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Amsterdam’s Hermitage museum is renamed after cutting ties with Russia following Ukraine invasion

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — An Amsterdam museum that severed ties with St. Petersburg’s Hermitage collection after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine last year has been renamed and on Monday announced partnerships with renowned galleries in London, Paris and Washington, D.C.Starting in September, the Hermitage Amsterdam will be called H’ART Museum. It has established partnerships with the British Museum, Centre Pompidou and the Smithsonian American Art Museum to bring art to the historic building on the banks of the Dutch capital’s Amstel River.“It’s an exciting new step for us, a contemporary and future-proof model,” museum director Annabelle Birnie said in a statement. She said the museum’s program will be “multi-voiced reflecting the times we live in” and will range from major art exhibitions to smaller presentations.The first major show — scheduled to open midway through 2024 — will be a partnership with Paris’ Centre Pompidou focused on Wassily K...

1 man seriously injured in Southeast DC apartment fire

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

A man has suffered life-threatening injuries during a fire in a Southeast D.C. apartment building early Monday morning.It happened just before 3:30 a.m. at a three-floor apartment building in the 700 block of Brandywine Street, according to a tweet from D.C. Fire and EMS.The flames were confined to the kitchen area of a first-floor apartment in the Washington Highlands neighborhood, a spokesperson with the fire department told WTOP.The man was removed from the fire with critical life-threatening injuries, according to the fire department.Others on the floors above the fire sheltered in place, the spokesperson said.The fire department is investigating what started the flames.Here’s a map of the area where the fire happened: Source

Former champion Egan Bernal returns to Tour de France after life-threatening crash

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Former Tour de France champion Egan Bernal is returning to cycling’s biggest race for the first time since his life-threatening crash at the start of last year.The 26-year-old Colombian climber was selected Monday in the eight-man Ineos Grenadiers squad that will compete at the three-week Tour, which starts Saturday in Bilbao, Spain.Bernal, who won the 2019 Tour, said he was very close to becoming paralyzed after an accident involving a bus in January 2022 in Colombia during training. Bernal said he had a “95% chance of ending quadriplegic” after the accident. “Making my return to the Tour has always been a major goal for me. I’m so excited to be able to experience every kilometer of this race again,” Bernal said in comments provided by his team.“I’m sure many people have followed everything that has happened to me since my accident in January last year, and the journey I’ve been through to overcome the greatest test of my life. Being a part of this ...

James Crown killed after crash at motorsports park near Aspen

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

PITKIN COUNTY, Colo. (KDVR) -- A 70-year-old businessman was killed after a crash at Aspen Motorsports Park in Woody Creek on Sunday, according to the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office.James Crown of Chicago, Illinois, was identified as the man who died. In a single-vehicle crash at the park. He was a part-time Pitkin County resident. 3 injured after ziplining collision in Castle Rock, 2 in critical condition He reportedly failed to navigate a turn while driving, resulting in a collision with an impact barrier, according to the original press release from the Pitkin County Coroner's Office.The official cause of death was pending, however, Pitkin County said "Multiple blunt force trauma is evident." No further details were released.

New site added for tree debris drop-off in Douglas County

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. (KDVR) - A new site will be available Monday morning for Highlands Ranch residents needing to drop off tree debris following last week’s tornado and storms.Tree limbs and trampolines flew around, uprooted trees were on top of cars and blocking roads, and even roofing flew off of buildings and homes. Photos: Cleanup and repair after Highlands Ranch tornado Starting at 8 a.m. Monday, you can take tree debris – including previously excluded root balls – to an added drop-off site. Where to find drop-off sitesOne site is on the West side of town at Redstone Park, located at 3280 Redstone Park Circle. There are signs and cones that will guide you to the south side of the Halftime Help Stadium. You can drop off material here between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m., according to the website.Another is on the East side at the Highland Heritage Regional Park, located at 9651 S. Quebec St. where signs and cones will direct you towards Hound Hill Dog Park. This site will be open fro...

