South Africa had a slow start with the early dismissals of Reeza Hendricks and Aiden Markram leaving South Africa at 12 runs for the loss of two wickets. de Kock and Tristan Stubbs managed a partnership of 58 runs off 38 balls before Stubbs was dismissed by Patel. In the middle of the 13th over de Kock was dismissed by Arshdeep Singh leaving South Africa at 106 runs for the loss of four wickets. Heinrich Klaasen scored 52 runs from just 27 balls to help South Africa to go past 150 runs, including scoring 24 runs of a Patel over. With 26 needed from 24 balls, Klassen was dismissed by Hardik Pandya. Soon Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Marco Jansen in the 18th over and conceded only two runs. Arshdeep conceded only four runs in the next over, at the end of which South Africa required 16 from the last over. The last over was bowled by Pandya and on the first ball of the over David Miller was caught by Suryakumar Yadav. Rabada was dismissed on the fifth ball of the over and South Africa required nine runs of the last ball. Pandya conceded only a single and India won the match by 7 runs. Klaasen was the highest run-scorer for South Africa while Pandya picked up 3 wickets for India.


This was India's second T20 World Cup victory after first win in 2007 and first win in a major ICC event in 11 years, with their previous win being the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. India became the first Asian country to win two ICC Men's T20 World Cups (2007 and 2024). India also became the first team in T20 World Cup history to win the title undefeated throughout the tournament. Rohit Sharma became the third Indian captain to win a major ICC event after Kapil Dev in 1983 and MS Dhoni in 2007, 2011 and 2013.
Virat Kohli was named Player of the Match for scoring 76 runs off 59 balls while Jasprit Bumrah was named Player of the Tournament for his all-round bowling performance throughout the tournament.
India received $2.45 million and South Africa received $1.28 million in prize money from the ICC. Following India's victory, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja announced their retirement from the T20I cricket. Rahul Dravid's tenure as India's head coach came to an end after this tournament.


Suryakumar Yadav's took the catch of David Miller in the final with his left foot close to the boundary cushion. Action replays suggested that it was a fair and clean catch, as confirmed by the video umpire. Subsequently, some netizens on social media made unverified speculation that his shoe might have flicked the boundary cushion, before a new video showing the catch from a different angle dispelled the doubts and confirmed the catch's validity. The catch was also widely likened to that of former Indian captain Kapil Dev in the 1983 Cricket World Cup final, where he took a running catch to dismiss West Indies' batsman Vivian Richards.
South Africa faced criticism for choking in the closing phase of the match, as they were favoured to chase down the total comfortably at one stage. South Africa captain Aiden Markram admitted that the defeat was a tough pill to swallow and described it as a "gut-wrenching and bittersweet ending to a great campaign", but heaped praise on his teammates who had helped the team reach the final as one of only two unbeaten sides of the tournament.
Indian President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated team India on winning the tournament. The South African Government appreciated the South Africa team's efforts in a post on Twitter.


Major cities in India celebrated the win late into the night. Indian supporters in various overseas locations also celebrated the win by hoisting Indian flags and setting off firecrackers. Later, BCCI secretary Jay Shah announced a cash reward of ₹125 crore (US$15 million) for Team India for the win. The Indian team's departure from Barbados was delayed by over two days due to Hurricane Beryl, which caused a shutdown of air traffic from the island.
On 4 July 2024, the Indian team was greeted with a warm welcome by the fans as they landed in Delhi. The players and support staff met with the Indian Prime Minister Modi at his residence in 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, New Delhi. They then flew to Mumbai, taking a 2-kilometre open bus ride from Nariman Point to the Wankhede Stadium, for which an estimated 300,000 fans gathered at the Marine Drive. At the Wankhede Stadium, the team was felicitated by the BCCI and a cheque of ₹125 crore (US$15 million) was handed over by Jay Shah and BCCI President Roger Binny.


The final match was broadcast live in India on Star Sports, free-to-air broadcaster DD Sports and free on OTT platform Disney+ Hotstar. In South Africa the match was broadcast live on SuperSport. The ICC named the following panel of commentators for the final: Harsha Bhogle, Ian Bishop, Carlos Brathwaite, Nasser Hussain, Dinesh Karthik, Kass Naidoo, Shaun Pollock, Ricky Ponting, Ravi Shastri, Ian Smith and Dale Steyn.


A special election was held in the U.S. state of Minnesota on March 19, 2024, to elect a new representative for district 27B in the state's House of Representatives. The special election was caused by the resignation of Republican incumbent Kurt Daudt. The candidates in the general election were Bryan Lawrence and Brad Brown for the Republican and Democratic–Farmer–Labor parties, respectively. Lawrence defeated his primary opponent Rachel Davis by over 81 points, and Brown won his primary uncontested. In the general election, Lawrence won in a landslide with over 84.5% of the total vote.

2024 Minnesota House of Representatives district 27B special election


District 27B is located north of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area and covers parts of the Anoka, Isanti, Mille Lacs, and Sherburne counties. On January 10, 2024, Kurt Daudt, the Republican representative for District 27B, announced his resignation from the Minnesota House of Representatives, effective February 11. He did not immediately provide a reason for his resignation. Two days after his resignation became effective, governor Tim Walz selected March 19 as the date of the special election to replace Daudt and February 29 as the date of the special primaries, if they were to be held.


