Latest news with #Gray
STV News
24 minutes ago
- Sport
- STV News
Gray: Hibs need to match first-leg display to keep Europa dream alive
Hibernian boss David Gray has told his players that they will need to at least replicate their first-leg performance to stand any chance of getting past Midtjylland. The Edinburgh side left Denmark with a 1-1 draw in their Europa League qualifier last week and are now preparing for the return leg at Easter Road. Gray is delighted that the tie is still alive to set up an exciting European night in Leith, but knows the job is far from done against a dangerous side. Speaking on Wednesday, he said: 'I think all we could hope for from the first leg was to make sure we were still in the tie and had something to play for at home, and knowing what that would mean for the support. 'We have European football back at Easter Road, and as you would expect the players have trained really well and are full of confidence. 'We take a lot of confidence from the first game but we are also very quick to remind the players that it is only half-time in the tie and still a really difficult challenge. 'Just because we done so well over there, it doesn't make it any easier now we are at home. They are a top team who have played in the Champions League, but at the same time we can take confidence from the performance we produced on the night last week. 'We will need to make sure we at least replicate that level of performance on Thursday.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Mint
6 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
Terror at Blackstone: The Harrowing Hours at 345 Park Avenue
(Bloomberg) -- The alarm reached Jon Gray on the 44th floor, in his C-suite office high above Park Avenue: An active shooter was in the building. In the lobby below, a gunman had opened fire, killing a uniformed police officer and two others who worked in the office tower. Then, the shooter fired at the turnstile, boarded an elevator and headed up. Gray, billionaire president of Blackstone Inc., saw his phone light up again and again and again, as security alerts flashed and he fielded calls from associates trying to process what was happening over the next few hours. Employees hid in bathroom stalls and utility closets, and piled couches, desks and stools into doorways. Photos of the makeshift barricades quickly circulated on social media, illustrating the chaos that had overtaken the normally placid office environment. 'Brutal,' Gray recalled less than 24 hours later, tearing up in an interview. What unfolded Monday inside 345 Park Avenue, in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, has quickly assumed sobering dimensions: It now stands as the worst mass shooting New York City has witnessed in a quarter century. The four people who were killed — a police officer guarding the lobby, a rising star at Blackstone, a private security guard and an associate at a real estate management company — seemed to be drawn from all walks of New York life. Even as office workers hurried past the scene Tuesday — jackets off in the oppressive July heat, the American flag outside at half-mast, shattered glass near the building's entrance — the city's collective shock was palpable. Blackstone, founded in 1985, has grown from a small partnership into one of the world's largest asset managers. It has traversed periods of growth and turmoil, including the global financial crisis of 2008 and the coronavirus pandemic. But in a note to employees Tuesday, Gray and Chief Executive Officer Steve Schwarzman called Monday 'the worst day in the firm's history.' One of Blackstone's brightest stars, Wesley LePatner, was among the dead, shot in the lobby as she was about to meet a colleague for a drink. Like grieving family members and friends of the three other victims, Blackstone employees are still trying to come to grips with what began around 6:30 p.m. and, for many, didn't end until hours later. At the height of the evening rush, a man double-parked his BMW on Park Avenue, calmly strode across a public plaza with an assault-style rifle in his hand, stepped into the lobby and opened fire. Glass shattered in the lobby and bodies lay still. Office workers sprinted out of the building or scrambled for cover. (Police said the gunman, identified as Shane Tamura of Las Vegas, was looking for the headquarters of the NFL professional football league, which is located in the same building; Tamura ended up at Rudin Management on the 33rd floor where he died of a self-inflicted gunshot.) Panic began to spread through 345 Park, located near the gilded Waldorf-Astoria hotel, the new, soaring headquarters of JPMorgan Chase & Co. and up the grand boulevard from the Beaux Arts Grand Central Terminal. Other firms, including consulting firm KPMG and landlord Rudin, also call the building