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Margaret River’s Jack Robinson tucks into a heaving Teahupo’o barrel during the 2022 Tahiti Pro.
Breaking
Paris 2024

Aussie gold medal hope Jack Robinson injured in Teahupo’o wipeout

One of surfing’s genuine gold medal favourites is being assessed just days out from the start of the Olympics surfing event in Tahiti.

  • by Dan Walsh
Joe Biden back at work on Tuesday after recovering from COVID-19.

Joe Biden speech LIVE updates: US president to address nation after stepping down as Democratic presidential nominee

United States President Joe Biden is set to speak from the Oval Office, the first formal speech since he announced he was no longer running for president.

  • by Olivia Ireland
Senior Labor ministers Linda Burney and Brendan O’Connor.

Australia news LIVE: PM announces Linda Burney’s retirement; Rate rise risks recession, economists warn

Follow today’s national news headlines with our live blog.

  • by Josefine Ganko
Two men are in police custody after leading police on a chase through Sydney’s eastern suburbs on Thursday morning after reports that there were armed men in the area.
Breaking
Crime

Two men arrested after police pursuit in Sydney’s eastern suburbs

Old South Head Road in Bellevue Hill was blocked off to traffic as police pursued and later arrested two men.

  • by Jessica McSweeney
Dual threat .… Mark Nawaqanitawase
Opinion
Paris 2024

Marky Mark is the weapon Australia’s sevens team needs in Paris

A league-bound Wallaby and a French legend loom as major threats in the men’s rugby sevens tournament.

  • by Michael Hooper
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Bruce Lehrmann leaving the Toowoomba Magistrates Court in June.

Bruce Lehrmann’s bid to avoid bankruptcy over $2 million court order

The former Liberal staffer is seeking to overturn a damning Federal Court defamation decision that concluded he raped Brittany Higgins in Parliament House.

  • by Michaela Whitbourn
Crooks and Oswald.

Gunman researched JFK assassination before trying to kill Trump, says FBI

The 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks is believed to have done a Google search one week before the shooting of “How far away was Oswald from Kennedy?

  • by Eric Tucker
Olympian Zac Incerti and coach Michael Palfrey.
Exclusive
Paris 2024

‘Serious error of judgement’: Australian swim coach admits to helping South Korean rival

Michael Palfrey has been admonished by the AOC for saying he hopes a South Korean swimmer he coaches wins gold – even though he will compete against two Australians on night one at the Games.

  • by Tom Decent
Shemara Wikramanayake is the country’s highest-paid CEO for the third year in a row.

Macquarie shareholder returns fall in slower financial markets

Investors in the Millionaires Factory have earned a lower return on their funds this year than in the previous five years amid weaker demand for the group’s services.

  • by Millie Muroi
On the same page? Lachlan Murdoch, left, and Rupert Murdoch attend a gala in New York.

The ‘secret battle’ over the future of the Murdoch empire

Rupert Murdoch is locked in a legal battle against three of his children over the family’s media empire, according to a sealed court document obtained by The New York Times.

  • by Jim Rutenberg and Jonathan Mahler
Katy Perry channels sexy Rosie the Riveter in the Woman’s World music video.

Katy Perry to perform at AFL Grand Final

The AFL has confirmed the pop star will headline the pre-match entertainment this year.

  • by Kate Lahey and Kerrie O'Brien
Wall Street is on its way to its worst day since 2022.

ASX slumps as tech giants send Wall Street to worst day since 2022

Australian shares have slumped in early trading after a plunge on Wall Street overnight, with the technology sector opening sharply lower.

  • by Stan Choe
Prince Harry.

Prince Harry says fight with British media ‘central piece’ in family breakdown

Harry has also blamed the British media for the death of his mother Princess Diana in a 1997 car crash.

  • by Sam Tobin
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to a joint meeting of Congress.

