Lucic advances to 2nd round at Aegon Classic

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Former Wimbledon semifinalist Mirjana Lucic of Croatia advanced to the second round of the Aegon Classic grass-court tournament on Monday, beating American qualifier Alexandra Stevenson 6-3, 7-6 (7).

The 29-year-old Lucic made the semis at Wimbledon in 1999 as a promising 17-year-old, but was absent from the WTA tour for much of the last decade for personal reasons. After spending several years on the lower-tier ITF circuit, she is now back in the top 100 for the first time since 2000.

Lucic has already earned a direct entry to Wimbledon this year, and is hoping to spring a surprise at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament once again.

"I feel I …

Organizers: Sao Paulo safe as WCup city in 2014

Organizers of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil said Thursday that Sao Paulo will remain a host city even though Morumbi stadium has been dropped because of financial issues.

Organizers and FIFA said they will work with South America's biggest city to find an alternative even though the deadline for stadium projects has passed.

"It's inadmissible to have a World Cup in Brazil without the presence of Sao Paulo," Brazilian football confederation president Ricardo Teixeira told Globo TV. "I have absolute certainty that the city and its authorities will put Sao Paulo back in the context."

FIFA and Brazilian organizers, which includes …

Political Calendar

FEBRUARY

4 Candidate filing deadline, North Carolina

5-7 Federal Election Commission regional conference, San Francisco

12 Candidate filing deadline, New Mexico

15 Incumbent filing deadline, Nebraska

17-19 National Governors Association winter meeting, Washington, D. C.

21 Candidate filing deadline, Ohio

22 Candidate filing …

US envoy says NKorea possibly holding off on nuclear declaration for fear of scrutiny

North Korea may be dragging its feet on fully declaring its nuclear activities for fear of revealing hidden programs that would invite further scrutiny, the top U.S. nuclear envoy said Thursday.

Despite the passing of a year-end deadline, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill indicated the U.S. was still prepared to wait but expected a declaration to be "complete and correct."

"I think there is concern on (North Korea's) part that to acknowledge certain activities would invite additional questioning on our part and further scrutiny on things," Hill told reporters in Beijing following a meeting with his Chinese counterpart, …

Verizon says Droid smart phone goes on sale Nov. 6

Verizon Wireless' answer to the iPhone _ the Droid _ will go on sale Nov. 6.

The after-rebate cost is $200 with a two-year contract.

Verizon revealed details Wednesday after intensely advertising the device, made by Motorola. Verizon has been pointing out the features Apple's phone lacks, such as a physical keyboard and the ability to run several applications at once.

The Droid …

Parents urged to shun toys of violence as gifts

Religious and secular groups have joined this Christmas seasonin urging parents not to buy toys of violence as gifts for theirchildren.

The United Methodist Board of Church and Society, in its"Parents' Guide to Nonviolent Toy-buying," cites Captain Power andGotcha gun as examples of undesirable items being sold.

That church also suggests gifts to its aid projects, such asfunds for nine bicycles for youth coordinators in Nigeria, waterpumps in Sumatra and scholarships for nurses in Liberia.

SYNOD GOES TO D.C.: Unlike most religious bodies, theconservative Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod generally has avoidedinvolvement in political and governmental …

Norwegian May Do Hard Time for Cake-Toss

OSLO, Norway - A student who last October threw a cake at Norway's new finance minister may face up to 15 years in prison for assaulting a government official, a state prosecutor said Friday.

On her first day in the job, Finance Minister Kristin Halvorsen, from the Socialist Left Party, was hit with the cake by a young man as she arrived at the ministry in Oslo.

The man approached her as a well-wisher who wanted to give her a cake. When she realized what was happening, Halvorsen turned away and the cake hit her in the back of the head. She was unharmed.

The man, whose name was withheld under Norwegian law but who was said to be 24 years old, has been …