MONTREAL — In many ways, the story of Deanna Stellato-Dudek’s quest for a gold medal in Olympic figure skating is just like any other.

The Park Ridge native started skating at age 5 while growing up in Chicago and dreamed of going to the Olympic Games. She traded a normal adolescence for early mornings at the rink, college preparation for nationals preparation. A hip injury seemed to end her career when she was 17. She fought her way back and will compete this month at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.

So far, so familiar — except for one thing. Stellato-Dudek is 42.

The Olympics she had originally aimed for were the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, Utah. She took not six months but 16 years off, and in those 16 years she did not coach or do other skating-adjacent work. She became the director of aesthetics for a plastic surgeon.

When she returned, she did so as a pairs skater, and when she and her partner, Maxime Deschamps, won the world championship in 2024, she made history as the oldest woman to win a world title in any figure skating discipline. (They also won the Canadian national championship in 2023, 2024 and 2025 and were silver medalists this year.)

Deanna Stellato-Dudek becomes the oldest woman to win a figure skating world title — by channeling childhood idol Michael Jordan

When they skate in Milan on Sunday, representing Canada, Stellato-Dudek will once again be the oldest woman on the ice. Like Tom Brady and LeBron James, she is redefining the limits of what is possible in her sport.

Skating, after all, has long been seen as the province of the young, nimble and light. Tara Lipinski won her Olympic gold medal for singles skating at 15 in 1998; so did Alina Zagitova in 2018. It took the doping scandal surrounding 15-year-old Russian skater Kamila Valieva during the 2022 Beijing Olympics to get the International Skating Union to raise the minimum age for competition — to 17.

Amber Glenn, an American singles skater who is among the favorites for a gold medal, has called herself the “fun aunt” because at 26 she is much older than many of her peers. Though pairs skaters tend to be older, only four of the female pairs gold medalists since 1956 have even been in their 30s (and all of those were younger than 35). When social media commentators want to be mean, Stellato-Dudek said, they refer to her as “Grandma Deanna.”

“I mean, I am a whole legal human being older than almost everybody else,” she said, laughing.

Which explains why when Stellato-Dudek announced her return to skating, people thought it was “crazy,” said her coach, Josée Picard, who came out of retirement to work with Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps.

“Crazy,” Stellato-Dudek’s mother, Ann Stellato, said. “Nobody expected her to persevere and to do what she has done. Nobody.”

Defying society’s expectations

“The age pendulum for me swings both ways,” Stellato-Dudek said. She had just come off the ice after a four-hour practice with Deschamps at the skating complex outside Montreal, where they are based.

She was wearing four layers of tops, a thin puffer, a neck warmer and a head warmer. Her dark hair was pulled into a topknot, and she had the sort of unlined skin you would expect on someone whose previous professional life included chemical peels and CoolSculpting.

She is only 5 feet tall but has the muscled body of an athlete. She looked like a “Frozen” version of the Energizer bunny rather than the usual figure skating fawn.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps of Canada compete during the pairs figure skating short program at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, on Feb. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

“When I do well, I am celebrated more than my younger counterparts,” she said. “After worlds, I had, like, 20,000 messages on Instagram. But when we do poorly, there are so many trolls DMing me about my body, my face, my hair, that I’m not strong enough.”

​​It’s as if, she said, people are offended that she would continue to compete, or they think she’s trying to be famous. “If I was trying to be famous, I would have gone on a reality show,” she said. “‘Survivor’ would have been a better option for me than trying to get an Olympic medal.”

Stellato-Dudek decided to return to skating when she was in her early 30s. She did not want to look back and regret not trying to get to a podium because she had listened to “society telling you that’s the age you should stop.” She didn’t want to be a sideshow, famous only for being the oldest competitor on the ice. She wanted to be a serious contender who also happened to be older.

For six months, she got up at 4 a.m. to train and then went to her day job. When she could do triple jumps again, she contacted her old coach, quit the plastic surgeon’s office and decided to try pairs skating. (As a singles skater, she had often been asked if she would consider pairs; she is the ideal size for the lifts required.)

“She was never a prodigy,” her mother said. “She just works very, very hard. Even as a child, anything that Deanna could do that was a little daring she would do. She loves being thrown, she loves being up in the air, all the dangerous stuff.”

Stellato-Dudek’s first partner was based in Florida, so she moved there. When he needed surgery, she called every coach she knew until one recommended Deschamps, who was in Canada. At 34, he is also on the older end for a male figure skater, but it is the older end of normal.

Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps knew they were on a clock if they were aiming for 2026, so they had to choose nationalities. It was unlikely that Deschamps would get U.S. citizenship on their schedule, so Stellato-Dudek applied to become Canadian and was approved in late 2024.

Stellato-Dudek moved to Montreal in mid-2019. She knew no one except her partner and coach and spoke no French. Because COVID-19 lockdowns began not long after, she didn’t really make friends until she had been living there for three years. Though she had married during her time away from the ice, she has said that she “sacrificed a relationship” for her sport (she declined to discuss her personal life further). She does not have children.

She currently lives with Goldy, the half-Maltese, half-poodle that Deschamps and Picard gave her for her 40th birthday. Goldy has her own hat and coat and goes with Stellato-Dudek to the rink. The dog is particularly good at standing on her hind legs and, like her owner, can do a twirl. A couple of them, actually.

