action, followed by a lei-
surely 360-foot trot. A 20-second pitch clock
might reduce velocity by reducing pitchers’
between-pitches recovery time. And by
quickening baseball’s tempo, the clock
might prevent batters from wandering
away from the batter’s box and ruminating
between pitches. Stolen bases might in-
crease if pitchers had to step off the rubber
before throwing to first base. After a walk
and then a steal, one single would produce a
score.
Baseball fans, a temperamentally conser-
vative tribe, viscerally oppose de jure
changes to their game. They must, however,
acknowledge the damage done to it by this
century’s cumulatively momentous de fac-
to changes in the way it is played. What Ed-
mund Burke said of states is pertinent: “A
state without the means of some change is
without the means of its conservation.”
Save baseball by changing the rulesBY GEORGE F. WILL
Washington Post Writers Group
Workers sang that song in the
1880s, protesting for an eight-
hour workday at a time when
the average was more like 12.
They achieved that goal. But more than 100
years later, we’re still singing the same song.
Today, it’s the four-day workweek that’s
gone from fringe idea to pragmatic policy
consideration. Japan is recommending it in
its economic policy guidelines. Iceland insti-
tuted a trial program that went swimmingly.
And Spain is working on its own plan.
The push for a shorter workweek was al-
ready gaining traction before the pandemic.
But COVID-19’s upending of office life has
made it seem more plausible than ever — per-
haps even necessary. Companies have real-
ized that their hastily adopted flexible work
policies can help attract and retain employ-
ees, and workers have proved they can adjust
to radical shifts in their working lives.
Yet we keep thinking about work in a dis-
appointingly narrow way.
Even as companies, activists and individu-
al workers champion the idea of a shorter
workweek, they’re framing it in old terms. We
can get all our work done in four days, we
promise. In fact, we’ll be more productive.
(Look at Microsoft Japan, which famously in-
creased productivity by 40%!) No more un-
necessary meetings. No more interruptions
from our nonwork lives. After a three-day
weekend we’ll be rested and recharged — the
better to hit the ground running on Monday
morning!
It’s not that we want “an hour for thought”
— it’s that working fewer hours will make us
better workers. But this isn’t radical change.
It’s the same old profit über alles dogma pack-
aged in a more tightly compressed box.
When we focus on how a shorter workweek
will make us better employees, we’re making
the wrong argument to our bosses and our-
selves. The four-day workweek shouldn’t just
be about becoming more productive — the
real benefit is that it would allow us to be full-
er people.
So why not discuss the four-day workweek
in those terms?
In an admittedly unscientific survey, I
asked Twitter followers whether they would
prefer a regular four-day workweek or a
month’s vacation — and why. Over 500 peo-
ple responded. And nearly 85% wanted the
shorter week.
Some clearly wanted the convenience of an
extra weekend day, the ability to run those
pesky errands that are constantly pushed out
of reach by the ever-expanding workday.
(Truly, whose idea was it to have the DMV
close at 4 p.m.?)
But most said the four-day week would
give them more time to do the things that
make them … themselves. Some wanted to
pursue a skilled pastime that would enrich
their lives, such as playing an instrument or
making art. Others thought they would spend
the extra day with their friends and families
— describing it not as drudgery or “child
care,” the exhausting task that has pulled
mothers especially from the workforce, but
quality time. There was mention of various
hobbies and associations, of going to mu-
seums, taking walks, spending time at
church.
These sorts of activities are unlikely to be
recognized as creating economic value. But
they’re obviously rich in human value: the
mastery of a craft, a connection created with
others, an embeddedness in a particular com-
munity or place. These are the things that
make us whole. Yet without enough free time,
one can’t develop the relationships and com-
mitments we need to truly thrive.
The United States has for decades been
locked into an economic mindset in which
growth, or at least its potential, is seen as the
main barometer of success, and individuals
are judged mainly on what we produce. In the
elite classes in particular, work has become
central to our lives, a source of meaning and
status. We’re proud of our ability to work hard
and efficiently, even though our gains in pro-
ductivity haven’t accrued to us personally.
But the push for a four-day workweek sug-
gests we do have other things we value — as
we should. The trick will be learning to advo-
cate for them on their own terms, with the
same clarity and fervor with which we cele-
brate material and economic gains.
“We mean to make things over,” those 19th-
century workers sang. In the 21st century,
making over our conversations — the ways
we measure worth and the value we place on
our own well-being — will be a big part of get-
ting the job done.
A 4-day workweek will make us better humansBY CHRISTINE EMBA
The Washington Post
Christine Emba is an opinion columnist and editor for TheWashington Post.
PAGE 16 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
ACROSS
1 Hairy no more
5 Haw’s partner
8 Some HDTVs
12 Opera house
solo
13 “— Blue?”
14 Witty Bombeck
15 Smile broadly
16 1981 Kathleen
Turner film
18 Motorcycle
maker
20 Think up
21 Without
23 Used a chair
24 Carry a gun
28 Tears
31 Solidify
32 City in Provence
34 Victory sign
35 Basra resident
37 Microwave
for too long
39 Fortify
41 “Simpsons”
bus driver
42 Shadows
45 Sharpshooter
Annie
49 Tie
51 Teeny bit
52 Other (Sp.)
53 Oklahoma city
54 Nobel Prize subj.
55 Tree house
56 Texter’s chuckle
57 Hockey venue
DOWN
1 Infant
2 Length times
width
3 Actor Neeson
4 Table linen fabric
5 Fiery pepper
6 Punk rock
offshoot
7 Calf-length
8 Try again, as
in court
9 Kind of writing
10 Latin 101 word
11 Fill fully
17 NFL stats
19 “Funny!”
22 Spirited attack
24 Links org.
25 — Lingus
26 Eateries with
steamers
27 Shun liquor
29 Green shade
30 Fixed
33 Madrid miss
(Abbr.)
36 Legendary
French actress
38 More corny
40 Slangy denial
42 Japanese noodle
43 Apportion
44 Navy commando
46 Places
47 Thames town
48 Tug
50 Commotion
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, July 12, 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, July 12, 2021
SCOREBOARD/AWARDS
SOCCER
MLS
Eastern Conference
W L T Pts GF GA
New England 7 3 3 24 22 18
Orlando City 6 3 3 21 20 12
Philadelphia 5 3 5 20 16 12
CF Montréal 5 3 4 19 14 11
Nashville 4 1 7 19 16 13
NYCFC 5 4 2 17 19 13
New York 5 5 2 17 17 15
Columbus 4 3 5 17 13 11
D.C. United 5 6 1 16 17 14
Atlanta 2 3 7 13 13 15
Cincinnati 3 5 3 12 12 20
Chicago 3 7 2 11 13 18
Inter Miami CF 2 7 2 8 9 17
Toronto FC 2 8 2 8 16 29
Western Conference
W L T Pts GF GA
Seattle 8 0 5 29 23 8
Sporting KC 8 3 2 26 24 15
LA Galaxy 8 4 0 24 20 18
Colorado 6 3 2 20 18 12
LAFC 5 4 3 18 15 12
Real Salt Lake 4 3 4 16 18 12
Minnesota 4 5 3 15 12 16
Houston 3 4 6 15 16 19
Portland 4 6 1 13 14 19
Austin FC 3 6 4 13 10 14
San Jose 3 7 2 11 14 22
FC Dallas 2 5 5 11 14 20
Vancouver 2 7 3 9 12 22
Note: Three points for victory, one pointfor tie.
Friday’s game
Columbus 2, Cincinnati 2, tie
Saturday, July 17
New England at Atlanta Miami at New York Cincinnati at CF Montréal D.C. United at Philadelphia New York City FC at Columbus Orlando City at Toronto FC Chicago at Nashville San Jose at Colorado LA Galaxy at Vancouver FC Dallas at Portland Real Salt Lake at Los Angeles FC
Sunday, July 18
Seattle at Minnesota
Tuesday, July 20
Houston at Vancouver
Wednesday, July 21
Nashville at Columbus New York at Toronto FC CF Montréal at New York City FC New England at Miami Atlanta at Cincinnati D.C. United at Chicago San Jose at Sporting Kansas City FC Dallas at Colorado LA Galaxy at Real Salt Lake Los Angeles FC at Portland
Thursday, July 22
Philadelphia at Orlando City Seattle at Austin FC
NWSL
W L T Pts GF GA
North Carolina 5 3 1 16 14 6
Orlando 4 2 4 16 13 11
Portland 5 3 0 15 14 6
Washington 4 2 3 15 10 8
Houston 4 3 1 13 10 8
Gotham FC 3 1 3 12 7 3
Louisville 3 4 2 11 7 13
Chicago 3 4 2 11 6 13
Reign FC 2 5 1 7 5 10
Kansas City 0 6 3 3 5 13
Note: Three points for victory, one pointfor tie.
