New York (AFP) – Whether it’s in the powerful groundstrokes of players like Coco Gauff or the growing numbers of African-American youngsters surging into tennis camps across the United States each year, Serena Williams’ influence will be felt long after she hangs up her racquet.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion is expected to confirm her retirement at some point during the next US Open fortnight, ending a career that has straddled four decades and yielded a slew of records that may never be beaten.

A sporting and cultural icon, Williams, 40, along with elder sister Venus, has played a transformative role in changing the face of tennis around the world. 

“I think (Serena) as an athlete, not just as a tennis player, has been one of the most important athletes in the history of sport,” was the verdict of Rafael Nadal, the 22-time Grand Slam singles king.

Daniil Medvedev, the reigning US Open men’s singles champion, added: “In 100 years we’re still going to talk about Serena Williams.”

Martin Blackman, the United States Tennis Association’s general manager of player development, has witnessed first-hand the effect that the rise of the Williams sisters has had on the sport.

Blackman, a former tennis professional who is African-American, says Serena and Venus Williams will leave lasting legacies inside and outside of tennis, noting the sisters’ rise from the mean streets of south Los Angeles to the pinnacle of their sport.

“The first level of (Serena’s) legacy will be a woman along with her sister and their family who were able to come out of a tough situation growing up in Compton, not a lot of resources and play a sport that was still traditionally white and quite expensive, and that story of being able to make that journey to be a champion is the first one,” Blackman told AFP.

Transcending tennis

Together, Blackman said, the Williams sisters have transcended tennis.

“I happen to be an African-American man. When I saw Serena and Venus come up and I saw them being confident and comfortable in their skin, that was something that showed me they were really grounded, really secure, really confident. That was a shock to the established tennis society,” Blackman said. 

“African-American girls out there wearing braids, being themselves, unapologetically. I think at first there was some resistance. I think the commentating was a little bit different. For them to do that it sent a message to all diverse people -– regardless of whether black, Hispanic, gay or lesbian –- that you can be successful being yourself. 

“That you can be authentic and pave your way without compromising who you are. Over time, that’s probably the biggest cultural transformation that they have driven within the sport of tennis.”

Blackman said the Williams effect is reflected in the increasing numbers of African-American girls entering USTA tennis camps along with the increasing numbers of black players on the WTA Tour.

“Our numbers in terms of diverse youth have gone up consistently in the last two or three years,” Blackman said. 

“We have a network of camps throughout the country and I have seen more and more African-American girls coming into the game through those camps, which means they are the best in the country.”

At the elite level, a record 12 African-American women played in the main draw of the US Open in 2020. 

African-American tennis players have also increasingly graced Grand Slam finals. 

Prior to the Williams sisters’ emergence, Zina Garrison was the only African-American woman to reach a Grand Slam final in the Open era. 

In the past five years, African-American players such as Gauff, Sloane Stephens and Madison Keys have all played in Slam finals, while Japan’s Naomi Osaka, whose father is Haitian-American, has won four Grand Slams.

‘We followed her’

“If you look at everyone that’s our skin color, clearly we followed her,” Osaka said on Saturday. “I think I’m a product of what she’s done. I wouldn’t be here without Serena, Venus, her whole family.”

Gauff, the 18-year-old from Florida who reached the final of the French Open this year, said Serena Williams had been her role model on and off the court.

“Before Serena came along, there was not really an icon of the sport that looked like me,” Gauff said. 

“So growing up I never thought that I was different because the number one player in the world was somebody who looked like me.

“Sometimes being a woman, a black woman in the world, you kind of settle for less. I feel like Serena taught me that, from watching her. She never settled for less.” 

For Gauff, Williams’ dominance across different decades is enough to settle any debate about whether she ought to be regarded as the G.O.A.T (Greatest of All Time).

“For me she’s always going to be considered the G.O.A.T,” Gauff said. 

“She didn’t dominate one generation. She didn’t dominate for two generations. She dominated for three-plus generations.”

Canada’s Leylah Fernandez, the 2021 US Open finalist, said Williams would be remembered as a champion for both female and male players.

“She’s set out a good path for all of the WTA players, even the ATP players, to reach their own goals, voice their thoughts, keep fighting for what they believe in,” Fernandez said.

“It’s a great way to leave the sport.”

Britney Spears marked first new single in six years topping the iTunes charts in 40 countries by exclaiming “HOLY S***!” on Twitter and posing apparently naked in a bathroom during an online video.

