Wins

Reporting from Columbus, Ohio — Donald Trump romped to victory Tuesday in Florida, chasing Marco Rubio from the race, but Ohio Gov. John Kasich won his home state, raising hopes for those seeking to stop Trump and settle the presidential contest on the floor of the Republican National Convention.

Trump also won North Carolina and Illinois and was locked in a close fight with Sen. Ted Cruz in Missouri.

“I’m getting ready to rent a covered wagon, we’re going to have a big sail and have the wind blow us to the Rocky Mountains and over the mountains to California,” Kasich said at a jubilant rally outside Cleveland.

That is just the sort of extended nominating fight the GOP establishment sought to avoid by stacking the political calendar with big early contests, capped by Tuesday night’s winner-take-all primaries in Florida and Ohio. California votes on June 7, near the close of the primary season.

Now, many of those same party types see an inconclusive nominating contest as the best and perhaps only chance of thwarting Trump, even if it threatens to shred the GOP in the process.

The setback in Ohio, where Trump campaigned hard, was his most disappointing performance since he finished second to Cruz in February’s Iowa caucuses.

His unhappiness was evident as he addressed reporters at his posh Mar-a-Lago private club in Palm Beach, Fla., and complained about the miseries of running for president.

“Lies, deceit, viciousness. Disgusting reporters. Horrible people,” the Manhattan businessman and reality TV star said. “Some are nice.”

Cruz, speaking with 99% of the Missouri votes counted, once more insisted he was the only candidate who could defeat Trump.

“Starting tomorrow morning, every Republican has a clear choice. Only two campaigns have a plausible path to the nomination — ours and Donald Trump’s,” the Texas senator told supporters in Houston. “Nobody else has any mathematical possibility whatsoever. Only one campaign has beaten Donald Trump over and over again.”

With Trump’s unmatched string of victories, no other candidate is nearly as well positioned to win the nomination ahead of the July convention in Cleveland. He padded his overall delegate lead with Tuesday’s victories, putting him ahead of Cruz and Kasich, who had not won a state before Ohio.

But there were signs Tuesday that not just the establishment but rank-and-file Republicans have yet to rally around the party’s polarizing front-runner.

Nearly 3 in 10 Republican voters across the five states said they would not vote for Trump if he wins the party’s nomination, according to exit poll interviews. Four in 10 said they would consider voting for a third-party candidate if the choice came down to Trump or the Democratic front-runner, Hillary Clinton.

Defections of that magnitude could badly undermine Trump in the general election, and that prospect will probably be stressed by his opponents going forward into next week’s contests in Arizona and Utah.

Rubio spoke to the controversy surrounding the GOP front-runner as he departed the race.

In a Miami concession speech delivered less than half an hour after the polls closed in Florida, the freshman senator congratulated Trump, wagging a finger and shushing members of the audience who booed his kind words.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich votes Tuesday in Westerville, Ohio.

(Matt Rourke / Associated Press)

Rubio then devoted the bulk of his lengthy remarks to warn against succumbing to the anger and frustration that have fueled Trump’s improbable rise.

“The politics of resentment against other people will not just leave us a fractured party,” Rubio said, as disconsolate family members stood by onstage. “They’re going to leave us a fractured nation” where people hate each other for their political views.

“Do not give in to the fear,” Rubio said. “Do not give in to the frustration.”

The son of Cuban immigrants and, at age 44, the youngest candidate in the field, Rubio was seen as one of the GOP’s rising stars, with a capacity to broaden the party’s support among millennial voters and the nation’s fast-growing Latino population.

But he failed to win more than a few contests and was never seriously competitive in his home state. Trump captured 99 delegates in Florida’s winner take-all-primary, more than a quarter of those at stake in Tuesday’s balloting.

The victory in winner-take-all Ohio gave Kasich 66 delegates, more than doubling his total but still leaving him well behind Trump. His goal is to build momentum with a series of wins positioning him as the strongest candidate heading into the Cleveland convention even if, as seems inevitable, Kasich is shy of the 1,237 delegates needed to win the nomination outright.

Pennsylvania, where Kasich was born, is the next big target on April 26.

The results Tuesday followed one of the oddest, most contentious weeks in a campaign that has been filled with strange and surreal moments.

The precipitating event was a racially charged near-riot at a Trump rally Friday night in Chicago, which was canceled out of security concerns.