home. Few knew yet if anyone had been hurt or killed. Many Blackstone employees were still at their desks and began calling and texting colleagues to try to find out what was going on. One heard the initial burst of fire from the gunman's assault rifle and promptly alerted colleagues via Microsoft Teams chat to take cover. That saved a lot of lives, one Blackstone employee said. By 7 p.m., a half-hour after Tamura first stepped into the lobby, police officers were shepherding some employees out of 345 Park, workers said. One employee recalled being on a Zoom call and opening the door to discover colleagues with their hands raised over their heads and several police officers with guns drawn. The police hustled the group into the elevator and down to safety. Floor by floor, they were led out into the July evening, leaving their names and phone numbers for police to scribble on paper. Some were too petrified to leave their hiding spots at first. Others would only leave around 10 p.m., as police continued to sweep each floor. By about 11 p.m., when Blackstone's offices were fully cleared out, several had learned that LePatner was dead. Gray was among executives who went to Bellevue Hospital to offer support to LePatner's family. 'The focus now is the loss of Wesley and dealing with the trauma people experienced last night,' Gray said. Just that day, Gray had been in Blackstone's Monday meetings with her. Late Tuesday morning, Gray and Schwarzman addressed Blackstone employees around the world via Zoom. The message: Everyone is hurting and it's normal after such loss. Schwarzman urged employees to support each other. Blackstone is reviewing its security, and many employees praised how their bosses have handled the tragedy. Rudin had already bolstered security in response to crime in the area, and then the UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting, stationing more guards. Many employees expect tighter security going forward. Blackstone's offices will remain closed this week, and it's unclear when it will reopen. It all happened so fast, many of them said. Several added that they might've just as easily been among those who didn't make it home. --With assistance from David Scheer. More stories like this are available on
West Australian
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
- West Australian
Stunning farm tours on offer at Taste Of The Kimberley, showcasing locally grown produce
As part of Taste Of The Kimberley, East Kimberley farmer Matt Gray will take festival goers on a stunning farm tour, showing off what local produce the Ord Valley has to offer. The Behind the Gates farm tours will offer an opportunity to join Matt Gray from Ceres Farm on a guided journey from the original pump house through cotton, sorghum, sandalwood, chickpea and melon fields. Tours of Kununurra's brand new cotton gin are also on offer, followed by a native-inspired morning tea in Mirima National Park. 'Everybody gets something different out of it, depending on where they're from and their background,' Mr Gray said. 'People from WA are really interested in the cotton, because that's something not typically grown in WA. They like to see how it's produced and processed. 'Everyone also loves seeing watermelons and pumpkins, because obviously, anywhere to see where your food comes from is fantastic. The sunflowers are always everybody's favourite.' Mr Gray will also be part of the farmers' panel, answering questions on the local agricultural industry from punters, connecting consumer with producer. 'I'm guessing there will be some questions about the cotton gin. We'll be focusing on how cotton is a sustainable crop and trying to educate people,' he said. 'It's not what it's touted to be on the east coast, and it is a good fit for this area, both economically and environmentally.' He said he was looking forward to seeing festival goers try all of the Ord Valley produce at the FEASTival. 'We obviously heavily focus on what we do, which is watermelons, pumpkins, and grain and fibre crops but when you actually sit down and make a list of things actually produced in the Ord Valley, it's fairly extensive,' Mr Gray said. 'So just for someone to collaborate all those different products in one area and demonstrate to everybody that we are a food bowl is really important. 'It advertises everything that we do here, and it is a unique part of Australia — and probably more unique to WA, with the irrigation and tropical agriculture. 'Although the Ord is originally set up for farming, it's not a typical farming community. A lot of the main industry here isn't agriculture so people don't get that firsthand look at what's actually produced on their doorstep. 'It's about bringing tourists and educating them but also educating locals as well.' Taste Of The Kimberley runs from August 15 to 17.