Friday’s game
Louisville 1, Orlando 1, tie
Saturday’s game
Washington 2, North Carolina 0
Sunday’s games
Gotham FC at Portland Houston at Chicago Kansas City at Reign FC
Saturday, July 17
Houston at North Carolina
Sunday, July 18
Gotham FC at Washington Reign FC at Chicago Orlando at Portland
PRO BASKETBALL
WNBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
W L Pct GB
Connecticut 13 6 .684 —
Chicago 10 10 .500 3½
New York 10 10 .500 3½
Washington 8 10 .444 4½
Atlanta 6 12 .333 6½
Indiana 3 16 .158 10
WESTERN CONFERENCE
W L Pct GB
Seattle 15 5 .750 —
Las Vegas 14 6 .700 1
Minnesota 11 7 .611 3
Phoenix 9 9 .500 5
Dallas 9 11 .450 6
Los Angeles 6 12 .333 8
Friday’s games
Indiana 82, New York 69Connecticut 84, Atlanta 72Phoenix 85, Seattle 77Minnesota 77, Las Vegas 67
Saturday’s games
Washington 89, Chicago 85, OT
Sunday’s games
Las Vegas at DallasConnecticut at New YorkIndiana at AtlantaPhoenix at SeattleMinnesota at Los Angeles
Monday’s games
No games scheduled.
Tuesday’s games
No games scheduled.
TENNIS
Hamburg European Open
SaturdayAt Am Rothenbaum Rot-Weiss Tennis
ClubHamburg, Germany
Purse: $235,238Surface: Red clayWomen’s Singles
SemifinalsElena-Gabriela Ruse, Romania, def.
Dayana Yastremska (1), Ukraine, 2-6, 6-1,6-4.
Andrea Petkovic, Germany, def. Jule Nie-meier, Germany, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 7-5.
Women’s Doubles
Semifinals
Astra Sharma, Australia, and RosalieVan Der Hoek, Netherlands, def. MandyMinella, Luxembourg, and Mona Barthel,Germany, 6-3, 6-4.
Nordea Open
SaturdayAt Bastad Tennis Stadium
Bastad, SwedenPurse: $125,000
Surface: Red clayWomen’s Singles
ChampionshipNuria Parrizas-Diaz, Spain, def. Olga Go-
vortsova (7), Belarus, 6-2, 6-2.
Women’s Doubles
Championship
Mirjam Bjorklund, Sweden, and LeonieKung, Switzerland, def. Tereza Mihaliko-va, Slovakia, and Kamilla Rakhimova (3),Russia, 5-7, 6-3, 10-5.
DEALS
Saturday’s transactions
BASEBALLMajor League Baseball
American LeagueBOSTON RED SOX — Placed RHP Matt An-
driese on the 10-day IL. Selected the con-tract of RHP Austin Brice from Worcester(Triple-A East).
DETROIT TIGERS — Optioned RHP MattManning to Toledo (Triple-A East). Rein-stated RHP Derek Holland from the 10-dayIL.
NEW YORK YANKEES — Placed OF MiguelAndujar on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Ju-ly 7. Placed RHP Jonathan Loaisiga on the10-day IL Recalled RHP Albert Abreu fromScranton/Wilkes-Barre (Triple-A East).
National LeagueARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS — Reinstated
OF Kole Calhoun from the 60-day IL. Desig-nated OF Nick Heath for assignment. Op-tioned RHP Taylor Widener to Reno (Tri-ple-A West). Placed 3B Asdrubal Cabreraon the 10-day IL. Recalled 2B AndrewYoung from Reno.
COLORADO ROCKIES — Reinstated 1BMatt Adams from the 10-day IL. OptionedRHP Jose Mujica to Albuquerque (Triple-AWest).
LOS ANGELES DODGERS — Traded RHPHugo Beltran to Baltimore Orioles forcash. Recalled OF Zach Reks from Oklaho-ma City (Triple-A West). Placed RHP EdwinUceta on the 10-day IL.
MIAMI MARLINS — Selected the contractof RHP Preston Guilmet from Jacksonville(Triple-A East). Designated LHP ShawnMorimando for assignment.
NEW YORK METS — Recalled RHP GeoffHartlieb from Syracuse (Triple-A East) andhe will serve as the 27th man. PromotedINF Brett Baty to Binghamton (Double-ANortheast).
PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES — Selected thecontract of RHP JD Hammer from LehighValley (Triple-A East). Placed CF OdubelHerrera on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Ju-ly 9.
PITTSBURGH PIRATES — Recalled RHPMax Kranick from Indianapolis (Triple-AEast), appointed him as the 27th man fortoday’s doubleheader and he will startsecond game.
SAN DIEGO PADRES — Optioned RHP Re-iss Knehr to El Paso (Triple-A West).
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS — Recalled CJoey Bart from Sacramento (Triple-AWest). Optioned RHP Logan Webb to Sac-ramento. Sent RHP Aaron Sanchez to SanJose (Low-A West) and LF Mike Tauchmanto Sacramento (Triple-A West) on rehabassignments.
WASHINGTON NATIONALS — Selectedthe contract of C Jakson Reetz from Roch-ester (Triple-A East). Placed C Yan Gomeson the 10-day IL. Designated LHP Kyle Lob-stein for assignment.
AUTO RACING
Credit Karma Money 250
NASCAR-Xfinity SeriesSaturday
At Atlanta Motor SpeedwayHampton, Ga.
Lap length: 1.54 miles(Start position in parentheses)
1. (1) Kyle Busch, Toyota, 164 laps, 0points.
2. (11) Jeb Burton, Chevrolet, 164, 35.3. (9) Noah Gragson, Chevrolet, 164, 48.4. (7) Justin Haley, Chevrolet, 164, 38.5. (30) Ty Dillon, Chevrolet, 164, 35.6. (20) Brett Moffitt, Chevrolet, 164, 40.7. (8) Justin Allgaier, Chevrolet, 164, 37.8. (19) Jeremy Clements, Chevrolet, 164,
29.9. (22) Sam Mayer, Chevrolet, 164, 28.10. (4) Austin Cindric, Ford, 164, 27.11. (6) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 164, 0.12. (16) Ryan Sieg, Ford, 164, 25.13. (3) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 164,
42.14. (32) Ryan Vargas, Chevrolet, 164, 23.15. (17) Alex Labbe, Chevrolet, 164, 26.16. (14) Tommy Joe Martins, Chevrolet,
164, 21.17. (27) Jade Buford, Chevrolet, 164, 20.18. (18) Josh Williams, Chevrolet, 164, 19.19. (10) Riley Herbst, Ford, 164, 18.20. (36) Colby Howard, Chevrolet, 164, 17.21. (15) Myatt Snider, Chevrolet, 164, 16.22. (37) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Chevrolet,
164, 15.23. (28) Josh Berry, Chevrolet, 164, 14.24. (5) Harrison Burton, Toyota, 164, 26.25. (33) Joe Graf Jr, Chevrolet, 164, 12.26. (24) Matt Mills, Chevrolet, 164, 11.27. (29) Ronnie Bassett Jr, Chevrolet, 164,
10.28. (31) Jesse Little, Toyota, 164, 9.29. (23) Mason Massey, Ford, 164, 8.30. (2) Daniel Hemric, Toyota, 164, 20.31. (12) Brandon Brown, Chevrolet, acci-
dent, 163, 6.32. (38) Kyle Weatherman, Chevrolet, ac-
cident, 162, 5.33. (25) Santino Ferrucci, Toyota, 162, 4.34. (39) Bayley Currey, Chevrolet, 162, 0.35. (40) Gray Gaulding, Chevrolet, 160, 2.36. (26) Carson Ware, Chevrolet, acci-
dent, 139, 1.37. (34) Cj McLaughlin, Toyota, 139, 0.38. (21) Landon Cassill, Chevrolet, 128, 1.39. (13) Brandon Jones, Toyota, acci-
dent, 118, 3.40. (35) David Starr, Toyota, accident, 50,
1.Race Statistics
Average Speed of Race Winner: 109.034mph.
