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Berry and Cindric secure final spots in NASCAR’s Clash after thrilling last chance heat

By
The Associated Press
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Josh Berry and Austin Cindric claimed the final two spots in NASCAR’s preseason exhibition race by finishing 1-2 in the last chance qualifying heat at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem.

The Clash was originally scheduled for Sunday and twice postponed because of a snowstorm that blanketed North Carolina and pushed the non-points event to Wednesday.

Berry ran away with the win in the heat race in the No. 21 for Wood Brothers Racing, a team affiliated with Team Penske. Cindric had a much tougher task as he raced side-by-side for over 15 laps with Corey Lajoie for the second transfer position.

Lajoie was the injury replacement driver for Brad Keselowski, co-owner of RFK Racing, who is healing from a broken leg suffered in a fall in December. He held his own against fellow Ford driver Cindric, in a Penske entry, as the two jostled back-and-forth for second.

AJ Allmendinger as they came to the checkered flag gave Cindric a shove in the hopes of moving both Cindric and Lajoie out of his way so that Allmendinger could take the final spot. The move instead pushed Cindric firmly ahead of Lajoie for the final spot in the 200-lap Clash at the historic short track.

Bowman Gray is hosting The Clash for the second consecutive year. It was held at Daytona International Speedway for 43 years from its inception in 1979 through 2021, then moved for three seasons to a temporary track inside Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Among those who missed making the field for The Clash were Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Todd Gilliland, who both spent a day this week shoveling snow out of the grandstands at Bowman Gray to help NASCAR prepare the facility.

Main event

Kyle Larson, the reigning Cup Series champion, will start the The Clash from the pole alongside Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron, the two-time defending Daytona 500 winner.

Denny Hamlin, who had an emotionally traumatic rollercoaster of an offseason, will start sixth in his first time in a car since he dramatically lost the Cup title in November. Hamlin revealed before the race that he re-injured a torn labrum that was surgically repaired ahead of the 2025 season when he slipped in the debris from the December house fire that killed his father and critically injured his mother.

He said he’d hold off on repairing it until the end of this upcoming season.

“I don’t think that it ever healed properly,” Hamlin said. “Took a little fall at my mom’s house, going through all the rubble and stuff, and just didn’t feel right. Got it rescanned and retore it again.”

Up next

Teams report to Daytona International Speedway next week for the Feb. 15 season-opening Daytona 500. Qualifying for the pole is next Wednesday and the rest of the field will be set via a pair of Thursday races.

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

Experimental cholesterol-lowering pill may offer new option for millions

By
The Associated Press
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WASHINGTON (AP) — A new kind of pill sharply reduced artery-clogging cholesterol in people who remain at high risk of heart attacks despite taking statins, researchers reported Wednesday.

It’s still experimental but the pill helps rid the body of cholesterol in a way that today can be done only with injected medicines. If approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the pill, named enlicitide, could offer an easier-to-use option for millions of people.

Statins block some of the liver’s production of cholesterol and are the cornerstone of treatment. But even taking the highest doses, many people need additional help lowering their LDL, or “bad,” cholesterol enough to meet medical guidelines.

In a major study, more than 2,900 high-risk patients were randomly assigned to add a daily enlicitide pill or a dummy drug to their standard treatment. The enlicitide users saw their LDL cholesterol drop by as much as 60% over six months, researchers reported in the New England Journal of Medicine.

There are other pills that patients can add to their statins “but none come close to the degree of LDL cholesterol lowering that we see with enlicitide,” said study lead author Dr. Ann Marie Navar, a cardiologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

That benefit dropped only slightly over a year, and there was no safety difference between those taking the pill or placebo, researchers found. One caveat: The pill must be taken on an empty stomach.

Heart disease is the nation’s leading cause of death and high LDL cholesterol, which causes plaque to build up in arteries, is a top risk factor for heart attacks and strokes. While an LDL level of 100 is considered fine for healthy people, doctors recommend lowering it to at least 70 once people develop high cholesterol or heart disease — and even lower for those at very high risk.

Statin pills like Lipitor and Crestor, or their cheap generic equivalents, are highly effective at lowering LDL. For additional help, some powerful injected drugs work differently, blocking a liver protein named PCSK9 that limits the body’s ability to clear cholesterol from blood. Yet only a small fraction of people who could benefit from PCSK9 inhibitors use them. While prices for the costly shots have dropped recently, patients still may dislike administering shots and Navar said they’re more complex for doctors to prescribe.