San Francisco Chronicle
15 hours ago
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
Valkyries survive fourth-quarter wilting to win on jumper with 3.2 seconds to go
ATLANTA — The Golden State Valkyries finally notched another road win, but it wasn't pretty. In a 77-75 defeat of the Dream on Tuesday night, Golden State blew a 13-point fourth-quarter lead only to have Cecilia Zandalasini make a steal with 19.4 seconds to play and then rattle in an 11-foot jumper left with 3.2 to go for the victory. The Valkyries (12-13) won for only the fourth time in 13 road games avoided a fourth consecutive defeat away from Chase Center, Golden State had gone ahead 69-56 thanks to a 30-point third frame, but fell silent for most of the fourth when it was outscored 19-8. The game's final minutes endured several lengthy stops, including with a minute to go and the score tied 75-75 when a spectator threw a sex toy onto the floor. Center Monique Billings started her first game since before the All-Star break after being questionable with a left ankle injury, but left the game after playing 8:52 and did not return. Billings started the game defending 6-foot-9 Brittney Griner, and she held the Dream center to four points and one rebound in the first half. Every Valkyries backcourt player had at least three fouls by the start of the fourth frame. Janelle Salaün picked up her fourth early in the third quarter, while Iliana Rupert picked up two of her three within minutes of picking up Griner on defense. After being tied at the half, Golden State went on a 10-0 run midway through the third quarter on Hayes' third trey of the night before layups from Veronica Burton and Laeticia Amihere and a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Burton. Valkyries 77, Dream 75 Percentages: FG .476, FT .750. 3-Point Goals: 11-26, .423 (Hayes 3-5, Zandalasini 3-5, Leite 2-2, Burton 2-3, Martin 1-1, Fágbénlé 0-1, Amihere 0-2, Rupert 0-3, Salaün 0-4). Team Rebounds: 8. Team Turnovers: None. Blocked Shots: 2 (Billings, Fágbénlé). Turnovers: 13 (Burton 5, Hayes 3, Leite 3, Martin, Salaün). Steals: 4 (Hayes 2, Amihere, Zandalasini). Technical Fouls: None. FG FT Reb ATLANTA Min M-A M-A O-T A PF PTS Caldwell 34:02 3-9 0-0 0-2 4 1 9 Jones 27:40 4-13 0-0 4-6 0 2 8 Griner 19:51 3-7 3-3 0-3 0 1 9 Canada 35:34 6-11 5-5 2-2 8 2 21 Gray 33:53 2-11 6-9 0-6 2 4 12 Hillmon 30:05 5-11 2-2 2-8 3 0 14 Walker-Kimbrough 12:05 0-1 0-0 0-0 1 0 0 Paopao 4:26 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 2 Coffey 2:24 0-0 0-2 0-0 0 0 0 Totals 200:00 24-64 16-21 8-27 18 11 75 Percentages: FG .375, FT .762. 3-Point Goals: 11-33, .333 (Canada 4-8, Caldwell 3-8, Gray 2-6, Hillmon 2-8, Walker-Kimbrough 0-1, Jones 0-2). Team Rebounds: 11. Team Turnovers: 1. Blocked Shots: 4 (Caldwell, Canada, Griner, Hillmon). Turnovers: 6 (Gray 2, Jones 2, Canada, Walker-Kimbrough). Steals: 8 (Caldwell 4, Gray 3, Hillmon). Technical Fouls: None. Golden State 20 19 30 8 — 77 Atlanta 16 23 17 19 — 75 A_3,265 (3,500). T_2:17. A game after shooting 0-for-8 from the field in an ugly loss to Phoenix, veteran guard Tiffany Hayes scored 15 points — nine of which came in the third quarter — while Zandalasini finished with 18 points off the bench. Golden State's reserves outscored Atlanta's 39-16. Golden State will travel to Washington to face the Mystics on Thursday in the third game of its five-game road trip.
