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Vote for Your Favorite 2014 Sportswoman of the Year Anderson, Davis, Moore and Whitmore Among Finalists for Women’s Sports Foundation Athlete Honor This October NEW YORK, N.Y. (August 25, 2014) – The Women's Sports Foundation’s 35th Annual Salute to Women in Sports will celebrate the incredible achievements of the top female athletes and leaders in sport on Wednesday, October 15, 2014 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. Star athletes, corporate and industry leaders, sports organizations, celebrities and journalists will come together for the Foundation’s annual fundraising gala for the unveiling of the 2014 award winners. The 35th Annual Salute will be hosted by journalist and sportscaster Mary Carillo. A remarkable group of elite athlete finalists, representing 21 sports, is vying for the evening’s top honors – Sportswoman of the Year – in Individual and Team categories. The finalists on the 2014 Sportswoman of the Year Award ballot have distinguished themselves f...

Apparent incursions by Russian troops into Ukraine indicate a Moscow orchestrated counter- offensive in rebel-contested areas, the US says. The United States has warned that apparent incursions by Russian military units into Ukraine indicate a Moscow-orchestrated counter-offensive in rebel-contested areas. Kremlin-aligned rebels in east Ukraine have seized territory from retreating government forces, with Kiev accusing Russia of pushing columns of its tanks and weaponry toward towns in southeastern Ukraine. These incursions indicate a Russian-directed counter-offensive is likely under way in Donetsk and Lugansk," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. "Clearly that is of deep concern to us. Psaki also said Washington has noted "the Russian government's unwillingness to tell the truth even as its soldiers are found 30 miles (48km) inside Ukraine." She cited reports of wounded soldiers at a hospital in St. Petersburg, and said Russia was...

HTC’s mysterious Nexus tablet project has poked its head out of the bushes once again with a name change and various tidbits concerning the slate’s specification. The tablet is now apparently called the Nexus X and has a powerful set of components that backs up its status in the upper echelon of the Android tablet sector with the inclusion of a 64-bit processor. A spec list obtained by Phone Arena shows that the tablet has an 8.9in 2,560 x 1,600 resolution display that brings a pixel density of 340ppi and all this is backed up by a 192-core Nvidia Kepler GPU that claims to be 1.5 times more efficient than rival chips. Alongside that powerful GPU, it’s rumoured there will be a 64-bit Tegra K1 processor to power all of the action and earlier reports pointed to 4GB of RAM supplementing it. These reports also mentioned the camera is either 5- or 8-megapixel and capable of both 1080p photos and video recording. Rumours surrounding a Nexus-badged HTC tablet first emerged back in ...

Manchester United have signed winger Angel Di Maria from Real Madrid for a British record transfer fee of £59.7m . The Argentine winger had a medical in Manchester on Tuesday and has signed a five-year deal. Di Maria - described as world-class by United boss Louis van Gaal - is likely to make his debut on Saturday against Burnley in the Premier League. The 26-year-old said United were the only club that I would have left Real Madrid for. The fee eclipses the £50m Chelsea paid Liverpool for striker Fernando Torres in 2011. Di Maria added: Louis van Gaal is a fantastic coach with a proven track record of success and I am impressed by the vision and determination everyone has to get this club back to the top - where it belongs. I now just cannot wait to get started. United manager Van Gaal praised Di Maria as a world-class midfielder but added most importantly he is a team player. There is no doubting his immense natural talent, continued the Dutchman. He is a tremendously fast ...

Frank Lampard has announced his retirement from international football. The midfielder, who this summer joined Manchester City on loan from MLS side New York City, was part of England's World Cup squad in Brazil. In a statement, Lampard, 36, said he would look back on his international career with pride after scoring 29 goals in 106 appearances for his country. It has been a tough decision for me to take which is why I have given it so much thought since the World Cup," Lampard said. "I have always exceptionally proud and honoured to represent my country and have to say looking back I have enjoyed every minute of of wearing an England shirt. "Due to my club career now going in a different direction it is of utmost importance to me to consider my family first. Also, to concentrate on how I can perform consistently to the best of my abilities over my next few years in club football. Lampard left Chelsea this summer after 13 years at Stamford Bridge, moving to N...

Encouraging economic news pushed the Standard & Poor's 500 index past 2,000 Tuesday morning, a day after the index closed just short of the milestone number. The Dow Jones industrial average was also on track for its own record high. KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 rose six points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,004 as of 11:37 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 65 points, or 0.4 percent, to 17,142. That's four points above the record high close it reached on July 16. The Nasdaq composite gained 13 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,571. CONFIDENT CONSUMER: The Conference Board said that its consumer confidence index rose this month to the highest point in nearly seven years. Strong job gains helped boost the index, which has been rising for four months. The optimism suggests that Americans will be more likely to spend in the months ahead, an important boost to the economy. THE QUOTE: "It tells you that the consumer is probably back in the game," said Jim R...

