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Trump's insult to Biden after he drops out of presidential race

<p>Joe Biden has officially withdrawn from the presidential race against former president Donald Trump. </p> <p>Biden, who is the oldest US president at 81, has been facing mounting calls to drop out of the election from both his opponents and supporters, amid fears of his failing health, mental clarity and age. </p> <p>On Sunday, the 46th president shared a lengthy statement to share that he would be dropping out of the race, saying it is "in the best interest" for both his Democratic Party and the country to take a step back. </p> <p>“While it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Mr Biden wrote in a letter he posted on his X account.</p> <p>“I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision. It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President.”</p> <p>Biden shared a second announcement to social media following his bombshell withdrawal, saying he would be endorsing his Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee to run for President in the November election against Trump. </p> <p>"My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President, and it’s been the best decision I’ve made," he began.</p> <p>"Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this."</p> <p>Mere hours after Biden's announcement, former President Donald Trump reacted to the news on TRUTH social, his own social media platform, exactly as many expected. </p> <p>“Crooked Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve — And never was!” Trump said.</p> <p>“All those around him, including his doctor and the media, knew that he wasn’t capable of being President, and he wasn’t. We will suffer greatly because of his presidency, but we will remedy the damage he has done very quickly.”</p> <p>In a phone call with CNN minutes after Biden announced his exit from the 2024 race, former Trump described Biden as going “down as the single worst president by far in the history of our country”.</p> <p>Mr Biden will remain President until the end of his term next January.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Bonnie Cash / Pool via CNP/ Ron Sachs/CNP /Shutterstock Editorial </em></p>

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F1 caller faces termination over "abhorrent" Schumacher comment

<p>A Formula One pundit recently found himself issuing an apology for an unfortunate slip of the tongue during a live TV broadcast, where he inadvertently made an insensitive remark about the legendary Michael Schumacher. The incident unfolded in the aftermath of the Japanese Grand Prix during a post-race discussion on Spanish television, as reported by <em>The Sun</em>.</p> <p>Antonio Lobato, the pundit in question, raised Schumacher's name during the discussion. Regrettably, his comment quickly made its way online, inciting outrage among fans due to its insensitivity toward the Formula One icon's ongoing health struggles.</p> <p>In the clip in question, one of Lobato's fellow broadcaster quipped to him in Spanish, "Let Adrian Newey (Red Bull's chief technical officer) be shaking because Antonio Lobato is coming."</p> <p>Lobato, perhaps in an attempt at humour in the moment, shot back, "Let Michael be shaking! Well... not Michael, he cannot shake."</p> <p>Following this exchange, the pundits shared a laugh with their colleagues, Noemi de Miguel, Pedro de la Rosa, and Toni Cuquerella.</p> <p>The incident provoked a strong backlash from viewers, with many demanding that Lobato apologise to Michael Schumacher's family. Some even called for his removal from DAZN, the broadcasting platform. One individual on X (formerly Twitter) remarked, "An apology would be the minimum, a sign of decency. You don't disrespect ANYONE that way, especially when thousands of people are watching you. Journalism in Spain has a very bright present and future with people like this."</p> <p>Another comment read, "Using someone's medical condition as the punchline of a joke is unacceptable and abhorrent. Michael is beloved and respected in this sport, and [Lobato] doesn't deserve the platform he is given."</p> <p>Subsequently, Lobato released an apology video on X, which has since garnered over five million views. In the five-minute video, he attempted to explain the "accident" while justifying his actions. Lobato stated in Spanish, "I made a mistake without any bad intentions. It was simply a mistake of pure clumsiness, of pure inability to express myself correctly, maybe because of too many hours up, jet lag in Madrid, or whatever – which is not an excuse for those of you who didn't see it."</p> <p>He went on to clarify that he never intended to make a joke or mock Michael Schumacher and that anyone who knew him would understand this.</p> <p>Lobato acknowledged his error, saying, "I think that everyone who knows me and knows what I'm like knows perfectly well that I would never make a joke about something like that. Never, but I was clumsy." He admitted that he had realised his mistake instantly after making the comment.</p> <p>He also emphasised his deep regret, stating, "So the only thing I have to do, I think it's fundamental, is to apologise to all those who felt offended by that phrase yesterday. I really, really mean it. It was not my intention to say it to laugh, nor to make any kind of joke with Michael, whom I knew, whom I admire, and whom I think is a reference and who I think was quite unlucky."</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="es">Creo que es necesario dar explicaciones y reconocer que me he equivocado. Por favor, escuchad mi vídeo. Es un poco largo, pero creo que necesario. <a href="https://t.co/89QlCMws2v">pic.twitter.com/89QlCMws2v</a></p> <p>— Antonio Lobato (@alobatof1) <a href="https://twitter.com/alobatof1/status/1706287035445653736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 25, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p><em>Images: Twitter (X) / Netflix</em></p>

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How do I stop my mind racing and get some sleep?

