FORMER Strictly pro James Jordan secretly lived apart from his wife Ola for months prior to their split.

Pals said he moved into a flat earlier this year close to the five-bedroom house the dancers once shared.

James, 48, is said to have “needed space” as he and Ola, 43, embarked on a trial separation after 22 years of marriage.

A source explained: “It was James’s decision to move out, he needed some space. It happened months ago. He has been holed up in a small flat in Kent.

“These past few months have been tough for James but he is trying to keep moving forward. Ola has been supporting him as best she can but their decision to end their marriage has been incredibly difficult for both of them.”

James was photographed looking downcast as he walked close to his flat last week, minus his wedding ring.

READ MORE ON JAMES OLA SPLIT

RING THE CHANGES

James Jordan ditches wedding ring after shock split from wife Ola

‘NOT IN A GOOD PLACE’

James and Ola Jordan break silence on split & confirm he’s left home

We revealed on Saturday how the couple, who have not been photographed together since last year, had split.

James, originally from Gillingham, and Polish-born Ola, who have a daughter, Ella, then released a joint statement confirming their break-up.

It read: “We’re taking some time apart as we work through very difficult personal challenges.

“James moved out of the family home some time ago. This has been an incredibly painful and emotional journey for us both and it certainly wasn’t an easy decision.”

It said James’s mental health “hasn’t been in a good place for quite some time”.

James added: “I’ve been struggling more than I’ve let people see and I’m taking the time I need to focus on getting myself into a healthier place, both for myself and for Ella.

“Neither of us is in a good place right now. We’re both doing our best to navigate one of the hardest chapters of our lives.”

James and Ola both joined Strictly in 2006.

James quit in 2013 with Ola leaving two years later, after winning the trophy in 2009 with Chris Hollins.

WASHINGTON — After a generation of comfortable Democratic majorities in the House, Republican congressmen seemed resigned to life in the minority–until Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and the Congressional Opportunity Society began using House rules to wage guerrilla war against the entrenched leadership.

Dismissed at first as gadflies and ideologues, the young Republicans gradually developed political muscles. Two landmark events marked their coming of age: the resignation of Speaker Jim Wright following Gingrich-backed charges of ethics violations, and the election of Gingrich as whip, the second-ranking post in the House minority leadership.

Gingrich’s rise to prominence coincided with a major change in Washington’s political climate. In the 1980s, Washington was a town with clearly marked ideological divides. Issues such as Nicaragua and abortion dominated the agenda; battle lines were clear. The 1990s look quite different. With communism in retreat, the old foreign-policy battles no longer seem so important. After 10 years of a GOP White House, conservatives seem less opposed to strong government, and liberals less committed to it.

In retrospect, Gingrich’s call for sanctions against South Africa’s minority-white government seems a turning point in the emergence of the still unsettled Washington picture. Here was a leading conservative taking a position closer to that of Jesse Jackson than Margaret Thatcher.

If Washington has changed as the result of Gingrich’s challenges, Gingrich is changing as he becomes part of the Washington Establishment he once scorned. Like many political challengers before him, Gingrich seems to be finding that Establishments aren’t so bad–once the club lets you in.

This shift may cause him trouble down the road–Hell hath no fury like a right-wing scorned–but for now Gingrich has the best of both worlds: the support of conservatives and, increasingly, the respect and even friendship of moderates and some liberals.

During a relaxed and casual meeting, Gingrich seemed eager to talk about history and ideas. At times he seemed more like a popular college history teacher–a job he once held–than a powerful member of the congressional leadership. He seems comfortable with himself and his ambitions; confident of making his mark and willing to run risks.

He also has a quality that is rarer in Washington than it should be. For all the huge egos in Washington, there are relatively few people who see themselves against the backdrop of history. Gingrich is one. Men like Theodore Roosevelt and Winston Churchill are often in his speech–perhaps this says something about the scale of his ambition. That both these men were mavericks who changed parties and allies during their careers says something else about Gingrich. He will be hard to pin down in the political battles of the future–his loyalty seems given more to a vision than to people or parties.

Question: What is your foreign-policy vision for the United States?

Answer: Well, I think first of all you have to start with the presumption that there are three huge changes under way. There’s the rise of the true world market, where competitiveness and the speed of information flow and ease of transportation means that you are beginning to be connected internationally in the sense that in the 19th Century you had a national economy.

Second, there is the spread of the technology of destruction in such ways that you’re going to have, by the end of the century, places like Iraq, Iran, Libya and Syria that are capable, at a minimum, of threatening European cities with ballistic missiles and chemical and nuclear warheads. By the year 2000 to 2010, they may be able to attack the United States directly. That is a whole level of combat and conflict that we are not used to.

Third, you are living through a fundamental change in the Soviet empire. This clearly destabilizes the whole planet in the sense that for 45 years we had a bipolar world, with a Western coalition containing the Soviets . . . .

You have to start with a fundamental reassessment of America’s role, as decisive in some ways as the late ‘30s decision to commit us to stopping Japan and Germany or as decisive as the late ‘40s decision to contain the Soviet empire.

But we’ve got to reformulate a new image of where the planet is going. What does America want in the world–and then what is America’s role in trying to get it?

Q: It’s interesting that you mentioned those two periods, the ‘30s and the ‘40s, as times of great change because in both those times the conservative movement tended to take a more isolationist stance.

A: If you go back before 1937 and 1938, conservatism, from say 1860 to 1928, was the internationalist movement. And it was the Democrats, the (William Jennings) Bryan wing of the Democratic Party that was isolationist . . . .

Then, beginning in the ‘20s, you had a role reversal. And as the conservatives became less the government and more oppositional, they also became less internationalist and more isolationist. What you had, beginning with Eisenhower, and Nixon in all fairness–Nixon was one of the people who voted for the Marshall Plan–you had the emergence of first, an internationalist anti-communist Republicanism and then under Reagan and Bush that has broadened . . . .