Trump’s opponents quickly seized on the moment and the violent imagery that played around the world to once more challenge his temperament and fitness to be president. They accused him of fomenting the unrest through belligerent remarks that seemed to egg on his audiences into physically confronting dissenters.

Trump denied any responsibility, blaming the violence on what he called professional agitators linked to Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders. He said the protesters provoked his supporters and were stifling their rights to free speech and assembly.

“I don’t condone violence,” Trump said repeatedly, though he sympathized with backers who chose to “be effective” with protesters in the audience. (Previously he used more pugilistic language.)

Trump said he might even pay the legal fees for a supporter who sucker-punched a demonstrator at a North Carolina rally, drawing widespread condemnation. He won the state anyway.

Indeed, for weeks increasingly desperate Republican opponents have mounted an effort to stop Trump, to seemingly little effect.

More than $10 million in negative ads blazed across the Florida airwaves in just the last week alone, attacking Trump for his ethics, the failings of his business empire and his all-over-the-map political ideology.

Those meant nothing to Mark Owens, who stepped into the Miami Beach sunshine Tuesday and lighted a cigar after casting a ballot for the political neophyte.

“We’ve trusted politicians for 200 years to run our country,” Owens said. “It’s time to give someone else a shot.”

With polls suggesting Florida was firmly in Trump’s grasp, much of the campaign focused on Ohio, another traditional fall battleground.

Trump laid on extra events, including an election-eve rally outside Youngstown in place of a planned Florida appearance, and he turned his attention to attacking Kasich after long ignoring the Ohio governor.

He assailed him for his support as a congressman for the North American Free Trade Agreement, a pact with Canada and Mexico that, Trump said, devastated the state’s economy. He also laid on personal insults in a bid to snatch a victory in Kasich’s home state and clear the governor from the race.

Kasich, whose strategy centered on staying above the salvos flying among other candidates, accused Trump of creating a “toxic” political atmosphere and, wrapping himself in the establishment mantle, spent Monday stumping alongside Mitt Romney, the party’s 2012 nominee.

With Kasich suddenly a factor in the GOP contest, the skirmishing here in Ohio seems a likely preview of what is to come.

While he pledged to take the high road at his victory party Tuesday night, Kasich sent a different message speaking to reporters earlier in the day.

He said, “I will be … forced going forward to talk about some of the deep concerns I have about the way this campaign has been run by some others — by one other in particular.”

There is no doubting who he had in mind.

mark.barabak@latimes.com

Twitter: @markzbarabak

Times staff writers Michael Finnegan, Kurtis Lee and Seema Mehta in Los Angeles and Kate Linthicum in Miami contributed to this report.

THE UK has some incredible beach lidos, but this one in the south of England is now award-winning.

Just inland beyond Saltdean Beach in Brighton is its beautiful art deco pool that previously underwent a revamp – and has just won a prestigious prize.

Follow The Sun’s award-winning travel team on Instagram and Tiktok for top holiday tips and inspiration @thesuntravel.

Saltdean Lido has been open since 1938 to keen swimmers and has undergone significant upgrades throughout the years.

But in 2010, Saltdean Lido began a major revamp, preserving original features, restoring the building and upgrading the café, library, ballroom and an exercise space.

It cost an estimated £11million which was paid for by donations and National Lottery funding.

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Your fave North East seaside eats – from beach bars in boats to pirate chippies

After 14 years, it was finally completed in 2024 and now, it is one of six winners in the South East division of the 2026 Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Awards.

The prestigious architecture award celebrates design innovation and social impact of buildings around the country.

Along with the other winners, Saltdean Lido was praised as being “exceptional.”

Saltdean Lido is a 40 metre outdoor heated pool and remains open all year, even during the winter.

It has a kids’ splash pool and grassy area making it a popular spot in the summer months.

In the lido building is a café which recently rebranded as the Reading Room, which serves up snacks, toasties and drinks.

On-site is also a gym, as well as saunas and plunge pools designed to increase circulation and boost immune systems.

Classes are held at the lido too, from yoga to Pilates, tai chi and dance – it’s also home to a public library.

There’s a huge ballroom too where events are held and it can even be hired out for weddings.

Events take place throughout the year; coming up in a few months is ‘Dogtember’, which is dubbed the ‘biggest dog swimming event in the UK’.

It runs for four weekends where dogs and humans alike will take to the pool in 90-minute sessions.