<p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alexander-sweetman-1331085">Alexander Sweetman</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a></em></p> <p>Martin turns off the light to fall asleep, but his mind quickly springs into action. Racing thoughts about work deadlines, his overdue car service, and his father’s recent surgery occupy his mind.</p> <p>As he struggles to fall asleep, the hours start to creep by. He becomes frustrated about how he will cope tomorrow. This is a pattern Martin has struggled with for many years.</p> <p>But what’s going on when your mind is racing at night? And how do you make it stop?</p> <h2>It can happen to anyone</h2> <p>In bed, with no other visual or sound cues to occupy the mind, many people start to have racing thoughts that keep them awake. This can happen at the start of the night, or when they awake in the night.</p> <p>The good news is there are effective ways to reduce these racing thoughts, and to help get some sleep. To do this, let’s take a step back and talk about insomnia.</p> <h2>What is insomnia?</h2> <p>If you are like Martin, you’re not alone. Right now, up to six in every ten people have regular <a href="https://www.sleepprimarycareresources.org.au/insomnia/epidemiology">insomnia symptoms</a>. One in ten have had these symptoms for months or years.</p> <p>Insomnia includes trouble falling asleep at the start of the night, waking up during the night, and feelings of daytime fatigue, concentration difficulties, lethargy or poor mood.</p> <p>Just like Martin, many people with insomnia find as soon as they get into bed, they feel alert and wide awake. So what’s going on?</p> <p>The more time we spend in bed doing things other than sleep, the more our brain and body start to learn that bed is a place for these non-sleep activities.</p> <p>These activities don’t just include worrying. They can be using a mobile phone, watching TV, eating, working, arguing, smoking or playing with pets.</p> <p>Gradually, our brains can learn that bed is a place for these other activities instead of rest and sleep. Over time the simple act of getting into bed can become a trigger to feel more alert and awake. This is called “<a href="https://www.med.upenn.edu/cbti/assets/user-content/documents/ppsmmodelsofinsomnia20115theditionproof.pdf">conditioned insomnia</a>”.</p> <p>Here are six ways to spend less time awake in bed with racing thoughts.</p> <h2>1. Re-learn to associate bed with sleep</h2> <p><a href="https://www.sleepprimarycareresources.org.au/insomnia/bbti/insomnia-stimulus-control-therapy">Stimulus control therapy</a> can <a href="https://www.med.upenn.edu/cbti/assets/user-content/documents/Bootzin%201972.pdf">help</a> re-build the relationship between bed and sleep.</p> <p>Follow these simple steps every night of the week:</p> <ul> <li> <p>only use your bed for sleep and intimacy. All other activities should occur out of bed, preferably in another room</p> </li> <li> <p>only go to bed if you are feeling sleepy (when your eyes are heavy and you could easily fall asleep). If you are not feeling sleepy, delay getting into bed. Use this time to do something relaxing in another room</p> </li> <li> <p>if you are still awake after about 15 minutes in bed, get out of bed and go to another room. Do something else relaxing until you are feeling sleepy again, such as reading a book, listening to the radio, catching up on some chores or doing a crossword puzzle. Avoid anything too stimulating such as work or computer gaming</p> </li> <li> <p>repeat the above two steps until you are asleep within about 15 minutes. This can take several cycles of getting in and out of bed. But during this time, you body’s natural need for sleep will increase, and you will eventually fall asleep within 15 minutes of getting into bed</p> </li> <li> <p>get out of bed at the same time each morning, no matter how much you slept the night before</p> </li> <li> <p>avoid long daytime naps, which can make it harder to fall asleep that night.</p> </li> </ul> <p>Over several nights, this therapy builds the relationship between bed and sleep, and reduces the relationship between bed and feeling alert and having racing thoughts.</p> <h2>2. Distract yourself with fond thoughts</h2> <p>Negative thoughts in bed or worrying about the consequences of losing sleep can make us feel more alert, worried, and make it more difficult to sleep.</p> <p>So try something called “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2012.07.004">cognitive re-focusing</a>”. Try to replay a fond memory, movie, or TV show in your mind, to distract yourself from these negative thoughts.</p> <p>Ideally, this will be a memory you can recall very clearly, and one that causes neutral or slightly positive feelings. Memories that are overly positive or negative might cause an increase in alertness and mental activity.</p> <h2>3. Relax into sleep</h2> <p><a href="https://www.sleepprimarycareresources.org.au/insomnia/bbti/insomnia-relaxation-techniques">Relaxation therapy</a> for insomnia aims to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780123815224000043">reduce alertness</a> and improve sleep.</p> <p>One way is to progressively tense and relax muscle groups throughout your body, known as <a href="https://youtu.be/pyxvL1O2duk">guided progressive muscle relaxation therapy</a>.</p> <p>You could also try breathing exercises, soothing music, visual imagery or other <a href="https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-for-insomnia-cbt-i.html">relaxation exercises</a> that feel right for you.</p> <p>Part of relaxing into sleep is avoiding doing work in the late evening or screen-based activities right before bed. Give yourself a “buffer zone”, to allow yourself time to start relaxing before getting into bed.</p> <h2>4. Worry earlier in the day</h2> <p>Schedule some “<a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-do/201811/simple-effective-trick-stop-worrying-so-much">worry time</a>” earlier in the day, so these thoughts don’t happen at night. It can also help to write down some of the things that worry you.</p> <p>If you start to worry about things during the night, you can remind yourself you have already written them down, and they are waiting for you to work through during your scheduled “worry time” the next day.</p> <h2>5. Know waking in the night is normal</h2> <p>Knowing that brief awakenings from sleep are completely normal, and not a sign of ill health, may help.</p> <p>Sleep occurs in different “cycles” during the night. Each cycle lasts for about 90 minutes, and includes different stages of light, deep, and dreaming (REM) sleep.</p> <p>Most of our deep sleep occurs in the first half of the night, and most of our light sleep in the second half.</p> <p>Everyone experiences brief awakenings from sleep, but most people don’t remember these the next morning.</p> <h2>6. What if these don’t work?</h2> <p>If these don’t work, the most effective next step is “cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia” or CBT-i.</p> <p>This non-drug therapy targets the underlying causes of insomnia, and leads to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2019.08.002">long-lasting improvements</a> in sleep, mental health and daytime function.</p> <p>You can do a self-guided online program, or access it via your GP or a psychologist. More details, including links to online programs, are available via the <a href="https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/cognitive-behavioural-therapy-for-insomnia-cbt-i.html">Sleep Health Foundation</a>.</p> <p>We are providing free access to online CBT-i through a research study. To find out more, <a href="https://www.flinders.edu.au/people/alexander.sweetman">contact me</a>.</p> <hr /> <p><em>The Sleep Health Foundation has several <a href="https://www.sleephealthfoundation.org.au/fact-sheets.html">evidence-based resources</a> about sleep health and insomnia.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207904/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /></em></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alexander-sweetman-1331085">Alexander Sweetman</a>, Research Fellow, College of Medicine and Public Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Getty Images</em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-do-i-stop-my-mind-racing-and-get-some-sleep-207904">original article</a>.</em></p>

Mind

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Aussie Olympic medallist marries billionaire F1 heiress

<p dir="ltr">Australian Olympic medallist Scotty James has tied the knot with Chloe Stroll in a lavish Italian wedding over the weekend.</p> <p dir="ltr">James, a four-time Olympian and two-time medallist, was introduced to Chloe, daughter of Formula One billionaire Lawrence Stroll, by her brother Lance who set them up in 2019.</p> <p dir="ltr">The wedding came nearly 18 months after Scotty proposed, and the pair took to Instagram to share pictures of the happy occasion.</p> <p dir="ltr">Chloe shared a series of photos with a simple infinity emoji, while Scotty shared behind the scenes clips from a boat ride around Venice.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Hi everyone. This is our first video as husband and wife - well, on my phone anyway,” he proudly said as he looked lovingly at his wife.</p> <p dir="ltr">“And as you can see behind us, the sun has risen. We’re on a boat back to the hotel - and we got married yesterday!”</p> <p dir="ltr">The beautiful bride donned an off-the-shoulder gown with a stunning floral lace detail and a matching flowing veil.</p> <p dir="ltr">The groom looked dapper in a black suit with a bow tie and beautiful white pocket rose.</p> <p dir="ltr">The wedding weekend included a stay at the Gritti Palace in Venice.</p> <p dir="ltr">Plenty of stars were in attendance including Scotty’s groomsman and best mate, F1 racer Daniel Ricciardo and his girlfriend Heidi Berger, also an F1 heiress.</p> <p dir="ltr">Scotty’s brother-in-law and <em>Sunrise</em> weather presenter, Sam Mac, was also in attendance after taking leave from the show.</p> <p dir="ltr">“So happy for you mate. A true honour to share this special time with you and Chloe ... wow wow wow,” he wrote on Instagram.</p> <p dir="ltr">Rebecca, Sam’s partner, also commented: “I officially have another sister,” to which Chloe replied: “Love you sis!!!”</p> <p dir="ltr">Some other guest stars who reportedly attended the wedding included: Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff and wife Susie, Sarah Ferguson, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas.</p> <p><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

Relationships

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Pitt stop! Snubbed rookie’s hilarious response to Brad Pitt’s F1 debut

