May 4, 2023 News and Notes

• Backing music:  The Imperial March.   
• A UK sports ethics panel has banned the former track and field director of the UK, Julian Starkey, for three years, him claiming Black athletes gravitate to sprinting...  to get away from their burglaries.
• Trevor Bauer has won his first start in Japan.
• It's official:  PSG and Leo Messi are firing each other at the end of this season.
• Former Wisconsin Badger Marcus Randle El has been sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for a double murder in 2020.  He might get supervised parole at age 93 in 2083.  In many states, he'd be sentenced to death.  Wisconsin does not have that penalty.   
• Just after 10 PM SL Time (Pacific) on Day 14, the Fantasy Faire for the American Cancer Society on Second Life crossed the $60,000 mark!
• Philip Thomas was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for attempting to stalk and kidnap at least WWE superstar Sonya Deville.  Speaking as an ex-celebrity stalker, society had best hope Thomas dies incarcerated.  You do NOT want to be left to that person's devices regarding "what happens next".  (One of the reasons the NYPD needed to shoot me, cut my head off, and parade it on a pike down Broadway -- some favors carrying too high a price!)   
• All Elite Wrestling has announced that 50,000 tickets have been sold so far for Wembley Stadium's "All In:  London" event in August.  General-public sales start tomorrow -- this was all from pre-registered interested parties.
• Aidan Ralph, a redshirt sophomore at Iowa State, is now in jail, heading to prison on charges of rape and domestic violence after he raped and shoved a girlfriend he accused of cheating.  The shoves were so hard, they fractured her spine.
• Make that five horses killed or euthanized at Churchill Downs since last Saturday.  Reports came in on a horse put down after it flipped in the saddling paddock and broke it's neck.
• And, today, the siren had to sound at the track to stop the dedicated training period for horses in the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks when one of the horses threw it's training rider.  Thankfully, a thorough investigation has indicated that horse, Verifying, a 15-1 mid-shot leaving from post #2 on Saturday, was unharmed.
• As of right now, a field of twenty will contest the Derby on Saturday.
• It will not include Practical Move, scratched today with a fever.  He has been replaced.
• It may now no longer be the case.  Two of the five dead horses are trained by Saffie Joseph Jr., who has now been expelled from Churchill Downs indefinitely.  Lord Miles has been expelled from the Derby.
• Continuar has also been scratched, on advice from his trainer.
• And there are two other horses on this Thursday night who are also being considered as possible scratches for the Derby:  Forte and Kingsbarns.  Forte is the Monday favorite for the Derby at 3-1.
• But, at the same time that happened, a filly in the Kentucky Oaks, And Tell Me Nolies (another 15-1 mid-shot from post #9), bolted off the track and nearly took out scores of people watching the action in the barn area!  Horse unharmed, trainer needs a few drinks (by his own admission!).
• About a week ago, the Milwaukee Bucks, who had the best regular-season record in the NBA this year, were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.  Their coach, Mike Budenholzer, has been fired for this result!