BRISTOL -- Italy spoiled George North’s farewell international appearance as an assured Azzurri performance saw them close out their best ever Six Nations campaign at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. In a match to decide who would take home the wooden spoon, Gonzalo Quesada’s side produced a comfortable performance which was not entirely reflected by the narrow scoreline.
ROME -- Italy beat Wales 21-24, marking their second consecutive victory in the Six Nations tournament this year, and three matches without a loss.
Although they pulled ahead in the first half, ending the half 0-11, the Italians had to fight to stay ahead in the second half but ended the match 21-24.
This victory saw Italy finish fifth in the tournament rankings, with their best ever score of 11 points.
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ROME – At least 60 migrants have died after their dinghy broke off the coast of Libya, leaving them at sea for a week without food or water, rescue services said.
The 25 survivors were rescued by Ocean Viking, a ship belonging to the NGO SOS Mediterranee, however one boy rescued has since died.
The migrants had left from Zawia, a coastal city in Libya, about 30 miles west of Tripoli. Three days into the crossing, the motor on the dinghy broke, and the migrants were left in the middle of the Mediterranean with no food or potable water.
ROME – Jannik Sinner progressed to the semi-finals of Indian Wells after beating Jiri Lehecka in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3.
This victory is Sinner’s 16th consecutive win, winning all 16 matches he has played so far in 2024. He has already won the Australian Open and the ATP 500 this year.
He will face Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals on Saturday. Last year, the same pairing faced off for a spot in the finals and Alcaraz came out on top.
CORLEONE, Sicily – The courageous anti-Mafia priest Don Luigi Ciotti spearheaded solemn ceremonies this week recalling the 76th anniversary of the murder of trade unionist Placido Rizzotto by a Cosa Nostra boss in this remote mountain town made famous by the Godfather movies. The ceremonies climaxed with scores of school children reading poetry dedicated to Rizzotto in Corleone’s main Garibaldi square.
ROME – No Italian teams have qualified for the quarter finals of the UEFA Champions League after Atletico Madrid beat Inter Milan 3-2 on penalties on Wednesday night.
Out of the top five leagues in Europe, Serie A is the only league to not have any teams advance in the knockout stages of the tournament.
Inter drew with Atletico 2-2 on aggregate, however fell at the final hurdle of penalties in a surprising loss that did not reflect their strong domestic performances. A close penalty shootout finished 3-2.
BERLIN -- Within the last week, the Italian government has detained three NGO rescue ships flying the German flag. The Humanity 1, the Sea-Watch 5 and the Sea-Eye 4 are being prevented from carrying out their life-saving work on the basis of false accusations.
ROME – A 66-year-old former informant was shot and killed in a supermarket car park in Naples on Tuesday evening, police said.
Salvatore Coppola, an engineer, was shot in the face outside of a Decò supermarket in the San Giovanni a Teduccio neighbourhood.
He was a former criminal turned state informant after being caught up in a police investigation 15 years ago.