Built in the 1930s, the lido was considered such an innovative design of its time.

However, it was forced to close just two years later due to the war and remained closed for the next 19 years.

It was even nearly bought by Butlins in 1958 when it was derelict but this plan was scrapped.

The lido reopened in 1964 after being bought by the Brighton Town Council.

The league’s worst team this season is getting the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft.

The Washington Wizards won the draft lottery on Sunday and are poised to pick first overall for the first time since choosing John Wall in that spot in 2010. Wall was the Wizards’ on-stage representative for the lottery.

Washington had a 14% chance of winning No. 1, tied with Brooklyn and Indiana for the best odds. The Wizards had basically a 50-50 chance of getting either a top-four pick or the No. 5 spot.

But three consecutive years of losing — the three worst seasons in the franchise’s 65-year history — finally paid off Sunday for the Wizards, who went 17-65 this season and even allowed Miami’s Bam Adebayo to score 83 points for the league’s second-highest single-game total ever.

The Wizards swung deals to land Trae Young and Anthony Davis last season, and now they have a chance to add an immediate impact player with the No. 1 pick.

Utah will pick No. 2, Memphis will pick No. 3 and Chicago will pick No. 4.

The Clippers got the fifth pick — via a trade with the Pacers — followed by No. 6 Brooklyn, No. 7 Sacramento, No. 8 Atlanta, No. 9 Dallas, No. 10 Milwaukee, No. 11 Golden State, No. 12 Oklahoma City, No. 13 Miami and No. 14 Charlotte.

The draft begins June 23 in New York. The draft combine in Chicago starts on Monday.

No. 1 pick possibilities

There are four candidates that generally are considered front-runners to be the No. 1 pick, all of them entering the draft after their freshman years of college. They are:

— BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, who led the nation in scoring at 25.5 points per game in his lone college season.

— Duke’s Cameron Boozer, the AP player of the year who averaged 22.5 points and 10.1 rebounds.

— Kansas’ Darryn Peterson, who averaged 20.2 points in 24 games for the Jayhawks.

— North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson, who averaged 19.8 points and 9.4 rebounds on 58% shooting.

All four of those players, and a few other likely first-round selections, were all among those in the studio for the announcement of the lottery results Sunday at Chicago’s Navy Pier.

“Standing here is kind of crazy,” Dybantsa said. “One of these teams is going to be home.”

Last of this format (probably)

This was the eighth, and likely final, year of this version of an NBA draft lottery, with the worst teams having a 14% chance of winning.

Framework fell into place last month on changes meant to further discourage tanking, and the league’s Board of Governors is expected to ratify that plan in the next few weeks — with general managers meeting in Chicago on Tuesday to discuss them presumably for one last time.

The three worst teams, starting next season, would have a 5.4% chance of winning — with the next seven teams all having an 8.1% chance of winning. The lottery would grow from 14 to 16 teams if the plan, as expected, is approved.

Reynolds writes for the Associated Press.

The Times earned prestigious Associated Press Sports Editors triple crown honors for a sixth consecutive year, claimed first place in two individual categories and finished in the top 10 in eight categories.

The staff submitted work published in 2025 and competed against the largest print and digital sports publications in the country.

Bill Plaschke took top honors in the columnist category for a portfolio that included commentary about using boxing to aid his fight with Parkinson’s disease, the affect of nearly losing his Altadena home in the Eaton Fire, the Dodgers’ 18-inning win during the World Series and UCLA’s fight for the right to break its Rose Bowl lease.

It was Plaschke’s 10th first-place columnist finish of his career. He previously won the APSE’s Red Smith Award, the highest honor in American sports journalism.

The Times also earned first place in event coverage for the staff’s work chronicling the Dodgers World Series Game 7 win, tying with the Dallas Morning News for top honors.

Eric Sondheimer, who is poised to begin his 50th year covering high school sports in Southern California, placed second in short feature for his coverage of the chilling affect immigration raids had on Los Angeles high school football players.

Kevin Baxter placed ninth in national beat writing for his coverage of preparation for the 2026 World Cup, including a look at why FIFA president Gianni Infantino has worked to court President Trump.

The Times’ eight top-10 finishes included the categories print portfolio, digital, event coverage, special sections, investigative, national beat writing, columns and short feature. The staff also earned an excellence in video award.

There is no doubt Manchester United have given Bruno Fernandes a push to get this award.