I think that today there is much more isolationism in the Democratic Party than in the Republican Party . . . (where) there’s much more internationalism and much more of a commitment to the world market . . . .

Q: How would you define the differences between your view and that of the Democratic Party?

A: Well, there’s a difference about the question of safety, a difference about the question of international competition and a difference about the speed of transition–if I can break them down like that.

First of all, safety. The liberal Democrats basically are myopically focused on Central Europe and on Gorbachev, and their basic theme is, since Gorbachev seems to be succeeding and Soviet power seems to receding from East Germany, the world is safer. Therefore, we can demilitarize.

I would argue that we’re caught in the tragic irony that the curve, if you will, of threat from Iraq, Iran and Syria is rising at a rate about as fast as–or faster than–the curve of Soviet threat is declining . . . .

Now the question I would pose is: Is the world still going to be dangerous–even if Gorbachev succeeds? My answer would be yes. In fact, the world’s going to be more dangerous than people think. Dictators are going to have higher-power weapons that are more sophisticated than people think. And some of these dictatorships are very big. The Syrian Army has more artillery than the American Army. So when you say, “Gee, we can shrink dramatically,” my answer is fine–if you’re willing to allow the Iraqis to threaten American cities without SDI. If you’re willing to allow the Iraqis and the Iranians to seize the oil fields, and if you’re willing to give up Israel . . . . And I think most of my Democratic friends on that are just sophomoric. I don’t think they’d even look at the data base, because it conflicts with their ideology.

And the second big question is the world market . . . . The bureaucratic welfare state and permissive attitudes are incapable of competing in the world market. The correct answer is to reform and revitalize America, not to retreat . . . .

And I think a lot of my Democratic friends, because they have to bear the burden of the public-school bureaucracy in the inner city, and they have to bear the burden of the big-city machines, and they have to bear the burden of union work rules–their reaction is to say, “Gee, we have to find ways to withdraw from the world market, and to somehow build a self-sustaining America.” I think that’s crazy and I think in the long run it means a lower standard of living and fewer jobs for Americans.

Lastly, there is the question of speed. I thought it was almost funny that George Mitchell and Dick Gephardt decided that George Bush wasn’t moving fast enough. If you look historically over the Bush Presidency and you look at the change in Panama, Nicaragua, East Germany, Hungary, Poland . . . this has been unbelievable . . . .

I say this: I’m a conservative and I’m willing to criticize George Bush, and I voted to override on the Chinese student veto, but I have to say overall that they get A-plus marks on managing a transition of unbelievable complexity. And getting freedom further in 18 months than anyone would have thought possible.

Q: Among the Soviet Republics, Lithuania is an easy call in that we never recognized the annexation, but then you start looking at other separatist movements–including Russia. Isn’t there a fear of a nuclear Lebanon in the Soviet Union?

A: You have a fear of the unknown there. You’ve also got to recognize objective realities. There’s an Indian reservation in northern Vermont that claims it’s not in the United States. Now what if Gorbachev decided next Thursday to recognize it? I mean, you’ve got to decide, all right, what are the ground rules here. The Soviet Union does exist . . . . I think it’s now an empire in transition, but it exists. And it is going to have to decide inside itself how it allows itself to dismember. If they adopt a rule that says if the Georgians vote 70% to secede, that is frankly a more open rule for withdrawal than we have in the United States . . . .

Of course, if Russia does declare itself independent or sovereign it will be the first time that the mother country declared herself free from the empire. So it would be a dramatic change. And I think our position is that all of these republics have the right of self-determination and we would certainly encourage the Soviet government to tolerate and negotiate with all of these republics.

Q: As an American Georgian, you would know that.

A: Yeah, that’s right. I mean, we Georgians, we’ve already had this argument. Now, you can make the argument in their case that it wasn’t a voluntary collection (of republics); it’s the late 19th Century empire. That’s a good argument. But you are seeing Gorbachev take what is, after all, a pretty radical position and saying, look, we’re going to figure out a legal formula for you to get out of here. Well, that’s pretty amazing . . . .

And I think it’s a little unfair to say yeah, he did all that, but boy now I have this new excuse to get mad at him. And as long as he doesn’t use military force, it seems to me that we owe him the opportunity to try to lead his own country to sort itself out . . . .

Q: How is the Administration responding?

A: Well I think that the decision by the Soviet government to open up some economic activity in Lithuania is a victory for Bush. And I think if he can continue to encourage and nudge Gorbachev in the direction of re-establishing economic patterns with Lithuania, I think it will be a very big plus for him.

Q: Earlier you remarked that, in talking to the President about Lithuania, you said we need Winston Churchill, not Stanley Baldwin. Does that still apply?

A: Well, I think the President convinced me that it wasn’t the same kind of situation; that who we may need is George Bush, and that, in fact, he is negotiating and maneuvering his way through a very complicated situation with considerable skill.

Q: OK, let’s talk now about some of the global economic issues, because I think it’s clear to all of us that they are going to be dominant. Some people think that the economic competition among the former Western allies may become very, very fierce. Do you?

A: Not necessarily fierce, but it will become intense. But . . . it’s not that we’re competing for the same pie. We’re competing to build bigger bakeries . . . . The world market is extraordinarily underdeveloped and there is an enormous amount of money to be made over the next century helping the entire planet achieve a high standard of living. So there ought to be intense competition for how we build the bigger bakery. But we don’t have to have any kind of competition over who gets bread, because everybody ought to be getting bread . . . .

Q: Do you think that the world economy is breaking up into blocs or that there is a danger of this?

A: There’s a permanent danger of breaking up into blocs, but I wouldn’t exaggerate that. I think there is much, much more to be gained in the long run by actively building global countries and global companies. We are much better off to have more IBMs and more General Motors and Fords and AT&Ts; that are able to be everywhere. And we’re much better off to have thousands of new, small businesses that compete everywhere a jet airplane goes, and anywhere a fax machine can receive their latest advertisement. And I think we want to encourage this, more than anybody else, because we are perfectly suited for the world economy.

