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NBA roundup: Bucks rally from 23 down to rout Heat

NBA: Milwaukee Bucks at Miami Heat
Mar 15, 2019; Miami, FL, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) and Miami Heat guard Josh Richardson (0) both reach for a rebound during the second half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

March 16, 2019

The Milwaukee Bucks overcame a 23-point first-quarter deficit to rally past the host Miami Heat 113-98 on Friday night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo tallied 33 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists, giving him his 49th double-double. Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe had 21 and 17 points, respectively, for the Bucks, who top the NBA with 52 wins, including 25 on the road.

The Bucks outscored the Heat 71-36 in the second half to seize control of the game, and Milwaukee won its league-best 16th game when trailing by more than 10 points in a game this season. The Bucks won for the first time ever in 78 tries when trailing by at least 20 points at the half.

Justise Winslow scored 20 — all in the first half — and Hassan Whiteside had 14. Josh Richardson scored 11, while Dwyane Wade, Bam Adebayo, Dion Waiters and Kelly Olynyk each had 10 for the Heat, who have won six of their past nine.

Rockets 108, Suns 102

James Harden recorded a double-double, with his final assist resulting in a critical basket that helped cement Houston’s win over visiting Phoenix.

Harden posted 41 points and 11 assists and finished a rebound shy of a triple-double. He added six steals, but his final assist, a pass that resulted in a Danuel House Jr. 3-pointer with just under a minute left, provided the Rockets a 105-100 lead and sealed their 10th win in 11 games.

House, seeing his first action since Jan. 14 after a contract dispute punched his ticket back to the G-League, scored 18 points and finished 4 of 8 from behind the arc.

Spurs 109, Knicks 83

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in three quarters to lead a balanced scoring attack as San Antonio throttled visiting New York to capture its seventh straight victory.

The Spurs (40-29) have used their winning streak to fly up in the Western Conference standings and to move 11 games above .500, their best mark of the season.

San Antonio posted its ninth consecutive victory at home and dominated the hapless Knicks, who have the NBA’s worst record at 13-56 and have lost eight games in a row.

76ers 123, Kings 114

All five starters scored 18 or more points, propelling Philadelphia over visiting Sacramento.

Joel Embiid had 21 points and a game-high 17 rebounds, while teammate Jimmy Butler collected seven assists to complement a game-high 22 points as the 76ers (44-25) moved back into a tie with idle Indiana (44-25) for the No. 3 playoff position in the Eastern Conference.

Sacramento (33-35) lost a third straight contest, including its second in two nights. The Kings were beaten 126-120 at Boston on Thursday.

Trail Blazers 122, Pelicans 110

Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum combined for 47 points as visiting Portland held off short-handed New Orleans.

Lillard scored 24 points and passed current Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge for second place on Portland’s all-time scoring list. Clyde Drexler is the Blazers’ all-time leading scorer.

McCollum finished with 23 points, Enes Kanter and Rodney Hood added 17 points each, Zach Collins scored 12, and Jusuf Nurkic had 11 points and 12 rebounds as the Blazers improved to 8-3 since the All-Star break.

Clippers 128, Bulls 121

Danilo Gallinari scored 27 points, and Los Angeles continued to better its playoff chances with a win over visiting Chicago.

Montrezl Harrell scored 26 points off the bench, and Lou Williams had 21 in a reserve role for the Clippers, who remain tied for eighth in the Western Conference with the Utah Jazz. Los Angeles also moved six games ahead of the ninth-place Kings for the final playoff spot.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, and fellow point guard Patrick Beverley finished with 13 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Los Angeles, which has won six of seven.

Lakers 111, Pistons 97

Langston Galloway scored 23 points off the bench, one shy of his season high, and host Detroit downed depleted Los Angeles.

The Pistons snapped a two-game losing streak, while the Lakers lost for the seventh time in eight games. Reggie Jackson had 20 points, five rebounds and five assists, while Andre Drummond powered for 19 points and 23 rebounds for the Pistons.

The Lakers rested superstar forward LeBron James after he scored 29 points in a loss to Toronto on Thursday. Tyson Chandler (neck), Josh Hart (knee) and Lance Stephenson (toe) also sat out.

Hornets 116, Wizards 110

Kemba Walker scored 28 points, Jeremy Lamb added 18 and visiting Charlotte defeated Washington.

