US Open 2018: Naomi Osaka beats Lesia Tsurenko to reach her first Grand Slam semi-final
Naomi Osaka reached her first Grand Slam semi-final with a dominant victory over Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko at the US Open.
The 20-year-old dropped just two games winning 6-1 6-1 against her unseeded opponent in 58 minutes.
She becomes the first Japanese woman to reach a Grand Slam semi-final since Kimiko Date at Wimbledon in 1996.
"I was freaking out inside," Osaka said. "My entire body was shaking, so I'm glad I was able to play well."
Both Osaka and Tsurenko were competing in their first Slam quarter-final but the Ukrainian failed to settle and looked physically drained on Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Osaka, who is regarded as one of the best young players in the game, broke in Tsurenko's first service game and powered to the first set in 26 minutes before racing into a 4-0 lead in the second set.
Tsurenko then held serve and brought up three break points in the following game but failed to convert and double-faulted twice in the final game to hand Osaka victory.
Osaka will play American Madison Keys or Spain's Carla Suarez Navarro in the last four.
Nicki Minaj wanted to punch Travis Scott in the face over album battle
It's fair to say Nicki Minaj isn't happy fellow rapper Travis Scott beat her to the top spot in the US album charts.
In an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Ellen congratulated Nicki on the success of her new album Queen, but added Nicki seemed "upset" about going in at number 2, behind Travis.
"Why do people say things like 'upset' or angry'? When someone says how they feel, they're not always upset or angry," Nicki bemoaned.
"Well, what were you feeling?" Ellen asked, to which Nicki replied, "I felt like I wanted to punch him in his [bleep] face!"
Nicki Minaj doesn't pull any punches (literally) when it comes to talking about her recent chart battle while Kanye just wants to be cool with Drake and women dominate the AIM awards.
Mercedes takes on Tesla with fully-electric SUV
German carmaker Mercedes-Benz has unveiled its first fully-electric SUV, in a bid to take on US rival Tesla.
The subsidiary of Daimler says the EQC, which has two electric motors, will have a range of more than 450km.
It will start rolling off production lines at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Bremen in 2019.
The firm is investing more than €10bn (£9bn) in the expansion of its electric range, and more than €1bn in battery production.
The new SUV is the first model in a range of ten EQ cars that Mercedes plans to launch by 2022.
With bans on combustion engines looming in the UK and France, and the establishment of a low-emission zones in cities across Europe, major car firms have been scrambling to enter the electric vehicle market.
Until recently, the California-based Tesla, which is struggling to meet production targets and burning through cash, had little competition.
Now, German brands Porsche and Audi are scheduled to produce luxury electric cars, as is Britain's Jaguar.
Facebook, Twitter 'too slow' to tackle meddling
Facebook and Twitter have said that they took too long to tackle foreign campaigns to meddle in US elections.
Responding to lawmakers, Facebook's chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said the social network was "too slow" to act on election interference.
Twitter's chief executive Jack Dorsey said his platform was "unprepared and ill-equipped" for the "weaponisation" of debate.
Google did not show up to the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing.
Opening the hearing, Democratic senator Mark Warner said he was "deeply disappointed" that Google "chose not to send its own top corporate leadership".
Nigeria slaps $2bn bill on phone giant MTN
Nigeria has asked mobile phone operator MTN to pay a $2bn tax bill, the company says.
MTN challenged the figure, saying it related to activities over the past decade. It said it had settled the bill with a $700m payment.
The tax demand is the latest in a series of disputes between MTN and Nigeria, the company's largest market.
In 2016 it agreed to pay Nigeria $1.7bn over failing to disconnect unregistered Sim cards.
Last week, Nigeria's Central Bank ordered the company to repatriate $8bn it said had been taken out of the country illegally.
MTN, Africa's largest mobile phone company, said the tax bill had emerged from an investigation by Nigeria's attorney general and related to "the importation of foreign equipment and payments to foreign suppliers over the last 10 years".
But, it added, "MTN Nigeria believes it has fully settled all amounts owing under the taxes in question".
Shares in the company on the Johannesburg stock exchange fell sharply on Tuesday's news, reaching a low of almost 10 years.
Ayanna Pressley: African-American woman wins Massachusetts primary
yanna Pressley is set to become the first African-American woman elected to the US Congress in Massachusetts, following a primary upset.
The 44-year-old Boston city councillor beat House veteran Michael Capuano to secure the Democratic nomination.
She will not face a Republican opponent in November's mid-term election.
It is the latest in a series of victories for progressive, young and minority candidates representing the opposition party.
2018 has also seen a historic amount of female candidates run for Democratic nominations.
In a speech after her win, Ms Pressley said: "Change is coming and the future belongs to all of us."
