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Aussie Halo star Barcode debuts for G2 Esports in HCS NA Super sweep of Spacestation

Barcode drinks Red Bull on esports stage.

Following months of rumors that Australian talent Barcode was seeking a move to a North American team, the Aussie debuted for G2 Esports in the HCS NA Super this weekend. Taking the fourth spot on the roster, one that has already been inhabited by three different players in the past six months, Barcode made a statement with a standout performance that saw G2 take down Spacestation Gaming 3-0 in their first match of pool play.

While all three games in the best-of-five series were a closer call than the final series score may suggest, G2 can be encouraged by the lineup’s immediate potential and ability to close out tight games. Barcode was a major factor in putting that potential on display, topping G2’s stat screen in games one and two.

The Australian was the only member of G2 who could keep up with the slaying output of Spacestation’s Ace and Suppressed in Capture The Flag in game one. With seven more kills to his name than his closest teammate, for a total of 26, Barcode’s performance proved essential in a game that went to overtime and only concluded with G2 taking a narrow 2-1 victory. This was despite Ace and Suppressed both finishing the match with 13 and 10.7 KDA’s, respectively—a worrying sign that Spacestation’s objective play requires some major improvements.

Barcode also secured a triple kill in Slayer on Streets in game two, topping his team yet again with 15 kills overall in the match. Spacestation’s struggles in the series were only exacerbated when they faltered in the face of a small lead in their favor toward the end of the game. A two-kill advantage for Spacestation with 10 kills to go culminated in a 50-42 win for G2, which proved to be a momentum swing that Spacestation failed to recover from in the third and final game.

Here are the final results for Pool D’s match between G2 Esports and Spacestation Gaming:

  • Capture The Flag on Catalyst: 2-1 G2
  • Slayer on Streets: 50-42 G2
  • Oddball on Recharge: 2-0 G2

Barcode left his Australian organization, The Chiefs Esports Club, after a six-month period of total dominance in the region at the beginning of halo-infinite‘s competitive season. While Barcode and G2 wo n’t enjoy the same kind of record in the face of the heightened competition in North America, it’s clear those greater heights and greater rewards are far more of a home for Barcode’s talents than his home region ever was .

G2 will continue at the HCS NA Super this weekend as they aim to top Pool D and stake a claim at the top of North America with its refreshed roster.

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McLaren set to end Ricciardo’s 2023 F1 deal to make way for Piastri

Adam Cooper

McLaren is believed to have signed Piastri initially on a reserve driver deal for 2023, one that it intends to upgrade to a race seat, assuming that a plan for Ricciardo’s early exit is eventually agreed.

Ricciardo has a signed McLaren contract for next season as part of the original three-year deal that he signed in early 2020, while still at Renault.

Ricciardo and the team will now have to agree to a settlement involving a substantial pay-off in order for him to walk away at the end of this season.

He is understood to have no interest in moving sideways into the team’s Formula E programme, and is determined to find another seat in F1.

The Woking-based team is confident that it can hang on to Piastri despite Alpine’s claim that it has a valid contract with the youngster for 2023.

The Enstone team made an announcement to that effect on Tuesday that was subsequently challenged by Piastri on social media.

It’s believed that Piastri’s ability to walk away from Alpine is based on a claim that his 2023 deal with the team was never properly signed. The 31st July date – widely believed to be related to an option the team had on him – is understood to have no special relevance.

The dispute looks set to go to the Contract Recognition Board, although there is also some question of whether Alpine actually lodged a contract with the CRB that covered 2023.

Oscar Piastri, Reserve Driver, Alpine F1 Team

Oscar Piastri, Reserve Driver, Alpine F1 Team

Photo by: Motorsport Images

It has emerged that McLaren began to explore the possibility of hiring Piastri several weeks ago as it looked for possible replacements for Ricciardo.

McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl is close to Piastri’s manager Mark Webber, having worked with him with Porsche in the World Endurance Championship.

At that time Piastri looked set to go to Williams on a loan deal that would see him return to Alpine in 2024 or 2025.

However, after McLaren showed an interest, it emerged that Piastri could be a free agent for 2023 after all, and with the Woking outfit seen as a step up from Williams, negotiations became more serious.

Ricciardo meanwhile is clearly high on the list of possible replacements for Fernando Alonso at Alpine, although he upset the Renault top management when he agreed his McLaren move, and that hurdle will have to be overcome.

ReadAlso:

Haas could also be an option if as expected Mick Schumacher leaves, although in theory Ferrari has a claim on who takes the seat.

Sometimes pay-off deals like the one Ricciardo is set to receive can be impacted by the driver concerned subsequently finding a seat elsewhere. When Kimi Raikkonen was dropped by Ferrari at the end of 2009 he spent two years out of F1 in part so he could retain the full amount.

However, it’s understood that given the sums involved required to satisfy Ricciardo’s original deal, one scenario is that even if he lands a drive elsewhere he may end up still being paid by McLaren not to race for the team in 2023.