Boycotted but unbowed: Benjamin Netanyahu addresses Congress

The Israeli leader was invited to address the congress by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson amid a war that has mobilised youthful protesters, while Kamala Harris stayed away from the speech.

  • by Farrah Tomazin
Steph Catley says she has recovered from a calf niggle and is ready to start against Germany.

‘No-brainer’ that Catley starts in Matildas’ Olympics opener against Germany

Australia’s captain has revealed that the mystery ‘lower leg injury’ that sidelined her for the warm-up loss to Canada 12 days ago was a calf niggle.

  • by Emma Kemp
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Australian house prices have experienced some of the biggest increases in the developed world since the pandemic.
Exclusive
Competition

The bank threat that killed off competition in Australia’s $800b property monopoly

The country’s major banks were sent a letter from Australia’s electronic property settlements giant PEXA in December, a move that proved decisive in delaying the launch of its rival Sympli.

  • by Colin Kruger
Selwyn Cobbo is tackled by Jarome Luai in the State of Origin decider.
Opinion
NRL 2024

The Origin decider was out of this world. But how much more can these players give?

I’ve taken time to watch the game three replay. It was one of the toughest and most brutal games I’ve ever seen.

  • by Andrew Johns
Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool/Wade Wilson and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine/Logan in the slapsticky Deadpool & Wolverine.
★★
Review

This again? Ryan Reynolds’ jokes wear thin in Deadpool & Wolverine

It’s not clear why anyone would want more of Deadpool. It’s not like we haven’t had a steady supply of Ryan Reynolds’ motor-mouthed schtick.

  • by Jake Wilson
Once a celebrated HBO comedy adored by critics, Entourage has been hated and loved in equal measure.

Harmless fun or bro culture gone bad? Why we’re still talking about Entourage

On its 20th anniversary, Entourage creator Doug Ellin defends the show’s legacy, the ‘idiotic revisionism’ it’s faced, and the prospect of a reboot.

  • by Thomas Mitchell
Fans of Morocco invade the pitch during the Men’s group B match between Argentina and Morocco.

Argentina ‘equaliser’ ruled out by VAR hours after Morocco match suspended

The match ended in utter chaos when the game was suspended for two hours after supporters of Morocco stormed the pitch.

  • by Jeremy Wilson
Mary Fowler.

Can the Matildas break through for an Olympic medal? We answer the burning questions

We dive into Australia’s tough group, the players to watch and injury concerns as Tony Gustavsson’s side strives for a medal.

  • by Emma Kemp
Australia’s Henry Hutchison scores a try against Samoa during the rugby sevens match at Stade de France, Paris.

‘We don’t want to live in the girls’ shadow’: Aussie men’s sevens off to winning start

The men got Australia’s Olympic campaign off to the best possible start, winning both their pool games in front of a parochial sold-out crowd at the Stade de France.

  • by Michael Chammas
Port operations at Glebe Island.
Exclusive
Development

Secret review to decide on removing ports for housing at Glebe Island

The state government has commissioned a secret review from a former Treasury boss into whether the working ports at Glebe Island should be moved to make way for high-density housing.

  • by Michael Koziol
State and federal governments are coming off mid-pandemic highs according to voters.

Billionaire Anthony Pratt hires old rivals Scott Morrison and Dan Andrews

The cardboard box king has shown admirable bipartisanship in his choice of two new very well-paid consultants.

  • by Kishor Napier-Raman and Stephen Brook

Minns has passed one big political test, now he faces another

The annual NSW Labor state conference is often dominated by domestic policy, but events in the Middle East look set to overshadow this weekend’s gathering.

  • by Alexandra Smith
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<p>

A Trump victory would leave Australia handcuffed to the whims of a narcissist

America is not well, and it will take a long time before it gets better, if it ever does. If this is not the time to take a hard look at how we approach and deal with the US, when will that time come?