<p dir="ltr">Brad Pitt is set to make his formula one debut at the Silverstone Grand Prix for his upcoming F1 movie that is co-produced by British F1 Driver, Lewis Hamilton.</p> <p dir="ltr">News that the Hollywood heartthrob will drive an adapted F2 car as part of his role prompted a hilarious response from snubbed rookie Colton Herta, who was denied a super-licence last year because he didn’t have enough points.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Brad Pitt got a super license before me. Tough,” he tweeted in response to the news.</p> <p dir="ltr">“You're not experienced enough mate! 😂,” another user jokingly replied.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Brad Pitt got a super license before me. Tough. <a href="https://t.co/r7gedm1esn">https://t.co/r7gedm1esn</a></p> <p>— Colton Herta (@ColtonHerta) <a href="https://twitter.com/ColtonHerta/status/1654225843042787330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr">The <em>Mr. &amp; Mrs. Smith</em> actor will begin filming on-site at the Silverstone Grand Prix in July between the main F1 sessions.</p> <p dir="ltr">Pitt will play a retired driver making his comeback, and while the movie remains untitled, the project is being led by Joseph Kosinski, director of <em>Top Gun: Maverick</em> and producer Jerry Bruckheimer.</p> <p dir="ltr">Hamilton has also spoken up about his involvement and experience in co-producing the film.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I don’t know absolutely every single plan with all the things we’ll be doing in the paddock, I’m more focused on making sure the script is where it needs to be,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“That’s where all the time is currently, going through the script.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We’ve got a really great and diverse cast. Joe’s focus is to make us as embedded in this sport as possible. For me it’s to make sure it’s authentic, and that all of you and racing fans see its authenticity and say ‘this is believable’, and have a view of racing from a different perspective than you might see on TV.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m spending a lot of time right now helping Joe and the team get the script right, it’s an amazing process and I’m really enjoying it.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Fans have also shared a bunch of memes in reaction to the news of Pitt being allowed to race on the track during Grand Prix weekends.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">brad pitt seeing max lap him for the 12th time <a href="https://t.co/fWMyLkSnYF">pic.twitter.com/fWMyLkSnYF</a></p> <p>— Maude⁴⁷ (@schumihoney) <a href="https://twitter.com/schumihoney/status/1654216747048742917?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">brad pitt at turn one in silverstone <a href="https://t.co/168nTurA43">pic.twitter.com/168nTurA43</a></p> <p>— bella (@lovesjenson) <a href="https://twitter.com/lovesjenson/status/1654235239911415808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Colton Herta when Brad Pitt is allowed to join F1 without any super licence points but he isn't <a href="https://t.co/Utlt6fRBLz">pic.twitter.com/Utlt6fRBLz</a></p> <p>— F1 Updates (@paddock2go) <a href="https://twitter.com/paddock2go/status/1654222779900633088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 4, 2023</a></p></blockquote> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Getty</em></p>

Movies

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Sad update on Schumacher's wife

<p>Eddie Jordan, former F1 boss and friend of the Schumachers, has opened up about how Corinna Schumacher has lived “like a prisoner” since her husband’s 2013 ski accident. </p> <p>Corinna, who has been declared “Michael’s guardian angel” on more than one occasion, has been battling for an entire decade to uphold his wish for privacy when it comes to his health and his ongoing recovery. </p> <p>It is reported that Corinna handles the Schumacher family’s affairs, and it’s a rare occasion when she does speak about her husband and family, despite overwhelming interest in how Michael is doing - all while helping son Mick launch his own career in Formula 1.</p> <p>And now, Eddie Jordan - who was a key player in Michael’s 1991 F1 experience - has spoken up about the reality of Corinna’s situation, admitting in an interview with <em>The Sun Online</em> that she is living “like a prisoner”. </p> <p>"This was the most horrific situation for Mick and Corinna," he said. “It's been nearly ten years now and Corinna has not been able to go to a party, to lunch or this or that, she's like a prisoner because everyone would want to talk to her about Michael when she doesn't need reminding of it every minute."</p> <p>He confessed that Corinna once denied him a visit with his friend, as she had imposed a kind of “family only” rule when it came to seeing Michael after the 2013 incident. Eddie wasn’t offended, instead supporting her decision, aware that the rule had come from a place of love, and that he knows her “very well, and a long time before Michael Schumacher.” </p> <p>However, there is apparently one individual who is allowed to stop by - Jean Todt, F1 chief and former boss for Ferrari.  </p> <p>"She's a lovely girl,” he continued, “and I knew her when she married Michael so there is a long history of good relations.</p> <p>"I made an effort to go see Michael in the early days and Corinna refused, and rightfully so because too many people wanted to go see him.</p> <p>"Jean Todt was given the privilege to go see him because of how close they were from their time together at Ferrari which is completely understandable.</p> <p>"I was not able to go see Michael and they said 'we love you Eddie and we've been involved with you for a very long time, but we do need privacy and safeguard of Michael'."</p> <p>This isn’t the first time that Eddie has spoken out about his friends, having explained early in 2023 that the 54-year-old Michael was “there, but not there.” </p> <p>And Corinna has revealed something similar herself, as seen in the documentary <em>Schumacher</em>, where she said, “I miss Michael every day. But it's not just me who misses him.</p> <p>"It's the children, the family, his father, everyone around him.</p> <p>"I mean, everybody misses Michael, but Michael is here. Different, but he's here and that gives us strength … we try to carry on a family as Michael liked it and still does. And we are getting on with our lives.</p> <p>“'Private is private', as he always said. It is very important to me that he can continue to enjoy his private life as much as possible.</p> <p>"Michael always protected us, and now we are protecting Michael."</p> <p><em>Images: Getty</em></p>

Caring

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F1 legend shares rare update Michael Schumacher

<p>Formula 1 icon Eddie Jordan has shared a health update about his close friend Michael Schumacher, saying the motorsport legend is “there, but not there” as mystery continues to surround his health.</p> <p>Schumacher, 54, has not been seen or heard from for nearly ten years after his horror ski crash in 2013.</p> <p>He was left with a severe brain injury and in a medically induced coma.</p> <p>Mystery surrounds his condition as his family has imposed a strict “family only” rule on who can visit him.</p> <p>It came as Michael’s son Mick followed in his dad’s footsteps into F1.</p> <p>Unfortunately, 23-year-old Mick struggled and lost his race seat at the end of 2022 after a series of crashes for the Haas team.</p> <p>Eddie was denied a visit to see Michael but has been in contact with Mick.</p> <p>The F1 star said his “love” for the seven-time world champion “still lasts and will always do so while I’m able to draw breath.” when speaking to sports betting firm OLBG.</p> <p>Last year, he revealed his son Mick had reached out to him.</p> <p>“As far as I’m concerned, I was touched by it and the reason I was touched by it was because it can’t be easy knowing that your father is not able to be part of the family, he’s there but he’s not there,” Jordan said.</p> <p>Jordan revealed that Mick spoke highly of his father while he was enduring his own struggles in F1.</p> <p>“It touched me because I felt so much about Michael, I went out of my way to find him, give him his first chance in Spa, didn’t last very long but that love for him still lasts and will always do so while I’m able to draw breaths,” Eddie said.</p> <p>Mick was dropped by Haas in favour of veteran driver Nico Hulkenberg for 2023 and is now a reserve driver at Mercedes.</p> <p>Mick will be backing up Sir Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, potentially stepping in for them if they have to miss a race.</p> <p>Eddie believes Mick has it in him to find his way back into a full-time race seat.</p> <p>“He’s been dropped for somebody else, and that’s a tough decision, he has another fight to come back and to make his name, climb up that ladder again,” Eddie said.</p> <p>“I’m quite sure he will do it.”</p> <p>Jordan also revealed Michael named his son after racing champion Mick Doohan, saying Mick was given his name “as a mark of respect” to Doohan.</p> <p>“Mick Schumacher isn’t named after his dad like a lot of people seem to think,” he said.</p> <p>“Mick Schumacher is named after a person who his father, Michael, was in total awe of, a sportsman who had won five world titles back to back with Honda.</p> <p>“And that is no other than Mick Doohan.</p> <p>“As a mark of respect, Michael Schumacher called his son Mick.”</p> <p>Last year, Jordan revealed that Michael’s wife denied him permission to visit Schumacher after his horror skiing accident.</p> <p>His wife Corinna keeps his health journey a closely guarded secret.</p> <p>Corinna prefers to treat her husband privately at their home in Geneva, Switzerland, with ex-Ferrarri boss Jean Todt, one of the only people allowed to see him outside his immediate family.</p> <p>Jordan said he contacted Corinna, who was once the girlfriend of his team’s driver Heinz Harold Frentzen.</p> <p>Jordan told the Irish Daily Mirror, “I reached out and one stage asked was it appropriate and did I think we should go and visit him.</p> <p>“The answer was no. No visitations for anyone at that moment except the actual direct family.</p> <p>“However, since then, young Mick Schumacher – Michael’s son – has reached out to me, and he has been extraordinary.”</p> <p><em>Image credit: Getty</em></p>