Nicolas Batum and Tony Parker had 16 points each for the Hornets in a game between two of the teams chasing the Miami Heat for the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. Walker was coming off a 40-point effort in a loss to the Rockets.

Bradley Beal, who had 15 points in a loss at Charlotte last Friday, had 23 by halftime Friday night and finished with 40 points on 15-of-29 shooting.

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

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“Not a good situation”: Trump Denounces TSA Child Grope Video

President Trump on Tuesday condemned the TSA after a viral video resurfaced showing a young boy being subjected to an invasive pat-down at a US airport.

“Not a good situation,” the president commented, retweeting a video shared by comedian Larry the Cable Guy and actor James Woods which was originally shared by @DeepStateExpose.

The president’s eldest son Don Jr. also chimed in, saying, “This is sickening.”

“I’m sure this young man could have been deemed to not be a threat in a matter of seconds. Wtf!” Don Jr. tweeted.

The video, which first appeared in 2017, shows a boy at Dallas’ JFK airport undergoing a full pat-down which lasted approximately two minutes.

At the time the boy’s mother, Jennifer Williamson, who filmed the encounter, also mentioned her son suffered from a sensory processing disorder, compounding the incident’s absurdity.

As the video went viral, the TSA went into damage control mode, penning a blog post titled, “TSA Mythbuster: The Rest of the DFW Pat-down Story,” which attempted to explain why the over-the-top search was required.

While Trump intended to highlight the perverse nature of the search, The Washington Post focused on the origin of the person who the president retweeted, who they described as a “follower of the QAnon conspiracy theory.”

Trump’s retweet of @DeepStateExpose, who was identified as conspiracy-minded Twitter user Jeremy Stone, will likely “raise new questions about where a president fond of spreading conspiracy theories gets his information,” The Post writes.


Source: InfoWars

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OxyContin maker Purdue agrees to settle Oklahoma opioid case: source

FILE PHOTO: Bottles of prescription painkiller OxyContin made by Purdue Pharma LP on a counter at a local pharmacy in Provo
FILE PHOTO: Bottles of prescription painkiller OxyContin pills, made by Purdue Pharma LP sit on a counter at a local pharmacy in Provo, Utah, U.S., April 25, 2017. REUTERS/George Frey/File Photo

March 26, 2019

By Nate Raymond

(Reuters) – Purdue Pharma LP has agreed to settle a lawsuit by the state of Oklahoma accusing the OxyContin painkiller maker of helping fuel an opioid abuse epidemic, a person familiar with the matter said.

It is the first settlement to result from a wave of recent lawsuits over the drugmaker’s marketing of painkillers.

The settlement with Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter came just weeks before Purdue, owned by members of the wealthy Sackler family, was set to face the first trial to result from around 2,000 lawsuits nationally against opioid manufacturers.

Hunter’s 2017 lawsuit accuses Purdue, Johnson & Johnson & Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd of engaging in deceptive marketing that downplayed the risks of addiction associated with opioid pain drugs while overstating their benefits.

The companies deny wrongdoing. They had sought to delay the May 28 trial to Sept. 16, citing the need to review records the state belatedly turned over that could be critical to their defense. The state had been seeking over $20 billion in damages.

But a trial judge earlier this month rejected the companies’ efforts to delay the trial, and on Monday, Oklahoma’s Supreme Court rejected their appeal of that decision.

Stamford, Connecticut-based Purdue had been exploring filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection to address potential liabilities stemming from the lawsuits, people familiar with the matter have told Reuters.

Hunter is scheduled to hold a press conference on Tuesday to announce a “breaking development” in the lawsuit. A spokesman for Hunter declined to comment. A lawyer for Purdue did not respond to a request for comment.

Opioids, including prescription painkillers, heroin and fentanyl, were involved in a record 47,600 overdose deaths in 2017 in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The epidemic has prompted lawsuits by state and local governments accusing various drugmakers of contributing to the crisis. Those companies include Purdue, which introduced the painkiller OxyContin to the market in 1996.

More than 1,600 lawsuits have been consolidated before a federal judge in Ohio, who has pushed for a settlement ahead of the trial before him in October. Other cases, including Oklahoma’s, are pending in state courts.