Defying age

Before the Olympics, Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps trained five days a week on the ice, spent Sunday at the gym and had Saturday off. Stellato-Dudek’s entire life was built around skating and preserving her physical resilience, from waking up at 6 a.m. so she could warm up for an hour to a three-hour recovery process at night involving rolling out her muscles, cupping, wearing compression pants and using red-light therapy.

Sometimes she also did a cold plunge. “Truly, I hate the cold plunge,” she said. Because she spends so many hours at the rink, she explained, “I’m cold all the time.”

The extra warmup and cool-down time are concessions to her age. “I have to do a lot more recovery to start at the same point as my younger counterparts the next day,” she said. “When I was a kid, I did no postskating recovery. Literally zero.”

She eats 70 grams of protein a day to maintain her muscle mass and drinks half her weight in ounces of water, numbers recommended by the Canada team nutritionist. Since she is about 100 pounds, that equates to 50 ounces. “The diet and the water intake are some of the hardest things,” she said.

She starts every morning by dumping a collagen packet in her coffee and eats beans with pretty much everything. She generally doesn’t eat after 3 p.m., when she has a meal she calls “linner.” She avoids gluten, fried foods, dairy and sugar, though she does allow herself a “cheat day” once a month, when she might have some chocolate.

She also takes a lot of supplements — vitamin D, vitamin C, protein peptides — all of which are checked for banned substances.

Deanna Stellato-Dudek and partner Maxime Deschamps of Team Canada compete at Milano Ice Skating Arena on Feb. 15, 2026, in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Unlike other sports outliers, like Brady and James, Stellato-Dudek, as an amateur athlete, is figuring out how to extend her athleticism pretty much on her own. She doesn’t have a chef or a physiotherapist on call. Like all Canadian Olympic athletes, she has funding from the government, but skating is not exactly a money sport. Stellato-Dudek buys most of her gear on Amazon.

There are advantages, though, to being older. “Having lived through experiences, having loved, having lost, I can portray those experiences on the ice,” she said. “A 20-year-old might be uncomfortable doing so.” And, she said, she has learned patience.

That was important when, the week before she was scheduled to fly to Milan, she hit her head on the ice during training. For a few days, it was unclear whether she and Deschamps would be cleared by the Canadian Olympic Committee to compete. Though they had to drop out of the team competition Feb. 10, they were OK’d for the individual program.

The Olympic end game

A week before her accident, Stellato-Dudek was skating around the rink in Montreal, hands on her hips, mouth tight, catching her breath. She and Deschamps had been practicing a throw triple loop (he tosses her outward; she spins three times in the air before she lands), and she didn’t like the way it felt. She wanted it bigger. Picard wanted them to take a break, but Stellato-Dudek wanted to go again.

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Since winning the world championship in 2024, Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps have had uneven results in competition. Still, whatever happens, she will make history in Milan — and not just because of her age.

In 2025, she became the first woman to perform a backflip in her program since Surya Bonaly in 1998, when it was illegal in competitive ice skating. (It was accepted by the International Skating Union only for the 2024-25 season.)

“It was her idea,” Deschamps said. “It took her almost a full year to convince me.” He was concerned about her blades, and given that the backflip has no scoring value, he didn’t think it was worth the risk.

“​​My thought process was, ‘How can I make this product more alluring to the audience and to the judges?’” Stellato-Dudek said. “It’s like I’m trying to sell something in a business.”

She had done gymnastics as a child but hadn’t done a flip since she was 14. Bringing the trick back for ice and making it assisted (she flips off Deschamps’ hands) was a way, she said, to honor the legacy of Bonaly, to show girls it could be done and to create a pairs version of a trick that could be adopted by others.

She will be wearing skating dresses by Oscar de la Renta, also her idea. (Previously, the only designer who regularly worked with skaters was Vera Wang, who dressed Nathan Chen, Nancy Kerrigan and Michelle Kwan.) The Oscar de la Renta label had never collaborated with an athlete, but Laura Kim, a creative director, said, “We’re the same age, and when I heard her story, I thought, I can relate.”

The result is a champagne-colored short program dress with art deco beading inspired by a dress from the label’s spring 2026 collection, and an asymmetric red number with more than 200,000 hand-sewn glass beads for the long program, to match its flamenco soundtrack. Stellato-Dudek hopes her more-haute-than-usual outfits will start a skating trend of partnering with fashion designers.

All of which is notable, but none of which means she doesn’t want to win despite her accident.

“I want to leave my mark on this sport,” Stellato-Dudek said, “and I have to be wearing a medal around my neck to really get that happy ending.” Worst-case scenario: At least everyone is “watching me try.”

Deschamps and Picard said they were considering retiring (or, in Picard’s case, reretiring) after the Olympics. Stellato-Dudek acknowledged that there are perks to the idea — “I haven’t had a margarita in 10 years,” she said, and “that would be a nice treat” — but she is not sure.

“That is my decision and my decision alone,” she said. “If I want to continue to the 2030 Olympics when I’m 46, that’s what I’m going to do. And nobody can tell me I can’t.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/deanna-stellato-dudek-age-olympics/ 

BOGOTÁ, Colombia — Buying property in his home country was once “unthinkable” for Carlos Peñalver, a Venezuelan electrician who left for the United States four years ago as the economy of Venezuela faltered. The capture of President Nicolás Maduro changed the calculus, enough to get Peñalver to start calling real estate agents.