  • by Shaun Carney
A 2002 home designed by Glenn Murcutt at Foxground near Kangaroo Valley that was never built.  An L-shape, Murcutt said it allowed him to orient the daytime living areas to the north, and the sleeping areas east-west. 
Exclusive
Architecture

These house renders look so real buyers want them

A new book about Glenn Murcutt’s designs that were never built brings many to life using the latest computer modelling and CGI imagery.

  • by Julie Power
Adam and Olivia Jeffrey, with son Xavier, sold their apartment and an investment apartment to buy a house to live in.

Sydney house prices hit record high, but cracks start to show

The median Sydney house now costs $1.66 million, but some premium neighbourhoods haven’t been able to keep up.

  • by Tawar Razaghi and Alexandra Middleton
US Vice President Kamala Harris has found a uniform of relaxed, tailored pantsuits with collarless, silk blouses and simple jewellery.

Why people stopped talking about what Kamala Harris is wearing

The US vice president shows public scrutiny of women politicians has moved from style to substance.

  • by Damien Woolnough
Like in her first novel, Jessie Tu masterfully unpicks the mother-daughter relationship.

Emotional grenades in a novel about mothers, daughters and identity

Jessie Tu’s follow up to her award-winning first novel is driven by three emotionally charged characters.

  • by Frances Atkinson
Crows Nest metro station.

What became the greatest threat to this new Sydney metro train station

Crows Nest was one of the most difficult of six new underground stations to be built for Sydney’s $21.6 billion metro rail line under the heart of the city.

  • by Matt O'Sullivan
An armed police officer patrols Paris.

French police arrest alleged Russian spy over plot to ‘destabilise Olympics’

The 40-year-old, who spent time as a contestant on TV cooking shows, was detained after police raided his house at the request of French intelligence agencies.

  • by Rob Harris
Canada coach Bev Priestman, pictured in France this week, has stood aside for the match against New Zealand.

Canada head coach withdraws, two sent home amid Olympics spy drone scandal

Canadian Olympic chiefs apologised after a member of team staff was detained by French authorities over allegations they used a drone to record New Zealand training on two occasions.

  • by Jeremy Wilson
Sydney Gateway.

How to avoid repeat of Rozelle interchange chaos when new airport link opens

The government has confirmed that September 1 has been set as the opening date for the final part of a new $2.6 billion motorway to Sydney Airport.

  • by Matt O'Sullivan
The Reserve Bank board faces one of its toughest choices yet in its August meeting.

Reserve Bank risks recession with August rate rise

The Reserve Bank is at a critical point, economists say – it could let inflation remain a little higher for longer or risk tipping Australia into a recession.

  • by Rachel Clun
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The Future Made in Australia policy is aimed at supporting new industries in areas such as lithium processing.

An expensive future made in Australia: Warnings on $23 billion plan

Governments around the world, including Australia, are using taxpayers’ money to support emerging industries. Now there are warnings these programs may achieve little.

  • by Shane Wright
<p>
Opinion
Column 8

Take care of your selfie, or you’ll go in Seine

Athletes shouldn’t splash on ceremony.

Eddie Ockenden and Jessica Fox have been named as Australia’s flag bearers for the Olympics.

Fox and Ockenden unveiled as flag-bearers for Paris opening ceremony

Canoe slalom great Jessica Fox and hockey player Eddie Ockenden have been chosen to represent Australia in the spectacular celebration along the river Seine.

  • by Jordan Baker
Video still of Charlotte Dujardin whipping horse in training.
Graphic content
Paris 2024

The shocking video that shows Olympic champ whipping horse ‘like an elephant in the circus’

Equestrian champion Charlotte Dujardin has been banned from Paris 2024 over a video showing her whipping a horse repeatedly on the legs.

  • by Tom Morgan and Oliver Brown
Dylan Brown, Mitchell Moses and Will Penisini have uncertain futures due to contractual clauses.

The $1.25m contract black holes hurting battling NRL clubs

The true cost of moving on an unwanted NRL player has been revealed as Parramatta seek a different strategy for future contract negotiations.