Purdue has held discussions to resolve the litigation with plaintiffs’ lawyers, who have often compared the cases to widespread lawsuits against the tobacco industry that resulted in a $246 billion settlement in 1998.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

Source: OANN

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Turkish lira tumbles 5 percent, central bank acts on swap limits

A man sits in front of a currency exchange office in Izmir
A man sits in front of a currency exchange office in Izmir, Turkey August 18, 2018. REUTERS/Osman Orsal

March 28, 2019

By Nevzat Devranoglu and Behiye Selin Taner

ANKARA (Reuters) – The Turkish lira plunged as much as 5 percent against the dollar on Thursday as investors continued to fret about moves by Turkish authorities to withhold lira liquidity from the London market.

The central bank has made a series of moves to underpin the lira this week and bankers said it took a fresh step on Thursday, raising its total lira swap sale limit to 30 percent from 20 percent for swap transactions that have not matured.

It had raised the limit to 20 percent on Monday from 10 percent in a move aimed at increasing the bank’s forex reserves, which fell sharply in the first two weeks of March.

Those falls have raised uncomfortable questions about Turkey’s balance of payments and its ability to roll over foreign loans – and how and from whom it would seek emergency reserves if necessary.

The lira weakened as far as 5.6465 against the U.S. currency from 5.33 on Wednesday. Last year, it plunged almost 30 percent against the dollar.

Brokerage Integral Yatirim said volatility was likely to continue until the elections, making it difficult to identify a clear direction.

The London overnight swap rate plunged to 180 percent on Thursday, Refinitiv Eikon data showed.

On Wednesday it had surged as high as 1,200 percent in what was a stop-gap measure to bolster the lira. That was by far its highest on record, and economists said that level was no longer based on actual trading.

Such rates are a huge hurdle to foreign investors looking to bet against the lira, to hedge or close out positions. They have thus sold off holdings in Turkish stocks and bonds which have came under heavy pressure this week.

The cost of Turkey’s debt rose, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year bond climbing to 19.12 percent from 18.21 percent on Wednesday. It has risen 2.5 points since the end of last week.

The main Istanbul share index, which weakened more than 12 percent in the week to Wednesday’s close, rose 0.75 percent on Thursday morning.

The head of the Turkish banking association, in a statement to Reuters on Wednesday, said lira swap rates were not surging due to banks withholding liquidity from foreign banks.

(Additional reporting by Nevzat Devranoglu and Behiye Selin Taner; Writing by Daren Butler; Editing by Dominic Evans)

Source: OANN

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Why Trump Is In Full Control of the Republican Party

For years, Republican voters wanted someone — anyone — to come along and do two things: stick it to the Clintons and punch back against the media-Democratic Party alliance that fires on every Republican brave enough to stick a head out of the foxhole.

Read Full Article »

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China says won disputed Croatia bridge project with fair tender

Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang speaks during ceremony at the construction site of the Peljesac Bridge in Brijesta
Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang speaks during ceremony at the construction site of the Peljesac Bridge in Brijesta, Croatia April 11, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer

April 11, 2019

By Ivana Sekularac

BRIJESTA, Croatia (Reuters) – Chinese Premier Li Keqiang hailed cooperation with the European Union and insisted it had run a fair tender for a disputed bridge project near Dubrovnik when he met Croatia’s prime minister on Thursday.

The EU is financing 85 percent of the cost of constructing the 2.4 km bridge, which is expected to open in 2021, which will link the southern Peljesac peninsula with the rest of the country.

But the awarding of the tender last year to the China Road and Bridge Corporation for 2 billion kuna ($343 million) triggered a legal challenge by one of the losing parties, Austrian firm Strabag.

It accused the Chinese firm of charging a price lower than the value of the project, which is part of China’s global Belt and Road Initiative for infrastructure and trade.

A Croatian court dismissed the complaint.

Li and Croatia’s Andrej Plenkovic visited the site ahead of the opening ceremony for an annual meeting of 16 central European countries with China due to be held in Dubrovnik.

“The bridge is a pilot project not only for 16 plus 1 initiative cooperation, but also for our cooperation with the EU,” Li said through a translator.

“This is the job that we got in a tender in a fair competition.”

Signs reading “We build better lives” in Chinese and Croatian greeted the pair.

Chinese companies have been active on various infrastructure projects including building roads and bridges in the Balkans, but the Peljesac bridge is the first of its kind in the EU bloc, which Croatia joined in 2013.