He soon closed on a three-bedroom apartment in the eastern port city of Puerto Ordaz. Days later, prices had already gone up. There were fewer properties available. “I was lucky,” said Peñalver, 26.

It is still early days in what could become a post-Maduro chapter in the South American nation, which has been marked by authoritarian rule, economic collapse and mass migration.

The possibility of political freedom and an improved economy has stirred excitement among Venezuelans at home and abroad. That optimism has fueled a surge of interest in real estate as expatriates, some of whom have built savings abroad, weigh returning — or at least investing — for the first time in years, according to real estate agents who note a jump in inquiries.

Those calls have not yet become a sales boom. There is no official data tracking the real estate market since Maduro’s removal Jan. 3. But interviews with more than a dozen real estate agents, industry leaders, homeowners and prospective buyers suggest that the market has begun to shift with property owners raising prices in anticipation of a buying spree.

“What’s really at play here are expectations of change,” said Asdrúbal Oliveros, a veteran Venezuelan economist.

Many brokers described listings that have sat unsold after price hikes and owners pulling back their properties until the market is stronger.

Hopes are being stoked in part by changes in Venezuela’s oil sector, the backbone of the economy. Venezuelan lawmakers last month approved new rules meant to attract foreign investment, raising the potential of higher production and growth.

Still, foreign oil companies remain cautious after years of government expropriations, and recent measures are unlikely to unleash an immediate wave of investment. And even under the best of circumstances, any significant improvements in oil production would most likely take years to accomplish.

“People had a purely emotional perception — without a rational basis — that their properties were suddenly worth more,” said Pablo González, president of the Venezuelan Real Estate Chamber.

“Could it become reality?” González added. “I believe it could, but we have to allow economic events to unfold.”

For years, Venezuela’s housing market has been all but frozen as hyperinflation destroyed purchasing power and banks abandoned long-term lending. Expropriations under a socialist-inspired government, mainly of large estates and heavy industry but also of individual homes and apartment buildings, made property ownership precarious.

For many who stayed in Venezuela through those turbulent years and sometimes slipped into poverty, buying a home still remains out of reach, especially at the newly inflated prices.

Luisa Rojas, 42, an administrator in the city of Valencia, said she would like to move from her aging apartment to a newer one, but she cannot afford to do so.

“The country’s instability makes it impossible to plan ahead,” she said.

Such sentiments have narrowed the market to mainly expatriates, real estate agents say.

Even so, agents across Venezuela — from the capital and oil regions to beach destinations and smaller cities — said they had seen price increases ranging from 20% to as much as 50% in some areas.

In the eastern city of Ciudad Guayana, Diogelis Pocaterra, a real estate agent, said that one town house listed at $55,000 two years ago was raised to $85,000, “solely because of Maduro’s detention.”

Prospective buyers have flooded brokers with inquiries, often interested in snapping up what were once known as “opportunity” properties for their impressive amenities at fire sale prices. But those lower-priced homes have largely vanished, agents say, as sellers pull their properties off the market.

“Many people have contacted our agency thinking there are still ‘opportunity deals’ like there once were — beachfront apartments, furnished, for $18,000 or $20,000,” Pocaterra said. “That no longer exists.”

In Cumaná, the capital of the coastal state of Sucre, Adriana Rodríguez, a broker, said prices had risen about 20% since early January, while roughly 80% of listings had been paused as owners wait for clearer economic signals.

“I’ve been working for about 25 days with five clients for whom I haven’t been able to find anything. They contact me every day,” she said, adding that they complain about the higher asking prices. “People see those listings on social media and think the prices are crazy.”

In tourist-heavy regions like Margarita Island, brokers estimate that about 80% of current inquiries are from Venezuelans living abroad, with more limited interest from foreign buyers.

“Right now, the situation doesn’t justify these exaggerated increases,” Pocaterra said. “These processes take time, and that’s what we need to understand — and explain to owners who are being driven by news, emotion and euphoria.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/venezuelan-housing-prices-jump-as-emigres-consider-buying/ 

It’s that time of year that some people forget about, until it happens: A young girl wearing a badge or tie appears at your door or in the grocery store sporting a cheerful smile and offering the treat you suddenly crave: Girl Scout Cookies.

Yes, it is indeed Girl Scout Cookie season, but this year will look different as many scouts will be selling cookies online rather than knocking door-to-door.

“Given the community unrest and the instability in our communities, many of our Girl Scouts are choosing not to sell cookies in person,” Girl Scouts River Valley chief experience officer Susan Andersson said.

From now until March 29, Girl Scouts River Valleys’ cookie program will go digital. That includes 49 counties in Minnesota and Wisconsin plus Osceola County in Iowa.

The public can purchase cookies through specific troops, individual scouts, or by using the “cookie finder” feature on the Girl Scouts River Valleys website, girlscoutsrv.org.

Some scouts may continue to sell cookies door-to-door or at cookie booths in the state, though the public can anticipate seeing fewer scouts out and about than usual.

“There’s no playbook for what we’re going through right now, and it’s hard to forge the way forward when there is no precedent,” said Tammy Freese, senior director of product program. “That’s the most challenging thing is that we’re in a place that we haven’t been before. COVID was also full of uncertainties, but this just seems very, very different.”

Freese said the decision to go online was made to ensure the comfort of troop members and their families, who may not feel comfortable selling cookies in public during a time when immigration enforcement actions are going on.