Merck funded Wednesday’s study, which provides some of the final data needed to seek FDA approval of enlicitide. The FDA has added the drug to a program promising ultra-fast reviews.

The research offers “compelling evidence” that the new pill lowers cholesterol about as much as those PCSK9 shots, Dr. William Boden of Boston University and the VA New England Healthcare System, who wasn’t involved with the study, wrote in the journal.

Boden cautioned there’s no data yet showing the pill’s cholesterol-reduction translates into fewer heart attacks, strokes and death. That takes much longer than a year to prove. Merck has a study of more than 14,000 patients underway to tell.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Melania Trump meets with freed American-Israeli hostage whose story she features in her new film

By
The Associated Press
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Melania Trump on Wednesday met with a freed American-Israeli hostage whose plight she featured in her new film, which includes footage from a meeting last year with the man’s wife.

Keith and Aviva Siegel were among some 251 people taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people.

Keith Siegel was held for 484 days until he was released in February 2025 under a U.S.-brokered ceasefire with Israel shortly after Donald Trump began his second term as president. His wife was held for 51 days before she was freed in November 2023 under a previous ceasefire.

Melania Trump on Wednesday recounted the “emotional meeting” she had with Aviva Siegel in New York in January 2025, just before Trump took office again.

“After Aviva was freed, she called me, wanted to see me and we set up a meeting in New York,” the first lady said as she sat between the Siegels in the White House Blue Room. “It was emotional meeting, and it is captured on camera and available to see in my film, ‘Melania.’”

She said Aviva Siegel gave her two of Keith Siegel’s books and she gave them to Donald Trump when she got home and told him about the situation. “I know he was fighting for all of the hostages and, as we know now, all of the hostages are free and home with the families.”

“Aviva was a warrior. She is a warrior. She was fighting very hard for Keith, and I know he suffered a lot,” Melania Trump said before she turned to address him. “I’m happy to see you healthy and home with your children, your grandchildren, with your family.”

Asked by a reporter if it was appropriate for her to use an official White House event to promote the reported $40 million, Amazon-funded documentary, the first lady said she wasn’t doing that.

“This is not promotion,” Melania Trump said. “We are here celebrating the release of the hostages, of Aviva and Keith. They were in Washington, D.C., and they called me. They said they would like to come over to thank me and to give hugs, and that’s why we are here. It’s nothing to do with promotion.”

Keith Siegel thanked the president and first lady, and he and his wife complimented Melania Trump on the documentary, which was released last week. It chronicles her life in the 20 days leading up to Trump’s second inauguration.

“I want to thank you for being a caring, compassionate person and for supporting and helping Aviva during those difficult days, and you helped her enormously, in many ways,” he said. “I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to say that to you in person, sitting next to you.”

Aviva Siegel told the first lady their meeting “gave me so much hope, and I could feel your heart with me.”

Melania Trump had not publicly disclosed the meeting with Aviva Siegel until the documentary opened in theaters last Friday. It includes scenes of the first lady comforting Aviva Siegel as she expresses concern for her husband and starts to cry.

Melania Trump promised to pray for Keith and said in the film, “I will always use my influence and power to fight for those in need.” She takes credit for helping earn his release.

At the end of the film, a series of title cards lists the accomplishments from her first year back as first lady, and says: “Melania Trump played a key role in securing the release of Keith Siegel after 484 days as a hostage in Gaza, just 12 days after the inauguration.”

Plastic surgeons group calls for delaying gender-affirming surgery until age 19

By
The Associated Press
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The nation’s largest professional organization for plastic surgeons recommended that gender-affirming surgeries be delayed until patients turn 19, changing the group’s stance on the politically charged issue and diverging from several other major medical organizations’ guidance.

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons said Tuesday that it found “insufficient evidence” that the benefits of chest, genital and facial surgeries on minors experiencing gender dysphoria outweigh the risks. It leaned on two recent and heavily debated publications on the topic, the Cass Review by a senior doctor in England and a 2025 report issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

“This position statement doesn’t seek to deny or minimize the reality of any patient’s distress, and it does not question the authenticity of any patient’s experience,” the position statement reads. “Instead, ASPS affirms that truly humane, ethical, and just care, particularly for children and adolescents, must balance compassion with scientific rigor, developmental considerations and concern for long-term welfare.”