“The bridge is a token of future cooperation between China and Croatia,” Plenkovic said.

The construction of the bridge has sparked tensions between Croatia and neighboring Bosnia, part of which says the bridge would be too low and would obstruct sea access to Bosnia’s only coastal town of Neum, ruining any chance of building a port there.

(Reporting by Ivana Sekularac; Editing by Alison Williams)

Source: OANN

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Congress Fails to Agree on Disaster Aid Deal Before Recess

Senate negotiations for a disaster relief package have broken down, meaning regions needing emergency aid will apparently have to wait until after Congress returns from a two-week recess, Politico reported Tuesday.

The collapse in talks comes after the Senate last week rejected two competing proposals that would have provided at least $13 billion in aid to communities damaged by hurricanes, wildfires and severe flooding in recent months.

The talks have largely broken down over a fight on additional funding for Puerto Rico, which has been a sticking point for President Donald Trump and Democrats, The Hill reported. 

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby said Republicans "made a serious, substantial offer over the weekend to [Democrats] that solved the disaster and they categorically rejected it."

A senior Senate Democratic aide, however, told The Hill the GOP offer did not guarantee new funding for Puerto Rico or ensure that money already allocated to them would actually be given out.

"Instead, the Republican plan inflates a pot of funding that all disasters can take from and says Puerto Rico is eligible only after it spends the funding that the administration is refusing to release," the aide stressed.

A decision on emergency aid has been held up since December, due largely to Trump's unsubstantiated claims Puerto Rico should not receive any more funds because its politicians have mismanaged federal money already given the island, according to Politico.

Source: NewsMax America

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Sudan’s military, which ousted President Omar al-Bashir after months of protests against his 30-year rule, says it intends to keep the upper hand during the country’s transitional period to civilian rule.

The announcement is expected to raise tensions with the protesters, who demand immediate handover of power.

The Sudanese Professionals Association, which is spearheading the protests, said Friday the crowds will stay in the streets until all their demands are met.

Shams al-Deen al-Kabashi, the spokesman for the military council, said late Thursday that the military will “maintain sovereign powers” while the Cabinet would be in the hands of civilians.

The protesters insist the country should be led by a “civilian sovereign” council with “limited military representation” during the transitional period.

The army toppled and arrested al-Bashir on April 11.

Source: Fox News World

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FILE PHOTO: Small toy figures are seen in front of a displayed Huawei and 5G network logo in this illustration picture
FILE PHOTO: Small toy figures are seen in front of a displayed Huawei and 5G network logo in this illustration picture, March 30, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

April 26, 2019

By Charlotte Greenfield

WELLINGTON (Reuters) – China’s Huawei Technologies said Britain’s decision to allow the firm a restricted role in building parts of its next-generation telecoms network was the kind of solution it was hoping for in New Zealand, where it has been blocked from 5G plans.

Britain will ban Huawei from all core parts of 5G network but give it some access to non-core parts, sources have told Reuters, as it seeks a middle way in a bitter U.S.-China dispute stemming from American allegations that Huawei’s equipment could be used by Beijing for espionage.

Washington has also urged its allies to ban Huawei from building 5G networks, even as the Chinese company, the world’s top producer of telecoms equipment, has repeatedly said the spying concerns are unfounded.

In New Zealand, a member of the Five Eyes intelligence sharing network that includes the United States, the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) in November turned down an initial request from local telecommunication firm Spark to include Huawei equipment in its 5G network, but later gave the operator options to mitigate national security concerns.

“The proposed solution in the UK to restrict Huawei from bidding for the core is exactly the type of solution we have been looking at in New Zealand,” Andrew Bowater, deputy CEO of Huawei’s New Zealand arm, said in an emailed statement.

Spark said it has noted the developments in Britain and would raise it with the GCSB.

The reports “suggest the UK is following other European jurisdictions in taking a considered and balanced approach to managing supplier-related security risks in 5G”, Andrew Pirie, Spark’s corporate relations lead, said in an email.

“Our discussions with the GCSB are ongoing and we expect that the UK developments will be a further item of discussion between us,” Pirie added.

New Zealand’s minister for intelligence services, Andrew Little, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

British culture minister Jeremy Wright said on Thursday that he would report to parliament the conclusions of a government review of the 5G supply chain once they had been taken.

