14 Killed in Attacks on Police, Military in Turkey; 220 Hurt

A string of bombings, blamed on Kurdish rebels and targeting Turkey's security forces, killed at least 14 people and wounded more than 220 others, officials said Thursday.

Two of the attacks were car bombings that hit police stations in eastern Turkey, while a third — a roadside blast — targeted a military vehicle carrying soldiers in the southeast of the country.

Blasts at police stations in Van and Elazig killed four police officers and two civilians, reports said.

Five soldiers and a village guard died when their vehicle was targeted in Bitlis province.

Turkish officials blamed the Kurdish militant group, the PKK, for the attacks, which took place outside Kurdish majority areas in the region.

"Our fight against terror will never cease," said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The PKK has carried a series of bombings targeting the police in the largely Kurdish south-east since a ceasefire with the government broke down last year.

Last week, PKK commander Cemil Bayik threatened increased attacks against police in Turkish cities.

More than 180 PKK militants had been killed and 3,000 detained since the coup bid, Mr Erdogan said.

US swimmers were not robbed: Rio police chief

The dramatic account by Ryan Lochte and three other U.S. swimmers of a being robbed at gunpoint during an taxi ride earlier this week appeared to unravel Thursday as police said the story was fabricated and that the group was instead involved in an altercation at a gas station.

“We knew it wasn’t robbery on Sunday after talking to two of them. The stories did not match,” Officer Marcelo Carregosa, second in charge at the station handling the case, told the Washington Post. “Ryan was very evasive and he did not give details.”

Rio de Janeiro chief of civil police Fernando da Silva Veloso said it was still not decided what charges, if any, would be brought against the swimmers accused of having fabricated the story, which caused huge embarrassment to Rio Olympics authorities

Yelena Isinbayeva elected to IOC athletes commission despite Rio2016 ban

Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva has been elected on to the International Olympic Committee's athlete's commission - despite being banned from Rio 2016.

The 34-year-old, who has been elected on an eight-year term, was unable to defend her title after the Russian squad was hit with a blanket ban over the doping scandal which rocked track and field.

Isinbayeva, 34, a double Olympic gold medallist, is one of four new members elected by fellow athletes.

Also elected are German fencer Britta Heidemann, Hungarian swimmer Daniel Gyurta and South Korean table tennis player Ryu Seung-min.

More than 5,000 athletes from 23 countries voted in the elections, which take place at each Olympic Games. Of those, more than 1,300 cast their vote for Isinbayeva. She has been an outspoken critic of the decision to ban the Russian athletics team from the Rio Games.

She said the ruling was "a blatant political order", and sarcastically thanked the IAAF, the body that governs world athletics, for what she called "this funeral for athletics" in an interview with the Russian Tass news agency.

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Alistair Brownlee wins triathlon gold, brother Jonny second in Rio2016

Alistair Brownlee wins gold with brother Johnny taking silver as British duo dominate Olympic triathlon in Rio2016 , making the brothers the first to finish one and two at an Olympics since Italians Piero and Raimondo D'Inzeo of Italy in equestrian in 1960.

Alistair, 28, pulled away from 26-year-old Jonny around halfway through the 10k run in sweltering conditions.

The Yorkshire pair was close throughout the swim, cycle and road race stages, with Alistair walking over the line six seconds ahead.

Alistair Brownlee is the first athlete to win successive Olympic triathlon titles, while Jonny improved on the bronze medal he won at London 2012. Henri Schoeman was third, claiming South Africa's first triathlon medal.

US 4 X 100 women get reprieve after baton drop at Rio2016

It was a disaster, pure and simple. And then, a reprieve.

The United States failed to qualify for the finals of the women’s 4 x 100 meter relay at the Rio Olympics Thursday but was given a reprieve after a protest was upheld.

In the qualifying heats, US runner Allyson Felix seemed to stumble as she entered the exchange zone and could not catch English Gardner, the third runner in the relay, flipping the baton in desperation. The baton hit the ground as Gardner and Felix crashed into each other. The US team did finish the heat, coming in last.

The US protested to the International Association of Athletics Federation, and the statement from the IAAF:

"The Jury of Appeals for the Rio Games upheld the USA’s appeal, saying that Felix was indeed obstructed on the second exchange. The relay team will re-run the race alone tonight (7 p.m. ET), needing to post a time of at least 42.70 seconds to advance into the finals.

"But a successful re-run will create a second problem: Both China and Canada finished with identical 42.70-second times. Therefore, should the USA post a faster time, China and Canada would need to race again to decide which team makes the eight-country final."

Top Indian bodybuilder dies, aged 104

A celebrated Indian body-builder, Manohar Aich, has died in the city of Kolkata (Calcutta), aged 104. He died of age-related "complications" on Sunday, his family said. He is survived by four children.Mr Aich was the first Indian to become Mr Universe in 1952, five years after the country's independence. When he competed in the 1952 Mr Universe contest in London, his statistics were awe-inspiring: bicep 46cm, chest 1.2m when swollen, forearm 36cm and wrist 16.5cm.The 1.49m (4ft 10in) tall bodybuilder was popularly known as "Pocket Hercules".Mr Aich, who once stood for election and lost, gave his last performance at the age of 89. #RIPMANOHARAICH

German MP of Turkish origin received death threats

Cem Ozdemir, German MP of Turkish origin, says he has received death threats over Germany's recognition of the 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks as genocide.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan scorned the 11 MPs of Turkish origin, saying, "What sort of Turks are they?"
"Their blood must be tested in a lab," he said.