Caring

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"He’s a very proud dad": Unearthed snap of Michael Schumacher stuns fans

<p>Max Verstappen has shared never been seen photos of Michael Schumacher with the world.</p> <p>The back-to-back Formula 1 world champion is currently preparing to secure a third straight crown for Red Bull in 2023.</p> <p>Before the season begins, F1 fans are being treated to a sneak peek behind the curtain as Netflix’s smash hit <em>Drive to Survive</em> releases its fifth season.</p> <p>Verstappen is heavily featured throughout episode four of the new season, which was released globally on February 24, focusing primarily on former Haas driver Mick Schumacher.</p> <p>The episode, titled <em>Like Father, Like Son?</em>, brings to light the struggles the famous young racer endured before he was let go by the Haas team.</p> <p>However, it's Verstappen who once again steals the show as he shares what it was like to grow up alongside the Schumacher family.</p> <p>Max’s father, Jos, was teammates with Michael at Benetton, with an old interview filmed in the 2000s showing the pair being asked if they would let their kids become F1 drivers.</p> <p>“I think this could be the first time we have an argument if our two would be racing,” says the German.</p> <p>It’s what came next that stole the hearts of many, leaving F1 fans stunned. As Max talks about the relationship between the two families, a clip of Max as a toddler interacting with Michael is played before a never been seen photo flashes on the screen.</p> <p>“We used to go on holidays when we were little together, the two families, and these kind of memories will stay with me,” explains Max, who is now a 35-time race winner in F1.</p> <p>“For both of us to be in F1 is amazing and also for Michael, he’s a very proud dad for sure.”</p> <p>The image shows Michael sitting on a hanging chair with baby Max on one knee and his daughter, Gina-Maria, on the other.</p> <p>Mick was replaced by F1 journeyman Nico Hulkenberg and will have to sit out 2023 as a reserve driver at Mercedes behind Sir Lewis Hamilton and his teammate George Russell.</p> <p><em>Drive to Survive</em> charts Mick’s difficult sophomore season in 2022, including his horror 170mph incident in Saudi Arabia.</p> <p>Mick’s rough year saw him outscored by his teammate, the returning Danish veteran Kevin Magnussen.</p> <p>The Netflix series focuses on Mick’s struggles and the pressure that came with racing under the Schumacher name.</p> <p>“Mick has the lineage of one of the greatest drivers the sport has ever seen,” said F1 journalist Will Buxton.</p> <p>“But it remains to be seen if he has the same character as his dad.”</p> <p>Haas boss Steiner said the Schumacher name was a “blessing and a curse” for Mick.</p> <p>But in characteristically non-nonsense fashion, the famously foul-mouthed team principal says at some point the young German will have “stand up” and be his “own man”.</p> <p>Mick outlines the struggles surrounding pressure on the show, including the admission “dreams don’t always come true”.</p> <p>His dad is one of the most renowned F1 drivers of all time, rising to power in the 90s and going on to dominate the sport by the early 2000s.</p> <p>He raced from 1991 to 2006 and again from 2010 to 2012, a second act of his racing career which became instrumental in setting up the dominant Mercedes team.</p> <p>The German won five world championships with Ferrari and two for Benetton.</p> <p>Schumacher retired in 2012, but a year later, he was involved in a life-changing skiing accident while on the slopes with Mick.</p> <p>He was left in a medically induced coma before being sent home, and no further information has been revealed since the incident.</p> <p>His family, led by his wife Corinna, protect Michael’s privacy and offer him a quiet life.</p> <p>There have only been hints and cryptic rumours about Schumacher’s health, with information being drip-fed by friends and anonymous sources.</p> <p><em>Image credit: Getty/Netflix</em></p>

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F1 pioneer passes away

<p>French racing driver and engineer Jean-Pierre Jabouille, who in 1979 gave Renault their first Formula One victory, has died at the age of 80.</p> <p>The Renault-owned Alpine team has paid tribute to the two-times race winner as a pioneer whose victory at Dijon-Prenois was also the first in Formula One for a car with a turbocharged engine.</p> <p>The Parisian took only two F1 wins but it was his first at Dijon-Prenois in July 1979 that made his name and ensured he became the toast of France two-and-a-half years after he put the first laps on the Renault RS01 at Silverstone.</p> <p>Jabouille was a late starter to racing and didn’t make his international single-seater debut until he was 27 years old, when he took part in occasional F2 races in 1969.</p> <p>Having become a test and development driver with the Société des Automobiles Alpine manufacturer, Jabouille had entered his first Le Mans 24 Hours in 1968, starting a run of 14 appearances at La Sarthe that spanned a quarter of a century.</p> <p>He was also hired directly by Steve McQueen to be one of the drivers in the classic 1971 <em>Le Mans</em> movie.</p> <p>“BWT Alpine F1 Team is incredibly saddened to learn of the passing of Jean-Pierre Jabouille,” read the moving tribute on the BWT Alpine F1 Instagram post. </p> <p>“A humble racing driver, brilliant engineer, and a pioneer of our sport. Jean-Pierre was a true racer.</p> <p>“He spearheaded Renault’s journey into F1 in 1977 with his resilient and dare to do attitude. He was Renault’s first Grand Prix winner in 1979, a landmark moment in Renault’s journey in Formula 1. His determination and dedication to succeed inspired many, and these values remain central to the current team in its now blue colours of Alpine.</p> <p>“We are where we are today because of Jean-Pierre and his legacy lives on.</p> <p>“We’d like to extend our most sincere condolences to his family and close friends.</p> <p>“Merci pour tout, Jean-Pierre.”</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CoK-vfvrl-v/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CoK-vfvrl-v/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by BWT Alpine F1 Team (@alpinef1team)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Jabouille was still competing well into his 60s, appearing at a national Gran Turismo level for France, and was still occasionally spotted at Le Mans in recent years – even demonstrating his old Renault F1 cars for his legion of racing fans who will remember his legacy for years to come.</p> <p><em>Image: @alpinef1team / Instagram</em></p>

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Michael Schumacher’s family accused of lying about star’s condition

<p dir="ltr">Michael Schumacher's family have been accused of lying about the F1 star’s condition following a scary brain injury incident. </p> <p dir="ltr">The F1 champion’s health has been closely monitored following a terrifying skiing accident at a French resort of Meribel in December 2013. </p> <p dir="ltr">His wife and family have been keeping his condition under wraps as he recovers at their home in Switzerland. </p> <p dir="ltr">However, Schumacher's former manager Willi Weber, 80, has accused the family of preventing him from visiting and speaking to the star since the incident.</p> <p dir="ltr">Weber has spoken to Schumacher's wife Corinna and close friend Jean Todt who repeatedly told him that “it’s too early” and to just “wait”. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I tried hundreds of times to contact Corinna and she didn't answer," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I called Jean Todt to ask him if I should go to the hospital and he told me to wait – it's too early.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I called the next day and no one answered. I didn't expect behaviour like that and I'm still angry about it. They kept me out, telling me it's too early, well now it's too late. It's been nine years. Maybe they should just say it the way it is.</p> <p dir="ltr">"I could understand the situation initially as I always did everything I could for Michael to protect his private life. But since then we have only heard lies from them."</p> <p dir="ltr">Corrina appeared in the Netflix documentary <em>SCHUMACHER</em>, and spoke about wanting to protect her family after her husband’s incident. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Michael is here. Different, but he's here, and that gives us strength, I find," she said.</p> <p dir="ltr">"We're together. We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he's comfortable. And to simply make him feel our family, our bond.</p> <p dir="ltr">"And no matter what, I will do everything I can. We all will.</p> <p dir="ltr">"We're trying to carry on as a family, the way Michael liked it and still does. And we are getting on with our lives.” </p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty</em></p>

