“I’m disappointed, but what can you do. As you get older, your action starts to go a little bit at the most extreme points of the match.
“But, take nothing away, Shaun was awesome and he’s got a great chance of going on to win it for a second time.”
Resuming the final session 13-11 in arrears, Murphy started in scintillating fashion with two total clearances to haul level, only for Higgins to chisel out the next two to restore his two-frame lead.
Murphy’s fourth century of the match sparked another surge after the interval and, as Higgins began to miss some easy balls, the Englishman went into overdrive, winning the last four in a row to confirm victory.
China’s Wu Yize will face Murphy in Sunday’s final after Northern Ireland’s Mark Allen missed a simple black to secure victory before falling 17-16.
Murphy was full of praise for Higgins.
“I just came out today knowing, if I got my chances, I could score,” he said. “At the interval, I was just saying to myself, ‘you’ve done it before, now you can do it again’.
“But John Higgins – what a player and what a man. The harder it gets out there, the tougher he gets and the better he plays.
“If I’m half the player when I’m in my 50s, I’ll be very proud.”
It’s time for Mira Costa to try to wipe away the disappointing memory from last season’s Southern Section Division 1 girls’ beach volleyball final, where the Mustangs lost to Redondo Union 3-2.
Mira Costa faces JSerra at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Long Beach City College in this season’s championship game.
Key returnees for Mira Costa are Lily Vandeweghe, Lily Enfield, Harper Terry and Izzy Elston.
JSerra has succeeded in breaking up the Mira Costa-Redondo Union beach volleyball domination. Those teams had met in the final for the previous three years.
The Mustangs swept San Marcos 5-0 in the semifinals on Thursday. JSerra eliminated No. 2-seeded Redondo Union 3-2.
Venice won the City Section title over Taft on Friday.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com
Normally his public persona is somebody who does not give much away but during the quarter-final win against Zebre in Italy, you saw a rare public image of him leading the celebrations.
“The huddle is a personal thing and it was great it was captured on screen, I was so proud of the players,” said Tiatia.
Former Wales fly-half James Hook played with Tiatia at Ospreys. Hook described him as “an animal on the field and your nan’s favourite off it”.
“You don’t see everything of me, maybe you see some of the little bits,” said Tiatia.
“What I give you is what I give you. When I’m watching the game I’m not overly emotional but people who know me, know the true me.”
Tiatia is in his first full season as head coach and believes getting to know the players has been a key component of any turnaround.
“One of the biggest things is around care for one another,” said Tiatia.
“Players and staff understanding each other on a deeper level, not just surface level, actually bone-deep.
“Understanding it’s people first and then understanding the player. That’s been a big shift, not just trying to get the best out of them but also having players take responsibility.”
Tiatia was asked what he meant by bone-deep. His answer was illuminating.
“Surface level is knowing people by face and respectfully saying hello,” said Tiatia.
“On a deeper level, I will introduce myself to you and tell you where I’m from.
“I’m from Wellington. I’m Samoan. My first language is English, it was Samoan, I speak Japanese. I speak a little Italian.
“I’m a learner, I’m an introvert, I’m a trained extrovert. When I’m stressed I’ll be quiet.
“When I will be quiet, I’m thinking about my family first and foremost.
“I was taught from my parents very early on that gratitude is one of the biggest strengths. You understand what you have and you’re grateful for it.
“Those are things I would share at a bone-deep level. We then have a deeper understanding about each other, about our morals and values.
“Also the mistakes I’ve made as a young person is something I can now relate to with the group.
“I don’t want the players to make the same mistakes and they’re becoming the best version of themselves. So it’s not just coaching. It’s holistic growth.”
May 1 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Friday said that his administration had made a “final” bailout offer to Spirit Airlines as reports suggest it is on the verge of shutting down.
Although Trump said his administration is still discussing a $500 million bailout for the beleaguered airline, its investors have not agreed to the government’s proposal and Spirit could shut down as soon as Saturday, The Wall Street Journal and CBS News reported.
Trump has for the past two weeks said the government would try to get involved to save the airline and its 7,500 employees, unveiling last weekend a plan to loan Spirit $500 million under the Defense Production Act and become its main debtor.
The price of jet fuel has doubled since Feb. 28 because of the war in Iran, raising costs for all airlines globally, but Spirit has been working to emerge from bankruptcy for the second time in a year and its financial plan has been completely upended.
“We’re looking at it,” Trump told reporters on Friday, hours after reports of the airline’s demise started to spread.
“If we could do it, we’d do it, but only if it’s a good deal,” he said. “No institution has been able to do it. I said I’d like to save the jobs but we’ll have an announcement sometime today … We gave them a final proposal.”
Spirit told a bankruptcy court on April 23 that its cash was “not going to last for very much longer” and that, without some sort of bailout, it would likely have to cease operations within a matter of days.
The Trump administration’s bailout plan — of which some Republicans and members of Trump’s administration have been critical — would give Spirit the loan it needs in exchange for the government becoming its largest debtor and potentially owning 90% of the airline.
The Fort Lauderdale-based airline told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel that it is “operating as usual,” and travelers at its main hub at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport said that their flights had not been canceled.
Officials at Miami-International Airport also told the Sentinel that they had not been notified by Spirit that it was shutting down.
Spirit is said to have revolutionized air travel as one of the first of several value airlines that has managed to offer flights at rock-bottom prices, but it also has struggled since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company flew less than half the number of flights in April than it had two years ago — it dropped from roughly 25,000 to 12,000 — and has not turned an annual profit since 2019, The New York Times reported.
