GENEVA - Ludger Beerbaum of Germany was found guilty of riding a doped horse at the Athens Olympics, and the International Equestrian Federation said the country should lose its team jumping gold medal.

The International Olympic Committee's executive board can now strip Germany of its medal, giving the gold to the United States. Last month, the German equestrian federation said a backup sample had confirmed the initial positive result for Beerbaum's horse, Goldfever. The rider, who has denied cheating, said the banned steroid betamethasone was contained in a skin ointment.

NEW YORK - Baseball owners Friday took another step toward moving the Montreal Expos to Washington next year, giving conditional approval but hinging their decision on the September agreement that did not cap the cost of a new ballpark.That agreement called for the District of Columbia government to enact by Dec. 31 funding for a new ballpark for the team, which would be renamed the Nationals. The D.C. Council voted this week to approve funding, but placed a $630 million cap on the project - $195 million above the estimate contained in the September agreement. Commissioner Bud Selig has refused to say how baseball would react if the cap remains in the final law.

NEW YORK - The New York Yankees sent outfielder Kenny Lofton and more than $1.5 million to the Philadelphia Phillies Friday for setup man Felix Rodriguez and also reacquired Mike Stanton from the Mets.The Yankees got Stanton and $975,000 from the Mets for Felix Heredia in a swap of left-handed relievers. Stanton waived his no-trade clause to rejoin his former team.Lofton, 37, will be going to his ninth major league team. A six-time All-Star earlier in his career, he hit .275 with seven stolen bases in 83 games in his only season with New York.

NEW YORK- Arbitrator Roger Kaplan ruled Friday that he has jurisdiction to decide whether the brawl-related suspensions given to Ron Artest and other players can be appealed to someone other than commissioner David Stern, and the NBA responded by filing a lawsuit in federal court challenging the arbitrator's authority.Kaplan scheduled a hearing for next Thursday, although the matter will next be contested Monday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.