Q: More than any other country?

A: More than any other country. I mean geographically, we can reach both Europe and Asia simultaneously and Latin America. And in terms of our own cultural background. We are the only universal country of the planet, the only country that has people from everywhere. And therefore, we ought to be the advocates of the widest global market.

Q: Does that suggest the possibility that other countries may not be as enthusiastic for this as we are–for example, Europe?

A: They may not be. I mean, the Europeans don’t even have a real concern about that. On the other hand, the Europeans need us to balance off the Germans . . . . The price of having a market of nations that really do compete with each other, is that you have got to be able to sit down for long negotiations, and you just have to go in and tough it out.

Q. This sounds a lot like what used to be called liberal internationalism in the 1940s. So is it true that the liberalism of today is the conservatism of tomorrow?

A. Could be. I think that it’s that and an ongoing sense of thesis, antithesis, synthesis to some of that . . . . But if you would have interviewed a Democrat back in 1948, he would have said, “Gee, this sounds like Theodore Roosevelt.” Theodore Roosevelt’s wing of the Republican Party has consistently been the dominant dynamic in American life for most of the last century.

Q: So would you say Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, Newt Gingrich is the line of succession?

A: No . . . . To be honest, I’d say Roosevelt, Roosevelt, Reagan. It’s important to remember that Reagan was an FDR Democrat, and that when the Democratic Party moved to the left, Reagan left.

There has been a small slice of Wales in Argentina for more than 150 years.

About 160 Welsh emigrants sailed to Patagonia in 1865 to create a new settlement, ‘Y Wladfa’, where their language, culture and religion could flourish free from English influence and dominance.

The language is still actively spoken there, while more than 50,000 Patagonians can claim Welsh ancestry.

One of those is Jeremias James.

James was born and raised in Trelew, a city founded in 1886 by Welsh settlers in the Chubut province.

Its name translates from Welsh to “Town of Lewis” in honour of its founder, Lewis Jones.

“I’m part of a Welsh family, a Welsh colony that settled in southern Argentina, specifically in Chubut,” James told BBC Sport Wales.

“Five generations of my family were born in Trelew, and I’m part of the the fifth generation.

“Over the years my family settled in Chubut and that’s where my story, my family, and all my descendants come from.”

Aug. 9 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that Staff Secretary Will Scharf will be his new White House counsel, promoting another former personal lawyer within his administration.

Scharf, who was on Trump’s legal team in the presidential immunity case before the Supreme Court, will assume his new position Sept. 1, Trump said in a social media statement, replacing David Warrington, himself a former personal lawyer for Trump, who is returning to private practice.

“Will has done an amazing job in his current role as White House Staff secretary and has also served as Chairman of the National Capital Planning Commission. I know him well!” Trump said.

“Will is tough, strong and smart! He also loves our Country, and respects the Law. Will Scharf will do a great job as White House Counsel!”

As staff secretary, Scharf oversees the everyday paperwork, presidential actions, speeches, correspondence and press releases of the president, and is frequently at Trump’s side during signing ceremonies where he is seen handing him executive orders.

As the new White House counsel, Scharf will be in charge of advising Trump and White House staff on legal issues, including the interpretation of laws and their intersection with policies.

Scharf has also been serving as chairman of the National Capital Planning Commission, which approved Trump’s $400 million White House ballroom. On Friday, a federal appeals court ruled the ballroom unlawful and ordered its construction to stop, though the ruling was stayed for 14 days to give the White House time to appeal to the Supreme Court.

The announcement also comes a day after the U.S. Senate confirmed Todd Blanche, another former personal lawyer for Trump, as attorney general, replacing Pam Bondi, whom Trump fired in April.

At least seven lawyers who represented Trump personally or served on his legal teams now hold positions in his administration, including Blanche, Warrington, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon and Solicitor General D. John Sauer.

Scharf was a member of the legal team that successfully argued before the Supreme Court that presidents enjoy broad immunity from prosecution for actions taken while in office as part of the federal election interference case brought against Trump by the Justice Department under the Biden administraiton.

The “brrrt” of the GAU-8 Gatling gun in action, the whistle of the TF34 engines as A-10 Warthogs fly at low level, the hurried calls of Joint Terminal Attack Controllers needing support from above – welcome to the first episode in our opening season of “Special Access” on TWZ’s YouTube channel, a series where we take you up close to the latest military technology and inside the wire at elite military units.

In this episode, Jamie Hunter visits the U.S. Air Force A-10 Weapons Instructor Course that has been the center of excellence for the Warthog and its missions for nearly 50 years, but is now closing down as this close air support master nears retirement. Jamie had the rare opportunity to fly with the 66th Weapons Squadron’s A-10 team at Nellis Air Force Base, in Nevada, as they supported a capstone exercise one last time during the Weapons School’s final graduation events for new Weapon Instructors before they gain their prestigious graduate patches.

“The fundamentals of combat search and rescue, close air support, forward air control, even counter-maritime mission sets, as well, that starts the minute you walk in the door. The beauty of the weapons school is that it truly teaches you how to be an expert in your aircraft. It also teaches you, more importantly, how to be an expert in integration,” says Maj. Alex “Trippin” Boules, one of the last A-10 weapons instructor pilots at the 66th Weapons Squadron.

The final Weapons Instructor Course, or WIC, concluded in December 2025 as the last pair of students graduated from the six-month course, which has been run by the USAF Weapons School since 1977. Many graduates of the 66th Weapons Squadron have taken part in significant combat operations since that time, such as those in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as the recent Operation Epic Fury in Iran. The latter saw A-10s taking on a critical role watching over combat search and rescue operations in partnership with special operations teams to recover downed U.S. aircrews.

Despite repeated calls for the A-10 to be retained in service, the Warthog is ultimately nearing retirement. Three squadrons have been granted a reprieve to continue operations until 2030, but the writing is on the wall for the Warthog as increasing numbers arrive at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) boneyard in Arizona for storage.

