Iga Swiatek ruthlessly took advantage of Amanda Anisimova's nerves to win her maiden Wimbledon title and inflict the heaviest women's final defeat at the All England Club in more than a century.

Both players were appearing in their first Wimbledon final but Poland's Swiatek looked more assured from the very start as she stormed to a 6-0 6-0 victory over the American in just 57 minutes to win a sixth Grand Slam title.

No woman had won a Wimbledon final with a double bagel - the name given to a victory without dropping a game - since Dorothea Lambert Chambers in 1911.

"It seems super surreal," said 24-year-old Swiatek, whose five previous major titles came on clay or hard courts and who has won every Slam final she has contested.

"Honestly, I didn't even dream of winning Wimbledon because it was way too far.

"I feel like I'm an experienced player, having won other Slams, but I didn't expect this."

Woody

Former Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla, 40, has signed a new one-year contract with boyhood club Real Oviedo as they prepare to return to the Spanish top flight.

Cazorla who returned to the club 2023, played a key role last season as Oviedo won promotion to La Liga for the first time in 24 years.

He scored the decisive goal in the La Liga 2 play-off semi-final tie against Almeria, coming off the bench to convert a free-kick and secure a 3-2 aggregate victory.

The former Spain international then scored a penalty in the second leg of the final as they beat CD Mirandes in extra time.

"With this renewal, Santi Cazorla, a symbol and emblem of Oviedo, proves that dreams, when pursued with the heart, come true," the Asturian club said.

"Real Oviedo secures the leadership of a footballer who embodies the Club's values like few others, both on and off the field."

Cazorla who turns 41 in December, scored five goals and registered five assists in 35 games last season.

A two-time European champion with Spain, the midfielder spent six years at Arsenal and made 180 appearances before leaving in 2018.

He suffered an Achilles injury in October 2016, going on to have 11 operations to cure the problem.

One of the operations led to gangrene with doctors telling Cazorla he should be satisfied to walk again, never mind play.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOC9d17vASc

Sheffield Wednesday Supporters' Trust has raised £5,000 for staff who have yet to receive their wages amid the club's financial woes.

Players and staff were not paid on time or in full in either May or June and as a result the Championship club has been placed under transfer embargo.

Owner Dejphon Chansiri, who has offered no official explanation for the current crisis, has reportedly reached a deal to sell the club.

The club has been contacted for comment.

The situation at the club has been described as "shocking" and "not tolerable" by the head of the Professional Footballers' Association, Maheta Molango.

Ian Bennett, chairman of the supporters' trust, described the situation as "appalling" and said the money would be distributed to the club's "lower-paid staff".

Mr Bennett said fans were worried about the club's future and were working with the Trussell Trust on how to distribute the money.

"We're hoping we can announce something and get it to the people that deserve it," he said.

"Wednesday are a massive, massive fan base and part of the community and the people who work at the club are part of that.

"The ones who are really affected are the ones who are lower paid and that's who we are going to try and help to prove that we're all in it together."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQcD7nwziX0

From drugs bans to Wimbledon champions - how did we get here?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/articles/c93kxgy33w1o

A Manchester United fan has admitted assaulting Manchester City player Jack Grealish by slapping his face after he claimed the footballer insulted him.

Alfie Holt, 20, pleaded guilty to a single count of assault on Grealish, who he said had called him ugly and a swear word after the Manchester Derby on 6 April, Manchester Magistrates' Court heard.

Holt, a Manchester United season ticket holder in the Stretford End, was given a three-year Football Banning Order and ordered to pay a £120 fine.

The defendant, of Droylsden, Tameside, told the court: "I did not expect [Grealish] to say what he said to me and I have reacted. I regret it. That's it."

Shazia Aslam, prosecuting, told the court Grealish was leaving the field after the Manchester Derby at Old Trafford, which was always a "contentious affair".

"Both sets of fans were very vocal, shouting abusive comments to rival players," Ms Aslam said.

The court heard that as players left the field, heading for the tunnel, Holt stood very close by, shouting abuse at City players.

Grealish then heard Holt's comments and walked back towards him before they had an "exchange of words", she said.

"As the complainant walks away, the defendant slaps the complainant across the face."

She said there was no injury and Holt had been arrested outside the stadium.

In a witness statement, Grealish told police he could not hear what the defendant was shouting due to the crowd noise, so he walked towards him and tried to engage in conversation and leaned in to speak to him.

