Month: August 2022

Categories
Sports

Daniel Ricciardo deserves better than a push or a paid year on the sidelines : PlanetF1

Daniel Ricciardo deserves better than a push or a paid year on the sidelines : PlanetF1

Being paid $15 million to sit around for a year may seem like a dream job for most of us, but Daniel Ricciardo deserves better from McLaren.

If, and right now it is speculation based on a lot of hearsay and unnamed sources, Oscar Piastri has signed a letter of intent to race for McLaren next season, the Woking team has one too many drivers.

Ricciardo being the too many.

If McLaren today have a choice between keeping him or keeping Lando Norris it is a no-brainer given that, while the Aussie has the team’s only win since 2012, Norris has been the much more consistent driver.

One cannot argue against that. It is a simple fact as the numbers do not lie.

But pushing the 33-year-old out when he has just one year left on his contract, one year that could be his last in Formula 1 as it stands, is poor form from McLaren who themselves haven’t given him, or Norris, a race-winning car.

Ricciardo, though, has made it clear he wants to see out his contract, the eight-time grand prix winner convinced there is life in the old Honey Badger, he just needs to get his claws into that MCL36.

According to reports he does hold all the cards, the only person who has to say whether or not he is with the team in 2023. And he has until September to inform McLaren of his plans.

He’s already done that, at least in the statement he put out three weeks ago, making it clear that he wants to continue with McLaren, not sit on the sidelines.

Read more: F1 2022 driver rankings 11-20: Sebastian Vettel, Daniel Ricciardo and more

But even if Ricciardo takes up that option, insisting on staying with McLaren, that doesn’t necessarily mean he will be racing as the team could do what Ferrari once did with Kimi Raikkonen and pay him to sit on the sidelines.

Effectively his options are a push, the sidelines, or racing for a team that he knows doesn’t want him there.

It does, as many have pointed out, reflect badly on Zak Brown and McLaren as a whole if this is how they treat their drivers.

The company, already involved in one contract saga over IndyCar with Alex Palou and Chip Ganassi, are courting yet another in the space of just a few weeks.

McLaren not only need Alpine to back down on their claims that Piastri belongs to them, but they also need Ricciardo to willingly fall on his sword either by quitting the team to retire or join another, or take the money and sit on Vettel’s couch to watch the Formula 1.

Some may argue that $15 million and not racing in Formula 1 beats a pay cut and joining Alpine as, given the past few days’ happenings, it seems something is very wrong over in Enstone.

Read more: Embarrassing for Alpine but has Oscar Piastri started a game he may not win?

Losing the in-form Alonso because they wanted him to be a seat-filler for Piastri doesn’t say much about the team’s management but losing two drivers in one week says a lot, and what it says is not great, about the higher ups .

Alpine have opened the door to Ricciardo returning to the team that he quit after just two seasons, but given that he actually quit after just one as he signed with McLaren after his first year with Renault, it seems inconceivable that he would want back in.

What he wants, and has made abundantly clear, is to remain a McLaren Formula 1 driver. “I know what I’ve got. I know my future. I know my contract.”

And then he threw it back to McLaren…

“Give me a winning car and I’ll win. That’s the challenge for myself and McLaren. That is the confidence I have in myself. That’s why I wake up and still want to do this.”

.

Categories
US

Russian prosecutors seek 9 1/2-year sentence for Griner

Russian prosecutors seek 9 1/2-year sentence for Griner

KHIMKI, Russia (AP) — Prosecutors asked a Russian court Thursday to convict American basketball star Brittney Griner and sentence her to 9 1/2 years in prison at closing arguments in her drug possession trial.

The trial neared its end nearly six months after Griner’s arrest at a Moscow airport in a case that has reached the highest levels of US-Russia diplomacy, with Washington proposing a prisoner exchange. Under Russian law, the 31-year-old Griner faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted.