He added that the disclosure of confidential discussions on the role of Huawei was “unacceptable” and that he could not rule out a criminal investigation into the leak.

The decisions by Britain and Germany to use Huawei gear in non-core parts of 5G network makes it harder to prove Huawei should be kept out of New Zealand telecommunication networks, said Syed Faraz Hasan, an expert in communication engineering and networks at New Zealand’s Massey University

He pointed out Huawei gear was already part of the non-core 4G networks that 5G infrastructure would be built on.

“Unless there is a convincing argument against the Huawei devices … it is difficult to keep them away,” Hasan said.

(Reporting by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: The logo commodities trader Glencore is pictured in Baar
FILE PHOTO: The logo of commodities trader Glencore is pictured in front of the company’s headquarters in Baar, Switzerland, July 18, 2017. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – Glencore shares plunged the most in nearly four months on Friday after news overnight that U.S. regulators were investigating whether the miner broke some rules through “corrupt practices”.

Shares of the FTSE 100 company fell as much as 4.2 percent in early deals, and were down 3.5 percent at 310.25 pence by 0728 GMT.

On Thursday, Glencore said the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is investigating whether the company and its units have violated some provisions of the Commodity ExchangeAct and/or CFTC Regulations.

(Reporting by Muvija M in Bengaluru)

Source: OANN

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Well, Joe Biden didn’t exactly clear the field.

I don’t think it matters much that Biden waited until yesterday to become the 20th Democrat vying for the nomination, even though it exposed him to weeks of attacks while he seemed to be dithering on the sidelines.

A much greater warning sign, in my view, is the largely negative tone surrounding his debut. He is, after all, a former vice president, highly praised by Barack Obama, who has consistently led in the early primary polls, and beating President Trump in head-to-head matchups. Yet much of the press is acting like he’s an old codger and it’s just a matter of time before he keels over politically.

This is all the more remarkable in light of the fact that the vast majority of journalists and pundits know and like Joe Biden and his gregarious personality.

The reason is that Biden, after a half-century in politics, lacks excitement, and the press is magnetically attracted to novel and unorthodox types like Beto and Mayor Pete. You don’t see Biden on the cover of Vanity Fair, and a grind-it-out win by a conventional warrior doesn’t set journalistic hearts racing.

JOE BIDEN ANNOUNCES 2020 PRESIDENTIAL BID: 3 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE FORMER VICE PRESIDENT

For many in the media, Biden isn’t liberal enough, at least not for the post-Obama era. He doesn’t promise free college and free health care and has a history of working with Republicans, such as John McCain (whose daughter Meghan loves him, and Biden will hit “The View” today.)

What’s more, Biden’s campaign style — speak at rallies, rack up union endorsements — seems hopelessly old-fashioned when we measure popularity by Instagram followers. News outlets are predicting he’ll have trouble getting in the online fundraising game, leaving him reliant on big donors, which used to be standard practice.

And then there’s the age thing. Biden would be the oldest president to be inaugurated, at 78, and he looked a step slow in encounters with reporters yesterday and a few weeks ago.

But what if the journalists are in something of a Twitter bubble, and the actual Democratic Party is much more moderate? We saw that with the spate of allegations by women of unwanted touching, which dominated news coverage until polls showed that most Dem voters weren’t concerned. In that wider world, the Scranton guy’s connection to white, working-class voters could help him against Trump in the industrial Midwest.

SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE’S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF OF THE DAY’S HOTTEST STORIES

Biden denounced the president’s term as an “aberrant moment” in his launch video, saying four more years would damage the country’s character and “I cannot stand by and watch that happen.”

But first, he’d have to win the nomination in the face of an unenthusiastic press corps.

A New York Times news story said Biden would be “marshaling his experience and global stature in a bid to lead a party increasingly defined by a younger generation that might be skeptical of his age and ideological moderation.”

The Washington Post quoted Democratic strategists as saying that Biden faces an “uphill battle” and “isn’t necessarily the heir apparent to Obama, despite being his No. 2 in the White House for eight years. They argue voters will judge Biden by the span of his decades-long career and are worried the veteran pol hasn’t yet found a winning formula for his own candidacy.”

The liberal Slate said the ex-veep’s rivals view him as a “paper tiger”:

“Biden is something more like a 2016 Jeb Bush: a weak establishment favorite whose time might be past … Biden’s biggest challenge in the primary will be a compromised past spanning nearly 50 years.”