Belgian shot putter Jolien Boumkwo competes in 100-meter hurdles after injuries to teammates

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

(CNN) — Sometimes it really is the taking part that counts.Just ask Belgian shot put thrower Jolien Boumkwo, who competed in the 100-meter hurdles at the European Athletics Team Championships on Saturday after her teammates had to withdraw through injury.After placing seventh in the shot put on Friday, Boumkwo turned her attention to the hurdles at the last minute and duly finished in a time of 32.81 seconds – 19 seconds behind the seventh-placed athlete.Footage of Boumkwo carefully stepping over each hurdle while the other athletes race away ahead of her has since gone viral on social media. She smiled and laughed throughout before being congratulated by other competitors at the finish line.Just having an athlete take part in the event earned Belgium two points and saved the team from disqualification, Boumkwo’s efforts weren’t enough to save her country from being relegated to the second division at the meet in Poland, finishing 14th out of 16 countries with 250 points.

Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker reveal sex of baby on the way

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

(CNN) — Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker drummed up the reveal of their baby’s sex in true “Kravis” fashion.In a video shared to the couple’s Instagram pages on Sunday, Barker is seen sitting at his drum set with Kardashian proudly showing off her baby bump while sitting on his lap at what appeared to be a backyard gender reveal party.Barker provided a drumroll seconds before the big reveal, and the couple embraced with a kiss when blue confetti shot out to reveal they’re expecting a baby boy. Friends and family gathered for the occasion are heard cheering with excitement.Earlier this month, the reality star and Poosh founder announced she was pregnant in a video on Instagram in which she’s seen in the audience at a Blink 182 concert holding a sign reading, “Travis I’m pregnant.”The following day, she shared more behind-the-scenes photos from the concert, and told her followers she was “overwhelmed with gratitude and joy for God’s blessing and plan.”Kardashian and Barker got en...

Far-right triumph in German district election spooks politicians

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) on Sunday for the first time won a district council election, sparking concerns over a broader rise of the populist party in upcoming elections.AfD candidate Robert Sesselmann won a runoff election in Sonneberg, in the eastern German state of Thuringia, against incumbent district administrator Jürgen Köpper from the center-right Christian Democrat Party (CDU) — despite other parties like the Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and Free Democrats endorsing the CDU candidate.“I’m dismayed by the result in Sonneberg,” said Green lawmaker Katrin Göring-Eckardt, who is also one of the vice chairs of the Bundestag. “Thank you to all who continue to fight for this county to remain democratic, open-minded and friendly.” She added, however, that she thinks Sonneberg — which is one of Germany’s smallest districts, with only around 48,000 eligible voters — could not be compared to the rest of Thuringia, much...

Belgium pitches EU agency to screen algorithms

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

BRUSSELS — Belgium thinks the European Union needs an agency with technical expertise in algorithms — and it will push for one during its stint at the Council presidency next year. EU legislators are currently in the final negotiations on the bloc’s rules on artificial intelligence. Other EU rulebooks, like the one on content moderation, will also necessitate scrutinizing algorithms, especially those used by very large online platforms. Belgium now shows a concern that the bloc won’t have sufficient — or else, too fragmented — technical comprehension to underpin the governance of AI and enforcement of other rules. “We have to understand how an algorithm works before we’re able to identify whether certain things are acceptable or not,” Mathieu Michel, the country’s junior minister for digitalization (and brother of European Council President Charles Michel), told POLITICO in an interview. “Having a structure that allows [us] to come up with a...

Supreme Court says Louisiana congressional map must be redrawn to add another majority-Black district

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:58:31 GMT

(CNN) — The Supreme Court said Monday that Louisiana’s congressional map must be redrawn to add a second majority-Black district.The justices reversed plans to hear the case themselves and lifted a hold they placed on a lower court’s order for a reworked redistricting regime. There were no noted dissents.The move from the high court comes after a ruling the justices issued earlier this month about Alabama’s congressional maps that upheld how courts have historically approached the redistricting provisions in the Voting Rights Act, the landmark civil rights law that Black voters are using to challenge the Louisiana congressional plan.Louisiana state officials were sued last year for a congressional map – passed by the Republican legislature over Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards’ veto – that made only one of its six districts majority Black, despite the 2020 census showing that the state’s population is 33% Black.“Today’s decision follows on the heels of the c...