Although a conviction is all but certain, given that Russian courts rarely acquit defendants and Griner have admitted to having vape cartridges with cannabis oil in her luggage, judges have considerable latitude on sentencing.

Lawyers for the Phoenix Mercury center and two-time Olympic gold medalist have pursued strategies to bolster Griner’s contention that she had no criminal intent and that the canisters ended up in her luggage due to hasty packing. They have presented character witnesses from the Russian team that she plays for in the WNBA offseason and written testimony from a doctor who said he prescribed her cannabis for pain treatment.

Griner lawyer Maria Blagovolina argued that Griner brought the cartridges with her to Russia inadvertently and only used cannabis to treat her pain from injuries sustained in her career. She said she used it only in Arizona, where medical marijuana is legal.

She emphasized that Griner was packing in haste after a grueling flight and suffering from the consequences of COVID-19. Blagovolina also pointed out that the analysis of cannabis found in Griner’s possession was flawed and violated legal procedures.

Blagovolina asked the court to acquit Griner, noting that she had no past criminal record and hailing her role in “the development of Russian basketball.”

Another defense attorney, Alexander Boykov, also emphasized Griner’s role in taking her Yekaterinburg team to win multiple championships, noting that she was loved and admired by her teammates.

He told the judge that a conviction would undermine Russia’s efforts to develop national sports and make Moscow’s call to depoliticize sports sound shallow.

Boykov added that even after her arrest, Griner won the sympathy of both her guards and prison inmates, who supported her by shouting, “Brittney, everything will be OK!” when she went on walks at the jail.

Prosecutor Nikolai Vlasenko insisted that Griner packed the cannabis oil deliberately, and he asked the court to hand Briner a fine of 1 million rubles (about $16,700) in addition to the prison sentence.

It’s not clear when the verdict will be announced. If she does not go free, attention will turn to the high-stakes possibility of a prisoner swap.

Before her trial began in July, the State Department designated her as “wrongfully detained,” moving her case under the supervision of its special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, effectively the government’s chief hostage negotiator.

Then last week, in an extraordinary moveUS Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, urging him to accept a deal under which Griner and Paul Whelan, an American imprisoned in Russia on an espionage conviction, would go free.

The Lavrov-Blinken call marked the highest-level known contact between Washington and Moscow since Russia sent troops into Ukraine more than five months ago. The direct outreach over Griner is at odds with US efforts to isolate the Kremlin.

People familiar with the proposal say it envisions trading Griner and Whelan for the notorious arms trader Viktor Bout, who is serving a prison sentence in the United States. It underlines the public pressure that the White House has faced to get Griner released.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday that Russia has made a “bad faith” response to the US government’s offer, a counteroffer that American officials don’t regard as serious. She declined to elaborate.

Russian officials have scoffed at US statements about the case, saying they show a disrespect for Russian law. They remained poker-faced, urging Washington to discuss the issue through “quiet diplomacy without releases of speculative information.”

.

Categories
Technology

PlayStation’s new VR headset focuses on streaming and safety

PlayStation's new VR headset focuses on streaming and safety

Various new features will make virtual reality safer and easier to share with your friends, according to an early glimpse at the PlayStation VR2 user experience.

A recent blog post shared by Sony revealed what we can expect when going hands-on with the upcoming next-gen VR headset, including several screenshots of the device in action. Safety appears to be a core focus, with the new see-through view letting you check your surroundings without removing the headset. Here, the embedded front cameras on the PlayStation VR2 kick in to produce a grayscale image of the play area. By pressing the headset’s function button or accessing the Control Center, you can swap between viewing the game, and viewing your surroundings.

PlayStation VR2 see-through mode
The PlayStation VR2 see-through feature looks like something from a found-footage horror film

An extension of the PlayStation VR2 see-through view is a feature other VR units have had for a while: the ability to customize your play area. With the embedded cameras and PS VR2 Sense controllers, you can scan your room to set precise play boundaries. During gameplay, the system will warn you when approaching boundaries, which is helpful for avoiding damage or causing harm to yourself and others. The original PlayStation VR was limited in this regard, so it’s good to see this has been addressed with the PS VR2.

