COVID-19 has been hard on just about every industry in New Hampshire, and renewable energy is no exception. People worried about money are putting off investing in solar panels, and health concerns have made home energy efficiency visits more complicated. But scientists say investments like these can lower energy costs, and remain a critical way to combat the other big crisis we’re facing – climate change. As part of NHPR’s new climate change reporting project, By Degrees , NHPR’s Annie Ropeik has been trying to find out what might be ahead for the renewable energy industry in the state. Morning Edition Host Rick Ganley spoke with her about what’s next.

A former “gender-care specialist” at Boston Children’s Hospital testified that her ex-employer slashed the time allotted for psychologists to assess minors expressing confusion about their sex before referring them for life-altering procedures. 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is investigating allegations that workers were instructed to avoid homes displaying signs supporting Donald Trump during hurricane relief efforts in Florida. The guidance, reportedly issued by a FEMA supervisor, left Trump-supporting residents without aid, prompting criticism from Gov. Ron DeSantis.

An alleged photo showing Pastor Steve Lawson next to a woman believed to be his mistress has emerged online amid new scrutiny about the role of a California megachurch in the scandal.

NHPR's Morning Edition Host Rick Ganley sits down with NH Magazine's managing editor Erica Thoits at the beginning of every month to chat about upcoming events. Listen to find out what's happening in November: Events mentioned in the interview: NH Open Doors, statewide, Nov. 3-4 Women of Whiskey and Spirits at the Manchester Country Club, Nov. 6 Veterans Day Ceremony at state cemetary, Boscawen, Nov. 7 Veterans Day Service at Cathedral of the Pines, Rindge, Nov. 7 Thanksgiving Farm Fare at Stonewall Farm , Keene, Nov. 22-23 Portsmouth Holiday Arts Tour , Nov. 22-24 Harvest Your Own Christmas Tree at The Rocks Estate, Bethlehem, starting Nov. 23 You can find a full list of November events from NH Magazine here .

The holiday season is in full swing. And with December approaching, there's lots of ways to celebrate in the Granite State. NHPR's Morning Edition Host Rick Ganley sits down with NH Magazine's managing editor Erica Thoits at the beginning of every month to chat about upcoming events. Here's what's happening in December: Events mentioned here: Light Up Laconia , Dec. 1 Judy's Scary Little Christmas , Majestic Theatre in Manchester, Dec. 5-8 The Great American Trailer Park Christmas Musical , M&D at Eastern Slope Inn Playhouse, North Conway, Dec. 5-15 30th Annual Christmas in Strafford Craft Fair , Strafford, Dec. 7-8 The Christmas Revels , Lebanon Opera House, Lebanon, Dec. 21-23

A new documentary by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick is coming to PBS this month , and it's all about Ernest Hemingway. NHPR's Morning Edition host Rick Ganley sat down with both Burns and Novick to talk about the new film, their process and what makes a good documentary. [Editor's note: this is a transcript of one small part of the full interview.] Rick Ganley: But why Hemingway? Ken Burns: He's a hugely important writer and he's got a very complicated life, and we like to try to wrestled to the ground these complicated stories. And boy, this is about as wonderfully difficult as any project we've undertaken. Rick Ganley: What strikes me the most is how it goes way beyond that mythic Hemingway. This is the man's man writer image that kind of, you know, gets thrown around a lot. What surprised you most about him as you dug into the project? Lynn Novick: Kind of everything in a way, you know, in that we had some understanding of his work. We could give it like the Cliff's Notes version of his

Christian author and pro-life activist Ryan Bomberger has announced that his cancer is in remission three months after surgery.

Bonar Tanudjaja, Southeast Asia and East Asia regional director of Generosity Path, shares the core principles of biblical generosity and how the Journey of Generosity has transformed individuals, churches and communities across Asia through sharing stories of people who are radically generous.

Gateway Church in Texas has removed multiple elders as the result of a four-month investigation into allegations the church's founder, Robert Morris, sexually abused a minor female for years beginning when she was 12 during the 1980s. 