Time of Race: 2 hours, 18 minutes, 59seconds.
Margin of Victory: 0.550 seconds.Caution Flags: 10 for 43 laps.Lead Changes: 16 among 9 drivers.Lap Leaders: K.Busch 0-43; H.Burton 44-
46; N.Gragson 47-48; K.Busch 49-65; A.All-mendinger 66; K.Busch 67-97; N.Gragson98-100; J.Allgaier 101-104; D.Hemric 105-120; T.Dillon 121-124; D.Hemric 125-148;K.Weatherman 149-151; D.Hemric 152-156;A.Allmendinger 157; K.Busch 158-161;J.Burton 162; K.Busch 163-164
Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Led,Laps Led): K.Busch, 5 times for 97 laps;D.Hemric, 3 times for 45 laps; N.Gragson, 2times for 5 laps; T.Dillon, 1 time for 4 laps;J.Allgaier, 1 time for 4 laps; H.Burton, 1time for 3 laps; K.Weatherman, 1 time for 3laps; A.Allmendinger, 2 times for 2 laps;J.Burton, 1 time for 1 lap.
Wins: A.Cindric, 4; A.Allmendinger, 2;J.Allgaier, 2; T.Gibbs, 2; J.Burton, 1; M.Snid-er, 1; J.Berry, 1.
Top 16 in Points: 1. A.Cindric, 748; 2. A.All-mendinger, 674; 3. D.Hemric, 636; 4. J.All-gaier, 607; 5. H.Burton, 572; 6. J.Burton, 559;7. J.Haley, 537; 8. N.Gragson, 519; 9.B.Jones, 488; 10. M.Annett, 450; 11. J.Cle-ments, 445; 12. M.Snider, 396; 13. R.Herbst,391; 14. B.Brown, 389; 15. J.Berry, 362; 16.R.Sieg, 351.
July 12 1901 — Cy Young of the Boston Red Sox
wins his 300th game with a 5-3 victory overthe Philadelphia A’s.
1930 — Bobby Jones wins the U.S. Open.Jones, who also won the British Open, theAmerican Amateur and the British Ama-teur, becomes the only golfer to take allfour events in the same year.
1954 — The Major League Baseball Play-
ers Association is founded. 1970 — Jack Nicklaus wins his second
British Open, beating Doug Sanders by onestroke in an 18-hole playoff at the OldCourse in St Andrews, Scotland. It’s thefirst playoff at The Open since 196.
2012 — Every country competing at theLondon Games includes female athletesfor the first time in Olympic history afterSaudi Arabia agreed to send two womento compete in judo and track and field.
AP SPORTLIGHT
GOLF
John Deere Classic
PGA TourSaturday
At TPC Deere RunSilvis, Ill.
Yardage: 7,268; Par: 71Purse: $6.2 Million
Third RoundSebastián Muñoz 636767—197 16 Brandon Hagy 676467—198 15 Scott Brown 696763—199 14 Adam Long 706564—199 14 Cameron Champ 666865—199 14 Kevin Na 676666—199 14 Ryan Moore 656668—199 14 Maverick McNealy 716465—200 13 Jhonattan Vegas 676667—200 13 Chez Reavie 646769—200 13 Luke List 666371—200 13 Jason Dufner 686568—201 12 Lucas Glover 686370—201 12 Adam Schenk 676470—201 12 Brian Stuard 696766—202 11 Camilo Villegas 647167—202 11 Rafa Cabrera Bello 706666—202 11 Russell Henley 676669—202 11 Sean O'Hair 696865—202 11 Patrick Rodgers 676570—202 11 Chase Seiffert 686371—202 11 Seamus Power 686768—203 10 Zach Johnson 686867—203 10 Scott Harrington 686768—203 10 Vaughn Taylor 696668—203 10 Nick Taylor 676571—203 10 Doug Ghim 666770—203 10 Chesson Hadley 636872—203 10 Sungjae Im 686769—204 9 Steve Stricker 706668—204 9 David Hearn 706569—204 9 Will Gordon 686868—204 9 Harold Varner III 676770—204 9 Rhein Gibson 696768—204 9 Daniel Berger 696867—204 9 Hank Lebioda 646971—204 9 Henrik Norlander 676969—205 8 Martin Laird 686869—205 8 Patton Kizzire 696769—205 8 Alex Smalley 676771—205 8 Jim Herman 686671—205 8 Bo Hoag 706768—205 8 Charles Howell III 716767—205 8 Cameron Percy 706867—205 8 Wes Roach 686870—206 7 Michael Gellerman 667169—206 7 Mito Pereira 706868—206 7
Marathon Classic
LPGA TourSaturday
At Highland Meadows Golf ClubSylvania, Ohio
Purse: $2 millionYardage: 6,578; Par: 71
Third RoundNasa Hataoka 616964—194 19 Elizabeth Szokol 676667—200 13 Mina Harigae 666668—200 13 Esther Henseleit 706467—201 12 Yuka Saso 716764—202 11 Amy Yang 677065—202 11 Austin Ernst 696766—202 11 Caroline Masson 686866—202 11 Stacy Lewis 687065—203 10 Brittany Lincicome 676967—203 10 Danielle Kang 706568—203 10 Jasmine Suwannapura 686768—203 10 Jennifer Kupcho 696569—203 10 Gerina Piller 696569—203 10 Leona Maguire 696867—204 9 Su Oh 696768—204 9 SsuChia Cheng 667068—204 9 Megan Khang 686769—204 9 Matilda Castren 666969—204 9 Ariya Jutanugarn 666969—204 9 Lauren Stephenson 656970—204 9 Jennifer Song 677266—205 8 Andrea Lee 716767—205 8 Inbee Park 716767—205 8 Perrine Delacour 696967—205 8 Brittany Altomare 696868—205 8 Chella Choi 686671—205 8 Celine Boutier 717164—206 7 P. Thnaplbnyras 736865—206 7 Esther Lee 766466—206 7 Alana Uriell 706670—206 7 Alison Lee 676673—206 � 7
U.S. Senior Open
Championship TourSaturday
At Omaha Country ClubOmaha, Neb
Purse: $4 millionYardage: 6,798; Par: 70
Third RoundJim Furyk 726466—202 8Stephen Ames 657368—206 4Retief Goosen 726966—207 3Steve Flesch 737164—208 2Wes Short, Jr. 667568—209 1Mike Weir 707168—209 1Kevin Sutherland 726869—209 1Fred Couples 697169—209 1Fran Quinn 687369—210 EGene Sauers 717069—210 EPeter Fowler 717069—210 EJeff Maggert 717069—210 ERod Pampling 697269—210 E
Naomi Osaka returned to the spot-
light for the first time since withdraw-
ing from the French Open in May and
skipping Wimbledon, posing on the
red carpet at The ESPYS on Saturday
night.
The world’s highest-paid female
athlete faced a slew of photographers
in New York, with one being heard
urging her, “Nice smile” as cameras
clicked furiously. Osaka offered a
faint closed-mouth smile in response.
Tom Brady won best men’s athlete
and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers were
named best team. The quarterback,
who turns 44 next month, won his sev-
enth Super Bowl title this year in his
first season with the Bucs.
Osaka, who has won four Grand
Slam titles, pulled out of the French
Open before the second round, saying
she has “huge waves of anxiety” be-
fore speaking to the media and that
she has “suffered long bouts of de-
pression.” She also sat out Wimble-
don. She’ll return for the Tokyo Olym-
pics, representing her native Japan.
She high-fived boyfriend-rapper
Cordae from YBN Collective before
taking the stage.
“I just really want to not say a long
speech because I’m a bit nervous,”
Osaka said. “This year has been a re-
ally, it hasn’t even finished, but it’s
been really tough for a lot of us. For
me, I just want to say I really love you
guys.”
