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The flag of the Russian delegation at the Paralympic Games in Beijing, March 3, 2022. ISSEI KATO / REUTERS On Friday, March 6, the French delegation will march in Verona, Italy, during the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Paralympic Games, which are running until March 15. This will happen despite the decision by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to allow six Russian athletes and four Belarusian athletes to participate under their national flags – and despite the French government's decision not to send any official representatives to the event as a sign of protest. "Even though we do not share this decision, we have chosen to respect it because it was made democratically," explained Marie-Amélie Le Fur, the president of the French Para...

Iranian supporters during a 2026 World Cup qualifying match against the United Arab Emirates, Tehran, March 20, 2025. ATTA KENARE / AFP A mere 100 days away from the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup (June 11 to July 19), New York's Empire State Building lit up for several minutes on Tuesday, March 3, in the colors of the three host nations: the United States, Canada and Mexico. On the same day, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) unveiled the official poster for the year's most anticipated sporting event, which, according to its statement, "will experience moments that go beyond football, uniting cultures and celebrating unity on a truly global stage." That spirit of harmony promoted by FIFA is now endangered by the war in t...

A sign displaying the countdown to the start of the FIFA World Cup stands in a street in Guadalajara, Mexico, on February 25, 2026. JOSÉ LUIS GONZALEZ / REUTERS During his lunch break, Jorge Herreira expressed his indignation: "It would be the last straw if they canceled the [World] Cup on us now." The 52-year-old works on the construction site for Guadalajara's future "metro bus," a transit line connecting the airport to the city center, slated to open before the World Cup kickoff on June 11, 2026. Among the workers, the midday conversation on Wednesday, February 25 revolved around the violence the city experienced after the death of Nemesio Oseguera, known as "El Mencho," leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the previous Sunday. Cars and businesse...

Edgar Grospiron, president of the coordination commission for the 2030 Winter Olympic Games, and Cyril Linette, CEO of the organizing committee, at Le Grand-Bornand, France, December 3, 2025. ARNAUD FINISTRE / AFP Organizers of the 2030 French Alps Olympics confirmed on Wednesday, February 25, the departure of their CEO following weeks of internal turmoil. They said the exit of Cyril Linette, who was at loggerheads with Edgar Grospiron, the former Olympic champion freestyle skier who leads the organizing committee, was formally acknowledged during a meeting of the executive board last weekend. Read more Subscribers only 2030 Alps Games: Around 40 projects remain to be completed as the deadline nears and timelines tighten ...

Paris Saint-Germain's Brazilian defender #05 Marquinhos after scoring PSG's first goal during the UEFA Champions League play-off second leg football match against AS Monaco at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on February 25, 2026. FRANCK FIFE / AFP Paris Saint-Germain came from behind and then survived a late scare against 10-man Monaco, drawing 2-2 in the second leg of their Champions League knockout phase play-off tie on Wednesday, February 25, to reach the last 16 with a 5-4 aggregate victory. The defending European champions came from two behind to win 3-2 in the principality in last week's first leg, a game in which Monaco had a man sent off early in the second half. The scenario this time was similar, with French international Maghnes Akli...

Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior with coach Alvaro Arbeloa and Aurélien Tchouaméni as the match was stopped due to racist chants, UEFA Champions League first leg playoffs , Benfica v Real Madrid, Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal, February 17, 2026. RODRIGO ANTUNES / REUTERS Real Madrid midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni said his team's 2-1 win against Benfica on Wednesday, February 25, to reach the Champions League last 16 was a victory for "everyone who is against racism." The Frenchman is referring to the first leg of the play-off tie, which Madrid won 1-0 last week, which was marred by alleged racial abuse aimed at Vinicius Junior by Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni. "We didn't play our best match of the season, that's for sure. But...

With four years to go before the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games open in France, and just three and a half years before the expected delivery of construction projects, consultations with developers are ongoing.

PSG's Achraf Hakimi reacts during the French League One football match between Paris Saint-Germain and Metz in Paris, France, February 21, 2026. EMMA DA SILVA / AP Moroccan international and Paris Saint-Germain footballer Achraf Hakimi is to stand trial charged with raping a young woman, his lawyer and a French prosecutor said on Tuesday, February 24. In February 2023, a woman then aged 24 told police in Val-De-Marne southeast of Paris that Hakimi had raped her. The 27-year-old footballer denies any wrongdoing. "Today, a rape accusation is enough to justify a trial, even though I contest it and everything proves that it is false," he wrote on X on Tuesday. "I await this trial calmly, which will allow the truth to come out publicly." ...

Gold medalists Emily Harrop of France and Thibault Anselmet of France celebrate on the podium in Bormio, Italy, on February 21, 2026. ANGELIKA WARMUTH / REUTERS Emily Harrop and Thibault Anselmet combined to win gold for France in the mixed relay event of Olympic ski mountaineering in Bormio on Saturday, February 21. Harrop and Anselmet clocked a winning time of 26 minutes and 57.44 seconds in the relay, consisting of two ascents plus a section on foot with skis attached to the backpack for each ascent and two descents. The Swiss duo of Marianne Fatton and Jon Kistler claimed silver, 11.86 seconds behind, with Spain's Ana Alonso Rodriguez and Oriol Cardona Coll rounding out the podium. Harrop, born in the French Alps to Engli...

Océane Michelon, of France, celebrates winning gold in the women's 12.5-kilometer mass start biathlon race at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Anterselva, Italy, Saturday, February 21, 2026. MOSA'AB ELSHAMY / AP In the final biathlon event of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, France's Océane Michelon overcame a missed target in the final shooting stage in the 12.5-kilometer mass start race to take gold. In heavy snow and low visibility, Michelon left the range in fourth place but moved ahead on the ski trails to complete the five laps in 37 minutes, 18.1 seconds. Michelon's teammate, Julia Simon, also moved up in the final 2.5 kilometers, crossing the finish line 6.6 seconds back and securing the silver medal. Czech biathlete Tereza Vobornikova ha...