All posts tagged: Alexander

Alexander Zverev overcomes nerves to win a grand slam in five-set thriller

Alexander Zverev overcomes nerves to win a grand slam in five-set thriller

In his fourth major final, Alexander Zverev can finally call himself a grand slam champion, holding his nerve to beat Flavio Cobolli 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-1. Both men were their own worst enemies at times, as the unforced error count mounted. But it was the favourite who was finally able to celebrate, falling backwards onto the clay in tears that were prompted by a mixture of both joy and relief. In 2024, when Zverev played his last Roland Garros final, his fortnight was overshadowed by a domestic violence trial that was discontinued the morning of the men’s semi-finals by a criminal court in Berlin. This time around, he has been the standout favourite since Jannik Sinner was undone by a combination of illness and heat in the second round. Only a year ago, Zverev proclaimed that “didn’t want to be the best player in history without a grand slam” and on Sunday, he ensured he would not be. The German had an ideal opportunity at the US Open in 2020 to win a …

Alexander Zverev closes in on first major title after reaching French Open final – Sports

Alexander Zverev closes in on first major title after reaching French Open final – Sports

Alexander Zverev fended off first-time semi-finalist Jakub Menšík in four sets (7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3) to reach the French Open final. A long-awaited first Grand Slam title is now in sight for the German. Friday’s all-Italian semi-final was called off when Matteo Arnaldi withdrew due to illness, leaving Flavio Cobolli to advance to his first-ever major final.  The World Cup favourites are beginning to touch down in America, with all of Germany, Argentina, and England due to play warm-up matches in the main host country on Saturday evening. For the Three Lions, a friendly against New Zealand comes in the midst of a two-week training camp in the Florida heat. Lionel Messi was back in full training with Argentina after a hamstring issue, while Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti had a positive update to give on Neymar’s fitness. French cyclist Célia Géry sprinted to a surprise victory on stage seven of the women’s Giro d’Italia at Salice Terme. Anna van der Breggen remains in the overall lead, despite a mid-stage crash, with two stages to go. Source …

Trump defrosts relations with Europe’s last dictator, Alexander Lukashenko

Trump defrosts relations with Europe’s last dictator, Alexander Lukashenko

The man known as Europe’s last dictator may soon be coming in from the cold, as President Donald Trump helps him emerge from years of isolation. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. Trump thanked Belarus’ President Alexander Lukashenko for his “cooperation and friendship” in a post on Truth Social earlier this month after a deal to release some political prisoners held by his regime, adding: “So nice!” The U.S. president has also steadily eased sanctions on Belarus’ state institutions and companies, intended to punish Vladimir Putin’s closest geopolitical ally for allowing Russia to use Belarus as a staging ground for his invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Lukashenko, for his part, has expressed hopes of sealing a “big deal” with the U.S., and could attend a meeting of Trump’s Board of Peace later this year. For many living under his regime in Belarus, Lukashenko, 71, is anything but “nice.” In power since 1994, he has been accused of flagrant human rights violations against his critics, wiping out …

Napoleon, Caesar, Alexander the Great—And Trump

Napoleon, Caesar, Alexander the Great—And Trump

Had President Trump, we wondered, possibly been reading or at least thumbing through—just maybe—the works of … Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel? Impossible. And yet. Hegel’s theory of “world-historical individuals,” men who redirected the course of humanity, focused on three figures: Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, and Napoleon Bonaparte. Hegel described them as unlikely “heroes of an Epoch” for upending established orders that had previously seemed fixed. They were “practical, political men” who were each condemned in their age for smashing norms and for other conduct “obnoxious to moral reprehension”—as Trump has been accused of, centuries later. And though Trump has long compared himself to America’s two greatest presidents, we were recently told by two people who are in a position to know such things—a senior administration official and a longtime Trump confidant—that the president had, in private conversations, begun thinking about himself less as a peer of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, and more  as an addition to Hegel’s immortal trifecta. “He’s been talking recently about how he is the most powerful person to ever …

Who Was Alexander Calder and Why Was He So Important?

