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IOC gives resounding thumbs-up to Paris’ Olympic plans, as organizers chase LVMH deal

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

PARIS (AP) — An IOC inspection team gave a resounding thumbs-up Wednesday to Paris’ preparations for the 2024 Olympic Games, declaring “a very, very high level of confidence” despite unresolved questions about financing and security.“Paris is where it should be with 415 days to go,” said Pierre-Olivier Beckers-Vieujant, who heads the IOC commission overseeing Paris’ plans.While new Olympic venues are on track, French auditors have flagged to parliament that they’re still unable to say how much the games will cost in total and what their final impact will be on public finances, once security and other expenses are factored in. Some 8.8 billion euros ($9.4 billion) are budgeted for Olympic construction and the Paris organizing committee, with more than a third of that from public coffers.Despite their repeated reassurances, doubts also persist about whether Paris organizers will be able to recruit private security guards in sufficient numbers so that military personnel don...

Adin, who? Journeyman goalie Hill has Vegas Golden Knights up in Stanley Cup Final

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Adin Hill heard fans chanting his name following one big save after another. He tried not to listen too intently.After all, many in the crowd almost certainly didn’t know who Hill was as recently as a few months ago. An unheralded 27-year-old journeyman goaltender is now a household name because his play is one of the biggest reasons the Vegas Golden Knights are up 2-0 on the Florida Panthers in the final and two victories away from winning the Stanley Cup.Game 3 is Thursday night and Hill will return to the arena he was drafted in eight years ago — the fifth goalie picked, 76th overall in 2015 — as a playoff starter who has come of age since stepping in during the second round. He has since gone 9-3, giving up just over two goals a game and posting an NHL postseason-best .937 save percentage. Paid $2.7 million per year, Hill has been better than two-time Vezina Trophy winner and $10 million per season netminder Sergei Bobrovsky of the Panthers so far in t...

New lawsuit filed after Iowa building collapse; governor seeks federal aid with emergency response

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A woman whose leg was amputated in order to free her from the rubble of the partially collapsed building in Davenport, Iowa, filed a lawsuit with her wife Wednesday, accusing the city and the building’s owner of “willful and wanton disregard” of their safety.Quanishia “Peach” Berry and her wife, Lexus, were home in their fourth-floor apartment May 28 when the west side of the building crumbled. Lexus Berry was able to evacuate, but it was hours before rescuers found Peach Berry trapped in the debris and determined they would need to amputate one of her legs to pull her free.The couple seeks unspecified damages to compensate for the medical bills, emotional distress and lost wages, according to the filing.“The owner of this building was aware, the city of Davenport was aware, the engineering companies and construction people were aware. This was a completely preventable tragedy,” said attorney Andrew M. Stroth, who is representing Peach and Lexus Berry.The law...

Maryland board approves funds for abortion pill stockpile

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A Maryland board approved an emergency procurement of more than $1 million on Wednesday to pay for a stockpile of a widely used abortion pill due to uncertainty surrounding legal challenges against the drug’s use. The Board of Public Works approved the funds to pay for 35,000 doses that would last several years, if necessary. The stockpile, acquired in April, includes 30,000 doses of mifepristone and 5,000 doses of misoprostol. The powerful spending panel is comprised of Gov. Wes Moore, Comptroller Brooke Lierman and Treasurer Dereck Davis.Moore, a Democrat, noted before the vote that the drug has been available for decades and has fallen under “a very unique and distinct attack.”The governor said he wanted to be clear “that reproductive freedom is non-negotiable: that my administration will continue to defend and protect women’s reproductive freedom and access to essential health care here in the state of Maryland. Full stop.”Lierman, a Democ...

