Le Français Félix Lebrun, N.2 mondial, a été sacré champion d'Europe de tennis de table dimanche 18 octobre en Slovénie, après sa victoire à la belle sur le Suédois Anton Kallberg (4-3 : 7-11, 11-9, 13-11, 8-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-1), après un ultime set génial. Une victoire sous forme de doublé, après son titre en double acquis samedi, qui couronne une belle semaine française.
Brighton a prolongé son début de saison génial en humiliant son ennemi intime Crystal Palace (5-0), dimanche 18 octobre en Premier League, avec notamment un but extraordinaire signé Diego Gomez. Les Seagulls occupent au moins provisoirement la deuxième place du championnat et sont la véritable sensation en Angleterre après sept journées.
Man treated on field before being taken to hospital
An Air Force officer has died after he fell from the rafters of the Alamodome before the University of Texas at San Antonio’s home game against Navy on Saturday.
The officer, who has not been named, was taking part in an event to celebrate UTSA’s Salute to Armed Forces and Veterans night. He fell on to the field while rappelling down from the stadium rafters. He was treated on the field before being taken away on a stretcher. He later died from his injuries at a local hospital. Nellis Air Force Base said he was part of the 6th Combat Training Squadron. The unit helps train military members to rappel down from helicopters.
Ukrainian drones struck St. Petersburg’s oil terminal, a fuel depot, an Ozon distribution center, and a VK data center overnight, setting off fires across the city, monitoring channels reported. Russian outlet Meduza called it apparently the largest attack on the city and Leningrad Oblast since the war began. Russian officials acknowledged fires, damaged homes and substations, and power cuts.
Russia keeps fighting along the front while bombarding Ukrainian cities and the grid behind it. Ukraine’s long-range drones, in turn, target the oil exports and logistics that fund and supply that war, and Russia’s Baltic oil ports have been hit repeatedly this year. St. Petersburg is a symbolic place: Russia’s so-called second capital and Putin’s hometown.
Oil terminal and fuel depot on fire
Ukrainian forces struck the Petersburg Oil Terminal with FP-1 drones, starting a fire, Ukrainian drone maker Fire Point said. The company described the terminal as one of the region’s largest, handling 12.5 million tonnes of petroleum products a year, including for export.
St. Petersburg Governor Aleksandr Beglov acknowledged fires at the terminal and in four city districts, adding that Pulkovo airport had restricted flights. By morning, firefighters were still battling blazes at the terminal, the Ruchyi oil depot, and industrial warehouses in the Kolpinsky district, he wrote. He claimed one person was killed and five injured. Ukrainian monitoring channel Exilenova+ reported that the Ruchyi depot had been burning since the night.
Ozon hub, VK data center, and a bridge
An Ozon distribution center in Kolpinsky district caught fire after the attack, the company said, Russian independent outlet Astra reported. Astra’s open-source intelligence analyst described it as one of Ozon’s busiest fulfillment centers in northwestern Russia, covering up to 79,000 m².
FP-1 drones also hit a VK data center in Novosergiyevka, Leningrad Oblast, causing serious damage, Fire Point said. VK acknowledged a drone attack on the site but claimed its services were working normally. Leningrad Oblast Governor Aleksandr Drozdenko claimed air defenses downed 145 drones over the oblast alone. He acknowledged damage to the data center’s transformer equipment and warehouse complex, and minor damage to the Vostochnaya substation. Two other substations in Yanino went offline, cutting power to about 20,000 people, he said.
Damaged VK data center building in Novosergiyevka, Leningrad Oblast, after a Ukrainian FP-1 drone strike, 18 October 2026. Photo: Fire Point/X
A drone also hit the cable-stayed bridge over the Korabelny fairway, part of a toll highway linking the city’s north and south, Exilenova+ reported, adding that the extent of the damage was still being clarified. The channel also reported a fire near a Russian Aerospace Forces radar company outside the village of Kaporskoye.
