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Keira Walsh to miss England’s next game at the Women’s World Cup but scans show no ACL damage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

SYDNEY (AP) — After fear that Keira Walsh’s Women’s World Cup was over because of a knee injury, the England midfielder has sparked hope she could play again at the tournament after scans revealed she has not suffered ACL damage.Walsh has been ruled out of England’s final group game against China. But there is hope she will be able to recover for the knockout stages.“Following a scan late on Saturday afternoon, we can confirm Keira Walsh has not suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury,” the English Football Association said. “Her knee injury will continue to be assessed by England medical staff and no further update will be provided at this stage.”Walsh’s knee injury in the Lionesses’ 1-0 win against Denmark on Friday left a hole in the heart of the midfield.Walsh — considered the conductor during England’s European Championship triumph last year — had to leave the field in Sydney on a stretcher and later exited the stadium on crutches. At the Euros, “everyth...

Le Sommer, Renard score as France edges Brazil 2-1 at the Women’s World Cup

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Veterans Eugénie Le Sommer and Wendie Renard revived France’s Women’s World Cup hopes with a goal each in a 2-1 win over Brazil on Saturday to give Les Bleues the lead in Group F.After missing with an angled header in the 13th minute, Le Sommer scored her 90th international goal to extend her national record four minutes later with an emphatic header that gave Brazilian goalkeeper Leticia little chance.Sakina Karchaoui’s long floating ball into the area found Kadidiatou Diani, who headed back across to Le Sommer to finish off from directly in front.Unlike a lackluster 0-0 opening draw against Jamaica, the French started with high tempo and had the better of the early exchanges.But the Brazilians, coming off a thumping 4-0 opening win over Panama, met them for energy, helped by the majority of an almost 50,000 crowd.Debinha equalized in the 58th, finishing off a quick passing movement into the area, controlling the ball with the outside of her leg then firi...

F1 leader Verstappen takes pole for Belgian GP sprint race ahead of Piastri

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium (AP) — Two-time reigning Formula One champion Max Verstappen edged out rookie driver Oscar Piastri by just .011 seconds to take pole position for the sprint race at the Belgian Grand Prix later Saturday.The shortened qualifying format — known as the “sprint shootout” — sets the grid for the sprint race. It was delayed by 35 minutes because of wet and rainy conditions, with air blowers used to clear water from the track.Piastri has been in good form recently and the McLaren driver shot to the top of the leaderboard on his last run, only for Verstappen to typically find extra pace from his Red Bull.“Simply lovely,” Verstappen said on team radio. “Not easy with this weather.”Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. starts the sprint from third ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc, with McLaren’s Lando Norris fifth, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly sixth and Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton going from seventh. It was a disappointing session for Red Bull’s Sergio...

France 2, Brazil 1

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

Brazil01—1France11—2First Half_1, France, Le Sommer, (Diani), 17th minute.Second Half_2, Brazil, Debinha, (Kerolin Nicoli), 58th; 3, France, Renard, (Bacha), 83rd.Goalies_Brazil, Leticia Izidoro, Barbara Micheline do Monte Barbosa, Camila Rodrigues; France, Pauline Peyraud-Magnin, Solene Durand, Constance Picaud.Yellow Cards_Dali, France, 11th; Toletti, France, 29th; Luana, Brazil, 44th; Karchaoui, France, 69th.Referee_Katherine Margaret Jacewicz. Assistant Referees_Kyoung Min Kim, Joanna Charaktis, Massimiliano Irrati. 4th Official_Lina Lehtovaara.A_49,378.___Source

Swedish swimmer Sarah Sjoestroem breaks her own world record in the 50-meter freestyle

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

FUKUOKA, Japan (AP) — Swedish swimmer Sarah Sjoestroem broke her own world record in the 50-meter freestyle on Saturday, swimming a time of 23.61 seconds in a semifinal heat at the World Aquatics Championships.Her previous record was 23.67 set in 2017. The new record came just over 10 minutes after she won gold in the 50-meter butterfly. Her time there was 24.77.Sjoestroem has now won 20 individual medals at the world championships to tie Michael Phelps. Relays are not included in the count. She has 11 gold in world championships.___AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsSource

Ukraine changes date of Christmas, in slap at ‘Russian heritage’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

Ukraine is on a mission to shed the vestiges of historic Russian influence — and now it’s even got rid of Russian Christmas.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday signed a law which moves the official Christmas Day state holiday from January 7 — as observed by the Russian Orthodox Church — to December 25.An explanatory note to the law said its aim was to “abandon the Russian heritage” and forms part of a wider campaign to assert Ukrainian identity in defiance of Russia’s 17-month-old invasion.The Russian Orthodox Church and its leader, Patriarch Kirill, have been strong supporters of the war launched last year by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Kirill has said Russian soldiers killed in action will have their sins forgiven and has compared their sacrifice to that of Jesus Christ.In 2019, part of the church in Ukraine formally gained independence from Moscow to form the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), which has become an independent rival to the Ukrainian Or...

Biden admin announces new weapons assistance package for Taiwan

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

Washington (CNN) — The US on Friday announced a new weapons package for Taiwan valued at up to $345 million, a move that is likely to anger Beijing at a time when the US has been attempting to reset its relationship with China.This package marks the first time the US has transferred equipment to Taiwan under what’s known as Presidential Drawdown Authority, allowing the US to pull the weapons and other stocks directly from Defense Department inventories. Just like many of the weapons deliveries to Ukraine, this process accelerates the transfer of inventory.It’s unclear what weaponry or equipment will be in the drawdown package – the announcement did not detail its contents, as such announcements often do with Ukraine aid packages.Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Martin Meiners said the package “includes self-defense capabilities that Taiwan will be able to use to build … to bolster deterrence now and in the future.” He added that the systems include “critical defensive stockp...

MBTA Orange, Green Lines partially shut down for work on Government Center Garage demolition

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

Parts of the Orange and Green Lines will be closed for work on the Government Center Garage demolition starting Saturday, MBTA officials said.The Green Line service will be suspended July 29 through Aug. 9 between North Station and Government Center, while the Orange Line will bypass the Haymarket Station during the closure. The MBTA said in the closure announcement that accessible shuttles can be made available upon request.The shutdown comes as the MBTA finished replacing and repairing the tracks of the B Line of the Green Line Saturday after a 12-day closure.  Officials said this work should alleviate Green Line delays.

Lost for centuries, Emperor Nero’s theater is unearthed in Rome

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

Rome (CNN) — Ruins of a private theater belonging to the 1st century Roman Emperor Nero have been unearthed in the Italian capital just meters from the Vatican, in what experts are calling an “exceptional” find.The discovery, revealed by Rome’s special superintendent Daniela Porro on Thursday, unveils the venue where Nero rehearsed poetry and music, and lies near to where St. Peter’s Basilica now stands.Until now, the existence of the ancient theater had perplexed many historians because it was mentioned in Roman texts written by Pliny the Elder but its whereabouts had not previously been documented.Nero was the fifth Roman emperor, ruling between 54 and 68 AD. An unpopular leader, he became famous for his extravagances and personal debaucheries.The site includes elegant marble columns, gold-leaf decorations and storage rooms with remnants of costumes and backdrops used in Nero’s theatrical productions.The dig is part of a renovation project of the Palazzo d...

It’s a miracle, say family of Japanese soldier killed in WWII, as flag he carried returns from US

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:00:26 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Toshihiro Mutsuda was only 5 years old when he last saw his father, who was drafted by Japan’s Imperial Army in 1943 and killed in action. For him, his father was a bespectacled man in an old family photo standing by a signed good-luck flag that he carried to war. On Saturday, when the flag was returned to him from a U.S. war museum where it had been on display for 29 years, Mutsuda, now 83, said: “It’s a miracle.”The flag, known as “Yosegaki Hinomaru,” or Good Luck Flag, carries the soldier’s name, Shigeyoshi Mutsuda, and the signatures of his relatives, friends and neighbors wishing him luck. It was given to him before he was drafted by the Army. His family was later told he died in Saipan, but his remains were never returned.The flag was donated in 1994 and displayed at the museum aboard the USS Lexington, a WWII aircraft carrier, in Corpus Christi, Texas. Its meaning was not known until it was identified by the family earlier this year, said ...