The statement is not a clinical guideline, the document notes. The society also did not do an independent evidence assessment or take other steps that would be involved in setting new care guidelines.

Other medical groups stand by their guidance

The shift comes as President Donald Trump’s administration pressures health care providers to limit or stop gender-affirming care for transgender people, particularly children.

“Today marks another victory for biological truth in the Trump administration,” Deputy Health and Human Services Secretary Jim O’Neill said in a statement. “The American Society of Plastic Surgeons has set the scientific and medical standard for all provider groups to follow.”

Other major medical associations stood their ground, noting current guidelines already call for caution around surgery for minors.

Gender-affirming surgery is rare among U.S. children, research shows. And fewer than 1 in 1,000 U.S. adolescents receive gender-affirming medications.

The American Academy of Pediatrics “does not include a blanket recommendation for surgery for minors” with gender dysphoria, said its president, Dr. Andrew Racine. “The AAP continues to hold to the principle that patients, their families, and their physicians — not politicians — should be the ones to make decisions together about what care is best for them.”

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health, which develops standards of care for transgender patients globally, reiterated its support for access to surgical care for minors under “cautious guidelines and criteria.”

The group’s guidelines oppose a “definitive age or ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach for every patient.” Decisions should be case-by-case, based on the evaluations of multiple types of health experts and experts in adolescent development.

“WPATH stands firm in its commitment to advancing evidence-informed clinical guidelines to help improve the lives and well-being of transgender people around the world,” the group said in a statement.

Hospitals halt gender-affirming care for kids

Gender-affirming care for transgender youth under standards widely used in the U.S. entails developing a plan with medical experts and family members that includes supportive talk therapy and can — but does not always — involve puberty blockers or hormone treatment. Many U.S. adolescents with gender dysphoria may decide not to proceed with medications or surgeries.

Still, the Trump administration moved in December to cut off gender-affirming care for minors, prompting a third of states to sue. It was the latest in a series of clashes between an administration that says transgender health care can be harmful to children and advocates who say it’s medically necessary.

Under pressure from the administration, hospitals across the country have suspended gender-affirming care for minors, most recently Children’s Minnesota, which plans to pause prescribing puberty-suppressing medications and hormones for patients under age 18 citing federal “threats.”

“This is not the decision we wanted to make,” the health system said in a statement. “This is the decision we had to make to protect our hospital and our providers. We stand firmly behind the fact that gender-affirming care is evidence-based, safe and lifesaving.”

The plastic surgeons group also acknowledged that “variability in regulatory and legal environments” played a role in the decision to issue a statement, saying the lack of evidence on the benefits of gender-affirming care means “surgical decision-making carries heightened ethical, clinical and legal risk.”

Dr. Scot Glasberg, who helped develop the statement, said deliberations over the language started in 2024 and were not politically influenced, despite the issue being highly charged.

“This was an iterative process that took time, with no outside pressure,” said Glasberg, a past president of the surgeons group. “We understand there will be different opinions about it and we respect those opinions.”

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Google’s quarterly results paint a picture of an internet powerhouse getting stronger in AI age

By
The Associated Press
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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google’s latest quarterly report provided further evidence that its internet empire is withstanding an artificial intelligence shakeup that’s turning into another potential boon for the company.

The numbers released Wednesday marked Google’s third consecutive quarter of digital ad growth of more than 10% from the previous year, while also posting more than 30% sales growth in its division that powers data centers for AI services.

Those increases during the October-December period propelled Google’s corporate parent Alphabet Inc. well past the earnings forecasts of stock market analysts.

Alphabet’s fourth-quarter profit rose 30% from the prior year to $34.5 billion, or $2.82 per share, while revenue climbed 18% to $113.8 billion.

The collective momentum of Google’s main business in search and advertising and the still-nascent AI field indicates a company born during the late 1990s internet boom is becoming even stronger during another technology phenomenon nearly 30 years later.

“Search saw more usage than ever before, with AI continuing to drive an expansionary moment,” Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said.