On February 8, 2024, farmer and businessman Bryan Lawrence announced his campaign for the District 27B seat, claiming that the "trifecta" of Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party control in the state government "has led to a trifecta of assaults on our central Minnesota way of life". Lawrence previously served on the Baldwin Township board, including as its chair, and had ran for the House before in 1996. Mechanical adjuster and former caregiver Rachel Davis was also a candidate for the Republican primary, campaigning on a smaller government that follows the Constitution of the United States. She had previously ran against Daudt in a primary challenge in 2022. On February 10, Lawrence received the endorsement of the Minnesota Republican Party. Davis was not present at the endorsement convention after a screening committee for the Republicans revealed that, since 2022, she was on probation for driving under the influence. Davis decided to continue her campaign after failing to receive the endorsement from the Minnesota Republican Party. In the primary election, Lawrence defeated Davis in a landslide, receiving nearly 91% of the vote.


Brad Brown, a small business owner and retired diesel mechanic, was the only candidate in the Democratic primary and won unopposed. He had previously challenged Daudt in the 2018, 2020, and 2022 elections.


Throughout the election, Lawrence campaigned on anti-abortion policies, controlling Minnesota's budget, and protecting gun ownership. In a landslide victory, Lawrence won with over 84% of the total vote. Brown congratulated Lawrence, stating that he hoped Lawrence "has continuity and does a good job in the House". Lawrence was sworn in on April 2, 2024, and the DFL retained their majority in the House, having 70 seats compared to the 64 seats controlled by the Republicans. He was elected to a full term in the House in the 2024 election.


The 2024 Rose Bowl (officially known as the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the 2024 Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential for sponsorship reasons) was a college football bowl game played on January 1, 2024, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, United States. The game was the 110th annual playing of the Rose Bowl, one of the semifinals of the 2023–24 College Football Playoff (CFP), concluding the 2023 FBS football season. The game featured two of the four teams chosen by the selection committee to participate in the playoff: the fourth-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide of the Southeastern Conference and the first-ranked Michigan Wolverines of the Big Ten Conference. The winner qualified for the 2024 College Football Playoff National Championship against the winner of the other semifinal, hosted at the Sugar Bowl.
Michigan entered with an undefeated 13–0 record, while Alabama entered with at 12–1. Both teams were champions of their respective conferences: Michigan defeated Iowa in the Big Ten Championship, and Alabama defeated then-No. 1 Georgia in the SEC Championship. It was the sixth meeting between Michigan and Alabama and the fifth to occur in the postseason, and Alabama led the overall series 3–2 entering the game. Additionally, the teams entered as the two college football programs with the most all-time wins. Michigan made their twenty-first Rose Bowl appearance, while Alabama appeared for the eighth time.
The game's scoring began on Alabama's third offensive possession when running back Jase McClellan scored on a 34-yard touchdown rush. The Wolverines tied the game on their next drive on an 8-yard touchdown pass from quarterback J. J. McCarthy to running back Blake Corum. A McCarthy touchdown pass to wide receiver Tyler Morris for 38 yards gave Michigan their first lead with less than four minutes remaining in the first half, and the Wolverines maintained this advantage into halftime. Neither team scored in the third quarter, but Alabama retook the lead thirty seconds into the fourth on a 3-yard rush by McClellan. An Alabama field goal with less than five minutes to play extended their lead to seven points, though a Michigan touchdown by Roman Wilson with ninety-four seconds remaining tied the game and ultimately sent it to overtime. Michigan had possession first in the overtime period and scored a touchdown in two plays. On Alabama's possession, they were ultimately stopped short on fourth and goal from the 3-yard line, giving Michigan a 27–20 victory and a berth in the national championship game.


The Rose Bowl was first played in January 1902, making it the oldest college football bowl game. It was then known as the Tournament East–West Football Game, reflecting its place as an event during the Tournament of Roses Parade. In the first playing, held at Tournament Park in Pasadena, Michigan defeated Stanford, 49–0. The Rose Bowl Stadium was built in 1922 and hosted its first Rose Bowl Game in 1923, which saw USC defeat Penn State. The Rose Bowl was included as part of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) upon its installation in 1998 and hosted the BCS National Championship Game on four occasions: in 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2014. After the establishment of the College Football Playoff (CFP) beginning with the 2014 season, it hosted CFP semifinal games in 2015 and 2018 prior to the 2024 contest. Additionally, the 2021 Rose Bowl was a CFP semifinal but was played at AT&T Stadium due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Prior to the game, Cliff Montgomery, Kirk Herbstreit, and Lincoln Kennedy were inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame. Former congresswoman Gabby Giffords was the Rose Parade grand marshal.


The four teams competing in the Playoff were chosen by the CFP selection committee, whose final rankings were released on December 3, 2023. The committee selected No. 1 Michigan of the Big Ten Conference, No. 2 Washington of the Pac-12 Conference, No. 3 Texas of the Big 12 Conference, and No. 4 Alabama of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Each team was the champion of its respective conference. Michigan and Washington entered the playoff with undefeated 13–0 records while Texas and Alabama entered 12–1.


The game featured Big Ten champions Michigan and SEC champions Alabama. This was the sixth meeting between the two teams, and Alabama entered with a 3–2 lead in the overall series. Their most recent meeting was in the 2020 Citrus Bowl, in which Alabama defeated Michigan 35–16. Four of the teams' other meetings took place in the postseason, the first being a Michigan victory in the 1988 Hall of Fame Bowl. The teams entered the game as the two college football programs with the most all-time wins, with Michigan at 1,002 wins and Alabama at 965.
This was Michigan's 21st appearance in the Rose Bowl—they were 8–12 in prior editions. They lost their previous three Rose Bowl appearances, in 2004, 2005, and 2007. Their last Rose Bowl win came in 1998, when they defeated Washington State 21–16 to win the national championship. Alabama, meanwhile, made their eighth Rose Bowl appearance, with a 5–1–1 record in previous games. Their last appearance came in 2021 in a win over Notre Dame, and the Tide's last national championship was won the next game over Ohio State.