The ‘Toxic’ singer’s single, a collaboration with Sir Elton John, 75, is ‘Hold Me Closer’ – a mix of his 1971 hit ‘Tiny Dancer’ with his 1992 song ‘The One’, along with parts of 1976’s ‘Don’t go Breaking my Heart’.

Less than a day after the new song came out, Britney, 40, tweeted a video filmed in the bath in which she put on an English accent and said: “Hello, Sir Elton John, we are like number one in 40 countries.”

She then used her natural American accent to yell: “HOLY S***!” before goniog back to her English impression and winking: “I’m in the tub right now, and I’m about to go have the best day ever and I hope you’re well.”

She also put out a video on Twitter that saw her strutting fully clothed in monochrome with a hat, before images of her sitting apparently naked aside from a towel, with cross legs, flashed on screen.

Britney captioned the clip: “Keep smiling folks … KEEP SMILING!! Psss I LOVE YOU ALL!!!”

Ahead of the single being released at midnight on Thursday (25.08.22), Sir Elton, admitted he could relate to Britney being “broken” in her life.

He told The Guardian: “It’s hard when you’re young. Britney was broken. I was broken when I got sober. I was in a terrible place. Now, I’ve got the experience to be able to advise people and help them because I don’t want to see any artists in a dark place.”

Sir Elton also blasted the conservatorship she was under, saying: “What happened to her shouldn’t have happened to anybody.”

Britney’s new husband Sam Asghari, 28, also congratulated her online, saying: “Words can’t describe how f****** proud I am!”

The singer and Sam married in June after five years of dating after meeting on the set of her ‘Slumber Party’ music video.

By Ahmed Aboulenein and Julie Steenhuysen

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Very few people who have gotten monkeypox shots in the United States have received the second dose needed for full protection, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky said on Friday.

She told a White House briefing that nearly 97% of the shots administered were first doses, and although many people are eligible for a second dose, “very few” have been given so far.

Walensky said the CDC expected to gain more insight into the trend. Vaccine scarcity may have caused delays in second shots previously but that was no longer the case, she said.

More than 207,000 doses of Bavarian Nordic’s Jynneos vaccine were given as of Aug. 23 in the 19 jurisdictions reporting data to the CDC, Walensky said.

The vaccine needs to be given in two doses, four weeks apart, to be fully effective.

To expand access to the vaccine, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Aug. 9 authorized giving it intradermally – between the layers of the skin – which would allow providers to get five doses from a single one-dose vial.

Bavarian Nordic has raised doubts about the safety of the method, citing a lack of evidence and the possible increased risk of reactions compared to injecting it into the muscle.

During the briefing on Friday, officials said providers are reporting getting 4.5 to 5 doses per vial, but several experts told Reuters the figure is lower.

“The vast majority of health departments that I’ve talked to in the last week are feeling fortunate if they can get four doses out of a vial, and in some cases three,” Dr. Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota, said in an interview.

Dr. Umar Shaw, secretary of health for Washington state, said on Thursday that many providers were getting three or four doses per vial.

Walensky confirmed that some U.S. jurisdictions were reporting a downward trend in monkeypox cases and that health officials were watching this with cautious optimism.

(Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein in Washington and Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago; additional reporting by Rami Ayyub in Washington; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Cynthia Osterman)

By Ashraf Fahim

(Reuters) – Nicole Aunapu Mann has waited nine long years for her chance to go into space.

And if all goes according to plan, that wait will end on Oct. 03, when she will lead NASA’s Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station.

“It has been a long journey, but it’s been so well worth it,” Mann told Reuters on Friday.

Mann will be the first Native American woman in space. The first Native American man in space was John Herrington in 2002.

“I feel very proud,” said Mann. “It’s important that we celebrate our diversity and really communicate that specifically to the younger generation.”

Mann, a member of the Wailacki of the Round Valley Indian Tribes in Northern California, says that her upcoming mission has sparked excitement in her community.

“That’s really, I think, an audience that we don’t get an opportunity to reach out to very often,” she said.

With her journey into space just weeks away, Mann says she will be taking a few mementos into orbit to remind her of home, among them a ‘dreamcatcher,’ a traditional Native American protective charm.

Mann, a marine colonel with a master’s in mechanical engineering, was recruited into NASA in 2013 and finished candidate training two years later.

The former fighter pilot who flew U.S. combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan now heads up an international crew that includes fellow NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, Japan’s Koichi Wakata and Russian cosmonaut Anna Kikina.

They are set to launch from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and swap out Crew-4 from the ISS.

