Take a look at Miss Universe Cuba 2025, where a Miami native was crowned
The Miss Universe Cuba 2025 gala was hosted by Miss Universe 2023 Sheynnis Palacios of Nicaragua, and Carlos Adyan of Puerto Rico, host of 'En Casa con Telemundo.'
The ceremony also paid tribute to the outgoing queen, Marialena Ancheta, the first Miss Universe Cuba in 57 years, who represented Cubans in Miss Universe 2024. She was in charge of crowning Luaces, who will also be the queen of the celebrations for the centennial of the city of Hialeah.
Take a look at images from Miss Universe Cuba 2025.
Read more: Lina Luaces, daughter of Univision star Lili Estefan, is crowned Miss Universe Cuba
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Boston Globe
25 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
A former US soldier finds a home in Mexican wrestling
When Gordon, whose real name is Travis Gordon Lopes Jr., flings himself into the ring, his presence raises some potentially uncomfortable questions. What happens when an American, and a former U.S. soldier at that, competes in a profoundly Mexican form of entertainment -- known for colorful masks, outlandish outfits and high-flying acts -- while wearing camo, boots and dog tags? Can a fan base bound up in Mexican nationalism, spurred by President Donald Trump's threats of military action in their country, embrace and cheer for a man dressed like G.I. Joe? And what happens to a wrestler who has become an immigrant in Mexico at a moment of intense strain between his country of origin and his new home? Advertisement Regardless of their costume, foreigners in the world of lucha libre often wrestle as a 'rudo,' a rule-bending bad guy who uses brute force. But in a twist, and despite his U.S. soldier garb, Gordon actually wrestles as a 'técnico,' a good guy, because of his more acrobatic, finessed style and how he won over crowds. Gordon grew up in Montana, enlisted in the Army National Guard in 2012 and served six years in Idaho and Massachusetts. He earned his nickname from doing flips in his backyard since childhood, and his goal was to become a top professional wrestler in the United States. Advertisement He began his wrestling career, juggling competitions with his military commitments and making occasional trips abroad -- including to Mexico, where he made his lucha libre debut in 2017. It was on one of those trips that he met Barby Villela, 36, who worked in marketing for the organization that promotes lucha libre in Mexico. They eventually began dating, and married in 2023. Gordon moved to Mexico full time that year. Early in his wrestling career, Gordon said, he had tried to hide his military background, wearing generic outfits. After encouragement from some longtime wrestlers, he began wearing camouflage versions of traditional wrestling attire. Once in Mexico, he worried about what kind of reaction he would get, saying he was 'terrified' about personifying a U.S. soldier in the ring. And indeed, he was booed. Fans didn't want to support an American going up against Mexican wrestlers in a very Mexican endeavor. His soldier's outfit only amped up the animosity among some of the thousands of fans who turn up to watch, and offer their opinions at loud volume. Mexicans have long had cause to be wary of the U.S. military. The countries' shared history includes several instances of U.S. military intervention, not least the Mexican-American War of the 19th century, in which the United States gained a large chunk of territory. And under Trump, the United States has pushed Mexico hard to curb the flow of migrants and drugs, threatening high tariffs and even raising the idea of U.S. military action in Mexico against cartels. Advertisement Gordon calls himself 'very nonpolitical' and declined to comment on Trump's actions. But he embraces the image of a U.S. soldier. Before fights, Gordon does a traditional military salute, raising his right hand to his brow. He still trains using some exercises from his military days. Fans, and a few of Gordon's Mexican rivals, taunted him for being an American who stuck out in Mexico and couldn't quite speak the language. 'It was very pronounced,' said Fernando Damiron, 31, a government worker and an ardent lucha libre fan from Mexico City. 'His character and the wrestling council had him marked as the gringo against the Mexican.' Damiron confessed that he was among those who initially jeered Gordon for being 'a gringo and for being a non-Mexican character.' In January 2024, after a fight against Mexican rival Angel de Oro, Gordon challenged him to a one-on-one rematch in Spanglish over the arena microphone. His opponent mocked Gordon's language skills to the crowd's delight and said he accepted the fight 'only because I'm going to show you to respect Mexicans.' But Gordon began adapting to his new home. In the ring, in the council's promotional videos and on his own social media accounts, he started using less English and more Spanish for his local audience. He learned more with help from his wife, a few apps on his phone and his fellow wrestlers. And it was Villela who encouraged Gordon not only to play the character of a super soldier but also to show off his physique. 'We all have kids' souls,' she said. 