Michigan finished the regular season with a perfect 12–0 record, having concluded their Big Ten schedule with a rivalry win over Ohio State, 30–24. As Ohio State also entered the game undefeated, the Big Ten Conference East Division championship was on the line, and Michigan's win and subsequent division title earned them a berth to the 2023 Big Ten Football Championship Game against the West Division champion Iowa. They defeated Iowa in a 26–0 shutout to claim their third consecutive conference championship; the Associated Press said that Iowa "never had a chance" in the game and remarked that Michigan was likely to claim the No. 1 seed in the playoff, which they ultimately did. The Iowa win gave Michigan a 13–0 record entering the Rose Bowl.
The game was played during an ongoing investigation into allegations of sign-stealing by Michigan Wolverines staff members. The scandal was a major headline for the team throughout the season; it centered around an allegation and subsequent investigations by the NCAA and Big Ten as to whether Michigan violated an NCAA bylaw regarding the scouting of future opponents. Connor Stalions, a Michigan football staffer, was cited by allegations as having attended more than 35 games to scout future opponents. Head coach Jim Harbaugh, who denied knowledge of the scouting, was suspended by the Big Ten for the team's last three regular season games against Penn State, Maryland, and Ohio State. He had previously served a suspension for the team's first three games of the season, against East Carolina, UNLV, and Bowling Green, as the result of a self-imposed sanction regarding recruiting violations.


Alabama went 11–1 in the regular season, with their only loss coming to Texas on September 9 by a score of 34–24. They finished the season with a defeat of Auburn in the annual Iron Bowl rivalry game; this win came by way of a 31-yard touchdown pass on 4th & Goal. Their 8–0 conference record gave them the SEC West Division championship and a berth in the 2023 SEC Championship Game, where they faced No. 1 Georgia. In the game, Alabama defeated the two-time defending national champions, 27–24, ending their 29-game winning streak.


The game's officiating crew, representing the Big 12 Conference, was led by referee Michael Vandervelde. The game, which took place on January 1, 2024, was scheduled to begin at 2:00 p.m. local PST, though its actual start time was 2:11 p.m. Michigan entered as slim favorites to win the game, and the point spread was set at 1.5 points with an over–under of 44.5 points. The game was broadcast on ESPN, with play-by-play commentary from Chris Fowler, analysis from Kirk Herbstreit, and sideline reporting from Holly Rowe and Laura Rutledge. The ESPN Radio broadcast featured Joe Tessitore on play-by-play, with analysis from Dusty Dvoracek and sideline reporting from Quint Kessenich. ESPN also offered Field Pass with the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN2 and Command Center on ESPNU, as well as a Spanish-language ESPN Deportes broadcast with commentary from Eduardo Varela and Pablo Viruega. The Michigan Sports Network radio feed featured commentary from Doug Karsch, Jon Jansen, and Jason Avant, and the Crimson Tide Sports Network broadcast featured Chris Stewart, Tyler Watts, and Roger Hoover.
The pregame coin toss was won by Alabama, who deferred their choice to the second half, thereby giving Michigan possession of the ball to begin the game.


The game began with Alabama placekicker Will Reichard's opening kickoff, which landed in the end zone and therefore resulted in a touchback, giving Michigan possession of the ball on the Alabama 25-yard line. On the game's first play, Michigan quarterback J. J. McCarthy threw a pass which was initially ruled on the field to have been intercepted by Alabama safety Caleb Downs. The play went to replay review, where it was determined that Downs was out-of-bounds when he caught the ball, meaning the result of the play was an incomplete pass. The next two plays netted two yards for the Wolverines, whose drive ended with a three-and-out and a punt by Tommy Doman on the next play. Alabama's first drive ended similarly, with two quarterback sacks in three plays by the Michigan defense contributing to an Alabama three-and-out and punt. James Burnip's kick was muffed by Semaj Morgan and recovered for Alabama by Quandarrius Robinson at the Michigan 44-yard line, giving Alabama possession again. On this drive, Alabama scored on their fourth play when running back Jase McClellan rushed for a 34-yard touchdown, and Reichard's extra point was successful, giving Alabama a 7–0 lead. Michigan tied the game on their second drive, which included gains of 21 and 19 yards by Blake Corum and Kalel Mullings, respectively, and ended with an 8-yard touchdown pass from McCarthy to Corum. The Wolverines regained possession of the ball following an Alabama three-and-out and advanced the ball to their own 31-yard line before the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter began with a Michigan 3rd & 9 which the Wolverines were unable to convert. The game's next three drives—two for Alabama and one for Michigan—all resulted in three-and-outs after net gains of no more than four yards. After the last of these punts was downed at the Michigan 17-yard line, the Wolverines gained possession of the ball and were able to gain three first downs in five plays to reach midfield. After two plays with no yardage gained, McCarthy passed to Tyler Morris for a 38-yard touchdown, giving Michigan their first lead of the game. The ensuing extra point attempt was unsuccessful, keeping Michigan's lead to six points. Doman's kickoff that followed was returned by Kendrick Law to the Alabama 16-yard line, giving the Crimson Tide the ball with 3:44 remaining in the first half. The Tide reached Michigan territory in three plays and shortly after faced 3rd & 3 at the Michigan 25-yard line with 28 seconds left. On that play, Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe was sacked for a loss of 7 yards. On the ensuing fourth down, Reichard made a 50-yard field goal to pull the Crimson Tide within three points. The final play of the second quarter was a quarterback kneel by Michigan and the Wolverines entered halftime with a 13–10 lead.