Streamer centric

PlayStation VR2 content creators and streamers will no doubt enjoy the added ability to natively broadcast footage from a PS5 camera, too. This feature lets creators stream both the gameplay and their reactions simultaneously to platforms like Twitch. With prior hardware, this required an external workaround. It sounds like the PS VR2 will make sharing your VR gaming sessions easier than ever.

Sony also reiterated some of the PlayStation VR2’s technical aspects. For example, games in VR Mode provide a 360-degree virtual environment to play in, where content is displayed in a 4000 x 2040 resolution – 2000 x 2040 pixels per eye – in HDR at either 90Hz or 120Hz. Alternatively, Cinematic Mode lets you view non-VR content on a virtual cinema screen. Here, you can enjoy non-VR media at 1920 x 1080 with the option of 24Hz, 60Hz or 120Hz refresh rates.

PlayStation VR2 Control Center
A glimpse at the in-game PlayStation VR2 Control Center

As for when you can expect the PlayStation VR2 to launch? Sony hasn’t confirmed a release date yet, although there are plenty of whispers indicating a late-2022 or early-2023 launch window.

Everything Sony has revealed about the PlayStation VR2 looks promising. Safety features that bring it up to speed with competitors, and more content creation potential are good ideas indeed. Now all that’s left is to confirm its availability and the all-important price tag.

Read more gaming news on GadgetGuy

Categories
Entertainment

Batgirl directors respond to surprise axing of film: ‘We still can’t believe it’ | Warner Bros

Directing duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah have responded to the cancellation of their Batgirl film, writing that they are “saddened and shocked” by the news.

The Belgian film-makers, best known for 2020’s Bad Boys for Life and episodes of Ms Marvel, shared a statement on Instagram after Tuesday’s news that Warner Bros Discovery would not be releasing the DC Comics adventure that was nearing the end of post-production.

“We are saddened and shocked by the news,” the duo wrote. “We still can’t believe it. As directors, it is critical that our work be shown to audiences, and while the film was far from finished, we wish that fans all over the world would have had the opportunity to see and embrace the final film themselves. Maybe one day they will Insha’Allah.”

The pair went on to pay tribute to an “amazing cast and crew” who “did a tremendous job and worked so hard to bring Batgirl to life.” The film features the In the Heights star Leslie Grace as Batgirl with Brendan Fraser, JK Simmons, Rebecca Front and Michael Keaton returning as Batman.

“In any case, as huge fans of Batman since we were little kids, it was a privilege and an honor to have been a part of the DCEU, even if it was for a brief moment,” the finished statement. “Batgirl For Life.”

Leslie Grace as Batgirl
Leslie Grace as Batgirl. Photograph: DC Films

The $90m-budget film, which was intended to premiere on US streaming service HBO Max, had finished shooting and was being test screened. But it was revealed that Warner Bros Discovery would not be releasing it on any platform.

Despite rumors that the decision was based on the quality of the film, Variety has claimed that sources put the decision down to a tax incentive, “seen internally as the most financially sound way to recover the costs”.

The news comes after WarnerMedia officially merged with Discovery in April and CEO David Zaslav took the reins. It’s reported that Discovery took on about $43bn of debt during the merger. Zaslav vowed to cut approximately $3bn in costs which saw the proposed DC movie Wonder Twins canceled in May.

This week also saw the animated sequel Scoob! Holiday Haunt shelved. Co-writer Paul Dini tweeted: “Why cancel a 95% finished holiday movie this close to Fall, when you’re guaranteed kids watching it from right after Halloween until at least New Years? Makes no business sense.”

“The decision to not release Batgirl reflects our leadership’s strategic shift as it relates to the DC universe and HBO Max,” an official statement read. “Leslie Grace is an incredibly talented actor and this decision is not a reflection of her performance. We are incredibly grateful to the film-makers of Batgirl and Scoob! Holiday Haunt and their respective casts and we hope to collaborate with everyone again in the near future.”