Charlotte Hornets rookie LaMelo
Ball won as best breakthrough ath-
lete. The best game award was Gon-
zaga’s 93-90 win over UCLA in the
semifinals of the men’s NCAA Tour-
nament. DeVonta Smith, who won the
Heisman Trophy at Alabama and
now plays for the Philadelphia Ea-
gles, won as best men’s college ath-
lete.
UConn freshman basketball sensa-
tion Paige Bueckers won as women’s
college athlete. She urged greater
media coverage for Black female ath-
letes.
CHRISTOPHE ENA/AP
Japan’s Naomi Osaka was at TheESPYS, her first publicappearance since withdrawingfrom the French Open in May.
Osaka backin spotlightat ESPYS
BY BETH HARRIS
Associated Press
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 19
WIMBLEDON/SPORTS BRIEFS
WIMBLEDON, England — No-
vak Djokovic tied Roger Federer
and Rafael Nadal by claiming his
20th Grand Slam title Sunday,
coming back to beat Matteo Ber-
rettini 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 in the
Wimbledon final.
The No. 1-ranked Djokovic
earned a third consecutive cham-
pionship at the All England Club
and sixth overall.
He adds that to nine titles at the
Australian Open, three at the U.S.
Open and two at the French Open
to equal his two rivals for the most
majors won by a man in tennis his-
tory.
“I have to pay a great tribute to
Rafa and Roger. They are legends.
Legends of our sport. They are the
two most important players that I
ever faced in my career,” said
Djokovic, a 34-year-old from Ser-
bia. “They are, I think, the reason
that I am where I am today.
They’ve helped me realize what I
need to do in order to improve, to
get stronger mentally, physically,
tactically.”
Federer tweeted his congratu-
lations shortly after the match
ended, writing, “Wonderful per-
formance, well done!”
Djokovic is now the only man
since Rod Laver in 1969 to win the
first three major tournaments in a
season. He can aim for a calendar-
year Grand Slam — something
last accomplished by a man when
Laver did it 52 years ago — at the
U.S. Open, which starts Aug. 30.
“I’m hoping. I’m going to defi-
nitely give it a shot,” Djokovic told
the Centre Court crowd during the
trophy presentation. “I’m in a
great form and obviously playing
well and playing my best tennis at
Grand Slams is the highest prior-
ity that I have right now at this
stage of my career. So let’s keep it
going.”
This was his 30th major final —
among men, only Federer has
played more, 31 — and the first for
Berrettini, a 25-year-old from Ita-
ly who was seeded No. 7.
“Hopefully,” Berrettini said,
“it’s not going be my last one.”
It was a big sporting day in Lon-
don for Italians: Their national
soccer team faced England at
Wembley Stadium in the Europe-
an Championship final at night.
With Marija Cicak officiating,
the first female chair umpire for a
men’s final at a tournament that
began in 1877, play began as the
sun made a rare appearance dur-
ing the fortnight, the sky visible in
between the clouds.
The opening game featured
signs of edginess from both, but
especially Djokovic, whose pair of
double-faults contributed to the
half-dozen combined unforced er-
rors, compared with zero winners
for either. He faced a break point
but steadied himself and held
there and, as was the case with ev-
ery set, it was Djokovic who took
the lead by getting through on
Berrettini’s speedy serve.
Berrettini came in with a tour-
nament-high 101 aces and that’s
where his game is built: free
points off the serve and quick-
strike forehands that earned him
the nickname “Hammer.”
Those powerful strokes sent
line judges contorting to get their
head out of harm’s way. Djokovic
occasionally took cover himself,
crouching and raising his racket
as if it were a shield to block back
serves aimed at his body.
Not many opponents manage to
return serves at 137 mph and end
up winning the point, but Djokovic
did that at least twice. And the big
groundstrokes that the 6-foot-5,
barrel-chested Berrettini can
drive past most other players kept
coming back off Djokovic’s racket.
That’s what Djokovic does: He
just forces foes to work so hard to
win every point, let alone a game, a
set, a match.
He has collected eight of the
past 12 major trophies — all since
turning 30, the most by a man past
that age.
KIRSTY WIGGLESWORTH/AP
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic plays a return to Italy’s Matteo Berrettini during his 67 (4), 64, 64, 64 win inthe Wimbledon men’s singles final Sunday in London.
Slammin’: Djokovic matchesmark set by Federer, NadalSerb drops first set, wins next four over Italy’s Berrettini for 20th Grand Slam title
BY HOWARD FENDRICH
Associated Press 20Novak Djokovic won his sixth Wimble-don singles title on Sunday. He’s alsowon the French Open twice, the Aus-tralian Open nine times and the U.S.Open three times.
Source: Associated Press, Tennis-x.com
HAMPTON, Ga. — Kyle
Busch’s Xfinity Series sweep
wasn’t as sweet as he hoped.
Busch completed a 5-for-5
sweep of what he says will be his
final season in the Xfinity Series
with a late recovery at Atlanta Mo-
tor Speedway on Saturday.
Busch knocked teammate Da-
niel Hemric from the lead with a
late push. That cast a pall on what
otherwise would have been an ide-
al way for Busch to say goodbye to
NASCAR’s second-tier series.
“It’s not quite the win we were
hoping for,” Busch said. “A little
bit of a somber win I guess, not just
for it being the last one but for the
way it kind of happened.”
Busch finished 0.550 seconds
ahead of Jeb Burton for his 102nd
Xfinity victory and 222nd overall
in NASCAR’s three national se-
ries.
Busch said he plans for this to be
his final Xfinity race, though he
left room to change his mind.
Colorado’s Kuss
wins Tour stageANDORRA LA VELLA, Andor-
ra — American rider Sepp Kuss
won the grueling 15th stage of the
Tour de France on Sunday as race
leader Tadej Pogacar remained
on course for his second overall
victory.
Kuss is the first American to
win a stage at cycling’s biggest
race since Tyler Farrar 10 years
ago. The 26-year-old Colorado na-
tive made a late move in the puni-
shing 118-mile ride from Ceret at
the foothills of the Pyrenees to the
tiny mountain-bound nation of
Andorra.
Matsuyama, 2 more drop
from British Open ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP)
— Three more players withdrew
from the British Open next week
at Royal St. George's, a growing
list that includes Masters cham-
pion Hideki Matsuyama, who was
concerned about practice time
and travel.
Two-time Masters champion
Bubba Watson and former British
Open champion David Duval also
withdrew Sunday. That brings to
13 the number of players who had
been planning to play but with-
drew. Matsuyama tested positive
for the coronavirus during the
Rocket Mortgage Classic last
week in Detroit.
Kyle Busch pulls off5-for-5 Xfinity sweep
JOHN AMIS/AP
Kyle Busch celebrates afterwinning the NASCAR XfinitySeries race Saturday inHampton, Ga.
Associated Press
BRIEFLY
PAGE 20 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
UFC 264/MLB
told McGregor broke his shin near the ankle. McGre-
gor will have surgery on Sunday morning.
Poirier said he thought McGregor's leg broke when
he checked one of McGregor’s kicks earlier in the
fight. McGregor disagreed, saying there was “not one
check.”
“You never want to get a win that way, but what
happened was the result of checking a kick,” Poirier
said. “I’m more than sure of it. He got what he had
coming to him. Karma is a mirror.”
McGregor dropped to 1-3 in the cage since 2016,
when he abdicated his UFC title reins and accepted a
wildly lucrative boxing match with Floyd Mayweath-
er. McGregor has been unable to recapture his fear-
some MMA form over the past half-decade — and de-
spite his protestations, there was little in the first
round at UFC 264 to suggest McGregor was back in
elite form.
Poirier was largely in control of the opening round,
parrying McGregor's kicks and landing several
strikes before getting control over McGregor on the
ground. After McGregor got up from a long stretch of
punches and elbows, Poirier knocked him down one
last time — and McGregor’s ankle bent gruesomely
as he fell.
“It (stinks), because I was going to beat the guy if
his leg held up,” Poirier said. “I need to digest it all,
because right now, it kind of feels weird. It’s not a
good feeling.”
White confirmed Poirier will get the next shot at
new lightweight champ Charles Oliveira. White also
said he expects a fourth fight between McGregor and
Poirier at some point after McGregor’s leg heals.
“The fight didn’t get finished,” White said. “You
can’t have a fight finish that way. We’ll see how this
whole thing plays out. Who knows how long Conor is
out? Poirier will do his thing until Conor is ready.”