United have been playing up Fernandes’ claims and also ensured the Portugal playmaker was promoted through some recent media engagements.

However, this would have been pointless had Fernandes not delivered at a time in the season when United needed him to deliver.

In October, when Fernandes spoke about qualification for the Champions League, few thought it was likely.

In January, when technical director Jason Wilcox told the United squad that was the aim despite Ruben Amorim’s dismissal, it seemed a tall order.

That they have achieved it with three matches to spare and could yet end the campaign nearer in points terms to the eventual champions than in any other season since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement 13 years ago, owes a huge amount to Fernandes.

Since returning from a rare injury against Burnley, Sunday’s victory over Liverpool was only the third match out of 16 in all competitions when Fernandes has not either scored a goal or created one.

His performances across the season have been consistently high and worthy of wider recognition.

Twelve months ago, when the debate over Fernandes’ United future raged, the question being asked was simply this: where would they be without him? The suspicion was they would have been much closer to relegation than they actually were.

The same could be asked now. The answer? They surely would not be looking forward to a Champions League return.

Five months ago, President Trump was stinging from one of the first political defeats of his second term as Republican state senators defied him on redistricting in Indiana. Now he has proved he can still punish wayward party members after he endorsed a slate of challengers who defeated almost every one of those lawmakers he wanted to dislodge.

The results will likely bolster Trump’s confidence heading into upcoming Republican primaries where he wants to help oust more incumbents, including U.S Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky.

Indiana’s primary also ratchets up the pressure on Republican lawmakers in other states to move aggressively to redraw congressional district boundaries before the November elections. Alabama and Tennessee have already begun special sessions that could limit Black voters’ strength in Democratic-leaning districts, and some of Trump’s allies in South Carolina want to follow suit.

State Sen. Linda Rogers, one of the Indiana lawmakers who voted against redistricting and lost her seat Tuesday, said the outcome “will probably discourage others in other states.”

“If someone is going to ask you to take a tough vote, you may think twice about your conscience and what’s best for your community and instead what’s best for you and your career,” she said.

Redistricting efforts began last year, when Trump saw an opportunity to give Republicans an additional edge, but they were supercharged last week when the U.S. Supreme Court gutted a provision of the Voting Rights Act that influenced how political lines are drawn.

Trump’s success in Indiana, aided by more than $8.3 million in campaign cash in races that usually see very little spending, reaffirmed the president’s continued strength within a Republican Party that he has dominated for a decade, despite his inevitable slide toward lame-duck status and his sagging poll numbers.

“Historic night for Indiana as Republicans stood with me and President Trump to nominate some great America First conservatives,” Gov. Mike Braun, R-Ind., posted on social media. “I look forward to winning big in November and serving Hoosiers with this team in the statehouse!”

Trump backed primary challenges against seven Republican state senators who rejected his redistricting plan in December. Five of the president’s candidates won, and another race remained too close to call.

Trump was relatively restrained on social media about the voting. He shared a series of photos celebrating the victories of candidates he endorsed in Indiana and Ohio, which also held primaries Tuesday. But he otherwise passed on boasting or renewing his attacks on Massie or Cassidy.

Massie has been among the members of Congress who frustrated the president by pressing for release of the Jeffrey Epstein case files. Cassidy was among the Republican senators who voted to convict Trump on 2021 impeachment charges after the Jan. 6 riot.

James Blair, one of Trump’s top political advisers, was more direct, posting an image from the movie “Gladiator” depicting Russell Crowe’s ancient Roman character Maximus exulting after a combat victory.

Rogers, the Indiana state senator, faced almost $670,000 in television advertising against her, funded by political action committees associated with Braun and U.S. Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind.

She said she did not regret her vote against redistricting.

“It would have been easy for me to hit that ‘yes’ button,” she said. “To hear the number of people who asked me not to, then the number of people who thanked me, would mean I wasn’t representing them.”

Louisiana’s primary, in which Trump has endorsed U.S. Rep. Julie Letlow over Cassidy, is set for May 16. Kentucky, where Trump has endorsed Massie’s challenger, retired Navy SEAL Ed Gallrein, will hold its primary May 19.

Beaumont and Barrow write for the Associated Press.

The 2025-26 season has been a breakthrough campaign for Wu.

He claimed his first ranking title at the International Championship in Nanjing last November, then reached the semi-finals of the Masters on his debut.