(CAIRO) — Egyptian state media has announced a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel to halt the seven-week Gaza war, which has killed over 2,200 people. Both Egyptian state television and the state news agency MENA announced the deal Tuesday night. Both said it begins at 7 p.m. local time (1600 GMT), without elaborating. Earlier, officials with from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, the main groups fighting in Gaza against Israel, said a cease-fire had been reached. Israeli officials have not immediately commented. They described it as an “open-ended” cease-fire that included an Israeli agreement to ease its blockade of Gaza to allow relief supplies and construction materials into the war-battered territory.

NAIROBI, Kenya — The U.N. mission in South Sudan says one of its helicopters has crashed, and a U.N. official told The Associated Press that it appears the aircraft was shot down. The U.N. mission said on Twitter that an Mi-18 cargo helicopter crashed Tuesday near Bentiu, which is hotly contested between the government and rebels. The U.N. said it is deeply concerned about the fate of its crew. A search and rescue team has been sent to the crash site. The U.N. official, who insisted on anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press, said contact with the helicopter was lost at about 3:19 p.m. and that it was apparently shot down near Bentiu. South Sudan has seen widespread massive violence between rebels and the national army since December.

The next time you gripe about getting older, think about Betty. The 76-year- old Minnesotan grandmother made a name for herself at the Green Cove Dragway in Green Cove Springs, Florida, in March by taking on a far younger racer – and winning. The other racer, Peter Miele, challenged Betty to a rematch, and on Aug. 16, she beat him. Again. (Ever the gracious loser, Miele presented Betty with bumper stickers reading "I beat Peter" after their match.) The GCD named the evening's races in her honor and used the occasion to raise money for breast cancer, which Betty has been living with since 1987. Betty "started out with dirt track [racing] in the late 1950s, running a '48 Ford with a '51 Lincoln engine," according to her profile on the GCD site. (She was also eight months pregnant when she came in first place in a race for the first time.) So if you're ever in Florida and see Betty on the highway, let her pass. She's earned it.

The Israel Football Association (IFA) on Thursday postponed the start of the new soccer premier league season scheduled for this weekend, due to the danger posed by Hamas terrorists firing rockets on Israeli civilian centers. "We have cancelled all matches following instructions from the civil defense authority," an IFA official told AFP , without specifying a new date for the season to begin. The 2014-2015 first division season had been due to begin on Saturday. Several recent pre-season friendlies planned in southern Israel, which has been hardest hit by terrorist rockets, were also cancelled for security reasons. Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri lost no time Thursday in bragging about the postponement of the soccer season. "The decision to delay the opening of the Israeli soccer season is proof of (Prime Minister Binyamin) Netanyahu's failure to provide security to Israelis, and the proof for that is that the resistance (Hamas) controls their lives; therefore t...

Motorola has been enjoying plenty of attention lately thanks largely to its striking Moto 360 smartwatch, which features a beautiful round display unlike many of the wrist-bound devices unveiled by its rivals, which feature far more conventional square screens. But the wearable device isn't all that Motorola is preparing for launch in the coming month. The company reportedly has eight new handsets currently in development, according to TKTechNews, and it's possible that all of them may be released before the end of the year: DROID DROID Maxx DROID Turbo Moto G Moto S Moto X+1 Moto X Play Nexus Shamu That last device on the list is of particularsignificance, of course. 'Shamu' is the codename of the greatly anticipated new Nexus 6, and it's looking increasingly likely that Motorola will be building it . The Nexus 6 will reportedly feature a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 chipset, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, 12MP rear camera with 4K video recording...

The number of deaths from Ebola virus disease in the West African countries of Liberia , Nigeria, Guinea, and Sierra Leone has spiked to 1350, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in its regular report. According to the organization, over the two days, “between 17 and 18 August 2014 a total of 221 new cases of Ebola virus disease (laboratory-confirmed, probable, and suspect cases) as well as 106 deaths were reported from Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone.” The previous WHO reports put the number of Ebola-related deaths at 1145. The statement, published on the organization’s website Wednesday said also that “countries are beginning to experience supply shortages, including fuel, food, and basic supplies” after a number of companies decided to suspend services to the Ebola-hit countries.  Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a deadly disease, transmitted through direct contact with th...

As Shakespeare once almost wrote: "what's in a name? For Charlie Boyer & The Voyeurs would catch our attention regardless of moniker." Well, ol' Bill Shakespeare was right: welcome the newly trimmed The Voyeurs , with new album 'Rhubarb Rhubarb' due to be released on November 10th. Recorded at the Flesh & Bone and The Premises studios in East London, the material was overseen by producer Oli Bayston (also known as Boxed In). New single 'Stunners' arrives on November 3rd, but ahead of this The Voyeurs have unveiled the video for 'England Sings Rhubarb Rhubarb'. Charlie Boyer: "People in playhouses have been using Rhubarb Rhubarb for centuries, it's an old thespian trick. Actors would repeat the phrase to conjure up an angry mob. They believe that mumbling or screeching Rhubarb Rhubarb has the same confused qualities as an indistinct muttering or even a faraway ou...