“Girl Scouts has been around for 100-plus years, and one off-season won’t slow these girls down,” Girl Scouts River Valleys stated. “Cookie season remains the largest girl-led entrepreneurship program in the world, and it represents all girls, including daughters of immigrants, daughters of police officers, and girls from every kind of family and neighborhood.”

Digital Cookie

During the early COVID years, Girl Scouts used a platform called Smart Cookie to deliver online sales. In 2026, the organization is using Digital Cookie, an updated platform with “more bells and whistles,” according to Freese.

Girl Scouts with the new 2026 Exploremores cookies. The organization anticipates that many of its members will opt to sell cookies online instead of the traditional door-knocking method this year. (Courtesy of Girl Scouts)

With Digital Cookie, troops and individual Girl Scouts can create a personalized online storefront with information about the troop or Scout and what they’re raising money for. Scouts also have control over who sees their storefront and can choose to share a link to their business over social media, via text message and more. Once purchased, cookies can be shipped or directly delivered to the customer’s door, if the option is available.

“It’s a really great resource for Girl Scouts to learn real-world marketing and what it does take to be an entrepreneur these days,” Freese said.

Girl Scouts learn five main skills through the cookie program, Andersson said: goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills and business ethics. Traditionally, the cookie program teaches scouts these skills through in-person learning opportunities, and though the season will have significantly less in-person social interaction, Andersson said the Digital Cookie program continues to foster the same kinds of lessons.

Andersson said these days, more and more customers shop online, and this change is one way for Girl Scouts to consider meeting a need. She said going digital opens accessibility to a wider range of people and allows the public to support Girl Scouts programs without needing to show up in person.

“Not only are our girls learning those five very important skills, but they’re also learning how to pivot when things don’t go as planned, and that is so very, very important, because life doesn’t always go as we plan it, and building up that resilience and that grit is so important,” Freese said.

Troop 2026

Freese said community members have reached out to ask how they can support those who feel particularly vulnerable during the immigration enforcement surge.

Inspired by a volunteer suggestion, Girl Scouts River Valleys created Troop 2026 through the Care to Share Program, which takes proceeds from cookie sales and distributes them to specific initiatives, like supporting veterans or food shelves. Troop 2026 consists of Girl Scouts whose cookie seasons have been “impacted by events in our communities,” according to Girl Scouts. Purchasing through Troop 2026 is one way people can support Girl Scouts during this challenging season, Freese said.

“Care to Share, and Troop 2026, also educates girls about philanthropy, how giving back is really important,” Andersson said.

The cookie program helps to support and make Girl Scouts possible, Freese said. The proceeds fund Girl Scouts initiatives, learning opportunities, travel plans and more. A lot of troops depend on the cookie program to help them achieve their goals, she said.

“We want to make sure that we honor all decisions for folks that have maybe decided this is the year that they can’t participate in the cookie program, and make sure that they realize that, yes, you are not only a valued member of the troop, even if cookie participation has to be paused this year, but you’re also a valuable number of Girl Scouts River Valleys,” Freese said.

Getting Girl Scout Cookies

Individual Girl Scouts Digital Cookie storefronts went live Wednesday, Feb. 11, and will be active through the end of March.

Purchase cookies directly through a scout’s storefront or using the cookie finder on Girl Scouts River Valleys’ website, girlscoutsrv.org or by texting “cookies” to 59618.

Buy cookies from Troop 2026, a virtual troop made up of scouts impacted by immigration enforcement activity, search for Troop 2026 at girlscoutsrv.org.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/girl-scouts-moving-cookie-sales-online-in-response-to-ice-actions/ 

The historic Bacon’s Castle, the oldest building in Virginia and the oldest brick dwelling on the continent, is set to undergo a rare series of repairs to help preserve it.

Bacon’s Castle was built in 1665 in Surry for the family of Arthur Allen. It was known as Allen’s Brick House prior to its involvement in Bacon’s Rebellion in 1676 when a group of Nathanial Bacon’s men occupied the home for four months during an uprising that is considered to be an early sign of revolutionary sentiment in America, according to the National Park Service. The building was acquired at auction in the 1970s by the private nonprofit Preservation Virginia, which last restored the building in the 1980s.

The request for proposals issued last month seeks construction bids for work that includes stabilizing the masonry and framing, installing drainage and a fire suppression system. The deadline for bids is Feb. 27. The architect for the project is the Albany, New York-based MCWB Architects, which also has an office in Williamsburg.

Patton Roark, project architect for MCWB, said their firm primarily works on historic buildings and has completed restoration projects across the country including at Mount Vernon, Monticello, Montpelier, and buildings on the campuses of the University of Virginia, William & Mary and Hampden-Sydney College — but of course, none as old as Bacon’s Castle.

Roark said balancing maintaining the historical elements of the building while also improving the structure is “always a challenge.”

“Preserving the history there is always the most important thing, seeing its age and importance, however Bacon’s Castle has always interpreted itself as not being ‘stuck in 1665,’ ” Roark said. “They’ve always interpreted it as an evolving structure. … But on the other hand we work with them to incorporate these modern systems or modern repairs in a way that’s as least visually obtrusive as possible.”

He said each undertaking with a historic building involves engaging with the “fabric” of the building — the moulding, the paint, the support beams — to interpret what time has done to it before deciding on solutions.

