While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, May 7
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Britain's King Charles greets Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his wife first lady Rosangela da Silva on May 5, 2023.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Brazil’s Lula says King Charles urged him to protect Amazon
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva revealed on Saturday that King Charles III, a fervent environmentalist, had personally asked him to protect the Amazon rainforest.
Lula and the British monarch met at Buckingham Palace in London on Friday evening, on the eve of the king’s coronation.
“The first thing the king said to me was that I should take care of the Amazon,” Lula told a press conference in London.
Young British royals step forward at coronation
AFP
The youngest generation of royals stepped into the limelight on Saturday at King Charles III’s coronation, although the two smallest remained at home in California.
Prince Harry’s young children Archie, whose fourth birthday clashed with the coronation, and Lilibet 23 months, were with their mother Meghan while their father put in a solo appearance in London.
Their older cousins – George, nine, a future king himself, Charlotte, eight, and Louis, five – were, however, old enough to take part in the solemn two-hour ceremony at Westminster Abbey attended by kings, queens and heads of state.
Sabalenka earns Swiatek revenge to win Madrid Open
EPA-EFE
World number two Aryna Sabalenka played a superb attacking game to beat top ranked Iga Swiatek 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 and win the Madrid Open for the second time on Saturday.
The big-hitting Belarusian gained revenge for defeat by her Polish rival in the Stuttgart final a fortnight ago with a thrilling triumph to end Swiatek’s nine-match winning streak ahead of her French Open defence.
Two-time Roland Garros winner Swiatek fought her way back into the match after an explosive start by Sabalenka, but the second seed came back strongly in the third set to win the first WTA 1000 final featuring the top two ranked players since 2014.
Red Bull’s Perez takes pole position for the Miami Grand Prix
AFP
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez took pole position for the Miami Grand Prix after posting a time of 1:26.841 in Saturday’s qualifying.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was second and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz will start in third while world champion Max Verstappen will start back in ninth spot.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc crashed out with one minute 36 seconds left, causing a red flag and the decision was taken not to resume the session.
Salah strike fires Liverpool to 1-0 win over Brentford
AFP
An early goal by Mohamed Salah was enough to give Liverpool a 1-0 Premier League win over Brentford on Saturday that keeps the pressure on fierce rivals Manchester United in the hunt for Champions League football next season.
Their sixth league win in a row left the Merseysiders in fifth spot on 62 points, one behind fourth-placed United, but the Red Devils have two games in hand over Liverpool. Brentford are ninth on 50 points.
Before the game got underway, the Liverpool fans loudly booed, whistled and chanted their team’s name as the national anthem was played to mark the coronation of King Charles in London earlier on Saturday.
