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Hodgkinson ready for 'battle of world records' in London

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Keely Hodgkinson is a six-time global medallist

Keely Hodgkinson says this year's London Diamond League could be a "battle of the world records" as she seeks to topple athletics' longest-standing mark on home soil.

The Olympic 800m champion will return to the London Stadium meet for the first time since her British-record run in the lead-up to her crowning moment at the Paris 2024 Games.

After an injury-disrupted 2025, the 24-year-old says she has not missed a single session during the best winter training block of her career – as evidenced when she smashed the world indoor record in February.

In the sport's first season for five years without a global outdoor championship to prioritise, Hodgkinson's attention has turned to the 43-year world 800m record time of one minute 53.28 seconds, set by Czech athlete Jarmila Kratochvilova in July 1983.

British team-mate Josh Kerr has already announced his intention to target the world mile record – which has stood since 1999 – in London on Saturday, 18 July.

"Obviously I would love to have that happen on home soil," said Hodgkinson, discussing where she would ideally set the record this summer.

"I get really excited about London and the crowd. As a British person, competing there is so much fun.

"It's definitely the main thing I'm looking forward to on the calendar this year.

"It might be a battle of the world records. Who can get a better one?" she joked.

Hodgkinson will begin her outdoor season at the Rome Diamond League on 4 June, where she will test her top speed over 400m, before beginning her pursuit of the world record with 800m races in Stockholm and Eugene.

If the world record does not fall in London, or indeed sooner, Hodgkinson will have the opportunity to race again on home soil at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham in August.

But, after suffering two significant hamstring tears during her first year as the reigning Olympic champion, she is not taking anything for granted.

"We obviously have a plan 'A' of what we would like to happen," Hodgkinson said.

"The sport has its own plans sometimes, and it is not something you can straight away plan and think 'lets do this'.

"If I come into the shape where I think I want to go [for the record] a bit sooner, or it happens to be a bit later in the season, that could just be how it goes."

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As she prepares to star in front of a crowd of 60,000 at London Stadium this summer, Hodgkinson reiterated her staunch desire to see the World Athletics Championships hosted there in 2029.

Last year the UK government confirmed its support for London's bid to host the event, with the intention of staging it at London stadium, which last hosted the event in 2017.

But those plans have reportedly hit a stumbling block over Championship football club West Ham's reluctance to agree to allow the venue to be used for about three weeks early in their 2029-30 season.

"I am really passionate about it. I didn't think we would get an opportunity in my career to get another global championships back in the UK," Hodgkinson said.

"That would be not only amazing for our sport but also the people watching, inspiring the next generation and putting our sport out there.

"We would sell out that stadium every single day, I believe that wholeheartedly. We have seen that before and there's no reason why it would happen again."

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/sport/athletics/articles/c202y959xxeo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

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Moment Blue Origin rocket explodes during test in Florida

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A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket exploded on a launch pad at Cape Canaveral in Florida on Thursday night.

The space technology company, which was founded in 2000 by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, said there were no injuries from the incident.

"All personnel have been accounted for. We will provide updates as we learn more," Blue Origin said in a statement.

The explosion occurred during a "hotfire test", the company said, describing the incident as an "anomaly".

In a video message from Buckingham Palace, wildlife helps the King deliver a birthday card for Sir David Attenborough.

The forest where the Sumatran orangutans live has been split by a road.

Newly released video shows the moment the hatch of Artemis II's Orion capsule is unlocked to a joyful reunion with the four astronauts.

Steve Backshall spotted two of the UK's last surviving orcas which he described as one of his "greatest British wildlife moments".

France's Eiffel Tower and Barcelona's Sagrada Família Basilica were among the famous global landmarks that went dark for an hour on Saturday night.

The 98m tall Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion spacecraft made a four mile journey from their assembly building to Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Tenerife hit by snow as Storm Therese batters Canary Islands

BBC science correspondent Pallab Ghosh explains what happens if an astronaut gets ill in space.

From meteor showers to supermoons, here are some of the sights that wowed stargazers this year.

The Met Office has issued yellow severe weather warnings for both wind and rain.

Baroness Kathy Willis talks about the importance of green and blue spaces in cities.

Studying samples from the ice sheet gives an environmental record of over a million years.

The animal rights activist has died aged 91, after a pioneering career studying chimps.

President Trump has suggested this week that wind power is the reason for rising energy bills in the UK. BBC Verify's Ben Chu takes a look at the data.

London Zoo in Regent's Park holds its annual animal weigh-in, with zookeepers weighing and measuring over 10,000 animals to monitor their health and wellbeing.