The planned repairs are preventative, Roark said, noting that there were no extreme issues threatening the building. One example is installing underpinning to stabilize one of the chimneys which has had a noticeable lean in it going back many years in historical photographs.

Phase II of the project will deal mostly with the roof and work on the other chimneys of the building, said Roark.

The building is an example of High Jacobean architecture, according to Preservation Virginia. The property includes a slave dwelling dating back to 1830, a smokehouse to the 1820s, and a barn that is estimated to have been built in 1700.

Contractors were able to walk through the building last week.

“We had a good showing, so we’ve had a lot of interest,” Roark said.

An architectural drawing of Bacon’s Castle included in the request for proposals. (Courtesy MCWB Architects)

Substantial completion of the entire project is to be done roughly six months after a contractor is chosen, and final completion is to be done 30 days after that, according to the project manual.

“When the property was offered at auction in the 1970s, we took on Bacon’s Castle knowing it was a unique opportunity to restore and preserve this rare architectural survivor and tell the stories of the people who are associated with its history,” Preservation Virginia CEO Elizabeth S. Kostelny said in a news release. “Caring for a (361)-year-old structure and associated cultural landscape never stops.”

The nonprofit uses the site for educational purposes including “haunted history” tours, African American history tours, architectural tours, genealogy workshops, archaeological events and vendor fairs. Surry County students attend free of charge, according to Preservation Virginia.

Gavin Stone, 757-712-4806, gavin.stone@virginiamedia.com

Women in period dresses gather in front of Bacon’s Castle in Surry before the start of the Regency Society of Virginia’s duel re-enactment and picnic on Saturday, September 20, 2014. (Steve Earley/The Virginian-Pilot)

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/bacons-castle-restoration/ 

NEW ORLEANS — It is Carnival season in New Orleans. That means gazillions of green, gold and purple Mardi Gras beads.

Once made of glass and cherished by parade spectators who were lucky enough to catch them, today cheap plastic beaded necklaces from overseas are tossed from floats by the handful. Spectators sometimes pile dozens around their necks, but many are trashed or left on the ground. A few years ago after heavy flooding, the city found more than 46 tons of them clogging its storm drains.

The beads are increasingly viewed as a problem, but a Mardi Gras without beads also seems unfathomable. That is why it was a radical step when the Krewe of Freret made the decision last year to ban plastic beads from their parade.

“Our riders loved it because the spectators don’t value this anymore,” Freret co-founder Greg Rhoades said. “It’s become so prolific that they dodge out of the way when they see cheap plastic beads coming at them.”

This year, beads are back, but not the cheap plastic ones. Freret is one of three krewes throwing biodegradable beads developed at Louisiana State University.

The “PlantMe Beads” are 3D-printed from a starch-based, commercially available material called polylactic acid, or PLA, graduate student Alexis Strain said. The individual beads are large hollow spheres containing okra seeds. That is because the necklaces can actually be planted, and the okra attracts bacteria that help them decompose.

2.5 million pounds of trash

Kristi Trail, executive director of the Pontchartrain Conservancy, said plastic beads are a twofold problem. First, they clog the storm drains, leading to flooding. Then those that aren’t caught in the drains are washed directly into Lake Pontchartrain, where they can harm marine life. The group is currently preparing to study microplastics in the lake.

The trend toward a more sustainable Mardi Gras has been growing for years and includes a small but growing variety of more thoughtful throws like food, soaps and sunglasses. Trail said there is no good data right now to say if those efforts are having an impact, but the group recently got a grant that should help them answer the question in the future.

“Beads are obviously a problem, but we generate about 2.5 million pounds of trash from Mardi Gras,” Trail said.

First algae beads, now PlantMe beads

Strain works in the lab of Professor Naohiro Kato, an associate professor of biology at LSU. He first got the idea to develop biodegradable beads in 2013 after talking to people concerned about the celebration’s environmental impact. As a plant biologist, Kato knew that bioplastics could be made from plants and got curious about the possibilities.

The first iteration of the lab’s biodegradable beads came in 2018, when they produced beads made from a bioplastic derived from microalgae. However, production costs were too high for the algae-based beads to offer a practical alternative to petroleum-based beads. Then Strain started experimenting with 3D printing, and the PlantMe Bead was born.

For the 2026 Carnival season, LSU students have produced 3,000 PlantMe Bead necklaces that they are giving to three krewes in exchange for feedback on the design and on how well they are received by spectators.

One funny thing, Kato said, is that people have told him they love how unique the PlantMe Beads are and want to keep them.

“So wait a minute, if you want to keep it, the petroleum-plastic Mardi Gras bead is the best, because this won’t last,” he said.

‘Let’s throw things that people value’

The lab is still working on ideas for a more sustainable Mardi Gras. Strain is experimenting with a different 3D printer material that biodegrades quickly without needing to be planted. Kato is talking with local schools about turning Mardi Gras bead-making into a community project. He envisions students 3D printing necklaces while learning about bioplastics and plant biology. And he is still exploring ways to make algae-based bioplastic commercially viable.

Ultimately, however, Kato said, the goal should not be to replace one plastic bead with a less harmful one. He hopes Mardi Gras embraces the idea of less waste.

Rhoades said Freret is moving in the same direction.

“In 2025, we were the first krewe — major parading organization — to say, ‘No more. No more cheap beads. Let’s throw things that people value, that people appreciate, that can be used year-round,’ ” Rhoades said.