Having renegotiated contracts with its employees, shook off engine defects that doomed parts of its fleet and charted a path forward, Spirit was expected to emerge from bankruptcy in better shape sometime this summer.
After the war in Iran launched, affecting oil and gas prices worldwide, the cost of jet fuel doubled and tanked the company’s financial plan.
In the event that Spirit does shut down, United Airlines, American Airlines and JetBlue Airways all have said they are preparing to assist the airline’s customers and employees, which includes helping customers to travel in places where they operate routes similar to Spirit, CNBC reported.
World number one Jannik Sinner remains on course for a record fifth consecutive Masters 1,000 title after reaching the Madrid Open final with a straight-set win over Arthur Fils.
The Italian won his 22nd successive match to reach Sunday’s final, where he will face either second seed Alexander Zverev or unseeded Belgian Alexander Blockx.
Sinner, 24, has won the opening three ATP 1,000 events of the season – in Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo – and also triumphed in Paris late last year.
The four-time Grand Slam winner broke twice to take the first set 6-2 against 21st seed Fils, who won the clay-court Barcelona Open two weeks ago.
Fils, 21, was 3-2 up in the second set having saved two break points, but Sinner finally broke to move 5-4 ahead and served out the match to progress 6-2 6-4.
Zverev and Blockx play their semi-final later on Friday.
Teenager Mirra Andreeva reached her first Madrid Open final with a 6-4 7-6 (10-8) victory over Hailey Baptiste.
The 19-year-old Russian will face 26th seed Marta Kostyuk in Saturday’s final, after the Ukrainian beat Austria’s Anastasia Potapova 6-2 1-6 6-1.
Ninth seed Andreeva has won all bar one of her 13 clay-court matches this season, taking the title in Linz and reaching the semi-finals in Stuttgart, and becomes the first teenager to reach three WTA 1000 finals.
After taking the first set against the 30th seed, Andreeva served for the match at 5-4, but was broken by Baptiste who then took the second set to a tiebreak.
“Honestly, I feel so much adrenaline inside. I feel like I’m still nervous. I’m just so happy that I won and that I was able to save all those set points,” said Andreeva, who has become the second-youngest finalist in the tournament’s history, behind Caroline Wozniacki.
“The serve helped me a lot. I’m so, so happy – I cannot really find ways to describe what I’m feeling right now,” added Andreeva.
Kostyuk advanced to her first WTA 1000 final in an error-strewn match against lucky loser Potapova, winning the first set with two breaks but losing the second in 30 minutes.
The 23-year-old raced to a 4-0 lead in the decider and refused to shake the hand of her Russian-born opponent after closing the match out.
In the men’s tournament, defending champion Casper Ruud was beaten in the quarter-finals by Belgian Alexander Blockx, 6-4 6-4.
Unseeded Blockx, who only broke into the top 100 for the first time last month and is at a career-high 69th in the world, has knocked out four consecutive seeds, including third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime, in the Spanish capital.
The 21-year-old defeated Ruud, the Norwegian 21st seed, in 96 minutes and will now face Alexander Zverev in his first tour-level semi-final, having never previously won a tour match on clay prior to this season.
Two-time Madrid champion Zverev won 6-1 6-4 against Italian 10th seed Flavio Cobolli, who beat the German en route to the Munich final 12 days ago, and has now reached the semi-finals in seven of his past eight Masters 1000 tournaments.
Top seed Jannik Sinner will face 21st seed Arthur Fils in Friday’s other semi-final after the pair won their quarter-finals on Wednesday.
After eight years as leader of the Federal Board of Governors, Jerome Powell leaves behind a considerable legacy.
Jerome Powell concluded his final Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting as chair on April 29, but said he would remain on the Board of Governors after his term as chair ends on May 15. His four-year term on the board ends January 31, 2028.
Powell’s term was marked by his decisive move at the start of the pandemic to stabilize markets, which could have faced a financial crisis comparable to 2008, said Krishna Guha, Evercore ISI’s vice chairman, in an email interview.
“The Powell Fed was slow to pivot to deal with post-pandemic inflation, but when it turned, it turned decisively, and Powell achieved the remarkable feat of bringing inflation back down without causing a recession,” he said. “Indeed, the data clearly show Powell was on the brink of delivering the fabled soft landing when Trump tariffs pushed inflation up again.”
Guha says Powell will mainly be remembered for the “dignity and professionalism that he brought to public service,” as the Fed endured “the most serious attack on central bank independence in decades, without yielding to political pressure or making the opposite error of turning hawkish in retaliation.”
Fight For Independence
The fight to preserve the Fed’s independence truly began in President Donald Trump’s second administration and has been a sustained conflict over lower interest rates. First came accusations of ballooning cost overruns during the refurbishment of the Federal Reserve’s Washington, D.C., headquarters in late July 2025. Next came the administration’s attempt to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook a month later, citing alleged mortgage fraud.
The Department of Justice dropped its investigation into Powell on April 24, a few days before the April FOMC meeting. The Supreme Court has yet to decide on Cook’s case.
The cessation of lawfare against the Fed was welcomed by many in the Beltway, who see it as returning to business as usual.
“I felt like the accusations that Chairman Powell had committed some sort of crime connected to the building construction were a distraction, and it would delay President Trump in selecting a new chairman,” said Republican Rep. French Hill, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, in a public statement. President Trump has nominated Kevin Warsh, a former Fed official, as Powell’s successor. A vote on his confirmation is expected in the coming weeks.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to indicate Powell will stay on at the Fed after his term as chair ends.