Smoke rising over St. Petersburg after the overnight drone attack, 18 October 2026. Photo: Astra
To reach St. Petersburg, Ukrainian drones had to cover 1,000 km across four Russian regions guarded by air defenses and electronic warfare, said Serhii Beskrestnov, adviser to Ukraine’s president on defense technology.
“And these are not cruise missiles with special systems, these are drones that fly at speeds of up to 200 km/h,” he wrote.
Satellite image marking the drone hit on the cable-stayed bridge over the Korabelny fairway in St. Petersburg, 18 October 2026. Image: Dnipro Osint via Exilenova+
Strikes resume after a one-sided truce
The same night, Russia hit Ukraine’s grid again, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy counted 76 Russian strikes on energy since the ceasefire was announced. US President Donald Trump declared the truce on 11 October. Ukraine paused its refinery strikes for three days at Washington’s request, but Russia struck a Kharkiv power plant within hours and kept hitting the grid. Zelenskyy then said Ukraine was resuming strikes on Russian oil and would stop again only in exchange for more US interceptors for its Patriot systems. Trump called the renewed strikes “a disgrace” and said he found Zelenskyy “more difficult to deal with than Putin.”
Ukraine has hit the St. Petersburg area before. In July, drones set fire to Wildberries warehouses near the city. In August, Ukraine began striking Ozon hubs, starting in Samara Oblast. The hubs move dual-use goods such as electronics and drone components.
After trailing Strasbourg for more than 60 minutes, the Parisians called upon their substitutes to turn the game around. Following their spectacular Champions League victory over Manchester City and ahead of their clash with FC Barcelona, PSG are brimming with confidence.
RAWALPINDI – Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bowl first against Pakistan in the opening match of the ODI tri-series, setting the stage for an important contest between the two Asian rivals.
Men in Green begin their campaign with wicketkeeper-batter Saad Baig making his ODI debut. Captain Shaheen Shah Afridi confirmed that the youngster would bat at number four, handing him a key role in the team’s middle order.
The hosts have included an experienced pace attack alongside a batting unit featuring several established names. Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam will lead the charge at the top, while Hasan Nawaz, Salman Ali Agha and Saad Baig are expected to contribute in the middle order.
All-rounders Arafat Minhas and Faheem Ashraf add depth to the lineup, with Shaheen, Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah forming Pakistan’s pace attack.
Pakistan have been dealt a setback ahead of the opening fixture, with leg-spinners Shadab Khan and Sufiyan Muqeem ruled out due to illness.
According to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), both players are receiving medical treatment. Their availability for the remaining matches of the tournament will be assessed later, leaving Pakistan to begin the competition without two of their spin options. The absence of the pair could place additional responsibility on Pakistan’s other bowling options as they look to restrict Sri Lanka and make the most of their home conditions.
PAKISTAN VS SRI LANKA SQUADS
Pakistan: Saim Ayub, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Saad Baig (wk), Hasan Nawaz, Salman Ali Agha, Arafat Minhas, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Shah Afridi (c), Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah.
SriLanka: Avishka Fernando, Kamindu Mendis, Kusal Mendis (c/wk), Pavan Rathnayake, Sahan Arachchige, Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka, Sachindu Colombage, Eshan Malinga, Asitha Fernando and Dilshan Madushanka.
Afridi led squad head into the contest with a commanding record against Sri Lanka in ODI cricket. The two sides have met 160 times in the 50-over format, with Pakistan recording 96 victories compared with Sri Lanka’s 59 wins. One match ended in a tie, while four produced no result.
Pakistan enter the tournament encouraged by their recent performances in ODI series. Since 2025, they have won three of their last four series, defeating South Africa, Sri Lanka and Australia. Their only series defeat during that period came against Bangladesh in an away three-match contest.
Green Shirts will also draw confidence from their recent 2–1 victory over Sri Lanka in the T20I series. They will now aim to carry that momentum into the 50-over format and establish an early advantage in the competition.