Alabama had possession of the ball first in the second half and started their drive on their own 14-yard line following a kickoff return by Law. Their first six plays saw them gain three first downs and reach the Michigan 47-yard line, but a fumble by Milroe on the snap set them back thirteen yards and they punted several plays later. Michigan converted 3rd & 9 on their following drive with a 12-yard pass from McCarthy to Cornelius Johnson, though they gained only eight yards on their next three plays and punted on fourth down. The teams then traded three-and-outs and Alabama began their third drive of the quarter with under four minutes remaining and the ball on their own 45-yard line. They entered Michigan territory with a Milroe rush on their first play and were in the red zone after five plays. A Milroe rush for no gain at the Michigan 16-yard line concluded the third quarter with the score still 13–10 in favor of the Wolverines.
Milroe began the fourth quarter with an 18-yard rush, which was immediately followed by a 3-yard touchdown rush by McClellan, giving Alabama the lead. Michigan went three-and-out again afterwards, though the Crimson Tide's next drive was cut short by a fumble on its second play, recovered by Michigan's Josh Wallace. McCarthy passed to Roman Wilson for a 20-yard gain on the Wolverines' first play, though they did not gain another first down and attempted a 49-yard field goal on fourth down, which was unsuccessful after Turner missed it to the left. Alabama, taking possession at their own 31-yard line, extended their lead as the result of a nine-play drive which saw several first downs gained on rushing plays. It ended with a 52-yard Reichard field goal, leaving just over five minutes on the clock. Michigan began their next drive following a touchback and gained eight yards in three plays, leaving them with 4th & 2 on their own 33-yard line. On the play, McCarthy passed to Corum for a gain of 27 yards, giving Michigan a first down at the 50-yard line. The Wolverines reached the red zone after consecutive gains of 16 and 29 yards immediately afterwards, and a McCarthy-to-Wilson touchdown pass two plays later brought Michigan within one point. The extra point by Turner was good, tying the game at 20 points apiece with 94 seconds left in regulation. Alabama ended their next drive with a punt, though the kick was muffed at the Michigan 6-yard line by Jake Thaw; he ultimately recovered the ball at the 1-yard line. Michigan took a knee to run the remaining seconds off of the clock and send the game to overtime.


Another coin toss was performed before the start of the overtime period, which was won by Alabama. They opted to play on defense first, giving Michigan the first overtime possession.
The Wolverines opened overtime with an 8-yard rush by Blake Corum, which was immediately followed by a 17-yard Corum touchdown rush and a successful extra point attempt by James Turner. Alabama began their overtime possession with a 15-yard rush by Milroe on the second play, though they soon faced 3rd & Goal on the 14-yard line following rushes for no gain and a 5-yard loss by McClellan. On third down, Milroe passed to Jermaine Burton for an 11-yard gain, setting up 4th & Goal on the 3-yard line. Alabama ran a quarterback keeper with Milroe, which failed when he was stopped for a 1-yard gain by Josiah Stewart, ending the game and giving Michigan a 27–20 victory.


The win improved Michigan's record to 14–0 and gave them a berth to the 2024 College Football Playoff National Championship, where they faced Sugar Bowl champions Washington. They would eventually defeat Washington 34–13. Alabama's record fell to 12–2 and the Tide's season concluded upon the loss. Michigan quarterback J. J. McCarthy and defensive tackle Mason Graham were named the game's most valuable players.
The ESPN broadcast of the game drew 27.2 million viewers, the highest viewing audience for any CFP semifinal since the 2015 Sugar Bowl, during the CFP's first year. It ranked in the top ten audiences for cable telecasts all-time and was the highest for any sporting event, apart from the National Football League, since 2018. The peak audience of 32.8 million viewers was the most for any CFP semifinal game. The game was the most-viewed Rose Bowl since 2015, also a CFP semifinal, which had 28.2 million viewers.
The game was the second in Rose Bowl history to reach overtime. The first was the 2018 edition, when Georgia defeated Oklahoma in double-overtime; that game was also a CFP semifinal.
This game was the last for Nick Saban as the Alabama head coach, as he retired on January 10, 2024, after seventeen years in the position.
The game marked the 70th consecutive Rose Bowl played in Pasadena to be attended by San Francisco-based sports columnist Art Spander.


The 2024 Tour Championship (officially the 2024 Johnstone's Paint Tour Championship) was a professional snooker tournament that took place from 1 to 7 April 2024 at the Manchester Central in Manchester, England. The 16th and penultimate ranking event of the 2023–24 season, it preceded the World Championship. It was the last of three events in the Players Series, following the World Grand Prix and the Players Championship. Organised by the World Snooker Tour and sponsored by Johnstone's Paint, the event was broadcast by ITV Sport domestically and by other broadcasters worldwide. The winner received £150,000 from a total prize fund of £500,000.
The event featured the top 12 players on the one‑year ranking list as it stood after the World Open. This represented an increase over previous editions of the tournament, which had featured eight competitors. Shaun Murphy had won the 2023 event where he defeated Kyren Wilson 10–7 in the final, but he failed to qualify for the 2024 edition.
Mark Williams defeated the world number two Judd Trump and world number three Mark Allen in the quarter‑final and semi‑final, and then world number one, Ronnie O'Sullivan, 10–5 in the final to win his first Tour Championship title, the 26th ranking title of his career, and the second of the season since he won the 2023 British Open. Aged 49, Williams became the second oldest ranking event winner after Ray Reardon. Along with O'Sullivan (48) it was the highest combined age for any two finalists of a ranking event.
The tournament produced 27 century breaks. Williams, O'Sullivan, and Allen each compiled six century breaks, with Allen making the tournament highest break of 142 in the quarter‑finals.