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Wee-lly bad idea sees horse test positive to caffeine

<p dir="ltr">Winning racehorse Explosive Miss has tested positive to caffeine, but it’s not because the racer has been enjoying some pre-race beverages.</p> <p dir="ltr">The horse tested positive to a random post-race drug test for the substance, which is prohibited in racing, though her trainer, avid coffee-drinker Clinton Isdale, had no idea how it could have happened, as reported by the <em><a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/caffeine-in-trainers-urine-causes-horse-to-fail-post-race-drug-test/NX2UXT52SUDQVPOJ5DO3YA6D5M/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NZ Herald</a></em>.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Isdale told the Racing Integrity Board that he had no idea caffeine ended up in Explosive Miss’ system, but said he would drink roughly three cups of coffee a day and then urinate in the same corner of the stables, behind the horse stalls, every morning.</p> <p dir="ltr">After testing soil samples from the spot, investigators confirmed that caffeine was present.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It is believed that the probable cause of Explosive Miss’ positive has been via contamination by Mr Isdale urinating in the corner of the stables by the stall,” the board said in its decision.</p> <p dir="ltr">As a result, Mr Isdale had to forfeit the $15,000 prize from his horse’s win and had to pay a $2000 fine.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mr Isdale, who has no previous charges for prohibited substances, told the board he was truly remorseful for his actions.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I am a hardworking young trainer in the industry and have worked tirelessly to get to this position in racing,” he said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I’m truly sorry this happened and take full responsibility and have thoroughly improved my stable practice so nothing like this happens again.”</p> <p dir="ltr">This isn’t the first case of horses testing positive to caffeine thanks to their trainers, with a similar case resulting in a trainer being fined $2,000 in March last year after it was found they had also been urinating in the corner of the horse’s stall.</p> <p dir="ltr">Caffeine is banned in horse racing because it’s purported to give animals an edge, with the Equestrian Sports NZ website warning trainers to “be aware when drinking soft drinks around your horse, or eating snacks such as biscuits or chocolate bars as caffeine is a common positive test result”.</p> <p><span id="docs-internal-guid-c054e756-7fff-d935-129e-5e4801cf1b39"></span></p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p>

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Antibiotic resistance: an arms race going on millions of years

<p>In 2012, a team of microbial scientists, curious about the origins of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, decided to take samples from the walls of a deep, ancient underground cave system beneath the modern US state of New Mexico. </p> <p>The maze-like complex of <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034953" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0034953">Lechuguilla cave</a> stretches for more than 200 kilometres, and much of it is sealed from aboveground by an impermeable rock layer known as the Yates Formation. So, it was the perfect place to hunt for microbes unsullied by the modern world. </p> <p>What they found was both startling and spooky: the microbiome of the cave samples contained bacteria that were resistant to at least 14 different antibiotics currently on the market, even though they had been isolated for more than four million years.</p> <p>Given that antibiotics were first used clinically after Alexander Fleming cultured <em>Penicillium</em> moulds in 1928, antibiotic resistance is generally thought of as a distinctly modern problem – and there’s no doubt our use and abuse of these wonder-molecules have created a huge and growing issue. </p> <p>A <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2821%2902724-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recent study</a> reported in <em>The Lancet </em>suggests more than 1.2 million people died in 2019 as a direct result of antimicrobial resistance. By some estimates, the death toll could reach 10 million per year by 2050 if nothing is done (by contrast, about  eight million people die from cancer each year). The <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/antibiotic-resistance" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">World Health Organization</a> identifies resistance as one of the biggest threats to global health. </p> <p>Tony Velkov, an Associate Professor in biochemistry and pharmacology at the University of Melbourne, says not enough attention is being paid to finding answers from nature; more specifically, the organisms that make their own, naturally occurring antibiotics in a dynamic environment.</p> <p>“Lessons from nature, I call them,” Velkov says.</p> <p>The majority of antibiotic medicines used clinically today are derived from natural antibiotics produced by microbes in soil and which attack rival microbes, as part of a miniature war over precious resources.</p> <p>Indeed, Fleming’s discovery of the <em>Penicillium </em>mould’s antibacterial qualities was entirely by accident, says Velkov.</p> <p>“He was growing a bacterium called <em>Staphylococcus aureus, </em>and he decided to go on a long weekend and left the plate on the bench,” he says. “He came back about a week later and he found this mould growing in one corner of the plate, and he found the bacteria that he’d been growing were scared of this mould, and they were all dying or keeping away from it.”</p> <p>Fleming’s famously understated remark upon discovering this strange antibacterial interloper was: “That’s funny”. </p> <p>Velkov is particularly fascinated by the function of antibiotics in nature, as part of epic microbial conflicts taking place at every moment. A big part of his work is looking at a pugnacious little soil microbe called <em>Paenibacillus polymyxa, </em>which is able to kill gram-negative bacteria that enter its territory by producing polymyxins, a particularly aggressive type of antibiotic.</p> <p>“Polymyxin is used in hospitals when you’re really, really sick, because it’s pretty toxic,” he says. For that reason, it’s often a medicine of last resort, which means it hasn’t had as many opportunities as other more common antibiotics, to trigger the evolution of antibiotic resistance traits in pathogens.</p> <div class="newsletter-box"> <div id="wpcf7-f6-p187842-o1" class="wpcf7" dir="ltr" lang="en-US" role="form"> </div> </div> <p>Nonetheless, polymyxin-resistance genes <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31122100/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">have been identified</a> in bacteria across Asia, Africa, Europe, North and South America and Oceania. If the power of polymyxins is usurped by these resistant pathogens, it could spell disaster for people suffering from drug-resistant bacterial infections.</p> <p>So, Velkov is trying to learn how to create new polymyxins, by mimicking soil-based battles.</p> <p>“I get the bacterium that makes that [polymyxin], and then I challenge it,” Velkov says. “I grow it opposite the bugs it hates, and they fight each other.”</p> <p>If it sounds a bit like a pathogenic boxing match, Velkov says that’s much like what he observes.</p> <p>“They actually have a bit of a battle,” he says. “You’ll see the one that makes the antibiotic starts growing towards the bacteria to push it out of the territory [the petri dish with nutrients on it], and then it secretes the polymyxins to kill it.</p> <p>“But the bug, the human pathogen, often fights back secreting stuff to kill the antibiotic-producing microbes.”</p> <p>How does all this lab-based micro-fighting translate to the real-world problem of resistance?</p> <p>According to Velkov, in medicine, humans mostly focus on producing one type of antibiotic at a time. But in the “wild”, he says, microbes can often produce a whole bunch of subtly different substances in the fight.</p> <p>“In the petri dish, when these guys are fighting each other, they make really different ones,” he says. “Ones we haven’t seen or discovered, they respond in ways we haven’t looked at.”</p> <p>In his research lab, Velkov says he’s discovered a number of new polymyxins, including one that’s in clinical development.</p> <p>So, by staging these kinds of epic battles in miniature in the laboratory, can we stave off antibiotic resistance altogether? According to Velkov, probably not. But we can optimise our participation in the evolutionary arms race.</p> <p>“You’re never going to make it go away,” he says. “This has been going on for millions of years.”</p> <p>But the hope is that by learning from how these microbes behave in nature, we can at least try to keep pace. </p> <p><img id="cosmos-post-tracker" style="opacity: 0; height: 1px!important; width: 1px!important; border: 0!important; position: absolute!important; z-index: -1!important;" src="https://syndication.cosmosmagazine.com/?id=187842&amp;title=Antibiotic+resistance%3A+an+arms+race+going+on+millions+of+years" width="1" height="1" data-spai-target="src" data-spai-orig="" data-spai-exclude="nocdn" /></p> <div id="contributors"> <p><em><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/medicine/antibiotic-resistance-millions-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/contributor/amalyah-hart" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amalyah Hart</a>. Amalyah Hart is a science journalist based in Melbourne. She has a BA (Hons) in Archaeology and Anthropology from the University of Oxford and an MA in Journalism from the University of Melbourne.</em></p> <p><em>Image: Getty Images</em></p> </div>

