With individual workouts under way and the NBA season (almost) in the rearview mirror, the 2023 NBA Draft picture is starting to take shape.The 2023 NBA Draft will usher in a new era of basketball stardom with Victor Wembanyama, arguably the best prospect in decades. Behind him, an especially de...

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Polish referee Szymon Marciniak is in charge of the 2023 Champions League final between Manchester City and Inter Milan at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul. Marciniak was given the honour of refereeing the World Cup final in December, which passed largely without controversy. He was the first-ever Pole to referee a World Cup final and his assistants that day in Qatar, compatriots Pawel Sokolnicki and Tomasz Listkiewicz, are on hand again tonight to run the line. However, Marciniak has not been without controversy off the pitch. He managed to keep his role in charge of the final after apologising for appearing at a far-right event in Poland last month, having spoken at an event organised by far-right leader Slawomir Mentzen. He said in a statement: “I want to express my deepest apologies for my involvement and any distress or harm it may have caused. “Upon reflection and further investigation, it has become evident that I was gravely misled and completely unaware of the true nature and affiliations of the event in question. I had no knowledge that it was associated [with] a Polish extreme-right movement. Had I been aware of this fact, I would have categorically declined the invitation. “It is important to understand that the values promoted by this movement are entirely contrary to my personal beliefs and the principles I strive to uphold in my life. I am deeply remorseful for any perception that my participation may have contradicted them.” Uefa said: “After conducting a thorough review, we have received a statement from Mr Marciniak expressing his deepest apologies and providing a clarification regarding his involvement in the event.” The 42-year-old refereed the second leg of City’s semi-final win against Real Madrid and has taken charge of seven other Champions League fixtures. Here is the full officiating team for the Champions League final: 2023 Champions League final refereeing team Referee: Szymon Marciniak (POL)Assistants: Pawel Sokolnicki and Tomasz Listkiewicz (both POL)Fourth official: Istvan Kovacs (ROM)Reserve assistant: Vasile Florin Marinescu (ROM)VAR: Tomasz Kwiatkowski (POL)Assistant VAR: Bartosz Frankowski (POL)VAR Support: Marco Fritz (GER) When: Saturday 10 June, 8pm BST. Where: Ataturk Stadium, Istanbul. Odds (after 90 minutes) Man City win: 4/9 Inter win: 6/1 Draw: 15/4 Via Betfair Read More Champions League final referee Szymon Marciniak keeps role after apology for attending far-right event One last wrong to right? Man City stand on the brink of complicated history Inter and the impossible task of the Champions League final Why do Man City fans boo the Champions League anthem? Man City vs Inter Milan LIVE: Latest Champions League final updates Manchester City fans sing on streets of Istanbul ahead of Champions League final