  • by Adrian Proszenko
Tarryn Aiken of the Roosters and Nita Maynard ahead of their NRLW season opener in Newcastle on Thursday night.

Your 2024 NRLW guide: Team to beat, player to watch and rookie on the rise

Here’s your guide to the 2024 NRLW season before the first match gets under way between the Knights and the Roosters in Newcastle on Thursday night.

  • by Billie Eder
Harry Garside, Caitlin Parker and Teremoana Teremoana.

Dropping Olympic boxing would be ‘a crime against humanity’

The future of boxing as an Olympic sport beyond Paris is still in doubt – a prospect that Australian boxers and medal hopes Harry Garside, Caitlin Parker and Teremoana Teremoana say they find “honestly terrifying”.

  • by Konrad Marshall
Rachel Powell

James Ruse principal leaves top-performing selective for rival all-girls school

The outgoing head of James Ruse Agricultural High Rachel Powell said she believes in parents having “school choice” between single-sex and co-ed options.

  • by Lucy Carroll
No country loves rugby league more than PNG.

Papua New Guinea joins Australia as 2026 World Cup hosts

As they jostle to be included as part of the NRL’s expansion plans, the Pacific country has been handed a massive boost by its Australian neighbours.

  • by Adam Pengilly, Christian Nicolussi and Dan Walsh
Dental do’s and don’ts.

Put down the toothbrush. Your brushing schedule might need a rethink

Brushing, flossing and dentist visits – the secret to healthy teeth isn’t much of a secret. But there are a few good and bad habits dentists want us to think about.

  • by Markham Heid
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Crying has historically been frowned upon, but it is often our path to healing.
Opinion
Friendship

The first time I saw crying that frightened me, it came from my father

I have been practising being better in the company of others crying. It’s a human act that scares us, but I’m learning to embrace its power.

  • by Jacinta Parsons
Kai McKenzie, 23, who was bitten by a shark in Port Macquarie on Tuesday.

‘Toughest person we know’: Surfer’s leg washes up on beach after shark attack

Kai McKenzie is in a stable condition after marathon surgery to reattach his right leg following the encounter at Port Macquarie.

  • by Angus Thomson

Count your blessings if looking after grandkids

I’m sure there are plenty of grandparents helping out with child care through sheer financial necessity as well as those grandparents who simply want to be part of the family.

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney.

Senior Albanese government ministers could quit in a matter of days

There is growing expectation in Labor ranks that a pair of cabinet ministers are poised to announce they will not contest the next election and will step down from cabinet immediately.

  • by James Massola and Paul Sakkal
In a call to CNN, Donald Trump said of Joe Biden: “He goes down as the single worst president by far in the history of our country.”

Trump trades: Markets are betting against Europe, oil and humanity

How would one have “priced” global markets in 1912 or 1937, when the writing already was on the wall, but nothing was predetermined, and one could still hope? Worth pondering.

  • by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Liverpool mayor Ned Mannoun

Liverpool councillors’ vanity project is a lost cause and expensive

Liverpool Council’s legal attempt to stop a public inquiry ignores reality and is a waste of ratepayers’ funds.

  • The Herald's View
Nepal army personnel stand by a plane crash site at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu.
Updated
Aviation

At least 18 dead as plane skids off runway and catches fire in Nepal

Nepal has been criticised for its poor air safety record, with the deadliest incident occurring in 1992, when 167 people died when a plane crashed into a hillside.

  • by Binaj Gurubacharya
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton

As it happened: Dutton defends nuclear policy; Pilot escapes plane crash during NT defence exercise

Read the national news headlines for Wednesday, July 24.