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"I had no choice": Tragic reason why F1 boss took his own life

<p dir="ltr">The heartbreaking reason why F1 boss Max Mosley committed suicide has been revealed.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 81-year-old was found dead with “significant injuries consistent with a gunshot wound”, <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/18101716/max-mosley-shot-himsel-terminal-cancer-diagnosis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Sun</a> reported.</p> <p dir="ltr">On Tuesday, the Westminster Coroner in London heard that Mosley had shot himself when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer.</p> <p dir="ltr">Following his terminal diagnosis, Mosley was told that he had “weeks” to live, and there was no cure for his chronic bladder and bowel pain. He was offered palliative care.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mosley was found dead lying in a pool of his blood with a double-barreled shotgun in between his knees on May 24, 2021.</p> <p dir="ltr">Outside on his bedroom door was a note that read: “Do not enter, call the police”.</p> <p dir="ltr">Police had also found a suicide note on the bedside table that was covered in blood. The only words they could make out were, “I had no choice”, the court heard.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It was obvious he had used the shotgun on himself and endured a life-ending injury. It’s clear he had injuries not compatible with life,” the coroner said.</p> <p dir="ltr">Mosley was referred to Dr Rasha Al-Quarainy, a consultant in palliative care from the Central and North West London NHS Trust, a month before his suicide.</p> <p dir="ltr">She told the courts that Mosley’s B-cell Lymphoma was “inoperable” and that he hadn’t mentioned any suicidal thoughts.</p> <p dir="ltr">“On the contrary he said that he had plans to renovate their home in Gloucestershire that wasn’t going to be finished until July.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He was still seeking treatment possibly in the US, possibly in the UK, and some other matters he spoke to me about.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Dr Christopher McNamara, a consultant haematologist, who had been treating Mosley since 2019, said he had spoken about his life.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He emailed me on 22 May 2021, these were questions about the management of the condition. He had accepted this would not be cured,” Dr McNamara said in court.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He was extremely upset as his quality of life was poor and left him uncomfortable.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He had expressed ideas of committing suicide to myself and other members of the team previously.</p> <p dir="ltr">“He never expressed a plan of doing this and all he said was that the problem was his wife would not accept this.”</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Getty</em></p>

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A MUST for any racing fan: Immortals of Australian Horse Racing review

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Australia has a long history when it comes to horse racing legends, with the likes of Phar Lap and Makybe Diva taking to the tracks over the years and quickly becoming legends.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Prolific non-fiction author Alan J. Whiticker has brought the stories of two dozen of these racers to life in his latest book </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.simonandschuster.com.au/books/Immortals-of-Australian-Horse-Racing/Alan-Whiticker/9781925946963" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals of Australian Horse Racing: the Thoroughbreds</span></a></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">(Gelding Street Press $39.99).</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;"> features in-depth statistics about each thoroughbred, with historic photos and artwork scattered throughout depicting the horses in action.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845861/horse-review2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/c1d0f6663e6141108ec25c94654d7062" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals peppers each racer’s profile with historical photos that any history buff is sure to appreciate. Image: Supplied</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He also takes the chance to bust some common myths about these famous horses, while still acknowledging the roles these tall tales play in Australia’s racing mythos.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“[Archer’s] tale has become an important part of the Melbourne Cup mythology and helped make the first dual cups winner immortal,” he writes.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Along with Archer, Whiticker’s pickings include the horses almost everyone will recognise - Phar Lap, Black Caviar, Tulloch, Kingston Town, Winx, Manikato, and Makybe Diva - plus a selection of crowd favourites such as Peter Pan, Might and Power, Gunsynd and Sunline.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But horses with celebrity status aren’t the only ones to make the cut; Whiticker also includes the lesser-known stories of freakish Vain, ‘super mare’ Wakeful, tragic Dulcify, and underrated Northerly.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845860/horse-review3.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/2ae98417b1494ab4ac59345586d10baa" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Many have come to (falsely) believe that Archer travelled from Nowra to Melbourne by hoof, but Whiticker points out that this contributes to his immortality. Image: Supplied</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Whiticker tracks each horse’s story from their birth and their debut on the track to the pitfalls and moments of victory that made them immortal.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Meanwhile, the ‘ranking’ of thoroughbreds also lays out Australia’s racing history from the start of the Melbourne Cup to Winx’s retirement in 2018, and each horse is compared to those that came before and after them.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though less knowledgeable readers may be daunted by the statistics and racing jargon at first glance, Whiticker compensates for this with his engaging and flowing style of prose.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">All in all, racing fans and history buffs will enjoy the in-depth stories that Whiticker creates, writing as if he were commentating from the sideline.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I trust this book will settle several arguments about the greatest thoroughbreds of all time and no doubt start a few more,” Whiticker writes of his selection.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“One thing is for certain: they are all unforgettable in their own right.”</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Images: Supplied</span></em></p>

Books

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Australia’s best racehorses RANKED by their winnings