Today saw reports that six HBO Max originals had been removed from the service and offered as paid rentals elsewhere, including the Melissa McCarthy comedy Superintelligence, Robert Zemickis’s remake of The Witches and Anne Hathaway caper Locked Down. August also sees the entire Harry Potter franchise leave the service and head to NBC’s Peacock.

This Thursday sees Warner Bros Discovery report its second-quarter results. Unlike Netflix, HBO Max started the year well with first-quarter results showing 12.8 million global subscriber year-over-year, up 3m from the prior quarter.

Last month, Zaslav spoke to Variety and re-stated his desire to combine HBO Max and Discovery+ into one streaming platform. “We’ll talk about how we’re going to do it, and when, soon,” he said.

Categories
Sports

AFL boss Gillon McLachlan apologises over Adelaide Crows camp ‘disgrace’

AFL boss Gillon McLachlan apologises over Adelaide Crows camp 'disgrace'

“Clearly we are sorry to Eddie and anyone who is suffering from that camp,” McLachlan said on Channel Seven.

“We’ve seen today how much it hurt Eddie and frankly some of the stuff that went on was a disgrace and we are hearing him and hear his pain and are sorry.”

Eddie Betts was traumatized by the club's 2018 pre-season camp.

Eddie Betts was traumatized by the club’s 2018 pre-season camp.Credit:Getty Images

The AFL said on Wednesday it would not re-open the investigation into the camp and had not shifted that position late on Thursday, saying it had made changes that improved governance and oversight of such camps.

Sloane admitted on Adelaide radio station 5AA he was in the same group as Betts when personal information the former forward had disclosed to the camp’s counselors about his upbringing was yelled at him in front of those present. The incident where Betts was told he would be a “shit father” because he had been raised only by his mother was detailed in his book about him, The Boy from Boomerang Crescent.

However Sloane, who was not a skipper when the camp was held, said he did not hear what was being said at the time.

“I was in that group. There was so much going on over the course of that. There was about 10 or 12 of us. There’s so much going on during that time that I suppose I didn’t pick up on it until Eddie mentioned it to us after. It is sad to think that that’s what they used it for and it’s not OK,” Sloane told 5AA.

He said he went through a similar process as Betts on the camp, but the personal information used about him related to his football and nothing was said about his family.

“I won’t share the full details… mine was more around my footy. I’m not gonna dive right into it because it’s just stuff about my footy…Mine was not related to my family,” Sloane said.

He said the club and its leaders had numerous conversations in an attempt to overcome the fallout from the camp, but they could not find a way to resolve the issues.

“It was a really hard thing to manage because some guys found the camp boring. Some guys had a really horrible experience on the camp. Some guys enjoyed their experience on the camp. So that’s what made this so hard to manage. We had so many conversations about how could we try and how do we come out of this camp with a stronger group?” Sloane said.

loading

“And that was probably the other reason why there wasn’t a lot of things shared really in the end because there was so much vulnerability shared throughout different parts on the camp. We certainly sought out some apologies from the camp directors at the time. You look back at it now and you put your ‘captain hindsight’ hat on and of course when you hear the stories like Eddie’s you would have loved to done some things better.”

Sloane also stood by his comments post-camp in which he said he had come back a better husband, father and son because of the camp, relaying a task in which he sat in an “honouring chair” while teammates told him why they loved him . He said he took that experience back to his own family, telling his mum and dad why he loved them.

Categories
US

Ron DeSantis spokesperson teases major announcement

Ron DeSantis spokesperson teases major announcement

The office of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is set to make a “major” announcement Thursday morning, a spokesperson said.

Taking to Twitter Wednesday night, DeSantis’ press secretary Christina Pushaw teased the impact of the announcement and said it will cause the “liberal media meltdown of the year.”

