No illegal meds in deaths of horses at Santa Anita

A report released Tuesday by the California Horse Racing Board on a spate of horse deaths at Santa Anita found that no illegal medications were used on the animals and 39% percent of the 23 fatalities occurred on surfaces affected by wet weather.

The long-awaited report focused on 23 deaths as a result of racing or training between Dec. 30, 2018, and March 31, 2019. The fatalities roiled the industry and led track owner The Stronach Group to institute several reforms involving safety and medication.

The report found that 19 of 22 horses’ catastrophic musculoskeletal injuries (CMI) included proximal sesamoid bone fractures, which are related to racing and training intensity. Twenty-one of those 22 cases showed “evidence of pre-existing pathology” that is presumed to be associated with high exercise intensity,.

Seven more fatalities at the track from April 1 through June 23, 2019, weren’t included in the report.

■ Maximum Security was moved from trainer Jason Servis to Bob Baffert after Servis was indicted Monday and charged with administering PEDs to that horse and others. Servis was one of 27 horse racing professionals charged by federal authorities in what was described as a scheme to drug horses to make them race faster.

NFL: With the members of NFL Players Association still voting on a new labor agreement the owners already have approved, the league and union extended the deadline for applying franchise and transition tags to free agents from Thursday to Monday . ... Browns C JC Tretter, 29, was elected NFLPA president by the 32 player representatives. ... The Panthers signed QB Kyle Allen to a one-year contract. Allen, 24, started 12 games last season filling in for Cam Newton . ... The Steelers and Cowboys will face off in the Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 6 in Canton, Ohio.

Soccer: Marcel Sabitzer scored twice as RB Leipzig beat visiting Tottenham 3-0, sending the Champions League’s youngest coach and club past last year’s runner-up and into the quarterfinals. Leipzig advanced 4-0 on aggregate. In other action, Josip Ilici scored four goals as tourney newcomer Atalanta beat visiting Valencia in a match played in an empty stadium because of the coronavirus outbreak. Atalanta advanced 8-4 on aggregate.