Dungannon began their defence of the Irish Cup with a routine 3-0 victory over Championship side Ards at Stangmore Park, courtesy of first-half goals from Sean McAllister, Junior and Tiernan Kelly.
Rodney McAree’s side then came from behind in the sixth round to beat Portadown 2-1 with McAllister on the scoresheet again and Andrew Mitchell netting the winner.
Steven Scott, Cahal McGinty and Kobei Moore scored to help the Swifts see off H&W Welders 3-0 to reach the last four.
In a repeat of the 2025 decider, Dungannon beat Cliftonville 4-1 on penalties to reach the final again, with goalkeeper Declan Dunne saving two spot kicks in the shootout.
Coleraine began their Irish Cup campaign with a thumping 4-0 win over 10-man Crusaders at the Showgrounds in January.
After Brendan Hamilton was sent off for the Crues, Mark Connolly, Will Patching, James Akitunde and Joel Cooper all netted to secure a comfortable passage to the sixth round.
Ruaidhri Higgins’ men then required extra time to see off Carrick Rangers 4-1 at Taylors Avenue, with Matthew Shevlin coming off the bench to score a hat-trick to help them through.
Cooper and Shevlin were on target in a 2-0 quarter-final victory over Championship Limavady and the duo both also scored in the extra time 2-1 win against Larne in the last four at Windsor Park.
The future of I’m A Celebrity All Stars has been revealed by a TV insider, following the chaotic live final that delighted viewers last week.
I’m A Celebrity South Africa raked in millions of viewers(Image: Jonathan Hordle/ITV/Shutterstock)
I’m A Celeb All Stars will reportedly not return to our screens until 2029, despite the final being a huge success with massive viewing figures.
The South Africa-based show was pre-filmed in 2025, with the explosive final taking place live in London last Friday night. The final episode saw Adam Thomas win the show while arguing with Jimmy Bullard and David Haye.
The mayhem initially broke out when David interrupted Adam’s interview before the winner was announced. It rumbled on further when Jimmy Bullard interrupted to have his say over what he called “intimidating” actions by Adam in camp.
It has been reported that around 2.8million people tuned in for the explosive finale, but despite the huge interest, show makers won’t be bringing back the all-stars version for a few years.
“The aim was never for it to be made or be on air in 2027, even though there may be an appetite for that right now. The aim was to deliver something as a special show that was on from time to time, not an annual revisit like the main I’m A Celebrity show,” an insider told The Sun.
This was the second all-stars version of the series, with the first season airing in May 2023 after being recorded in the autumn of 2022.
The series 6 runner-up, Myleene Klass, was crowned winner of the series after beating series 16 campmate Jordan Banjo in the final survival trial. It was three years between the first and second seasons of the show, so fans might be waiting a little while for the next season if ITV continues to follow suit.
Voting figures for the show were revealed earlier today, showing that Adam won by a landslide. The Emmerdale actor came first in the vote for the final four, with 51 per cent. He was followed by Sir Mo Farah, who won 32 per cent, while Harry Redknapp and Craig Charles each got 9 per cent.
I’m A Celebrity is expected to return later this year with the usual format. Adam’s win came off the back of a series of dramatic moments for the actor on the show. Things first took a dramatic turn when David Haye was accused of bullying Adam after he ruled himself out of a trial. He called the actor weak and later doubled down, claiming that the Waterloo Road star was using his arthritis to get out of doing Bushtucker Trials and challenges.
Adam was also at the centre of a row with Jimmy Bullard. He was left angry when Jimmy quit the show mid-trial, which could have tanked Adam’s time on I’m A Celeb, as they were doing the trial in pairs.
Adam swore at Jimmy. Though he later apologised, Jimmy was insistent that Adam was “aggressive” and “intimidating”, and blasted ITV for not showing the full clip. ITV have said what they showed was a “fair and accurate” representation of what happened.
At a school with the rich athletic tradition of Santa Ana Mater Dei, it is rare to be the first to achieve anything, but Matteo Huarte made history Saturday by becoming the Monarchs’ only CIF singles champion at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament.
After losing in straight sets to Rishvanth Krishna from Irvine University in last year’s final, Huarte was not about to squander his second chance. He raced to an early lead in the first-set tiebreaker, then broke to open the second set on his way to a 7-6 (3), 6-1 victory over Woodbridge’s Brayden Tallakson in front of a packed grandstand at Libbey Park.
Huarte had four service breaks — the last being a cross-court passing shot on match point. The final resembled Huarte’s semifinal win versus Irvine University’s JiHyuk Im in which he took the first-set tiebreaker 7-4 then cruised 6-2 in the second set.
“I’m happy I was able to do it for my school,” said Huarte, a junior who has committed to USC. “We’ve played each other a couple times and the key was to manage his serve and get into the rally. Once I got ahead of him in the tiebreak and then won the first game of the second set I was able to run away with it.”
Mater Dei’s only other title in the Ojai tournament’s long and storied history came in doubles in 2008 when Charlie Alvarado and Chris Freeman upset top-seeded Tyler Bowman and Jon Kazarian of Peninsula in three sets.
“It’s kind of hard to believe I’m the first to do it,” said Huarte about his singles title.
Last year, Huarte fell in the Southern Section semifinals to Palos Verdes ninth-grader Andrew Johnson, who went on to beat Tallakson 6-4, 6-3 in the final.
Tallakson was trying to make history of his own Saturday at a venue near and dear to his heart.