Who Was Alexander Calder and Why Was He So Important?

In 1937 Calder returned to Paris, where he set up a studio in a garage outfitted with an automotive turntable, likely to facilitate the viewing and adjusting of his sculptures. That same year, he was commissioned to create Mercury Fountain for the Spanish Pavilion at the International Exposition in Paris. The work included mercury mined in Almadén, Spain, a material that symbolized Republican resistance during the Spanish Civil War. It was shown alongside Picasso’s Guernica and Miró’s The Reaper, reflecting the political engagement of these artists. Back in New York in 1938, Calder began construction of a large studio on the foundations of an old dairy barn in Roxbury and shortly afterward converted the adjoining icehouse studio into a living space known as the “Big Room.” That same year, his first retrospective, “Calder Mobiles,” was presented at the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Gallery in Springfield, Massachusetts. The show included 61 pieces of jewelry, and among the guests at the opening were designer Alvar Aalto and painter Fernand Léger. A year later, Calder was commissioned by the Museum of Modern Art …

Alexander Morton death: Monarch of the Glen actor and Leo Woodall’s stepdad dies, aged 81

Alexander Morton death: Monarch of the Glen actor and Leo Woodall’s stepdad dies, aged 81

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Monarch of the Glen actor Alexander Morton has died, aged 81. The star, who was the stepfather of White Lotus actor Leo Woodall, was best known for his role in the British series about a man trying to restore his childhood home in the Scottish highlands. He played Golly Mackenzie, a member of staff at Glenbogle, the estate the lead character inherits from his late father. Morton appeared in all 64 episodes of the show, which ran from 2000 to 2005. ‘Monarch of the Glen’ star Alexander Morton has died (BBC) The actor, who trained at Central School of Speech and Drama in London, was a stalwart of television, starring in series ranging from Casualty and Taggart to Luther and Shetland. He also founded the Raindog Theatre Company with actors Robert Carlyle and Caroline Paterson and, in the early 1990s, was …

Alexander Calder fountain is back at LACMA’s David Geffen Galleries

Alexander Calder fountain is back at LACMA’s David Geffen Galleries

What’s old is new again as sculptor Alexander Calder’s monumental “Three Quintains (Hello Girls)” is installed to anchor the northeast corner of Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s new David Geffen Galleries. The four water jets that propel the colorful, whimsical sculpture were turned back on in March more than 60 years after the piece was first commissioned for the museum’s original William Pereira–designed campus, which opened in 1965. “The concept of museums commissioning artists is now commonplace. It wasn’t commonplace then,” said LACMA’s senior curator and modern art department head, Stephanie Barron, as she watched the fountain’s bright yellow, red and blue mobile-like paddles dance and twist in the wind and water, alongside Sandy Rower, Calder’s grandson and head of his foundation. Sandy Rower, sculptor Alexander Calder’s grandson and the head of the Calder Foundation, stands beside his grandfather’s 1964 fountain, “Three Quintains (Hello Girls),” which was just installed at Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s new David Geffen Galleries. (Etienne Laurent / For The Times) Not only was the sculpture, fondly referred to …

Peter Alexander shares reason behind Saturday Today exit after 22 years with NBC

Peter Alexander shares reason behind Saturday Today exit after 22 years with NBC

Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Peter Alexander has announced he is leaving Saturday Today after nearly 22 years with NBC News. Alexander, 49, first joined the network in 2004 with a focus on international stories, including the 2005 Iraq election and the death of al-Qaeda’s Osama bin Laden. After stints covering sports and the White House for the station, he was appointed co-anchor of the Saturday edition of Today in 2018, replacing Craig Melvin. Addressing viewers on Saturday’s segment, Alexander revealed he was stepping down from his role to spend more time with family. “This morning I am bursting with pride and with gratitude. I’ve had the most incredible experience over 22 years with NBC News,” he said. “It is literally so fun, I mean, what a gig!” he quipped. “But, because I live in Washington [D.C.], it’s also a trek. I’ve been away from my …