It is a marathon, not a sprint.
Happening in the World: The organizers of the Beijing Half Marathon have stripped the top four finishers of the race of their medals and results after they found that three African runners intentionally slowed down to allow China’s He Jie to win. He finished the marathon in 1:03:44, and the trio finished one second behind for joint-second place. A video of the trio gesturing for He to overtake them surfaced, and outrage provoked the organizing committee to investigate. Chinese sports company Xtep, which sponsored He and the Beijing Half Marathon, failed to note that the trio were invited to be pacemakers for the race. (CNN)
Happening in the US: The House has approved $95 billion in foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel, and other US allies. The vote to give Ukraine $61 billion in aid overwhelmingly passed in minutes and was supported by cheers on the House floor. Votes to send aid to Israel and other allies also passed by healthy margins—as well as a measure to clamp down on TikTok. This aid package will head to the Senate, which could pass it as soon as Tuesday. (AP)
Happening in NYC: New York Yankees broadcaster John Sterling was honored on Saturday following his retirement. Sterling broadcasted for the New York Yankees for 36 seasons and 5,631 games. Haley Swindal Steinbrenner, the granddaughter of late Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, presented Sterling, who was surrounded by his family, with jersey No. 5,631. Sterling may be honored in Monument Park, where Mel Allen and Bob Shepherd have plaques commemorating them. (NBC)
Happening in Our Community: Hermoine, a play that reimages The Winter’s Tale and Othello, has productions today at 3:30 and 8 pm at the Lenfest Center for the Arts. “The story follows Emilia, a woman seeking vengeance on her husband, the King of Sicilia, after he falsely accuses her of adultery and sentences her to death. In her quest for retribution, she joins forces with a man named Iago, who has a revenge scheme of his own.” More information about the productions can be found here.
Marathon runners via Libreshot