Russia’s top court has ruled that LGBT+ activists should be designated as “extremists” and issued a ban against such work – the most drastic step in a years-long crackdown on the community in the country. This effectively outlaws LGBT+ activism across the country, in a move that representatives of the gay and transgender communities fear will lead to arrests and prosecutions. The hearing took place behind closed doors and with no defendant. Multiple rights activists have pointed out that the lawsuit targeted the “international civic LGBT movement”, which is not an entity but rather a broad and vague definition that would allow Russian authorities to crack down on any individuals or groups deemed to be part of the “movement”. In a statement announcing a lawsuit filed to the court earlier this month, Russia’s justice ministry argued that authorities had identified “signs and manifestations of an extremist nature” by an LGBTQ+ “movement” operating in Russia, including “incitement of social and religious discord”, although it offered no details or evidence. In its ruling, the court declared the “movement” to be extremist and banned it in Russia. “Despite the fact that the justice ministry demands to label a nonexistent – ‘the international civic LGBT movement’ – extremist, in practice it could happen that the Russian authorities, with this court ruling at hand, will enforce it against LGBT+ initiatives that work in Russia, considering them a part of this civic movement,” Max Olenichev, a human rights lawyer who works with the Russian LGBT+ community, told the Associated Press ahead of the hearing. The ruling is the latest in more than a decade of restrictions on LBGT+ rights under Vladimir Putin, who has put what he calls “traditional family values” at the centre of his appeal to the Russian public. In 2013, the Kremlin adopted legislation known as the “gay propaganda” law, banning any public endorsement of “nontraditional sexual relations” to children. In 2020, constitutional reforms pushed through by Mr Putin to extend his rule by two more terms also included a provision to outlaw same-sex marriage. After sending troops into Ukraine in 2022, the Kremlin ramped up its comments about protecting “traditional values” from what it called the West's “degrading” influence, in what many have seen as an attempt to legitimise the invasion as Western nations have lined up to support Ukraine. The language from Mr Putin regarding LGBT+ communities has ramped up as the Russian president has sought to set Moscow against the West in almost every facet of society. In the wake of the Ukraine invasion, the authorities adopted a law banning propaganda of “nontraditional sexual relations” among adults, also, effectively outlawing any public endorsement of LGBT+ people. Another law passed earlier this year prohibited gender-transitioning procedures and gender-affirming care for transgender people. The legislation prohibited any “medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person”, as well as changing one’s gender in official documents and public records. It also amended Russia’s family code by listing gender change as a reason to annul a marriage and adding those “who had changed gender” to a list of people who can’t become foster or adoptive parents. Samples of Mr Putin’s degrading language were illustrated by a speech last year where he said the West was welcome to adopt “rather strange, in my view, new-fangled trends like dozens of genders, and gay parades” but had no right to impose them on other countries. Such rhetoric has been decried by nations across the world. Mr Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters before the latest court decision was announced that the Kremlin was “not following” the case and had no comment on it. The Supreme Court took around five hours to issue its ruling. The proceedings were closed to media, but reporters were allowed in to hear the decision. LGBT+ groups had seen the decision as inevitable after the request by the justice ministry, which said – without giving examples – that “various signs and manifestations of extremist orientation, including the incitement of social and religious discord” had been identified in the activities of what it called the LGBT+ movement in Russia. The UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Turk, has repeatedly called on Russia to repeal its repression of LGBT+ rights and the UN as a whole, along with nations such as the US, UK and others have condemned such moves from the 2013 propaganda law onwards. Russian officials have tried to reject accusations of discrimination, despite a crackdown on freedom of expression. Earlier this month, Russian media quoted Andrei Loginov, a deputy justice minister, as saying that “the rights of LGBT people in Russia are protected” legally. Mr Loginov spoke in Geneva, while presenting a report on human rights in Russia to the UN Human Rights Council, and argued that “restraining public demonstration of non-traditional sexual relationships or preferences is not a form of censure for them.” For LGBT+ groups and activists, there are deep fears that this is just the beginning of another round of arrests. “Of course, it’s very alarming, and I don’t remember the threat ever being so serious and real,” Alexei Sergeyev, an LGBT+ activist in St Petersburg, told Reuters earlier this month. More than 100 groups are already banned in Russia as “extremist”. Previous listings, for example of the Jehovah’s Witnesses religious movement and organisations linked to opposition politician Alexei Navalny, have served as a prelude to arrests and court cases. Mr Sergeyev said activities such as psychological and legal support, or even “meetings where you can just sit and drink tea”, would be driven underground, given the broad and vague nature of this ruling – depriving many LGBT+ people of support. Reuters and Associated Press contributed to this report Read More Russia's Lavrov faces Western critics at security meeting, walks out after speech Putin asks Russian women to have ‘eight or more’ children amid deaths in his war Russia-Ukraine war live: Families trapped under rubble after missile strike Ukraine spy chief’s wife treated for suspected metal poisoning Putin won’t consider stopping Ukraine war until after US election – official Chechen warlord Kadyrov offers Putin 3,000 more fighters amid heavy Russian losses

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