The group GAFCON has demanded that Archbishop Justin Welby publicly repent for comments that contradict the “doctrine of Christ.”

After a recent shooting of a Jewish man on his way to synagogue in Chicago and a surge in antisemitic incidents, a ministry focused on sharing the Gospel with Jewish communities is stepping up to equip Christians with tools to support God’s chosen people.

The Episcopal Church saw a decline in membership of about 40,000 people last year, but also saw an increase in average Sunday worship attendance, according to recently released statistics.

Leaders of pro-life advocacy groups are celebrating former President Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election, citing his win as evidence that the American people do not support the unfettered abortion access endorsed by the Democrats.

President-elect Donald Trump announced Thursday that longtime GOP operative Susie Wiles will be his White House chief of staff, making her the first woman to hold the position.

The U.S. State Department reportedly offered a therapy session and mental health services for employees distressed by President-elect Donald Trump's recent electoral victory last week, including what one source described as a "cry session."

A Christian counselor is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to block enforcement of a Colorado law that regulates what licensed professionals can say while discussing unwanted same-sex attractions with clients, arguing that the state government censors speech it disfavors. 

Delaware elected 34-year-old Sarah McBride as the nation's first trans-identifying individual to serve in the U.S. Congress.

“In spite of cold weather”: music for winter17th- and 18th-century music for the winter season from England, France, and ItalyDavid H. Miller, directorSafety The UC Berkeley Department of Music is committed to the health and safety of our students, staff, and patrons. Measures to protect concertgoers and musicians will be informed by state, local, and UC Berkeley Public Health policies and are subject to change. Social distancing, masks, and proof of COVID 19 vaccination may be required.Purchasing tickets in advance is highly recommended Social Media Facebook: @ucbmusicdept Instagram: @ucberkeleymusic  Twitter: @ucbmusicdept Youtube: Berkeley Music channel Accessibility If you require an accommodation for effective communication (ASL interpreting/CART captioning, alternative media formats, etc.) or information about campus mobility access features in order to fully participate in this event, please contact the Hertz Hall Manager at 510.642.4864 or hertzhallmgr@berkeley.edu with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7-10 days in advance of the event. PERFORMANCES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE

Matthew Sadowski, conductorSafety The UC Berkeley Department of Music is committed to the health and safety of our students, staff, and patrons. Measures to protect concertgoers and musicians will be informed by state, local, and UC Berkeley Public Health policies and are subject to change. Social distancing, masks, and proof of COVID 19 vaccination may be required. UC Berkeley does not promise or guarantee that all patrons or employees on site are vaccinated. Unvaccinated individuals may be present as a result of exemptions, exceptions, fraudulent verification, or checker error. None of these precautions eliminate the risk of exposure to COVID-19. Accessibility If you require an accommodation for effective communication (ASL interpreting/CART captioning, alternative media formats, etc.) or information about campus mobility access features in order to fully participate in this event, please contact the Hertz Hall Manager at 510.642.4864 or hertzhallmgr@berkeley.edu. with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7-10 days in advance of the event. Facebook: @ucbmusicdept Instagram: @ucberkeleymusic Twitter @ucbmusicdept Youtube: Berkeley Music YouTube channel

Max Abner and Dahlia Nayar, Ph.D. candidates in performance studies, will present their in-progress dissertation research.Max Abner is a PhD candidate, musician, and curator who hails from Louisville, KY, has deep roots in Chicago, and is currently based in Oakland. Working from an anti-colonial settler positionality, he draws together discourses from sound studies, Indigenous studies, and critical theory to approach what he calls settler sound, a concept that accounts for the ways in which contested relations to colonized land play out in aural aesthetics. His dissertation attends to settler sound in the Bay Area experimental music/sound art scene. He has essays set for publication in Revealing Posthuman Encounters in Performance (Routledge) and Power in Listening: The Sound Out! Reader (NYU Press), his recorded curations can be heard on his music label Pontac Publications, and his live performance curations can be experienced at Beauty Supply Arts in Oakland. Dahlia Nayar’s project studies embodied manifestations of Quiet in multiple mediums of minoritarian performance. Her study curates a constellation of contemporary artists working in dance, theater, sound, and visual art with an attention to how Quiet emerges through bodies in relation to layered contexts and multiple subjectivities. She proposes that, as a minoritarian aesthetic, Quiet activates an ephemeral commons through resonance and attunement that allows expansive possibilities of relationality. Prior to her doctoral studies, Dahlia toured nationally and internationally as a choreographer, performer, and multimedia artist. She is a recipient of the Jacob Javits Fellowship, Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowship in Choreography, and the National Dance Project Touring Award.

