Valery Gerasimov, chief of the general staff of Russia's armed forces, has visited Russian troops in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia

By Lisa Baertlein LOS ANGELES FedEx Corp benefited from misfortunes experienced by rivals UPS and Yellow during its

Spain will face either European champions England or co-hosts Australia in Sunday’s World Cup final after a dramatic 2-1 victory in their last-four showdown with Sweden. Jorge Vilda’s side, who had never won a knockout game at the tournament before their arrival in Australia and New Zealand, could be just 90 minutes away from lifting the biggest prize of all. Here, the PA news agency takes a closer look at a team which have perhaps already-exceeded even their own expectations. Coach Vilda learned his football at the feet of his father Angel, who worked as a physical trainer for – among others – Luis Aragones at Atletico Madrid, Johan Cruyff at Barcelona and Jupp Heynckes at Real Madrid. A physical education graduate, the 42-year-old was appointed boss in 2015 having worked with Spain’s under-age teams, but had to significantly remodel his squad after a rebellion in 2022 which saw 15 players make themselves unavailable – Aitana Bonmati, Ona Batlle and Mariona Caldentey have since returned to the fold – in protest at the conditions under which they were having to operate. Key players Twice Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas is undoubtedly the star of the Spain squad on paper, but having fought her way back from the anterior cruciate ligament injury she suffered on the eve of last summer’s Euros, the 29-year-old Barcelona midfielder has been used sparingly in the tournament and played only the opening 57 minutes of the semi-final, one of three starts to date. In her absence, Bonmati, Alba Redondo and Jennifer Hermoso have each scored three times, but Barca team-mate and former international sprinter Salma Paralluelo, 19, has proved the woman for the big occasion with vital strikes from the bench in both the last eight and the semi-finals. Pedigree Spain are playing at their third World Cup finals tournament, but had never before progressed beyond the last 16. They reached the quarter-finals at Euro 2022, where they led eventual winners England with six minutes of normal time remaining before going down 2-1 in extra-time. Ranked sixth in the world by FIFA, they are an emerging force in the international game and are bidding to add the senior World Cup to those they currently hold at under-17s and under-20s levels. Style of play Vilda favours a 4-3-3 formation and a possession-based game which he believes is aligned to the philosophy instilled by Cruyff during his time in charge at Barcelona. The system relies on high-tempo passing and movement and a relentless press in attack to create the space in which their highly-technical game-changers can thrive. Familiarity is a weapon too – seven of the starting XI against Sweden play their club football with Champions League winners Barca. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live We can do beautiful things – Micky van de Ven excited by Tottenham prospects Millie Bright confident England can cope with hostile atmosphere in Sydney Ben Stokes tipped to make U-turn and feature for England at World Cup

Twin sisters Wang Liuyi and Wang Qianyi won Asian Games gold on Saturday -- then said they hope to stand on the podium together...

Top-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany will meet unseeded Russian Roman Safiullin in the Chengdu Open final in Chengdu, China. Zverev

One of the Lionesses’s brightest prospects in Australia and New Zealand is Katie Robinson, a pacy winger who only made her debut for Sarina Wiegman’s side last November when she came on as a substitute in a friendly against Norway. The 20-year-old hails from Newquay in Cornwall where she had to play for Newquary Boys and Goldphin Boys until she turned 16 due the lack of girls’ football facilities in the south west. After honing her skills at the Cornwall Girls Advanced Coaching Centre and playing for the Plymouth Argyle Boys' Centre of Excellence, she lived with a host family in Bristol in order to be part of Bristol City’s youth system. She broke into the first team there in 2018 – a period in which she also starred for England at under-17 level, scoring eight in 11 – before joining her current club Brighton and Hove Albion in 2020. Her progress on the south coast was badly hampered by an anterior cruciate ligament injury in September 2020, however, which caused her to miss the rest of that season and subsequently sent out on loan to Charlton Athletic to continue her recovery. Wiegman clearly believes in Robinson’s potential though, having picked her for the World Cup squad ahead of much more established names like Manchester United’s Nikita Parris. Get all the latest Women’s World Cup odds here How inclined the manager is to gamble on such an inexperienced prospect remains to be seen. Read More England reach World Cup dividing line as Sarina Wiegman faces crunch decision Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today Bethany England reveals ‘biggest danger’ facing Lionesses against Colombia

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Former foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard said on Monday he would stay in Mexico's ruling party, ending weeks

Randy Waldrum’s criticism of the Nigerian soccer federation and the rebuke he received in return overshadowed the Super Falcons' buildup to the Women's World Cup