He said he was still unable to hear, so he moved to walk away when he was slapped.

comment by BraveheartTyke (U6173)
posted 30 minutes ago
A Manchester United fan has admitted assaulting Manchester City player Jack Grealish by slapping his face after he claimed the footballer insulted him.

Alfie Holt, 20, pleaded guilty to a single count of assault on Grealish, who he said had called him ugly and a swear word after the Manchester Derby on 6 April, Manchester Magistrates' Court heard.

Holt, a Manchester United season ticket holder in the Stretford End, was given a three-year Football Banning Order and ordered to pay a £120 fine.

The defendant, of Droylsden, Tameside, told the court: "I did not expect [Grealish] to say what he said to me and I have reacted. I regret it. That's it."

Shazia Aslam, prosecuting, told the court Grealish was leaving the field after the Manchester Derby at Old Trafford, which was always a "contentious affair".

"Both sets of fans were very vocal, shouting abusive comments to rival players," Ms Aslam said.

The court heard that as players left the field, heading for the tunnel, Holt stood very close by, shouting abuse at City players.

Grealish then heard Holt's comments and walked back towards him before they had an "exchange of words", she said.

"As the complainant walks away, the defendant slaps the complainant across the face."

She said there was no injury and Holt had been arrested outside the stadium.

In a witness statement, Grealish told police he could not hear what the defendant was shouting due to the crowd noise, so he walked towards him and tried to engage in conversation and leaned in to speak to him.

He said he was still unable to hear, so he moved to walk away when he was slapped.
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yer rite

Jake the Liar

John Torode has been sacked as MasterChef presenter after an allegation against him using "an extremely offensive racist term" was upheld.

On Monday, the TV chef said he had "no recollection" of the incident, adding: "I do not believe that it happened."

But in a statement on Tuesday, the show's production company Banijay UK said it and the BBC "are agreed" that his contract on the show will not be renewed.

It plunges the BBC cooking show into a deeper crisis, after more than 40 separate allegations against Torode's co-host Gregg Wallace were also upheld as part of an inquiry into his conduct.

The controversy over MasterChef started last year, when BBC News first revealed claims of inappropriate sexual language against Wallace.

Wallace was sacked last week as dozens more people came forward to BBC News with allegations against him. He has always denied the claims.

A BBC spokesperson said: "John Torode has identified himself as having an upheld allegation of using racist language against him.

"This allegation - which involves an extremely offensive racist term being used in the workplace - was investigated and substantiated by the independent investigation led by the law firm, Lewis Silkin.

"John Torode denies the allegation. He has stated he has no recollection of the alleged incident and does not believe that it happened. He also says that any racial language is wholly unacceptable in any environment.

"The BBC takes this upheld finding extremely seriously. We will not tolerate racist language of any kind and, as we have already said, we told Banijay UK, the makers of MasterChef, that action must be taken. John Torode's contract on MasterChef will not be renewed."

Co-op boss confirms all 6.5m members had data stolen

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cql0ple066po

The disappearance of British backpacker Peter Falconio, who was ambushed in the Australian outback in 2001, made headlines around the world.

His girlfriend Joanne Lees escaped and Bradley Murdoch was found guilty of his murder in 2005, but he never revealed the location of Mr Falconio's remains.

Murdoch has now died, and always denied any involvement in the incident, as the BBC's Phil Mercer explains.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/cvgnl4jr70do

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lohCraqKR_Y

Liverpool are in advanced talks to sign Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike in a deal worth more than £70m.

Multiple sources have indicated that Liverpool aim to have the transfer wrapped up by this weekend.

Newcastle have had a £70m offer for Ekitike rejected by Frankfurt, with Liverpool's offer expected to surpass it.

Ekitike is open to joining the Premier League champions, who want to sign a central striker.

The 23-year-old scored 15 goals in 31 starts as Frankfurt finished third in the Bundesliga last term.

However, Ekitike is a provider as well as a scorer, with his eight assists ranking him within the top 6% among forwards for creating chances in Germany last season.

Ekitike registered 117 shots on goal in the Bundesliga last term - more than any other player.

His expected goals figure of 21.6 was the league's second highest.

Liverpool have also shown a major interest in Newcastle striker Alexander Isak, but the Magpies are adamant the Swede is not for sale at any price.