She also referred to President Donald Trump as "a racist, misogynist, truly empathy bankrupt man" and hit out at wealth inequality in her seventh congressional district.
It is the only district in her state to have a majority non-white population.
An emotional video of her finding out she had won has been shared thousands of times online.
Her 66-year-old opponent has represented the district for two decades, and had not faced a primary challenger since he first won the nomination in 1998.
TROPICAL STORM FLORENCE WEDNESDAY, 5TH SEPTEMBER, 2018
FLORENCE A LITTLE STRONGER…MOVING OVER THE OPEN ATLANTIC…
LOCATION: NEAR LATITUDE 21.4°NORTH AND LONGITUDE 44.8° WEST OR ABOUT 1210 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF THE NORTHERN LEEWARD ISLANDS.
PRESENT MOVEMENT: NORTHWEST NEAR 13 MILES PER HOUR.
AT 5AM DST, THE CENTER OF HURRICANE FLORENCE WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 21.4°NORTH AND LONGITUDE 44.8° WEST OR ABOUT 1210 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF THE NORTHERN LEEWARD ISLANDS. FLORENCE IS TEMPORARILY MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHWEST NEAR 13 MILES PER HOUR. A TURN BACK TOWARD THE WEST-NORTHWEST IS EXPECTED LATER TODAY, AND THIS GENERAL MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE WITH FLORENCE’S FORWARD SPEED DECREASING BY THE WEEKEND.
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS HAVE INCREASED TO NEAR 105 MILES PER HOUR (MPH) WITH HIGHER GUSTS. A GRADUAL WEAKENING TREND IS FORECAST TO BEGIN TONIGHT AND CONTINUE THROUGH FRIDAY. AFTER THAT TIME, FLORENCE IS FORECAST TO RESTRENGTHEN THROUGH THE WEEKEND.
TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
Florence is several hundred miles away from the TCI. Forecasters have indicated that the system is currently temporarily moving towards the northwest, a turn back towards the west-northwest is expected later today and this motion is expected to continue through today with a decreased in forward speed by weekend. As this information is based on current projections, Florence poses no threat to the Turks and Caicos Islands at this time, residents should continue to monitor Florence. The Department of Disaster Management and Emergencies (DDME) will continue to monitor and provide information of any changes.
The next advisory issued on Florence by the DDME will be at 6:00am. If it appears Florence may pose an immediate threat to the TCI, advisories will be issued in keeping with those of the Bahamas Department of Meteorology Forecast Office Section.
ATTORNEY GENERAL’S CHAMBERS RELEASES UPDATED GUIDELINES ON REQUESTS FOR INTERNATIONAL LEGAL ASSISTANCE 2018
The Attorney General’s Chambers has produced its second edition of the Guidelines on Requests for International Legal Assistance.
The Guidelines on Requests for International Legal Assistance aims at providing comprehensive guidance on the different types of legal assistance available in the TCI, jurisdiction. The 2nd Edition addresses information gaps and is updated to reflect legislative changes made since 2014.
Announcing the release of the Guidelines on Requests for International Legal Assistance, the Attorney General Hon. Rhondalee Braithwaite Knowles OBE said; “This is an important document as it signals to other countries that there are systems in place in the Turks and Caicos Islands for the processing of legal assistance requests which allow us to effectively cooperate internationally with other countries. It also demonstrates our commitment to keeping such guidance updated to better assist requesting countries in obtaining international mutual legal assistance from the Turks and Caicos Islands.”
The Attorney General acknowledged with special thanks Principal Crown Counsel, International Mrs. Khalila Astwood-Tatem and Senior Crown Counsel, International Mrs. Shayone Handfield-Gardiner of the International Division of the Attorney General’s Chambers for their work on these guidelines.
For more information a copy of the guidelines, please contact the Turks and Caicos Islands’ Attorney General Chambers at: kwastwood-dorsett@gov.tc. The updated guidelines will be available on the Attorney General’s Chambers www.gov.tc/agc
THE UWI OPEN CAMPUS TO RE-ESTABLISH SITE IN THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
The University of the West Indies (UWI) Open Campus is partnering with the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) to re-establish a physical presence in the territory. The re-launch of the UWI Open Campus Turks and Caicos Site is an initiative of the TCI Ministry of Education and comes in the wake of an increasing number of TCI residents in the UWI’s online programmes.
The partnership will see the re-opening of the UWI Open Campus TCI in Providenciales following the closure of the Site in Grand Turk some years ago. The re-introduction of the Site will allow for ease of access to the University’s online degree programmes, as well as its Continuing and Professional Education programmes. It will also serve to strengthen the University’s longstanding bonds with the Turks and Caicos Islands Community College. The initiative is part of the Government’s plan to ensure that Turks and Caicos Islanders who may be constrained by economic or social responsibilities can access tertiary education through online/face to face modalities within the borders of the country. The Government strongly believes that the partnership with the UWI via the re-establishment of an Open Campus site in the Turks and Caicos Islands will achieve this goal.