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Commonwealth Games 2022: Michelle Jenneke final of 110m hurdles, star looks ripped

Commonwealth Games 2022: Michelle Jenneke final of 110m hurdles, star looks ripped

Aussie star Michelle Jenneke has run the fastest time of her life to thunder into the final of the 100m hurdles at the Commonwealth Games.

The 29-year-old was looking absolutely shredded as she stood on the starter’s blocks before her heat and it turns out there is no secret behind the physical shape she is in which has her running the best times in her entire career. She told Channel 7 after the race she is in “the shape of my life”.

Jenneke finished second in Heat 3 at Alexander Stadium in Birmingham and moves into the final with the second-quickest overall time, behind only world record holder Tobi Amusan of Nigeria.

Jenneke’s time of 12.63 will not count as a new personal best because the time was wind-assisted.

However, the form is undeniably there.

Her run on Friday night (AEST) would suggest she is a red-hot medal chance, but she is toning down expectations for the final on Sunday night where five of the eight runners were also in the final of the World Championships in Oregon last month .

“This is a very strong field,” she said.

“It’s a very strong field here. I don’t know if I’ll quite be good enough for a medal, but hopefully I can run a personal best and we’ll see where that puts me.”

It is clear she deserves her place alongside the fastest runners in the world.

“Even when I was young at my first world champs I was never really intimidated by anyone,” she said.

“I feel like for me, when I go out there I’m just trying to put my best foot forward and they’re doing the same thing and if they beat me, they beat me. As long as I’m doing my best then that’s all I really care about.

“I’m not too worried about what the other athletes do, except for using them to try and get faster time.”

She said her peak physical condition is simply the result of finally being able to have a stretch without injuries where she could get in an extended training block.

“I haven’t really changed things. It’s just one of those things where I’ve been able to string together some training where I haven’t been injured,” she said.

“So I’ve actually been able to get every session done. When you do that things seem to come together. That’s really all it is. Nothing too special.”

Jenneke ran a career-saving personal best time of 12.66 at the World Championships.

Jenneke’s time wasn’t even enough for her to sneak into the final as Amusan obliterated her personal best time by almost 0.3 seconds to set the new world record at 12.12.

Jenneke’s time in Oregon made her the second-quickest women’s 100m hurdler Australia has ever produced, behind only Sally Pearson.

Jenneke famously went viral with her trademark pre-race shake at the 2012 World Junior Championships and it ultimately led to her being one of the highest-profile stars of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Jenneke was once a household name who attracted global attention — and major endorsement deals from some of the world’s biggest companies. She was sponsored by Coca-Cola at the Rio Games and her face was plastered across billboards in the Brazilian city.

But she copped fierce criticism for a disappointing showing at those Games, finishing a kilometer in her 100m hurdles heat.

Australian track and field coach at the time, Craig Hilliard, accused Jenneke of arriving in Rio out of shape and questioned whether distractions away from the track contributed to her lackluster showing. Athletics Australia then cut her funding from her.

She rebounded for a strong performance at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast and narrowly missed out on a bronze medal.

Four injury-riddled years later and Jenneke is doing plenty to make Australia fall in love with her again.

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US

Calif. county south of Tahoe gets 2.2 inches of rain in hour

Calif. county south of Tahoe gets 2.2 inches of rain in hour

Thunderstorms pounded a section of the Sierra Nevada east of Lake Tahoe, stretching from Reno to California’s Alpine County, this week, delivering heavy rain, flooding roadways and triggering mudslides, the National Weather Service said.

“We typically see a push of monsoon moisture each summer, and it varies from year to year, how long the surge is and how strong it is,” said Wendell Hohmann, a forecaster with the weather service’s Reno office. “This year kind of came late. We were pretty dry up to mid-July and then finally a door opened to allow it in.

The thunderstorms hit as monsoonal moisture from the desert Southwest climbed northward into California and Nevada.


A gauge in Alpine County’s Markleeville, 30 miles southeast of South Lake Tahoe, recorded 2.49 inches of rain in 90 minutes on Wednesday. “It was 2.2 inches in 60 minutes — that’s how intense it was,” Hohmann said. On Thursday, Monitor Pass measured 0.8 inches of rain on Thursday, he said.

Debris flows crossed over Hot Springs Road, piling large boulders onto the road, Grover Hot Springs State Park employees and the California Highway Patrol said on Wednesday.

Highway 89 in the Markleeville area of ​​Alpine County is closed due to severe flooding, Caltrans said.

Highway 89 in the Markleeville area of ​​Alpine County is closed due to severe flooding, Caltrans said.

caltrans

The Tamarack Fire burned through the Markleeville area in 2021, and on Wednesday the weather service issued a flash flood emergency for the burn scar, followed by a flash flood warning Thursday.

“This is a particularly dangerous situation! Seek higher ground now,” the weather service said Wednesday.

Highway 89 from Turtle Rock to Markleeville is closed with no estimated time of reopening mud and debris flows that washed out part of the road, officials said. State Route 4 to Turtle Rock Park is also closed due to a mudslide.