Mikel Arteta relishes “special” north London derbies against Tottenham and has called for Arsenal to take advantage of the Emirates’ electric atmosphere on Sunday. Both Arsenal and Tottenham are unbeaten in the Premier League ahead of their derby-day clash. And Arteta talked up the fixture’s history and its importance to the club and supporters as Arsenal search for a third straight victory over their neighbours. “It’s a special rivalry. It’s a rivalry in the city and I really like the derby, there’s something between the two communities and it’s really intense,” Arteta said. “It builds something even bigger with your supporters. I think it’s a game always in fixtures where you look straight away to see when you play that game because it’s special and there’s something emotionally attached to it so it will be a big lift if we manage to win it. “No (better feeling than beating Tottenham) because you know what the game means to people and having the possibility in your job to make someone happy is a huge fulfilment and a responsibility we feel. “You walk down the street and there’s a feeling (among fans) because of the history, the rivalry and that’s the beautiful thing when it’s taken in the right way during sport and we are so privileged to be involved in this sort of game. “The atmosphere will be different. It will be more electric, there will be more energy in the ground and the pitch so we have to deal with that in the right way and take advantage of that.” Ange Postecoglou’s new-look Spurs find themselves in second having scored 13 goals in five matches. And Gunners boss Arteta highlighted their rivals’ dominant form and expects them to pose a new challenge to his side. “For sure they’ve had a really good start and they are in a good moment and we are too so it’s a big game and we’re going to have to battle the right way to win it,” he added. “They dominate the games, they win the games, they score a lot of goals and they’re an attacking flowing team and they go for it so they’ll bring a different approach to the game than what we’ve played in the league so far. “They have a new challenge, a new opportunity, they have a new manager who is doing really well and he’s managed to change the vibe around the club and with a different style too. They dominate the games, they win the games, they score a lot of goals and they're an attacking flowing team Arteta on Spurs “So we need to be ourselves and produce the performance to beat them.” Arsenal retuned to the Champions League after six years with a midweek 4-0 win over PSV Eindhoven in Group B. Arteta said: “For sure (the win) has to drive the energy and the belief and we have to keep doing what we’re doing and understand that Sunday will be a different game that will need that same performance or even better to beat them (Tottenham) and we need to keep going.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Wales’ destiny in their own hands – 5 talking points ahead of Australia showdown Sarina Wiegman happy with ‘three very important points’ against Scotland Matt Peet savours ‘fantastic honour’ as Wigan win League Leaders Shield

By Alexander Marrow The rouble weakened on Wednesday, heading back past 96 to the dollar and well away

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Paris Hilton was overly prepared just in case something were to happen to her wedding dress on her big day. In an interview with British Vogue published on Thursday 26 October, the heiress said she was sent a total of 45 wedding dresses as options for her to wear during her wedding to Carter Reum in November 2021. However, 39 of them ended up going unworn. “I actually wore six dresses when I did my wedding. It was because I had literally had 45 of them," Hilton told the outlet. “My stylist was getting calls from designers all around the world. Everyone was so excited to be a part of this wedding, that they all made these incredible custom dresses.” Hilton said “I do” to her husband on 11 November 2021. For the occasion, the heiress and TV star wore a white lace gown by Oscar de la Renta. But throughout the three-day wedding party, Hilton also wore another Oscar de la Renta dress in addition to a Galia Lahav gown and a Pamella Roland design. Hilton’s other two dresses were not worn until the second and third days of the wedding celebrations. Despite her wide array of dresses to choose from, Paris explained that she knew exactly which designer she wanted to walk down the aisle in. “I knew right away that I wanted to walk down the aisle in Oscar [de la Renta],” she told British Vogue. Hilton was inspired by 1930s actress Grace Kelly’s fashion sense, saying, “I wanted something that was really princess that had like 3-D flowers on it.” And that is exactly what she wore. The dress featured a high neckline with long sleeves that were covered in flowers. Hilton completed her look with a netted veil and diamond earrings. After the nuptials, she changed into gown number two by Galia Lahav, which was an off-the-shoulder tulle dress with a corset. Her third dress was the second Oscar de la Renta dress with a ruched top and more fit for partying on the dance floor as it had a mini skirt. Dress number four was made by Pamella Roland and covered in both sequins and pearls with a deep neck-line. The final two dresses were a Marchesa gown and another Oscar de la Renta dress. Hilton wore these dresses on day two of her wedding party, which was filled with family and friends. Now, the couple is only two weeks away from celebrating their two-year anniversary. Just last month, the reality TV star and socialite shared a series of throwback photos of the couple with her 24.5 million Instagram followers for their 45-month anniversary. The two had originally met when they were in their twenties but they did not become romantically involved until late 2019 when Reum’s sister, Halle Hammond, invited them both over for Thanksgiving that year. When they reconnected, Hilton told People they had “this incredible chemistry” and had their first date soon after. Reum and Hilton made their first public appearance as a couple at the 2020 Golden Globes afterparty. Reum proposed in February 2021 while the pair were on a private island for Hilton’s 40th birthday. They were married in a lavish Los Angeles wedding ceremony on 11 November of that same year and celebrated with a neon carnival-themed afterparty. Read More Paris Hilton hits out after fans criticise her baby’s appearance Paris Hilton breaks silence on Britney Spears’ new memoir ‘Ozempic is exposing holes in the body positivity movement’ ‘Ozempic is exposing holes in the body positivity movement’ ‘A healthier addiction than drugs’: How Elton John got hooked on photography Is scalp exfoliation the key to healthier hair?