So get ready for one last blast of A-10 action from Nellis as the 66th Weapons Squadron winds down the Warthog Weapons School.

The Last Days Of The A-10 Warthog Weapons School

Contact the presenter: jamie.hunter@teamrecurrent.io

Gary Lineker’s production company, Goalhanger, is said to be looking at ‘exciting new formats’ which may include a food programme potentially starring a huge celebrity chef

Gary Lineker is set to go head-to-head with the BBC as he plans a new cookery show that could rival MasterChef, it has been claimed.

According to reports, the broadcaster’s production company, Goalhanger, which currently produces The Rest Is.. series is looking at “exciting new formats” which could include a new food programme. Gary, 65, has been passionate about food since the coronavirus lockdown, and regularly cooks for friends and family, a source said.

Amid claims he might work on a new food show, a few names have been floated around as potential hosts – including Jamie Oliver. However, currently any details of a potential show are under wraps as no plans have yet been confirmed.

Speaking to The Sun, a source claimed: “Since lockdown Gary has become a massive foodie, and is regularly in the kitchen conjuring up feasts for friends and family. Doing a food show has long been his dream, but he didn’t know if he could.”

The insider added: “Last week the board held meetings to discuss new formats, and a brilliant new cookery show was front and centre. A few names, including Jamie’s, were thrown around, and an ad has now gone up looking for an experienced producer.

“Food content is absolutely massive on TikTok and Instagram, and this would be a natural extension of this – giving people what they want in a new, longer-form way, but with brilliant, hugely clippable moments being pushed online. Everyone is really excited.”

According to the publication, however, Jamie’s “incredibly busy schedule” means he may not be able to host the show. Currently, it’s not clear which platform a potential show by Gary would air on, but since he left the BBC last year, his The Rest Is Football podcast moved to Netflix.

It comes weeks after Gary managed to find his way on to the latest BBC high earners list despite officially working for just two months in the past financial year. The corporation revealed its annual report for 2025/26, and published its annual list of earnings of some of its highest-paid stars.

He still managed to earn £325,000-£329,999 in his final months. Gary was previously the highest paid presenter on £1.35 million a year. Other top earners at the BBC last year included Greg James, Stephen Nolan, Laura Kuenssberg, Vernon Kay and Alan Shearer. Since leaving the BBC in May last year, the TV presenter went on to sign new contracts with ITV and Netflix.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

Sept. 7, 1994–Former Rep. Ben Jones (D-Ga.), who was running against Rep. Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), files a complaint alleging that Gingrich used tax-exempt groups for political purposes.

Dec. 6, 1995–House Ethics Committee decides the allegations merit further inquiry.”

Dec. 22–James M. Cole is hired as special counsel to the Ethics Committee to investigate the conduct of Gingrich.

Sept. 26, 1996–The Ethics Committee expands its investigation to include whether Gingrich supplied the panel with accurate, reliable and complete information” when questioned about links between his partisan activities and tax-exempt organizations.

Oct. 1–The Ethics Committee requests additional information regarding apparent discrepancies between the facts of the case and information supplied by Gingrich.

Dec. 21–Gingrich admits the violations in a signed statement. He says he did not intentionally mislead the committee and should have sought legal advice about avoiding the mix of tax-deductible contributions and partisan activities.

Jan. 7, 1997–With few votes to spare, the House votes 216-205 to retain Gingrich as speaker.

Jan. 17–After 5 1/2 hours of televised hearings, the Ethics Committee votes 7-1 to recommend that the House reprimand Gingrich and orders him to reimburse $300,000 of the cost of its investigation.

Jan. 21–The House of Representatives votes 395-28 to follow the Ethics Committee’s recommendations, reprimanding Gingrich for bringing discredit on the House by using tax-exempt money to promote Republican goals and then giving the committee untrue information for its inquiry. It is the most severe rebuke leveled on a presiding officer of the House in its 208-year history. It is unclear if Gingrich is supposed to reimburse the House with campaign or personal funds.

April 17–Gingrich announces he will pay a $300,000 ethics penalty with a loan from former Sen. Bob Dole, ending the saga 31 months after the investigation began.

Ongoing–The Internal Revenue Service is still investigating whether tax-exempt organizations provided money to finance Gingrich’s political activities and the college course he taught.

Iran-backed Houthis have resumed attacks on Yemen’s al-Makha port in the Red Sea, striking Saudi weapons depots with missiles and drones. Yemen’s military says at least seven people were killed.

This article provides a historical overview and cultural summary of Singapore’s National Day, which is observed annually on August 9th. The text explains the nation’s journey toward sovereignty, highlighting its 1963 separation from British rule and its subsequent departure from the Federation of Malaysia in 1965. Beyond historical facts, the source describes the extensive month-long festivities that include concerts, carnivals, and various community celebrations. A significant portion of the report focuses on the National Day Parade, a massive televised event featuring military displays, musical performances, and aerial shows. Ultimately, the source serves as a guide to the patriotic traditions and milestones that define this significant holiday … 

Suspected Irish crime boss Daniel Kinahan has appeared before a Dublin court after being extradited from Dubai. The 49-year-old, who is one of the world’s most wanted men, was charged with directing a criminal organisation after being extradited from Dubai.

HAILEY Bieber licked her pal’s thong at Kylie Jenner’s birthday party before slipping into a sexy bikini.

The model, 29, took to her Instagram stories on Saturday evening to share a sneak peek into the festivities for Kylie’s birthday.

In one snap, the Rhode skincare founder licked her pal’s lower back, which had a pink G-string poking out next to it.

Hailey was seen wearing a princess tiara on her head as well as some pink feathers around her neck as she poked her tongue out for the picture.

Kylie is all set to turn 29 on Monday but decided to throw herself a party at home on Friday evening.

Her sisters Kim and Khloe Kardashian were in attendance as well as Hailey’s husband Justin Bieber.