The Tahoe area wasn’t hit with heavy rain, but Hohmann said thunderstorms are possible Friday.

The Reno Airport reported 1.22 inches of rainfall from a strong thunderstorm between 7:45 pm and 8:45 pm Wednesday, the weather service said. This is more rain than the airport has seen in the past seven months.

“Before Wednesday, the airport had seen only 0.74 inches from Jan. 1 all the way to Tuesday,” Hohmann said.

The official airport gauge recorded another 0.24 inch on Thursday, though Hohmann said another gauge at the south end of the runway had an inch of rain.

The weather service issued several flash flood watches for the Reno area Wednesday and Thursday, and the Reno Fire Department on Wednesday said some it rescued some drivers from flooded roadways Wednesday.

More thunderstorms are in the forecast for the Reno area Friday, and the flash flood watch remains in effect.

A monsoon refers to a seasonal reversal of wind patterns over a region. The summer monsoon is associated with an increase in thunderstorm activity; in North America, winds pull moisture from the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and transport it into the Southwest US

The summer monsoon is a typical weather pattern that is most pronounced in the interior Southwest states of Arizona and New Mexico. Sometimes the moisture pushes northward into California, the weather service said.

When monsoon moisture flows into Northern California, lightning is usually more common in the Sierra Nevada than along the coast due to the mountains’ lack of a marine layer and its topography. The air mass is forced to lift, intensifying the thunderstorms, the weather service said.

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Sports

Brandon Smith, hip-drop tackle, video, reported, Melbourne Storm v Gold Coast Titans

Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy has pleaded for Brandon Smith’s hip-drop tackle to not be judged with the “hysteria” of the week in mind, after the Storm forward was reported in his side’s win over the Titans on Friday night.

Smith was reported for performing a hip-drop tackle on Titans captain Tino Fa’asuamaleaui in the 29th minute of the Storm’s 32-14 win in Melbourne.

The Storm’s second win in succession was not only soured by Smith being reported but gun halfback Jahrome Hughes suffering a suspected shoulder subluxation. The New Zealand international didn’t feature in the second half and will undergo scans.

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Smith was reported in his first game back from a three-match suspension for calling a referee a “cheating bastard”.

NRL media has been dominated by hip-drop controversy this week, after Broncos lock Patrick Carrigan was hit with a four-match ban for an ugly move on Wests Tigers playmaker Jackson Hastings.

Bellamy begged for officials to not be influenced by the fallout of the Carrigan tackle in assessing the Smith incident.

“I just hope it gets judged on the tackle and not some of the hysteria that has been going on this week. That’s all we’d ask,” Bellamy said in his post-game press conference.

“How many have there been? If there’s one in how many games since the last hip-drop…

“Pat Carrigan doesn’t go out on the field to try to break Jackson Hastings’ leg.

“At the end of the day they’re usually accidents. I understand if they are in the game they need to be out. I don’t think they’re a big issue in the game.

“Obviously with Jackson getting injured — I don’t think Pat went out there on purpose to do that.

“Like I say, I don’t see it as a real big issue in the game. I understand it can injure people, so we want to get it out of the game, without a doubt.

“We just hope (the Smith tackle), and I’m sure it will, gets judged on that… like I say, it’s been in the news a lot this week.”

Fa’asuamaleaui defended Smith in the Titans’ post-match press conference.

“Just an accident,” he said.

“I think he went low and then obviously slipped onto my ankle and gave me a bit of a stinger.

“It was all an accident.”

NRL Highlights: Storm v Titans – Round 21

Stream the NRL premiership 2022 live and free on 9Now.

Gold Coast coach Justin Holbrook believes the NRL is handling the hip-drop issue correctly.

“I don’t think they’re done deliberately, but they are dangerous,” Holbrook said.

“I think we’re doing the right thing. We’ve got to identify them and get them out of the game because we don’t want to see the injuries that are happening.

“No one’s running recklessly to do that, I don’t think.”

Melbourne’s win was inspired by Cameron Munster, who made a return to fullback for the injured Nick Meaney.

The Queensland State of Origin five-eighth piled up 20 points, including a hat-trick and four conversions.

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Commonwealth Games in pictures: Canada player shown straight red card for ‘choking’ opponent

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Multiple injured, including two police officers, after vehicle plows through New Mexico parade

Multiple injured, including two police officers, after vehicle plows through New Mexico parade

Multiple people were injured, including two police officers, after a car plowed through a parade celebrating Native American culture in New Mexico Thursday evening, police say.

The incident unfolded at the Gallup Intertribal Ceremonial Centennial Celebration, honoring Native American culture and heritage, New Mexico State Police said. The parade started at 7 pm according to the event website.

Jarring videos shared on social media showed the parade underway with dancers and performers in the street when the tan SUV appeared and people scrambled to run out of its path. Spectators were heard screaming and shouting “oh my God!” as they ran.

The vehicle appeared to speed through the parade route, not slowing down as attendees panicked and tried to flee the scene.