Sri Lanka, meanwhile, have struggled for consistency in recent ODI outings, winning only one of their last five matches. The Islanders will be keen to put those results behind them, respond to their T20I series loss and make a strong start against Pakistan.
ODI tri-series features Pakistan, Sri Lanka and England, with matches scheduled in Rawalpindi and Lahore. The opening encounter provides both sides with an opportunity to build early momentum, while Pakistan will look to use home advantage to strengthen their position in the competition.
Trois jours après avoir livré un grand match contre Manchester City, le PSG a renversé une situation mal embarquée à Strasbourg (3-1) pour engranger trois points et rejoindre, au moins temporairement, Monaco en tête de la Ligue 1. Et peut-être finir le week-end sur le podium pour la première fois de la saison.
ISLAMABAD – United States Chargé d’Affaires Natalie Baker praised Pakistan for hosting its first international women’s tennis tournament at the W15 level, calling it a milestone for women’s sports and an opportunity to strengthen ties through sports diplomacy.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the Junaid Family Foundation (JFF) Women’s W15 Futures Tournament on Saturday, Baker congratulated the organisers for bringing together 30 players from 17 countries and territories.
She said holding Pakistan’s first women’s tournament at this level was an achievement that players, officials and organisers could take pride in.
Baker said sports helped develop teamwork and resilience while building connections between people and countries that endured beyond the competition.
Referring to the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles, she expressed hope that more Pakistani athletes would compete on the international stage.
The American diplomat also praised the players’ sportsmanship and the hospitality extended to visiting participants. She thanked Pakistan Tennis Federation President Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and JFF founders Ansir and Sufia Junaid for organising the event.
Baker recalled Qureshi’s achievement at the 2010 US Open, where he reached the men’s and mixed doubles finals, becoming the first Pakistani to contest a Grand Slam final. She also acknowledged his efforts to create opportunities for younger players.
France’s Astrid Cirotte won the women’s singles title, while China’s Ru Xi Wu and Thailand’s Kamonwan Yodpetch claimed the doubles championship. Baker joined Ansir and Sufia Junaid in presenting prizes to the winners.
The tournament, sponsored by the foundation led by the Pakistani-American philanthropists, took place under the theme “A Powerful Serve for Women’s Health”. It also highlighted the organisation’s work in maternal and child health, education and women’s empowerment in Pakistan.
Ansir Junaid said the competition showed how international sporting events could inspire young women and bring together policymakers, philanthropists and development partners.
“What we saw this week was about much more than tennis,” he said, adding that the event offered young people a chance to see what they could achieve.
Sufia Junaid said the foundation regarded healthcare, education and sporting opportunities as connected investments in women’s futures.
She said better maternal healthcare could give children a stronger start, while education and exposure to international athletes could help girls imagine new possibilities.
Ansir Junaid reiterated the foundation’s long-term commitment to Pakistan, saying it aimed to support initiatives capable of delivering lasting results.
On the heels of UCLA's milestone victory over Oregon last weekend, the Bruins are looking to keep the momentum going during their Oct. 17 matchup against the Badgers.
By Milda Seputyte and Aaron Eglitis Oct 16, 2026 (Bloomberg) –Europe should block the transit of Russian grain through Baltic ports as that may force Moscow to seek ways to open...
It knows she’s a WNBA player who inspired a Barbie, walked in a Victoria’s Secret fashion show and is a master at maximizing her brand. Her podcast is called “Unapologetically Angel.” She trademarked the term “Mebounds” in response to haters commenting on her field goal efficiency and has a marketing collab that synergizes her Reebok shoe and her deal with Hershey’s Reese’s chocolate.
It knows, too, her willingness to trash talk on the floor and motivate herself while getting in the heads of her opponents. Basketball fans have not forgotten Reese’s “you can’t see me” gesture to Caitlin Clark during the 2023 NCAA women’s national championship. Not all players and fans like Reese’s style, but getting likes is not what Reese is about.
