Author: News Desk

Paris : Organizers of the 2024 Paris Olympics say they will use the Eiffel Tower to unfurl “the biggest flag ever flown” on Sunday during the closing ceremony in Tokyo. Paris organizing committee president Tony Estanguet talked about the plan in Tokyo to promote the formal handover on Sunday to the next Summer Games host, reports AP. A giant flag had a test flight from the iconic Parisian landmark two months ago, though the exact reason was not explained then. The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, is in Tokyo to take part in the traditional handover during the closing ceremony.

Australia : Australia’s second-largest city, Melbourne, went into a sixth lockdown on Thursday, with a state government leader blaming the nation’s slow Covid-19 vaccination rollout. Melbourne joins Sydney and Brisbane, Australia’s most populous and third-most populous cities respectively, in locking down due to the spread of the highly contagious delta variant. Melbourne and surrounding Victoria state will lock down for seven weeks after eight new infections were detected in the city, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said. Andrews gave less than four hours’ notice that the state would lock down from 8 p.m. He said his government had no other choice because only 20% of Australian…

UK : Premier League champion Manchester City broke the British transfer fee record on Thursday to sign midfielder Jack Grealish from Aston Villa. City reportedly paid a fee of 100 million pounds ($139 million) — the most ever by a Premier League club. The 25-year-old Grealish signed a six-year contract, reports AP. The previous record fee was the 105 million euros ($124 million) that Manchester United paid Juventus for midfielder Paul Pogba in 2016. The Birmingham-born Grealish had spent his whole career with Villa, with one season on loan to lower-tier Notts County in 2013-14, and now joins a formidable…

Bahrain :  Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Women (SCW), Hala Al Ansari, welcomed the Bahrain Development Bank (BDB)’s assignment of Bahrain Real Estate Investment Company (Edamah) to develop the Bahraini Women Development Center (Riyadat), a cooperation that comes within the framework of close relationship between SCW, BDB and Edamah Company. The aim is to renew and upgrade the work of the center to turn it into a comprehensive one for creativity and innovation in the field of entrepreneurship. The move also seeks to raise the level of competitiveness of Bahraini women in economic participation. This came during the…

Bahrain : Bahrain’s Civil Aviation Affairs has updated the Kingdom’s Red List countries, in line with directives issued by the Government Executive Committee in response to recommendations made by the National Medical Taskforce for Combatting the Coronavirus (COVID-19). The latest update includes the addition of Georgia, Ukraine, and the Republic of Malawi to the Red List, effective 12 August 2021. Red List countries: • People’s Republic of Bangladesh • Republic of India • Islamic Republic of Pakistan • Islamic Republic of Iran • Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka • The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal • Republic of Indonesia…

China : China’s Quan Hongchan, who at age 14 is the country’s youngest athlete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, saw off compatriot Chen Yuxi to secure a stunning gold in women’s 10 meter platform diving on Thursday. The diving sensation produced two perfect-10 dives in a dominant display. Quan becomes the second-youngest female ever to win gold in the event after her compatriot Fu Mingxia took the title at the 1992 Barcelona Games at the age of just 13. Quan’s victory on Thursday extends China’s dominance in women’s diving. China has now claimed gold in all women’s diving events at…

Tokyo : The concerns of most 14-year-old’s typically stretch from school to social encounters. Not for Quan Hongchan though. The 14-year-old diving sensation — China’s youngest athlete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics — won a stunning gold medal in the women’s 10 meter platform diving on Thursday. Afterwards, she admitted the nerves of the occasion affected her slightly. “I was a little nervous, but not very, just a little bit,” she told reporters. She produced two perfect-10 dives in a dominant display. Quan becomes the second-youngest woman ever to win gold in the event after her compatriot Fu Mingxia took the…

California : A newly ignited fire in Northern California has forced thousands of residents to evacuate their homes as the US fights 96 large active fires that have scorched nearly two million acres. The River Fire, raging in Nevada and Placer counties in California, has destroyed or damaged an estimated 40 structures since it started Wednesday, CalFire Deputy Chief Jim Hudson said during a news briefing. It has already torn through 1,400 acres and was not contained at all Wednesday evening. In Placer County, nearly 2,400 people are under evacuation, Placer County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Nelson Resendes said. In Nevada County, at least…

Barcelona : Lionel Messi is leaving Barcelona, the Spanish club said on Thursday. “Despite club and player reaching an agreement and their clear intention to sign a new contract today, this cannot happen because of financial and structural obstacles,” Barcelona said in a statement on its website. The 34-year-old, who last month won his first Copa America with Argentina, admitted in the summer of 2020 that he had wanted to leave “all year” and claimed a clause in his contract meant he could do so for free, but in the end Messi was forced to stay as Barcelona disagreed and…

UK : British police have arrested 11 people across the UK in connection with episodes of racist abuse targeting England football players on social media following the team’s Euro 2020 final loss to Italy. The UK Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) launched a hate crime investigation after racist comments were directed at some of England’s Black players following the game on July 11. The unit said it received more than 600 reports from individuals, charities, clubs and other organizations. According to the UKFPU, 207 of these were found to be criminal in their nature. A large inflatable version of the trophy is seen on…