It takes far more guts to confront your ideological compatriots than your foes and a recent book documenting the assault of gender ideology on women’s rights from a leftist perspective exhibits such courage in spades.

Legal decisions are rarely read for pleasure. And though read and re-read and excerpted and quoted, they are not always quotable. Clocking in at an average of just under 5000 words, they can sound jargony, pompous and bone-dry in the wrong hands. Today's 10-Minute Writers Workshop asks an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States about what goes into writing an opinion. Justice Stephen Breyer was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1994 and is an exuberant advocate for participatory democracy, animated explainer of the reasoning behind decisions and author of several books. I spoke with Justice Breyer in the green room at The Music Hall in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, just before talking with him about his most recent, The Court and the World - American Law and the New Global Realities for Writers On A New England Stage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Irish author Emma Donoghue may be best known for Room, her novel written in the voice of a young boy confined with his mother in a single room. It was nominated for a Man Booker prize and made into an Oscar-winning film, for which she wrote the screenplay. Her most recent novel is The Wonder, about a "fasting girl" in 1850s Ireland. Music: Podington Bear - "Evenhanded" Ad Music: David Szesztay - "Joy in the Restaurant" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jonathan Lethem is the best-selling author of Gun, with Occasional Music, Fortress of Solitude, and other novels, including the Naitonal Book Critics' Circle award-winning Motherless Brooklyn. He's known for reanimating and remixing genres - hard-boiled crime novels, post-apocalyptic science fiction, superhero comics and even technicolor westerns. His most recent novel is called A Gambler's Anatomy. It's about a high-stakes competitive backgammon player and con artist - a character who, like Lethem, was raised in the bohemian Brooklyn of the 1970s. Episode music: "Crate Diggin" by Ari de Niro Ad music: "Joy in the Restaurant" by David Szesztay Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Have the opportunity to download free sound files in "Products" , but to get the musical material they require registration fen.She required to have at Vip Account whose year value is 50 euros.

It is called Zika Virus Infection. It was discovered in Uganda and has since spread across Asia, across the Pacific Ocean, affecting 75 per cent of the population of an island in Micronesia and now it is ravaging Latin America. The first case in the United States of America was discovered recently. Possible links with microcephaly in Brazil and increased incidence of the serious Guillain-Barré syndrome are being monitored by scientists. The first case of Zika Virus Infection was confirmed on December 31, 2015 in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, unincorporated territory of the United States of America. The patient did not have a history of travel outside his native island three months before the onset of illness, leading scientists to conclude that the virus has spread to Puerto Rico and was contracted there. Worrying manifestations of the disease and other developments are being observed in Brazil, where there have been 3.174 cases of microcephaly, and 38 deaths, across 684 municipalities and 21 federal units. The link between pregnant mothers being infected with Zika Virus and their babies developing microcephaly is being investigated - the WHO is sharing information with member states of PAHO and is advising them to be on the alert for similar cases.

