FELIX REPORTS

Rio Olympics 2016 plunged into chaos as IOC ruling on Russia ban delayed until 11th hour IOC President Thomas Bach insists his organisation is not to blame for the unprecedented shambles   CREDIT:  AFP   Ben Rumsby   31 JULY 2016 • 7:30PM T he start of the Olympics was in danger of being plunged into chaos  by   the Russian doping crisis  on Sunday night after the International Olympic Committee admitted a final ruling on the expulsion of the country’s athletes  may not be made until hours before Friday’s opening ceremony. appeals against bans already imposed on competitors from  the rogue nation  also threatened to derail the kick-off of Rio 2016, the build-up to which has been marred by the fallout from arguably the worst drugs scandal in history.  The IOC’s president insisted on Sunday it was not to blame for the unprecedented shambles, declaring it the fault o...

During a campaign rally in Colorado on Friday, Donald Trump said former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders “blew it” and “sold his soul to the devil” by endorsing Hillary Clinton in the presidential race. I’ll tell you what, Bernie blew it. He sold his soul to the devil. He did,” Trump said in Colorado Springs. “He seemed like a tough guy. He was like tough, tough, tough, tough. And then in the end, he folded,” Trump said. Referencing the protests during this week’s Democratic National Convention, Trump said Sanders supporters “haven’t folded because his people were angry.” He predicted he will win over some of them. “We’re going to get a lot of Bernie supporters, I think,” Trump said. Read more  dailycaller.com

Jul 31, 10:04 AM EDT POPE TO YOUNG ON POLAND TRIP: BELIEVE 'IN A NEW HUMANITY' BY  FRANCES D'EMILIO ASSOCIATED PRESS KRAKOW, Poland (AP) -- Pope Francis encouraged hundreds of thousands of young people at a global gathering of the faithful Sunday to "believe in a new humanity" that is stronger than evil and refuses to see borders as barriers. His appeal came at the end of World Youth Day, a weeklong event being held in southern Poland this year that draws young Catholics from around the world every two to three years for a spiritual pep rally. youth gathering was Francis' main focus during his pilgrimage to Poland, but over five days in this deeply Catholic nation he also prayed in silence at the former Nazi Auschwitz death camp and implored God to keep away a devastating wave of terrorism now hitting the world. He also met with Poland's political and church leaders. For the second straight day, a huge crowd filled a vast field Sund...

OLYMPICS 'DIRTY BOMB' FEARS  UN atomic agency helping guard Rio Olympics from ISIS terror attack State-of-the-art scanners will monitor the city for tell-tale traces of radiation EXCLUSIVE BY JON LOCKETT 31st July 2016, 11:59 am EXPERTS from the United Nations have sent state-of-the art detection equipment to Brazil over fears suicidal terror nuts will target the Olympics with a devastating ‘dirty bomb’. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has loaned hi-tech radiation monitors – including personal detectors and portable scanners – for use on the ground throughout the Games. AP:ASSOCIATED PRESS 4 Troops in hazmat suits rehearse a ‘dirty bomb’ attack outside the National Stadium AP:ASSOCIATED PRESS 4 A ‘dirty bomb’ is a weapon which combines radioactive material with explosives Brazil’s anti-terror chief has already admitted there is a ‘credible threat’ ISIS will target Rio next month and said...

Skydiver makes final preparations to jump without parachute  By  JOHN ROGERS Jul. 30, 2016 10:01 AM EDT In this Monday, July 25, 2016 photo, skydiver Luke Aikins signals to pilot Aaron Fitzgerald as he...  Read more LOS ANGELES (AP) — Skydiver Luke Aikins figures his next leap into thin air will start pretty much like the thousands that preceded it, only with one small but significant difference: This time when he steps out of the plane at 25,000 feet he won't take his parachute with him. If all goes according to plan, he will land two minutes later in a trawler-like fishing net 20 stories above the ground and only about a third the size of a football field. If he can pull it off, he will put his name in the history books as the only skydiver to go from plane to planet Earth without a parachute. The effort will be broadcast live on Fox at 8 p.m. EDT Saturday as part of an hour-long program called "Stride Gum Presents Heaven Sent." It will be...

Merkel on the ropes: Thousands of German protesters take to the streets saying she 'Must Go' and a key coalition ally withdraws support to open-door immigration policy after terror attacks  Thousands to gather in towns and cities across  Germany  today at 3pm They are calling for her resignation over open door immigration policy Comes after four brutal attacks leaving nearly a dozen dead in one week Three of the attackers were among 1.1million who entered as refugees  By  JAMES DUNN FOR MAILONLINE PUBLISHED:  06:35 EST, 30 July 2016  |  UPDATED:  14:25 EST, 30 July 2016 Merkel's premiership is hanging by a thread today as thousands gathered to call for her resignation while a key political ally dramatically withdrew his support over  immigration  policy.  More than 5,000 protested in  Berlin  and thousands more throughout Germany over the 'open-door' policy that many have blamed for four brutal te...

Deadly California wildfire expected to widen severely July 30, 2016 View photos Fire crews watch as flames climb Williams Canyon during the Soberanes Fire near Carmel Valley, California, U.S. July 29, 2016. REUTERS/Michael Fiala More By Michael Fiala CARMEL-BY-THE-SEA, Calif. (Reuters) - A deadly blaze near California's Big Sur coast could widen to more than five times its current size and has destroyed some 60 homes, threatened hundreds of others and spurred mass evacuations, authorities said on Saturday. The so-called Soberanes Fire, which started on July 22 and is burning just south of the oceanside town of Carmel-by-the-Sea, has roared through nearly 32,000 acres (13,000 hectares) of drought-parched chaparral, grass and timber in the Los Padres National Forest. The blaze is estimated to have a final size of 170,000 acres (265 square miles), according to California Interagency Incident Management Team 1, which is co...

S. health officials said Friday that four cases of Zika virus were transmitted locally by mosquitoes in Miami, the first evidence of the virus spreading that way in the continental U.S. Bloomberg  -  JULY 30, 2016 IMAGE CREDITS:  FLICKR, CONIFER . health officials said Friday that four cases of Zika virus were transmitted locally by mosquitoes in Miami, the first evidence of the virus spreading that way in the continental U.S. Previous cases have been caused by travel to affected areas or sexual contact with an infected person, and the report from Florida suggests that outbreaks of the virus could become common in some parts of the country, rather than just being imported from abroad. “As we have anticipated, Zika is now here. Everything we’ve seen so far indicates to us that this is mosquito-borne transmission,” U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Tom Frieden said Friday on a call with reporters. While the findings are concerning, ...

Neanderthals perished because of lack of warm clothing, a new study suggests    CREDIT: NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM, LONDON   Sarah Knapton ,  science editor  30 JULY 2016 • 10:38AM T he mystery of how early humans survived the Ice Age while Neanderthals disappeared into evolutionary oblivion may lie in their choice of outerwear. A new study suggests that our ancestors had invented cosy fur-lined coats, similar to modern Parkas, while Neanderthals were left shivering in draughty capes.  Archaeologists have long argued about why humans are the only surviving   hominid  even though other species of ‘homo’ had similar-sized brains and were physically stronger. The ability to keep warm could have certainly given them the edge Prof Chris Stringer, Natural History Museum N eanderthals died out around 40,000 years ago, and some experts claim they were out-comp...