The Crew-5 mission will follow the beginning of NASA’s landmark Artemis mission, set for its debut launch on Monday.

The gigantic Space Launch System, topped by an unmanned Orion Crew Capsule, is the first step in the goal of returning humans to the Moon after a half-century hiatus.

Mann said that she and her ISS crew will be helping to prepare for the future success of Artemis.

“What we’re doing in low earth orbit not only trains the astronauts but provides the technical development and operational concepts that we’re going to need to live (with a) sustained human presence on the moon and eventually take us to Mars,” she said.

“So I just hope that the whole world is watching on Monday.”

(Reporting by Ashraf Fahim, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)

Princess Diana poured out her woes over depression, betrayal, bulimia and her suicide attempts in a “stream of consciousness” recordings, her official biographer has recalled.

Andrew Morton, 69, who wrote the book ‘Diana: Her True Story – In Her Own Words’ with the mum-of-two’s cooperation in 1992, said he listened with “astonishment” when she sent him a tape of her innermost feelings.

He told the Daily Mail on Friday night (27.08.22) ahead of the 25th anniversary of her death aged 36 this Wednesday (31.08.22): “Turning on my tape recorder, I listened with mounting astonishment to the unmistakable voice of Princess Diana, pouring out a tale of woe in a rapid stream of consciousness.

“She was talking about her unhappiness, her sense of betrayal, her suicide attempts – and two things I’d never previously heard of: an eating disorder called bulimia nervosa and a woman called Camilla.”

He added about her confessions about her traumatic marriage to Prince Charles, who she divorced in 1996 mainly over his relationship with his future wife Camilla: “It was 1991. Diana was approaching 30, and the very idea that her 10-year marriage was in dire trouble seemed unthinkable. To most people, Charles and Diana were still a fairytale story.”

Andrew said Diana, who died in a high-speed Paris tunnel car smash, trusted him with her story as he knew Dr James Colthurst, whom he met in 1986 when the royal opened a new CT scanner in his X-ray department at St Thomas’ Hospital, London.

He added: “Afterwards, over tea and biscuits, I questioned him about Diana’s visit and soon realised he had known her for years.

“Gradually, James and I became friendly, enjoying games of squash followed by large lunches and talking about everything but the princess.

“As her friend, of course, James was well aware that her marriage had failed and that her husband was having an affair with Camilla Parker Bowles.

“Diana had a nagging fear that, at any moment, her enemies in the Palace would have her classified as mentally ill and locked away. Where to turn?

“It had dawned on her that unless the full story of her life was told, the public would never understand the reasons behind anything she decided to do.

“She knew I was researching a book about her and she had been reasonably pleased with an earlier work of mine, mainly because it irritated Prince Charles with its detailed description of the interior of Highgrove.

“One day, she asked Colthurst, ‘Does Andrew want an interview?’ I was keen to talk to her directly but this was out of the question. So I interviewed her by proxy, giving my questions to Colthurst, who then conducted six taped interviews with her at Kensington Palace.”

Andrew said Diana passed him a series of letters and postcards from Camilla to Prince Charles, which he described as “passionate, loving and full of suppressed longing”.

He added: “They left absolutely no doubt that Diana’s suspicions were correct.”

But he stressed while she “raged” about her husband’s cheating, she hid the fact that she’d “enjoyed a long love affair with Major James Hewitt from 1986 to 1991”, as well as a brief fling in 1989 with her old friend James Gilbey.

Andrew reflected: “Looking back, Diana’s audacity was breathtaking. One is left wondering if she wanted to get her side of the story published first, so she would escape blame for the failure of the marriage.”

His book was banned by numerous bookstores and supermarkets, despite telling the truth about Diana’s eating disorder and battles with suicidal thoughts and anxiety.

He said: “Ironically, a biography written and produced with Diana’s enthusiastic co-operation was being piously boycotted on the suspicion that it was a pack of lies.

“But it soon became apparent that the book really was Diana’s true story — and the princess quickly began to receive the kind of support that always meant so much to her. Letters came flooding in, many from people who had suffered with eating disorders themselves.

“She never regretted the taping sessions. And in the last five years of her life, the world witnessed the flowering of her humanitarian spirit.”

Washington (AFP) – Facebook has reached a preliminary agreement in a long-running lawsuit seeking damages from the social network for allowing third parties, including the company Cambridge Analytica, to access users’ private data. 

According to a document filed Friday in a San Francisco court, Facebook says it is submitting a draft “agreement in principle” and has requested a stay of proceedings for 60 days to finalize it. 