The 2024 Tour Championship took place from 1 to 7 April 2024 at the Manchester Central in Manchester, England. The 2024 edition of the Tour Championship had a modified format from previous editions. The top twelve players on the one‑year ranking list as it stood after the World Open participated in the event, whereas previous editions had featured eight competitors. The four highest‑ranked seeded players were given byes through to the quarter‑finals, while the remaining eight competed in the first round for the other four quarter‑final places.
All matches were played as the best of 19 frames, over two sessions. Instead of both sessions of each match being played in a single day in previous editions, two of the four first round matches and two of the four quarter‑finals were played over two days. English player Shaun Murphy won the previous year's event, defeating compatriot Kyren Wilson 10–7 in the final. However, Murphy was ranked 22nd on the one‑year list after the World Open, and did not qualify for the tournament. Reigning World Snooker Championship winner Luca Brecel also didn't qualify.


The event was broadcast in the United Kingdom by ITV4 and ITV3; Liaoning TV, Migu, and Huya in mainland China; DAZN in the United States, Brazil, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Spain; Nova Sport in Czech Republic and Slovakia; Viaplay and Go3 Sport in Poland, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden, Iceland, Netherlands, and Norway; Now TV in Hong Kong; Astro SuperSport in Malaysia and Brunei; True Sports in Thailand; Sportcast in Taiwan; Premier Sports Network in the Philippines; Fastsports in Pakistan; and Matchroom.live in all other territories.


The breakdown of prize money for the event is shown below:


Unlike other events where the defending champion is seeded first, the reigning World Champion second, and the rest based on the world rankings, the qualification and seedings in the Players Series tournaments are determined by the one‑year ranking list. The below list shows the top 12 players with the most ranking points acquired during the 2023–24 season, as of after the World Open who qualified for the event.


The first-round matches were played on 1 and 2 April. World number three and the 2020 runner-up Mark Allen and John Higgins, runner-up in 2022, contested the opening match of the first round. Previously in the 2023–24 season, Allen had defeated Higgins 6–2 in the semi-final of the 2023 Champion of Champions and 6–5 in the first round of the 2024 Masters. But Higgins claimed victory twice in February, winning 5–2 both times at the 2024 German Masters and the 2024 Welsh Open. Allen took the first frame with a 69 break, but Higgins won four frames in a row, making breaks of 85, 75, 55, and 66 to lead 4–1. Allen responded with a century break of 123, and won two more frames to even the match at 4–4 at the end of the session. The first four frames in the second session were shared, with Allen winning the 11th frame on the last black ball, and the scores were level at 6–6 at the mid-session interval. Allen pulled ahead with a 102 break in frame 13, and went on to take the 14th frame after a safety battle on the last pink ball. Higgins made a break of 86 to trail 7–8, but Allen won the 16th frame with a 93 break to recover a two frame advantage. Higgins only made a break of 20 early in frame 17, and made an error on a safety shot, allowing Allen to produce a 100 break to claim a 10–7 victory. Allen commented: "I'm very proud to have matched him [Higgins] in the safety department and scored better as the match went on." He attributed the win to working with psychologist Paul Gaffney, saying: "It has focussed my mind on just playing the next shot and the next frame as well as I can. My decision-making is more measured. Sometimes it's better to be patient and wait for a better chance." Higgins praised Allen's performance, while criticising his own: "I missed two or three unforgivable balls tonight. My long game was non-existent, and at this level it's not good enough against the best players." He hinted towards retiring, adding: "I just need to dust myself down a couple of weeks before the [World Championship], try to get some good practice in and go there and give it a final go maybe."


Tour Championship debutant Gary Wilson faced Mark Selby. They were tied at 2–2 before the mid-session interval, with Selby making a break of 85 in frame three, and Wilson breaks of 95 and 98 in the second and fourth frames. Wilson pulled ahead to 5–2 with breaks of 78 and 101, and Selby made a 71 break to trail by two frames at the end of the first session. Play resumed the next day, and Wilson maintained the two-frame advantage at 8–6 after both players shared the first six frames. Wilson had a chance to win frame 15, but missed the brown ball on two occasions, allowing Selby to secure the frame on the last black and reduce his deficit to one frame. Wilson won the closely contested 16th frame, also on the last black. Selby responded with a 90 break to trail 8–9, but he missed a red on a break of 30 in the 18th frame, and Wilson capitalised on the error with a clearance of 105 to win the match 10–8. Wilson commented: "It wasn't a great game, we both missed easy chances. I kept making it difficult for myself and handing him [Selby] chances to get back into the game. But thankfully I made a good break in the last frame to get over the line." The former world number one Selby called his performance "pathetic from start to finish" and "probably one of the worst games I've played as a professional. If I carry on playing like that I won't be enjoying it and [I'll be] choosing a different career, for sure." He also hinted towards possible retirement, adding: "I'll give the World Championships a go but if I carry on like that I won't carry on, 100%. When it gets to the point I'm not enjoying it, it doesn't matter where I am in the rankings, I'll be hanging my cue up. I can't enjoy performances like that."


