| This week in Lance Armstrong news: drugs, an apology, and rock and roll
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 Lance in action, mid-Armstrong Empire; photo courtesy of WikiCommons Sir Lance has spoken and the former bike racer, performance-enhancing-drug taker, and Nike athlete said instead of Just Saying No, he'd Just Do It again. Talking about doping with the BBC this Monday and whether he'd do things differently if given the chance, he said, "It's a complicated question, and my answer is not a popular answer. If I was racing in 2015, no, I wouldn't do it again, because I don't think you have to. If you take me back to 1995, when it was completely and totally pervasive, I'd probably do it again. People don't like to hear that." Even after coming clean about his dope-fueled past, he still has plenty of fans, including Pat McQuaid, former president of the International Cycling Union (UCI), who claims the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) targeted the brash and brazen Texan. "He was very much made a scapegoat; there was a witch hunt after Armstrong," McQuaid told BBC Radio 5 this Tuesday. McQuaid did not use ...
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| Rare photos of elusive Saharan cheetah revealed
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 World's first close-up photos of Saharan cheetah includes this rare daytime shot. Photo by Farid Belbachir used by permission Some of the world's only photos of the elusive Saharan cheetah, one of the rarest carnivores on the planet, were released this week as part of a study designed to help save the critically endangered species. New research shows that Saharan cheetahs exist at incredibly low densities and require vast areas for their conservation. It is believed that Saharan cheetahs number fewer than 250 today, and virtually nothing is known about this subspecies. The study by scientists and conservationists at the Zoological Society of London, University College London, Wildlife Conservation Society, and the Université de Béjaïa, Algeria, were published Wednesday by PLOS ONE. Among the world's first close-up photos of the Saharan cheetah. Photo courtesy of Farid Belbachir "This is the first time we have been able to collect scientific data on the rare Saharan cheetah, as in the past we have had to ...
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| SUP paddler looks to be surfing a whale
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 Mark Jackson looks like he's surfing on a whale; photo via Caters News From David Warren's perspective, on a hotel balcony on the Big Island of Hawaii, it appeared as though a paddler was surfing a whale beyond the shore of Kailua-Kona. So Warren, who was 400 yards away, grabbed a camera to capture the bizarre-looking scene. Of course Warren knew that this was simply an optical illusion, and sure enough, the man turned out to be paddling a SUP board, and just happened to be alongside a humpback whale that had just breached. Mark Jackson moments after a humpback whale breached alongside him; photo via Caters News "At first glance it looked as if the boarder was surfing on the whale," Warren, 65, told the Daily Mail. "I then saw a whale swim past the boarder, who did not seem fazed at all, a cool dude obviously, and he then paddled back to shore." The paddler was Mark Jackson, who claimed to be unaware of the whale's presence before it broke the surface immediately behind him. He then discovered that there ...
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| Miss Universe Paulina Vega: Colombia Is 'Secure' And 'Stable'
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 Although the violent drug war in Colombia has dominated the headlines for years, newly-crowned Miss Universe Paulina Vega said there's more to her home country than meets the eye. The native Colombian told HuffPost Live in a Friday interview that the Latin American country is "secure" and making real progress. "Colombia is now in a whole different point. We have changed the whole perception. Our economy is stable. We are a secure country," she said. Vega addressed the drug war that has plagued the country since the 1980s and said she is optimistic that a solution is coming soon. "We are in ...
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| Meet The Pooches Of Puppy Bowl 2015
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 Apparently there's a little football game on this Sunday, but the dog lovers of the world will likely miss it all in favor of the television event that is Puppy Bowl XI. Between the kitty halftime show, the Nigerian goat cheerleaders and, of course, the precious pooches themselves, it's bound to be a case study in cuteness. To prepare for it all, HuffPost Live's Nancy Redd chatted on Friday with Animal Planet's official Puppy Bowl referee Dan Schachner, who brought along three of the pups who will hit the field this weekend. And the best news of all is that the puppies are currently ...
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| First 'Game Of Thrones' Photos From Season 5 Reveal New Characters, Arya's Journey
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 Season 5 of "Game of Thrones" may be three months away, but that hasn't stopped us from speculating about every possible spoiler and teaser. The first official trailer arrived on Thursday, and now we have the first official photos from Season 5. Among many things, the pictures reveal an expected big change for Arya as she (spoiler alert) arrives at the House of Black and White in Braavos, as well as the first look at some new characters: Season 5 of "Game of Thrones" premieres Sunday, April 12, on HBO.
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, all countries ( USA, Great Britain, India, Australia, New Zealand ) (sources)