All 600 people quarantined within the centre were in the suspected victim’s vicinity before she collapsed as reports indicated she had been in contact with ebola victims in her homeland. The latest scare came as the World Health Organisation said cases in West Africa’s ebola outbreak rose to 2,240, including 1,229 deaths. Quarantined: Job seekers and employees waits for permission from police to leave The WHO said it was working with the UN’s World Food Programme to try to get food to a million people in the ebola quarantine zones in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. Food has been delivered to hospitalised patients and people under quarantine who are not able to leave their homes to purchase food," the WHO said. "Providing regular food supplies is a potent means of limiting unnecessary movement, The WFP is stepping up emergency food deliveries to the quarantined areas, which...

The UN refugee agency said Tuesday it was poised to mount a massive aid operation for 500,000 Iraqis driven from their homes by jihadist rebels.  “In response to the deteriorating situation in northern Iraq, UNHCR is this week launching one of its largest aid pushes aimed at helping close to half a million people who have been forced to leave their homes,” UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told reporters.

Washington - A scary problem lurks beyond the frenzied efforts to keep people from spreading Ebola: No one knows exactly where the virus comes from or how to stop it from seeding new outbreaks. Ebola has caused two dozen outbreaks in Africa since it first emerged in 1976. It is coming from somewhere - probably bats - but experts agree they need to pinpoint its origins in nature. That has had to wait until they can tame the current outbreak, which has claimed more than 1 100 lives in four countries - the worst toll from Ebola in history. "First and foremost get the outbreak under control. Once that piece is resolved, then go back and find what the source is," said Jonathan Towner, a scientist who helped find the bat source of another Ebola-like disease called Marburg. Towner works for the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Others say finding Ebola's origins is more than a down-the-road scientific curiosity. "Confirming the source would defin...

SSC Napoli and FC Porto drew Athletic Club and LOSC Lille in the UEFA Champions League play-offs while Arsenal FC face a Turkish team for the second year running. SSC Napoli and FC Porto face tough tasks to return to the UEFA Champions League group stage having been paired with Athletic Club and LOSC Lille respectively in the play-off draw in Nyon. Both Napoli and Porto were eliminated in the group stage last season and, having finished third in Serie A and the Portuguese Liga respectively in 2013/14, must now overcome LOSC – third in Ligue 1 last term – and the Spanish Liga's fourth-placed side Athletic, whose sole previous group appearance came in 1998/99. For the second season running Arsenal FC face Turkish opposition at this juncture. Twelve months ago they defeated Fenerbahçe SK in the play-offs; now they have been pitted against Beşiktaş JK, whose fifth and last group stage campaign came in 2009/10. Elsewhere in the league route, Danish runners-up FC København tak...

This spray is very useful," said UEFA President Michel Platini after the UEFA Referees Committee approved introducing vanishing spray paint for UEFA matches. Vanishing spray paint, used by the referee to mark the spot a free-kick is taken and the minimum required distance for the defensive wall, is to be used in UEFA competition games following a successful trial. After a successful test at the 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Malta, I am pleased that the Referees Committee decided to approve the use of the vanishing spray in our senior competitions," explained UEFA President Michel Platini. "As we all saw at the World Cup, this spray was very useful in helping the referee in free-kick situations, and I am sure we will see similar results in our matches this season. I take this opportunity to praise the late Argentina Football Association president Julio Grondona who initially pushed the International Board to use the vanishing spray a few years ago. H...

The seedings have been confirmed for the play-off draw, streamed live from 13.00CET, with new entrants including FC Internazionale Milano and Tottenham Hotspur FC.   The seedings have been released for Friday's UEFA Europa League play-off draw, which takes place in Nyon from 13.00CET, with Iceland's Stjarnan and Kazakhstan's FC Aktobe lining up alongside FC Internazionale Milano, Tottenham Hotspur FC and Olympique Lyonnais. The draw will be streamed live in the UEFA.com DrawCentre opening at 11.00CET. Draw procedure Groups 1-5 • All the clubs within the five ten-team groups are ordered randomly and identified by a number: 1 to 5 for the seeded teams and 6 to 10 for the unseeded teams. • Two bowls will be prepared, one containing the balls with slips of paper numbered 1 to 5 for the seeded teams and the other containing the balls with slips of paper numbered 6 to 10 for the unseeded teams. • A ball will be taken from each bowl and placed in an empty bowl in the middle,...

Finally the Rock has come back to corny action movies. He’s picked up the mythological action-movie gauntlet where he left it with The Scorpion King. But Dwayne Johnson's return to the loincloth bearing duties is far from his best. Hercules is too formulaic, too seeped in mythology clichés. It feels like we’re watching updated reruns of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Conan movies, minus the B-movie monster suits. It all used to be fun at one point and then we grew up to the likes of Peter Jackson and Gore Verbinski. So in director Brett Ratner’s 2014 reiteration of the age old Greek saga we have a very Samoan looking lead man play a chap rampaging through Greece as the mighty Hercules, son of Zeus. Sinbad would’ve been acceptable but The Rock playing Hercules is pushing suspension of disbelief a bit too far. If you can look past the cultural disparity you'll find a run of the mill, the-world-needs-a-hero escapade. A fellow and his gang of merry men (and one very pretty Amazonian...