“Compromised” suggests a history of scandal, yet what Slate means is political baggage, such as his backing of a Clinton-era crime bill unpopular with black voters today. Yet I think the rank and file isn’t as concerned about a vote back in 1994, or even the Anita Hill hearings, as the chattering classes.

BIDEN’S SENATE RECORD, ADVOCACY OF 1994 CRIME BILL WILL BE USED AGAINST HIM, EX-SANDERS STAFFER SAYS

One of the few left-leaning pundits to suggest the press is underestimating Biden is data guru Nate Silver at 538:

“Media coverage could nonetheless be a problem for Biden. Within the mainstream media, the story of Biden winning the nomination will be seen as boring and anticlimactic. That tends not to lead to favorable coverage. Meanwhile, some left-aligned media outlets may prefer candidates who are some combination of more leftist, more wonkish, more reflective of the party’s diversity, and more adept on social media.

“If Biden is framed as being out of touch with today’s Democratic Party and that narrative is repeated across a variety of outlets, it could begin to resonate with voters who don’t buy it initially. If he’s seen as a gaffe-prone candidate, then minor missteps on the campaign trail could be blown up into big fumbles.”

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Look, it’s entirely possible that Biden could stumble, get lapped in fundraising and just be outclassed by younger and savvier rivals. He was hardly a great candidate in 1987 and in 2008.

But if the former vice president finds his footing and the field narrows, the press will be forced to change its tune, and we’ll see a spate of stories about how Joe Biden has “grown.”

Source: Fox News Politics

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South Africa's 400m Olympic gold medallist and world record holder Wayde van Niekerk looks on as he attends South African Championships in Germiston
South Africa’s 400m Olympic gold medallist and world record holder Wayde van Niekerk looks on as he attends South African Championships in Germiston, South Africa, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

April 26, 2019

GERMISTON, South Africa (Reuters) – Olympic 400 meters champion Wayde van Niekerk has backed South African compatriot Caster Semenya in her battle with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which now appears to have taken a new twist.

Semenya, a double 800 meters Olympic gold medalist, is waiting for the outcome of her appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to halt the introduction of new regulations by governing body IAAF that would require her to take medicine to limit her natural levels of testosterone.

The IAAF wants female athletes with differences of sexual development who run in events from 400 meters to a mile, to reduce their blood testosterone level to below five (5) nmol/L for a period of six months before they can compete, saying they have an unfair advantage.

“She’s fighting for something beyond just track and field, she’s fighting for woman in sports, in society and I respect her for that,” Van Niekerk told reporters.

“I will support her and with the hard work and talent that she’s been putting into the sport. With what she believes in and what she’s dreaming for, I’ve got a lot of respect for her.

“I really hope and pray that everything just goes from strength to strength for her.”

Semenya has sprung a surprise at the on-going South African Athletics Championships though, ditching the 800 meters and instead competing over 1,500 and 5,000-metres – the latter one would not require her to medically lower her testosterone level.

She stormed to victory in the 5,000-metres final in a modest time of 16:05.97, but looked to have lots left in the tank as she passed the finish line.

Semenya beat fellow Olympian and defending national 5,000m champion Dominique Scott in Thursday’s final but the latter admitted she is unsure whether the 800m specialist could be a serious Olympic contender over the longer distance.

“Honestly‚ I have no idea‚” Scott said. “Before today I probably would have said no. It’s hard to compare a 5,000 at altitude to a 5,000 at sea level.

“But I think she’s an amazing runner and I don’t think there’s any limit or ceiling on what she can do.”

Van Niekerk, the 400m world record holder, had to abort his comeback from a knee injury, that had sidelined him for 18 months, following a combination of cold weather and a wet track.

“We are trying to take the correct decisions now early in the year so as not to put myself in any harm,” he said.

“It was a bit chilly this entire week prepping and coming through here as well it was quite cold and it caused bit of tightness in my leg. We decided to not risk it.

“My recovery is going well and I would like to be back in competition this year, but will only do so if I can deliver a good performance.

“I am a competitor and respect my opponents, so I need to be at my best when I return.”

(Reporting by Nick Said, additional reporting by Siyabonga Sishi; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)

Source: OANN

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