Reese, 24, heads into Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday as the league’s defensive player of the year, poised to show that her experience level doesn’t matter at the league’s biggest stage.
Reese’s persona is built around refuting those who don’t believe in her ability and the force that she is, on or off court.
Reese, 24, heads into Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday as the league’s defensive player of the year, poised to show that her experience level doesn’t matter at the league’s biggest stage. She’s a winner through and through.
Reaching the finals is a goal Reese manifested around a year ago, when she watched the playoffs from home after missing them in each of her first two professional seasons.
Reese was the seventh overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft. She was an All-Star in her first two seasons with the Chicago Sky but felt the franchise wasn’t taking major steps toward winning at a high level.
And she said so, questioning the Sky’s approach to roster building, including its decision to bring back franchise legend Courtney Vandersloot, who was in her late 30s. The interview went viral.
“I’d like to be here for my career, but if things don’t pan out, obviously I might have to move in a different direction and do what’s best for me,” she told the Chicago Tribune. “But while I am here, I’m going to try to stay open-minded about what I have here and maximize that as much as I can.”
The comments were remarkable both for Reese’s bluntness and her bravery. Reese spoke up about what she believed wasn’t right and demanded better — something many working women struggle to do. Already, Reese’s legacy looks to be defined by the ways she has defied expectations for women, much like how Diana Taurasi did with how she, too, talked smack on the court.
Reese and the Dream wanted the same things: to improve, to grow and to win. As a franchise, the Dream had been both slighted and underinvested in before an ownership change in 2021.
Reese’s comments weren’t well-received by her Sky teammates or the front office. She was suspended for half a game and said her language “was taken out of context.”
Seven months later, the Atlanta Dream acquired Reese, who quickly found synergy with her new team. Reese and the Dream wanted the same things: to improve, to grow and to win. As a franchise, the Dream had been both slighted and underinvested in before an ownership change in 2021.
Reese helped reinvigorate the Dream fanbase, and the team invested in her development, helping hone her talents.
From 2024: Angel Reese has genius in her fingertips defector.com/angel-reese-…
Her buy-in to head coach Karl Smesko’s mantra of managing emotions and valuing each possession is evident in Reese’s poised approach to the postseason. Although a playoff rookie, Reese hasn’t looked like one. Across five playoff games, Reese has averaged 18 points, 8.4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1.6 steals and 2.2 blocks.
Smesko has also committed to working with Reese on her 3-point shot, a necessary skill for modern front-court players. He challenged Reese to practice shooting in front of her teammates during training camp, something that initially embarrassed her but has fueled her success shooting from deep during the postseason.
Smesko became Reese’s shooting partner not only to build trust with a team star but also to get to know her better. The two have a handshake that has ricocheted around social media.
It’s a fist pound, followed by the right knee going up and a shooting motion, and then both stick their tongues out.
karl smesko on why it's important to him that he is the one on the court pregame working with angel reese on her shot pic.twitter.com/Eqmz2LFyrf
As the Dream head into their first finals since 2013, Reese believes her impact is rooted in her fearlessness. She takes risks just like she did in Chicago.
“I always talk about you can’t be scared when it comes to this,” Reese told me earlier this month.
This fearlessness manifested against the Washington Mystics in her first-ever playoff matchup last month, she said. “I knew I was just going to be fearless. Go out there and play fearless, play with just so much poise, and just have fun and do everything that I can do. And that’s always how I’ve been in my career.”
Reese’s fearlessness and her high motor are widely known. Less appreciated are the ways she uses her instincts and sheer athleticism to impact the game at multiple levels.
Reese also earned the honor because of her mastery of opponents’ tendencies and making sharp, in-game adjustments that help position her team to win.
