Follow the latest news on the 2024 Paris Olympics
St Lucia's Julien Alfred beat the challenge of favourite Sha'Carri Richardson to win the Olympic women's 100m gold medal on Saturday, etching her name into history by becoming the Caribbean nation's first ever medallist at the Games.
Alfred had never finished on the podium at a major outdoor championships prior to Saturday's final. However when the moment came, Alfred ran a superb race to win in 10.72sec after sudden rain swept Paris. USA's Richardson took silver in 10.87sec and compatriot Melissa Jefferson won bronze in 10.92sec.
Richardson, the reigning world champion over 100m, had been backed to become the first American to win the coveted Olympic crown since Gail Devers in 1996.
But the 24-year-old Texan found herself outpaced by Alfred who led from start to finish after exploding out of the blocks at a rainswept Stade de France.
Alfred's gold gave St. Lucia their first ever medal of any colour at an Olympics. The island nation only began competing at the Games in 1996. She won gold in front of 69,000 spectators, just 110,000 less than the population of St Lucia.
It was an incredible performance by Alfred who had fired a warning shot to Richardson in the semi-finals, finishing ahead of the American in 10.89sec.
The semi-final proved to be an ominous portent for Richardson, who was slow out of the blocks and never looked like reeling in Alfred who could even afford to ease up as she crossed the line to clinch gold.
There was major incident ahead of the final as Jamaican double champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce missed her 100m semi-final.
Fraser-Pryce, competing at her fifth Games at the age of 37 and the winner of two golds, a silver and a bronze over 100m, had been due to run in the second heat but appeared as a "did not start" in the official start lists.
Some reports suggested she had picked up an injury.
“That’s pretty surprising to me. I don’t know what happened," her Jamaican teammate Tia Clayton said.
Meanwhile, Femke Bol ran a stunning last lap to lead the Netherlands to victory in the 4x400m mixed relay.
Bol got the baton in fourth place, around 20m behind the leading Americans, but closed the gap in a spectacular 47.93-second leg before passing American Kaylyn Brown just before the finish line.
The Dutch team of Eugene Omalla, Lieke Klaver, Isaya Klein Ikkink and Bol clocked three minutes 7.43 seconds, missing the world record time the Americans set in Friday's heats by just two-hundredths of a second.
USA took silver in 3:07.74 and Britain claimed bronze in 3:08.01.
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Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Can NRIs vote in the election?
Indians residing overseas cannot cast their ballot abroad
Non-resident Indians or NRIs can vote only by going to a polling booth in their home constituency
There are about 3.1 million NRIs living overseas
Indians have urged political parties to extend the right to vote to citizens residing overseas
A committee of the Election Commission of India approved of proxy voting for non-resident Indians
Proxy voting means that a person can authorise someone residing in the same polling booth area to cast a vote on his behalf.
This option is currently available for the armed forces, police and government officials posted outside India
A bill was passed in the lower house of India’s parliament or the Lok Sabha to extend proxy voting to non-resident Indians
However, this did not come before the upper house or Rajya Sabha and has lapsed
The issue of NRI voting draws a huge amount of interest in India and overseas
Over the past few months, Indians have received messages on mobile phones and on social media claiming that NRIs can cast their votes online
The Election Commission of India then clarified that NRIs could not vote online
The Election Commission lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police asking it to clamp down on the people spreading misinformation
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
