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Rafael Nadal: Grand Slam warrior and people's champion
Rafael Nadal was born on the Spanish island of Mallorca, known for its sandy beaches, but the tennis star will be forever associated with another surface -- as the undisputed "King of Clay".
Nadal pulls out of French Open, set to end career in 2024
Rafael Nadal on Thursday withdrew from the French Open because his hip injury has not healed and said he expects 2024 to be his final year in professional tennis.
The impossible job: Beating Rafael Nadal at French Open
When a weary David Ferrer managed to win just five games in his French Open semi-final loss to Rafael Nadal in 2012, he was in no doubt over the enormity of the challenge.
Rafael Nadal's 14 French Open titles
Rafael Nadal on Thursday said he would miss the French Open after failing to recover from a hip injury.
Plastic-eating fungi found in Chinese coastal salt marshes
An international team of scientists identified plastic-eating bacteria and fungi in Chinese coastal salt marshes, presenting new possibilities for global waste management, according to a study published Thursday.
China overpower Denmark at Sudirman Cup to take top group spot
Hosts China defeated a talented Danish side Thursday to win their group at the Sudirman Cup, propelled by a dominant performance from reigning Olympic women's badminton champion Chen Yufei.
Stocks rally loses steam
A stocks rally on optimism over talks to avert a catastrophic US debt default ran out of steam Thursday.
Major champs set for early charge at PGA Championship
Top-ranked Jon Rahm and fellow reigning major champions Cameron Smith and Matthew Fitzpatrick were poised for an early charge as Thursday's frost-delayed opening round of the PGA Championship began.
Energy firm warns S.Africa to brace for 'difficult winter'
South Africa's struggling state-owned power firm Eskom on Thursday forecast a difficult winter with demand set to rise in the continent's most industrialised but energy-starved country.
UK airline easyJet cuts losses on strong demand
British airline easyJet said Thursday it had slashed first-half net losses on strengthening demand from holidaymakers as the aviation sector recovers from Covid.
Walmart lifts forecast as it wins US grocery consumers due to inflation
Walmart raised its full-year profit forecast on Thursday following strong sales growth in the United States fueled by gains in grocery and other household staples.
Fresh rescue efforts as Italy counts cost of deadly floods
Rescue workers searched Thursday for people still trapped by floodwaters in northeast Italy as more residents were evacuated after downpours which killed nine people and devastated homes and farms.
Start set after PGA Championship delayed by frost
Practice facilities opened at Oak Hill after frost on Thursday delayed the start of the 105th PGA Championship by one hour and 50 minutes.
Crippled economy fuels former Pakistan PM Khan's protests
The tumultuous campaign by Imran Khan, Pakistan's most popular politician, to reclaim power has been driven by an economic crisis that ordinary people say has left them unable to feed their families.
Rival claims over Prince Harry, Meghan NY 'car chase'
Competing claims surfaced Thursday over Prince Harry and his wife Meghan's purported involvement in a "near catastrophic car chase" with paparazzi in New York.
S.Africa's blackouts force solar-powered town to life in the dark
A South African town has been left fuming after a legal battle with a state-owned power utility forced its solar plant to dump desperately needed electricity in a country suffering a record energy crisis.
Raw deal: English consumers stuck with sewage cleanup bill
England's privatised water companies pledged Thursday to make massive investments to stop raw sewage being pumped into waterways as concerns mount about water quality and laxer environmental protections post-Brexit.
Scandal-mired French film warms hearts at Cannes
On-set scandal may have haunted French director Catherine Corsini's new film, but the movie was well-received by critics in Cannes for its strong acting performances.
Erdogan's rival hardens tone, courting Turkish nationalists
Turkey's opposition leader vowed Thursday to send back millions of migrants in a strident message aimed at winning the backing of an ultra-nationalist who helped push last weekend's presidential vote to a runoff.
Steve McQueen's marathon documentary divides Cannes
Eyelids grew heavy and bums numb on Thursday at a four-and-a-half-hour screening of Steve McQueen's documentary on Amsterdam during World War II, which Cannes critics either adored or suffered through.
UK telecoms firm BT to axe up to 55,000 jobs by 2030
British telecoms group BT said Thursday it will axe up to 55,000 jobs by the end of the decade in the latest tech jobs cull in response to rampant inflation.
LGBTQ activists condemn Japan's 'meaningless' equality bill
A new bill submitted to Japan's parliament on Thursday aimed at "promoting understanding" of equality issues has been criticised as a "meaningless gesture" by LGBTQ campaigners because lawmakers watered down its language.
Indiana Jones swings on to red carpet at Cannes
"Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" gets its world premiere on the French Riviera on Thursday, with Harrison Ford due on the red carpet for one last crack of the whip as the world's favourite adventuring archaeologist.
Johnson called Macron a '4 letter word starting with C': aide
Former UK prime minister Boris Johnson called French President Emmanuel Macron a four-letter obscenity and "Putin's lickspittle" as tempers frayed over the war in Ukraine, according to a former Johnson aide.
Kyiv weathers 'unprecedented' wave of Russian missiles
Ukraine said Thursday it had downed nearly an entire barrage of Russian missiles overnight, the latest in an "unprecedented" wave of aerial attacks on the capital Kyiv.
Injury-hit Swiatek's French Open title defence on knife edge
French Open champion Iga Swiatek says she will know in the coming days how serious her thigh injury is and whether she can defend her title at Roland Garros which gets underway on Sunday week.
UK touts $22 bn in Japanese investment as Sunak visits Tokyo
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Thursday announced Japanese investment of more than $22 billion into the UK, but accepted carmakers' concern about Brexit trade rules as he confirmed talks with the European Union.
Sierra Leone leader urges end of Ukraine war for 'sake of humanity'
Sierra Leone's president expressed hope in an AFP interview that a new African mediation mission would help end Russia's war in Ukraine which has hit the "poorest of the poor" around the world.
Myanmar junta using imported arms to commit rights violations: UN expert
Myanmar's military has imported $1 billion in weapons since seizing power in a 2021 coup and used them "to commit atrocities," a United Nations expert said in a report released Wednesday.
More villages evacuated as Italy counts cost of deadly floods
Authorities in Ravenna issued an immediate evacuation order Thursday for three villages threatened by floods after heavy rains left nine people dead across northeastern Italy.
Papua New Guinea to sign security pact with US, PM says
Papua New Guinea will sign a security pact with the United States that gives American troops access to the Pacific nation's ports and airports, its leader said Thursday, as Washington jostles for influence in the region with Beijing.
G7 to squeeze Russia, weigh risk of China's 'economic coercion'
G7 leaders arrived in Hiroshima, Japan on Thursday to weigh tighter sanctions on Russia and protections against China's "economic coercion", surrounded by reminders about the harrowing cost of war.