'Wrestling in Mexico is the second-most important sport, after soccer. Our superheroes are wrestlers. And what's better than having G.I. Joe in uniform?' She later joked, 'And we'll cover two markets: women and children.' Advertisement Gordon began with a modified version of an old Army uniform: pants, heavy boots and a jacket with its arms cut off. He later had a custom outfit made in lighter, more flexible material -- better for flipping in and out of the ring. 'Everybody loves Captain America,' he said. 'They don't necessarily need to like the United States to like Captain America ." The approach -- and Gordon's growing lucha libre skills -- paid off. His fan base grew, and last fall, he even became the first American to earn a middleweight title. 'It sounds weird, but I feel like I'm becoming more Mexican,' he said late last year. Now, Gordon gives interviews in his second language, unafraid to make mistakes. To promote a recent title defense fight, he dressed up in a mariachi outfit. He recently signed a multiyear contract with the lucha libre council and said he is a permanent resident and hopes to get his Mexican citizenship in a few years. His daughter was born in Mexico last year, and Villela is expecting their second child. So even though a U.S.-Mexico rivalry is played up when Gordan enters the ring, he talks openly about his love for Mexico and its culture. " I'm proud of where I come from," he said, 'but I'm also proud that I'm evolving as a human and embracing a new culture.' Given all that has happened in U.S.-Mexico relations since Trump took office in January, Gordon joked that he was surprised that he wasn't booed more. But unlike in Canada, where hockey fans have booed the U.S. national anthem, there hasn't been much change around the ring, he said. Advertisement Lucha libre, Villela said, is 'magical' for Mexicans because it allows them to disconnect, enjoy the characters and 'let everything out' at the arenas. Fans like Damiron agreed that Gordon had carved out a niche for himself in the country with his wrestling style and personality. 'He's Mexican now,' he said. This article originally appeared in
Buzz Feed
5 hours ago
- Buzz Feed
22 Petty Reasons Why People Dumped Their Partner
We recently asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us the pettiest reasons they broke up with someone, and their submissions are actually hysterical. Here's what they had to say: "I didn't go on a date with someone because they heard my accent (I'm from London) and asked how I 'got so good at talking American since it's not my first language.'' "We were selecting a movie at the video store (yes, I'm that old), and he went down a different aisle than I did. I turned the corner, and he was knuckle deep in his nose. He pulled out the biggest booger I've ever seen in my life and then rolled and flicked it. Date over." "He called me kiddo. I paused. Replayed it in my head in case I heard it wrong. I broke up with him right there and then. I have worked too hard for too long to be reduced to 'kiddo.'" "I was dating this guy in high school who was very sweet but super shy, and we did NOT have the same sense of humor. When I broke up with him, I told him we just didn't have similar enough personalities, including a sense of humor. He asked what I meant, and I told him that I really love a good bit, and it's very important to me to laugh in a relationship. He looked super confused for a minute and then finally asked what a bit was. I knew it was for sure over then." "I dated this guy for a while, but couldn't get over how he constantly kissed his dog more than the average person. It was wild how much he showed affection to the dog over people." "She would refer to herself in the third person. She'd be like 'Well, Shelly doesn't like that.' WELL, GUESS WHAT? Jake doesn't like THAT." "In my opinion, this was not petty, but very much deserved. I had a pretty great boyfriend, aside from minimal red flags. Well, this man spent the night in my apartment. I was horrified to find that he both did not wash his hands and did not brush his teeth more than three times a week. I dumped him later that day." "I did not know what to get him for Christmas so I dumped him." "I hated the way he swallowed water from his water bottle. He'd throw his head back as far as it would go and hold the water bottle straight up. But the angle of his neck from being that far back made the water have to SQUUUIIIISSHHH through his esophagus, and it was always the loudest, squishiest gulping noise. I couldn't stand the sound anymore." "This man would text me with no punctuation. One of his literal texts he sent was this: 'okay sounds good I'll be there at 7 maybe idk it depends traffic has been crazy but good day how was yours' I mean, I could understand it, but I'm not finna decode a whole riddle every time I see your text bubble show up." "She said she didn't like cheesecake. I was looking forward to the last slice in the fridge. She ate it because she said there was nothing to eat. The house was full of food, she just didn't want to cook." "We had been dating for a few months. We put on a movie for the kids, and I looked over and he was crying. It was Chicken Run. That was it for me." "I once broke up with a guy because I couldn't stand his laugh. And humor is my biggest turn-on! But his laugh was my biggest turn-off." "I found out his younger sister had the same name and hair color as me. He said and moaned the nickname he also used for her while we were doing the deed, and I couldn't help but think he was into his