“MAJOR announcement tomorrow morning from @GovRonDeSantis. Prepare for the liberal media meltdown of the year,” Pushaw wrote. “Everyone gets some rest tonight.”

Some people immediately began speculating if the announcement concerns the 2024 presidential election, as the Florida governor is well-liked among Republican voters.

DeSantis consistently tops polls of potential 2024 Republican candidates, usually just behind former President Donald Trump.

After a user mentioned DeSantis’ lead in internal polling, Pushaw responded that the announcement would be an official one, not about his campaign.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will make an announcement Thursday morning, according to his spokesperson.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will make an announcement Thursday morning, according to his spokesperson.
AP

In another tweet, Pushaw confirmed DeSantis is seeking re-election in Florida. A potential 2024 announcement would be particularly early and it would require DeSantis to be accountable to the Federal Elections Commission between now and Election Day.

Another user asked if DeSantis would be traveling to Taiwan, in light of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s recent visit to the region.

“He’s focused on Florida as always!” Pushaw responded.

DeSantis consistently tops polls of potential 2024 Republican candidates, only having to place behind Trump.
DeSantis consistently tops polls of potential 2024 Republican candidates, only having to place behind Trump.
Getty Images

Several other users who commented speculated that the decision could have to do with him officially joining Trump’s 2024 ticket as vice president, banning masks in Florida, a lawsuit against President Joe Biden or even succession from the US.

Many users expressed interest in finding out whatever the announcement will ultimately be.

DeSantis’ popularity among Republican voters across the country has surged over the past two and a half years, as he relentlessly pushed back against COVID-19 restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic – as well as his open defiance of culture wars.

.

Categories
Technology

Oppo’s A77 5G smartphone has style and a long-life battery but not the huge price tag

Oppo's A77 5G smartphone has style and a long-life battery but not the huge price tag

Oppo has released the Oppo A77 5G smartphone that offers a stylish design, an impressive camera system and a long-life battery and a price tag under $500.

It will be available in two versions – 4GB RAM with 64GB storage ($449) and 6GB RAM and 128GB storage ($499).

The device has a 6.56-inch 90Hz screen with a resolution of 1612 x 720 and up to 600 nits of brightness.

It has a sleek design with straight edges and a thickness of just 7.9mm.

And despite its narrow design, the Oppo A77 5G is also durable after undergoing more than 130 reliability tests and more than 320 quality tests to make sure the device can handle the real-life day-to-day wear and tear.

Part of this testing was dropping the smartphone 28,000 times from a height of 10cm on all sides and 32 drops from 1m.

The device has an IPX4 rating to make it water resistant and safe to use it in all weather conditions.

The Oppo A77 5G as a 48-megapixel dual camera that is smart enough to make your portrait shots even better using a proprietary algorithmic process with eight areas of customization and 100 levels of intensity for each which can smooth out your skin and soften fine lines so you’ll always be looking your best.

Also onboard is AI Scene Enhancement which can automatically recognize various scenes like a sunset, a blue sky or a grassy field and optimize the image to give you the best result.

The Oppo A77 5G is powered by the next generation MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC (system on a chip) which has eight cores made up of six efficiency 2.0 Ghz Cortex-A55 cores and two 2.4Ghz Cortex-A76 performance cores along with a Mali-G57 MC2 graphics chipset.

The other strength of the device is its battery life and the A77 5G has 33W SuperVOOC charging technology along with a 5000mAh battery which can be fully charged in just 68 minutes.

And a quick five-minute charge is enough to offer one and half hours of YouTube video streaming.

The Oppo A77 5G with 4GB RAM + 64GB storage is priced at $449 and can be purchased from Oppo’s Australian online store an Officeworks.

The Oppo A77 5G with 6GB RAM + 128GB storage is priced at $499 and is available from JB Hi-Fi, Big W, Australia Post, The Good Guys, Bing Lee, Harvey Norman and Woolworths.