Woodbridge’s Brayden Tallakson celebrates after his quarterfinal victory over Beckman’s Rohan Grewal at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament on Saturday.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
“I started playing tennis down in lower Libbey, my dad Steve grew up here and won the men’s tournament, so this place is like home for my family,” said Tallakson, who quickly downed Palisades freshman Kensho Ford 6-2, 6-1 in the semifinals. “Matteo came out real aggressive, I made a couple errors on big points and he was just the better player today.”
Tallakson won the boys’ 14s division at Ojai in 2022 and had he prevailed Saturday, he would have been the first player to capture CIF singles and doubles titles at Ojai since Santa Barbara’s Nathan Jackmon won the doubles in 1993 and the singles in 1994. Tallakson won the doubles crown in 2023 with older brother Avery, with whom he will reunite next year at Boise State.
Peninsula seniors Colin Bringas and Edward Feuer completed one of the most dominant runs through the doubles draw ever seen at Ojai by beating Harvard-Westlake’s Aaron Chung and Chase Klugo 6-4, 6-2 in the finals. The Panthers’ duo did not drop a set in six matches and did not give up more than three games in a set until the first set Saturday when they broke in the ninth game to go up 5-4 and then served it out.
Bringas and Feuer are the first Peninsula pair to reach the CIF final at Ojai since 2011 and the third tandem in history to win it, joining Rylan Rizza and Jeff Kazarian in 2001, and Kazarian and Tiege Sullivan the following year.
Peninsula seniors Colin Bringas, left, and Edward Feuer celebrate after winning the CIF boys’ doubles title at the Ojai Valley Tennis Tournament on Saturday.
(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)
“We’ve been playing together since second or third grade and we’ve been best friends since middle school at Ridgecrest Intermediate [in Palos Verdes],” Bringas said. “I always play the ad side, he’s always played the deuce court. I think the key was big serves … they make it easy for the net person to put balls away.”
Bringas and Feuer have partnered at Ojai the last three years, losing in the quarterfinal round as sophomores and juniors but steamrolling this year. They made a measly three unforced errors in a 6-1, 6-1 semifinal wipeout of Marina’s David Tran and Alejandro Hill. Tran was playing in his second straight final, having taken the runner-up prize with Trevor Nguyen in 2025.
“We were confident we’d win, but we felt the pressure and knew there are a lot of good teams here,” said Feuer, who plays No. 1 singles for dual matches while Bringas plays the No. 1 doubles spot with another teammate. “It’ll be really strange playing against each other next year.”
Bringas is bound for Westmont College and Feuer is headed to Point Loma Nazarene — rival NCAA Division II programs in the Pacific West Conference.
Harvard-Westlake, Woodbridge and University shared the Griggs Cup trophy, presented to the school with the most combined wins in singles and doubles. All three notched seven victories to force a three-way tie for only the fifth time since the award debuted in 1955 and the first since Santa Barbara, Palisades and Fresno Bullard were tri-champions in 1997. University has won it 13 times.
World number two Nelly Korda saw her lead at the LPGA Chevron Championship cut to five shots despite equalling the event’s 54-hole scoring record.
After shooting two rounds of 65 on previous days, the 27-year-old American went round in 70 on Saturday to go 16 under par at Houston’s Memorial Park.
If Korda can get over the line on Sunday and win a second Chevron title in three seasons, it would take her to the top of the world rankings after the current world number one, Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul, missed the cut.
Korda got off to a fine start too, with four birdies on the opening six holes but failed to break par on any more holes as she lacked precision on the greens.
“The front nine was great,” said Korda, who said she was going to spend time on the putting greens before Sunday’s final round of the first women’s major of 2026.
“Just got to reset and hopefully it goes my way tomorrow,” she added.
Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit hit a 69 so was able to claw back a shot and reduce Korda’s overnight six-stroke lead to five, despite a bogey on the 13th – her first of the tournament.
She sits on 11 under heading into the final day.
Pauline Bouchard of France is a further shot behind, alongside China’s Yin Ruoning, who scored a bogey-free 66, the joint-best round of the day.
Korda’s 54-hole score of 200 put her level with record holder Jennifer Kupcho, who was the third-round leader on 200 in 2022 – she went on to win by two strokes.
Gemma Collins and Sinitta reacted angrily to Jimmy Bullard’s claims of what led to his own bitter row with Adam Thomas during this I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here series
22:52, 24 Apr 2026Updated 02:03, 25 Apr 2026
Sinitta had enough – and left her co-stars(Image: ITV)
Gemma Collins and Sinitta both stormed off stage during the I’m a Celeb finale.
Drama unfolded moments before actor Adam Thomas was crowned the winner of the show, beating Mo Farah to the title. Singer and actress Sinitta, 62, appeared to take issue at something Jimmy Bullard had said about his own spat with Thomas which happened earlier in the series.
Addressing the audience, Sinitta said: “You guys weren’t there, you don’t know what happened.” She then stormed off stage, and was soon followed by TV personality Gemma.
Jimmy, the former professional footballer, had accused Thomas of being “abusive, aggressive and intimidating”. Adam came face to face with Jimmy and David Haye again for the first time since their bitter camp fallouts in South Africa.
And it was ex boxer David that made the first move, calling out the star when he was chatting to Ant and Dec. This season has been full of twists, trials, tension and tears and now I’m A Celebrity South Africa has reached its end.
When he was announced the winner, Adam said: “Thank you guys, thank you so much. I love ya.” Before he did his final trial in South Africa, Adam, 37, admitted there had been “a lot of drama” in camp. And there was a lot of drama in the final too, as hosts Ant and Dec struggled to stay on top of things.