Accolades like Defensive Player of the Year reflect rebounds, blocks and steals. But Reese also earned the honor because of her mastery of opponents’ tendencies and making sharp, in-game adjustments that help position her team to win. She had not just the confidence but also the shrewdness to tell her veteran teammate DeWanna Bonner to pass her the ball at the end of Game 2 of the Dream’s semifinal against the New York Liberty. The idea was that Reese would help run out the clock and bait the Liberty into chasing her around.
“That’s just IQ right there,” Reese said when asked about the play. “I mean, it’s going to take them a couple seconds to chase me around the court. So, I told her to throw it in the backcourt and I’m gonna run around as fast as I can out there. I took as much time off the clock as I could, and we just executed.”
Reese is trying to do something that hasn’t been done in almost a decade: lead a team to a championship in her first three years in the WNBA, a feat last achieved by New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart in 2018.
Whether or not she becomes a league champion this season, Reese is already showing the world that her influence is equally great on and off the court.
Fresh from their impressive 4-2 Champions League win on Manchester City’s home turf on Wednesday, PSG travel to Strasbourg on Saturday in Ligue 1. They aim to secure a fourth consecutive league win and maintain their growing momentum ahead of Tuesday's Champions League showdown with Barcelona.
Russia's Federal Air Transport Agency announced restrictions at three of Moscow's four major airports, while the Transportation Ministry said the region's aviation operations were under "special monitoring."
Le numéro 114 fête son anniversaire : le 114, c'est l’appel d’urgence en France pour les personnes sourdes et malentendantes. Depuis 15 ans, ce système reçoit les urgences sous forme de texte ou de connexions vidéo. Un numéro utile qui peut sauver des vies sur les routes ou dans les transports. Les personnes sourdes conduisent, mais pas dans tous les pays.
The U.S. Navy has taken delivery of the first C-130J-30 Hercules airframe destined to become an E-130J Phoenix II, the service’s next-generation aircraft for maintaining communications with its nuclear ballistic submarines. The aircraft will now undergo extensive mission-systems integration before it can begin testing for the Take Charge and Move Out (TACAMO) mission.
Lockheed Martin handed over the newly built aircraft at its facility in Marietta, Georgia, on October 15. The delivery marks the start of the transition from the Navy’s aging E-6B Mercury fleet to the turboprop-powered E-130J, which is intended to provide a survivable communications link between national leadership and U.S. Navy nuclear ballistic missile submarines, including the ability to send them orders to launch strikes while they are submerged.
An E-6B Mercury assigned to the Strategic Communications Wing 1 at Tinker Air Force Base approaches a tanker during an aerial refueling mission over Oregon, Feb. 28, 2025. U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Megan Delaine
“Today’s delivery from the historic Marietta line represents far more than a new airframe; it marks the foundation of our future strategic deterrence posture,” Capt. Roger Davis, program manager for the Navy’s Airborne Strategic Command, Control, and Communications program office (PMA-271), said in a statement.
“Through our close partnership with Lockheed Martin and our industry team, we are ensuring our nation maintains an unshakeable communications lifeline to our ballistic missile submarine fleet.”
Capt. Roger Davis, left, Airborne Strategic Command, Control and Communications program manager (PMA-271), presents a ceremonial key to Capt. David Gardner, commodore of Strategic Communications Wing 1 (SCW 1), during the C-130J-30 delivery ceremony Oct. 15, 2026 in Marietta, Georgia. Photo courtesy of Lockheed Martin by Thinh D. Nguyen
The aircraft is the first of three C-130J-30s initially procured by the Navy in September 2024. It will be transferred to Northrop Grumman, the E-130J program’s prime contractor and mission-systems integrator, for conversion. Collins Aerospace is providing the very low frequency (VLF) communications system, a key component of the TACAMO mission.
TACAMO aircraft provide a means for the president, secretary of defense, and U.S. Strategic Command to communicate with nuclear forces, including submarines submerged at sea. The mission is designed to preserve the ability to transmit emergency action messages even if conventional communications infrastructure is disrupted or destroyed.
