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German qualifier Niemeier ousts defending champion Ons Jabeur in 1st round of Berlin Open

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — German qualifier Jule Niemeier upset defending champion Ons Jabeur 7-6 (4), 6-4 in the first round of the Berlin Open on Tuesday.The 120th-ranked Niemeier saved two set points at 5-3 down in the opening set, then won the last four points of the tiebreaker. Niemeier broke Jabeur in the first game of the second set and held on to her lead to win in 1 hour, 35 minutes for the 23-year-old’s third victory against a top-10 player.Coco Gauff defeated Czech player Katerina Siniakov 6-3, 6-4 for the American teenager’s 23rd win of the year.The fourth-seeded Gauff next faces big-hitter Ekaterina Alexandrova, who defeated fellow Russian Liudmila Samsonova 6-4, 6-3.Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka eased into the second round with a 6-3, 6-2 win over veteran Vera Zvonareva in another all-Russian match.Sabalenka converted three of her nine break points without facing any from the 38-year-old Zvonareva, a Wimbledon finalist in 2010.Sabalenka next faces Veronika Kudermetova or Zheng Q...

Sergio Garcia wonders if playing for LIV Golf will affect his Hall of Fame chances

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The next ballot for the World Golf Hall of Fame will include three players born in 1980, all major champions with remarkably similar records in global golf. One of them is Sergio Garcia, who suspects he will be looked upon differently from Adam Scott and Justin Rose.Garcia was asked who among those three would be considered the leading candidate to be elected for the 2026 class of inductees.“I went to LIV, so I’m probably a little behind,” Garcia said with a laugh. “Even though things are settling down.”He thought for a few minutes about the trio and settled on Scott before adding, “If I didn’t go to LIV and everything that happened, probably me.”That’s hard to dispute, and a case could be made for each.Garcia has 31 wins around the world, including the 2017 Masters in a playoff over Rose and The Players Championship. He also holds the Ryder Cup record for most points at 28.5, going 3-1 in the last Ryder Cup — his final Ryder Cup — at Whistling S...

Iran says 10 dead after consuming tainted booze at party

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Ten people died after drinking home-made liquor made with methanol at a party, Iranian state media reported Tuesday, as the number of such deaths increases in the Islamic Republic.Dozens of people were reportedly hospitalized last week after drinking the tainted booze at a party in Alborz province, some 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of the capital Tehran, the IRNA news agency reported.Besides the fatalities, more than 140 partygoers were sickened, including four who were in critical condition, officials said.Since 1979, when Iran banned the production and consumption of alcoholic beverages, methanol is often added to home-made brews as a cheaper alternative to ethanol, the alcohol that can be consumed. Drinking alcohol is punishable by a cash fine and lashes.Iran’s 40 alcohol factories converted production to pharmaceutical needs and sanitizers. Abbas Masjedi, the head of the country’s forensic medicine agency, said 644 people died from drinking tainted booze in ...

Cummins smashes 44 to lead Australia to 2-wicket win over England in Ashes classic at Edgbaston

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Australia won a thrilling Ashes opener by two wickets at Edgbaston on Tuesday as captain Pat Cummins’ six-smashing 44 not out and Usman Khawaja’s patient 65 combined to give England’s “Bazball” cricket revolution a lesson from Down Under.Cummins hit two sixes and four fours, and he shared a match-winning ninth-wicket partnership of 55 with Nathan Lyon (16 not out) in the last hour of the final day. Chasing 281 to win, Cummins hit the winning boundary against Ollie Robinson and Australia finished on 282-8 to disappoint a raucous crowd that sensed another memorable victory at the Birmingham ground after a two-run win in the second Ashes test in 2005.Khawaja, who hit his first test century in England in the first innings, faced 197 deliveries as he anchored most of Australia’s successful run chase before being dismissed by England captain Ben Stokes.___More AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsSource

Young plaintiffs’ attorney closes Montana climate change trial with call for action

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — An attorney for 16 young plaintiffs urged a judge Tuesday to strike down as unconstitutional a Montana law that prohibits state agencies from considering the environmental effects when it weighs permits allowing the release of greenhouse gases.Attorney Nate Bellinger made the plea in his closing argument at the end of a seven-day trial. Plaintiffs say state officials violated their right to a clean and healthful environment, part of the Montana Constitution, by allowing companies to build power plants and expand coal mines, among other things.“Like other monumental constitutional cases before, the state of Montana comes before this court because of a pervasive systemic infringement of rights,” Bellinger said. During the trial, plaintiffs testified about how increased heat, smoke from wildfires and drought affect their activities and mental health. Native Americans said climate change affects their ceremonies and traditional food sources, and climate experts warn...

