AP National Sports

By JEROME PUGMIRE AP Sports Writer PARIS (AP) — Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina wants Russian and Belarusian players to say whether they oppose the war in her nation. She says in an interview with The Associated Press that “it’s very important that they speak out.” Because otherwise we don’t know “if they support the

MESSINA, Sicily (AP) — French cyclist Arnaud Démare won a bunch sprint at the end of the fifth stage of the Giro d’Italia and Juan Pedro López kept hold of the leader’s pink jersey. Démare edged Fernando Gaviria at the end of the 108-mile route from Catania to Messina after sprint favorites Mark Cavendish and

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer GENEVA (AP) — FIFA has opened a disciplinary case looking into whether Ecuador fielded an ineligible player during World Cup qualifying. The case could see Ecuador thrown out of this year’s tournament in Qatar. Chile filed a formal complaint last week alleging that Byron Castillo is Colombian and should

ROME (AP) — Once is enough when it comes to beating Rafael Nadal on a clay court. Nadal has never lost consecutive matches on his favorite surface and the Spaniard extended that perfect record by beating John Isner 6-3, 6-1 to reach the third round of the Italian Open. Nadal was coming off a loss

By LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press ELBASAN, Albania (AP) — After fleeing from a war zone, a group of young Ukrainian track and field athletes have made their way to safety in Albania. Their minds are still between the two countries. “I miss my mother’s food and grandmother’s advice,” said 17-year-old Maria Lariva, who throws the

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona defender Ronald Araújo has been discharged after a night in the hospital following a head injury sustained in a Spanish league game against Celta Vigo. The club says tests conducted on the player following his concussion on Tuesday came back with satisfactory results and doctors allowed him to return home.

SYDNEY (AP) — The Sydney Kings have swept the best-of-five National Basketball League final for their first Australian title since 2005 by beating the Tasmania JackJumpers 97-88. Sydney outscored the JackJumpers 31-19 in the final quarter to win its fourth NBL championship. The deciding game was watched by an NBL final record attendance of 16,149

VIRGINIA WATER, England (AP) — Thomas Bjorn will be one of European captain Henrik Stenson’s assistants at next year’s Ryder Cup in Italy. Bjorn is the first of the vice captains announced by the European team which is looking to regain the trophy from the Americans in Rome. It will be the Dane’s fifth stint

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer GENEVA (AP) — Champions League winner Chelsea earned nearly 120 million euros ($126.5 million) from UEFA last season, topping the prize money list for European clubs. That was just ahead of beaten finalist Manchester City, which received just over 119 million euros ($125.6 million) from a total fund of

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer An American bid to stage the men’s and women’s Rugby World Cups has received the full support of the White House and is expected to receive the green light on Thursday as the sport looks to break new ground. World Rugby will announce the host nations for the men’s

By LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press ELBASAN, Albania (AP) — After fleeing from a war zone, a group of young Ukrainian track and field athletes have made their way to safety in Albania. Their minds are still between the two countries. “I miss my mother’s food and grandmother’s advice,” said 17-year-old Maria Lariva, who throws the

By PAT GRAHAM AP Sports Writer DENVER (AP) — Norris Trophy finalist Cale Makar helped the Colorado Avalanche put the finishing touches on a first-round sweep of Nashville with a three-goal, seven-assist performance. His 10 points are the most in league history by a blueliner through four games in a playoff year. Makar’s averaging 1.05

By DAIMON EKLUND Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) — Robbie Ray pitched into the sixth inning and had 10 strikeouts, the most by a Seattle pitcher this season, and the Mariners beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4. Ray gave up two runs on two hits while walking two in 5 2/3 innings. Nick Castellanos, Rhys Hoskins and

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Adrian Kempe scored 1:12 into overtime to give the Los Angeles Kings a 5-4 win over the Edmonton Oilers for a 3-2 lead in the first-round playoff series. Kempe also scored and had an assist for the Kings in regulation. Troy Stecher, Andreas Anthansiou and Phillip Danault also scored. Leon Draisaitl

Bob Lanier, the left-handed big man who muscled up beside the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as one of the NBA’s top players of the 1970s, has died. He was 73. The NBA said Lanier died Tuesday after a short illness. The Hall of Famer had worked for the league as a global ambassador. The Athletic

By JOHN MARSHALL AP Sports Writer PHOENIX (AP) — Madison Bumgarner pitched effectively into the seventh inning in his first start since being ejected and the Arizona Diamondbacks made Torey Lovullo the winningest manager in franchise history with a 9-3 win over the Miami Marlins. Bumgarner gave up a two-run homer to Jose Soler in

By MICHAEL WAGAMAN Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Alex Wood pitched into the sixth inning and didn’t allow an earned run, Brandon Belt had an RBI double in his return to the lineup and the San Francisco Giants won their ninth straight against the Colorado Rockies, 9-2. Curt Casali added three hits and two

TORONTO (AP) — Auston Matthews scored the tiebreaking goal with 6:06 left in the third period and the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied from an early two-goal deficit to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-3 and take a 3-2 lead in the first-round playoff series. William Nylander added a goal and two assists for Toronto, which

By BERNIE WILSON AP Sports Writer SAN DIEGO (AP) — Manny Machado hit a go-ahead double in the sixth inning and the San Diego Padres beat the Chicago Cubs 5-4 hours after finding out manager Bob Melvin will have prostate surgery. Melvin announced before the game that he’ll have surgery Wednesday. He said he doesn’t