  • by Josefine Ganko and Lachlan Abbott
A man has died following a two-vehicle crash on Sydney’s Northern Beaches this afternoon. About 2.15pm (Wednesday 24 July 2024), emergency services were called to Pittwater Road, Mona Vale, following reports of a two-vehicle crash. The driver of one of the vehicles - a man – was trapped inside the vehicle and despite the efforts of first responders, was unable to be revived.  The driver of the other vehicle was taken to hospital for assessment.  Photographed Wednesday 24th July 2024. Photo: James Brickwood. SMH NEWS 240724

Man dead after two-car crash on northern beaches

The driver in his 80s crossed three lanes of traffic and a median strip before his car was T-boned by an SUV travelling along Pittwater Road, witnesses said.

  • by Angus Thomson and Riley Walter
Pilbara Minerals’ Pilgangoora project in Western Australia.

Lithium boss says prices for Australia’s ‘white gold’ may have bottomed

Australia’s largest independent lithium miner is preparing to boost output of the electric battery metal, even as prices languish around three-year lows.

  • by Nick Toscano
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Northbridge Golf Club has been granted a new 21-year lease over land controlled by Willoughby City Council.

This north shore council just handed a golf club 21 more years on harbourside land

The decision followed suggestions that public golf courses in the area be repurposed as community green space, and went against council recommendations.

  • by Anthony Segaert
Wall Street is bracing for an earnings deluge.

ASX dips after losses on Wall Street; Perpetual hit by outflows

The Australian sharemarket traded slightly lower on Wednesday after weak session on Wall Street, where earnings reporting season has ramped up for the bigger companies.

  • by Millie Muroi and Sumeyya Ilanbey
CFMEU national secretary Zach Smith.

CFMEU to implement code of conduct for delegates over ‘deeply worrying’ allegations

But the union’s national secretary, in an email to members of the construction division, forecast the Fair Work Commission would seek to put some branches into administration.

  • by Rachel Eddie, Kieran Rooney and Annika Smethurst
The cocaine detected in the sharpnose shark, like that pictured above, is likely causing damage to the animals.

Sharks test positive to high levels of cocaine off the coast of Brazil

Marine biologists tested 13 Brazilian sharpnose sharks from coastal waters near Rio de Janeiro and found high levels of cocaine in their systems.

  • by Nick Squires
Minnie Driver as Elizabeth I in The Serpent Queen.

Minnie Driver joins the ranks of acting greats who have played Elizabeth I

“Queen Elizabeth comes to meet you very, very specifically,” says Driver, who follows Glenda Jackson, Judi Dench and other acting greats in the role.

  • by Michael Idato
Jane Fonda with Susan Lacy, director of the HBO documentary Jane Fonda in Five Acts

Five documentaries that explore the hidden lives of famous actors

Like Brats - a recent look at the ‘Hollywood Brat Pack’ - these projects tried to understand their stars, by gently lifting the masks.

  • by Scott Murray
People line up to take a shower on a beach in Biarritz, in south-west France.

World’s hottest day recorded, but land temperatures will be even higher

The last 12 months have set new temperature records, with the 12-month global average 1.64 degrees above the pre-Industrial average.

  • by Gloria Dickie and Bianca Hall
Real Madrid’s players pose with the trophy after winning the Champions League final soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Real Madrid at Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, June 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Analysis
FIFA

Money and power: Why Europe’s top leagues have declared war on FIFA

The game’s governing body is the subject of legal action by players and leagues who say the international calendar is at breaking point. Here’s what you need to know.

  • by Vince Rugari
Wests Tigers prop Stefano Utoikamanu.

Bulldogs enter Utoikamanu race as Richardson says Bateman move creates ‘war chest’

Canterbury has quietly expressed an interest in the Tigers prop – who has a $4 million offer on the table from the Tigers – as details of John Bateman’s return to England emerge.

  • by Adam Pengilly
Former president Donald Trump takes the stage for a campaign rally at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Saturday.

How Trump’s new rival may bring out his worst instincts

After years planning to face Joe Biden, Donald Trump and his team will be campaigning against Kamala Harris. He has attacked past female rivals and critics in brutal and personal terms.