READ MORE ON HAILEY BIEBER

HOT MAMA

Hailey Bieber rocks a nude thong and bra for Kim Kardashian’s Skims collection

HELPING SAND

Hailey Bieber sizzles as she lies on the beach in a tiny bikini for racy ad

As well as her behind the scenes look at Kylie’s birthday, Hailey shared an August dump on her feed.

In one picture, she slipped down to a striking yellow bikini as she posed for a selfie.

She showed off her toned body and bronzed skin in the snap as she tied up her hair in a chic bun.

Hailey also posted a video of herself working out as well as a photo of a meatball dish loaded with cheese.

She simply captioned it: “August so far.”

Her followers flocked to the comments section to compliment her as one gushed: “The prettiest girl ever.”

Another loyal fan enthused: “She just gets prettier and prettier everyday, it’s insane.”

While a third added: “Justin is seriously the luckiest man alive.”

Last week, Hailey once again showed off her enviable figure as she posed in a tiny pink bikini.

She shared snaps from a recent getaway as she was seen sitting on the floor in the barely-there two-piece.

The mum-of-one appeared to be fresh from taking a dip as she went make-up free, with her brunette hair looking slightly damp. 

Hailey showed off her rock hard abs as she posed for the selfie with her orange iPhone.

Coming off their best win of the season in Minnesota on Thursday, the Sparks didn’t have much of that same energy to start their first home game since the trade deadline.

The fourth quarter, though, looked a lot like the best basketball they’ve played all season.

The Sparks came out flat and gave up 29 first-quarter points from the Golden State Valkyries in an 84-78 loss Sunday, their eighth in the last 10 games. They made it a game in the fourth with a 16-5 run but were too far back and it took just a couple of Valkyries shots to put the game out of reach.

An Ariel Atkins three-pointer with 2:18 left got the Sparks within one point, then after it was matched by Golden State, a three from Erica Wheeler made it a one-point contest again with 1:38 to go.

Nneka Ogwumike missed what would have been a tying shot with 52 seconds left before the Valkyries made it a two-possession score to close it out.

Wheeler missed two three-point attempts with less than 30 seconds left. She finished with 15 points while Ogwumike finished with a team-high 16 points.

There are 13 games left in the season and the Sparks are six games back of Dallas for the eighth and final WNBA playoff seed, giving them an uphill climb to get back in the postseason conversation.

On Sunday, the Sparks (12-19) committed five early turnovers and struggled to defend the perimeter against the shot-happy Valkyries, trailing 29-15 after one quarter.

After getting back within nine, the Sparks were down 45-32 at halftime following three consecutive buckets from Golden State guard Tiffany Hayes.

Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike, right, reacts after being fouled by Golden State center Kiah Stokes in the first half Sunday.

(Harry How / Getty Images)

Cameron Brink hit a three-pointer to get back within 12 with 7:27 left in the fourth. The Sparks outscored Golden State 31-20 overall in the fourth to get back within four with less than four minutes to play.

Brink, who had seven points, seven rebounds and two steals, got into foul trouble in the third quarter, going into the fourth with four. Rae Burrell, who had scored in double figures in every game since July 22, didn’t score until the fourth quarter and finished with nine points.

The Valkyries capitalized with 18 points off the Sparks’ 11 turnovers.

Kiana Williams scored 10 points, her most since she joined the team from Phoenix in June off of a developmental deal.

The Sparks have not beaten Golden State (23-9) since a 84-67 victory on May 16, 2025, the first game in Valkyries franchise history.

On Sunday, the Valkyries were led by 15 points from Cecilia Zandalasini, who shot five for five from three-point range.

After she scored seven points against Minnesota, newly acquired guard Monique Akoa Makani missed Sunday’s game with a right ankle injury she sustained in the final minute against the Lynx.

The Sparks will host Phoenix (12-22) in Kelsey Plum’s return to L.A. on Tuesday at USC’s Galen Center.

Aug. 9 (UPI) — Typhoon Dolphin roared into eastern China Sunday at Force 13 speeds of 85 miles per hour, producing extreme downpours and prompting the cancelation of hundreds of flights, official media reported.

Dolphin made two landings in densely populated eastern China, with the first coming at 5:30 p.m. local time at Yuhuan in Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The second landfall came at Yueqing City in Zhejiang a bit more than an hour later.

China’s National Meteorological Center issued alerts to local authorities in the region to be guard on against extreme downpours.

Forecasters warned that heavy to torrential rain is expected until Tuesday in most parts of Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui and northern and central-eastern Hubei provinces.

Some local rain totals could reach as high as 12.5 inches in eastern Zhejiang and the mountainous regions of southern Anhui, they predicted, with as much as 3.1 inches falling in as little as an hour.

Meanwhile, 388 inbound and outbound flights were canceled Sunday at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport in Hangzhou City, the capital of Zhejiang Province.

Typhoon Dolphin is expected to weaken into a tropical storm as it moves northwestward through Zhejiang, Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration said Sunday.

The storm passed north of the island but its wake prompted sea warnings in the area as maritime officials announced the suspension of sea traffic on Monday.

Despite dodging a direct hit, Dolphin produced strong winds and heavy rains in northern Taiwan, causing scattered damage, the Central News Agency reported.

Six people were injured and hundreds of incidents of fallen trees were reported in Taipei as a result of the typhoon.

Much of the country will feel some relief from the heat early in the week before temperatures spike again.

On Monday, the air will feel a little fresher compared to the weekend with maximum temperatures in northern areas of the UK around 18 to 24C.

Further south, while cooler than Sunday, it will still be a very warm day with temperatures between 22 to 27C.

By Tuesday, warmer air will start to move back in across the UK with the highest temperatures across central southern England, the Midlands and east Wales.

Yellow heat-health alerts remain in force for much of England until 21:00 BST on Tuesday, though they are likely to be extended or upgraded as the heatwave nears.