Poirier also said he intends to fight McGregor a
fourth time — and it will be personal. McGregor re-
turned to his verbose, mean-spirited promotional
persona for this fight promotion, repeatedly insulting
Poirier’s wife and vowing to kill Poirier.
“We are going to fight again, whether it’s in the oc-
tagon or on the sidewalk,” Poirier said. “You don’t
say the stuff he said.”
McGregor has lost decisively to Khabib Nurmago-
medov and twice to Poirier since 2016 while beating
only an over-the-hill Donald Cerrone.
McGregor’s star power has shown no significant
decline despite the dwindling evidence of his once-
transcendent skills. The celebrity-studded Vegas
crowd was vocally behind McGregor, who strutted
into the octagon with his usual flair.
Gilbert Burns won a unanimous decision over Ste-
phen “Wonderboy” Thompson in the co-main event,
with the Brazilian bouncing back from his knockout
loss to welterweight champ Kamaru Usman in Feb-
ruary.
Earlier on the pay-per-view card, Australian
heavyweight Tai Tuivasa celebrated his violent first-
round knockout of former NFL player Greg Hardy by
climbing onto the octagon fence and doing a shoey —
drinking booze from a shoe in proper Aussie celebra-
tory style. Hardy, who lost his NFL career in 2015 af-
ter being convicted of domestic violence, has lost two
straight fights after a 7-2 start to his MMA career.
Welterweights Michel Pereira and Niko Price put
on the best show on the early undercard, and Pereira
highlighted his narrow decision victory with a re-
markable standing backflip and a scramble into full
mount on a prone Price.
Showdown: McGregor breaks legFROM PAGE 24
Dustin Poirier raises his arms as he is declared thewinner after Conor McGregor was injured duringtheir UFC 264 lightweight bout.
PHOTOS BY JOHN LOCHER/AP
Conor McGregor holds his left ankle after being injured while fighting Dustin Poirier in a lightweight bout atUFC 264 on Saturday in Las Vegas. McGregor dropped to 13 in the cage since 2016 with the TKO loss.
LOS ANGELES — Justin Turn-
er and Mookie Betts hit grand
slams, Albert Pujols and AJ Pol-
lock each homered twice and the
Los Angeles Dodgers matched a
franchise record by connecting
eight times in all, routing the Ari-
zona Diamondbacks 22-1 on Sat-
urday night.
Cody Bellinger and Zach
McKinstry also homered as the
Dodgers matched a Los Angeles
mark for runs, last scoring 22 in
2001 at Colorado. This was their
highest-scoring game ever at
Dodger Stadium, which opened in
1962.
“That is a sign of a really good
club that regardless of the score,
we just keep trying to win pitches
and not give at-bats away,” Los
Angeles manager Dave Roberts
said. “When you do that, some
good things can happen.”
The Dodgers won for just the
second time in their last six
games. They scored in just four
different innings, but broke loose
in a big way — five runs in the
first, four more in the second, sev-
en runs in the seventh and six in
the eighth.
Los Angeles led 9-0 after two in-
nings and breezed behind the
pitching of Walker Buehler, who
was chosen as an All-Star Game
replacement Saturday.
Buehler (9-1) went six scoreless
innings, allowing three hits and
striking out seven.
“I know it was nice to have
Walker come out and throw the
ball well,” Roberts said. “Obvi-
ously we took a lot of good at-bats
and hit a lot of balls out of the ball-
park just up and down the lineup.
AJ had a huge night, Justin, ev-
eryone.”
It was yet another low point in a
season full of them for the Dia-
mondbacks. The mood was so
bleak during a 17-game losing
streak, another 13-game skid and
a record 24-game road drought
this season that this debacle was
not considered rock bottom.
“Nah … that ought to tell you
the type of season we’ve had,”
manager Torey Lovullo said.
“You lose 20-plus (consecutive)
games on the road, you’re fighting
a16-, 17-game losing streak, what-
ever that number was.
“I think for me, we’re on the
rise. We’re in a different spot. I
think we are well beyond our
worst days here,” he said.
Turner, added earlier in the day
to the All-Star team, hit his first
career grand slam in the second
inning off starter Caleb Smith
(2-6). Smith never recorded an
out in the second before depart-
ing, giving up nine runs on six hits
with three walks while recording
just three outs.
Betts hit his fifth slam in the
seventh. The Dodgers top the ma-
jors with nine grand slams this
year.
Pujols connected in the seventh
and eighth, giving him 675 career
home runs. His last homer came
off Arizona outfielder Josh Red-
dick, who got the last two outs.
Dodgers tie franchisemark with 8 homers,blast Diamondbacks
BY DOUG PADILLA
Associated Press
MARK J. TERRILL/AP
The Dodgers’ Albert Pujols (55) homers off Arizona Diamondbacksreliever Alex Young in the seventh inning on Saturday in Los Angeles.Pujols homered again in the eighth to raise his career total to 675.
22-1Final margin of victory for the Dodgersin Saturday’s game against the ArizonaDiamondbacks. It matched Los An-geles’ mark for runs scored, and wasits highest-scoring game ever at Dodg-er Stadium, which opened in 1962.The 22 runs also marked the mostallowed in a game by Arizona.
SOURCE: Associated Press
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 21
MLB
American League
East Division
W L Pct GB
Boston 55 35 .611 _
Tampa Bay 53 36 .596 1½
New York 46 42 .523 8
Toronto 44 42 .512 9
Baltimore 28 60 .318 26
Central Division
W L Pct GB
Chicago 53 35 .602 _
Cleveland 45 42 .517 7½
Detroit 40 50 .444 14
Minnesota 38 50 .432 15
Kansas City 36 53 .404 17½
West Division
W L Pct GB
Houston 54 36 .600 _
Oakland 51 40 .560 3½
Seattle 48 42 .533 6
Los Angeles 44 44 .500 9
Texas 35 54 .393 18½
National LeagueEast Division
W L Pct GB
New York 47 39 .547 _
Atlanta 44 44 .500 4
Philadelphia 43 44 .494 4½
Washington 42 46 .477 6
Miami 38 50 .432 10
Central Division
W L Pct GB
Milwaukee 53 38 .582 _
Cincinnati 47 42 .528 5
Chicago 44 46 .489 8½
St. Louis 44 46 .489 8½
Pittsburgh 33 56 .371 19
West Division
W L Pct GB
San Francisco 56 32 .636 _
Los Angeles 55 35 .611 2
San Diego 53 39 .576 5
Colorado 39 51 .433 18
Arizona 26 65 .286 31½
Saturday’s games
Tampa Bay 5, Toronto 2Minnesota 9, Detroit 4Chicago White Sox 8, Baltimore 3Philadelphia 11, Boston 2Oakland 8, Texas 4, 11 inningsCleveland 14, Kansas City 6N.Y. Yankees 1, Houston 0Seattle 2, L.A. Angels 0Pittsburgh 6, N.Y. Mets 2, 7 innings, 1st
gameSan Francisco 10, Washington 4Atlanta 5, Miami 4N.Y. Mets 4, Pittsburgh 2, 7 innings, 2nd
gameCincinnati 4, Milwaukee 3St. Louis 6, Chicago Cubs 0Colorado 3, San Diego 0L.A. Dodgers 22, Arizona 1
Sunday’s games
Chicago White Sox at BaltimoreKansas City at ClevelandPhiladelphia at BostonToronto at Tampa BayDetroit at MinnesotaN.Y. Yankees at HoustonOakland at TexasL.A. Angels at SeattleAtlanta at MiamiPittsburgh at N.Y. MetsCincinnati at MilwaukeeSt. Louis at Chicago CubsWashington at San FranciscoArizona at L.A. DodgersColorado at San Diego
Monday’s games
No games — AllStar break
Tuesday’s game
AllStar Game, AL �vs. NL, at Denver
Hitting leaders
American League
BATTING—Guerrero Jr., Toronto, .337;Brantley, Houston, .324; Bogaerts, Boston,.322; Gurriel, Houston, .314; Mullins, Baltimore, .313; T.Anderson, Chicago, .310;Cruz, Minnesota, .304; D.Fletcher, Los Angeles, .302; Martinez, Boston, .301; Alvarez, Houston, .299.
