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/ 1 November 2005
A downhill skier is led off in handcuffs after crossing the finish line for a gold medal. Paramilitary police jump on to the ice and take away a hockey defenceman or chase down a pair of ice dancers. It may sound like a goofy film script, but the International Olympic Committee is worried about just such scenes at the Winter Olympics in Turin.
Presidents, prime ministers and kings joined millions of pilgrims, prelates and other religious leaders crowding St Peter’s Square and Rome in paying a final farewell on Friday to Pope John Paul II at a funeral capping one of the largest religious gatherings in the West in modern times.
Pope John Paul II’s funeral will be held on Friday morning, and his remains will be interred in the grotto of St. Peter’s Basilica where popes throughout the ages have been laid to rest, the Vatican said on Monday. Chief spokesperson Joaquin Navarro-Valls made the announcement after the College of Cardinals met for two and a half hours.
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/ 27 February 2005
Pope John Paul II will not lead Sunday prayers for the first time in his 26-year-old pontificate and will instead follow along with the traditional address from the hospital where he is recovering from a throat operation to ease a breathing crisis. Sunday’s prayer comes after the pope’s third night in hospital care.