One of the most coveted items they throw is baseball hats with the Freret logo. He sees people wearing the hats around the city, and he says other krewes have noticed.

“I really believe that we, and other krewes, are able to inspire your larger krewes,” he said. “They want people to like their stuff. They want people take their stuff home, and use it, and talk about it, and post it on social media, and say, ‘Look what I just caught!’ ”

___

Loller reported from Nashville, Tennessee.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/biodegradable-mardi-gras-beads/ 

Giddy EU Elites Gush Over Newsom & AOC’s Brave New World (Same As The Broken Old World Order)

Tyler Durden
Mon, 02/16/2026 – 10:30

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/giddy-eu-elites-welcome-newsom-aocs-brave-new-world-same-broken-old-world-order 

Por JEROME PUGMIRE

PARÍS (AP) — El Paris Saint-Germain siente la presión por primera vez esta temporada y las tensiones están a flor de piel.

Tras no lograr el pase directo a los octavos de final de la Liga de Campeones, el vigente monarca de Europa afronta un repechaje contra el Mónaco, su rival de la liga francesa.

El PSG viaja al principado para el partido de ida el martes tras sufrir una derrota 3-1 en Rennes, que permitió a Lens recuperar el primer puesto en la Ligue 1.

Los parisinos también quedaron fuera de carrera de la Copa de Francia y han perdido seis partidos en total esta temporada.

La derrota ante Rennes provocó que Ousmane Dembélé, el último ganador del Balón de Oro, cuestionara la actitud de sus compañeros.

“Creo que necesitamos mostrar más ganas. Porque si jugamos como individuos en el campo no va a funcionar, no ganaremos los trofeos que queremos”, dijo Dembélé.

Sin dar nombres, sugirió que algunos jugadores se están poniendo a sí mismos por delante.

“La temporada pasada pusimos por delante antes de pensar en nosotros mismos. Necesitamos recuperar eso, sobre todo en este tipo de partidos”, indicó.

Los comentarios de Dembélé propiciaron que el técnico Luis Enrique lanzara un severo recordatorio sobre mantener un frente unido.

“Nunca permitiré que ningún jugador esté por encima del club. Yo soy el responsable del equipo”, dijo el entrenador español.

La firme gestión del vestuario de Luis Enrique ha ayudado a que PSG se convierta en un equipo mucho más cohesionado. Dejó claro que, a diferencia de temporadas anteriores, no habría jugadores consentidos.

Dembélé lo comprobó de la manera más dura, cuando Luis Enrique lo dejó fuera de un partido de la Liga de Campeones en Arsenal a comienzos de la temporada pasada por motivos disciplinarios.

Funcionó, ya que Dembélé terminó marcando 35 goles en total y ayudó al PSG a ganar la Liga de Campeones por primera vez.

El impulso de PSG hacia el título fue en gran medida inesperado —al igual que la repentina racha goleadora de Dembélé— y el factor sorpresa ya se ha esfumado.

¿Demasiados partidos?

La temporada pasada se extendió hasta la final del Mundial de Clubes a mediados de julio. Algunos jugadores del PSG excedieron los 60 partidos.

El estilo de juego del PSG, de presión constante, exige mucho. Quizá como consecuencia, y con poco tiempo de recuperación durante el verano, el club se ha visto golpeado por lesiones de jugadores clave a lo largo de esta campaña.

Dembélé no ha podido forjar el mismo entendimiento en ataque con Désiré Doué, ya que ambos jugadores se han lesionado dos veces.

Luis Enrique también parece indeciso sobre cuál es su mejor arquero lo que no ayuda a la defensa.

Chevalier vs. Safonov

El éxito de PSG en la Liga de Campeones la temporada pasada se vio favorecido por las espectaculares atajadas del portero Gianluigi Donnarumma en las rondas de eliminación directa.

Pero Luis Enrique decidió, quizá de manera sorprendente, fichar a Lucas Chevalier procedente de Lille pese a su falta de experiencia en comparación con Donnarumma, campeón de la Eurocopa con Italia, que disputó 251 partidos con el AC Milan antes de unirse a PSG.

Donnarumma se fue al Manchester City.

Chevalier impresionó con Lille la temporada pasada y Luis Enrique consideró que era mejor para salir jugando desde atrás que Donnarumma, lo que le da al PSG opciones para atacar desde zonas más retrasadas y mantener un mayor control de la posesión.

Sin embargo, Chevalier se ha visto superado en ocasiones y ha perdido su puesto ante Matvei Safonov, quien fue el suplente de Donnarumma la temporada pasada.

Mónaco mejora

El PSG alcanzó los octavos de final la temporada pasada al vapulear 10-0 al equipo francés Brest en el global de la eliminatoria.

Se prevé una prueba más dura contra Mónaco, que venció a PSG a principios de esta temporada en la Ligue 1 y está mejorando en defensa, con cuatro porterías a cero en los últimos seis partidos.

El entrenador Sébastien Pocognoli tiene entre algodones al mediapunta Maghnes Akliouche, al volante Lamine Camara y al extremo Ansu Fati.

___

Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/el-psg-acusa-la-presin-ante-el-repechaje-de-la-liga-de-campeones-contra-mnaco/ 

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The absence that has lingered over the Boston Red Sox world for the last five weeks was especially prominent on Sunday as the organization held its first full-squad workout of 2026.