Highs are likely to be around 27 to 30C.

Wednesday will see temperatures widely across England and Wales head into the high twenties and low thirties.

The peak of the extreme heat is set to arrive on Thursday, with temperatures reaching 36C (97F) in south-east England, and up to 35C likely across central and eastern England.

This would mark the fourth consecutive month where 35C has been reached in the UK – a new record.

Many locations will exceed their heatwave threshold of 25 to 28C – dependent on location – for the first day.

Some of the warmth will spread further north into northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland with temperatures into the low to mid-20s Celsius.

As heat builds throughout the week, overnight temperatures will stay relatively high bringing some uncomfortable nights for sleeping.

Minimum temperatures may not go lower than 16 to 18C across England and Wales.

There’s also a possibility of a ‘tropical night’ – where temperatures remain above 20C all night – in south-east England.

ROD Stewart has become a grandfather for the sixth time as his daughter Ruby has welcomed her second child with fiance Jake Kalick.

She took to Instagram to share the special news alongside a series of pictures of her newborn son.

Ruby posted adorable pictures of her older son Otis meeting his sibling for the very first time.

She captioned it: “We welcomed our little (big) Levi Rhodes Kalick at 6:58pm on 8/4/26 at 9lbs 20inches….

“His name Levi means My Heart and his arrival has grown our hearts to 10 times the size… seeing Otis and Levi meet for the first time might have been the greatest experience of my life so far…

“Otis is already the best big brother and we are already so in love with this sweet boy… Welcome sweet Levi!”

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In one snap, Ruby’s mum Kelly Emberg could be seen smiling as she held her newborn grandson along with Levi’s paternal grandmother.

Rod has eight children in total with five different women.

He shares daughter Sarah with ex Susannah Boffey, who he dated for one year back in the 60s.

The pair put her up for adoption and she was raised by her adoptive parents.

She reconnected with Rod later in life and works in the health and care sector.

He’s also dad to Kimberly and Sean, from his marriage to Alana Collins, from 1979 to 1984.

He and ex-girlfriend Kelly Emberg are parents to daughter Ruby while his second wife Rachel Hunter and he share daughter Renee and son Liam.

Finally, Rod is a father to his two sons Alastair and Aiden, from his third and current marriage to Loose Women star Penny Lancaster.

He and Penny, 55, met back in 1999 at The Dorchester Hotel in London when a friend dared her to go up to him and ask for an autograph.

They dated for several years before tying the knot in a lavish ceremony in Italy in 2007.

Aside from Ruby’s sons Otis and Levi, the singer is also a granddad to Delilah, Louie, Elsie and another one of his daughter Kimberly’s children, whose name she hasn’t disclosed publicly.

Despite some of his eight children having different mothers, he has successfully cultivated a large, blended family.

He has a good relationship with his former girlfriends and ex-wives, with the huge clan often posing together at family celebrations.

Reporting from Washington — President Obama had occupied the Oval Office for nearly a full term when government engineers came to him with a request: that he move out for a few months while they completed an overdue renovation of the West Wing.

Valerie Jarrett, Obama’s oldest family friend and a senior advisor, objected.

“Nobody else had to do that,” she said. Other White House staffers were concerned that displacing Obama, though he had no problem with it, could be read as a sign of disrespect for the nation’s first black president.

The moment was a small glimpse into how Obama and his image-makers navigated the sensitive question of race during their eight years in the White House.

On policy and in speeches, Obama showed a determination to pursue equality for all minorities. But he faced resistance — not only from the right but also from allies on the left who felt he wasn’t moving decisively enough. That resistance, along with high-profile instances of racial violence that rekindled a national debate over racial progress, resulted in an uneven record for the Obama administration on the issue of race.

The president leaves office in an age marked by increasing racial tensions. The election to choose his successor featured a backlash reminiscent of the political upheaval of a half-century ago, when the so-called Silent Majority ushered Richard Nixon into office after the turmoil of the 1960s. On Jan. 20, President-elect Donald Trump will take the oath of office in part because a significant number of voters rejected Obama’s quest for broader equality.

Though the election of Obama was celebrated as a moment transcending the country’s dark racial history, the president himself has always taken a more measured view: that race is a complex issue and progress comes in fits and starts.

“After my election, there was talk of a post-racial America,” Obama said in his farewell address last week. “And such a vision, however well-intended, was never realistic. Race remains a potent and often divisive force in our society. … And all of us have more work to do.”

From the beginning of his presidency, Obama made clear to his staff that he wanted to do two things at once — lift up the disenfranchised while moving beyond stereotypes and prejudices. He encountered those personally from the start.

In one of his first White House meetings with Republican lawmakers, one representative lectured the new president — and former senator — on how the legislative process works.

So dismissive was his tone that Obama would marvel afterward to a couple of aides, “He did everything but call me ‘boy.’”

As the meeting broke up, Vice President Joe Biden started to make a beeline for the offender when he felt Obama’s hand on his arm.

“Let’s let that go,” Obama said, stopping him.

Biden attributed Obama’s cool to a lifetime of navigating such dismissiveness.

“His self-awareness is so damn amazing,” Biden said in an interview last month. “It doesn’t mean, I don’t think, he doesn’t remember [or] it doesn’t hurt.” But, Biden added, it suggested that, as a black man growing up in America, Obama had learned when to fight and when to let go.

Another early experience reinforced that. During his first summer in office, police arrested a black Harvard professor and leading scholar of African American literature, Henry Louis Gates Jr., at his home. Asked about the case, Obama said officers had “acted stupidly in arresting somebody when there was already proof that they were in their own home.”

The backlash from police around the country stunned the president. Aides say the reaction taught Obama he had to speak more carefully on race.

“When the president says it,” one senior aide said, “it has enormous weight.”

Obama instead set about shaping his policy agenda, which over the next eight years would include lasting gains for minorities.