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Australia and New Zealand have long histories as the home of many champion racehorses - from Phar Lap and Tulloch to Makybe Diva and Black Caviar.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Over the years these horses have also earned some hefty prizes, with some totalling in the tens of thousands.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Alan Whiticker - a longtime racing fan - has compiled the stories, stats and images of these horses among 24 featured in his new book </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.simonandschuster.com.au/books/Immortals-of-Australian-Horse-Racing/Alan-Whiticker/9781925946963" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Immortals of Australian Horse Racing</span></a></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, including their winnings.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Here are the ten of the greatest, ranked by their total winnings (adjusted for </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.rba.gov.au/calculator/annualDecimal.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">inflation</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">).</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845418/horses1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/b108deac40cb47fc9439caf034137bf4" /></p> <p><strong>Winx ($26,421,176)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Winx, the ‘Wonder Mare’, not only collected more than $26 million in her five-year racing career, but also received a swathe of awards and honours. She was Australia’s Champion Racehorse of the Year for four years running, the World’s Top-Ranked Turf Horse in 2017 and 2018, and entered Australia’s Racing Hall of Fame in 2017.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">According to Whiticker, “Winx had a V8 racing motor for a heart”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“And like all champions, her will to win was freakish.”</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845419/horses2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/5bf88fbabc9e4f5ea2921bb9589e48af" /></p> <p><strong>Sunline ($17,149,276)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The New Zealand-born racer was a popular contender both in her home country and Australia, with many arguing Sunline has been the best horse to come out of New Zealand since Phar Lap.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Between 1998 and 2002, Sunline collected more than $11 million in winnings, equivalent to about $17 million today. She was crowned both the Australian and New Zealand Racehorse of the Year three times, and entered the Hall of Fame in both countries in the early 2000s.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845420/horses3.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/b9f05f6a5a2c4f5e86bad5ba62e8fa92" /></p> <p><strong>Makybe Diva ($14, 526, 685)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Born in Somerset, England, Makybe Diva went on to win three Melbourne Cups - winning one in the same year that she placed first in the Sydney Cup.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Following her third Melbourne Cup win in 2005, owner Tony Santic declared she was officially retired.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845421/horses4.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/62915e6d93e9451fae240a8f7a8349c3" /></p> <p><strong>Super Impose ($10,973,719)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The New Zealander has become well-known for winning both the Doncaster and Epsom handicap races twice - and is the only horse that has done so.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He retired in 1992 with a record $5.6 million in winnings, before going on to live a life of comfort until his death at 22-years-old.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845422/horses5.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/211b76c03b66472c8b298bb9c4b0fff3" /></p> <p><strong>Octagonal ($10,233,179)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">New-Zealand bred Octagonal, nicknamed ‘The Big O’, came into his own as a three-year-old and secured seven wins across Randwick, Rosehill, Canterbury, and Caulfield in just a year.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In 1997, Octagonal retired with a then-record $5.89 million in prize money, equivalent to $10 million now.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845423/horses6.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/62097a6ebe2a4a6fb528033a20bd7aae" /></p> <p><strong>Better Loosen Up ($9,097,380)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Better Loosen Up, named after his sire Loosen Up, achieved victory on an international scale with his win in the 1990 Japan Cup. In the same year, he also took the top spot in the Australian Cup and several other stakes races.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Retiring three years later, Better Loosen Up’s winnings totalled $4.77 million.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845424/horses7.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/98f76bda6d0144a29fb74fa5ba81ec90" /></p> <p><strong>Might &amp; Power ($8,489,287)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another winner hailing from New Zealand, Might &amp; Power secured his first win in 1997 at Randwick just before he turned three. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Before retiring in 2000, Might &amp; Power earned a hefty $5 million in winnings, which equates to just under $8.5 million today. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He was also crowned World Champion Stayer in 1998 and has since been entered into the Halls of Fame in both Australia and New Zealand.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845425/horses8.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/10fc9c06acd642759119155ff7f0aeb3" /></p> <p><strong>Black Caviar ($7,953,936)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another racehorse with plenty of accolades to her name, Black Caviar also achieved the near-impossible by winning every single one of her races across her four-year career.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Almost four years to the day of her debut at Flemington, it was announced that she would retire to stud, taking $7.9 million in prize money with her.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845426/horses9.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/a9207975e82c4edfbea0d0c24bee12a6" /></p> <p><strong>Phar Lap ($6,659,594)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As one of racing history’s most well-known horses, Phar Lap became an icon in Australia and New Zealand and prompted both countries to claim him as their own.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The New-Zealand born racer went on to win 37 of his 51 races, including the Melbourne Cup, and earned £66,738 in winnings that equates to over $6.5 million today.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">His death in 1932 came as a shock to racing fans, with rumours emerging that claimed he was deliberately poisoned ahead of the Agua Caliente Handicap race in Tijuana, Mexico. However, Whiticker posits that his death may have been due to contaminated feed or travel sickness.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845427/horses10.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/af51500da737462ebcaba1da6a9d8e4c" /></p> <p><strong>Carbine ($6,028, 507)</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">According to Whiticker, Carbine was “the 19th century’s giant” of horse racing in Australia. The New Zealand racer not only won the 1890 Melbourne Cup, but also carried a record weight, beat the largest number of racers, and ran the fastest time.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though he was eventually sold to the Duke of Portland in England, Carbine was considered an icon by Australians.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">By the time he retired in 1891, Carbine had earned 29, 626 in prizes and come first in all but six of his 43 races.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Images: Supplied</span></em></p>

Money & Banking

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“Human race is doomed”: Model slammed over pose at her father’s funeral

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">An Instagram model has been </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/instagram-model-slammed-for-disrespectful-pose-at-fathers-funeral-c-4336312" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">called out</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> online after posting a “disrespectful” image from her father’s funeral.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">US influencer Jayne Rivera sparked a heated discussion on Reddit after she posted a photo of herself posing beside her father’s casket.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Butterfly fly away,” she captioned the photo in what was meant to be a heartfelt tribute. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">She went on to describe her dad as her “best friend” and said his life was “well lived”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But, it was the image she shared alongside the tribute that prompted it to go viral.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In the snap, the influencer is wearing a black strapless dress, casting her eyes downward, and posing with her leg bent in a “foot prop” pose that has become popular on social media.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In a second image, Ms Rivera was captured in a close-up shot with her hands together and standing right in front of her dad’s open casket.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">this Instagram model’s father passed away,,,, and she did a photo shoot with the open casket…. <a href="https://t.co/u1EVNxaajz">pic.twitter.com/u1EVNxaajz</a></p> — Mac McCann (@MacMcCannTX) <a href="https://twitter.com/MacMcCannTX/status/1453030106528632836?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Initially, her followers urged her to take it down - but its emergence on Reddit sparked further outcry.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Holy crap, is this so incredibly disrespectful,” one commenter shared.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Hey my dad died, let’s get 5000 likes!” another fumed.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I found her on Instagram and started following her, because one day I’ll have kids of my own, and I need to see where all these parents went wrong,” a third commented.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I can’t have my future kids grow up like this.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ms Rivera’s Instagram account has since been deleted.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7845135/funeral1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/21fbd12e84124d0a95ce8b2bd1cd6cf7" /></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: Reddit</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another commented on the changing attitudes towards funerals in general.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Last funeral I went to everybody just wanted it to be over so we could go to the bar and tell funny stories about the deceased,” they shared.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Human race is doomed there’s no way it will last till 3000, we need a hard reboot,” another wrote.</span></p>

Beauty & Style

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Retired race horses on track to help troubled kids

<p><em>Image: A Current Affair </em></p> <p>New charity ‘Rehab 4 Rehab' is saving the lives of children and retired racehorses on the Mornington Peninsula through a ground-breaking equine therapy program.</p> <p>Children struggling with mental health issues get paired up with clinical psychologists, occupational therapists and retired racehorses to accelerate therapy sessions.</p> <p>“We are seeing lots of children with anxiety, depression, self-harming, suicidal kids, lots of autistic kids,” found Alisha Griffiths told<span> </span><em>A Current Affair.</em></p> <p>“They are practicing exactly what they would do in the normal four white wall environments but they’re doing it on a farm with retired racehorses.”</p> <p>Ms Griffiths said she had been around horses all her life and now she wants to share them with others.</p> <p>“They also build a rapport with a psychologist a lot quicker, they trust the psychologist because they’re around a retired racehorse,” she said.</p> <p>Clinical psychologist Jo Paterson crossed path with Alisha’s charity when she was looking for somewhere to keep her own horse – and she ended up with a job.</p> <p>“When you’re talking about things that are distressing and through trauma, then you’ve got something there that can help regulate, when they get upset,” Ms Paterson said.</p> <p>There are 46 horses at Ms Griffiths property and most of them are retired racehorses.</p> <p>In order to train them for being a racehorse to a therapy horse, they settle their lives down and “show them a slower pace”.</p> <p>Head horse trainer Alex McDonough said she’s surprised by how well the horses have adjusted.</p> <p>“It’s almost like they know they’re around children,” she said.</p>

Caring

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“An absolute disaster”: Prince William calls out billionaires’ space race

