Category: Новини

Despite rising infections from COVID-19’s delta variant, Americans are gathering together at sporting events in large stadiums and summer festivals.   Saqib Ul Islam takes us to the Around the World Cultural Food Festival in Alexandria, Virginia, where thousands celebrated the summer and international culture.  Camera:  Saqib Ul Islam    Produced by:   Saqib Ul Islam  
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Britney Spears’ father said in a court filing Thursday that he was planning to step down from the conservatorship that has controlled her life and money for 13 years, but his departure is not imminent.James Spears filed legal documents saying that while there were no grounds for his removal, he would step down after several lingering issues were resolved. The document gives no timetable for his resignation.”Mr. Spears continues to serve dutifully, and he should not be suspended or removed, and certainly not based on false allegations,” the filing said. “Mr. Spears is willing to step down when the time is right, but the transition needs to be orderly and include a resolution of matters pending before the Court.”Those matters include the next judicial review of the pop singer’s finances, which has been delayed by months of public and legal wrangling over James Spears’ role and the legitimacy of the conservatorship by Britney Spears and, in recent weeks, her new attorney.’Target of unjustified attacks’The documents say that James Spears has been “the unremitting target of unjustified attacks” but “he does not believe that a public battle with his daughter over his continuing service as her conservator would be in her best interests.”The filing says James Spears will fight the petition to force him out but will work with the court and Britney Spears’ attorney, Matthew Rosengart, on the next phases.”We are pleased that Mr. Spears and his lawyer have today conceded in a filing that he must be removed,” Rosengart said in a statement. “It is vindication for Britney.”Spears said he was working on a plan to give up his role before his daughter hired Rosengart last month.For most of the existence of the conservatorship, which was established in 2008, James Spears oversaw his daughter’s personal affairs and money. In 2019, he stepped down as the so-called conservator of her person, and maintained control of her finances.He was nevertheless the target of much of his daughter’s ire in a pair of speeches before the court in June and July, in which she called the conservatorship “abusive.”Spears in her June remarks said she had been required to use an intrauterine device for birth control, take medications against her will and was prevented from getting married, having another child or even riding in her boyfriend’s car unsupervised.’I deserve to have a life'”This conservatorship is doing me way more harm than good,” the 39-year-old Spears said at the time. “I deserve to have a life.”James Spears was fighting to remain in control in court filings as recently as last week. He said the allegations in his daughter’s testimony were “untested,” needed investigation and involved issues that have long been out of his control.He suggested that Jodi Montgomery, who took over for him as conservator of Britney Spears’ personal affairs, deserved scrutiny if the allegations were accurate.Rosengart said that while he welcomed the move, he would not take the pressure off James Spears, who should not wait to step down.”We look forward to continuing our vigorous investigation into the conduct of Mr. Spears, and others, over the past 13 years, while he reaped millions of dollars from his daughter’s estate, and I look forward to taking Mr. Spears’ sworn deposition in the near future,” Rosengart’s statement said. “In the interim, rather than making false accusations and taking cheap shots at his own daughter, Mr. Spears should remain silent and step aside immediately.”
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More than three decades after Field of Dreams seeped into the country’s cultural consciousness, with a one-year delay caused by the pandemic, one of the most famous cornfields in Hollywood history finally gets the opportunity to host real major league ball.”Is this heaven?” the ghost of John Kinsella asked in the movie that inspired the game to be played Thursday between the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees next to the actual site used in the 1989 film, which is maintained as a tourist attraction.”No, it’s Iowa,” dutiful farmer Ray Kinsella — played by Kevin Costner — responded to his father with a smile before they played catch under the lights in the movie’s most poignant scene.This week, the ball-playing isn’t fiction.”Shoeless” Joe Jackson and other long-ago players who took the field in the movie will be replaced by José Abreu and Aaron Judge.The proud and quintessential Midwestern state, usually only in the spotlight every four years during presidential campaigns, will be hosting a Major League Baseball game for the first time when the White Sox and Yankees play at a temporary venue built for about 8,000 fans in tiny Dyersville — population “about 4,400, we’re hoping for in the next census,” said mayor Jim Heavens.The event, part of MLB’s increased effort to grow the game by setting up shop in places without in-person access to the highest level of the sport, has been in the works for years. The original plan to play in 2020 was postponed when the coronavirus forced a shortened schedule at mostly empty ballparks, but if the White Sox, the Yankees or the Iowans became impatient then they were out of step with the spirit of the film.”The one constant through all the years,” as the sage author Terence Mann declared to Ray Kinsella in the film, “has been baseball.”Dyersville found its place on the map through the movie that starred Costner, James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta and Amy Madigan, but the sport has been entrenched in the town for more than a century. Commercial Club Park is where the team from Beckman Catholic High School and the local semipro club play, a spot as much at the heart of the community as the well-kept farms around it.About one-third of the crowd on Thursday is expected to be Iowa residents.”I see a lot of people as I travel around the state, and when they find out you’re from Dyersville, they all know about this MLB game,” Heavens said. “I think there’s a real element of pride in Iowa that MLB is coming. It’s kind of warmed my heart to see that