YNW Melly double murder trial continues after judge denies mistrial

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The second week of the double murder trial of rapper YNW Melly began Tuesday with the judge denying a motion from the defense for a mistrial.Defense attorneys had asked Broward Circuit Judge John Murphy for a mistrial last week, arguing the jury had been tainted following testimony that could not be verified from the mother of YNW Melly’s ex-girlfriend, the Sun Sentinel reported. The judge told defense attorneys jurors could be instructed to ignore statements that were ruled inadmissible.YNW Melly, whose legal name is Jamell Demons, is facing a possible death sentence for the October 2018 fatal shooting of his childhood friends, Anthony Williams and Christopher Thomas Jr.Williams and Thomas were both part of the YNW collective, known respectively as YNW Sakchaser and YNW Juvy.Demons, Williams and Thomas were riding in a Jeep driven by Cortland Henry, known as YNW Bortlen, after a recording session in Fort Lauderdale when Demons, 26, fatal...

Juvenile killed, adult male seriously injured after early morning crash in Manchester-by-the-Sea

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

A single-car crash on Route 128 in Manchester-by-the-Sea left a juvenile male dead and a 26-year-old man needing to be flown from the scene due to his injuries, according to officials.Massachusetts State Police said its troopers, local police and firefighters were first called to the crash on Route 128 north at mile marker 51 around 7:20 a.m. on Tuesday, June 20.According to an MSP spokesperson, one occupant of the vehicle, a juvenile male, was found to be dead at the scene while another occupant, a 26-year-old man from Florida, was left with life-threatening injuries.The roadway was closed down in both directions for part of the morning so a medical helicopter could fly in and transport the 26 year old to a hospital in Boston for treatment.The spokesperson said officials are still working to identify the juvenile victim and to determine who was driving the vehicle at the time of the crash.“[A] preliminary investigation suggests the 2009 Honda Civic, for reasons still under in...

Rivian joins Ford and GM in turning to Tesla chargers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

(CNN) — Rivian, the electric truck and SUV company backed by Amazon, announced on Tuesday that it will join Ford and General Motors in adopting Tesla’s so-called North American Charging Standard (NACS).Rivian said it will start building its R1T pickup and R1S SUV with NACS-style charging ports starting in 2025. Its upcoming smaller models will also have the Tesla-style charging ports.By spring, 2024, Rivian owners will be able to use adapters to access Tesla’s, Supercharger network, with its roughly 12,000 fast charging stations throughout the US and Canada. While Rivian isn’t nearly as large of an automaker as GM or Ford, it’s reasonably popular among EV buyers, so the move marks a significant step for broader acceptance of the Tesla standard.Tesla’s charging system had been proprietary and only usable by Teslas, although Teslas could use industry standard Combined Charging System (CCS) chargers with an adapter. But CEO Elon Musk announced in late 2022 that he was inviting oth...

Sylvester Stallone says Adele made keeping Rocky statue a deal breaker in buying his house

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

(CNN) — Sylvester Stallone left a piece of himself behind for Adele.In a recently published interview with the Wall Street Journal, Stallone confirmed that the “Hello” singer kept a statue of the actor as Rocky that overlooks the pool when she purchased his Los Angeles mansion.When asked if he had wanted to take the statue of the character with him, Stallone said, “I did.”“But she said ‘That’s a no deal. That’s gonna blow the whole deal,’” he told the publication. “She wanted the statue.”Adele is reportedly doing a complete renovation of the home.“I like what she’s doing, she’s making it gorgeous,” Stallone said.CNN has reached out to a representative for Adele for comment.

Adam Montgomery killed his 5-year-old daughter Harmony by hitting her in the head, stored the girl’s dead body at work: Arrest warrant

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:51:45 GMT

Adam Montgomery allegedly killed his 5-year-old daughter Harmony by striking her in the head because the girl was having bathroom accidents in the car they were living in, his wife told New Hampshire police.Harmony’s dead body was then moved around in coolers and bags for months, including to a restaurant freezer at Adam’s workplace in Manchester, according to the arrest warrant that was unsealed on Tuesday.Adam’s wife Kayla revealed the grisly details to Manchester Police during an interview last fall. After the family was evicted from their residence on the day before Thanksgiving in 2019, they lived out of their vehicle — a Chrysler Sebring that they’d park outside a Manchester apartment building.Then on Dec. 7, 2019, Adam struck Harmony while in the car, killing the girl, Kayla told police.“Kayla stated that while living in the vehicle together, Adam was extremely upset that five-year-old Harmony was not saying when she needed to go to the bat...