Adam reflected on it and said he had apologised to Jimmy several times. Looking serious he said: “Listen I take full responsibility for my actions. Yes emotions were definitely running high in that moment. But, you know, I have got nothing but love for Jimmy.”
When David Haye tried to interrupt him Adam also said “will you just let the finalists speak”. Adam then said: “I take everything he said into account. That is not how I want to show myself off and I have never showed myself off in that light before that or after that. And I am sorry Jimmy.”
Adam was given a final eating trial in South Africa called Swallow the Odds, and looking ahead to the prospect of winning said: “I am gonna be a legend baby” He then proceeded to smash the trial, eating five courses with the likes of five pig teats, two century fermented eggs, tarantula and fermented tofu.
He even cheered himself on, saying “come on Adam, ” in between mouthfuls. After watching Gemma said: “You done so well, you amazing.”
But he also had to cope with a backlash from other contestants, as David Haye interrupted the show at this point and said: “Do you think you deserve to win it after calling Jimmy the C-word a couple of times?”
AFTER 14 episodes, I’m A Celebrity All Stars is set to conclude at the grand finale with the winner set to be announced TONIGHT.
What was once 12 has now become four as the remaining celebs prepare to learn their fates.
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I’m A Celebrity All Stars is set to be concluded at the grand finale with the winner set to be announced tonightCredit: SplashHosts Ant and Dec will announce the winner tonightCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
What time is the I’m A Celeb All Stars final on tonight?
The final instalment of I’m A Celeb All Stars will be shown live tonight from an ITV studio in London.
It will be shown across two parts, with the first section running from 7.30pm to 9pm, and the second from 10pm to 10.30pm.
Votes will be counted by the 10pm programme, where the winner will be confirmed by hosts Ant and Dec.
Beverley Callard unfortunately won’t be present at the final due to medical reasonsCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
Which stars are in the final?
As previously mentioned, just four celebs remain in the show after eight departures happened in South Africa.
The final four include Harry Redknapp, Mo Farah, Craig Charles, and Adam Thomas.
That means for the first time in over two decades the show has an all-male final – confirming that the winner will be King of the Jungle rather than Queen.
Football legend Harry Redknapp will be hoping he can repeat history as he won the show back in 2018, while Mo Farah has already beaten his last appearance back in 2021 where he placed fifth.
Fan favourite Craig Charles was amongst the top contenders to win the show when he first appeared in 2014, before having to leave the series early after his brother Dean suffered a fatal heart attack.
Whereas actor Adam Thomas will be hoping to win the show after experiencing drama with David Haye and Jimmy Bullard during his time in the jungle.
For the first time in over two decades the show has an all-male finalCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
Who has been eliminated from the show?
Eight celebs have left the show in order to get to the final four.
The first to go was comedian Seann Walsh on day nine after being given the boot by Team Lion leader and finalist Harry Redknapp.
Next up to leave the jungle was controversial campmate David Haye on day 11 after a campmate vote-off.
Before Gemma Collins packed her bags in the same episode after David chose her when given the choice of another celeb to leave the camp with him.
Beverley Callard was next to leave on day 12 due to medical reasons and has since confirmed she won’t be present at the live finale after being diagnosed with breast cancer.
The most shocking elimination was Jimmy Bullard’s as he called out “I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!” during a trial.
His decision to quit caused a row between him and Adam Thomas as the campmates were paired up and relying on each other – meaning Jimmy took Adam down with him by quitting.
Fortunately for Adam, who has since progressed to the final, the rules were bent and he was allowed to remain in the jungle.
Ashley Roberts and Sinitta were both recently eliminated off the back of being slowest to finish their trials.
Whilst Scarlett Moffatt was kicked out just 24 hours before the grand finale after losing a trial called Keep Your Eye on the Ball.
Democrats on Wednesday celebrated an election win in Virginia that could put them slightly ahead in the national redistricting competition that President Trump triggered in an attempt to preserve his party’s House majority in this year’s midterms, but it will not be the final round.
Now that it’s been approved by voters, the new Virginia map will have to clear additional legal hurdles. On Wednesday, the state attorney general’s office said it would immediately appeal a ruling earlier in the day from a judge in rural southern Virginia who ordered that the results of Tuesday’s vote not be certified.
Ultimately, the Virginia Supreme Court will decide whether Democratic lawmakers violated procedural rules when they referred a constitutional amendment to the ballot authorizing the new U.S. House districts that could help Democrats win as many as four additional seats in the state. If so, that could invalidate the map voters narrowly approved Tuesday.
What happens next in Florida also will matter.
The state’s Republican-controlled Legislature is to meet in a special session next week that GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis called in part to draw a new map to expand the party’s congressional majority there. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to issue an opinion by the end of June in a Louisiana case that could overturn a key provision of the Voting Rights Act and lead to redrawn political maps across the South, though almost all of those could not happen until 2028.
After voters passed the Virginia amendment, Democrats could tentatively claim that they netted 10 seats nationally from the mid-decade redistricting, compared with the nine that Republicans claim. Even if things swing again in the GOP’s favor, the net result of Trump’s campaign would be at best an incremental increase in the number of GOP-leaning House seats at a time when his approval rating is dropping and Republican anxiety over losing control of Congress in November is rising.
“We have successfully blunted Trump’s attempt to completely hijack the midterms,” said John Bisognano, president of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee.
Many Republicans agreed.
“The GOP will now lose net seats across the country. If you’re going to pick a fight, at least win it,” Ari Fleischer, who was a spokesman for President George W. Bush, posted on the social media site X after the Virginia vote. “All this was foreseeable and avoidable. We should not have started this fight.”