That form enabled him to rise up to 10th in the world rankings and he will now climb to fourth after picking up snooker’s most famous silverware on Monday.

However, things have not always come easy for Wu, who told the media earlier in the tournament that he would purchase his ideal home if he collected the winner’s prize of £500,000.

His mother, who has been in Sheffield for the tournament, still lives in China and is only an occasional visitor to the UK.

“In the beginning there was not a lot of prize money, so there was definitely a lot of pressure and also there was a lot for myself to improve in terms of my game, so I was definitely feeling the pressure at the time,” said Wu.

“I wasn’t mentally in a good place, but I’m really happy I overcame many difficulties to come to here to where I am today.”

Aside from his swashbuckling and fearless attacking play, there is one other notable thing that stands out where Wu is concerned – his mullet hairstyle.

While that has been dispensed with recently, it highlights that he is not afraid to display his individuality in a sport known for its formal attire and disciplined appearance and that attitude has carried him to glory.

Norris was left to rue the pit stop decision – “How did we not win this?” he said over the radio. “We can make it easier for ourselves.”

But this was a strong showing from McLaren, who introduced a major upgrade package this weekend, which brought them right into the fight with Mercedes.

Leclerc was brought in on lap 21 for his stop, and complained over the radio that he had not been consulted.

The decision did drop him down the field and force him to fight past slower cars. He regained third, but then lost it again to Norris’ team-mate Piastri on the penultimate lap as he began to struggle for grip.

Leclerc then spun on his own on the last lap, shortly after Piastri had overtaken him, and he lost two further positions into and out of the final corner, as first Russell and then Verstappen came past him.

Verstappen pitted under the safety car for his fresh tyres, hoping the gamble would pay off. It dropped him to the back, but with some aggressive overtaking and the others pitting in front of him, it put him in the lead mid-race.

But he was never going to hold on with his worn tyres, and he slipped down. Still, fifth was a decent result after his early error, which was followed by some very aggressive racing that prompted complaints from some of his rivals.

Leclerc slipped back to sixth, ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, whose car was damaged in a first-lap clash with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.

The Argentine took eighth, ahead of the Williams cars of Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.

Verstappen faces an investigation from the stewards for crossing the white line on pit exit, while a collision between Russell and Verstappen while they were racing in the closing stages and in which the Mercedes’ front wing was damaged is also under consideration.

LONDON — President Trump sang the praises of King Charles III after the monarch’s state visit this week. He even lifted some tariffs on Scotch whisky as a favor to the British monarch.

The king delivered a diplomatic master-class on the trip, mixing praise for his host with subtle criticism. It’s unclear, though, whether it will make a major difference to a trans-Atlantic relationship troubled by divisions over issues including the Iran war.

“In the short term probably yes, in the long term probably no,” said Kristofer Allerfeldt, a University of Exeter professor specializing in American history. But he said Charles had “definitely clawed back some of the prestige of the monarchy” in his homeland with his assured performance.

“He’s done us proud,” Allerfeldt said.

Like all royal visits, the four-day trip to Washington, New York and Virginia by the king and Queen Camilla was a carefully choreographed diplomatic event carried out at the request of the U.K. government. Timed to help mark the United States’ 250th birthday, it was a chance to heal rifts between the U.K. government and the Trump administration.

Trump has criticized Keir Starmer

The president has lambasted Prime Minister Keir Starmer — whom he once praised — over his unwillingness to join U.S. military attacks on Iran, dismissing Britain’s leader as “not Winston Churchill,” the World War II prime minister who coined the phrase “special relationship” for the U.K.-U.S. bond.

It’s part of a wider split between Trump and the United States’ NATO allies, whom he has called “cowards” and “useless” for not joining action against Iran.

None of that has soured Trump’s fondness for the British monarchy, which seems to have been deepened by the president’s unprecedented second state visit to the U.K. in September.

Some U.K. opposition politicians had called for the king’s reciprocal trip to be canceled, lest the president do or say something to embarrass the monarch.

In the end, there was much warmth and few awkward moments — though Trump did not always adhere to the convention that conversations with the monarch should remain private.

At a white-tie state dinner on Tuesday, Trump said “Charles agrees with me, even more than I do” that Iran must never have nuclear weapons.

Trump also said that “if that were up to him,” the king “would have followed the suggestions we made with respect to Ukraine.”

Buckingham Palace appeared relaxed about Trump’s Iran comment, noting that “the king is naturally mindful of his government’s longstanding and well-known position on the prevention of nuclear proliferation.”