The E-6B accomplishes this in part through a long, trailing wire antenna that enables VLF transmissions to submerged submarines. The E-130J will receive a comparable system as part of its conversion.
The first C-130J-30 being built by Lockheed Martin Corp. for the E-130J program. Photo by David L. Key, Lockheed Martin
The Navy plans to acquire 31 E-130Js, nearly doubling the 16 E-6Bs currently in service. That total includes six developmental aircraft and 25 production examples, although it remains unclear how many of the developmental aircraft will ultimately be available for operational use.
The larger planned fleet should provide additional aircraft to support training, maintenance, and operational demands. However, the transition also brings technical challenges. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has previously warned that integrating the specialized mission equipment into the smaller C-130J-30 airframe could affect operational availability and create additional engineering and manufacturing difficulties.
Rendering of the future E-130J aircraft. Courtesy of Northrop Grumman Corp.
In the past, TWZ has discussed the potential operational readiness and other trade-offs that could come from selecting a C-130-based platform to replace the E-6B in the TACAMO role. As we wrote previously:
“It’s certainly worth pointing out that the E-6Bs, conversions of what were some of the last and most modern 707 airliners built, were larger and higher performance platforms than the EC-130Qs. The C-130J-30 is certainly a more capable aircraft than the C-130H on which the EC-130Q was based, but it won’t have the base speed and altitude capabilities of an airliner-sized multi-engine jet. Compared to the Mercuries, any TACAMO-configured C-130J-30 would not be able to get on station as quickly, or fly as high, limiting its ability to get above bad weather or establish a better line of sight for its communications systems.”
“At the same time, as the Navy itself has noted, the C-130J-30 platform does immediately open up the ability to use a larger number of air bases, airports, and airfields, including austere ones that the E-6B cannot operate from. This could be very useful in a contingency scenario where an opponent may have destroyed or otherwise rendered unusable many well-established bases, as well as larger secondary dispersal sites, which include large commercial airports. Being able to fly from smaller, tertiary locations could help to ensure that the TACAMO mission continues without significant disruption under such circumstances. This is also true during peacetime, as targeting the TACAMOs on the ground would be much harder if they could easily operate from and sit alert at a much larger number of airports.”
“A C-130J-30 configured for the TACAMO mission would certainly have a mid-air refueling capability, and the Hercules is already a platform that has demonstrated the ability to loiter over particular areas for long periods of time. Unlike the Boeing 707, the C-130J is still in production, as well, meaning that TACAMO aircraft based on this plane would be inherently easier to maintain and support logistically, and may also be easier to convert to this specialized configuration to begin with. As time goes on, the J looks set to increasingly become the default base C-130 model across the U.S. military, as well. Compared to the long out-of-production 707-based E-6, support for the C-130J is already distributed across the U.S. and beyond. Training C-130J crews is even an easier proposition.”
The E-130J also represents a return to the Hercules family for the Navy’s TACAMO mission. The EC-130Q performed the role from 1963 to 1993, before the E-6A Mercury took over. The E-6B subsequently added an airborne command post mission known as Looking Glass, supporting U.S. strategic forces beyond the submarine communications role.
The US Navy operated a fleet of EC-130Q TACAMO aircraft like the one seen here before the arrival of the E-6As. U.S. Navy
The Navy’s current plan is for the E-130J to assume the TACAMO mission, while the Air Force pursues a separate effort to replace the Looking Glass airborne command post capability.
Following its delivery, the first E-130J airframe will enter mission-systems modification, ground testing, and developmental flight testing. The aircraft is not yet an operational TACAMO platform, and further integration and testing will be required before the Navy can begin fielding the new fleet.
The transition is intended to preserve one of the most critical links in the U.S. nuclear command, control, and communications architecture as the E-6B fleet becomes increasingly difficult to sustain.
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