Most world title wins wrestling

PARIS: New Zealand will dive straight into the deep end when they open their bid for a fourth Rugby World Cup title against hosts France in the opening game of the 2023 tournament, according to the fixture schedule revealed on Friday (Feb 26). The All Blacks, champions in 1987, 2011 and 2015, face Les Bleus at the Stade de France in Paris on Sep 8, the first day of the gruelling seven-week tournament. The final will be at the Stade de France on Oct 28. New Zealand and France are in Pool A along with Six Nations whipping boys Italy and two qualifiers - one from the Americas and one from Africa - and are expected to comfortably make the quarter-finals. The winner of the group will face the runner-up of Pool B, a tough section which features defending champions South Africa, Ireland and Scotland. France and the All Blacks have met eight times at the World Cup. In 2011, New Zealand won their pool clash 37-17 before edging the final in Auckland 8-7. The French can boast … [Read more...] about All Blacks, France clash in heavyweight 2023 Rugby World Cup opener

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump's campaign on Monday asked a federal appeals court to revive a long-shot challenge to Pennsylvania's election results, saying officials should be halted from declaring President-elect Joe Biden as the state's winner. The campaign said a lower-court judge erred in dismissing the case outright, rather than review additional allegations the campaign had dropped from the case but wanted to restore. It said it never got a chance to litigate its "serious and well-founded claims" that Democratic officials schemed to ensure Biden's victory by counting potentially tens of thousands of defective mail ballots. Counties in Pennsylvania faced a Monday deadline for delivering election results to the state's top election official for certification, although some were expected to miss the target. Under Pennsylvania law, the candidate who wins the popular vote in the state is awarded all of its 20 Electoral College votes. The Democratic former vice president … [Read more...] about Trump campaign to ask appeals court to halt Biden win in Pennsylvania

SINGAPORE: It’s easy to think of climate change as a distant issue that would affect other countries, when Singapore, at first sight, does not seem prone to extreme weather events such as the recent flooding in China or bushfires in Australia . But most of us sat up when Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced a goal of spending at least S$100 billion for adaptation to rising sea levels at the National Day Rally in August 2019. And in Singapore’s urbanised and humid environment, increasing heat is a real health concern. His announcement framed further changes underscoring the looming climate emergency and the steady realisation that countries, communities and businesses must retool themselves for that future. The global financial community too, is grasping this new reality and its implications for investments. “Climate change has become a defining factor in companies’ long-term prospects … Every government, company, and shareholder must confront climate change” … [Read more...] about Commentary: Forces of climate action are reshaping finance in Singapore and around the world

NEW YORK CITY: Whether the storming of the US Capitol was an attempted coup, an insurrection or an assault on democracy is merely a question of semantics. What matters is that the violence was aimed at derailing a legitimate transition of power for the benefit and at the behest of a dangerous madman. President Donald Trump should now be removed from power, barred from public office and prosecuted for high crimes. READ: Commentary: Donald Trump, half of America’s fantasy hero After all, the events of Jan 6 may have been shocking, but they were not surprising. I and many other commentators had long warned that the 2020 election would bring civil unrest, violence, and attempts by Trump to remain in power illegally. Beyond his election-related crimes, Trump is also guilty of a reckless disregard for public health. He and his administration bear much of the blame for the massive COVID-19 death toll in the United States, which accounts for only 4 per cent of the global … [Read more...] about Commentary: America, the world’s new epicentre for political instability

MELBOURNE: Japan's Naomi Osaka beat Jennifer Brady in straight sets in the Australian Open final to win her fourth major title on Saturday (Feb 20). Osaka edged a tight first set and broke the American twice in the second to win 6-4, 6-3 in 77 minutes in front of thousands of fans at Rod Laver Arena. Third seed Osaka preserves her 100 per cent record in Grand Slam finals after winning the 2018 and 2020 US Opens and the 2019 title in Melbourne. "We played in the semis of the US Open a couple of months ago and I told everyone that you're going to be a problem," Osaka told Brady at the trophy presentation. "And I was right. It's really incredible to me to see your growth over the past few months, it's really cool for me to see." The 23-year-old, who becomes only the third player after Monica Seles and Roger Federer to win their first four major finals, will now rise to second in the world rankings. Osaka, rated as the world's top-earning female athlete, saved two … [Read more...] about Tennis: Japan’s Osaka beats Brady to win Australian Open final