The social network did not indicate the amount or terms of the agreement in the class action. 

When asked by AFP, Facebook said late Saturday night they had “no comment to share at this time.”

The deal comes as Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg and former chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, who announced her resignation in June, were due to testify in court in September as part of the scandal. 

In a lawsuit initiated in 2018, Facebook users accused the social network of violating privacy rules by sharing their data with third parties including the firm Cambridge Analytica, which was linked to Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. 

Cambridge Analytica — which has since shut down — had collected and exploited, without their consent, the personal data of 87 million Facebook users, to which the platform had given it access. 

This information was allegedly used to develop software steering US voters in favor of Trump. 

In 2019, federal authorities fined Facebook $5 billion for misleading its users and imposed independent oversight of its personal data management. 

Since the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke, Facebook has removed access to its data from thousands of apps suspected of abusing it, restricted the amount of information available to developers, and made it easier for users to calibrate restrictions on personal data sharing.

Jennifer Lopez claims footage from her singing at her wedding to Ben Affleck was “stolen without our consent”.

The ‘On the Floor’ hitmaker tied the knot with the ‘Tender Bar’ star for the second time in Georgia last weekend and a few days later, a clip circulated on line of the 53-year-old star serenading her new husband, and she’s criticised the leaking of the clip, particularly because all their guests were asked to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDA) as a condition of their attendance.

After fan account JLoW0rld shared the clip on Instagram, she commented: “This was taken without permission. Period. Whoever did it took advantage of our private moment. I don’t know where you all are getting it from because we had NDAs and asked everyone not to share anything from our wedding. That is our choice to share.

“Anything I put out private is OnTheJLo and it’s to share with my fans. Which I will do when I am ready to. This was stolen without our consent and sold for money.

“Thank you for caring, I love you guys.”

The owner of the fan account deleted the video “out of respect for Bennifer” and instead shared a new post featuring a screenshot of the ‘Hustlers’ actress’ comment, which Jennifer liked.

The video which circulated online featured Jennifer, joined by a troupe of backing dancers, singing to Ben while he was seated in front of her on the dance floor.

The lyrics for the sentimental song included: “I can feel the passion in your eyes, I’m still in love with you, You know I can’t get enough, You know I can’t get enough.”

The 50-year-old actor was seen smiling throughout, and sang along when presented with the microphone.

The couple originally married in Las Vegas in a low-key ceremony in July, just three months after getting engaged again for the second time.

They then hosted a star-studded celebration, where they exchanged vows once again in front of 150 friends and family, at their home in Georgia last weekend.

Danny DeVito thinks he was a “better” Penguin than Colin Farrell.

The 77-year-old actor portrayed the iconic villain – aka mobster Oswald ‘Oz’ Cobblepot – in 1992’s ‘Batman Returns’ opposite Michael Keaton as the Caped Crusader, while the ‘In Bruges’ star took on the role in ‘The Batman’, going up against Robert Pattinson in the lead role.

While Danny thinks Colin is “terrific”, he believes he did a better job with the character.

Undergoing a lie detector test for Vanity Fair magazine, Danny’s daughter Lucy showed him a photo of Colin and asked: “What about this Penguin?”

He replied: “Oh, Colin? I love Colin. He’s a terrific guy. My Penguin was better.

“Was that the truth?”

After the person conducting the test confirmed: “You are telling the truth”, Danny added: “It certainly was. In my opinion. It’s my opinion. Good man, though. Colin’s a good guy.”

The ‘Twins’ star was also asked who he felt the best Batman was.

He pointed to Michael’s photo and said: “This is the Batman for me, yeah, Michael.”

Colin is set to reprise the role again in a standalone HBO Max series, but also admitted he’d jump at the chance to return for another movie with Robert and director Matt Reeves.

He said of the prospect: “Oh my god, you kidding me?! It’s so much fun, are you joking [with] me? I’ve been around the block man. That was an easy sport, I mean … it was a joy.

“Matt’s up to his b*******, you know, hovering over the keyboard and just planning the story because he’s just so meticulous.

“He’s so obsessive about what he does, but he’s all over [HBO Max’s] The Penguin [series] as well. I mean, he’s not gonna direct it but he’s all over the structure of the scripts and who’s gonna direct them. And so, it’s exciting.”

Washington (AFP) – Roland Mesnier, the French-born longtime pastry chef at the White House whose whimsical confections served five American presidents, has died at age 78, a historical association said.

The culinary master — who joined the presidential mansion’s staff in 1979 under Jimmy Carter and worked there until his 2004 retirement during George W. Bush’s presidency — died Friday “following a short illness,” the White House Historical Association said on its website.