AP Photo The number of overweight children under five years of age is set to almost double from 42 million to 70 million worldwide, which is a ticking global pandemic. The United Nations Organization blames the marketing of unhealthy food and beverages and asks governments to reverse the trend. 1990 - 31 million overweight under-5s. 2014 - 41 million overweight under-5s. 2024 - a projected 70 million overweight under-5s. And the focus of the UNO's concern is that many of these cases of childhood obesity are occurring in developing countries. The culprit? "The marketing of unhealthy food and non-alcoholic beverages is a major factor in the alarming increase", reads the report by the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity (ECHO), presented this week to the World Health Organization. Direct negative effect on health and education Childhood obesity can have a direct negative effect on educational development, quite apart from posing economic hardship and physical and mental health consequences. The phenomenon cuts across all socio-economic groups and is not restricted to Western Europe and North America. Around three-quarters of overweight children of this age group reside in Asia and Africa: around half in the former and a quarter in the latter.

In the last few years, we’ve seen increasing awareness of the lasting consequences of serious brain injuries, in part due to high-profile cases connected to the NFL. For those who have recently suffered a brain injury, though, it can be hard to think about what the future will hold, even though planning for long-term care needs is an important step.  In particular, if you’re currently involved in a legal case seeking to recover damages after incurring a brain injury, it’s vital that your legal team consult appropriate medical professionals to ensure the calculation of damages will cover your future care needs. Current Injury Future Risk Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) vary widely in severity and can result in many different symptoms. Among the most common symptoms of TBI, however, are headaches and dizziness, memory loss, lack of concentration, and agitation and other personality changes. Symptoms of TBI may be temporary, lasting for weeks or months after the initial injury, or may result in permanent impairment, which is why it’s so important to work with a lawyer well-versed in TBI cases.

Experiments with colors are very interesting and useful Pensioner Valentina Aleksina from Moscow is a real enthusiast; she is an expert in color therapy. The woman believes that the color with which a person contacts can influence his state of health and spirits. But how is it possible? Ancient healers of the East believed that color had the unique capability of healing people's bodies and souls. The medicines of Ancient India, China, Egypt, Laos and other eastern countries had a trend called ra-therapy which cured people with the help of the rainbow colors. The ancient wise were not Orthodox and believed that energetic peculiarities of each person are unique. This in its turn means that each person has colors and shades that are particularly favorable for him. The ancient wise men made up a reasonable system revealing the influence of different colors upon the human organism; the system is based upon the individual properties of each color.

Not every serial killer should necessarily be either a social outcast or a sociopath. Some of them are good at disguise and may at times have a reputation of exemplary society members. Biographies of many famous serial killers of the USSR era testify to this. Chikatilo helped to catch himself Andrey Chikatilo, a serial killer from Rostov, committed his first crime in 1973, the last in 1990. Chikatilo killed 53 women and children in all that time. All the crimes were sexually motivated; he would stab and dismember his victims' bodies.

Russian people will be able to learn more about the vehicles used by top officials of the country. A new book titled "First Persons' Cars" is to be released under the auspices of the Federal Guard Service (FSO). According to the author of the foreword, FSO Director, Lieutenant-General Dmitry Kochnev, readers will learn exclusive details not just about cars, but also about most protected vehicles that the Soviet Union and Russia have ever seen. It stands the reason that the vehicles that top officials use for their work play a very important role in the security of the state leader. The cars that are used today for officials taking top positions in the country were developed on the basis of decades of experience. The book is illustrated with pictures taken in the Kremlin, in the Dacha of Joseph Stalin and other prominent locations. The authors wanted to place every vehicle in the entourage for which it was created. However, the FSO director believes, all the cars that one can see in the book have one common feature: they look majestic.

