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Pocono Raceway boasts its largest NASCAR crowd in more than a decade for Denny Hamlin’s win

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

LONG POND, Pa. (AP) — Denny Hamlin slid out of his winning Toyota and was instantly booed by a packed Pocono crowd unhappy with how the driver shoved Kyle Larson’s car into the wall over the final laps.The boos were so loud because the crowd was so large — Pocono sold out the NASCAR race and boasted its largest crowd since 2010.The increase was attributed in large part to the track losing one race weekend and a series of fan-friendly upgrades to a track that hosted its first NASCAR race in 1974.NASCAR tracks do not usually release attendance numbers.Pocono President Ben May said the track sold around 50,000 grandstand tickets and 3,300 camping spots.“We can’t fit another car, another RV, another person in here today,” May said.Pocono tore down the old victory tower — made out of a parking garage — and added new viewing decks, food trucks, increased fan access for driver introductions and a new victory lane. The decks were packed with fans standing shoulder-to-shoulder with a t...

Novak Djokovic withdraws from Toronto tournament, opts for more rest after loss in Wimbledon final

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

TORONTO (AP) — Novak Djokovic withdrew Sunday from the National Bank Open, opting for additional rest after his loss to Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final.Tennis Canada announced that Djokovic pulled out of the only Canadian stop on the ATP Tour schedule due to fatigue. The 36-year-old, 23-time Grand Slam champion was set to begin his hard-court preparations for the U.S. Open after falling to the top-ranked Alcaraz last Sunday in a five-set final at Wimbledon. “I have always enjoyed my time in Canada but after speaking with my team, we believe this is the right decision to take,” said Djokovic, who has won the National Bank Open four times.“I would like to thank Karl Hale, the tournament director, for understanding this decision. I really hope I can return to Canada and Toronto in the coming years to play in front of great fans there.”American Christopher Eubanks will gain automatic entry into the main draw as Djokovic’s replacement. Eubanks is fresh off a surprising quarterfinal...

DC man fatally stabbed in Southeast

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

D.C. police are investigating a stabbing homicide that took place early Saturday morning in Southeast.In a news release, police said that at approximately 6:46 am, officers responded to a report of a man down in the 2300 block of L’Enfant Square near Twining Square Park. On the scene, officers found a man who had been fatally stabbed.The victim has been identified as 43-year-old Antoine Ealey of Southeast D.C.As of Friday, the number of homicides in the District sat at 134, which is a 15% increase from the yearly tally on the same day last year. That same day, newly sworn acting police chief Pamela Smith told WTOP she was taking an “all community approach” to fighting crime, and that the department is “poised to really have some impactful engagement when it comes to homicides.”“It bothers me, and it certainly upsets me. My job as the chief of police is to make sure that we drive down crime, and I won’t be satisfied until we do that,” Smith said in...

Miami Beach lifts precautionary boil water advisory for wide swath of city

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

Miami Beach has lifted a precautionary boil water notice it had issued for a large swath of the city after a water main break in South Beach caused pressure to drop.City officials on Sunday confirmed drinking water test results were satisfactory for two days in a row.The boil water advisory was issued Thursday after a private contractor hit a water main along Sixth Street, near Alton Road.Officials advise residents, businesses and visitors to allow the water to run for five minutes at each tap to flush the lines and to remember to include drinking fountains, ice makers and soda machines when flushing the lines.

Sánchez’s tricky road to victory after shock Spanish election result

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

MADRID — If you thought the political drama in Spain would conclude with Sunday’s national election, think again.The inconclusive national vote resulted in a split parliament with no clear governing majority. The center-right Popular Party secured the most votes, but it doesn’t have nearly enough seats to form a government on its own or even with the far-right Vox party, its preferred coalition partner.On Sunday night, conservative leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo said he would attempt to form a minority government and demanded “no one be tempted to blockade Spain.”Feijóo argued the country has always been governed by the leader who secures the most votes, and insisted the future government needed to be “in accordance with the electoral victory.”But in parliamentary democracies like Spain, the head of government isn’t necessarily the person who wins the most votes in the election, but rather the one who can secure the support of the greatest shar...