Adam Kincaid, executive director of the National Republican Redistricting Trust, argued that it is too soon to declare one party a victor.
“It’s an ongoing process with many legal challenges pending, and it’s far too early for sweeping statements on the final outcome,” he said.
Trump on Wednesday tried to undermine the Virginia result by leveling groundless accusations of fraud similar to ones he made after losing the 2020 presidential election. He called the Virginia vote “RIGGED” and “Crooked” in a post on his social media site and added, “Let’s see if the Courts will fix this travesty of ‘Justice.’”
Redistricting spread from Texas to other states
Redistricting is typically done every 10 years after each census, unless ordered by a court. But last summer, Trump pushed a redrawing in Texas, prodding the state’s Republican-controlled Legislature to add up to five winnable House seats for his party. Trump then began pressuring other Republican-run states to follow. Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio have since created more GOP-leaning seats in addition to Texas.
Democrats began to fight back, even though they were more constrained because several Democratic-controlled states had maps drawn by independent commissions rather than lawmakers and governors.
To counter Texas, California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, pushed the Democratic-controlled Legislature to place a redistricting initiative on last fall’s ballot. After voters overwhelmingly approved it, the measure will replace a commission-approved map with one that could gain Democrats five seats.
Democrats reclaimed the Legislature and governor’s office in November in Virginia and swiftly moved to replicate California’s move with an even more aggressive redistricting plan. It replaces a congressional map imposed by a court after the last census that had resulted in a 6-5 edge for Democrats with one that could allow Democrats to win as many as 10 seats.
“We are not going to let anyone tilt the system without a response,” state Senate President L. Louise Lucas said at a news conference Wednesday.
Courts could still have a say on redistricting
In Washington, U.S. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York warned Florida Republicans, who have been openly nervous about redrawing their district boundaries and potentially spreading their core voters too thin before an election that appears to be trending against them.
“Our message to Florida Republicans right now is, ‘F around and find out,’” Jeffries said.
House Majority Forward, the nonprofit arm of the super political action committee aligned with House Democrats, has spent nearly $60 million to push back against Republicans’ redistricting efforts. Some $40 million of that was on the Virginia campaign.
Another obstacle in Florida is an anti-gerrymandering constitutional amendment that was approved by state voters in 2010. It is likely that any new Florida map would trigger significant litigation, although six of the state Supreme Court’s seven justices were appointed by Republicans.
Nicholas Stephanopolous, a Harvard law professor, said a challenge for DeSantis is that the Florida amendment forbids drawing lines for purely partisan purposes, so he has to find some other excuse for revising the map. “Even with that sort of acquiescent state supreme court, I don’t think it’s a done deal,” Stephanopolous said.
The Virginia move comes with its own legal issues. Republicans have challenged the process that Democrats used to place the measure on the ballot and the state Supreme Court opted to wait for the vote before even scheduling arguments in the case. It is unclear when a ruling could come.
Wednesday’s ruling stopping certification came from a separate case that Republicans filed with the same lower court judge, whose initial ruling against the initiative was put on hold by the state supreme court.
“The ballot box was never the final word here,” Terry Kilgore, the Virginia House Republican leader, said in a statement after Tuesday’s vote. “Serious legal questions remain about both the wording of this referendum and the process used to put it before voters.”
The biggest legal wild card is held by the U.S. Supreme Court. Its conservative majority could throw out a requirement under the Voting Rights Act that in areas with a large minority population, mapmakers draw districts that are more favorable to the election of minority candidates.
That provision has led to the creation of several majority-minority congressional seats, especially in the South. Without it, Republicans in conservative states could shrink the number of U.S. House seats winnable by Democrats even further.
But it’s unlikely that any state other than Louisiana, which brought the lawsuit the high court will rule on, would be able to adjust its congressional lines in time for November even if the court eliminates that provision, known as Section Two. That’s because the November election is already officially underway in most states and candidate filing deadlines — and, in some cases, primary elections — have already passed.
Riccardi and Lieb write for the Associated Press. AP writers Lisa Mascaro and Leah Askarinam in Washington contributed to this report.
This might be the first time in the NFL’s modern era that Pittsburgh has hosted the draft, but the whole format was actually invented here.
Back in 1935, the league’s founders met at the Fort Pitt Hotel and voted unanimously to put in place a selection process in reverse order of the previous season’s standings. That would promote competitive balance, which has been a hallmark of the NFL ever since.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Las Vegas Raiders. The franchise went 21-41 over the past four seasons and its offense scored a league-worst 241 points last season.
Quarterback Fernando Mendoza, who led Indiana to a national championship, won’t be at the draft but almost certainly will hear his name called first. He’s likely to be the only quarterback selected in the opening round.
Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is widely expected to be the No. 1 pick of the NFL draft.
(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)
The rest of the first round figures to be heavy on edge rushers and receivers — the Rams are in the market for a pass catcher — with a couple of Notre Dame running backs who could also make a splash.
Every franchise is looking for that game-changing find. The goal: Be a Pittsburgh stealer.
A look at how the draft could unfold:
1. Las Vegas Raiders: Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana — Mendoza gets Tom Brady’s stamp of approval, and Raiders begin yet another reboot.
2. New York Jets: Arvell Reese, Edge, Ohio State — Pie in the sky, but the Jets are praying to find a Micah Parsons of their own.
3. Arizona Cardinals: David Bailey, Edge, Texas Tech — Amid rumblings that Cardinals might take a running back, they grab a pass rusher instead.