Source: REX/Shutterstock Alexander Rutskoy, Russian Air Force General, was the man who brought Boris Yeltsin to power. Rutskoy has unveiled a few interesting facts from the history of Russia. The general said that Boris Yeltsin was drinking a lot during the coup in 1991 and tried to escape to the US Embassy. Rutskoy also said that after the collapse o the Soviet Union, Yeltsin called George H. Bush to report the news to the USA. When serving as vice president, Rutskoy defended independence and Constitution of the Russian Federation, especially in the days of the State Emergency Committee. Later, however, he changed his opinions. In an interview with the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper, Alexander Rutskoy spoke about the days, when the Soviet Union stopped its existence. He said that there was an urgent need to remove Mikhail Gorbachev from power, appoint Nikolai Ryzhkov as acting president of the USSR, prepare a new candidate and then hold popular elections for the President of the USSR and the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR.Rutskoy said that he did not have even a shadow of doubt about whom to support in the situation of those days. "I swore as an 18-year-old boy to serve the Motherland and the people, and I have never showed disloyalty to the oath," he said.Today, Rutskoy does not conceal the fact that he had believed Yeltsin's promises about the defense of Russian interests. The vice president of the RSFSR, unlike those, who signed the Belavezha Accords, virtually had no access to the governance of the country. During the interview, Rutskoy said that Boris Yeltsin had tried to escape to the US Embassy. He also said that Gorbachev was not isolated from the world during the days of the State Emergency Committee. Gorbachev could be contacted via secret communication channels, and he was perfectly aware of what was going on. Rutskoy said that Gorbachev simply escaped prior to the signing of the new Unified Treaty. Gorbachev, Rutskoy stated, was executing the mission to destroy the country. It was Rutskoy, who escorted Yeltsin to Minsk,  only to find out later that the USSR would be dissolved. Rutskoy wrote a notice to terminate his powers of the vice president, but his initiative did not move forward. During the ratification of Belavezha Accords, he voted against it. Rutskoy and Yeltsin went separate ways when the latter appointed Gaidar, Chubais and Nechayev for key economic positions in the country. The three officials eventually made Russia experience an economic collapse. According to Rutskoy, the putsch in 1991 took place because Gorbachev betrayed his homeland and the people who were close to him in his team. The State Emergency Committee made a humble attempt to keep the Union afloat. The putsch in 1993 was a coup, which took place with the support of the United States and Europe. "There was an intelligence report saying that the White House in Moscow would be attacked. Yeltsin suddenly decided to go to the US Embassy. I was trying to stop him, I was telling him that he should not be doing it. I was asking him whether he was aware of the things that he was doing.  When they signed the Belovezha  Accorda, the first person, whom Yeltsin informed that the Soviet Union was no more, was George H. Bush," Rutskoy admitted. "Yeltsin was maintaining a contact with the US leadership to inform the Americans about successes of the unilateral surrender in the Cold War," he added.The book of memoirs by George H.W. Bush titled "A World Transformed" also says that Boris Yeltsin was cooperating with the USA for the collapse of the Soviet Union. "On December 8, 1991, Boris Yeltsin from a hunting lodge near Brest, in Belarus. Only recently elected President of the Russian Republic, Yeltsin had been meeting with Leonid Kravchuk, President of Ukraine, and Stanislav Shushkevich, President of Belarus. "Today, a very important event took place in our country," Yeltsin said. "I wanted to inform you myself before you learned it from the press." Then he told me the news: the Presidents of Russia, Belarus and ukraine had decided to dissolve the Soviet Union," George H.W. Bush wrote. According to George H.W. Bush, Yeltsin's tone changed after he finished reading his text. The signed documents, he continued, formulated the provisions that the USA had been advocating. Bush was unwilling to express either his approval or disapproval, so he simply responded with "I understand." 

Carnival confetti fall to kill the most important thing about Victory Day - the perception of the Great Patriotic War as the greatest tragedy. In today’s Russia, even 30-year-olds, let alone youngsters, increasingly associate Victory Day with something like Halloween at the state level. Fuhrer as a hero of the Great Patriotic War I personally was very moved by the idea of ​​the Immortal Regiment. This is probably the most important and humane part of the format of Victory Day celebrations. This is very sincere and humane indeed, and such things always echo in people’s hearts.  Of course, with the introduction of restrictive measures in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, all activities were moved online not to violate the regime of self-isolation. In addition to the federal "Immortal Regiment", corporate ones also appeared on the Internet. 