The City of Gallup, located about two hours west of Albuquerque, said in an incident alert at 8 pm local time, “Fortunately, no spectators or parade participants have been reported as struck by the vehicle.”

However, New Mexico State Police said multiple were injured in the ensuing chaos. A number of the injured was not released and they were treated at the scene, police said.

The City of Gallup said “the vehicle and its three occupants” were detained. Their names have not been released.

“There have been reports of shots fired but nothing has been confirmed at this time. Gallup Police are on the scene and an investigation is underway,” the alert said.

NBC News has reached out to New Mexico State Police for more details on the arrests.

The parade was part of an 11-day celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Gallup Intertribal Ceremonial.

“Gallup Intertribal Ceremonial is one of the oldest continuous recognitions of Native American culture and heritage and known for attracting an international audience,” a news release for the event said.

Kaelyn Bahe was at the parade and filmed the moment the SUV ran through the route, swerving along the road until it was out of sight.

“Everyone just took off their cars, I ran straight to mine,” she wrote on Facebook. “Please know I was super shocked and hella scared that I was asking everyone if they were okay.”

Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez shared a live video saying, “We were in the path of the vehicle.”

“Thank God that folks that were around me, our team members, our council delegates, were not stuck by the vehicle. It turned the corner and from that point on I don’t know what happened, but before that, it came straight towards us, the vehicle,” he said.

Navajo Nation Council Speaker Seth Damon condemned the incident saying, “This was a traumatic and triggering event for many, especially our youth, elders, and our veterans who acted quickly.”

“The Navajo Nation stands with resilience against any acts of violence and sends prayers of protection to those affected,” Damon said, adding, “the perpetrators will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

The Thursday panic was the latest example of violence at community parades.

Last November, an SUV plowed through the Christmas Parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin fatally striking six and injuring dozens more. In Highland Park, Illinois, a Fourth of July parade turned deadly when a gunman opened fired, killing 7 people and wounding dozens of others.

Marlene Lenthang is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.

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Commonwealth Games 2022: hockey, diving, athletics and more – live! | Commonwealth Games 2022

Key events

Hockey: Less jolly hockey sticks and more squeaky bum time over at the University where the women’s hockey semi final between England and New Zealand is still deadlocked at 0-0. The final quarter has just begun.

Are we heading for penalties? Or a Super-Over maybe?

Diving: Canada’s Mia Vallee takes Gold in the 1m springboard finalAustralia’s Brittany Mae O’Brien gets the Silver and – with a fantastic, nerveless final dive – England’s Amy Rollinson grabs the Bronze!

“Gutsy, gritty, and determined” says the commentator of the 18-year-old from Luton.

Sean Ingle is soaking it all up in Birmingham. Here’s his preview of what could be a ‘super Saturday’ MK II.

Diving: Great fourth dive from England’s Amy Rollinson who notches up to 61.50 from the judges to see her work her way into fourth place as it stands. She’ll need a barnstormin’ final dive to be in with a chance of getting on the podium.

I saw this earlier and it blew my mind. Well worth a watch:

Hockey: Half time in the women’s semi final – New Zealand 0 England 0. A bit of a disjointed, nervous affair so far.

Diving: In the women’s 1m springboard final England’s Amy Elisabeth Rollinson has slipped down to sixth place after three rounds. Grace Elizabeth Reid of Scotland sits above her de ella and then it is the Aussie trio of Esther Qin, Georgia Sheehan and Brittany Mae O’Brien in fourth, third, second respectively. Canada’s Mia Jolie Doucet Vallee is in the gold medal position and 19 points clear of the crowd. Two rounds to go!

cyclingnews:

Sam Watson joins Team England Road race line-up 🚴

Team England has announced that Sam Watson will be joining the line-up for Sunday’s Men’s Road Race. The 20-year-old will step in to replace Matt Walls.#BringItHome | #Birmingham2022

— Team England (@TeamEngland) August 5, 2022

Hockey: It’s still all square in the women’s hockey semi-final between England and New Zealand, it’s been a frenetic start but is still goalless half-way through the second quarter. Feels like there is a big moment coming…

the women’s hockey semi-final between England and New Zealand is goalless after the first quarter while at the aquatics centre, England’s Amy Rollinson leads the 1m women’s springboard final after the first round.

Gymnastics gold for England’s Marfa Ekimov! The 17-year-old has held on after the floor exercises in the all-round final, beating Cypriot Anna Sokolova by 0.200 points. She becomes the first English athlete to win Commonwealth gold in rhythmic gymnastics.

Marfa Ekimova (centre) with silver medalist Anna Sokolova and Australia's Alexandra Kiroi-Bogatyreva, who won bronze.
Marfa Ekimova (centre) with silver medalist Anna Sokolova and Australia’s Alexandra Kiroi-Bogatyreva, who won bronze. Photograph: Jason Cairnduff/Reuters

England are into the men’s beach volleyball semi-finals! The Gambian pair won the second set 22-20, but England prevailed in the tie-break set after a dramatic match point where the Bello twins twice dug the ball out before finding a gap.