Obama’s signature healthcare law, the Affordable Care Act, nearly erased the disparity in healthcare access between black children and white children and helped more than 20 million Americans get health coverage. He signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which banned sex-based wage discrimination. His immigration policy has at least temporarily freed millions of Latinos from life in the shadows.

By the administration’s estimate, the economic stimulus law that was one of Obama’s earliest accomplishments kept 5.3 million Americans, a group that was heavily black and Latino, from falling into poverty.

And though he was slower to publicly embrace same-sex marriage than some others, his support for those he warmly referred to as “LGBT folks” helped foster a movement that ultimately saw gay marriage legalized through a Supreme Court ruling. He celebrated the moment in vivid fashion by ordering the White House exterior illuminated in the rainbow colors of the gay pride flag.

Obama pushed for fair-sentencing laws that narrowed the gap in penalties between felonies involving crack and powder cocaine, a divide that had resulted in disproportionately long sentences for blacks. He commuted the sentences of 1,176 people, more than the past 11 presidents combined. The vast majority were drug offenders.

High school dropout rates also fell to historic lows, with African Americans and Latinos charting the greatest progress.

Other gains are harder to quantify. When the killings of black men by white police officers thrust the issue of race and policing into the national spotlight, he directed the Department of Justice to examine the practices of police at the center of those conflicts, including in Cleveland, Baltimore and suburban Ferguson, Mo. Investigators there found a pattern of abuse against blacks and recommended dozens of reforms.

Additionally, he ordered that surplus military equipment no longer be sent to local governments. The sight of law enforcement officers riding in tanks or conducting raids in riot gear helped contribute to the perception among some that police were invading, rather than protecting, communities.

In early 2012, amid Obama’s campaign for reelection, a shooting in Florida overwhelmed his reticence to speak up amid heated debates on race. Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black 17-year-old, was shot to death by a neighborhood watch captain who told a 911 dispatcher he was suspicious of Martin’s movements.

The shooting seized the nation’s attention, provoking an outpouring of complex emotions.

At the White House, Obama told aides he had something he wanted to say if asked about the shooting, as he was certain to be.

“If I’d had a son,” Obama said, “he’d look like Trayvon.”

Are you sure you want to make it that personal, one advisor asked.

Obama’s answer was to repeat the line, as if considering the sound of it. Yes, he said. He did want to say that.

Uttered later on live television, the remark proved a defining moment in Obama’s tenure; the president had injected himself into a racially charged story for the first time since the Gates episode.

Obama’s description that day of how he had personally grappled with racial injustice was the first of several instances in his second term in which he used his rhetorical gifts to guide the nation through its most emotionally complicated moments.

He broke out into a chorus of “Amazing Grace” in Charleston, S.C., in 2015, during a memorial service for nine people gunned down by a white man at a historically black church. A year later, in Dallas to mourn the shooting deaths of five officers during a peaceful protest of killings of black men in confrontations with police in Louisiana and Minnesota, Obama exhorted both law enforcement and protesters to search for common ground.

“With an open heart, we can learn to stand in each other’s shoes and look at the world through each other’s eyes, so that maybe the police officer sees his own son in that teenager with a hoodie who’s kind of goofing off but not dangerous. Maybe the teenager will see in the police officer the same words and values and authority of his parents.”

By then, the campaign to succeed Obama was shifting into a bitter general election, pulsing with an undercurrent of racial animosity that would culminate in the election of Trump.

The anti-Obama backlash was evident months earlier at rallies for Trump, the most prominent promoter of the lie that the president was born outside the U.S., itself an attempt to delegitimize him.

Trump railed against Obama, complaining that he had presided over a period of “political correctness” that prevented whites from speaking frankly about their concerns and confronting conflict. Trump’s crowds roared their approval.

White nationalists supported Trump more actively than they had any presidential candidate in decades. Trump named as his campaign chairman the chief executive of a website that has given a platform to the so-called alt-right, a collection of openly racist and anti-Semitic activists.

Trump, who kicked off his campaign by saying Mexican immigrants were “criminals” and “rapists,” threatened to ban Muslims from entering the country and said little about his backing from white supremacists, downplaying accusations that he stoked racial unrest.

In Obama’s final year in office, a friend from his days in the Illinois Statehouse told him that he was convinced many of the roadblocks the president had faced were based on racism.

Republicans in Congress “were afraid of you, more so than anything else,” said Denny Jacobs, a white Democrat and longtime state senator from farm country. “They were afraid of you for a couple of reasons. No. 1, you were black. And I talk to my Republican friends — and I’ve got a lot of them — and that’s all they could ever talk about, was the race card, the race. You know, he’s a nice guy, he’s this, he’s that, but he’s black.”

Obama paused and smiled.

“I have no doubt that there are people who voted against me because of race, or didn’t approve of my agenda because of race,” he told Jacobs. “I also suspect there were a bunch of people who were excited and voted for me, or I got political benefits because of the notion of the first African American president.”

“Those things,” he said, “cut both ways.”

christi.parsons@latimes.com, michael.memoli@latimes.com

Twitter: @cparsons, @mikememoli

PHOENIX — Hezly Rivera is leaning into her role as the leader of the next wave of U.S. women’s gymnasts.

The 18-year-old Olympic gold medalist won her second straight national title on Sunday, rallying from fourth during the final day of competition with four poised and professional routines. Her two-day total of 111.950 was more than a point clear of runner-up Claire Pease, making Rivera the first American woman not named Simone Biles to go back-to-back since former world and Olympic champion Jordyn Wieber did it in 2010 and 2011.

Rivera was the self-described “underdog” in Paris two years ago, when she joined an experienced group that helped the Americans win their third team gold in four Games. While some of her Olympic teammates — Biles and Suni Lee chief among them — have been on an extended break (though Lee announced last month she has started training for a return to competition), Rivera has pressed on.

She edged Leanne Wong in New Orleans last year, but Rivera’s chances for a repeat seemed to be in trouble after she fell face-first into the mat after missing a release on uneven bars on Thursday.