State police rescue 4 after boat takes on water off Peddocks Island in Boston Harbor

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

The Massachusetts State Police Marine Unit rescued four people after a pleasure boat took on water off the north side of Peddocks Island in Boston Harbor on Sunday.Marine Unit vessel Marine 26, crewed by Troopers Benjamin Zahner and Brendan Heath, responded to mayday broadcast around 4:50 p.m. and found four people putting on life jackets and abandoning ship, according to state police.The four boaters, two men and two women, were taken to Charlestown marina, where they were evaluated by paramedics.The cause of the boat taking on water remains under investigation. The vessel was recovered by Towboat US.

Jeff McNeil and Pete Alonso see signs of turnaround

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

BOSTON — Jeff McNeil and Pete Alonso are two of the Mets’ most important bats. So it’s no surprise that their own struggles have correlated with the team’s struggles this season.However, the club’s homegrown duo has been looking more and more like their old selves over the last week.McNeil, the 2022 NL batting title winner, is 6-for-24 with two doubles, four runs and four RBI. In Boston alone this weekend, McNeil has gone 3-for-9 with two RBI, both courtesy of the little league home run from Saturday night in the second game of a twin bill against the Red Sox.“I don’t hit a lot of regular homers,” McNeil joked Saturday night at Fenway Park. “I don’t think I’ve had a little league home run since little league.”Alonso has gone 5-for-12 with two doubles, a triple, an RBI and three runs over his last three games.“Pete is playing more to the level that he’s spoiled us with,” said manager Buck Showal...

Comic-Con 2023 comes to a close

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Hundreds of thousands of pop culture fans said goodbye Sunday to Comic-Con 2023. James Royce Edwards and Krystel Edwards attended the event and say it was an amazing but tiring experience“I think we both did seven or eight different costumes between the parties and the day so it’s a lot of work, it’s a lot of fun but at the end, you just want to relax a little bit," Edwards said.“It’s kind of bittersweet because we put so much work into it, so it’s been so fun to experience it but we’re exhausted."The four-day event had over 900 exhibitors at the San Diego Convention Center. Anthony Snyder, an art dealer at “Anthony's Comic Book Art” has had booths at Comic-Con since 1996. He makes his way to the event from North Jersey every year. Comic-Con brings welcomed boost to local economy “I have four employees here, I have my wife and son as well," Snyder said. "You have to rent a house, find booths, right there that’s $20,000 in expenses before I walk in the room.” But he sa...

Flooding and a landslide in eastern China leave 5 dead and 3 missing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Heavy rains caused flooding and a landslide in eastern China, leaving at least five people dead and three missing while over 1,500 were evacuated, state media reported Sunday. China National Radio said the floods swept through a village in the Fuyang district of the city of Hangzhou, engulfing many houses on Saturday afternoon. The rain later led to a partial mountain collapse and mudslide, affecting multiple areas in the district and more than 1,600 households lost power, CCTV said. Over 1,500 people were evacuated, Xinhua news agency reported.Every year, seasonal flooding hits large parts of China, particularly in the semitropical south. However, some northern regions this year have reported the worst floods in 50 years. The torrents have hit different parts of the country this month and caused casualties. Earlier this month, at least 15 people were killed by floods in the southwestern region of Chongqing. According to CCTV on Sunday, torrential rain also turned man...

Hun Sen’s ruling party claims landslide win in Cambodian election after opposition was suppressed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:24 GMT

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — The ruling party of Cambodia’s longtime Prime Minister Hun Sen claimed a landslide victory in Sunday’s general election, an outcome that was virtually assured after the suppression and intimidation of the opposition in a vote called a farce of democracy.Hun Sen posted on his Telegram channel late Sunday that unofficial results compiled by authorities in each province showed the Cambodian People’s Party won 120 seats and the royalist FUNCINPEC party won five.The National Election Committee said 84.6% of eligible voters had cast ballots. CPP spokesperson Sok Eysan told The Associated Press he believed his party captured 78-80% of the total turnout.The European Union, the United States and other Western countries had refused to send observers to the polls, saying the election lacked the conditions to be considered free and fair. That left international officials from Russia, China and Guinea-Bissau to watch as Hun Sun voted shortly after the poll...