Mark Williams played another Tour Championship debutant, Tom Ford. Williams took on a 3–0 lead before Ford made a 114 break to trail 1–3 at the mid-session interval. Williams extended his lead with a 76 break, but Ford closed in to 3–4 with breaks of 73 and 136. The last frame of the session went to Williams, who made a 86 break to lead 5–3. When play resumed the next day, Williams won three of the four frames before the interval to lead 8–4, making breaks of 112 and 88 in frames nine and 12, and won the 11th frame on a re-spotted black. Ford responded by taking the next three frames, including two century breaks of 138 and 133 in frames 13 and 15. He also had chances in the next frame, but Williams won it on a re-spotted black, the second of the match, to lead 9–7. However, breaks of 90 and 63 from Ford levelled the match at 9–9, forcing a deciding frame. Ford had the first chance in the decider, but missed a pot on a red at 54–0 ahead, and Williams secured the frame with a break of 66 to win 10–9 on the last pink. Williams called the match-winning break in the deciding frame "one of the best clearances I've ever made." He added: "Tom [Ford] was by far the better player, he made four centuries and didn't win, he must have thought he had me. But I'm used to be being up against it. It shows where my game is at if I can play poorly but still win."
Barry Hawkins opened the match against Ali Carter by taking the first frame with a 84 break. Carter responded with breaks of 80, 51, and 83 to lead 3–1 at the mid-session interval, with Hawkins scoring only two points in those three frames. Carter moved ahead to 6–1, helped by a total clearance of 135 in the fifth frame and a 94 break in the sixth. He missed a pot on a pink in the eighth frame, but Hawkins was unable to take the opportunity, and Carter narrowly won the frame to end the session with a 7–1 lead. In the second session, Hawkins won three of the four frames before the mid-session interval to trail 4–8, and narrowed the gap further with a 118 break in the 13th frame. He scored 60 points in frame 14 before missing a pot on the black, leaving it in the jaws of the pocket, and Carter took the frame to get within one frame of victory at 9–5. However, Hawkins won three frames in a row, including the 17th frame on a re-spotted black after needing foul points from two snookers, to trail 8–9. A fluked red in the 18th frame helped Carter secure the frame and match 10–8. He commented: "At 7–1 sometimes you feel you have it all to lose. Barry [Hawkins] came back at me really well and it got a bit sticky in the end. But that makes it a better win. If I had won 10–1 it would have felt like a bit of a non-event."


The quarter-finals were played on 3 and 4 April. World number one Ronnie O'Sullivan, the 2019 champion and runner-up in 2021, played Carter in the first quarter-final. Their three meetings previously in the season all ended in victory for O'Sullivan, including 6–3 at the 2023 Shanghai Masters, 6–4 at the 2023 International Championship, and 10–7 in the final of the 2024 Masters, where O'Sullivan claimed his record-extending eighth Masters title. O'Sullivan made breaks of 77, 87, and 54 as he led 4–0 at the mid-session interval. He moved ahead to 7–0 with breaks of 51, 81, and 92. Carter made a total clearance of 141 in the eighth frame to win his first frame of the match, trailing 1–7 at the end of the first session. Carter won another frame with a 70 break after play resumed, narrowing his deficit to 2–7. However, breaks of 62, 54, and 67 saw O'Sullivan secure the match 10–2. O'Sullivan, who had withdrawn from the Welsh Open in February citing mental health reasons, commented on the difficulties he had faced that prompted him to work with Steve Peters, his psychiatrist, saying: "It's been a hard year, drove myself pretty much insane really. It's just got to me. I had to go back to basics and get my head right. [I had to] deal with it because doing it the other way round isn't working. Just getting my head around it is the only option I have left. I've driven myself mad for the last two years and not enjoyed any of it."
The second quarter-final was played between championship debutants Zhang Anda and Wilson. Despite making a 85 break in the third frame, Zhang was trailing 1–3 at the mid-session interval. But he won three frames in a row, making breaks of 93 and 74, to lead 4–3. The last frame of the first session went to Wilson, levelling the match at 4–4. Zhang took the opening frame of the second session on the following day, but Wilson won three consecutive frames to lead 7–5. Zhang took the next two frames, and was trailing 9–61 in the 15th frame, but capitalised on Wilson's missed red to lead 8–7, doubling the last red as he won the 15th frame with a clearance of 55. Wilson responded with breaks of 94 and 85 to recover his lead at 9–8. Zhang had the first chance in the 18th frame, but only scored 34 before missing a red, and Wilson made a break of 50 before running out of position. Wilson secured the frame after a safety battle, winning the match 10–8. Despite the win, Wilson, who won both the Scottish Open and Welsh Open earlier in the season, was unsatisfied with his performance, saying: "I showed grit and determination and tried my best, those are the only positives I can take. Even in the tournaments I won this season, there were spells where my game was in the bin." He added: "This is a game of very small margins. But I know I have to improve because those kind of performances are not good enough."
Ding Junhui faced Allen in the third quarter-final. Ding had defeated Allen 10–5 in the quarter-final of the previous year's championship, as well as winning 6–5 at the first round of the 2023 UK Championship earlier in the season. Allen made a break of 100 in the opening frame, but Ding took the next three to lead 3–1 at the mid-session interval. The players shared the next four frames to end the session with a 5–3 lead for Ding. Play resumed the next day, and Ding took the ninth frame with a 70 break to extend his lead to 6–3. However, Allen won four frames in a row for a 7–6 advantage, making a total clearance of 142 in the tenth frame. Ding recovered his lead with breaks of 82 and 67 in frames 14 and 15, and acquired the snookers he needed in frame 16, but missed the final pink. Allen potted both pink and black to force a re-spotted black, which he potted after Ding's safety error to win the frame, drawing level at 8–8. Allen went on to win frames 17 and 18 with breaks of 56 and 127 to claim a 10–8 victory. Allen commented: "The 16th frame was huge because at 8–8 I felt relaxed and my game was in the right shape. Getting a bit of gym work in before [the World Championship in] Sheffield will help me get ready. The longer the matches go on, the more I come into my own. I came here to work on a few things technically, and tonight even at 8–8 I stuck with what I have been working on. Now I am in the semis I want to go on and win it."
The fourth quarter-final was contested between world number two and the top seed Judd Trump and Williams. The opening frame went to Williams as Trump went in-off on the last pink, and Williams made a 85 break to lead 2–0. The third frame also came down to the last pink, with Williams trailing by 15 points, but he won the frame after Trump conceded foul points by failing to make contact with the pink. Trump won frame four to trail 1–3 at the mid-session interval, and Williams recovered his three-frame lead by taking the fifth frame on the colours. Trump claimed the next two frames, making a break of 81 in the sixth frame. The eighth frame went to Williams, who made a 71 break to lead 5–3 at the end of the session. Williams moved ahead to 7–3 after play resumed, winning both frames 9 and 10 on the colours. Trump capitalised on Williams' miss on a red in the 11th frame to narrow the gap to 7–4, but Williams won three frames in a row to secure the match 10–4. Trump's loss meant that he was unable to supplant O'Sullivan's world number one spot, and O'Sullivan would enter the World Championship as the second seed, with the reigning World Champion Luca Brecel seeded first. Williams, who was defeated by Trump 17–16 in the semi-final of the 2022 World Championship and 10–8 at the 2023 Masters final, said: "It's about time I beat Judd [Trump] because I have lost a few close matches against him. To beat the player of the season so far 10–4, I can't ask for any more than that, even though he didn't play well. My game is as good as it could be given where I am in my career. This is a nice stepping stone ahead of [the World Championship at] the Crucible."