England advance to the semi-finals, where they will play Canada or Cyprus. The other semi-final will see Australia against Rwandathe African nation shocking New Zealand in their earlier quarter-finals.

Over at the Coventry Arena, George Ramm has won bronze for England in the men’s freestyle wrestling after beating Nauru’s Lowe Bigham. The 65kg category final saw India’s Bajrang Punia defeat Canada’s Lachlan McNeil to win gold.

George Ramm celebrates winning bronze.
George Ramm: great name for a wrestler. Photograph: Zac Goodwin/PA

“Runner’s dreams crushed by own penis…” as far as sporting headlines go this is certainly up there. The ‘problem’ for 400m runner Albert Nonino was firmly ‘down there’ as a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ hindered his performance in the 400 meters at the U20 World Athletics Championships in Cali, Colombia. I can’t put anything else in inverted commas.

This is like one of those horrible dreams you have before a job interview or a date. Sending solidarity Albert. Shush at the back!

Beach volleyball: The sun is beating down in Costa del Smithfield as English twins Javier and Joaquin Bello storm into a one set lead in their quarter-final against Gambian duo Sainey Jawo and Mbye Babou Jarra. Some excellent volleyball on display in that first set which the England pair took 21 points to 16 in front of a rapturous crowd. Set two is about to start…

Javier and Joaquin Bello.
Javier and Joaquin Bello. Photograph: Elsa/Getty Images

Furrowed pitch leads to furrowed brows…

Some news from over in the footy blog – apparently – the pitch at the Coventry Building Society Arena is in a right old state after the venue hosted the rugby sevens at the Commonwealth Games.

As a result, Coventry’s meeting with Rotherham, currently scheduled for 3pm on Sunday, has been thrown into doubt, and the home club have confirmed that a pitch inspection will take place tomorrow:

A feast for the eyes right here.

These daily picture galleries from the Games are a thing of real beauty:

Table Tennis: England duo Liam Pitchford and Tin-Tin Ho have gone down in a razor wire quarter final match against Indian pair Achanta Sharath Kamal and Akula Sreeja. Gutting for England, who are eliminated after being pipped 11-9 in the deciding game.

Lovely piece thisby Sachin Nakrani of this parish.

Netball: Wales go down to Malawi over in the NEC arena, unable to cling on to an early lead they lost a tight match 56 points to 62. That result means Malawi take seventh position and Wales finish eighth.

Who else is left to play you ask?

gymnastics: 17-year-old Marfa Ekimova is heading (geddit?) for a medal in the individual all-around final, but what color will it be?

Here’s the crowd well and truly getting behind England’s Harry Kendall in the pole vault event of the decathlon earlier today. Kendall surfed their hollers to clear 5m40 and notch a lifetime best.

The 3m men’s in Britain is so tough, it’s so hard to get on the big stage. I’ve worked so hard. I’ve had to be patient, I’ve had to wait for it, really. It’s thanks to Jack for seeing me in training and seeing how good I can be and trusting in me, believing in me.”

Here’s a nice piece from Tumaini who is our man in the shallow end at the aquatic center:

This is a nice moment from this morning:

A touching moment for Cindy Sember who had just qualified for the women’s 100m hurdles final.

Beach volleyball: The Aussie duo of Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho are too strong for the spirited Scottish pairing of Lynne Beattie and Melissa Coutts. The Scots put up a fine display in front of an appreciative crowd but it is the Australians who progress to the semi-final.

Australia go up against Scotland in the beach volleyball, under the shadow of the Bull Ring.
Australia go up against Scotland in the beach volleyball, under the shadow of the Bull Ring. Photograph: Darren England/AAP

Badminton: England’s Jessica Pugh and Callum Hemming have beaten Katherine Wynter and Joel Angus of Jamaica 21-11 and 21-7 to take their place in the mixed doubles quarter-finals.

Gold! Always believe in!

I also like the Team Scotland hashtag ‘Time for Heroes’. Wonder if these lads are any good with orb in hand?

Scotland’s George Miller becomes the Games’ oldest gold medalist!

Scotland take the lawn bowls title in the for mixed pairs B2/B3 gold medal match. Robert Barr and Melanie Inness overcoming Wales’ Gordon Llewellyn and Julie Thomas 16-9.

Inness’ director George Miller overtakes fellow Scot Rosemary Lenton, who won the women’s Para mixed pairs on Wednesday (aged 72), to become the oldest competitor to get the gold around the neck.

Speaking to the BBC shortly after the victory Miller said:

“I think Rosemary’s quite pleased… It’s great, fantastic. A year ago I never dreamed of being here. I got a phone call, and nearly fell off my chair to be honest. Here we are – where are we going to go from here?!

“It’s all there to be tried. Everyone can try any sport at all. Bowls is easier for older people – but any sport. Walking football, rugby, you name it. Get out there and exercise, play games, compete. It’s brilliant whatever age you are.”