Google’s successful evolution has helped drive up Alphabet’s stock price nearly 60% in the past five months, giving it a $4 trillion market value. That may have raised the bar for Alphabet to impress investors as the company’s shares dipped 1% in extended trading following the report.

Apple, also currently worth $4 trillion, thinks so highly of Google’s AI that the iPhone maker recently struck a deal to use Google’s Gemini technology in a long-delayed upgrade to its virtual assistant, Siri.

Google is also embedding more of its Gemini AI into its long-dominant search engine, Gmail and Chrome browser as it tries to avoid complacency and being outmaneuvered by up-and-coming companies such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Perplexity.

To meet the challenge, Alphabet has been on a spending spree to expand its AI capacity. After pouring $91 billion into capital expenditures devoted mostly to AI last year, the Mountain View, California company is expected to spend even more this year. Its capital expenditure budget has ballooned from about $30 billion annually since 2022 when OpenAI released its ChatGPT chatbot to much acclaim, prompting Google to pull out all the stops to catch up.

Google’s thriving digital ad business is helping finance the spree. Its digital ad sales totaled $82.3 billion in the fourth quarter, up 14% from the previous year. Google Cloud, which oversees the data centers behind many AI services, posted revenue of $17.7 billion, a 48% increase.

Search saw more usage

than ever before, with AI continuing to drive an expansionary moment

College football’s February signing period is quiet for most schools. Penn State is an exception

By
The Associated Press
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College football’s February signing period is pretty much an afterthought for most schools nowadays, but it meant plenty to new Penn State coach Matt Campbell.

Penn State signed only two high school recruits during the December signing period because the Nittany Lions hadn’t yet hired Campbell away from Iowa State. That left Campbell quite busy trying to put together a freshman class while also working the transfer portal and hiring his staff.

“The last two months has been a whirlwind in a multitude of different ways,” Campbell said Wednesday.

Penn State now has an incoming freshman class of 15 recruits, and most of them originally signed with Iowa State before following Campbell to his new school. Most of the high school seniors who initially had committed to Penn State landed at Virginia Tech in December after James Franklin was fired as the Nittany Lions’ coach and got hired by the Hokies.

Although Penn State’s class still ranks in the bottom third of the Big Ten, according to composite rankings of recruiting sites compiled by 247Sports, it looks much greater than it did a couple of months ago. Penn State also had added over three dozen transfers, with the majority of them also coming over from Iowa State.

One of the top former Iowa State recruits to end up at Penn State is edge rusher Elijah Reeder. He can team up with December signee Jackson Ford to give the Nittany Lions a pair of promising pass-rushing prospects.

Penn State was an anomaly in signing most of its incoming freshman class in February rather than December. Virtually all the major college prospects now finalize their college plans in December as the February signing date has faded in relevance.

One notable player who remained uncommitted heading into the February signing period was edge rusher Dylan Berymon, who announced he will play for Nebraska. Berymon is the nation’s No. 223 prospect in his class, according to the 247Sports Composite.

“Big, powerful, strong kid,” said Tom Loy, a national recruiting analyst for 247Sports. “Just want to continue to see him keep his motor up, keep the weight down, but he’s a guy Nebraska’s very excited about.”

Notre Dame also made some news Wednesday by signing quarterback Teddy Jarrard, who had been a 2027 prospect before reclassifying. The move enabled Jarrard to sign with Notre Dame on Wednesday and begin his college career this fall.

Jarrard will have a chance to compete for the right to serve as the main backup to returning starter CJ Carr. Kenny Minchey, who backed up Carr this past season, has transferred to Kentucky.

Minchey’s exit leaves Carr, Jarrard, incoming freshman Noah Grubbs and Blake Hebert as Notre Dame’s only scholarship quarterbacks. Hebert didn’t play as a true freshman this past season.

“You look at the size, the frame, the mechanics, there’s a lot to like about Teddy Jarrard,” Loy said. “I think he’s the most likely next-up option after CJ Carr.”

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Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Patrick Mahomes’ father arrested after authorities say he violated DWI probation

By
The Associated Press
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TYLER, Texas (AP) — The father of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has been arrested in Texas after authorities said he violated his probation from a conviction for driving while intoxicated.

