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Former Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett dies at 35 in an apparent drowning

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

DESTIN, Fla. (AP) — Former Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett, who also played for New England, Houston and Baltimore during five seasons in the NFL, has died. He was 35.Mallett died in an apparent drowning, according to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. Mallett was a football coach at White Hall High School in his native Arkansas, and the school district also confirmed his death in a post on its website on Tuesday.Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek said the university “lost an incredibly special person.”“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends and teammates of Ryan Mallett,” Yurachek posted on Twitter.Mallett played for the University of Michigan for one season before finishing his college career at Arkansas. He passed for 7,493 yards and 62 touchdowns in two seasons with the Razorbacks.Mallett was selected by New England in the third round of the 2011 NFL draft. He appeared in four games with the Patriots during the 2012 season, completing 1 of 4 passes fo...

Just Stop Oil protestors briefly disrupt Ashes cricket test between England and Australia

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Two protestors from the Just Stop Oil group ran onto the field at Lords and briefly disrupted play about five minutes after the start of the second Ashes cricket test between England and Australia on Wednesday.The environmental activists tried to spread orange powder on the field but the England and Australia players intervened.England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow tackled one protestor and carried the person about 50 meters (yards) before leaving him in the hands of security over the boundary hoardings. England captain Ben Stokes and Australia batter David Warner corralled the other protestor.Some orange powder was released but only on the grass, away from the pitch.Bairstow went to the England changing room to clean himself of some powder, Lord’s staff quickly cleaned up what little orange fell on the grass, and play resumed about five minutes later.Just Stop Oil protestors have disrupted other major sporting events in Britain this year. They held up the England ...

Stock market today: Global shares mixed despite Wall Street rally

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Global shares were mixed on Wednesday despite a rally on Wall Street driven by optimism over reports suggesting the American economy is in better shape than feared. France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.7% in early trading to 7,263.87, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.7% to 15,953.77. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.4% to 7,491.90. The future for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was nearly unchanged while that for the S&P 500 was down 0.2%. Oil prices advanced. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 jumped 2.0% to finish at 33,193.99. A weakening Japanese yen helped lift exporter shares like autos. Toyota Motor Corp. surged 2.8%, while video-game maker Nintendo Co. edged up 2.0%. A cheap yen raises the value of overseas earnings when converted into yen.A dollar bought 144.00 yen, nearly unchanged. The euro slipped to $1.0951 from $1.0963. The recent rise of the dollar against the yen is raising speculation about how that could affect Japanese monetary policy and what it could me...

Iga Swiatek is No. 1 and owns 4 Grand Slam titles at age 22. Can she win Wimbledon, too?

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

Iga Swiatek is coming off her third title in the past four years on the French Open’s red clay.Last September, she won a championship on the U.S. Open’s hard courts for the first time. That’s also the surface used at the Australian Open, where she’s been to the semifinals.And what about on grass courts? Wimbledon, which begins Monday, has been her least successful Grand Slam tournament so far. Swiatek is just 5-3 at the All England Club — compare that to her 28-2 mark at Roland Garros, for example — and those three losses came in the first round, third round and fourth round.Swiatek, who has been ranked No. 1 since April 2022, offered a bit of insight on how she views her game on grass when she was asked in Paris this month about whether reaching the latter stages of a major is still a big deal to her.“Well, it depends, because … if I would (make) a quarterfinal of Wimbledon, I would be, like, over the moon,” Swiatek replied, “and I wouldn’t believe that I’m in that place.”So ...

National Women’s Soccer League experiencing youth movement as teenagers take the field

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

When Olivia Moultrie was just 13, her family moved from California to Oregon so she could train with the Portland Thorns. The National Women’s Soccer League had a rule at the time that all players had to be at least 18, so Moultrie could only practice with the team. On game days, she watched the Thorns from afar. She wasn’t happy with the situation and did something about it, successfully suing two years ago for the right to play and paving the way for a youth movement in the NWSL that will likely grow as talented players see a path toward a professional career that doesn’t include playing in college. “When I was fighting for the ability to play, I was just thinking, ‘This isn’t right. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough. Women should have the exact same opportunities as men should have,’” Moultrie said.The league is now welcoming others who followed the 17-year-old’s lead after adopting new rules for players under 18 to join the league last year.A...

2 killed in wrong way crash on I-55

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

WILMINGTON, Ill. --  Two people were killed and several others injured in a crash on I-55 in Wilmington late Tuesday.Officials say four vehicles, including two semi-trucks, were involved in a wrong way crash around 9:50 p.m.Police said a wrong way driver struck another vehicle head on.Two people were pronounced dead at the scene. Four others were taken to the hospital, one in critical condition, three others are in serious condition.Southbound lanes were closed at Lorenzo Road for several hours. Lanes reopened around 5 a.m.Police are investigating.

Air quality issues continue in Chicago area

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

CHICAGO —  For the second day in a row, wildfire smoke from Canada is bringing air quality levels to unhealthy levels in Chicago and much of the Midwest.An Air Quality Alert has been issued for the Chicago area and Northwest Indiana though Wednesday night. Counties include Cook, DuPage, Will, Grundy, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, La Salle, Lake and McHenry in Illinois.People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should avoid strenuous outdoor activities, keep outdoor activities short. Others should choose less strenuous activities limit active time outdoors. Here’s how you can check the air quality in Illinois The thick haze shrouding Chicago cut Tuesday morning visibilities to 2 to 3 miles.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog The Illinois EPA is reporting air quality in Chicago at unhealthful levels, levels first reached in Chicago at 4 p.m. Monday and which have continued through the night and morning.Latest warnings and watches from t...

Showers possible Wednesday

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

Smoke and haze with a mix of clouds and sun for Wednesday as air quality continues to be an issue. Warm with a chance of an isolated shower or t-storm.  Interactive Radar: Track showers and storm here Wednesday night will see partly cloudy and warmer. Scattered t-storms possible impacting as much as 40 to 50% of the area.

Rediscovered photos by Paul McCartney show Beatlemania from the inside

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Is there really a new way to look at The Beatles, one of the most filmed and photographed bands in history?Yes, says Britain’s National Portrait Gallery, which is providing a fresh perspective with an exhibition of band’s-eye-view images that Paul McCartney captured as the group shot to global fame.A visitor looks at pictures during a preview of Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64: Eyes of the Storm exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London, Britain, Tuesday, June 27, 2023. The exhibition consists of unseen photographs taken by Paul McCartney from the Beatles at the height of Beatlemania. The gallery will open it's doors from June 28, 2023 until October 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)A visitor looks at pictures during a preview of Paul McCartney Photographs 1963-64: Eyes of the Storm exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London, Britain, Tuesday, June 27, 2023. The exhibition consists of unseen photographs taken by Paul McCartney from the Beatles...

Cheney on the problem with American politics: 'We're electing idiots'

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:39:30 GMT

(The Hill) - Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) suggested Monday that the problem with American politics is that “we’re electing idiots.”“Look, I think that the country right now faces hugely challenging and fundamentally important issues,” Cheney said at an event with the cultural and community center, 92nd Street Y, New York. “What we’ve done in our politics is create a situation where we’re electing idiots.”Cheney, who is a staunch opponent of former President Trump, offered the reflection in response to a question about whether she would run for president if polling showed that it would hurt Trump’s third White House run. “I don’t look at it through the lens of, you know, is this what I should do or what I shouldn’t do,” the former congresswoman said. “I look at it through the lens of, how do we elect serious people? And I think electing serious people can’t be partisan.”“Because of the situation that we’re in, where we have a major-party candidate who’s trying to unravel our ...