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Mutaz Barshim showed encouraging signs of returning to his best, but the Qatari high jump icon had to settle for second place at the Doha Diamond League on Friday night.Competing in front of his home crowd at the Qatar Sports Club, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion registered a season-best clearance of 2.27m – his highest jump since winning bronze at the Paris Olympics two years ago.Barshim, who turns 35 on June 24, has struggled with injuries over the past two years and admitted on the eve of the competition that he had “no idea” about his form and simply wanted to “have a lot of fun.”He certainly did, coming close to what would have been one of the most memorable victories of his illustrious career. Italy’s world under-20 silver medallist Matteo Sioli claimed his second Diamond League victory after clearing 2.29m, following up his triumph on home soil in Rome. Italy’s Matteo Sioli who took his second Diamond League win of the season with a season’s best of 2.29m. Barshim, however, was pleased with his first Diamond League outing of the season as he builds towards the Asian Games in Japan later this year. “It is a very, very good start of the season for me. I’ve been away for a long time, and coming back to the world stage is not easy after so many injuries,” Barshim said.”You need a few competitions to get back into the rhythm because we know what to do, but your body needs to adapt and this is not easy. In general, I’m very, very happy. It is a season best for me and I will keep pushing. Next will be Monaco and I am going to be prepared for that. The crowd is always amazing. They give me all the energy I need. I love jumping at home,” the former three-time world champion added.Barshim cleared 2.12m and 2.16m at the first attempt before needing a second try to get over 2.24m. He then cleared 2.27m on his first attempt but was unable to negotiate 2.29m or 2.31m.In the absence of Olympic and world champion Hamish Kerr, world indoor champion Oleh Doroshchuk and world bronze medallist Jan Stefela were expected to challenge strongly, but both struggled in the hot conditions, finishing third and seventh respectively.Sioli was delighted with back-to-back Diamond League victories and described competing against Barshim as an honour. “It’s a crazy period for me and I’m happy for this win. It’s a big pleasure and an honour to be competing with Mutaz Barshim. The conditions today were really, really good. The temperature was high, but that was not bad at all. I’m very thankful to each and every one who has helped me through this period,” he said. India’s Neeraj Chopra returned to…
President Donald Trump attends a ceremony in the White House. Reuters President Donald Trump will make a rare trip to Camp David this weekend, returning to the presidential retreat for only the second time since retaking office last year. Trump will hold policy and political meetings during his visit, a White House official said. His family will travel with him for the weekend, which includes Father’s Day on Sunday.The trip comes as Trump works to secure a final agreement to end the war with Iran and faces scrutiny over a provisional peace deal that critics say grants Tehran too many concessions. US-Iran talks in Switzerland planned for Friday were canceled as fighting flared in Lebanon, creating new uncertainty about the timing of negotiations vital to ensure the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to global shipping and restoring peace in the Middle East.Trump last visited Camp David in June 2025, meeting with top military leaders and foreign policy advisers to discuss immigration protests in California, Iran and the war in Gaza. The secluded retreat in Maryland’s Catoctin Mountains has not been a regular destination for the Republican president. He has generally preferred spending weekends at his own properties, including Mar-a-Lago in Florida and his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.A Cabinet meeting planned for Camp David in May was moved to the White House because of forecasts for bad weather. Other presidents have used the government-owned retreat about 70 miles from Washington far more frequently, both as a weekend escape and as a setting for diplomacy and policy meetings. Related Story Source link
The United States advanced to the World Cup knockout rounds with a game to spare following an impressive 2-0 win over Australia Friday, stoking the hopes of an already hyped host nation.The US join fellow tournament co-hosts Mexico as the first teams to progress, and could be assured top spot in Group D if Turkey fail to beat Paraguay later Friday.Excitement had been running high from last week’s US thrashing of Paraguay.And a glorious day in the Pacific Northwest did not disappoint the red-and-white-clad fans who packed Seattle’s Lumen Field and its surrounding streets and bars.Even before kickoff, chants of “USA” rocked a stadium best known as the raucous home of the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, but also a US soccer hotbed that hosts the local Sounders.Without injured talisman attacker Christian Pulisic, who failed to recover from a calf issue in time, coach Mauricio Pochettino switched to a 4-4-2 formation, bringing in second striker Ricardo Pepi.For the second game running, the US were gifted an early lead, thanks to an