4. Tennessee Titans: Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame — Cam Ward needs help, and Love bolsters that Titans backfield with big-play burst.
Ohio State’s Caleb Downs is projected to be selected No. 5 by the New York Giants.
(Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
5. New York Giants: Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State — John Harbaugh loves those smart safeties who can play quarterback on the back end of the defense.
6. Cleveland Browns: Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State — The Browns got an up-close look at this guy in college, and they need to score points in the worst way.
7. Washington Commanders: Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State — The Commanders get a versatile leader in the middle who can play all four downs.
8. New Orleans Saints: Jordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona State — Chris Olave has been great for the Saints, but he’s prone to concussions. Tyson is insurance.
9. Kansas City Chiefs: Rueben Bain Jr., Edge, Miami — If the Chiefs don’t take a receiver, they would be perfectly happy with a do-it-all pass rusher.
LSU cornerback Mansoor Delane is projected to be the Giants’ second pick of the NFL draft.
(Michael DeMocker / Getty Images)
10. New York Giants: Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU — Giants will hold their breath making this pick as they have an illustrious history of drafting busts at corner.
11. Miami Dolphins: Keldric Faulk, Edge, Auburn — Dolphins are a trade-up candidate, but they are sorely in need of pass-rush help. Faulk is a good fit.
12. Dallas Cowboys: Dillon Thieneman, S, Oregon — The Cowboys surrendered a league-worst 30.1 points per game last season and need help all over.
13. Rams: Makai Lemon, WR, USC — The Rams have shown a knack for identifying receivers who will become stars. This would be a great landing spot.
USC receiver Makai Lemon, who made many acrobatic catches during his career with the Trojans, could be selected by the Rams.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
14. Baltimore Ravens: Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami — With the best of the receivers gone, the Ravens look to bolster their offensive line. They need help at guard and tackle.
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Akheem Mesidor, Edge, Miami — The Buccaneers haven’t had anyone with 10 sacks since 2021. Mesidor has that potential.
16. New York Jets: Denzel Boston, WR, Washington — The Jets need a bookend for Garret Wilson, and this gives Geno Smith a big target over the middle.
17. Detroit Lions: Spencer Fano, OT, Utah — Taylor Decker is gone. The Lions get a player who can line up on either side, opposite Penei Sewell.
18. Minnesota Vikings: Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, S, Toledo — Harrison Smith is in the sunset of his career, and if there’s a top-notch safety here, the Vikings need to grab him.
19. Carolina Panthers: Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon — The Panthers take an elite safety if there’s still one around, but a target for Bryce Young would be nice too.
20. Dallas Cowboys: Jermod McCoy, CB, Tennessee — More help for the Cowboys defense. This could be Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez as well.
21. Pittsburgh Steelers: Omar Cooper Jr., WR, Indiana — Steelers receivers coach is the brother of Indiana’s head coach. Pittsburgh knows this player well.
Penn State offensive lineman Olaivavega Ioane could be selected by the Chargers in the first round of the NFL draft.
(Michael Conroy / Associated Press)
22. Chargers: Olaivavega Ioane, G, Penn State — The Chargers have huge draft investments in their tackles, but they still need to fortify that offensive line.
23. Philadelphia Eagles: Kadyn Proctor, OT, Alabama — With Lane Johnson near the end of his career, the Eagles need to start developing a huge young successor.
24. Cleveland Browns: Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia — Thanks to a trade with Jacksonville, the Browns have the draft capital to take a left tackle here.
25. Chicago Bears: Zion Young, Edge, Missouri — Lots of talent on offense, but the Bears need to do everything they can to fortify their defense. Young can get to quarterbacks.
26. Buffalo Bills: Cashius Howell, Edge, Texas A&M — SEC Defensive Player of the Year should be a nice complement to newly-acquired Bradley Chubb off the edge.
27. San Francisco 49ers: KC Concepcion, WR, Texas A&M — This receiver and return specialist fits the mold for Kyle Shanahan. A crisp route runner with speed to get deep.
28. Houston Texans: Kayden McDonald, DT, Ohio State — The Texans need help along the interior of both of their lines. McDonald can make an immediate impact.
29. Kansas City Chiefs: Colton Hood, CB, Tennessee — Chiefs need a corner, and if Jermod McCoy is gone, Hood would be a good alternative.
30. Miami Dolphins: Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech — The reliable Rodriguez could go earlier – maybe to Dallas – but would help stabilize rebuilding Dolphins defense.
31. New England Patriots: T.J. Parker, Edge, Clemson — The Patriots have made no secret about their desire to beef up their rush off the edges.
32. Seattle Seahawks: Jadarian Price, RB, Notre Dame — The Seahawks didn’t re-sign Kenneth Walker III, so there’s opportunity for a young running back to fill the void.
For two thirds of Sunday’s Acura Long Beach Grand Prix, Alex Palou bided his time… waiting for the one break he needed.
It came in the form of a caution on the 58th lap, allowing him to overtake front-runner Felix Rosenqvist exiting pit lane and hold the lead the rest of the way, taking the checkered flag by 3.96 seconds for his third triumph in five IndyCar Series races this season and his first at Long Beach.
Right after being showered with applause and confetti at victory lane, the 29-year-old Spaniard thanked his crew, whose quick work on the last pit stop proved to be the difference.
“Everyone was coming in on that yellow and they did an incredible job,” he said. “We were either going to win it or not win right there.”
Rosenqvist settled for second and Scott Dixon, Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammate, was third.