Amen to that George, inspiring stuff.

Take a bow, George Miller.
Take a bow, George Miller. Photograph: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images

Beach Volleyball: Sunshine beats down on the sands of… Smithfield as Scotland’s pairing of Lynne Beattie and Melissa Coutts take on the Australian duo of Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho in the quarter finals. The Aussies have just taken the first set 21-11.

Decathlon: The Australian’s dominated the pole vault in the end – Cedric Dubler clearing 5metres but failing to go over 5m10. Still it gives him a narrow lead of 39 points over defending champ – the appropriately named Lindon Victor of Grenada.

Daniel Golubovic is in bronze place 100 points behind fellow countryman Dubler and 150 points behind them is… another Aussie – Alec Diamond.

England’s Harry Kendall is in sixth position, a medal might well be out of his reach but it’ll be a thrilling finale this evening in the stadium. The gold medal could go anywhere with just the javelin and 1500m to go.

Australia's Cedric Dubler.
Australia’s Cedric Dubler. Photograph: Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images

Bowls: Just nipping back to say that Scotland are looking like they are going to take the spoils in the para mixed pairs B2/B3 gold medal match, they’ve gone into an 11-6 lead with four ends to go. Wales need to go some now to get back into the match.

UPDATE: Make that 14-9 to Scotland with two ends to go!

I’ve got my eyes on fridge… and the Decathlon pole vault, Harry Kendall bows out after failing to clear 4m50. Aussie Cedric Dubler joins in the action and clears 4m70 by a huge distance!

Here’s Hazel! Lady Irvine welcomes us to afternoon coverage on the Beeb. There’s a slight lull in the action so I’m going to grab a spot of lunch, will be back v shortly but behave yourselves, especially you.

Decathlon: Pole Vault – Harry Kendall clears 4m40 at the final attempt! That’s a lifetime best for the Englishman, he’ll now have three stabs at 4m50! All the while current leader Cedric Dubler sits on the sidelines waiting for the bar to get to somewhere near his level from him.

Decathlon: England’s Harry Kendall made a vault of 4m.30 and is on a second attempt at a lifetime best of 4m40 (his current best is 4m34) the crowd will him on and… so close he nearly sneaks over but just nudges the pole off with his chest. The crowd grown and Kendall gives the pole a wry smile from the chunky matt. He’ll have one final shot at it shortly.

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Parkland Trial Reveals Depths of Families’ Sorrow

Parkland Trial Reveals Depths of Families' Sorrow

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Peter Wang’s mother has four tattoos memorializing her 15-year-old son, one inked on Feb. 14 each year since he was killed. Carmen Schentrup’s parents find sleep elusive. Nicholas Dworet’s mother hesitates every time someone asks her, “How many kids do you have?”

Joaquin Oliver’s mother cannot bear to join relatives for family celebrations because her son is gone. Jaime Guttenberg’s mother finds it impossible to watch her beloved Florida Gators play football, because they were also her daughter’s favorite team. Gina Montalto’s father struggles with his marriage to him, strained from grieving the loss of his daughter to him.

One by one, the relatives and friends of the 17 people killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., took the stand in court this week and divulged to a jury the depths of their despair since losing loved ones to gunfire four years ago on Valentine’s Day. Over four days of profoundly emotional testimony, they shared painful and intimate details that laid bare how their internal lives remain shattered and how massacres like Parkland leave families with years of unresolved sorrow.

“I have a box over my heart with a lid so tightly closed, trying to keep all my emotions under control,” said Linda Beigel Schulman, who lost her son, Scott J. Beigel, a geography teacher. “But today, I’m taking the lid off that box.”

The heart-rending testimony concluded on Thursday after the jury deciding the fate of the gunman, Nikolas Cruz, toured the school building where the mass shooting took place. Prosecutors left the viewing of the crime scene, an exceedingly rare and visceral occurrence in a criminal trial, for the last day of their nearly three-week presentation and rested their case.

What the 12 jurors and 10 alternates saw inside Building 12 of Stoneman Douglas High, which has been fenced off and unused since the day of the shooting, was a moment frozen in time, a joyful holiday interrupted by a deadly rampage. Bullet holes pocked the doors and walls. Bits of shattered glass crunched under their feet. Laptops remained opened, class work incomplete. Dried rose petals were strewn on floors caked in blood.

In one unfinished English class assignment, a student had written, “We go to school every day of the week and we take it all for granted. We cry and complain without knowing how lucky we are to be able to learn.” A second-floor hallway featured a James Dean quote: “Dream as if you’ll live forever, live as if you’ll die today.”

The crime scene visited capped 12 days of often thick video and autopsy evidence in an agonizing trial in which the jury will decide if Mr. Cruz, 23, who has pleaded guilty, should be sentenced to death or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The defense is scheduled to begin its case on Aug. 22. The judge will first hold a hearing without the jury to decide if defense lawyers can use a map of Mr. Cruz’s brain as evidence of the effects of fetal alcohol syndrome.