The astronomical event was captured on camera at North York Moors National Park on 13 August.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/cvgz0pdg32mo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

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Netanyahu says he has directed IDF to increase control of Gaza to 70%

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that he directed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to increase control of Gaza to 70%.

Speaking at a conference on Thursday, he said: "We are currently squeezing Hamas; we now control 60% of the territory of the Strip – you know this. We were at 50, we moved to 60. My directive is to move to," he said before pausing as someone in the crowd said, "100".

"Let's go step by step. First of all, 70. Let's start with that. We're pressing them from all sides, we'll deal with the remnants."

The expansion in control by Israel would contradict the terms of the Donald Trump-led ceasefire Israel and Hamas agreed to in October 2025.

Netanyahu's statement comes as Israel continues strikes on Gaza despite the ceasefire, and as Israel and Hamas remain deadlocked in indirect, US-brokered talks to advance Trump's peace plan.

At least 738 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire came into effect in October, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures the UN considers reliable.

Netanyahu has made several public remarks confirming that the IDF controls more than 60% of the Strip, up from the 53% agreed in October. Under the ceasefire agreement, the IDF withdrew to a demarcation line, known as the "yellow line".

The next steps in the 20-point peace proposal would see Hamas disarm and Israeli troops withdraw, but indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian armed group have stalled.

On Wednesday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X that his country had "pledged to eliminate everyone who led the October 7 massacre" in 2023.

"We pledged that Hamas will not rule Gaza civilly or militarily," he said.

He also said that what he called the "plan for voluntary emigration from Gaza" would be implemented "at the proper time and in the proper manner".

Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have previously publicly defended what they describe as the "voluntary migration" of Palestinians from Gaza – which could amount to the forced displacement of civilians, a war crime – and resettling it with Jews.

This week has also seen several strikes in Gaza. At least 10 people, including five children, were killed in an Israeli strike on a building in Gaza City late on Wednesday, according to local hospitals.

The Israeli military has released a short statement saying it struck "two central Hamas terrorists in the northern Gaza Strip", without disclosing their identities.

The target of the attack appeared to have been Hamas battalion commander Imad Asleem, who was killed alongside his teenage daughter Israa.

The Gaza City attack came a day after the newly chosen head of the Hamas military wing, Mohammed Odeh, was killed along with his wife and two sons in an Israeli strike. One other woman was reportedly killed.

The Israeli military has also said a strike on a car in Khan Younis on Tuesday killed Ihab Khrizim, the head of a Hamas funds transfer network, and Mohammed al-Habash, a unit commander in Hamas's production headquarters who was said to have been involved in weapons manufacturing.

About 1,200 people were killed in the 2023 Hamas-led attack which triggered the Gaza war and 251 others were taken hostage.

Israel responded by launching a massive military campaign in Gaza, which reduced much of the Palestinian territory to ruins and left many of its 2.1 million residents displaced.

As of 12 May 2026, 72,742 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, and 172,565 injured, according to its Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures the UN considers reliable. Of those killed, at least 21,283 were children.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqpelq5reqo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

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The Papers: Burnham's 'blast at Blair' and 'Labour plans welfare shake-up'

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The Guardian says Labour is "poised for a fresh attempt at welfare reform", after Alan Milburn published his interim report on youth inactivity. The Financial Times says he's insisted that there's "appetite" within government for changing the benefits system. But the paper also highlights concerns from the Labour chair of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, Debbie Abrahams. She warns that any changes could "potentially undermine youth employability by driving up child poverty or exacerbating underlying health conditions".

The Times leads on what it calls Andy Burnham's "riposte" to Sir Tony Blair – who has warned Labour against moving further to the left. The mayor of Greater Manchester, who is expected to challenge Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer if he wins the Makerfield by-election, says "the fall in the living standards of millions" is a "gaping omission" in Sir Tony's analysis. A full list of the parties who have so far announced their candidates for the by-election can be found on the BBC News website.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron has criticised proposals to limit prostate cancer screening to only a few thousand men, according to the Daily Telegraph. Lord Cameron, who revealed last year he had been treated for the disease, has described the plan as a "a real step backwards". Another prostate cancer patient, the Soho House founder Nick Jones, tells the Daily Mail that the decision "feels mind-boggling". In the Daily Mirror, the executive director of Cancer Research UK acknowledges the move will upset many, but says the blood tests used to detect the disease are "not effective enough to support wider screening".

The Sun says Fifa is facing legal action from at least three US states over claims it has pushed up World Cup ticket prices by limiting supplies and switching categories. An investigation by the paper has also revealed some venues have sold fewer than half their seats, less than two weeks before the competition kicks off. The Sun says it approached Fifa for comment.

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📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgqp5y5y507o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

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