The Red Sox are projected favorably by certain systems, less so by others. Most agree they have an intriguing roster and a starting rotation that projects to be at the top of the game this season.

What they no longer have is Alex Bregman. And there’s really no way around that, no matter what the Red Sox say.

How star third baseman Alex Bregman landed in Chicago: ‘We knew the Cubs wanted our family to be here’

Bregman, 31, was integral to the club’s success last season as an All-Star third baseman and righty bat in the lineup, but even more so because of his leadership and mentorship in the clubhouse. Everyone from pitchers, to hitters, to coaches raved about Bregman the “baseball rat,” and how he made his teammates better.

Though Bregman opted out of his three-year, $120 million contract at the end of the season, he still hoped to re-sign with the Red Sox and was willing to make certain concessions to do so, multiple sources said.

Pressed for details on the failed reunion during his 25-minute media session Sunday morning, Red Sox CEO and president Sam Kennedy intimated that it was Bregman’s camp that soured the offseason negotiations.

“We’re so grateful to Alex Bregman and what he meant to us,” Kennedy said, “but when you have choices the way he did – you work really hard to be in a position to become a free agent and perform at that level. He chose a different path, and we wish him well.”

The main sticking point in the Bregman-Boston negotiations was a no-trade clause. The veteran third baseman wanted that security for his family, in part because of how Rafael Devers’ Red Sox tenure ended last spring. Multiple sources and reports said the Red Sox refused, citing organizational policy.

Kennedy was asked twice if it’s Red Sox policy not to give out no-trade clauses.

“If Alex Bregman wanted to be here, ultimately, he’d be here,” Kennedy said.

When the question was immediately posed again, Kennedy said: “We try not to talk about organizational policies and the finer points of negotiations, because it just doesn’t serve you well if you do that.”

Then asked if Bregman would have received a no-trade clause if he asked for one, Kennedy responded: “It’s theoretical, right? It’s hard to know. There’s many different parts of a contract negotiation, so obviously he’s a Chicago Cub, and wish him well until the end of the year.”

A final attempt to gain confirmation that Bregman had asked for the no-trade clause yielded more of the same.

“I don’t want to go back and look at finer points of negotiation,” Kennedy said. “Just want to look forward and think about the group that we have in here now.”

After signing Bregman, shoving Devers aside and later out the door, and failing to keep Bregman in Boston, the Red Sox enter a new season on low-power mode. FanGraphs’ ZiPS projections estimate no player on their roster will reach 20 home runs. It’s an especially bleak assessment after an offseason full of Red Sox leadership’s repeated declarations about the need to add power.

“You can’t replace someone like Raffy as an individual, an exceptional hitter,” Kennedy said. “It’s an opportunity for guys to step up and generate offense. I think you know what we’re capable of with this outfield, but we’ll have to go out and do that.”

Even so, the team president said he believes “there’s no ceiling on the 2026 Boston Red Sox.”

No ceiling? Maybe. No Bregman? Definitely.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/cubs-alex-bregman-red-sox-decision/ 

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — If you still didn’t like the NBA’s newest All-Star Game format, you probably just don’t like All-Star games.

That seemed to be the sports sphere’s consensus after the U.S.-against-the-world, round-robin tournament Sunday produced three thrilling mini-games and several impressive individual performances. Something about the setup compelled these stars to play their exhibition at a level much closer to real competition than usual.

“I think every team honestly wanted to win,” said Phoenix’s Devin Booker, a member of the victorious Stars team.

That’s no small statement about an event that had become sports shorthand for pointless midseason pseudo-competition — a charade that wasted fans’ time and produced unwatchable TV while players simply tried to get it over with.

That’s precisely why the NBA implemented its fourth format in four years, creating a World team and two teams of Americans to play 12-minute games.

To the surprise of those who assumed this event was irredeemable, it actually worked for most people.

“I’ve been asking for it, fans have been asking for it, media have been asking for it, (and) I feel that after today, I think you all can see the competition is there,” Karl-Anthony Towns said. “I think that we all brought it today, brought a sense of effort. I hope that the fans and all of you appreciate it.”

An Americans-versus-everybody finale didn’t materialize, however. Instead, the team of slightly younger Americans routed the team of slightly older Americans in an anticlimactic finale.

Even that finish had its entertaining points, though: “We’re definitely one-up on the uncs right now,” said a grinning Tyrese Maxey, who scored nine points in the final.

The NBA hasn’t declared a format for next year’s All-Star Game in Phoenix, and the World component has potential problems depending on how many international players are having All-Star-worthy seasons.

Several players, including LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard, said they still want a return to the classic East vs. West format — you know, the one that produced enough bad games to force the NBA to try something different in the first place.

It’s tough to imagine basketball in its current state producing an All-Star Game significantly better than this one, but not everything about the All-Star weekend at Intuit Dome was savory.

The highs and lows of an eventful weekend in Inglewood:

Dismal dunks

Just when the NBA might have its All-Star Game fixed, the Slam Dunk Contest was underwhelming enough to prompt fan discussion on how to save a venerable competition that’s running out of steam.

The event immortalized by the likes of Julius Erving, Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant was mostly compelling for bad reasons this year, although Miami’s Keshad Johnson did well enough to join 3-Point Contest champion Damian Lillard in an all-Oakland sweep of the two marquee events at All-Star Saturday.

Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis and Team Vince win Rising Stars event at NBA All-Star weekend

In the early round, Lakers center Jaxson Hayes gave an effort that drew online criticism from his own fans. Orlando’s Jase Richardson took a horrifying fall onto his back and head when his arm hit the backboard on a 360-degree spin attempt. Richardson was OK, but the frightening moment underscored the dangers of this event.

Johnson won anticlimactically when San Antonio’s Carter Bryant couldn’t complete an impressive second dunk after scoring a perfect 50 on his first.

Can the NBA persuade star players to return to the contest? Can the dunkers rediscover the creativity that compelled Blake Griffin to jump over a car, Gerald Green to blow out a cupcake candle on the rim, Dwight Howard to put on a cape and Vince Carter to stick his whole arm in the hoop?

That’s no slam dunk.

Kawhi’s barrage

Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points in 12 minutes while leading his team to victory in Sunday’s third mini-game. The seven-time All-Star went 11 of 13 with six 3-pointers, dazzling his fellow All-Stars and even prompting 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyama to attempt to guard him out of desperation.

“That’s probably one of the most special quarters of basketball we’ve witnessed,” Booker said.

If Leonard’s team had put up more of a fight in the finale, he probably would have been the MVP instead of Anthony Edwards. Leonard scored only one point, looking gassed along with his teammates in their third straight game.

“That’s what the home crowd wanted to see,” Leonard said. “I’m glad I was able to do something in that game.”

Dame’s dominance

During his year away from the game due to injury, Lillard reminded the world why he’s one of the greatest shooters of his generation with a stellar performance to win the 3-Point Contest for the third time. He joins Larry Bird and Craig Hodges as the only players to do it.

The 35-year-old Portland guard held off Booker in the tremendously exciting final, winning 29-27 when Booker missed his final three shots.

Lillard tore his Achilles tendon last April, and his inclusion in this contest initially began as a joke he had with an NBA official — but the native Californian got the call, and he was healthy enough to shoot the lights out in Inglewood.

His performance was another example of an impressive comeback from that serious injury. Jayson Tatum, who also tore his Achilles in last spring’s playoffs, is back in practice with Boston’s G League team.

After watching Lillard’s performance, Stephen Curry announced he’s going to compete in 2027, and he’s hoping to be joined by his Splash Brother, Klay Thompson.

Afternoon hoops

The All-Star events Saturday and Sunday began at 2 p.m. Pacific time because NBC is showing the Winter Olympics in prime time every night.

That led to empty seats in Intuit Dome at the start of both events, although they eventually filled in. The early starts also muted the big-event feeling for fans and viewers who might have missed the show entirely if they didn’t check the TV listings.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/nba-all-star-game-highs-lows/ 

Por HOGIR AL ABDO

CAMPAMENTO ROJ, Siria (AP) — Un grupo de australianos abandonó un campamento en el noreste de Siria el lunes, donde se aloja a personas con presuntos vínculos con milicianos del grupo Estado Islámico, para iniciar el viaje de regreso a su país, como parte de un proceso de repatriación.

Los familiares de las 34 personas, de 11 familias, viajaron desde Australia para acompañarlas, informó Hakmiyeh Ibrahim, directora del campamento Roj. Se dirigirán a la capital siria, Damasco, y luego volarán a Australia.

El campamento Roj alberga a unas 2.200 personas de unas 50 nacionalidades, en su mayoría mujeres y niños, que supuestamente tienen vínculos con el grupo extremista. La mayoría de quienes están en el campamento técnicamente no son prisioneros y no han sido acusados de un delito, pero, en la práctica, han quedado detenidos en el campamento fuertemente custodiado, controlado por las Fuerzas Democráticas Sirias, lideradas por kurdos.

La residente más conocida del campamento Roj, Shamima Begum, tenía 15 años cuando ella y otras dos chicas huyeron de Londres en 2015 para casarse con combatientes del Estado Islámico en Siria. Begum se casó con un holandés que pelaba para el Estado Islámico y tuvo tres hijos, que murieron. Recientemente perdió una apelación contra la decisión del gobierno británico de revocarle la ciudadanía del Reino Unido.

La operación del lunes es la primera de este año. Ibrahim, la directora del campamento, señaló que el año pasado fueron repatriadas 16 familias, entre ellos ciudadanos alemanes, británicos y franceses. En 2022, fueron repatriadas tres familias australianas.

El destino del campamento Roj y del campamento al-Hol, similar pero más grande, ha sido motivo de debate durante años. Grupos de derechos humanos han citado malas condiciones de vida y violencia generalizada en los campamentos, pero muchos países se han mostrado reacios a recibir de vuelta a sus ciudadanos detenidos allí.

Las fuerzas gubernamentales tomaron el control del campamento al-Hol el mes pasado, en medio de combates con las Fuerzas Democráticas Sirias que llevaron a las fuerzas estatales a apoderarse de la mayor parte del territorio en el noreste de Siria que antes estaba controlado por las fuerzas kurdas.

La agencia de la ONU para los refugiados indicó el domingo que un gran número de residentes del campamento al-Hol se ha marchado y que el gobierno sirio planea reubicar a quienes permanecen.

Por separado, el ejército de Estados Unidos trasladó a Irak a miles de presuntos milicianos del Estado Islámico que estaban retenidos en centros de detención en el noreste de Siria, para ser juzgados allí.

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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/16/un-grupo-de-australianos-regresa-a-casa-desde-un-campamento-para-milicianos-en-siria/