“I have such fond memories of Chef Mesnier,” former first lady Hillary Clinton said Saturday in a Twitter post that included a photograph of her and Mesnier standing next to some of his gingerbread holiday pieces.

“He loved making people smile with his beautiful creations, including his famous gingerbread houses at Christmas,” she added. “He will be missed!”

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute also expressed condolences about Mesnier’s passing, noting he had served as White House executive pastry chef for 25 years.

“His passion, commitment, and love for his work will always be remembered,” the foundation said.

Mesnier, born in Bonnay, a small village in eastern France, died in the US state of Virginia following complications from cancer, according to The Washington Post, which quoted his son George.

Born into a modest family of nine children, he had worked in large hotels in Germany, Britain and Bermuda before first lady Rosalynn Carter hired him in 1979.

Washington (AFP) – The White House on Friday blasted the latest set of “radical” abortion restrictions in four more states run by Republicans, signaling President Joe Biden’s determination to lean on the issue ahead of tight November congressional elections.

There are now full-scale abortion bans in 12 Republican-controlled states, which had prepared so-called trigger laws ready to be activated when the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision ensuring automatic rights to abortion access nationwide.

“Today marks the latest attack against the fundamental rights of Americans as new abortion bans go into effect in Idaho, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

“These near-total abortion bans are part of a growing effort by Republican legislators to roll back the freedoms Americans have relied on for nearly half a century. Today’s radical steps take away women’s reproductive rights and put personal health care decisions in the hands of politicians instead of women and their doctors,” she said.

The Supreme Court ruling two months ago put jurisdiction over abortion access in the hands of individual state legislatures, immediately turning swaths of the country into areas where getting the procedure has become all but impossible.

Jean-Pierre echoed Biden’s frequent demand for Congress to pass a new law enshrining nationwide abortion rights and urged “people across the country to make their voices heard” ahead of the November midterm elections, which will decide whether Democrats retain their narrow hold on the legislature.

Republicans have fought for decades to overturn the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision and finally achieved their goal in a Supreme Court that tilted sharply to conservative interpretations of the constitution after Donald Trump filled three vacancies during his one-term presidency.

Polls show the court’s ruling was unpopular with a majority of Americans, however, and Democrats hope the issue will help them fend off a previously predicted sweep by Republicans in the midterms. 

“I think the American people realize this is just beyond the pale, it goes too far,” Biden told reporters at the White House.

Meanwhile, the White House is trying to help women who want to circumvent the bans by supporting their travel to states that do allow abortions.

The health department on Friday announced increased federal funding for states where the authorities want to help such women.

“We have seen the gut-wrenching stories of women suffering and not getting the care they need because of newly-enacted laws that restrict abortion care,” Health Secretary Xavier Becerra said.

The new federal assistance will “protect women’s access to reproductive care, including abortion,” he said.

By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department on Friday released a redacted version of the legal document that allowed the FBI to seize classified government records from former President Donald Trump’s Florida home, a move that could shed more light on the evidence that led to the unprecedented search.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart, who had approved the warrant that led to the FBI’s search of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on Aug. 8, had ordered the unsealing of the redacted affidavit by noon (1600 GMT) on Friday.

The search in Palm Beach marked a significant escalation in one of the many federal and state investigations Trump is facing from his time in office and in private business. The Republican former president has suggested he might run for the White House again.

“The government is conducting a criminal investigation concerning the improper removal and storage of classified information in unauthorized spaces, as well as the unlawful concealment or removal of government records,” the 38-page affidavit began.

The FBI action was part of a federal probe into whether Trump illegally removed documents when he left office in January 2021 after losing the presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden, and whether he tried to obstruct the government’s investigation.

The FBI carried away more than 20 boxes containing 11 sets of classified government records, some of which were labeled “top secret.”

The affidavit, a document that is not usually made public unless someone is charged with a crime, is a sworn statement outlining the evidence that gave the department probable cause to seek a search warrant.

Prosecutors had asked for the entire document to be sealed to protect the integrity of their ongoing investigation, prompting media companies to file a legal challenge to get it released.

In his order on Thursday, Reinhart said the Justice Department had valid reasons to keep some of the document secret, including the need to protect the identities of witnesses and federal agents as well as the government’s investigation and strategy and grand jury material.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; additional reporting by Jacqueline Thomsen, Mike Scarella, and Karen Freifeld; Editing by Scott Malone and Alistair Bell)