Categories
Entertainment

Kyle Sandilands kisses fiancée Tegan Kynaston’s heavily pregnant belly on bended knee

Kyle Sandilands was every inch the doting father-to-be as he kissed fiancée Tegan Kynaston's heavily pregnant belly on bent knee in a stunning portrait on Thursday. Both pictured

Kyle Sandilands is every inch the doting father-to-be as he kisses fiancée Tegan Kynaston’s heavily pregnant belly on bent knee in a stunning portrait

By Kinta Walsh-cotton For Daily Mail Australia

Published: | Updated:

Kyle Sandilands has revealed his softer side in a stunning photoshoot with his heavily pregnant fiancée, Tegan Kynaston.

In the timeless black and white image, the radio titan is seen on bent knee tenderly kissing the communications director’s flourishing baby bump.

Tegan, 36, dons a form-fitting, long-sleeved black dress with a daring split for the occasion as she looks down at Kyle’s face and delicately cradles it between her hands.

Kyle Sandilands was every inch the doting father-to-be as he kissed fiancée Tegan Kynaston's heavily pregnant belly on bent knee in a stunning portrait on Thursday. Both pictured

Kyle Sandilands was every inch the doting father-to-be as he kissed fiancée Tegan Kynaston’s heavily pregnant belly on bent knee in a stunning portrait on Thursday. Both pictured

She wore her luscious blonde locks in glorious waves, and accessorized her look with a chunky necklace and her dazzling engagement ring.

Meanwhile, Kyle, 51, was every inch the dapper gentleman in an always-fashionable black suit with his freshly cut hair brushed back off his famous visage.

‘Not long until we get to meet you,’ Tegan captioned the photo shared to Instagram.

Kyle and Tegan announced their baby news live on The Kyle and Jackie O Show in February.

In the stunning black and white image, the radio titan is seen on bent knee tenderly kissing the communications director's flourishing baby bump. Tegan, 36, dons a form-fitting, long-sleeved black dress with a daring split for the occasion as she looks down at Kyle's face de ella and delicately cradles it between her hands

In the stunning black and white image, the radio titan is seen on bent knee tenderly kissing the communications director’s flourishing baby bump. Tegan, 36, dons a form-fitting, long-sleeved black dress with a daring split for the occasion as she looks down at Kyle’s face de ella and delicately cradles it between her hands

‘We’re having a baby!’ Kyle declared on air, as the entire KIIS FM studio cheered.

He then joked he planned to hire a ‘dozen Fijian nannies’ once the baby was born.

Tegan, who is almost nine months pregnant, also revealed her fiancé had been busy preparing for their child’s arrival, even helping to pick out cribs.

The pair pulled out all the stops at their baby’s gender-reveal party on Sydney Harbour.

The lovebirds announced their baby news live on The Kyle and Jackie O Show back in February. 'We're having a baby!' Kyle declared on air, as the entire KIIS FM studio cheered

The lovebirds announced their baby news live on The Kyle and Jackie O Show back in February. ‘We’re having a baby!’ Kyle declared on air, as the entire KIIS FM studio cheered

They hired a superyacht for the occasion and arranged for planes flying overhead to release blue smoke indicating they’re having a baby boy.

They invited the whole KIIS FM production crew to celebrate, and other guests included Kyle’s longtime co-host Jackie ‘O’ Henderson, and his good friend John Ibrahim, who was joined by his model partner Sarah Budge.

The couple, who have been dating since 2019 and got engaged at Port Douglas, Queensland over the Christmas holidays, began trying for a baby last year.

Kyle was previously in a relationship with model Imogen Anthony for eight years until their split in 2019.

The pair pulled out all the stops at their baby's gender-reveal party on Sydney Harbor in February. They hired a superyacht for the occasion and arranged for planes flying overhead to release blue smoke indicating they're having a baby boy

The pair pulled out all the stops at their baby’s gender-reveal party on Sydney Harbor in February. They hired a superyacht for the occasion and arranged for planes flying overhead to release blue smoke indicating they’re having a baby boy

advertisement

.