Before hearing from victims’ families and relatives, the jury listened to 17 survivors who were wounded in the shooting recount how they suffered their injuries and what lingering effects remained from being hit with high-velocity gunshots. Several still have pieces of shrapnel in their bodies.

Benjamin Wikander’s radial nerve was damaged so badly that he still must wear an arm brace. Maddy Wilford has trouble breathing with her right lung. Sam Fuentes suffers from chronic pain and spasms in her legs and no longer has the same range of motion she once did.

But the courtroom felt perhaps most somber as parents, siblings, grandparents and friends found it difficult to stay composed remembering their loved ones and describing life without them. They frequently reached for tissues. A bailiff offered them water.

“I can do this,” Tori Gonzalez, Joaquin Oliver’s girlfriend, said as she took deep breaths on the witness stand. One juror cried when she called Joaquin her soul mate from her.

“I lost innocence,” she said of the shooting. “I lost purity. I lost the love letters he was writing for me in that fourth-period creative writing class.”

Many relatives spoke about being unable to celebrate birthdays and holidays since the shooting. Peter Wang’s family no longer gathers for Chinese New Year. Luke Hoyer’s mother called Christmas nearly unbearable. Helena Ramsay was killed on her father’s birthday.

Families regretted that they would never see their children graduate from high school or college. Never get to walk them down the aisle. Never rejoice in their having children of their own.

“She never got her braces off,” said Meghan Petty, Alaina Petty’s sister. “She never got her first kiss from her.”

Parents and spouses described their homes as intolerably quiet. “The night no longer brings intimacy and comfort,” said Debra Hixon, the wife of Chris Hixon, the school’s athletic director, “just the loudness of the silence.”

Her son Corey Hixon, who has Kabuki syndrome, a rare genetic disorder, said simply of his father: “I miss him!”

Some people were angry. Alyssa Alhadeff’s father, Dr. Ilan Alhadeff, repeatedly yelled through tears: “This is not normal!” He said his wife de ella “occasionally sprays Alyssa’s perfume de ella just to try and smell her.”

“She even sleeps with Alyssa’s blanket, four years later,” he added.

Some parents have struggled to work. Fred Guttenberg, Jaime Guttenberg’s father, who has become a gun control activist, said he has been unable to hold a normal job and that his public crusade “has made life harder for my wife and harder for my son, and for that, I am sorry.”

“This broke me,” he said.

The shooting changed his relationship with his son, who was supposed to wait for Jaime and drive her home after school that day. Instead, once Mr. Guttenberg learned of the gunfire, he told his son to flee.

“He struggles with the reality that he could not save his sister, and he wishes it was him,” he said. “He’s angry at me convincing him to run.”

As victim after victim spoke, many people in the courtroom gallery wept. So did several defense lawyers.

Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs contributed reporting.

Categories
Sports

Storm star Brandon Smith grilled over hip drop tackle

Storm star Brandon Smith grilled over hip drop tackle

Cameron Munster has produced a breathtaking display as Melbourne Storm marked a history-making night with a 32-14 win over gutsy cellar-dweller Gold Coast Titans at AAMI Park on Friday night.

But the returning Brandon Smith will be facing a nervous wait after he was put on report for a hip drop tackle late in the first half.

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With the Storm leading 16-4, Smith, who had been out for the last three matches after he was banned for referee Adam Gee a “cheating bastard”, landed himself in hot water when making a legs tackle on the Titans’ Tino Fa’ asuamaleaui.

But in a week where the hip drop has been a hot topic after the Broncos’ Patrick Carrigan was banned for four weeks after his tackle saw the Tigers’ Jackson Hastings break his leg.

Unlike a usual hip drop where two players hold a player before the third man attacks the legs, Smith was in motion, slipping off the tackle and onto Fa’asuamaleaui leg.

But referee Peter Gough said: ““I understand it’s wet and he’s sliding, but what it is, is he throws his legs out which drops the weight on the backfoot.”

Premiership winning coach turned Fox Sports commentator Shane Flanagan wasn’t thrilled with the tackle.

“You can’t do it. You know you can’t put your weight on the back of the legs when a player is going away from you, and he gets himself in a bad position,” Flanagan said.

Post match, Storm coach Craig Bellamy called for the judiciary to look at the incident on its own merits.

“I just hope it gets judged on the tackle, not some of the hysteria that has gone on this week,” Bellamy said.

“That is all we ask.

“If you go on one last week, but how many have there been? If there is one in however many games since the last one.

“Pat Carrigan doesn’t go out on the field to break Hastings’ legs, they are an accident.

“I don’t see it as a real big issue in the game, but I understand that it can injure people, but there hasn’t been a whole heap this year I don’t think.

“I just hope it gets judged on that and not on it being in the news a lot this week.”

It was otherwise a good night for the Storm as they celebrated Bromwich brothers, captain Jesse (290 games) and fellow forward Kenny (211), became the first pair of brothers in NRL history to combine for 500 games (501) with the one club .

Kenny produced a first half try to make it the perfect start to the night.

