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The 2022 Welsh Open in snooker took place from 28 February to 6 March 2022 at the International Convention Centre Wales at the Celtic Manor Resort in Newport, Wales. It was the 12th ranking event of the 2021–22 snooker season, and the 31st Welsh Open. The seventh of eight tournaments in the season's European Series, it was the fourth and last event of the Home Nations Series. It was broadcast by BBC Cymru Wales, BBC Online, BBC Red Button, Quest and Eurosport domestically. Jordan Brown was the defending champion, having defeated Ronnie O'Sullivan 9–8 in the 2021 event. However, Brown lost 3–4 in his held-over qualifying match against Mitchell Mann. Joe Perry (pictured) defeated Judd Trump 9–5 in the final to win his first Welsh Open title and his second ranking title. Aged 47, Perry became the oldest to win a ranking tournament since Ray Reardon in 1982. There were 58 century breaks made during the main venue stage of the event; the highest was a 142 made by Michael White in the second round. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

Flags in the Nordic cross family

... that most national flags belong to a flag family with similar designs?
... that the Lebon Patisserie & Café in Istanbul closed in 2022, after 212 years of business, due to the high increase of monthly rent?
... that Albert Sack wrote the "bible" for a generation of weekend antique furniture buyers?
... that Dmitri Shostakovich denounced his own Tahiti Trot, an orchestral arrangement of "Tea for Two", as a political blunder?
... that Beryl Benacerraf, pioneer of the nuchal scan, wrote that dyslexia caused her to live in a world of images where "anomalies jump out at me like a neon sign"?
... that one of the first researchers to propose dolphin-assisted therapy for humans later renounced it?
... that in March 1916 the Duke of Westminster led a group of armoured cars on a 250-mile (400 km) round trip to rescue 92 men held prisoner at a remote desert oasis?
... that the success of Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay led sportswriter Bill Barnwell to quip that "anyone who has ever worn a polo shirt around McVay is now an NFL head coach"?

In the news

Kevin McCarthy

The Republican Party wins a majority in the United States House of Representatives (Republican politician Kevin McCarthy pictured) following the midterm elections.
NASA's Artemis 1 is successfully launched on an uncrewed test flight to the Moon.
The United Nations estimates the world population to have exceeded eight billion.
In cricket, the ICC Men's T20 World Cup concludes with England defeating Pakistan in the final.

On this day

November 18

Mark Twain in 1867

1210 – Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor, was excommunicated by Pope Innocent III after Otto commanded him to annul the Concordat of Worms.
1865 – "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" was published, becoming the first great success of American author Mark Twain (pictured).
1956 – At the Polish embassy in Moscow, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev said "We will bury you" while addressing Western envoys, prompting them to leave the room.
1991 – Croatian War of Independence: The Yugoslav People's Army captured the Croatian city of Vukovar, ending an 87-day siege.
2014 – Two Palestinian men attacked the praying congregants of a synagogue in Jerusalem with axes, knives, and a gun, resulting in eight deaths, including the attackers themselves.

Thomas Burgess (b. 1756)
Dorothy Dix (b. 1861)
Tara Singh Hayer (d. 1998)

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Headquarters of the ILO in Geneva

There are 187 member states of the International Labour Organization (ILO), a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that sets international standards related to work. Established in 1919 as a result of the Treaty of Versailles, the ILO was the first agency to be incorporated into the United Nations in 1946. It is the third-oldest pre-existing UN agency, the fourth-oldest existing multilateral organization, and the only remaining organization with direct links to the League of Nations. The ILO started with 42 member states, of which 29 are considered founder members as signatories to the Treaty of Versailles; another 13 states, not signatories, were invited to be members and granted status as founder members. All member states of the ILO are also member states of the United Nations, but seven UN member states which have not joined the ILO. Since establishment, 19 states have withdrawn from membership, although all subsequently rejoined. (Full list...)

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The Caves of Hercules is an archaeological cave complex located in Cape Spartel, Morocco. Situated 14 kilometres (9 mi) west of Tangier, the popular tourist attraction is adjacent to the summer palace of the king of Morocco. The cave itself is partly natural and partly man-made. The man-made portion was used by Berbers to cut stone wheels from the walls to make millstones, resulting in the ridges visible on the walls in this photograph of the cave's interior.

Photograph credit: Diego Delso

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