O'Sullivan played Wilson in the first semi-final on 5 April. O'Sullivan was contesting his 92nd career ranking semi-final, and Wilson his tenth. O'Sullivan had previously defeated Wilson 5–1 in the quarter-final of the World Grand Prix earlier in the season. Wilson won the first two frames, but O'Sullivan made a break of 102 in the third frame and won the fourth to draw level at the mid-session interval. He went on to take a 3–2 lead with a break of 110 in frame five. In the sixth frame, Wilson was trailing 40–57 when he potted a red which was touching the pink. The referee Paul Collier called foul on Wilson, believing that the cue ball had contacted the pink first. Wilson accepted the decision after a brief discussion, but slow motion replay later showed that the cue ball had actually hit the red first, and was not a foul shot. The frame went to O'Sullivan, who then led 4–2. Wilson produced breaks of 83 and 84 to end the session with the scores level at 4–4. Wilson took the opening frame of the second session, but O'Sullivan capitalised on Wilson's multiple errors to win three frames in a row and lead 7–5. Breaks of 82 and 96 from Wilson evened the scores again to 7–7. However, O'Sullivan made breaks of 97 and 129 to win three consecutive frames in only 33 minutes, and capture a 10–7 victory to reach his 64th career ranking final. O'Sullivan praised his opponent after the match, saying: "I really rate Gary [Wilson]. We have become good friends. He's an honest bloke, the way he is in interviews, he's the same in real life. He's a great lad and it's great to see him winning tournaments. He loves the game so much and gets frustrated by it sometimes, a bit like me. But he's learning now that you can't always play well, you need the patience to give yourself a chance." He also revealed that he's been suffering from "the yips" and has tried to change his mindset: "That's not a nice place to be, so I've got nothing left to do other than to try to get myself mentally out of it and hopefully my game will start to flow again, maybe."
Williams and Allen contested the second semi-final on 6 April. In February, Allen had defeated Williams 6–3 in the first round of the Players Championship. Williams made breaks of 57, 99, and 105 as he won all four frames before the mid-session interval to lead 4–0. He attempted a maximum break in frame five, but missed the last red to end the break at 112. Allen had a chance to win the sixth frame despite trailing 0–66, but missed potting the final blue and lost the frame. Williams went on to take the next two frames to capture all eight frames of the first session. When play resumed, Williams compiled a break of 140 to get one frame within victory at 9–0. However, Allen won the tenth frame with a 65 break to avoid a whitewash defeat, and took the 11th frame with a break of 53 to trail 2–9. As Williams began to make errors, Allen capitalised on the opportunities to win three more frames, making breaks of 79, 56, and 69, to narrow his deficit to 5–9. Williams got the first chance in the 15th frame by potting a long red, and went on to take the frame with a 75 break to secure the match 10–5 and reach the 41st ranking final of his career. Williams said: "I was a bit worried at 9–5. I had a couple of chances to win 9–1 or 9–2. Mark [Allen] played really well after that. If it had gone 9–6 then I was really under it. But the break I made in the last frame was as good as any I made in the match, it's nice to know I've still got that bottle." Commenting on the final against O'Sullivan, Williams added: "I know I haven't played Ronnie [O'Sullivan] in a final for a long time but that's because he keeps beating me before the final! I'm just going to enjoy it. How many more times is this going to happen? I couldn't pick a better player to play in a final. I'm going to attack and try my best."


