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81-year-old SKorean Falls Short in Bid to Become Oldest Miss Universe Contestant

South Korean Choi Soon-hwa, 81-year-old, performs during the 2024 Miss Universe Korea in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
South Korean Choi Soon-hwa, 81-year-old, performs during the 2024 Miss Universe Korea in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
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81-year-old SKorean Falls Short in Bid to Become Oldest Miss Universe Contestant

South Korean Choi Soon-hwa, 81-year-old, performs during the 2024 Miss Universe Korea in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
South Korean Choi Soon-hwa, 81-year-old, performs during the 2024 Miss Universe Korea in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

An 81-year-old model fell short in her bid to become the oldest Miss Universe contestant after competing in the South Korean pageant against much younger rivals.
Dressed in a beaded white gown, the silver-haired Choi Soon-hwa strutted across the stage and performed in a singing contest at the Miss Universe Korea pageant held Monday at a hotel in South Korea’s capital, Seoul.
She missed out on the crown but did take home the “best dresser” award.
Han Ariel, a 22-year-old fashion school student, won the contest and will head to Mexico City for the Miss Universe pageant in November.
Choi, a former hospital care worker who began her modeling career in her 70s, was announced as a Miss Universe Korea finalist earlier this month along with 31 other contestants.
“Even at this age, I had the courage to grab onto an opportunity and take on a challenge," Choi told The Associated Press hours before Monday's pageant.
“I want people to look at me and realize that you can live healthier and find joy in life when you find things you want to do and challenge yourself to achieve that dream.”
It would have been impossible for Choi to compete in the pageant a year ago as Miss Universe had limited the participation to women between 18 and 28. The age limit, which had long drawn criticism, was lifted this year to make the competition more modern and diverse.
Organizers of the Korean pageant also removed the swimsuit competition and eligibility requirements related to education, height and foreign language abilities to open the contest to more women.

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Varieties

Thieves Drill into a German Bank Vault and Steal Tens of Millions of Euros Worth of Property

Police officers stand in front of the savings bank branch in the Buer district in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025 following a break-in into the bank's vault. (Christoph Reichwein/dpa via AP)
Police officers stand in front of the savings bank branch in the Buer district in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025 following a break-in into the bank's vault. (Christoph Reichwein/dpa via AP)
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Thieves Drill into a German Bank Vault and Steal Tens of Millions of Euros Worth of Property

Police officers stand in front of the savings bank branch in the Buer district in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025 following a break-in into the bank's vault. (Christoph Reichwein/dpa via AP)
Police officers stand in front of the savings bank branch in the Buer district in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025 following a break-in into the bank's vault. (Christoph Reichwein/dpa via AP)

Thieves stole tens of millions of euros worth of property from safety deposit boxes inside a German bank vault that they drilled into Monday during the holiday lull, police said.

Some 2,700 bank customers were affected by the theft in Gelsenkirchen, police and the Sparkasse bank said.

Thomas Nowaczyk, a police spokesperson, said investigators believe the theft was worth between 10 and 90 million euros ($11.7 to 105.7 million).

German news agency dpa reported that the theft could be one of Germany's largest heists.

The bank remained closed Tuesday, when some 200 people showed up demanding to get inside, dpa reported.

A fire alarm summoned police officers and firefighters to the bank branch shortly before 4 a.m. Monday. They found a hole in the wall and the vault ransacked. Police believe a large drill was used to break through the vault's basement wall.

Witnesses told investigators they saw several men carrying large bags in a nearby parking garage over the weekend. Video footage from the garage shows masked people inside a stolen vehicle early Monday, police said.

Gelsenkirchen is about 192 kilometers (119 miles) northwest of Frankfurt.

Varieties

The Year's First Meteor Shower and Supermoon Clash in January Skies

People look up to the sky from an observatory near the village of Avren, Bulgaria, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Petar Petrov, File)
People look up to the sky from an observatory near the village of Avren, Bulgaria, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Petar Petrov, File)
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The Year's First Meteor Shower and Supermoon Clash in January Skies

People look up to the sky from an observatory near the village of Avren, Bulgaria, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Petar Petrov, File)
People look up to the sky from an observatory near the village of Avren, Bulgaria, Aug. 12, 2009. (AP Photo/Petar Petrov, File)

The year's first supermoon and meteor shower will sync up in January skies, but the light from one may dim the other.

The Quadrantid meteor shower peaks Friday night into Saturday morning, according to the American Meteor Society. In dark skies during the peak, skygazers typically see around 25 meteors per hour, but this time they'll likely glimpse less than 10 per hour due to light from Saturday's supermoon, The AP news reported.

“The biggest enemy of enjoying a meteor shower is the full moon,” said Mike Shanahan, planetarium director at Liberty Science Center in New Jersey.

Meteor showers happen when speedy space rocks collide with Earth’s atmosphere, burning up and leaving fiery tails in their wake — the end of a “shooting star.” A handful of meteors are visible on any given night, but predictable showers appear annually when Earth passes through dense streams of cosmic debris.

Supermoons occur when a full moon is closer to Earth in its orbit. That makes it appear up to 14% bigger and 30% brighter than the faintest moon of the year, according to NASA. That difference can be tough to notice with the naked eye.

Supermoons, like all full moons, are visible in clear skies everywhere that it's night. The Quadrantids, on the other hand, can be seen mainly from the Northern Hemisphere. Both can be glimpsed without any special equipment.

To spot the Quadrantids, venture out in the early evening away from city lights and watch for fireballs before the moon crashes the party, said Jacque Benitez with the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences. Skygazers can also try looking during early dawn hours on Sunday.

Wait for your eyes to get used to the darkness, and don’t look at your phone. The space rocks will look like fast-moving white dots and appear over the whole sky.

Meteor showers are named for the constellation where the fireballs appear to come from. The Quadrantids — space debris from the asteroid 2003 EH1 — are named for a constellation that's no longer recognized.

The next major meteor shower, called the Lyrids, is slotted for April.

Supermoons happen a few times a year and come in groups, taking advantage of the sweet spot in the moon’s elliptical orbit. Saturday night’s event ends a four-month streak that started in October. There won't be another supermoon until the end of 2026.

Varieties

New Maritime Theater in Jazan to Host the City's Festival Opening

The site also includes various amenities, such as shopping zones, kiosks for dining, an art gallery - SPA
The site also includes various amenities, such as shopping zones, kiosks for dining, an art gallery - SPA
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New Maritime Theater in Jazan to Host the City's Festival Opening

The site also includes various amenities, such as shopping zones, kiosks for dining, an art gallery - SPA
The site also includes various amenities, such as shopping zones, kiosks for dining, an art gallery - SPA

The Jazan city theater on the southern corniche will host the opening ceremony of the Jazan Festival 2026 on Friday. This event will take place at a 35-square-kilometer site that features the Kingdom's largest maritime theater, SPA reported.

The theater accommodates more than 10,000 spectators and features five VIP areas. To ensure a smooth experience, the venue offers parking for over 9,000 vehicles, providing easy access during peak times.

Built specifically for the festival, the stage meets stringent safety and technical standards, providing a high-quality audiovisual experience against the stunning backdrop of the Red Sea.

The site also includes various amenities, such as shopping zones, kiosks for dining, an art gallery, a play area for children, a bird garden, and a regional museum, showcasing the region's history and culture.

This temporary maritime theater aims to provide a cohesive experience, integrating entertainment, culture, shopping, and services in one location, further establishing Jazan as a year-round destination for tourism and entertainment.