the people of Iowa are so honored that this is happening.”FILE – Jeremiah Bronson, of Ames, Iowa, plays catch with his son Ben on the field at the ‘Field of Dreams’ movie site, June 5, 2020, in Dyersville, Iowa.The original movie site was quickly deemed too small for a standard game, so the made-for-the-moment ballpark required removal of 30,000 cubic yards of material and the installation of 4,000 tons of sand and 2,000 tons of gravel. The bullpens were designed to mimic those at old Comiskey Park, the former home of the White Sox. There’s even a just-for-fun corn maze beyond right field.This has been an especially hot and dry summer in this part of the country, so an irrigation system was installed to keep the prime crop in good shape for its time to shine on national TV — between 10 and 12 feet high.”We wanted to make sure we didn’t show up in the middle of August with brown corn,” said Chris Marinak, MLB’s chief operations and strategy officer.Just about everything about this event is unique.”When we first heard that this game would happen, I think everybody had that kind of initial rush of ‘Oh, this is going to be amazing to be a part of this broadcast,'” said Brad Zager, executive vice president of production and operations for Fox Sports. “When you start looking at it, there are very few events that we get a chance to produce that there’s no blueprint for.”Both teams will wear throwback uniforms harkening back to 1919, when Jackson played for the White Sox and was one of eight players banned for fixing the World Series. The history of that team is one of the many themes woven into a film that transcends sports.FILE – In this June 5, 2020, photo, an Iowa flag waves in the wind over the field at the ‘Field of Dreams’ movie site in Dyersville, Iowa.The White Sox and Yankees were also the two favorite teams of the John Kinsella character in the movie, at different points of his life.”I was an actor for 40 years, and nobody stops and asks me about the episodes of ER that I did, but a certain amount of people look at me strangely from across the room and then come over and tell me some amazing story about how that movie changed their relationship with their dad,” said Dwier Brown, who played John Kinsella. “All I did was take off my catcher’s mask and walk right in, so I’m grateful for my little piece in the whole puzzle.”
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Lionel Messi said he’s “in the right place” to win another Champions League trophy and cited a reunion with Neymar as a key factor in his decision to sign with Paris Saint-Germain.The 34-year-old Argentina star spoke at his introductory news conference at Parc des Princes stadium on Wednesday, the morning after signing a two-year deal with the option for a third season after leaving Barcelona.”My goal and dream is to raise another Champion’s (League Trophy) and I believe that I am in the right place to have the best chances to achieve that,” Messi said.”When you see this squad, you really want to play with them because there are so many possibilities,” he added. “We have the same goal. And Neymar of course did a lot and was important for my choice.”Qatari-backed PSG has been desperate to win the Champions League, falling just short when it lost the 2020 final to Bayern Munich. Messi helped Barcelona win four Champions League trophies.Messi’s arrival gives PSG formidable attacking options as he links up with not only Neymar — his former teammate at Barcelona — but also France World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe.”I’m going to play with best players, it’s very nice, it’s incredible to be able to experience this,” said Messi, who also cited Argentina teammates and PSG players Ángel di Maria and Leandro Paredes.
“Obviously, one of the reasons (I came) was the locker room: Neymar, Dí María, Paredes, whom I know.”Messi said he is “ready” to start playing with PSG, which hosts Strasbourg on Saturday night.
“When I feel it, when the staff thinks I’m ok, I’ll be ready. I’m willing to play,” he said.Messi became the most high-profile free agent in soccer history after his attempts to stay at Barcelona were rejected last week by the Spanish league because the salary would not comply with financial regulations, with the Catalan club burdened by debts of more than 1.2 billion euros ($1.4 billion).PSG moved quickly to sign the Argentina star. The team, Messi said, “positioned themselves and everything went really fast and it was easy. It happened in little time. It was a difficult situation and they were efficient.”PSG coach Mauricio Pochettino quickly made contact with his fellow Argentine after Barcelona announced last Thursday that Messi would be leaving the club he joined as a 13-year-old boy.Messi won every major honor with Barcelona and was granted a tearful exit news conference on Sunday to signal the end of an era. Only Cristiano Ronaldo in the current era challenges Messi’s status as an all-time great.While PSG had to pay 222 million euros (then $261 million) to sign Neymar from Barcelona in 2017, there was no transfer fee for Messi.No salary details were given, but a person with knowledge of the negotiations earlier told The Associated Press that Messi is set to earn around 35 million euros ($41 million) net annually. The person said on condition of anonymity before the contract was signed.PSG will be hoping not only that Messi helps the team regain the French title it lost to Lille last season but finally win the Champions League.Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi praised “a historic day for the club, football world and it is a fantastic moment for us.””Everybody knows Leo… He makes the football magic, beautiful and he’s a winner. It will be very exciting for our supporters and the fans worldwide,” he added. “We have big ambition.”Messi said it was “very hard” to leave Barcelona after so many years but added “the moment I arrived here I felt very happy.”PSG supporters have seen their club transformed over the last decade since the influx of Qatari sovereign wealth investment linked to the emir. Once Messi’s Barcelona contract expired — and the Catalan club was unable to afford to keep him — PSG was one of the few clubs that could finance a deal to sign the six-time world player of the year.Messi will wear the No. 30 jersey — the same number he wore in his first two seasons with Barcelona before switching to No. 19 and then the prized No. 10, which Neymar gets to keep at PSG.
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