The king’s speech chided Trump policies

On Ukraine, however, differences were clear. The U.K. has been one of Kyiv’s strongest supporters in its fight against Russia’s invasion, and in a speech to Congress the king underscored the importance of the need for “unyielding resolve” to support Ukraine.

It was one of several implicit rebukes to the “America first” U.S. administration in the speech, the centerpiece moment of the trip.

With regal understatement and in a cut-glass accent, Charles stressed the essential role of NATO, the importance of checks on executive power, the threat posed by climate change and the strength drawn from “vibrant, diverse and free societies.” He spoke of his pride at having served in the Royal Navy, a force Trump has disparaged.

“It’s difficult to imagine he could have gone much further in what he said and what he didn’t say,” historian Anthony Seldon told The Guardian. “He judged it incredibly well: very brave, very smart, very clever.”

Allerfeldt noted the “extraordinary” reception from both sides of the political aisle to the speech, which drew multiple standing ovations.

“Apart from the section on the natural world and the environment, both Republicans and Democrats stood up and applauded,” he said.

In a less formal speech at the state banquet, the king even drew laughs when he joked about British troops burning down the White House in 1814.

The king alluded to Epstein’s victims

The trip was judged a success despite the shadow of the king’s younger brother Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who has been stripped of his royal title of Prince Andrew, exiled from public life and put under police investigation over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. He has denied committing any crimes.

Epstein victims had urged the king to meet with them and other sexual abuse survivors. He didn’t, but he did refer obliquely to the issue in his speech to Congress, mentioning the need to “support victims of some of the ills that, so tragically, exist in both our societies today.”

Andrew Lownie, author of a biography of the former Prince Andrew called “Entitled,” praised the speech as “the best defense of the monarchy in years.”

After the royal couple left the U.S., Trump announced he was lifting certain tariffs on Scotch “in honor of the King and Queen of the United Kingdom.”

Buckingham Palace toasted the announcement, saying the king “sends his sincere gratitude for a decision that will make an important difference to the British whisky industry and the livelihoods it supports.”

Trump called the king “a phenomenal representative” for his country, before turning back to a familiar theme: criticizing Starmer.

The president told Sky News that Charles is “a much different person than your prime minister.

“Your prime minister has to learn to deal the way he deals, and he’ll do a lot better,” he said.

Lawless writes for the Associated Press.

Ever-growing power conferences are the driving force behind an impending expansion of the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, which ESPN reported could be formalized within weeks and begin next season.

The field would grow from 68 teams to 76 that would include eight additional at-large teams in each tournament. The current First Four — eight teams playing four games — would expand to 12 games played by 24 teams at two sites on the first Tuesday and Wednesday of the tournament. The traditional 64-team bracket would begin Thursday as usual.

Mid-majors likely are tempering any celebration. The change might not mean more invitations to the Big Dance for underdogs because the NCAA and its media partners favor large, established schools with large, established fan bases for viewership and revenue.

The Power Four — the Big Ten, SEC, Big 12 and ACC — plus the Big East comprise 79 schools and continue to add rather than subtract. Even teams with conference records under .500 are usually considered more desirable additions to March Madness than mid-major potential Cinderellas.

Power conference teams play more highly regarded opponents than do mid-majors, who often struggle to schedule top opponents. That’s called strength of schedule, and advanced metrics such as KenPom, NET and Wins Above Bubble usually favor power conference schools.

It’s a bit too soon to start listing schools that likely would make the cut next March after missing out in recent years. The NCAA cautioned that the expansion is not official — yet.

“Expanding the basketball tournaments would require approval from multiple NCAA committees, including the men’s and women’s basketball committees, and no final recommendation or decisions have been made at this time,” the NCAA said in a statement.

Those final steps have been initiated, and one anonymous source told ESPN that approval by those committees “are just formalities.”

The women’s tournament would include the same expansion — and likely also favor the addition of teams from the power conferences.

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.

AMY Childs has signed up for the next series of Celeb SAS: Who Dares Wins.

The former TOWIE star, 35, will appear on the next series of the gruelling Channel 4 show which is expected to air next year.

A source said: “Amy is ready to be pushed to her limit on the show.

“She wants to prove to herself and her children that she has what it takes.

“Amy has also been working hard with her personal trainer to be physically ready to take on the challenge.”

