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Russian private army head claims control of Bakhmut but Ukraine says fighting continues

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The head of the Russian private army Wagner claimed Saturday that his forces have taken control of the city of Bakhmut after the longest and most grinding battle of the Russia-Ukraine war, but Ukrainian defense officials denied it.In a video posted on Telegram, Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin said the city came under complete Russian control at about midday Saturday. He spoke flanked by about half a dozen fighters, with ruined buildings in the background and explosions heard in the distance.However, after the video appeared, Ukrainian deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar said heavy fighting was continuing.“The situation is critical,” she said. “As of now, our defenders, control certain industrial and infrastructure facilities in this area.” Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesman for Ukraine’s eastern command, told The Associated Press that Prigozhin’s claim “is not true. Our units are fighting in Bakhmut.”Fighting has raged around Bakhmut for more than 200 days....

Kane scores again but future at Tottenham uncertain after 3-1 loss to Brentford

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Harry Kane scored a goal and lost the game in perhaps his final home appearance for Tottenham.The England captain, who again has been linked with an offseason move away from Tottenham, curled home after an indirect free kick in the eighth minute only for Bryan Mbeumo to score twice and set up another goal in the second half for Brentford in its 3-1 win in the Premier League on Saturday.Tottenham might now struggle to qualify for any European competition for next season, having come into the game in seventh place — the division’s only qualifying spot for the third-tier Europa Conference League.Brentford stayed in ninth place but is only one point behind Tottenham ahead of the teams’ final games of the season next weekend.Kane’s 28th league goal this season was perhaps his best of the campaign as he picked out the top corner with a 25-meter shot after Dejan Kulusevski rolled the ball backward with the sole of his foot at a free kick. It put Kane eight g...

Rune follows up win over Djokovic by beating Ruud to reach Italian Open final

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

ROME (AP) — Holger Rune followed up his latest victory over Novak Djokovic with another impressive performance, producing a 6-7 (2), 6-4, 6-2 comeback win over fellow Scandinavian Casper Ruud on Saturday to reach the Italian Open final.It’s the third clay-court final this season for Rune, after the 20-year-old Dane won a title in Munich, Germany, and was beaten by Andrey Rublev for the Monte Carlo Masters trophy. In the final, Rune will face either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Daniil Medvedev, who were up next on Campo Centrale.Later, Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina was playing Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine in the women’s final.Rome is the last big tournament before the French Open starts next weekend and both Rune and Ruud are shaping up as contenders.The seventh-ranked Rune was coming off a win over six-time Rome champion Djokovic in the quarterfinals — his second victory against the 22-time Grand Slam champion in little more than six months.The fourth-ranked Ruud, who is from Nor...

Sports on TV for Sunday, May 21

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

(All times Eastern)Schedule subject to change and/or blackoutsSunday, May 21AUTO RACING10 a.m.CBSSN — FIM Motocross: The MX2, Villars-sous-Écot, France11 a.m.CBSSN — FIM Motocross: The MXGP, Villars-sous-Écot, France12:30 p.m.CNBC — NASCAR ARCA Menards Series East: The Dutch Boy 150, Flat Rock Speedway, Carleton, Mich. (Taped)4 p.m.FS1 — NHRA: All-Star Callout, Route 66 Raceway, Elwood, Ill. (Taped)NBC — NTT IndyCar Series: Qualifying – Day 2, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Indianapolis5 p.m.FS1 — NASCAR Cup Series: The NASCAR All-Star Open, North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, N.C.8 p.m.FS1 — NASCAR Cup Series: The NASCAR All-Star Race, North Wilkesboro Speedway, North Wilkesboro, N.C.10 p.m.FS1 — NHRA: The Gerber Collision & Glass NHRA Route 66 Nationals, Route 66 Raceway, Elwood, Ill. (Taped)BASKETBALL AFRICA LEAGUE11 a.m.NBATV — AS Douanes vs. CFV – Beira, Kigali, Rwanda2:30 p.m.NBATV — Petro de Luanda vs. ABC Fighters, Kigali, RwandaBOWLING2 p.m.FOX — PBA:...

Today in Sports – Ken Griffey Jr., 26, is 8th youngest to hit 200 home runs

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

May 211881 — A small group of tennis club members meets at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York City to form the world’s first national governing body for tennis: the United States National Lawn Tennis Association. The new organization is created to standardize tennis rules and regulations and to encourage and develop the sport.1891 — Australian boxer Peter Jackson and future world heavyweight champion Jim Corbett fight a No Contest in 61 rounds at California Athletic Club, San Francisco.1932 — 1st Curtis Cup for Women’s team amateur golf: US wins, 5½-3½ at Wentworth Club (Wentworth, England).1966 — Muhammad Ali TKOs Henry Cooper in 6 for heavyweight boxing title.1966 — Kauai King, the Kentucky Derby winner ridden by Don Brumfield, wins the Preakness Stakes by 1 3/4 lengths over Stupendous.1971 — Chelsea win 11th European Cup Winner’s Cup against Real Madrid 2-1 in Athens (replay).1977 — Heavily favored Seattle Slew, ridden by Jean Cruguet, wins the Preakness Stakes by 1 1/2 lengths o...