HOME RUNS—Ohtani, Los Angeles, 33;Guerrero Jr., Toronto, 28; Gallo, Texas, 24.
National League
BATTING—N.Castellanos, Cincinnati,.330; A.Frazier, Pittsburgh, .327; T.Turner,Washington, .322; J.Turner, Los Angeles,.308; Reynolds, Pittsburgh, .304; Winker,Cincinnati, .303; Tatis Jr., San Diego, .290;Tapia, Colorado, .287; Acuña Jr., Atlanta,.283; B.Harper, Philadelphia, .283.
HOME RUNS—Tatis Jr., San Diego, 28;Schwarber, Washington, 25; Acuña Jr., Atlanta, 24.
Scoreboard
DENVER — Atlanta’s Ronald Acuña Jr.,elected to start Tuesday’s All-Star Game as theNL’s top vote-getter among outfielders, torethe ACL in his right knee Saturday during At-lanta’s 5-4 win over the Miami Marlins and willmiss the rest of the season.
Acuña landed awkwardly on his right leg af-ter jumping on the warning track in right fieldto try to catch a drive from Jazz Chisholm Jr. inthe fifth inning at Miami. The 23-year-oldslammed into the outfield wall and crumbledon the warning track, immediately grabbinghis right knee while Chisholm sprinted out aninside-the-park homer.
Acuña tried to walk off but dropped back tothe ground in shallow right field. A trainertended to him while a cart was retrieved, andconcerned teammates gathered quietlyaround him.
Tears welled in the 23-year-old’s eyes as hewaited. When the cart pulled around to thenearby warning track, he had to be helped overand did not put any weight on his right leg.
“He’s in a lot of pain, I can tell you that. It’s atough break for the team and for him,” manag-er Brian Snitker said after the game.
Acuña needs surgery and was replaced onthe All-Star roster by third baseman MannyMachado.
Philadelphia’s J.T. Realmuto will take overfor injured San Francisco catcher Buster Po-sey as the NL starter in Tuesday’s All-Star
Game at Coors Field. St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina earned his
10th All-Star selection, among 10 replacementsannounced Saturday by Major League Base-ball, then said hours later he would also skipthe All-Star Game. He was replaced by Mil-waukee catcher Omar Narváez.
Molina was elected on the players’ ballot and
filled the spot vacated when Posey was put onthe injured list Friday, five days after his leftthumb was bruised by a foul tip. Narváez willmake his first All-Star appearance.
Major League Baseball also said Dodgersoutfielder Mookie Betts was injured and won’tparticipate, though Betts played nine inningsFriday and remained in the lineup Saturday.
Braves star Acuña tears ACL, out for year
LYNNE SLADKY/AP
Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., center, is carried to a medical cart after trying tomake a catch during the fifth inning of Saturday’s game in Miami.
Associated Press
23-year-old All-Star will require surgery;
Padres’ Machado moved onto NL roster
BOSTON — Jean Segura andAlec Bohm homered, and the Phi-ladelphia Phillies snapped Bos-ton’s nine-game home winningstreak with an 11-2 victory over theRed Sox on Saturday.
Segura opened the game with adrive over the Green Monster, andBohm made it 3-0 with a two-runshot against Martín Pérez (7-5) inthe second. The Phillies thenbroke it open with eight runs in theeighth, earning their fourth win insix games.
Segura finished with three hitsand three RBIs. Rhys Hoskins andBryce Harper each hit a two-rundouble, and Bailey Falter (1-0)pitched two hitless innings for hisfirst major league victory.
Xander Bogaerts hit a solohomer for the Red Sox, who lostfor just fourth time in 15 games. Itwas the team’s longest win streakat Fenway Park since 2011.
Giants 10, Nationals 4: Bran-don Crawford had three hits, in-cluding his 18th home run, andSan Francisco routed visitingWashington.
Athletics 8, Rangers 4 (11): JedLowrie hit a tiebreaking RBI sin-gle in the 11th inning after an earli-er home run and Oakland won atTexas.
Pirates 62, Mets 24: PeteAlonso homered, Jeff McNeil
drove in two runs and New Yorkbeat visiting Pittsburgh for a dou-bleheader split.
The Pirates won the opener be-hind five innings and a tiebreak-ing homer by Tyler Anderson offMarcus Stroman.
Yankees 1, Astros 0: GerritCole demanded on the mound thatmanager Aaron Boone let him get
the final out, then struck out Yor-dan Alvarez with a 99 mph fastballon his career-high 129th pitch tocap New York’s win at Houston.
Rays 5, Blue Jays 2: BrandonLowe homered twice and MikeZunino also connected, helpinghost Tampa Bay beat Toronto forits sixth straight win.
Twins 9, Tigers 4: At Minnea-
polis, Jorge Polanco hit a go-aheadthree-run homer in the seventh in-ning and host Minnesota ralliedfrom a four-run deficit to beat De-troit.
White Sox 8, Orioles 3: BrianGoodwin had four hits, including asolo homer, and drove in threeruns as Chicagos beat host Balti-more for its fourth straight win.
Indians 14, Royals 6: CésarHernández and Óscar Mercadoeach hit a three-run homer, andhost Cleveland beat strugglingKansas City.
Reds 4, Brewers 3: EugenioSuárez hit a leadoff home run inthe ninth inning against All-Starcloser Josh Hader and visitingCincinnati beat Milwaukee in agame that included three ejec-tions.
Cardinals 6, Cubs 0: PaulGoldschmidt, Paul DeJong andTommy Edman homered in thefifth inning, and St. Louis won atChicago.
Mariners 2, Angels 0: ChrisFlexen pitched three-hit ball forseven innings in another homewin, Luis Torrens added an RBItriple and host Seattle beat LosAngeles.
Rockies 3, Padres 0: GermanMarquez pitched seven dominantinnings, limiting San Diego tothree hits and leading visiting Col-orado to the win.
Phillies snap Boston’s 9-game streak at home
MICHAEL DWYER/AP
The Philadelphia Phillies’ Andrew McCutchen, left, and Bryce Harpercelebrate after scoring on a double by Rhys Hoskins during the eighthinning of Saturday’s game against the Red Sox in Boston.
Associated Press
ROUNDUP
PAGE 22 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
OLYMPICS
Before Caroline Marks ever won her first
surfing contest and long before ever earn-
ing a spot at the Tokyo Games as her sport
makes its Olympic debut, there was simply
this: Trying to impress her big brothers.
That’s what lured her to the waves.
Growing up, the backyard at the Marks
house in Melbourne Beach, Fla., was like a
carnival of fun — trampoline, self-built mo-
tocross track, basketball court and room for
skateboarding. But right across the street
was an even bigger attraction — the ocean,
where the crashing surf always beckoned
her brothers.
There she was, more of a horseback rider
then, trying to join in on the wave-riding
fun. She quickly rose from tag-along to
“Grom ” — that young kid who surfs better
than you — to World Surf League standout
to her current role of contender when surf-
ing hands out its first Olympic medal.
“My brothers play a huge influence in
how good I am today,” said the 19-year-old
Marks, who has two older brothers, two
younger brothers and a younger sister. “I
kind of owe them everything. I just really
wanted to impress them and have them
think I was really cool.”
FYI: They never thought she was a nui-
sance.
“Caroline was always cool to us,” big
brother Luke wrote in an email. “She was
‘one of the boys’ from the beginning. We
loved surfing with her.”
She remembers riding waves as young as
3 (with pictures to prove it). But in reality,
she had visions of making waves in another
sport — rodeo. Her specialty was barrel
racing, where the horse and rider run a pat-
tern around barrels in the fastest time. Still,
the ocean always enticed her even as she
was on her horse.
As the family legend goes — chronicled
by big brother Luke in a recently released
Red Bull movie titled “That’s Caroline” —
one summer there were storms blowing in
big waves and Marks constantly followed
her siblings to the beach.
Over that summer, she rapidly improved,
to the point where the family went from,
“Wow, she’s pretty good,” to “Wow, she’s
really good,” to “Wow, she’s incredible.”
The rise was no surprise to Luke, who
narrated the film about his sister.
“She has that gift to where she could start
a new sport tomorrow and succeed,” Luke
wrote.
Her path was downright gnarly:
At 11, she was winning the under-12 Surf-
ing America Prime — the top U.S. amateur
title.