Earlier this month Amy tied the knot with her long-term boyfriend Billy Delbosq at Marylebone Town Hall in London.

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Meanwhile Amy has also faced cruel backlash from trolls online over her drastic weight loss.

She also faced further turmoil last year when her mum Julie was rushed to hospital following a heart attack last year.

Speaking to OK! Magazine, she said: “People don’t know what is going on behind closed doors.

“I’m going through so much at the minute that the weight has fallen off me. I worry about my mum constantly.

“She’s very emotional – she thinks she’s going to have another heart attack.”

The Sun has also revealed that Married At First Sight star Ella Morgan will compete on the military challenge show.

It will be the first time that a famous trans person has competed on Channel 4’s military challenge show, which films its ninth series this summer.

Meanwhile Freddy Brazier is also in talks to compete on the show – following in the footsteps of his dad Jeff Brazier, who starred on the show in 2019.

Former Special Forces big dogs Billy Billingham, Jason Fox, Rudy Reyes, and Chris Oliver will all be on hand to push the stars to their limit.

Series eight, which went out in January, was given a Team UK v Team Australia theme and produced in conjunction with Aussie broadcaster Channel 7.

Seven stars from each country were pitted against each other to find out which of them were capable of completing the course.

Former Love Islanders Dani Dyer and Gabby Allen as well as retired Australian swimmer Emily Seebohm were crowned the winners.

Bulgaria’s eighth parliamentary election in five years has concluded with former president Rumen Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria party emerging as the clear winner. Radev will be the next prime minister.

While pollsters predicted a win for Radev ahead of the election, they did not necessarily expect it to be such a large one.

With 98.3 percent of ballots tallied on Monday, official figures show Radev’s party taking 44.7 percent of the vote, and likely to secure roughly 130 of the 240 seats in parliament. The centre-left party has come in far ahead of rivals, raising hopes among voters for a more stable government after years of fragile coalitions and repeated votes.

However, questions remain over what Radev’s foreign policy will entail and what his election means for Bulgaria’s position within the European Union and NATO.

Here is what you need to know:

Who is Rumen Radev?

The 62-year-old served as Bulgaria’s president for nearly a decade before stepping down in January this year to launch his bid to become prime minister.

The former air force commander has positioned himself as an outsider, saying he wants to rid the country of its “oligarchic governance model”, amid widespread frustration with corruption and political turmoil that has gripped the country of 6.6 million people.

In 2025, Radev supported anti-corruption protests that brought down the conservative-backed government of former Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov. He urged voters to turn out in large numbers to counter vote-buying.

At a pre-election rally on Wednesday last week, he pledged to “remove the corrupt, oligarchic model of governance from political power”.

Radev’s stance on foreign policy has drawn attention in Europe, however.

Although he publicly condemned Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, he has also opposed providing military support to Ukraine and called, instead, for renewed, “practical relations with Russia based on mutual respect and equal treatment”.

Radev objected to a 10-year defence pact concluded between Bulgaria and Ukraine in March.

He has also called for the resumption of Russian imports to Europe, despite EU sanctions on Russian oil and a decision at the end of last year to cease all energy imports from Russia by 2027.

All this has led to critics labelling him “pro-Russian”. Radev, however, says he is merely taking a pragmatic approach.

“We are the only member state of the European Union that is both Slavic and Eastern Orthodox,” he said in an interview with Bulgarian journalist Martin Karbovski.

“We can be ‌a very important ⁠link in this whole mechanism … to restore relations with Russia,” he added.

Following the election, Russia congratulated Radev, welcoming his victory.

“Of course, we are impressed by the statements made by Mr Radev, who won the election, and by some other European leaders regarding their willingness to resolve problems through pragmatic dialogue,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday.

On Europe, some label Radev a eurosceptic, as he has criticised aspects of EU policy, including reliance on renewable energy and Bulgaria’s adoption of the euro.

At his campaign rally on Wednesday last week, he said: “The coalition-makers introduced the euro in Bulgaria without asking you. And now, when you pay your bills, always remember which politicians promised you that you would be in the ‘club of the rich’.”

Following his victory, he told reporters: “A strong Bulgaria and a strong Europe need critical thinking and pragmatism. Europe has fallen victim to its own ambition to be a moral leader in a world with new rules.”

Nevertheless, Radev has signalled his willingness to cooperate with pro-European parties on issues like judicial reform and has stated that Bulgaria will “continue on its European path”.