own goal in the 11th minute.Playing slightly wider than usual, star striker Folarin Balogun raced down the left and cut the ball back from the byline.Under pressure from a lurking Pepi, Aussie defender Cameron Burgess steered the ball into his own net.TOOTHLESS AUSTRALIAHaving surprisingly dropped both goalscorers from their impressive opening win over Turkey, Australia looked toothless.The US controlled possession and were lively and dynamic on the attack, Weston McKennie and Sergino Dest combining well down the right flank.Alex Freeman doubled the US lead in the 44th minute from what was surprisingly his team’s first shot on target.Taking a free kick from the right byline, Antonee Robinson ignored the scrum in the box and played the ball to Sergino Dest, wide open in the D, whose blocked shot looped up into the air.Freeman — son of Super Bowl-winning NFL wide receiver Antonio Freeman — was first to the ball, heading it past Patrick Beach. The offside flag went up. But it was overturned by VAR, and the stadium rocked for a second a time.Australia made three changes at the break — sending on Connor Metcalfe and Nestory Irankunda, the goalscorers against Turkey — and pushed higher up the field.They were nearly caught out immediately. Balogun raced onto a through ball for a one-on-one chance, but his shot was blocked after a heavy touch.Australia’s best chance so far came in the 62nd minute. The dangerous Cristian Volpato — who switched allegiance from Italy to Australia on the eve of the tournament — skied his shot from Irankunda’s cut-back pass.With the US sitting back, Metcalfe had a shot saved, a rampaging Irankunda was brought down by Richards, and Jason Geria’s close-range effort was blocked in a nervy final phase for the hosts.But despite late-flaring tensions between the teams, the Americans held on for the clean sheet and will have the luxury of playing Turkey next Thursday, knowing their spot in the round of 32 is secured.With home advantage and sparkling form so far, US fans will be dreaming of a run to the quarter-finals, which they last reached in 2002, and even beyond. Related Story Source link
A worker from the Medical Officer of Health (MOH) department fumigates a residential area during a mosquito control programme in Colombo, Friday. (Reuters) Sri Lanka is battling the worst outbreak of mosquito-borne dengue fever in years, with more than 44,000 cases and 28 deaths recorded since January, an official said Friday, putting public hospitals under strain. Dengue is common during Sri Lanka’s monsoon season, but unplanned urbanisation coupled with damage caused by Cyclone Ditwah, which hit the island nation in late November, has worsened the outbreak this year, authorities said. The number of dengue cases nearly doubled from 5,651 in April to 10,638 in the first two weeks of June, data from the National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU) showed. “We noticed this increase after the cyclone,” Dr Prashila Samaraweera, consultant community physician and NDCU spokesperson, told Reuters. “A lot of debris was in our environment, so we noticed a lot of mosquito breeding places, and our entomological indices were high from that time.” With 51,000 cases recorded in the whole of last year, the rate of infections has risen sharply, Dr Samaraweera said. Infections are likely to increase for at least two more weeks before tapering off, she added. A further uptick in patient numbers could put public hospitals under severe strain, Sri Lanka’s health minister Nalinda Jayatissa warned on Thursday. More than half the cases are from the western region of the country, including 9,429 cases from commercial capital Colombo. Eight other districts have reported more than 2,000 patients since the start of the year.The 28 deaths include five children. Patient numbers for this year could end up matching the last major outbreak in 2019, authorities have warned, when Sri Lanka recorded over 105,000 dengue patients. Schools, homes, construction sites, and public buildings are being cleaned up during a special programme launched by Sri Lanka’s health authorities and other public officials till next Monday. Related Story…
Barham Salih highlighted the contributions refugees make to their host communities as workers, students, neighbours, artists, athletes, entrepreneurs and leaders. “Given the opportunity, they rebuild their lives and help strengthen the…
Former Greater Manchester Mayor and newly elected Makerfield MP Andy Burnham addresses members and supporters of the Labour Party after he won the Makerfield by-election, at…
George Aivazoglou, the NBA’s managing director for Europe and the Middle East. The NBA’s proposed new European league would distribute hundreds of millions of dollars per year to its franchises, George Aivazoglou, one of the league’s senior executives, told AFP.The NBA project, which is due to be launched in 2027 in partnership with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), has come under intense scrutiny with respect to its financial viability.Franchises would need to stump up between “500 million and one billion” dollars to take part, and in return they would become “partners” in the NBA Europe project, said Aivazoglou, the NBA’s managing director for Europe and the Middle East.Almost all top level European basketball sides are losing money, although the NBA model envisages franchises — many newly