Patrick “Pat” Mahomes Sr., 55, was arrested Tuesday during a meeting with his probation officer after a warrant was obtained for a probation violation, authorities said. He remained in Smith County jail in Tyler on Wednesday. His attorney did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press.

The elder Mahomes was sentenced to five years probation after pleading guilty in August 2024 to a DWI charge. On Jan. 1, he had a high alcohol reading on his ankle monitor, according to a probation violation report.

Mahomes Sr. had been arrested on the DWI charge in February 2024, a little more than a week before his son led the Chiefs to a second straight Super Bowl championship with a win over San Francisco.

Smith County jail records show multiple DWI arrests over the years for the elder Mahomes.

Mahomes Sr. is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for six teams during an 11-year major league career that ended in 2003, according to Baseball Reference.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Veteran Olympics broadcaster to replace Savannah Guthrie as co-host

By
The Associated Press
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With the search for “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother continuing, NBC says that veteran Olympics broadcaster Mary Carillo will replace Guthrie as co-host on Friday’s telecast of the opening ceremonies for the Winter Games.

The mystery of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearanc e — investigators believe she was taken from her Arizona home against her will — has cast a pall over what was anticipated to be a giant week for the television network.

The Olympics is among the few events to still draw consistent, big audiences to broadcast television. Other notable draws include the Super Bowl, which NBC is due to televise this weekend.

Savannah Guthrie had been scheduled to co-host the opening ceremony with Terry Gannon, but NBC said she was no longer traveling to Italy because of her mother’s disappearance.

Carillo is a familiar face to people who watch the Olympics — these will be her 17th Olympic Games — and she will co-host with Gannon.

Carillo lived in Milan for two years as a child, NBC said. She has hosted closing ceremonies at three Olympic games — in Salt Lake City in 2002, Beijing in 2008 and Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

Guthrie’s “Today” show co-host, Craig Melvin, is also not going to Italy, NBC said. He was due to host late-night Olympics broadcasts early next week, and he’ll be replaced in that role by Ahmed Fareed.

NBC News has aggressively covered the story of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance, but it hasn’t been alone. It was the lead story of ABC’s “World News Tonight” on Tuesday, too.

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David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.

Lakers’ Jaxson Hayes has been suspended 1 game for pushing Wizards mascot ‘G-Wiz’

By
The Associated Press
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Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes received a one-game suspension on Wednesday for pushing the Washington Wizards’ mascot before a game last week.

Hayes pushed the mascot “G-Wiz” during pre-game introductions ahead of the Lakers’ 142-111 win on Friday.

Hayes had 10 points, three rebounds, an assist and a steal off the bench. He will serve the suspension on Feb. 5 when the Lakers host the Philadelphia 76ers, according to a statement from the NBA.

Hayes was drafted by Atlanta in the first round of the 2019 draft, but his rights were immediately traded over to New Orleans. He spent his first four seasons with the Pelicans before joining the Lakers in 2023.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Former Indiana Rep. Lee Hamilton, leader of Sept. 11 panel, dies

By
The Associated Press
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Former Rep. Lee Hamilton, a crewcut-wearing Indiana Democrat who was a leading foreign affairs voice during three decades in Congress and helped oversee investigations of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, died Tuesday. He was 94.

Hamilton, who also led a congressional probe of the Reagan administration’s Iran-Contra affair while representing a rural southern Indiana district, died peacefully in his home in Bloomington, Indiana, said his son Doug Hamilton, who did not cite a specific cause.

Hamilton was at the forefront of congressional opposition to the 1991 Persian Gulf War waged by President George H.W. Bush and advocated continued economic sanctions against Iraq before military action over its invasion of Kuwait.

He decided against seeking reelection in 1998 and said after leaving Congress that he believed the U.S. needed to be regarded around the world as more than a leader of military coalitions.

“The United States must be — and must be seen as — an optimistic and benign power,” Hamilton said in 2003. “We must speak and act as a source of optimism, a beacon of freedom, a benign power forging a consensus approach toward a world of peace and growth and freedom. And American power must be accompanied by American generosity.”

President Barack Obama presented Hamilton with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, saying during the ceremony that Hamilton was a man “widely admired” on both sides of the aisle “for his honesty, his wisdom, and consistent commitment to bipartisanship.”

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Former Associated Press Writer Tom Davies contributed to this report.

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