Following his win, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “Bulgaria is a proud member of the European family and plays an important role in tackling our common challenges.”

How significant is this result?

Since 2021, Bulgaria has been through multiple governments, many brought down by protests or parliamentary disagreements.

The election result places Radev’s party, with 44 percent of the vote, well ahead of the centre-right GERB party of former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov, which secured 13.4 percent of the vote, and the reformist PP-DB coalition, with 12.7 percent.

The margin between the parties is wider than pollsters predicted. On Friday last week, according to Bulgaria’s Alpha Research, Radev’s Progressive Bulgaria was projected to win, but with only 34.2 percent of the vote, followed by Borissov’s GERB-UDF with 19.5 percent. This led observers to predict that a coalition government would be necessary.

Despite securing a clear majority, however, Radev has yet to rule out creating a coalition with a smaller party to form a government.

“We are ready to consider different options so that Bulgaria can have a regular and stable government,” he told reporters on Sunday.

This latest election was called after former PM Zhelyazkov announced in December that his cabinet would resign, amid a looming no-confidence vote.

The election campaign centred heavily on cost-of-living pressures, corruption, and other economic concerns, with many voters expressing frustration at the lack of credible political alternatives.

What will Radev’s role as prime minister be?

Although Radev is best known for holding the title of president, that is a largely ceremonial role in Bulgaria’s political system.

The president serves as head of state, representing national unity and playing a role in foreign policy; executive power lies primarily with the prime minister and his cabinet.

The prime minister appoints his cabinet ministers, sets the government agenda, and is the key representative of Bulgaria in international affairs, including within organisations like the European Union and NATO.

The prime minister remains in office unless he chooses to resign or is removed in a no-confidence motion.

British judoka Emma Reid won silver to clinch the first European Championships medal of her career.

Reid, who finished fifth in 2025, was beaten in the- 78kg final by Italy’s Alice Bellandi in Tbilisi, Georgia.

“I’m very happy with my performance, and it’s great to end the day with a medal,” said 30-year-old Reid, who won bronze at the World Championships in 2024.

“It has been a tough and busy block at the start of this year, so it’s nice to see the hard work paying off with my first European Championships medal.”

Reid won her last-16 and quarter-final contests with sankaku-gatame against Ukrainian Anna Kazakova and juji-gatame against Lithuanian Migle Julija Dudenaite respectively.

She then guaranteed herself at least silver by forcing her semi-final opponent, Slovenia’s Metka Lobnik, to submit just one minute into the contest.

Australian Hannah Green’s strong start to 2026 continued with victory in the JM Eagle LA Championship – her fourth triumph of the year.

In March, she became the first Australian to win the Women’s Australian Open since 2014, and lifted the LPGA’s Women’s World Championship and the Australian WPGA Championship.

In Los Angeles, Green holed a curling 12-foot birdie putt on the first play-off hole to win this LPGA Tour event for the third time in four years.

It was a stunning victory for Green given she had briefly been six shots adrift of the lead after Kim Sei-young chipped in for an eagle three on the 11th.

Green responded with the first of five birdies in six holes as she reeled in Kim and Im Jin-hee and all three finished on 17 under par.

“I didn’t think I was still in the tournament,” said Green, who won her only major, the Women’s PGA Championship, in 2019.

On her tournament-winning stroke, she added: “I had that putt, similar line in regulation, so I felt somewhat comfortable.”

Kim had already missed a 35-foot birdie attempt while Im – penalised a stroke for slow play during Saturday’s third round – was also unable to get down in three after a wayward tee shot.

The tournament was played at El Caballero for the second year because of course renovations at Wilshire where Green had won this title in 2023 and 2024.

During Saturday’s round, the tournament’s prize money was increased by $1m to $4.75m (£3.5m), lifting the purse to the highest on the tour outside of the major championships and season-ending CME Group Tour Championship.

As a result of that, Green took home $712,500, up from $562,500.

The Chevron Championship, the first women’s major of the year, stars on Thursday in Houston, Texas.

Seven-time Grand Slam champion Jamie Murray has retired from tennis as one of the most-decorated doubles players in the world.

Here’s a look back at his 2007 and 2017 mixed doubles triumphs at Wimbledon.

READ MORE: British doubles legend Murray retires from tennis

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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.

READ MORE: Peaty wins British 100m title as he looks to LA

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