Since 1478, Russia has taken part in 138 wars and suffered defeat in 18 of them. Three of those wars led to most severe territorial and human losses for Russia.  Livonian War (1558 - 1583) The conflict sparked after the Livonian Confederation refused to pay tribute that Russia had imposed  since the previous war in 1481. The Livonians actively obstructed the development of Russian trade in the Baltic Sea and concluded an offensive-defensive treaty with Poland and Lithuania. Having realised that the war with the Baltic would be inevitable, Ivan the Terrible organised a crusade to Livonia. At first, Russia was winning, and both Livonia and Lithuania were completely defeated. However, the European countries joined their forces in the face of the threat from the Russian army. 

Volodymyr Zelensky's demand to transfer American Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine gave Washington the jitters, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on the sidelines of the Minsk International Conference on Eurasian Security. "We know that his demand for Tomahawks caused bewilderment in Washington," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said. The Americans will "slap Zelensky on his hands" to ensure their security if he continues to try to drag them into the war against Russia, Lavrov noted.

Putin's Annual Address to the Federal Assembly is scheduled for September 30. Kremlin sources say it will become even more historic and globally important than the 2014 address for the return of Crimea. Mass media and experts make their own suggestions about the content of Putin's speech that he is going to deliver to the Federal Assembly on September 30. There are a number of versions:

Starting from May, Russia may start buying foreign currency for its reserves again. The country's budget has stabilized thanks to the growth of oil and gas export revenues, Bloomberg reports. The growth in revenues from the sale of energy products is already close to the target level. Since February of this year, the Russian Ministry of Finance has been selling reserves in Chinese yuan to cover the budget deficit. In April, sales collapsed by 50 percent compared to the beginning of the year. From May, purchases are likely to begin, Bloomberg notes. Such purchases can be relatively small at first — an equivalent of about $200 million in yuan. For the time being, Russia currently replenishes the National Welfare Fund only by purchasing Chinese currency.

Kremlin's official spokesman Dmitry Peskov gave an interview to the MGIMO 360 news channel, in which he answered questions about the presidential election, Russia's nuclear rhetoric and enemies. According to Peskov, Russia's next president should be "the same as [Vladimir] Putin… or different, but the same." "Putin has not announced his intention to run. But I sincerely want to believe that he will do it. I have no doubt that he will win the election, I have no doubt that he will continue to be our president. We'll see," Peskov said.

On Thursday, February 29, Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his annual Address to the Federal Assembly. In the beginning of the speech, he touched on the topics of the special military operation in Ukraine, relations with the West, strategic stability, and later proceeded to announce a number of new national projects, changes in economic and social sphere. About special military operation Putin recalled that 2024 marks the tenth anniversary of the "legendary Russian Spring.” "The love that the people living in Crimea and new regions share for their homeland evokes pride," Vladimir Putin said.

Business owners have many decisions to make, including whether to provide workers’ compensation coverage to their employees. Texas is the only state that gives private-sector employers that choice.

Frances Hall, former co-owner of Bill Hall Jr. Trucking, has been sentenced for her role in a scheme to avoid $9 million in workers’ compensation premiums.

The State Historical Museum and the Russian Historical Society announced the all-Russian campaign to raise funds to restore the monument to Kuzma Minin and Prince Dmitry Pozharsky. The iconic monument, commonly known as Monument to Minin and Pozharsky, stands in front of the St. Bazil's Cathedral on Moscow's Red Square. The monument was the first sculptural piece that was erected in Moscow on Red Square 200 years ago in honour of the victory of the Russian militia over foreign interventionists in 1612.On February 20, 1818 in a solemn atmosphere, Emperor Alexander I and members of the imperial family unveiled the Monument to Minin and Pozharsky on Red Square. In the summer of 1931, the monument became a hindrance to demonstrations and parades, so it was moved from its historical site, from opposite the Upper trading rows, to the facade of the Intercession Cathedral. During this movement, the structure of the monument was damaged.In late 2016, the maintenance of the monument was delivered to the State Historical Museum. Experts examined the monument and came to conclusion that it required serious restoration is required. The works were preliminary evaluated at 46 million rubles.Within a year, the sculptural group will be dismantled from the pedestal on Red Square to be  transported to workshops, where the sculptures and the bas-reliefs of the monument will be restored.

