VSBfromH

I've never been a great fan of weightlifting, but Alekseyev was so dominant in the sport in the 70s that his feats will live long in my memory.

General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu "The leader of defunct Republic of Biafra, which seceded from Nigeria in 1967, has died in a London hospital at the age of 78".

Actress and dancer Maureen Swanson who appeared in the film "A Town Like Alice" and went on to become the Countess of Dudley has died aged 78.

Sena Jurinac The celebrated soprano has died at the age of 90.

Sergio Scaglietti "Sergio Scaglietti the man who designed and created the sleek bodies of the 250 Testa Rossa, 500 Mondial and many other famous Ferraris, has died aged 91 in Modena"

Danielle Mitterrand The widow of the former French president Francois Mitterrand has died at the age of 87.

Shelagh Delaney The playwright best known for "A Taste of Honey" has died aged 72.

Here's one

Lee Pockriss The co-writer of "Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini" and "Catch A Falling Star" has died at the age of 87

Another serious crash has claimed the life of Argentine racer Guido Falaschi.

Valentin Ivanov The former Torpedo Moscow forward who was joint top scorer at the 1962 World Cup has died aged 76.

Ueli Prager The founder of Mövenpick, the Swiss hotel and restaurant group, has died aged 95. Also responsible for Mövenpick ice cream, now part of Nestlé.

Chuck Ruff Drummer for Sammy Hagar and Edgar Winter dead aged 60.

Bill Gates NOT dead

Ingvar Wixell Swedish operatic baritone who performed their 1965 entry. "In a break from the then prevailing tradition, the song was sung in English (as "Absent Friend"). This led to the introduction from 1966 onwards of a rule stipulating that each country's entry must be sung in one of the languages of that country. (This rule was cancelled for the years 1973 to 1977, reinstated in 1978, and cancelled again in 1999.)".

Ingvar Wixell The Swedish baritone has died aged 80. He also sang Sweden's entry for the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest!

Marilyn Nash The actress who appeared as Charlie Chaplin's leading lady in the flop "Monsieur Verdoux" has died aged 84 or 85.

Mikey Welsh, former Weezer bassist has died aged 40.

Chaos Kid The former Eminem collaborator has committed suicide.

David Bedford (the composer, not the athlete) died on Sunday aged 74. He was known especially for his frequent collaborations with Mike Oldfield.

Aristides Pereira The former President of the Cape Verde Islands has died aged 87. In 1975 he became the first president of the former Portuguese colony following its independence, serving until 1991.

Peter Wright The Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police at the time of the Hillsborough disaster and the 1984 miners' strike has died aged 82.

Canny DDP participants may find out who the superstars of speed eating competitions are and maybe have a punt... I've checked out the photos of the 4 main protagonists, Takeru Kobayashi, Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, Sonya Thomas (a.k.a. "The Black Widow"), and Patrick "Deep Dish" Bertoletti, and surprisingly they all look quite young, trim and healthy. From Thomas's Wikipedia page: "To stay in shape, Thomas has one big meal a day, with lots of green vegetables and fresh fruit, and always avoids junk food. She exercises by walking on an inclined treadmill for two hours, five times per week. She also regularly visits all-you-can-eat buffets at restaurants. The night before a contest, she fasts all night in order to put an edge on her appetite."

Man dies after dumpling-eating contest If you're that way inclined, on the same page you can also check out the link "Woman eats 183 chicken wings in 12 minutes". I honestly didn't realise there was something called "Major League Eating". Only in the good ol' U.S. of A.!

Tom Wilson Sr. The creator of "Ziggy" has died aged 80.