  • by Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan
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Australia’s athletes are making themselves at home in the athletes’ village in Paris.

Taco Tuesdays, baristas and cardboard beds: How the Australians are embracing village life

There’s an endless supply of Weet-Bix, Nutri-Grain and Vegemite, as well as enough coffee for about 20,000 shots.

  • by Rob Harris
Mary Fowler could be the Matildas’ most important player in Paris.

For her coach, Mary Fowler is an unsolved riddle. And she may be the Matildas’ most important player

The challenge, as is the case with many ethereal shape-shifters who require freedom to make their magic, will be how to get the best out of the 21-year-old.

  • by Emma Kemp and Vince Rugari
ASIC chair Joseph Longo

‘What’s going on here?’: ASIC probes fast-growing private debt markets

The head of Australia’s corporate regulator wants more visibility when it comes to the private credit market, where companies go if the banks won’t lend.

  • by Millie Muroi
NWC

Esports for old folks: Nintendo turns classic games into bite-sized challenges

Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition challenges you to practice getting mushrooms as Mario or the Triforce as Link, faster than anyone else.

  • by Tim Biggs
An artist’s impression of the proposed light rail line along Parramatta Road.

Why light rail would turn Parramatta Road into the next George Street

Three Sydney mayors are throwing their support behind plans to transform downtrodden Parramatta Road with a new light-rail line.

  • by Megan Gorrey
With five home-and-away rounds to go, the race for the AFL’s top eight is heating up in season 2024.
Analysis
AFL 2024

The run home: Where the contenders stand in the race for the AFL top eight

While the Swans appear to have top spot locked up, the race for the top eight is well and truly on as we head into the home stretch of the AFL season. Where will your team finish?

  • by Jon Pierik
Elon Musk is asking shareholders to sit tight as his company is evolving.

Betting on autonomy: Investors are waiting for Tesla’s future to arrive

The electric carmaker’s latest earnings have again missed expectations. It’s time for Elon Musk to keep his promise to turn the company into more than what it is today.

  • by Stephen Bartholomeusz
Did we really need Deadpool 3?

National treasure Hugh Jackman is too good for Deadpool

What is daring and fun in small doses can become grating and superficial over successive films.

  • by Mali Waugh
The weka, a flightless bird native to New Zealand, is a protected species.

Reality TV contestant apologises after hunting, eating protected bird

A contestant on the survival show said he was operating on a “starvation mindset” when he made the decision to eat the vulnerable species.

  • by Isabella Kwai
Simone Biles in Tokyo.

‘She’s now in a really good place’: Paris a redemption tour for Biles

The great American gymnast had high-profile mental trials in Tokyo three years ago. In Paris, her team will look to ease the pressure on her.

  • by Greg Baum
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Vaso Ulic, 65, was arrested in a dramatic sting codenamed “General” in Montenegro’s capital last week.
Exclusive
Crime

Drug kingpin’s role in notorious alleged Sydney cocaine plot

Vaso Ulic allegedly attempted to smuggle 2.5 tonnes of cocaine into Australia, where it commands up to 10 times the European price.

  • by Sally Rawsthorne
Vunipola Fifita posing in Tonga gear at the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

‘It’s either yes or no’: Shute Shield teams consider awards boycott after club escapes penalty for breach

Just how many Test matches a Tongan prop has played became a central issue in a heated Shute Shield rules controversy.

  • by Iain Payten
What is it like watching only YouTube for a week? Turns out it’s a mixed bag.

I watched nothing but YouTube for a week. Here’s what I learnt

When you need a break from blockbuster movies and bingeworthy shows, you’ll find more alternatives on here than you ever thought you needed.

  • by Nell Geraets
A render created by Michal Dufka, showing what a potential folding iPhone could look like.

Apple’s first folding iPhone could arrive as early as 2026: report

The people cited in a new report said Apple’s foldable iPhone had progressed from the ideation stage.

  • by Tim Biggs