Kamila Valieva's doping test revealed the presence of three substances to improve the heart function, the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said. According to The New York Times, these drugs can be aimed at increasing endurance, if used in combination. According to USADA's chief Travis Tygart, Kamila Valieva's doping test revealed the presence of trimetazidine, L-carnitine and hypoxen. Of these three drugs, it is only trimetazidine that is included in the list of drugs prohibited for athletes. "It's a trifecta of substances — two of which are allowed, and one that is not allowed. The benefits of such a combination "seem to be aimed at increasing endurance, reducing fatigue and promoting greater efficiency in using oxygen," Travis Tygart said.

Jon Jones, US champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) responded to Russian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Islam Makhachev, who criticised promotion's ratings. "Heavy is the head that wears the crown. Criticism comes with territory. I want to encourage the young fighters to beat some of my records instead of using their lips. Now thats gangsta,” Jones wrote in a message posted on social media. Jones is the current UFC heavyweight champion. He tops the ranking of the promotion's best fighters regardless of weight categories (P4P). During his career, the fighter won 27 victories and suffered one loss. Another fight with his participation was declared invalid.

Messi gets a brace at Barça, along with Neymar. At Real, Bale and Benzema hit the net. Chelsea reaches the League Cup Final in England as January draws to a close and one of the European Leagues frozen out of winter starts to revive. Next week the Bundesliga is back. I present this year the latest updates in four competitions: the National Championships, the Champions and Europa Leagues and the Qualifiers for UEFA 2016 in France, as well as all the matches played for our readers to follow the evolution of the competitions. UEFA National Championships 2014-2015

An anonymous assistant to President Putin has had a few meetings with winter sports coaches, during which he "in a mild form" recommended to refuse from participating in the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang. According to All Sports agency, an official from the Kremlin administration, whose name remains anonymous, specified that it would have to be the athletes themselves to make such a decision. The talks of the of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) commission with representatives of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) took place in Moscow this week. The meetings were devoted to the structure of the Russian delegation during the Games in South Korea. The next day it became known that a number of prominent Russian athletes with an unblemished reputation, including biathlete Anton Shipulin, skier Sergei Ustyugov and speed skater Victor An, as well as the leaders of hockey and speed skating teams were not invited to the competitions, even though those athletes were not listed either in Richard McLaren or Denis Oswald reports. On Tuesday, the press service of the Russian Ice Skating Federation said that the IOC did not allow Russian figure skaters Ksenia Stolbova and Ivan Bukin to participate in the 2018 Winter Games without explaining the reasons. Representatives for the Russian Ice Skating Federation expressed their indignation about the absurd decision and started to defend the honour and dignity of athletes in all possible ways.The Russian Olympic Committee prepares to give a hard estimate to IOC's actions and request appropriate explanations.Following those events, Russian politicians assumed that the IOC was pushing Russia to boycott the Winter Games 2018 and exit the Olympic movement."If no explanations follow, perhaps Russian athletes will have to revise their decision regarding the participation in the Olympics in Pyeongchang. They wanted to make us boycott the Games before, but as soon as they realised that we were not going to do it, they decided to suspend clean athletes with perfect reputations. This looks like political blackmail and creates conditions for unfair victories at the Olympics," chairman of the State Duma Committee on Physical Culture Mikhail Degtyarev told Sport Express newspaper. On December 5, the IOC Executive Committee decided that only clean Russian athletes would be able to perform at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang under the Olympic flag. Two special committees of the IOC have reduced the list of 500 applicants to 389 names so far. The final structure of the Russian delegation will be announced on January 28. On December 6, President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would not boycott the Games. Pravda.Ru