created ones — set up in major cities such as London, Paris, Berlin and Madrid.These are cities where the sporting environment, largely dominated by football, is already saturated. ‘RECORD INTEREST’NBA commissioner Adam Silver said two weeks ago that they had received “record interest” from potential franchises, whose bids to join the new league are due at the end of the month.As well as FIBA, the NBA has been in discussions with EuroLeague Basketball, which organises the continent’s top basketball competition — the equivalent of football’s Champions League — which was first held in 1958.The NBA is pitching its proposed new league as a huge money-spinner for potential investors — despite their mammoth initial outlay.”The partner becomes a shareholder. There is asset value there,” said Aivazoglou.”This is the NBA’s league in Europe and this will be an asset that is worth in the tens of billions of dollars.”So you’re buying into that, obviously buying into a share of the NBA brand, which as we know will be a significant accelerator of how we create value in the ecosystem.”He said that the franchises would benefit from the NBA’s “digital direct consumer technology, our broadcast operations, our commercial capabilities”. 12 PERMANENT FRANCHISESThe plan is to create a competition with 12 permanent franchises with four more teams needing to qualify to take part.All of those teams would benefit from “very significant central distributions from the league — we’re talking on aggregate in the hundreds of millions per year”, said Aivazoglou.Divided between 16 teams, that translates as tens of millions each.An inside source at Qatar Sports Investment, the owners of the Paris Saint-Germain football team who have been approached by the NBA over creating a franchise, told AFP in January that the initial investment required to join was exorbitant and prohibitive.The NBA has pledged, though, to invest three billion dollars into the project to help cover initial losses.”We’re building a league for the next 100 years,” insisted Aivazoglou.Once the bidding process ends on June 29, the NBA “will move forward with next steps that could include announcements from there”. Related Story Source link
The vast majority of these acts of degrading brutality go unreported, but for those who do come forward, support provided by United Nations partners can begin…
Three-time Stanley Cup champion and longtime Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews officially announced his retirement Friday after 16 seasons.Toews, 38, who sat out two seasons before returning to play all 82 games for his hometown Winnipeg Jets in 2025-26, ends his decorated career with 912 points (383 goals, 529 assists) in 1,149 games.”While his playing career has come to a close, Jonathan’s place in Blackhawks history — in hockey history — will be talked about for as long as this game as played,” Blackhawks chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz said in a statement. “Jonathan, on behalf of all of us here at the Chicago Blackhawks, our fans and the city of Chicago you gave so much to: congratulations on an extraordinary journey and a truly remarkable career. Thank you. Seriously.”Toews was named the youngest captain in NHL history at the time at 20 years and 79 days on July 18, 2008. Under the leadership of “Captain Serious” and teammates Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith, Chicago claimed the Stanley Cup in 2009-10, 2012-13 and 2014-15.Toews won the Conn Smythe Trophy for the first of those three titles. He also won the Selke Trophy in 2012-13 and the Mark Messier Leadership Award in 2014-15.Toews missed the entire 2020-21 season while dealing with Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome, and was out from Feb. 21 to April 1, 2023 with the effects of long COVID-19.He returned to play for the Jets and contributed 11 goals and 18 assists while playing every game for the first time since the 2018-19 season.”Tazer, congratulations on a remarkable hockey career,” the Jets posted on X. “Your love for the game, and your passion for this city has forever left a mark on our community.”Drafted with the No. 3 overall pick by Chicago in 2006, Toews also recorded 119 points (45 goals, 74 assists) in 137 career postseason games. He ranks sixth in goals (372) and points (883) in Blackhawks history.Toews won two Olympic gold medals with Team Canada in 2010 and 2014. Source link
Premier League champions Arsenal will begin their title defence at home to newly promoted Coventry City when the 2026-27 season kicks off on August 21.Coventry return to the top flight for the first time in 25 years and face a daunting test against Mikel Arteta's side, who ended a 22-year wait for the title last season.Hull City, promoted via the playoffs, host Manchester United in the first round of games, while fellow promoted club Ipswich Town take on Sunderland at home, according to fixtures released on Friday.Manchester City, starting the campaign without former coach Pep Guardiola, host Bournemouth, while Newcastle United take on Liverpool, now led by Andoni Iraola, at St. James' Park.Chelsea will be seen in action under new coach Xabi Alonso with a London derby away to Fulham, while the highly anticipated Manchester derby is scheduled for September 12.The campaign will conclude on May 30, 2027, with the Champions League final set for six days later. Source link