It was the 11th win over the last 22 races dating back to 2024 for the Barcelona native and the 22nd win of his career, tying him with Tony Bettenhausen and Emerson Fittipaldi. It also vaulted him to the top of the Series standings as he chases his fourth Series championship in a row and fifth overall. Palou won the opener March 1 in St. Petersburg (also a street course) and the fourth race March 29 in Alabama.
Palou led for only 32 of the 90 laps Sunday and acknowledged it would have been difficult to catch Enqvist if not for the stoppage.
“I wasn’t giving up but it would’ve been tough to get him today,” Palou admitted. “He was already three seconds ahead. I was happy with my car but I was struggling more on the soft tires than the hards so I’d say my chances were low. The feeling was great seeing all the open space coming out of pit lane because when you spend 60 laps behind a car it disturbs you. I tried to match him on soft tires but it wasn’t working.”
Alex Palou speeds through a curve of the track.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
In six starts at Long Beach, Palou has never finished lower than fifth.
There is little room to maneuver on the 1.968-mile course with 11 tight turns, but after starting in the third position next to defending champion Kyle Kirkwood, Palou managed to sneak past Pato O’Ward into second place heading into the first turn on Lap 2.
“Making that move on the straightaway was big because I knew it was one of our only chances to get a pass on Pato,” Palou said. “I got that good run on that last corner and he didn’t expect it.”
This year marked the 51st edition of the longest-running major street race in North America, which started in 1975 as part of the Formula 5000 Series, switched to the CART/Champ Car World Series in 1984 and joined the IndyCar Series in 2009.
The top four qualifiers started on softer, high-grip “alternate” tires to establish position while the rest of the grid started on harder, more durable “primaries” to manage degradation on the 110-degree track surface. Of the 25 starters, 24 completed the 177.12 miles.
“We were going to make the two-stop strategy work but didn’t know if it would be doable or not,” Palou added. “As soon as I saw I couldn’t get Felix it was all about patience, fuel and waiting for the right time. I owe this win to my team. Without that pit stop I probably wouldn’t be sitting here now. It only takes one mistake to go from second to seventh but they’re great under pressure.”
Cars make their way down a straightaway during Long Beach Grand Prix.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
Past winners Will Power and Josef Newgarden moved into the top two positions after Rosenqvist pitted but the Swede regained the lead when Newgarden pitted for the first time on Lap 37 and dropped back to 14th.
The first 45 laps were caution-free as Rosenqvist, Palou, Kirkwood, David Malukas and O’Ward held the top five spots. Newgarden fell out of contention when a flat spot on his left front tire dropped him back to 14th.
Rosenqvist’s three-second lead was erased when debris on the track exiting the Aquarium Fountain drew the only yellow flag all afternoon and narrowed the gap. Capitalizing on favorable pit position, Palou emerged from the lane just ahead of Rosenqvist.
After earning the pole position with a lap time of 1 minute, 7.4625 seconds in qualifying, the runner-up had mixed emotions after leading for 51 laps with no win to show for it.
“You want to win when you have an opportunity but I’m proud of today,” Rosenqvist said. “We weren’t as good as Alex on the blacks… the last pit cycle was the defining moment. We had to come around 14, he had more of an opening and his crew nailed it. That happens.”
Kirkwood, who was vying for his third win in four years, finished right where he started in fourth.
“I had a good cushion and figured even with a bad stop I’d probably stay ahead but I knew there’d probably be a yellow at some point and there it came,” Rosenqvist lamented. “Considering Alex had primary [tires] also I think we would’ve been able to hold him off. It’s definitely disappointing when you can’t wrap it up.”
Dixon, who started in the position, earned his first podium this season and the 136th of his career.
Fans watch with two laps left in the race.
(Ronaldo Bolaños / Los Angeles Times)
“The race itself was a bit blah — I sat in the same position for most of it,” Dixon said. “Luckily for us we had it easy out of that last stop.”
Al Unser Jr. holds the record for most wins at Long Beach, chalking up six in eight years, including an unmatched four in a row from 1988 to 1991.
Tom Sargent is becoming a fan of street circuits after two wins this weekend. Driving the Porsche 911 Cup for GMG Racing in the Mobil Pro Class, the 22-year-old Australian led from start to finish in Race 1 of the Carrera Cup North America on Saturday. In Race 2 on Sunday morning, he again started from the pole and claimed a 0.965-second victory over Aaron Jeansonne to complete the double.
In his last bid at Long Beach three years ago, he hit the wall on Lap 2 but still finished second.
“Momentum in sports is critical and the past few weeks have been really cool for me,” Sargent said. “I didn’t do any street circuit racing before I came to the States. Maybe it fits my driving style.”
Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina beat Karolina Muchova in straight sets to clinch victory at the indoor clay-court tournament in Stuttgart.
World number two Rybakina came through a close first set against her Czech opponent and raced through the second to wrap up a 7-5 6-1 victory in one hour and 18 minutes.
It is the 26-year-old’s second title of 2026, following her Australian Open success in January.
It is also the second time she has won the event in Stuttgart, which has a Porsche car as part of the winner’s prize.
When she previously won the title in 2024, she was initially unable to drive that year’s prize as she did not have a driving licence at the time.
“I want to say a big thanks to my team, without you guys it wouldn’t be possible,” said Rybakina. “Thank you for always pushing me to do better and improve every day.”
Muchova’s run to the final followed her victory at February’s Qatar Open and will leave her just outside the top 10 in the world rankings.
Adam Peaty puts on an “astonishing” performance in the men’s 100m breaststroke final, with a time of 58.97 seconds at the Acquatics Great British Swimming Championships.