<p dir="ltr">Prince William has called out the billionaires currently competing in a space tourism race instead of focusing their efforts on the environmental problems on Earth.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Duke of Cambridge directed thinly-veiled criticism at Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Richard Branson during a BBC interview at Kensington Palace.</p> <p dir="ltr">The three billionaires have been embroiled in a recent race to provide private commercial space travel.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live,”<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-15/prince-william-urges-billionaires-put-planet-before-space-race/100541038" target="_blank">William said</a>.</p> <p dir="ltr">The interview comes after Mr Musk announced his focus on reaching Mars, and after Mr Bezos said that his inaugural space flight was part of building a road to space “so that our kids and their kids can build a future”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We need to do that to solve the problems here on Earth,” Mr Bezos said.</p> <p dir="ltr">The Amazon founder recently celebrated his second suborbital space flight, which included<span> </span><em>Star Trek<span> </span></em>actor William Shatner among its passengers.</p> <p dir="ltr">The British royal family has made a trend of speaking out on environmental issues, with William following in the steps of his father Prince Charles and late grandfather Prince Philip.</p> <p dir="ltr">Prince Charles has been calling for action to stop climate change for decades, often facing ridicule for his stance.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 72-year-old heir to the throne<span> </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/travel/travel-trouble/prince-charles-shocked-that-morrison-not-confirmed-for-glasgow-climate-conference?fbclid=IwAR0yBM3BrGS_5kZp0-E8kfD0lmaoVumFZDUhBcq0LmueyAmeR1gHv8fOk8I" target="_blank">recently described</a><span> </span>the UN Climate Change Conference COP26 in Glasgow as a “last chance saloon” for combating climate change, sharing how he tries so hard to encourage world leaders to attend and take action.</p> <p dir="ltr">“It’s been a hard road for him. He’s had a really rough ride on that, and I think he’s been proven to being well ahead of the curve,” William said.</p> <p dir="ltr">“But it shouldn’t be that there’s a third generation now coming along having to ramp it up even more.”</p> <p dir="ltr">William also warned that not taking action now could be “robbing from our children’s future”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“For me, it would be an absolute disaster if [my son] George is sat here in 30 years’ time, still saying the same thing, because by then we will be too late.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Now I’ve got children as well and speaking to other parents, it’s a bit of a cliche, but you do start to see the world differently.</p> <p dir="ltr">“I want the things that I’ve enjoyed - the outdoor life, the nature, the environment - I want that to be there for my children, and not just my children but everyone else’s children.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The prince said the key to tackling the issue was to “bring people with us”.</p> <p dir="ltr">“People have got to feel like there’s hope, there’s a chance we can fix this.”</p> <p dir="ltr">He also echoed his father’s message, saying the upcoming COP26 conference had to result in action.</p> <p dir="ltr">“We can’t have more clever speak, clever words but not enough action,” William said.</p> <p dir="ltr">In response to the issue of climate change, William created the Earthshot Prize, with the aim of using new technologies or policies to solve Earth’s biggest environmental problems.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Image: @KensingtonRoyal / Twitter</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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Dying man granted his final wish

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> A dying man had his wish of a day at the races fulfilled at Morphettville’s racing track in Adelaide.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Paramedics were taking Nigel Latham home from hospital to enter palliative home care when they had a simple question for him.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“They asked me if I’d like to stop anywhere on the way,” Nigel said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I had been watching the racing in hospital, so wanted to go there.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ambulance officer Bec Sanders and colleague Laura granted the 58-year-old’s request.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“In normal circumstances I would've been there for a great day of racing,” Nigel said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I’ve been a member of the South Australian Jockey Club for the last three years and own shares in a couple of horses.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Bec and Laura worked miracles and got me there. They are commended for their care and sheer goodness of their spirit.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Nigel got to watch the action from the 200m mark with his wife Julie, and became the inspiration for a Melbourne Cup-winning jockey.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After learning of Nigel’s dying wish, Craig Williams was overcome with emotion and rode Lady Dunmore to victory.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Nigel Latham, he was the inspiration for her success today,” Williams said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After his victory, Williams rode over to Nigel and gifted him a souvenir.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“To Nigel, I said to my horse if she’d get over the line we’d make sure we give him the winning goggles and she did her job really well.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“We’d like to be grateful to people like Nigel who support the industry and have his last dying wish (of) coming here today for a great race day.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another thoughtful racegoer named Matt also joined in on the good spirit, offering him an ice-cold beer.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Nigel said the day had become one of the most memorable experiences of his life, especially with his wife by his side.</span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Given only days to live, Nigel Latham had a wish to go to the races one last time in Adelaide. The hospital and ambulance drivers made it happen. <br /><br />Hear Bensley read his emotional message of thanks after his day at the Morphettville track on Saturday. <br /><br />Incredible. <a href="https://t.co/KZ9POXfxnv">pic.twitter.com/KZ9POXfxnv</a></p> — SENTrack (@SEN_track) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEN_track/status/1389026708074885120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“People are amazing,” he said.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“I’ve had brilliant care at the Royal Adelaide Hospital. They have all tried so hard for me and then getting me to the races yesterday meant so much.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He praised the kindness of the paramedics, saying, “Thanks to Bec and Laura for making it happen, to Ian (Richardo, Morphettville track manager) for facilitating it. For Matt for the beer and for Craig for caring so much.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Bec said Nigel was exhausted but told 7NEWS “it was really lovely to see him home and happy.”</span></p> <p><strong>Image credit: 7NEWS</strong></p>

Caring

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Rare new images of F1 legend Michael Schumacher

<p><span>Michael Schumacher’s family have shared rare unseen footage of the Formula 1 legend in a new documentary.</span><br /><br /><span>The seven-time world champion has been in a medically-induced coma since 2013, after he suffered a devastating brain injury during a French Alps skiing accident.</span><br /><br /><span>The 52-year-old’s condition has been kept majorly private by his family, and since the accident over 7 years ago, only a handful of people have been given the opportunity to visit him.</span><br /><br /><span>However in the new documentary, <em>Schumacher</em>, fans will be able to see the recovering star.</span><br /><br /><span>The documentary includes private recordings the German star’s family have provided.</span><br /><br /><span>Interviews with Schumacher’s wife Corinna, their son Mick, daughter Gina-Marie and father Rolf are all expected to be featured in the film.</span><br /><br /><span>The documentary was created by filmmakers Michael Wech and Hanns-Bruno Kammertons.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7839670/f1-micheal-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/d624b30726c24f32adb82ea17654157c" /><br /><br /><span>Benjamin Seikel, who produced the documentary with Nocker, said: “We are thrilled to have had the trusting co-operation of Michael Schumacher’s family and management.</span><br /><br /><span>“Without their support, this film would not have been possible.”</span><br /><br /><span>They admired however that the Covid situation means they are unsure when it will be available for a full public view.</span><br /><br /><span>Schumacher family spokesperson Sabine Kehm said: “The film portrays Michael‘s impressive career, but also many of the facets of the complex man.</span><br /><br /><span>“The merciless and daring Formula 1 driver, the ambitious athlete, the accomplished mechanic with a unique technical flair, the reliable team player and loving family man.”</span><br /><br /><span>Schumacher’s close friend Jean Todt, who is the FIA president and former boss of Ferrari is one of a handful of people who have been allowed to see him.</span><br /><br /><span>Todt, 74, gave a rare update on Schumacher’s condition to Ouest France, saying: “I am very discreet on this subject.</span><br /><br /><span>“We all know that Michael had a very serious accident and, unfortunately, it had significant consequences for him.</span><br /><br /><span>“Since then, he has been treated so that he can be able to return to a more normal life.”</span><br /><br /><span>Todt said after a visit with the F1 legend: “He is fighting.”</span><br /><br /><span>Schumacher dominated his entire career, racking up seven championship wins, including five titles in a row between 2000 and 2004.</span><br /><br /><span>He won 91 races in total and is widely regarded as possibly the greatest F1 driver of all time.</span></p>

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