No matter, Rivera began Sunday on bars and put together a gritty set in which she fought through a mini-stall near the end and gave coach Valeri Liukin a “what are you gonna do?” shrug after a dismount that included a small step.

The judges awarded Rivera with a solid if not spectacular 13.850, and her momentum continued to build as she made her way across the competition floor at Matchup Mortgage Arena. Her black-and-white bedazzled leotard glittering under the lights, Rivera put on a performance that made her look every bit the experienced veteran she has become.

Pease and fellow first-day co-leader Skye Blakely couldn’t quite keep up. Pease led with two rotations to go, but her floor routine included one tumbling pass that ended with her stepping out of bounds and another in which she opted to keep her right foot hovering above the floor rather than set it down for a penalty.

Still, Pease’s second-place finish was a marked improvement from a year ago, when she came to nationals fresh off a victory at the U.S. Classic and stumbled to 10th. This time around, she finds herself in a solid position to make the team that will head to The Netherlands for the world championships in October.

Blakely’s bid to build off a promising opening night stalled quickly. She sat at the end of her first tumbling pass and bounced out of bounds on her final one, her score of 11.900 dropping her from contention for the top of the podium on her way to a seventh-place finish.

Charleigh Bullock, who turned 16 last month, was third. Reese Esponda, who trains at the Houston-area gym owned by Biles’ family, was fourth.

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Jade Carey, who is methodically building difficulty into her routines as she eyes a third trip to the Games, finished fifth in a meet that doubled as a homecoming for the Phoenix native.

Graves writes for the Associated Press.

Trump says US will wait for economic pressure to mount on Iran, as Israel formally rejects 15-point Gaza peace plan.

The latest Houthi attacks come less than 24 hours after an earlier barrage struck al-Makha (Mocha) and its commercial port.

Yemen’s Houthis have launched a new wave of missile and drone attacks on the Red Sea port city of al-Makha (Mocha), extending an assault on government-held areas along Yemen’s western coast and killing at least 11 people.

The latest attacks came on Sunday evening, less than 24 hours after an earlier barrage struck al-Makha and its commercial port. Yemeni government forces said air defences intercepted six drones during the renewed assault, while two ballistic missiles fell into the sea without hitting their targets.

Footage broadcast by the Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV showed several ballistic missiles and drones being launched. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the operation targeted Saudi troop concentrations and weapon depots in the area, according to the Reuters news agency.

At least 11 killed

Earlier on Sunday, Attacks on al-Makha killed at least 11 people, including eight military personnel and three civilians, and wounded 32 others, according to the latest toll cited by the AFP news agency.

The strikes also caused extensive damage at al-Makha’s port. Government authorities said buildings and commercial facilities were hit, while The Associated Press reported damage to port infrastructure, commercial goods and food supplies.

Government forces also said they intercepted and destroyed an unmanned explosive boat approaching the commercial port.

During the renewed attacks later on Sunday, the National Resistance Forces, which are aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognised government, urged residents of al-Makha to remain indoors, accusing the Houthis of carrying out indiscriminate shelling.

Houthis say Saudi military buildup prompted attack

The Houthis said the operation involved a large number of ballistic missiles and drones and was launched in response to an alleged continued Saudi military buildup, including the reinforcement of allied forces with weapons and equipment along Yemen’s western coast and in Taiz province.

Houthi political council member Hizam al-Assad separately claimed that continuing explosions, fires and columns of smoke from the port were caused by large quantities of weapons and military equipment stored there.

Attacks extend to al-Khokha

The escalation was not limited to al-Makha, but also targeted the al-Khokha district, south of the coastal city of Hodeidah.

Al-Jumhuriya television, which is affiliated with the National Resistance Forces led by Presidential Leadership Council member Tareq Saleh, said the government-appointed governor of Hodeidah, al-Hassan Taher, survived an assassination attempt on Sunday after a Houthi ballistic missile struck his residence in the district.

A TV boss has broken his silence on Ariana Grande quitting a hit drama show – after revealing her plan to step back from public life.

Ariana was originally annouced to be on series 13 of American Horror Story but she later exited the project to prioritise her Eternal Sunshine tour.

This comes at the same time she revealed she would be stepping back from fame at the end of her tour.

The AHS creator, Ryan Murphy, has now discussed her exit and told The Hollywood Reporter: “I love Ariana Grande. We’re great friends.

“I had an idea and I came to her and she, very immediately, said, ‘I’m not sure because I think I’m going on tour.

“I don’t think the tour had been announced, and she had obviously just finished the Wicked movie.”

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Ryan also revealed that he welcomed the star to appear in another season which she gladly accepted.

He added: “You have to be respectful. Who is busier than Ariana Grande? No one. She had told me at the time, ‘I have this album that’s dropping.’ It was really, truly a scheduling conflict.”

Ryan also revealed that Ariana is a big fan of horror and did Scream Queens for him and explained that he would always want to work with her.

He said: “I love her, and I support her. It was a very big swing, but I might bring that back for another season, per Ariana’s availability. I think the world of her.”

Last week, a rep for Ariana shocked fans by releasing a statement confirming she was stepping back from public life.

The announcement followed her pulling out of the starring role in a West End adaptation of Sunday In The Park With George, alongside her Wicked co-star Jonathan Bailey.

A representative had told People Magazine: “Ariana will be taking a step back from visibility after she completes the Eternal Sunshine Tour.”

However, Ariana has one last surprise in store for fans as she prepares to kick off her ten-date residency at the O2 Arena next weekend.

We were told the Thank U Next singer will film the London shows for a concert special, to be released at a later date.

It’s due to spark a bidding war with streaming giants battling it out for the rights.

Ariana’s last album, Eternal Sunshine, was born out of heartbreak and written as her marriage to American estate agent Dalton Gomez broke down.

Following the split from Wicked co-star Ethan in June after three years, Ariana has headed back to familiar ground and is dating her ex, dancer Ricky Alvarez.