But it was a hat-trick hero Munster who kickstarted the Storm surges with two first-half tries before adding a third in the second half on a night of brilliance.

Returning to the full back position where he started his career, Munster was safe at the back, dazzled with the extra room to move to rack up 252 run meters and offered tremendous leadership with his voice.

Winger David Nofoaluma, loaned from the Wests Tigers, showed off his speed and elusiveness in an impressive first start with the Storm, while center Young Tonumaipea scored a try in his first game for the Storm since 2018.

Hooker Harry Grant and five-eighth Cooper Johns were also influential for the Storm.

The Storm made a barnstorming start with three tries in the opening 22 minutes.

Xavier Coates, returning from a long-term injury, scored one of the easier tries of his career after Grant flicked out a quick pass to find him unattended in the corner.

Munster rose into the night sky to catch, spin and make his way across the line, before Kenny Bromwich got his try burrowing under Titans defenders Phillip Sami and David Fifita.

It would be a horror night for the Titans after hooker Aaron Booth succumbed to a knee injury.

The 26-year-old had to be helped off the ground by the trainers against his former club after his leg collapsed while attempting to tackle Johns.

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Categories
US

Kamala Harris labeled hypocrite over Brittney Griner comments

Kamala Harris labeled hypocrite over Brittney Griner comments

Vice President Kamala Harris was accused of hypocrisy after she decried Brittney Griner’s conviction by Russia on cannabis smuggling charges — despite Harris prosecuting thousands of similar marijuana possession cases in her earlier career as a prosecutor.

Griner, 31, was sentenced on Thursday to nine years in prison after she admitted to bringing vape cartridges containing cannabis oil into the country. The WNBA star said she had been prescribed the oil to help relieve pain related to her chronic injuries and had accidentally packed them in her luggage.

The verdict was met with universal condemnation from US diplomats and government officials, led by President Biden, who called the sentence “unacceptable” and demanded that Russia release both Griner and a second jailed American, Paul Whelan, “immediately.”

Harris released a separate statement on Twitter condemning Griner’s conviction.

VP Kamala Harris has been labeled a hypocrite for condemning Brittney Griner's cannabis conviction in Russia, despite overseeing thousands of marijuana possession cases as a prosecutor.
VP Kamala Harris has been labeled a hypocrite for condemning Brittney Griner’s cannabis conviction in Russia, despite overseeing thousands of marijuana possession cases as a prosecutor.
AP
Griner was found guilty of smuggling cannabis into Russia and was sentenced to nine years in prison.
Griner was found guilty of smuggling cannabis into Russia and was sentenced to nine years in prison.
ZUMAPRESS.com

“With today’s sentencing, Russia continues its wrongful detention of Brittney Griner. She should be released immediately,” Harris wrote. “@POTUS and I, and our entire Administration, are working every day to reunite Brittney, as well as Paul Whelan, with loved ones who miss each of them dearly.”

But Harris’ many critics were quick to point out that while serving as both San Francisco’s district attorney and California’s attorney general, she oversaw thousands of marijuana-related prosecutions and was an outspoken critic of pot legalization, as the Daily Mail first reported.

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Brittney Griner sentenced to 9 years for cannabis possession in Russia

“Brittney Griner got 9 years for drug possession in Russia… which sounds like most of the criminal sentences Kamala Harris got people for the same thing when she was attorney general of California,” author Tim Young tweeted.

Another commenter wrote: “LMAO, didn’t U lock up as—load of people for weed? Then bragged about it, and went on to say you smoked weed in college listening to Tupac and snoop before they cut their first albums?”

A third smoked in the same vein: “You locked up people for possession of marijuana. And you’re only condemning this because the US cannot profit from her incarceration of her in Russia.

The San Jose Mercury News reported in 2019 that during Harris’ tenure as San Francisco’s top prosecutor between 2004-2010, her office handled more than 1,900 marijuana convictions — although it has been pointed out that most of those arrested for low-level possession were spared prison time, and only a few dozen were incarcerated.

Harris was elected the Golden State’s attorney general in 2011 and had a further 1,970 people locked up for marijuana offenses on her watch, according to an investigation by the Washington Free Beacon, a conservative publication.

Harris also vocally opposed California’s marijuana legalization ballot initiative, which ultimately passed in 2016.

She only threw her support behind legalization around 2018, even endorsing a bill which would have removed cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act, reported Forbes. She also wrote a book in which she argued for the decriminalization of cannabis.

By the time Harris radically changed her stance on marijuana, there was already talk of her running for president.

Harris famously sparred with Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard during a Democratic presidential debate in 2019 after Gabbard brought up her record of throwing people in prison for marijuana possession.

“She put over 1,500 people in jail for marijuana violations and then laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana,” Gabbard said, referring to Harris’ interview with the radio show “The Breakfast Club.”

In that sitdown, the White House contender — and former prosecutor — admitted with a laugh that she had smoked marijuana in college, saying: “I have. And I inhaled—I did inhale. It was a long time ago. But, yes.”

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