Denver's air quality still ranks among the worst in the world Saturday

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Denver and the Front Range continued to suffer from poor air quality and smoky skies from Canadian wildfires Saturday.Denver had the No. 4 worst air quality in the world among major cities as of 9 a.m. Saturday.The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment issued an "action day for particulates" for parts of the Front Range including Denver, Boulder and Fort Collins until at least 4 p.m. This means that either current air quality is unhealthy, or conditions are expected to worsen later in the day into the next. Will poor air quality impact Denver’s Colfax Marathon? The NWS also issued an action day and requested that people avoid driving gas or diesel vehicles, as additional pollution can worsen the air quality further.According to CDPHE, conditions may get better Saturday afternoon, but health impacts could linger due to the exposure to heavy smoke.Areas of the state south of the metro were also under an air quality health advisory until at least 4 p...

World needs to be ‘vigilant’ as AI technology improves and deepfakes spread: UN adviser

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

Toronto, Ontario (CTV Network) — A UN adviser says the world needs to be “vigilant” as artificial intelligence technology improves, allowing for more realistic-looking deepfakes.Deepfakes refer to media, typically video or audio, manipulated with AI to falsely depict a person saying or doing something that never happened in real life.“A digital twin is essentially a replica of something from the real world… Deepfakes are the mirror image of digital twins, meaning that someone had created a digital replica without the permission of that person, and usually for malicious purposes, usually to trick somebody,” California-based AI expert Neil Sahota, who has served as an AI adviser to the United Nations, told CTVNews.ca over the phone on Friday.Deepfakes have been used to produce a wide variety of fake news content, such as one supposedly showing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy telling his country to surrender to Russia. Scammers have also used deepf...

A dozen critically endangered red wolf pups were born at the North Carolina Zoo

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

(CNN) — The North Carolina Zoo has welcomed three litters of red wolf pups, bringing in a dozen new members of the world’s most endangered wolf species.The wolves were born during a three-day period in late April and are part of the zoo’s red wolf breeding program, it said in a news release.“All pups and their mothers are healthy and doing well. This is the first time in the Zoo’s breeding program that three litters were born in one spring,” the zoo said in the release.Next month, the zoo plans to announce a public naming poll for one of the litters.With the addition of the new pups, the zoo’s breeding program now has 36 red wolves, making it the second-largest pack in the United States, after Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, Washington, the news release noted.“These births are important because many of our wolves, once matured, have been moved to other breeding packs to continue to help bring this species back from near extinction. Our hope is that more and more red wolve...

Religious theme park in Orlando demolished

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

Orlando’s controversial religious theme park, The Holy Land Experience, sees its final days as it is torn down.The end of an era was marked once claws tore at the last of the Roman Coliseum, one of the most iconic landmarks of the park. The attraction opened in 2002 and told the story of Jesus through the eyes of Christianity. Though it was revered by many, it was also mocked. The park’s gift shop sold Holy Land fanny packs and, using bean bags, guests could hit the devil with their best shot.YouTuber Vincent Rodriguez lives in Orlando and bought a ticket out of curiosity.“It was a pretty interesting experience,” said Rodriguez. “There was a lot to see and do. I could see why it had been here in Orlando so long.”But eventually, the park was no longer able to make a profit, causing the gates to close several years ago.“You have to be successful 365 days a year,” said theme park expert Abe Pizam, who believes that in the motherland of th...

Rain today, “pick of the weekend” tomorrow

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:11 GMT

7Weather- Welcome to the weekend! Today it’ll be wet, so grab the umbrella. Rain will be heavy at times this afternoon and tonight. Temperatures stay in the 60s. We’ll clear out by tomorrow morning. The weekend ends much better with milder temperatures in the 70s and some sun. We’re watching subtropical moisture moving up the East Coast and a cold front draped across the Ohio Valley. These two will interact and bring us the rain, heavy at times.Let’s time out the rain. Light rain moves in for most of us by midday. The rain will be heavy at times this afternoon. Rain continues through tonight. Downpours are possible. By the time we wake up tomorrow morning, a front will have cleared the region. There will be thicker cloud cover and a lingering shower for the Cape. More clouds in the morning tomorrow, before we get some sun through the day on Sunday.T-Swift fans will be singing in the rain tonight. More mild weather for her final concert tomorrow!Allergy suffer...