US SPORTS/ RULER ON ICE WINS THE BELMONT: Kentucky Derby winner Animal Kingdom nearly fell at the start and Preakness winner Shackleford faded in the stretch. That left yesterday's runing of The Belmont Stakes up for grabs. And it was 24-1 long shot Ruler on Ice who delivered a huge upset Saturday in the final leg of the Triple Crown, splashing his way to a 3/4 length victory over Stay Thirsty, with Brilliant Speed coming in 3rd. Shackleford finished 5th, while Animal Kingdom had a frightful start, never moved into contention and finished 6th. Ruler On Ice's victory makes it 3 years in a row a different horse has won each of the Triple Crown races, and next year it will be a 33 year gap since Affirmed swept the Derby, Preakness and Belmont in 1978. Ruler On Ice did not run in the 1st 2 legs of the Triple Crown. The 3 year old didn't have enough graded stakes earnings to qualify for the Derby, but vindicated his trainer's faith by defeating a field that included the 1st 7 finishers in the Run for the Roses. He became the 2nd gelding, along with Creme Fraiche in 1985, to win the Belmont.
US Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords D-Arizona has released the 1st pictures of herself since she was shot in the head in January. 2 pictures have been posted on her Facebook page. Giffords, 41, was seriously injured during a shooting spree by a gunman in Tucson, Arizona, that killed 6 people and wounded 13 others, on January 8 She is being treated at a clinic in Houston, Texas. Doctors say she has been recovering well. In an interview with an Arizona newspaper published on Thursday, Giffords' Chief of Staff said she still had only limited speaking ability. But the Cheif of Staff said yesterday that she could be released from the rehabilitation clinic in the coming weeks. In one of the pictures released today, Giffords is smiling at the camera. In the other, she is sitting with her Mother, who has not left her side since she was shot. Both photographs were taken on May 17. Many well-wishers left messages on the page, including: "Gabby, you look wonderful! Keep up the fight to get well".
Rainbows were everywhere at the Tel Avivs' annual gay parade held on Friday. Organizers of Friday's parade estimated that more than 100,000 Israelis, plus another 5000 tourists, took part. Every square metre of shade was crammed, friends greeted one another with sweaty kisses and hugs, stalls selling ice-cold beer were doing brisk trade and traffic jams backed up around closed streets. Tel Aviv, in sharp contrast to Jerusalem, is a liberal, hedonistic and secular city, where leisure life revolves around beaches, cafes and nightclubs. Thousands poured onto Tel Aviv's Gordon Beach at the end of the annual Gay Pride parade in celebration of sexual freedom, tolerance and their city's ambition to be the most gay-friendly place on earth. According to Tel Aviv's 30 year old deputy mayor, Asaf Zamir, about 17% of the city's 403,000 population is gay. ''It's a very strong community here, a comfortable arena for the gay community. Two men walking hand in hand is a very normal thing,'' he said. The city municipality funded a gay centre and was promoting gay tourism, he added. Shai Doitsch, a spokesman for Aguda, Israel's national gay organisation, said lesbians and gay men were not confined to specific bars or clubs. ''We really are a gay city,'' he said. ''There are no special gay areas, if you are gay or lesbian, you are welcome everywhere.'' But there was still a need for campaigning in Israel, Doitsch said. ''We're not in paradise yet,'' he said. ''Jerusalem is a very sensitive place. We don't expect to have gay pride parades in Mea Sharim, an ultra-orthodox area of that city". Jerusalem hosts an annual Gay Pride march, which is a much more political event than the Tel Aviv celebration. Homosexuality is unacceptable to both ultra-orthodox Jews and Muslims. According to Zamir, gay Palestinians also come to Tel Aviv, many illegally, to enjoy its liberal atmosphere, but they do so quietly. Palestinians from the West Bank and Gaza are not permitted to cross into Israel without a permit, which is rarely granted.
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