Categories
Sports

Commonwealth Games 2022: Jamaica beat Australia Diamonds in ‘extraordinary’ netball upset, score, result

Commonwealth Games 2022: Jamaica beat Australia Diamonds in 'extraordinary' netball upset, score, result

Jamaica has defeated Australia for the first time in Commonwealth Games netball history, springing a shock 57-55 upset to shake up the race for gold.

Both nations went into the hotly anticipated clash undefeated and faced their first proper test to decide the winner of Group A.

There was nothing in it in the first half as the Diamonds and the Sunshine Girls went goal for goal, and Australia took a 30-29 lead into halftime.

Australia dominated the third quarter and took a six-point lead into three quarter time, largely thanks to their control of the midcourt and Gretel Bueta and Steph Wood firing on all cylinders in the shooting circle.

But just as the Aussies looked home and hosed, Jamaica somehow found another gear in the final term and chewed up the deficit in just a handful of minutes to hit the lead.

Bueta was silenced in the last quarter — she finished with 36 goals from 39 attempts, while Wood had 19 goals at 86 per cent shooting.

“How quickly this game has been turned on its head,” legendary Diamonds shooter Cath Cox said in commentary on Channel 7.

“It looked like Australia had taken control and it was all over.”

Jhaniele Fowler was superb at goal shooter for Jamaica in a physical duel with her West Coast Fever teammate Courtney Bruce.

Adelaide Thunderbirds duo Shamera Sterling and Latanya Wilson were outstanding in defense and secured ball at will for Jamaica with countless deflections.

“Extraordinary scenes, the Diamonds defeated for the first time this tournament,” Sue Gaudion said.

Cox said Jamaica’s performance “screamed ‘we can medal at these Games’,” adding Australia appeared to “shut up shop” in the last quarter.

“Australia couldn’t win the ball back — it was some brilliant defensive work from Jamaica. They really just lifted another level in the fourth quarter,” she said.

The two-point victory was Jamaica’s first over Australia in Commonwealth Games history and will seriously shake up the race for the medals.

It’s far from disaster for Australia, but they will now likely come up against England in the semi-finals on a more difficult path to the gold medal match.

Australia’s last Commonwealth Games netball gold medal came in Glasgow in 2014. The Diamonds claimed silver on the Gold Coast in 2018 after losing a thrilling final to England.

.

Categories
US

Brittney Griner: Verdict expected today in WNBA star’s drug-smuggling trial in Russia

Brittney Griner: Verdict expected today in WNBA star's drug-smuggling trial in Russia

Closing arguments began in the trial Thursday amid concerns that she is being used as a political pawn in the country’s war on Ukraine.

Griner arrived at court in handcuffs and was escorted by Russian officers into the defendant’s cage. Once uncuffed, she spoke with her legal team de ella and then held up a photo of the UMMC Ekaterinburg basketball team, the Russian squad she played for during the WNBA offseason.

The court hearing in the Khimki city courthouse comes six months after Griner, 31, was arrested at a Moscow airport and accused by Russian prosecutors of trying to smuggle less than 1 gram of cannabis oil in her luggage. She faces up to 10 years in prison.
The two-time US Olympic basketball gold medalist pleaded guilty to drug charges last month in what her lawyers say was an attempt to take responsibility and receive leniency if she is ultimately convicted and sentenced.
“Considering the nature of her case, the insignificant amount of the substance and (Griner’s) personality and history of positive contributions to global and Russian sport, the defense hopes that the plea will be considered by the court as a mitigating factor and there will be no severe sentence,” her legal team said last month.

The defense has also tried to undermine the prosecution’s case. On Tuesday, at the seventh hearing in her case, a defense expert testified that the examination of the substance contained in Griner’s vape cartridges did not comply with Russian law.