Liverpool have signed midfielder Florian Wirtz in a potential British record £116m deal this summer and paid £40m and £30m respectively for full-backs Milos Kerkez wand Jeremie Frimpong.

Newcastle are expected to accelerate their interest in Brentford striker Yoane Wissa within the next 24 hours after their own attempts to land Ekitike slowed.

Bielby

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f43nR8Wu_1Y

Bravery award for man, 84, who fought off mugger

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3074rny4vyo

England cruised past the United States in a match in Washington that had almost two hours of delays because of lightning strikes in the area.

Kick-off in the US capital was held up by an hour, with play in the one-off Test starting at 18:05 local time (23:05 BST) on Saturday.

England led 14-0 in the 29th minute when more reports of bad weather forced Scottish referee Sam Grove-White to take the players off the field for a further 40 minutes.

On both occasions, supporters inside the 20,000-capacity Audi Field in Washington were told to "exit the seating bowl" and "seek shelter in the concourse" on a message on the stadium's video screen.

Despite the weather delays, England still managed to shine, scoring six tries to end their tour of Argentina and the United States with a perfect three-win record.

Exit polls from an election in Japan project the ruling coalition is set to lose its majority, putting the country's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba under immense political pressure.

Voters headed to the polls earlier on Sunday for the tightly-contested upper house election, being held amid public frustration over rising prices and the threat of US tariffs.

Having already lost its majority in Japan's more powerful lower house, defeat for the coalition in the upper house would critically undermine its influence over policymaking and could prompt Ishiba to quit less than a year after he was elected.

The coalition needs 50 seats to retain control of the 248-seat upper chamber - with an exit poll from public broadcaster NHK projecting them to win between 32 and 51.

Earlier polls had indicated that Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its junior partner Komeito were at risk of losing their majority, having already lost their majority in Japan's more powerful lower house.

On Sunday, NHK projected it "may be difficult for the ruling coalition to maintain their majority".

Despite the projection his coalition would lose the upper house, Ishiba told a news conference at his party's headquarters in Tokyo that he intended to remain as prime minister.

"We are engaged in extremely critical tariff negotiations with the United States...we must never ruin these negotiations," he said.

Half of the seats in the upper chamber were being voted on in Sunday's election, with members elected for six-year terms.

If the coalition takes home fewer than 46 seats, it would mark its worst performance since it was formed in 1999.

Ishiba's centre-right party has governed Japan almost continuously since 1955, albeit with frequent changes of leader.

At least 17 dead in South Korea floods and landslides

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwygzxd8g9jo

People retiring in 2050 will be worse off than pensioners today, the government has warned, unless action is taken to boost retirement savings.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is reviving the Pensions Commission, which first reported nearly 20 years ago, to look at how to tackle the issue.

Almost half of working-age adults are not putting any money into a private pension at all, with low earners and the self-employed less likely to be pension saving, the DWP said.

The shortfall is also worse among women and some ethnic groups, with only one-in-four people of Pakistani or Bangladeshi background saving in a private pension.

People drawing their pension 25 years from now are set to be £800 or 8% worse off per year than their counterparts today, the department said, with four in 10 people currently not saving enough for their retirement.

Rather than launching a new commission from scratch, the government said it was reviving the "landmark" Turner Pension Commission which reported in 2006, under the last Labour government, and led to the roll-out of automatic enrolment into pension saving. As a result 88% of eligible employees are now saving, up from 55% in 2012, the DWP said.

Plans to almost triple the size of the Wimbledon tennis site are set to proceed after a campaign group's legal challenge against the decision to grant planning permission was dismissed by a High Court judge.

The proposal which had been approved by the Greater London Authority (GLA) includes thirty-eight new tennis courts and an 8-thousand seat stadium.

Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) had argued in court the development on the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club in west London was unlawful as the proposed land was protected.

Deborah Jevans, chairwoman of the All England Club, said she was "delighted" with the decision while the SWP indicated it may challenge the ruling.

Barristers for SWP told the High Court earlier this month that the decision to approve the plans was "irrational" and should be quashed, as Wimbledon Park - a Grade II*-listed heritage site partly designed by Lancelot "Capability" Brown - was covered by restrictions on how it could be used.

The GLA and the All England Club defended the challenge, with the court told that the decision was a "planning judgment properly exercised" and that the restrictions were not "material".

Comment deleted by Article Creator

July 22: Feast day of Saint Mary Magdalene (Christianity)