sister after that." "I dated a guy who looked amazing in real life and on paper. Handsome, tall, rich family, great school, was a doctor, dressed well, super hardworking, and texted back immediately. Literally everything you'd want in a partner. HOWEVER! He chewed very loudly with his mouth open all the time! Like I could fully see the back of his throat, and food would sometimes fall out of his mouth. We actually managed to somehow date each other for months while only going to the restaurant together twice, and I broke up with him after the second time because it gave me the ick to watch him eat." "He was an Android user." "I had started dating a guy who worked at Home Depot. Not my usual type, but he was nice and quite good-looking, so why not? A few weeks in, we were having drinks, and he mentioned that I would never guess his nickname at work. It was Hollywood. As a professional career woman, I and never saw him again." "I broke up with my girlfriend because she would always put on lip gloss before we would make out." "I dumped her because of the sound of her voice. She was perfect in every way. Smart, funny, and beautiful. And we had so much in common. But I just couldn't stand listening to her talk. We broke up, and a year later, we met again, and I couldn't imagine why in the world I broke up with such a perfect creature. But one week later, I knew: it was the voice. I felt terrible about it, but I knew we couldn't stay together." "I am Mexican with a large family. When I was 18, I was dating another Mexican with a large family. One weekend, we attended a family event for me on Saturday. There was drinking, eating, and so on. On Sunday, we were at a family event for her, and all the same stuff was happening. I realized I would be doubling the family nonsense I already deal with, and doubling it was not something I wanted. I broke up with her." "Bro really had the audacity to tell me he didn't like my cat." And finally, "I didn't dump the guy, but he dumped me. We had an amazing lunch date. Went shopping for a few things. It was still early in the day, so we headed back to my house to hang out. We got back to my house, and he had 'an emergency.' He had two young kids, and I was like OK, cool, I'll talk to you later. He sent me a text about a half hour later, saying he didn't see our relationship going anywhere because I didn't 'need' him. I asked what he meant, and he said, 'You didn't ask me to hold any of your stuff when we were shopping, and you knew what you were looking for at Home Depot.' I guess being able to take care of myself is a problem?" What's the pettiest reason you dumped someone? Tell us in the comments or use the anonymous form below:
San Francisco Chronicle
6 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Mark Zuckerberg surfs in bald eagle costume for viral Fourth of July stunt: ‘Sam Altman would never'
Mark Zuckerberg may be a billionaire tech mogul, but his Fourth of July antics prove he's still just a kid at heart. The CEO of Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, spent the holiday in a full-body inflatable bald eagle costume and shared a now-viral video of himself wakesurfing in the getup with his millions of followers over the weekend. The clip, posted to Instagram and Facebook on Friday, July 4, opens with Zuckerberg sitting down on a moving boat, holding an American flag and nodding his head, not yet covered by the costume. 'Is this the stupidest thing we've done so far?' an off-camera voice asks, before Zuckerberg hops onto the board fully suited up in his patriotic outfit. The video then cuts to him surfing, with his arms outstretched to show off the red, white and blue fringed wings of his costume as the song 'America, F— Yeah,' from the 2004 comedy 'Team America: World Police,' plays. His video has received 961,000 likes since it was posted, and has garnered a number of impressed comments from Zuckerberg's followers. 'Didn't think he'd be able to one-up last year's post but he did,' wrote content creator Kagan Dunlap, referencing Zuckerberg's similar Independence Day stunt from last year, during which he surfed in a suit and bowtie while holding a beer in one hand and an American flag in the other. That comment also received a like from Zuckerberg, along with more than 6,500 others. While Zuckerberg didn't tag the location of his post, many fans speculate the clip was filmed in Lake Tahoe, where Zuckerberg is building a seven-building compound. On Saturday, July 5, the Facebook founder shared another holiday-themed video, this time accompanied by his friends as they pretend to be Marvel's Avengers. The clip was recorded backwards to make it appear as though each individual is jumping out of the water, and is set to audio from the superhero film series in which Chris Evans, who plays Captain America, delivers the iconic line: 'Avengers, assemble.' Zuckerberg wore a long sleeve shirt that resembled Captain America's suit, while one friend was dressed as Uncle Sam and another wore the same bald eagle costume from his previous post. Zuckerberg has developed a reputation for his elaborate stunts over the years, though many have been romantic gestures for his wife, Priscilla Chan. In February, he borrowed singer Benson Boone's skintight Grammy jumpsuit to serenade Chan on her birthday, and in 2024 he went viral for commissioning a seven-foot-tall teal blue sculpture in her likeness.