According to the Honourable Minister of Education, Youth, Culture and Library Services, Mrs. Karen Malcolm; “While education has inherent value beyond the economic function, it is essential for an individual to have a productive and meaningful career. This depends on the opportunities created in the economy. The more vibrant and sophisticated the economy, the more individuals can fulfil their aspirations, and the more governments will have the resources to invest further in education.”
“This partnership between the Turks and Caicos Islands Government and the UWI Open Campus will help many realize their dreams and permit every native of the Turks and Caicos Islands an opportunity to obtain a degree at the tertiary level. Given that most people would love the opportunity to obtain their degree but they do not have the time; they now have access to online studies in the comfort of their own home.”
Pro Vice Chancellor and Principal of the UWI Open Campus, Dr. Luz Longsworth stated; “The University is pleased to collaborate with the Government of the TCI to re-launch the local Site. This initiative is particularly significant because it comes during the University’s 70th Anniversary celebrations and at a time when the University is expanding its operations around the globe.”
“As the fourth Campus of the UWI we are charged with meeting the needs of the non-campus territories of the region. We are therefore delighted to re-establish our physical presence in the Turks and Caicos Islands to meet the growing needs of our TCI current and potential students, as well as the society at large. The Government of the TCI has been most welcoming and we look forward to realising this important initiative.”
The ongoing discussions have included a number of virtual meetings with the Honourable Minister and other Education officials, as well as a recent site inspection visit by Manager for the UWI Open Campus British Overseas Territories, Dr. Phyllis Fleming-Banks.
About The UWI
Since its inception in 1948, The University of the West Indies (UWI) has evolved from a fledgling college in Jamaica with 33 students to a full-fledged, regional University with well over 40,000 students. Today, UWI is the largest, most longstanding higher education provider in the Commonwealth Caribbean, with four campuses in Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Open Campus. The UWI has faculty and students from more than 40 countries and collaborative links with 160 universities globally; it offers undergraduate and postgraduate degree options in Food & Agriculture, Engineering, Humanities & Education, Law, Medical Sciences, Science and Technology and Social Sciences. UWI’s seven priority focal areas are linked closely to the priorities identified by CARICOM and take into account such over-arching areas of concern to the region as environmental issues, health and wellness, gender equity and the critical importance of innovation. Website: www.uwi.edu
Nike suffers #justburnit backlash over advertising campaign
Critics have burned Nike trainers and clothing in protest at Colin Kaepernick's appointment as the face of the brand's new advertising campaign.
The American football quarterback, 30, protested against racial injustice and police brutality by kneeling during the US national anthem.
In announcing the deal, Nike said he was "one of the most inspirational athletes of this generation".
But opponents took to social media, promising to destroy Nike products.
On Twitter, they hit out at the deal using the hashtag #JustBurnIt - a play on Nike's slogan 'Just Do It' - which trended on Twitter alongside #BoycottNike.
According to social media analysis site Spredfast, there were more than 800 tweets using the hashtag #JustBurnIt in a matter of hours on Tuesday morning.
Andrew H. Scott, the mayor of Kentucky city Coal Run, said he was "officially done" with Nike and the NFL and asked Nike to cancel an order, while several videos showed Nike trainers being burned.
Country singer John Rich tweeted a photo of a pair of Nike socks with the brand's swoosh logo cut off.
However, another Twitter user Teri Shockey countered: "To everyone who is planning to #JustBurnIt, might I suggest you donate your @Nike merch instead? Plenty of people in need, including vets and families of active duty military, would be more than grateful to wear it. #JustDoIt"
However, there has been an outpouring of support for ostracised former San Francisco 49ers player Kaepernick, who first protested by sitting during the national anthem in August 2016, later opting to kneel.
Other players followed suit, leading to criticism from President Donald Trump.
Kaepernick, who has received Amnesty International's highest honour, has been without a team since he opted out of his contract with the 49ers in March 2017.
"Colin Kaepernick drew our collective attention to the problem of continued racial injustice in America," said former CIA director John Brennan on Twitter.
"He did so not to disrespect our flag but to give meaning to the words of the preamble of our Constitution-'in order to form a more perfect union.' Well done, Colin, well done."
Nike's new advertising campaign, celebrating the 30th anniversary of its 'Just Do It' slogan, also includes ads featuring tennis star Serena Williams, New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr and Seattle Seahawks rookie linebacker Shaquem Griffin.