At 13, she turned pro (traveling with one
of her parents).
At 15, she became the youngest surfer to
qualify for the World Surf League Cham-
pionship Tour, competing against surfers
she had posters of on her wall.
“I was starstruck by all of them and being
so close up,” said Marks, a Red Bull-spon-
sored athlete who recently partnered with
the American Optometric Association
(AOA) to promote eye care through its “ Eye
Deserve More” campaign. “That’s the cool
thing about what I do — I get to surf with all
my heroes and compete against them and
try to beat them and it’s super fun.”
She earned rookie of the year on the
Championship Tour in 2018, and won her
first Championship Tour event the follow-
ing season.
That helped her rip — surfing term, to de-
scribe immense ability — toward some-
thing she could hardly even fathom — a
chance to represent Team USA. Her family
was there in Maui that December 2019
when she provisionally qualified for Tokyo.
“Everyone that I love the most, my fam-
ily, friends were all there supporting me,”
she said. “It was just so much emotion after
such a long year. The best feeling ever for
sure. It gives me the chills just talking about
it. So super cool.”
Then there’s this thought: Potentially
winning the first Olympic medal in her
sport. The competition will be held at Tsuri-
gasaki Beach — about 40 minutes outside
Tokyo — with the competition window from
July 25 to Aug. 1.
“To have a chance to make history like
that and represent my country? Yeah, all
that’s so insanely exciting,” said Marks,
whose family moved to San Clemente, Cal-
if., in part to help boost her surfing career.
“It’s crazy that those words are even com-
ing out of my mouth.”
The ocean has long been her sanctuary,
her getaway. So much so that whenever
she’s in a rut, her mom tells her to jump in
the water.
“She’s always like, ‘You need a spray of
saltwater,’ ” Marks said. “(The ocean) in-
stantly makes me feel better and it just
makes me happy. It’s what I wake up in the
morning thinking about and what I think
about when I go to bed. It’s my happy place
for sure.”
High-water Marks
KEITH BIRMINGHAM,THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER/AP
Caroline Marks laughs before taking part in an Olympic exhibition a the USA SurfingJunior championships in San Clemente, Calif., on June 22. Marks will compete whensurfing makes its debut at the Tokyo Games.
Teen rides memorable wave to Tokyo for surfing debutBY PAT GRAHAM
Associated Press
At a glance
Higlights from Rio:None. Surfing’s Olympic debut hasbeen a century in the making. The International SurfingAssociation has been lobbying the International OlympicCommittee for inclusion since 1995.
Tokyo expectations: Reigning world champion CarissaMoore of the U.S. looks to be the woman to beat, as wellas the Australian Stephanie Gilmore, whose record-tyingseven world titles makes her the most decorated femalesurfer in competition today. The Brazilians are expected todominate the men’s side, with Gabriel Medina and ItaloFerreira known as the masters of aerial maneuvers.
Athletes to watch: Kanoa Igarashi, a Californian withdual Japanese citizenship who is representing Japan, hasthe local advantage of growing up surfing at Olympic siteTsurigasaki Beach. Johanne Defay of France may sur-prise as a dark horse in the women’s game, having re-cently pulled off an upset against Moore at the high-in-tensity Surf Ranch competition. Australian Sally Fitzgib-bons and the young American hotshot Caroline Marks al-so have something to prove.
Gold medal moment(s): Scheduled for July 28 or fol-lowing the last day of competition, which depends onwave conditions. The events are expected to run over fourdays between July 25 to August 1.
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Surfing has a lot
riding on its Olympic debut: a taste of the
mainstream spotlight, athletic legitimacy
for the uniquely four-dimensional sport,
and, perhaps, some newfound respect so it
can finally shake the stereotype as merely
the pleasure pursuit of beach town himbos.
Acceptance been a century in the mak-
ing. The International Surfing Association
has been lobbying the International Olym-
pic Committee since 1995, though the effort
to include the sport dates back to the 1912
Summer Games in Stockholm.
That was when Duke Kahanamoku, the
five-time medalist in swimming and Ha-
waiian icon revered as the godfather of
modern surfing, first pushed for it to be-
come an Olympic sport.
Back then, the act of stylishly riding an
ocean wave on a board in competition was
virtually unknown outside of his native Ha-
waii.
Dreams of mainstreamSurfing is a $10 billion industry, yet pro-
fessional surfing, led by the World Surf
League, largely remains a niche sport that’s
little understood. Surfing requires a well-
rounded athleticism, including immense
strength, agility, and grace to pull off ma-
neuvers based on what the big, wild ocean
delivers in the moment — think of the va-
garies of the ocean as the fourth dimension
in this sport many see as a spiritual pursuit.
There’s hope now that the visually stunning
sport will finally get its due with a main-
stream audience at the Games, though
some viewers may struggle to follow given
the complexity and metrics of competition.
Mother Nature’s mercySurfing is a sport that depends on many
uncontrollable factors, including when, ex-
actly, competitions will happen once the
event period begins on July 25. Organizers
generally monitor the waves with oceanog-
raphy and atmospheric science data to de-
cide if surf conditions — wave height, wind
direction, tidal movement — are ideal for
competition the day of.
And even when the surfers get out into
the lineup, the waves at Tsurigasaki may be
disappointing for those expecting powerful
surf conditions like those seen in the mo-
vies. This particular beach break is known
for smaller waves and is not considered an
extraordinary surfing competition site.
There is hope, however: The Olympics are
being held in peak typhoon season.
The alternate goatKelly Slater, at 49 years old, is likely the
oldest and most famous Olympic alternate.
The 11-time world champion is surfing’s
most decorated athlete and has the broadest
mainstream appeal (lest we forget he
starred as Jimmy Slade on the cult favorite
television show “Baywatch”). There’s spec-
ulation that Slater may have a shot to shine
in Japan, as the U.S. male qualifiers, John
John Florence and Kolohe Andino, both
have had significant injuries requiring sur-
gery in recent months.
USA Surfing CEO Greg Cruse said it will
be up to the qualifiers to decide, but that he
hopes Slater will come to Japan as a stand-
by, though the celebrity surfer has not yet
committed to doing so. Aside from the in-
juries, there’s also concern that any given
athlete may become exposed to COVID-19,
which would trigger a government-man-
dated quarantine that could keep them out
of the surf.
LEO CORREA / AP
Reigning world champion Carissa Moore of the U.S. looks to be the woman to beat assurfing makes its Olympic debut in Tokyo.
SURFING
A lot riding on sport’s debutBY SALLY HO
Associated Press
Monday, July 12, 2021 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • PAGE 23
NBA FINALS/BASKETBALL
LAS VEGAS — This is not how
USA Basketball expected to open
its Olympic summer.
Nigeria probably didn’t expect
it, either.
If there was any expectation of
invincibility for the Americans
heading into the Tokyo Olympics,
it’s already gone — after Nigeria
beat the U.S. 90-87 on Saturday
night, an international shocker
pulled off by a roster primarily fil-
led by little-known NBA players
that found a way to beat a group of
All-NBA, All-Star and max-con-
tract performers.
“We just wanted to compete,”
said Nigeria’s Gabe Nnamdi, who
goes by Gabe Vincent when play-
ing for the Miami Heat. “We know
what USA Basketball means
around the world and what
they’ve stood for for so long.”
The U.S. had lost 11 games be-
fore Saturday in major interna-
tional play — Olympics and World
Cups, mostly — since NBA play-
ers began filling the American
rosters with the first Dream Team
in 1992. None of those losses came
against a team from Africa.
“I thought that the Nigerian
team played very physically, did a
great job in that regard and
knocked down a lot of threes,” U.S.
coach Gregg Popovich said. “Give
them credit.”
Nnamdi led Nigeria with 21
points. Caleb Agada scored 17
points, Ike Nwamu added 13 and
Nigeria outscored the U.S. 60-30
from three-point range.
Kevin Durant, who had never
before played in a loss for USA
Basketball in 39 senior interna-
tional games, had 17 points. Jay-
son Tatum added 15, Damian Lil-
lard had 14 and Bam Adebayo 11.
“Just goes to show that we have
to play better,” Tatum said.
A lot better.