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Chuck Gray polls his odds as Wyoming governor or U.S. representative
CHEYENNE — Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray said he is 'exploring' the option to run for governor of Wyoming or for Wyoming's sole seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, saying he has been 'strongly encouraged' to run, though no official announcements have been made. It is unlikely Gray would challenge Harriet Hageman in the gubernatorial race, after an internal poll from Cygnal in January suggests she would have a strong run in Wyoming, or in the congressional race if she sought reelection for her House seat in Washington, D.C. The potential bid for a higher elected seat was highlighted Tuesday when Gray released his own internal polling, conducted by Fabrizio, Lee & Associates, weighing his odds in either of the two elections. Tony Fabrizio, the principal in Fabrizio, Lee & Associates, is a Republican pollster who has conducted polls for candidates over the past several decades, most notably including Donald Trump's 2016 and 2024 presidential campaigns, former Sen. Bob Dole's 1996 presidential campaign, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul's 2016 presidential campaign and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry's 2012 presidential campaign. As of 2023, Fabrizio was running the polling operations for the MAGA Inc. super PAC. Although the election for both races is not until late 2026, the polling Gray released shows potential leads in both elections. The poll was conducted by surveying 500 Wyoming voters registered as Republicans from July 15 to July 17 of this year across different demographic groups including race, age, location, education and a 50/50 split between male and female voters. The first question in the poll gauged name recognition. It included the names of six Wyoming politicians whose names are in the mix. The list includes Wyoming Sen. Eric Barlow, R-Gillette; Wyoming Senate President Bo Biteman, R-Ranchester; Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder; Gray; Speaker of the Wyoming House of Representatives Chip Neiman, R-Hulett; and Sen. Cheri Steinmetz, R-Torrington. Fabrizio's poll found that Gray had the greatest name recognition at 73% who had heard of him, followed by Degenfelder at 46%. The rest of the names were in the 40% range, with Steinmetz on the bottom at 38%. Additionally, survey respondents were asked how favorably they feel about each candidate on the list. Of those who responded to this part of the question, Degenfelder topped the list with 62% of those who recognized her name feeling favorably about her, and Gray falling to fourth on the list at 55%. Biteman was the lowest at 45%. The following question concerned the gubernatorial race only, asking who voters would elect if they were to cast their vote that day. In addition to the previous six names, the names on the list also included Republican Brent Bien, who lost the Republican primary race for governor to sitting Gov. Mark Gordon by a significant margin in 2022; Wyoming Senate Majority Leader Tara Nethercott, R-Cheyenne; and Wyoming State Treasurer Curt Meier. A majority of respondents, 56%, said they were undecided. The same question for U.S. Congress also left a majority undecided, this time at 58%. However, Gray had the highest amount of support at 12% for governor and at 16% for Congress, with second place falling to 6% each for Barlow and Bien and 7% to Nethercott in each race, respectively. Next, the survey informed the respondents of Gray's support for President Donald Trump, noting he believes in Trump's political policies and has previously been endorsed by him in his bid for Secretary of State. This notice increased Gray's standing in the poll. Though he has not announced his bid for any races in Wyoming next year and Trump has not endorsed any candidates, it has proven to be a powerful endorsement in local and statewide elections across the country. This was showcased in Wyoming in 2022 when then-former President Trump endorsed Hageman over incumbent Liz Cheney for a seat in the House of Representatives, which ultimately became one of the large factors leading to Cheney's defeat by more than 30 points in the GOP primary. The poll does not include Cheyenne Republican Joseph Kibler, who has announced a bid for governor, or former U.S. Senate candidate Reid Rasner, who has filed a campaign finance account for governor but has yet to announce his candidacy. It also omits Hageman and Gordon. Both of their decisions going forward will be influential in determining whether potential candidates run and in which race they choose to run in. Though Gordon is concluding his second and final term in 2027, there are still options should he choose to seek reelection. In 2013, the Wyoming Supreme Court ruled that the term limits on the top elected positions in the state were unconstitutional but omitted the governor's terms from the ruling. This means Gordon could seek to amend the constitution in a court challenge if he wanted to seek a third term. It is unclear whether that challenge would be successful. A July report from Morning Consult, which conducts many surveys every day asking registered U.S. voters in all 50 states if they approve or disapprove of their governor's job performance, found that Gordon had the third-highest governor approval rating among all 50 governors. When contacted Tuesday, the governor's office told the WTE in a statement that 'at this time, the Governor's focus remains on this term, and the work Wyoming's people elected him to do.' Gray told the WTE in a text message Tuesday that the law is clear that Gordon could not seek a third term. 'It would be deeply troubling for Gordon to make another power play by trying to challenge a commonsense conservative term limits law that the people of Wyoming supported by large margins,' he wrote, referencing a 1992 ballot initiative implementing a new term limit law. In 2004, the Wyoming Supreme Court ruled this term limit law unconstitutional under the state constitution.