“The examination does not comply with the law in terms of the completeness of the study and does not comply with the norms of the Code of Criminal Procedure,” forensic chemist Dmitry Gladyshev testified during the roughly two-hour session.

Maria Blagovolina, of the Rybalkin, Gortsunyan, Dyakin & Partners law firm, Griner’s attorney, told CNN her team’s experts identified “a few defects” in the machines used to measure the substance.

Examination of the substance in Brittney Griner's vape cartridges violated Russian law, defense expert says

At trial, Griner has testified that she has a doctor’s prescription for medical cannabis and had no intention of bringing the drug into Russia. Following her arrest of her in February, she was tested for drugs and was clean, her lawyers previously said.

The US State Department maintains Griner is wrongfully detained, and her supporters have called for her release and asked the US to take further steps to try to free her from the country, perhaps as part of a proposed prisoner swap.

“She’s still focused, and she’s still nervous. And she still knows that the end is near, and of course she heard the news so she’s hoping that sometime she could be coming home, and we hope, too,” Blagovolina said Tuesday. She added the verdict in the case will come “very soon,” potentially Thursday.

Charge d’Affairs of the US Embassy in Russia, Elizabeth Rood, arrived at the court Thursday ahead of the hearing. She has appeared in court throughout the trial and on Tuesday said the US would “continue to support Miss Griner through every step of this process and as long as it takes to bring her home to the United States safely.”

How the trial has gone

Griner’s attorneys have already laid out some arguments claiming the basketball player’s detention was not handled correctly after she was arrested February 17 by personnel at the Sheremetyevo International Airport.

Her detention, search and arrest were “improper,” Alexander Boykov, one of her lawyers, said last week, noting more details would be revealed during closing arguments.

After she was stopped in the airport, Griner was made to sign documents that she did not fully understand, she testified. At first, she said, she was using Google translate on her phone from her but was later moved to another room where her phone from her was taken and she was made to sign more documents.

No lawyer was present, Griner testified, and her rights were not explained to her. Those rights would include access to an attorney once she was detained and the right to know what she was suspected of. Under Russian law, she should have been informed of her rights within three hours of her arrest.

CNN Exclusive: Biden administration offers convicted Russian arms dealer in exchange for Griner, Whelan

In her testimony, Griner “explained to the court that she knows and respects Russian laws and never intended to break them,” Blagovolina said after last week’s hearing.

“We continue to insist that, by indiscretion, in a hurry, she packed her suitcase and did not pay attention to the fact that substances allowed for use in the United States ended up in this suitcase and arrived in the Russian Federation,” Boykov, of Moscow Legal Center, has said.

The trial has played out amid the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the country’s saber-rattling with the US and Europe.

Last week, CNN reported that President Joe Biden’s administration proposed a prisoner swap with Russia, offering to release a convicted Russian arms trafficker, Viktor Bout, in exchange for Griner and another American detainee, Paul Whelan. Russian officials countered the US offer, multiple sources familiar with the discussions have said, but US officials did not accept the request as a legitimate counteroffer.

The Kremlin also warned Tuesday that US “megaphone diplomacy” will not help negotiations for a prisoner exchange involving Griner. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow believes these talks should be “discrete.”

Griner’s family, supporters and WNBA teammates have continued to express messages of solidarity and hope as they wait for the conclusion of the trial. Her WNBA team, the Phoenix Mercury, is expected to play the Connecticut Sun on Thursday night at 7 pm ET.

Before trial proceedings last week, the WNBA players union tweeted“Dear BG … It’s early in Moscow. Our day is ending and yours is just beginning. Not a day, not an hour goes by that you’re not on our minds & in our hearts.”

CNN’s Elizabeth Wolfe, Travis Caldwell, Dakin Andone, Kylie Atwood, Evan Perez, Jennifer Hansler, Natasha Bertrand, Frederik Pleitgen, Chris Liakos and Zahra Ullah contributed to this report.

.