Saudi-PGA golf deal a stunning turnaround for once-shunned Crown Prince Mohammed

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — After years of isolation over his human rights abuses, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince is elevating his standing in the United States in part by diving into American sports, business and culture. And no example has been as striking as his bold entry into professional golf — the favorite sport of presidents and millions of other Americans.Tuesday’s surprise announcement of a commercial merger between Saudi Arabia’s $650 billion sovereign wealth fund, the PGA Tour and the European tour in the short run looks to end a messy legal battle between Saudi Arabia’s LIV Golf and the PGA.But for the Saudis, it’s much more than a major business deal. It’s the latest and perhaps most dramatic move by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to wield his kingdom’s oil wealth in reshaping his country’s economy and advancing Saudi influence regionally and around the world, while muting critics. Prince Mohammed has assumed much of the duties and leadership of his aged father,...

Conor Daly parts ways with Ed Carpenter Racing

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

Ed Carpenter Racing on Wednesday said it has ended its relationship with driver Conor Daly effective immediately and will announce a new driver for the No. 20 Chevrolet by IndyCar’s next race.Daly has been working with ECR since 2020, but did not run a full season with the team until last year when he brought sponsor BitNile to the team. BitNile has been supportive of Daly and sponsored him in the Daytona 500 this year.“This is the most difficult decision I have made as a team owner because I respect Conor and know what he means to IndyCar and its fans,” Carpenter said of the 31-year-old Indianapolis native.“Our team has not been performing at the level we are capable of this year, and despite making technical changes and investments in the offseason, 2023 has been extremely challenging,” Carpenter continued. “I have put a great deal of consideration into the current state of our team and realize it is my obligation to our employees, partners, and supporters to do whatev...

Missouri governor signs bills that ban gender-affirming care for minors; bars trans girls, women from female sports

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri governor signs bills that ban gender-affirming care for minors; bars trans girls, women from female sports.Source

Mexican president: Soldiers apparently executed five men, will face prosecution

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president described the slayings of five men caught on security camera footage as an apparent “execution” by soldiers, and vowed Wednesday that the perpetrators would face justice.President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is a staunch supporter of the armed forces who has insisted that under his administration they have shed any previous tendency toward human rights abuses. He said Wednesday that the slayings in a northern border city last month were impermissible, and that soldiers involved were being were being turned over for prosecution.Video from a store security camera that was published this week showed a black pickup truck crashing full speed into a wall in Nuevo Laredo. A Mexican military truck apparently pursuing it arrived shortly thereafter and ran into the passenger side of the pickup. The occupants of the truck were dragged out, kicked and forced up against a wall. They were later found dead. “Apparently this was an execution, and that cannot be...

George Winston, million-selling pianist known for his melodic style, dead at age 73

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — George Winston, the Grammy-winning pianist who blended jazz, classical, folk and other stylings on such million-selling albums as “Autumn,” “Winter Into Spring” and “December,” has died at age 73.According to an announcement on his website www.georgewinston.com, confirmed by a spokesman, Winston died Sunday after a 10-year battle with cancer. “Throughout his cancer treatments, George continued to write and record new music, and he stayed true to his greatest passion: performing for live audiences while raising funds for Feeding America to help fight the national hunger crisis along with donating proceeds from each of his concerts to local food banks,” a statement on his website reads.His most recent album, “Night,” came out last year.Winston was a native of Hart, Michigan, who grew up in Montana, Florida and Mississippi and drew upon influences ranging from Fats Waller to the Doors. He released more than a dozen solo piano albums, along with soundtracks for the...

Armed suspect held driver hostage before cops shot and killed him

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 11:51:52 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Three Denver Police officers who shot and killed an armed suspect in Broomfield last year have been cleared of criminal charges, the 17th District Attorney's Office said.Denver detectives James Waidler, Jay Lopez and Cole Connors all fired shots at Anthony Lainez during an armed carjacking and hostage situation on Sept. 29, 2022, the DA's decision letter said. "Given the totality of the circumstances and evidence, the prosecution cannot prove thatthe involved officers were not justified in using deadly physical force," the letter said. Detectives locate homicide suspect in BroomfieldThe Denver Police Department Fugitive Unit detectives were looking for Lainez, who police said was connected to a homicide, and tracked him to a residence in Broomfield.The DA's office said detectives watched Lainez leave the home with a woman and drive off in a white Ford Edge with temporary New Mexico tags. Broomfield Police Department officers, who had been called in for backup and tr...