The miracle did not happen. In the morning of February 9, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced that it was dismissing the appeals from 47 Russian athletes against the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The athletes were in a dispute regarding the decision of the IOC not to invite them to participate in the Games in Pyeongchang. The judges decided that there was nothing to abolish because the IOC did not apply sanctions against the Russians, but distributed gifts in the form of invitations instead. A nice game of words, behind which both the IOC and WADA with their dirty deeds could hide comfortably. The IOC firmly believed that only clean Russian athletes would be able to take part in the winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. However, we will see plenty of "unclean" athletes in South Korea, albeit from other countries. Suffice it to recall German biathlonist Denise Herrmann and Polish skier Poland Justyna Kowalczyk. Both of them had been caught in doping. Christopher Del Bosco of Canada will perform in ski-cross, even though his doping test showed traces of marijuana. The position of the IOC is two-faced and cynical, and its slogans about the purity of sports are needed for something else.Elite sports have been corrupt with doping for many years, and WADA would have been set up otherwise. Big sport events always mean big money involved. How easier is it for IOC and WADA officials to make champions of the people, who had their medals supported with a nice and special thank you from sponsors? Suspending competitors appears to be a great favour to do. Russia a convenient target for WADA and IOC Russia turned out to be a very convenient target. First off, Russian athletes would always win whole baskets of medals at all Olympic competitions. Secondly, Russia remains under the sanctions of Western countries, which means that no one will stand up for Russia, and we can see it with our own eyes. This is not conspiracy - this is plain business.Most importantly, one can never find the one who bears the blame. When WADA president Craig Reedie was asked whether he would like to leave his cozy office after CAS proved the innocence of the Russians, implying that WADA had soiled itself, Reedie simply said that WADA had nothing to do with it and shifted the blame for the IOC. Why is WADA so obsessed with Russian athletes only? Why not check athletes from other countries, the Norwegians, for example? Norwegians breaking doping rules The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK), announced without any hesitation that the national team of Norway took bags of different medications for asthma to South Korea. In particular, it goes about more than 6,000 doses! There are sick athletes in other teams, but the Swedes, the Finns and the Germans hope to get by with a considerably lower amount of doses. Interestingly, journalists of Swedish SVT television channel established that since 1992, Norwegian asthmatic athletes had won every seven out of ten Olympic medals since 1992. In Russia, children with asthma are not allowed to sports training on the level of youth sports schools. It is hard to make champions out of sick children, whose lives depend on medications. One may assume that Norway has a different approach to children's sports, implicating that the Norwegians are good at bypassing anti-doping rules.At the end of last summer, Norwegian TV channel T2 aired a report, in which former skiers of the national team said that doctors had over-medicalised them with asthma medications for prophylactic purposes. It is an open secret that regular intake of such drugs contributes to muscle growth. Famous skier Martin Sundby will apparently be the first one, who will need many doses of asthma drugs in Pyeongchang. The Olympic medalist was taking the medicine for anabolic and fat burning effects.It has been 1.5 years since January 2015 till the time when Sundby was "punished" for his rampant craving for drugs. Yet, Sundby was taking medications, collecting the money and winning the medals and that his is probably proud of. He had to return some afterwards, but the most ridiculous part of the whole story is that it took CAS a whole winter to study Sundby's addiction, but the Court of Arbitration for Sport eventually suspended the Norwegian skier for two summer (!) months. How absurd is that?

Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva said that she was emotionally tired of the doping scandal, in which she found herself at the Beijing Olympics. "These days have been very hard for me, there are not enough emotions. I am happy, but I am emotionally tired. There are tears of happiness and grief a little. But, of course, I am happy to be at the Olympics. I will try to represent our country and I hope that I will be as motivated as possible to show a good result,” said Valieva. According to the athlete, she saw all the good wishes, and even banners in her support in the streets of Moscow.

State testing of the Stretta laser range system may begin in April, a source in the Russian military-industrial complex told TASS. "State tests of the Stretta system are to begin on April 1 of this year. They will last for about three months,” the source told the agency. There is no official confirmation to this information, though.