The Americans had gone 39-0 in
their last three Olympic seasons
— including pre-Olympic exhibi-
tions — on their way to gold med-
als and had been 54-2 in major ex-
hibitions since NBA players began
playing for USA Basketball in
1992. Plus, they’d beaten Nigeria
by a combined 127 points in their
last two meetings, one at the 2012
London Games, the other a warm-
up for the 2016 Rio Games.
Nigeria lost to the U.S. at the
2012 Olympics by 83 points. Lost
to the Americans again four years
later in an exhibition, that time by
44 points.
Not this time.
“Nigeria’s come a long way with
their basketball,” USA Basketball
managing director Jerry Colange-
lo said.
Ike Iroegbu — a former Wash-
ington State player who spent
some time in the G League — hit a
three-pointer with about 1:15 left
to put Nigeria up 88-80. Durant
scored the next seven points for
the U.S.; a three-pointer, two free
throws following a turnover, then
two more from the line with 16.5
seconds remaining.
Nnamdi made two foul shots
with 13.2 seconds left to restore
Nigeria’s three-point edge. The
Americans ran 9.7 seconds off the
clock on the ensuing possession
without getting a shot off, and
Zach LaVine missed a pair of free
throws — the second intentionally
— with 3.5 seconds left.
Precious Achiuwa got the re-
bound for Nigeria, and that was it.
Shocker: Nigeriastuns Team USA inpre-Olympic event
BY TIM REYNOLDS
Associated Press
DAVID BECKER / AP
United States guard Damian Lillard is swarmed by Nigerian playersduring a 9087 exhibition loss Saturday in Las Vegas. Since 1992,Team USA had been 542 in major exhibitions.
There are cameras and micro-
phones everywhere at the NBA Fi-
nals, and they happened to catch an
interaction late in Game 2 that was
going viral before the game was
even over.
It was Phoenix coach Monty Wil-
liams, talking only to Suns center
Deandre Ayton during a time out
and trying desperately to cheer him
up on what was a slow night statisti-
cally against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Ayton’s head was down. His body
language was awful. Williams
wasn’t having it. He started talking,
then grabbed Ayton’s wrist to fur-
ther commandeer his attention.
Mind you, his voice was raised
high enough only so Ayton could
hear him over the din of the crowd.
No yelling, no screaming, no swear-
ing, no histrionics.
“You set a high level for your-
self,” Williams said. “That’s why
you’re down. That’s great. Now go
reach that level, OK? And you can
reach it with force. Doesn’t have to
be stats all the time. Go dominate
the game with force, because you
set a high level for yourself. Go
dominate the game with force. Let’s
go.”
Ayton scored shortly after that
time out ended. A few seconds after
that, he got a steal. A couple minutes
later, with Milwaukee within six
and still having hope, Ayton found
Chris Paul for a three-pointer. The
Bucks were never within two pos-
sessions of tying the game again.
That moment was indicative of
the entire season.
Williams has pushed the right
button, every time.
“You are giving me a lot of cred-
it,” Williams said. “I try to be au-
thentic. Sometimes in a huddle I
don’t say anything. The guys will
run the huddle. But I try to be an en-
courager in huddles, especially
when I see a guy down or the team is
not at the level where they should be
mentally. I don’t want to make up
stuff.
“I know what it’s like to be in
those huddles and you want to know
the truth, but you also need some-
times a pep talk, sometimes encour-
agement. I just try to be authentic
and speak from the heart.”
Williams didn’t get here by acci-
dent. He played for Pat Riley, Don
Nelson and Larry Brown — all
members of the Basketball Hall of
Fame. He played for Doc Rivers
and Mike D’Antoni, too. He played
for Gregg Popovich, then worked
for Popovich as a coaching intern,
then worked with him as San Anto-
nio’s vice president of basketball op-
erations.
Popovich said he knew right
away that Williams was unique.
“He’s obviously a fine basketball
coach,” Popovich said this week in
Las Vegas, where he and his U.S.
Olympic team are getting ready for
the Tokyo Games. “But his ability to
relate to players, to be genuine, to be
honest, no tricks, no smoke screens,
just a straight-up, caring, loving
man, it shows. It comes out, and
players react to it.”
Popovich is looking to lead the
Americans to a gold medal, which
would be their fourth Olympic title
in a row. Williams was an assistant
coach on the most recent U.S. team,
the one that won gold in Rio de Ja-
neiro five years ago — doing so just
six months after Williams’ wife In-
grid was killed in a car crash.
He delivered his wife’s eulogy,
quoting scripture, speaking of his
faith in God, even reminding fellow
mourners that the family of the oth-
er driver, who died in the crash, also
needed prayers. It was a show of re-
markable class, courage and
strength.
“He’s a special man,” Popovich
said.
A special coach, too.
The Suns were the worst team in
basketball over the last five seasons.
The worst. They are two wins away
from becoming the best team in the
world, with a dynamic young duo —
Ayton and U.S. Olympian Devin
Booker — and a coach on the floor in
Chris Paul, whose 16-season wait
for an NBA title might be a few days
from finally ending.
They do the work and Williams
wants them to get all the credit. And
yes, they deserve plenty, but it was
Williams who came up with the
framework for how this team could
win — and let his players figure out
how best to thrive.
“I tell our guys to go hoop,” Wil-
liams shrugs.
ROSS D. FRANKLIN/AP
Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, left, gets encouragement from coach Monty Williams during the firsthalf of Game 2 of the NBA Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks, Thursday, in Phoenix.
Suns’ Monty Williams keepspushing all the right buttons
BY TIM REYNOLDS
Associated Press
NBA Finals
(Best-of-seven)x-if necessary
Phoenix 2, Milwaukee 0Phoenix 118, Milwaukee 105Phoenix 118, Milwaukee 108Sunday: at MilwaukeeWednesday: at Milwaukee, AFN-Sports,
3 a.m. Thursday CET; 10 a.m. Thursday JKTx-Saturday, July 17: at Phoenix, AFN-
Sports, 3 a.m. Sunday CET; 10 a.m. SundayJKT
x-Tuesday, July 20: at Milwaukeex-Thursday, July 22: at Phoenix
NBA scoreboard
ANALYSIS
PAGE 24 • S T A R S A N D S T R I P E S • Monday, July 12, 2021
SPORTSMajor milestone
Djokovic matches rivals Federer, Nadalwith 20th Grand Slam ›› Wimbledon, Page 19
Braves’ Acuña out for year with torn ACL ›› MLB, Page 21
LAS VEGAS — Conor McGregor sat and
seethed with his back on the cage, a tempo-
rary cast around his left shin and foot. The
biggest star in mixed martial arts was con-
vinced he had just been robbed of revenge
on Dustin Poirier by a broken leg.
“I was boxing the bleedin’ head off him,
kicking the bleedin’ leg off him,” McGregor
shouted. “This is not over! If we have to take
this outside for him, we’ll take it outside.”
McGregor’s animosity toward Poirier
hasn’t cooled, but this fight trilogy ended —
for now, at least — with another victory for
his more mild-mannered enemy.
Poirier beat McGregor for the second
time in six months when McGregor was un-
able to continue after the first round at UFC
264 on Saturday night.
McGregor (22-6) fell to the canvas and
never got up after a punch by Poirier (28-6),
who will get the UFC’s next lightweight title
shot. McGregor’s leg and ankle buckled
when he stepped back from the blow, and
Poirier finished the round raining blows
down on the former two-division UFC
champion.
“Just the thing had separated, and I blee-
din’ landed on the wonky leg like Anderson
Silva that one time, something similar to
that,” McGregor said, referring to longtime
middleweight champ Silva’s infamously
gruesome broken leg against Chris Weid-
man. “It’s a mad business.”
UFC President Dana White said he was
Dustin Poirier, top, rains blows down uponConor McGregor, who fell to the mat whenhis leg and ankle buckled after he steppedback from being punched by Poirier duringtheir lightweight bout on Saturday at UFC264 in Las Vegas. Poirier won by TKO.
JOHN LOCHER/AP
McGregorfelled bybroken legPoirier wins showdown with formertwo-division UFC champion by TKO
BY GREG BEACHAM
Associated Press
SEE SHOWDOWN ON PAGE 20
UFC 264
“The fight didn’t get finished.You can’t have a fight finishthat way. We’ll see how thiswhole thing plays out.”
Dana White
UFC president