The final was played on 7 April between O'Sullivan and Williams, both part of the "Class of '92". The two had met numerous times over their careers, with O'Sullivan prevailing in most of the encounters. However, the two had not met in a ranking event final since the 2000 China Open, where O'Sullivan claimed a 9–3 victory. The match was officiated by Olivier Marteel with assistance by Lyu Xilin. Aged a combined 97 years old, it was the highest combined age of any ranking event final.
Williams took on a 2–1 lead, making breaks of 66 and 91 in the first and third frames. Despite missing four consecutive pots, Williams won frame four with two breaks of 66 and 67 to lead 3–1 at the mid-session interval. O'Sullivan responded with back-to-back century breaks of 102 and 127 to draw level at 3–3, and won frame seven with a break of 59. Williams potted an opening long red to create the first chance in the eighth frame, but missed the next black, and O'Sullivan took the frame with a 121 break to lead 5–3 at the end of the first session, winning all four frames after the interval in only 37 minutes. After play resumed, Williams won the opening frame as he potted the last red with a swerve shot and cleared the colours. A 104 break from Williams in the tenth frame evened the scores at 5–5. O'Sullivan was unable to capitalise on Williams' missed pot to win the next frame, and Williams made a break of 54 to lead 6–5. The next three frames all went to Williams, who compiled 99, 112, and 78 breaks to move 9–5 ahead. Both players missed several pots in frame 15, but Williams doubled the last red to leave O'Sullivan needing snookers, who conceded the frame after Williams potted the yellow. As he captured all seven frames in the second session, Williams secured a 10–5 victory to win his first Tour Championship title, his 26th career ranking title, and the second of the season since he won the 2023 British Open in October.
Williams commented: "I never thought I'd be winning tournaments at 49. The World Championships are around the corner. He's [O'Sullivan's] the man to beat, but you never know." He added: "I'm a better all-round player than I've ever been, considering I don't practise that much. I'm over the moon. I beat Judd Trump, Mark Allen and Ronnie O'Sullivan. The three best players in the world. I haven't done it the easy way. I've won quite well." O'Sullivan described Williams as "probably the most talented snooker player I've ever seen", saying: "He's been the most consistent player for the last five years. He seems so strong. I tried, I gave it everything to stay in the match, but he's so consistent and so strong. You might get the better of him in one session, but if you don't keep playing top-level snooker, he'll eat you alive. I thought I did well to get five frames."
The final was watched by a peak audience of 874,000 from a total of 3.35 million viewers throughout the tournament.


Numbers in parentheses after the players' names denote the players' seedings, and players in bold denote match winners. All matches were played as the best of 19 frames over two sessions.


Match details from World Snooker Tour: first round, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final.


A total of 27 century breaks were made in the tournament.


The women's 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships was held over two rounds at the Commonwealth Arena in Glasgow, United Kingdom, on 3 March 2024. It was the seventeenth time this relay was contested at the World Athletics Indoor Championships. There was no entry standard for the qualification. Nine national teams competed in the event.
The two heats of round 1 were held on 3 March in the morning, where the first two teams in each heat and the next two fastest teams qualified for the final. National records were set by the teams of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (3:26.40 minutes), Belgium (3:28.07 min), Ireland (3:28.92 min), and Portugal (3:31.93 min).
The final was held on 3 March in the evening. The team of the Netherlands won the gold medal in a national record of 3:25.07 min, followed by the team of the United States who won silver in 3:25.34 min, and then the team of Great Britain and Northern Ireland who won bronze in another new national record of 3:26.36 min. The team of Belgium also set a new national record of 3:28.05 min in the final.

2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships – Women's 4 × 400 metres relay


The women's 4 × 400 metres relay was contested sixteen times at the World Athletics Indoor Championships before 2024. The 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships were held at the 200-metre indoor track in the Commonwealth Arena in Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom.
Before the Championships, the world record was 3:23.37 min, set by the Russian relay team in 2006; the championship record was 3:23.85 min, set by the American relay team in 2018; and the world leading performance was 3:25.59 min, set by the relay team of the Arkansas Razorbacks on 27 January 2024.


There was no entry standard for qualification for the women's 4 × 400 metres relay, every nation could enter a team with up to eight athletes of 16 years or older.


Nine teams competed in the two heats of the first round, starting at 11:10 (UTC) in the morning. The first two teams in each heat (Q) and the next two fastest teams (q) advanced to the final. In the first heat, the team of Belgium set a national record (NR) of 3:28.07 min and the team of Ireland set a national record (NR) of 3:28.45 min. In the second heat, the team of Great Britain and Northern Ireland set a national record (NR) of 3:26.40 min, which was the fastest time in round 1, and the team of Portugal set a national record (NR) of 3:31.93 min, which was the slowest time in this round.


Six teams competed in the final, starting at 20:32 (UTC) in the evening. In the opening leg, individual 400 metres silver medalist Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands created a seven-metre lead and was the first to pass the baton, followed by Lanae-Tava Thomas of Jamaica and then Laviai Nielsen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Quanera Hayes of the United States handed over in fifth position. In the second leg, Cathelijn Peeters of the Netherlands was able to remain in first position, followed by Andrenette Knight of Jamaica still in second position and then Talitha Diggs of the United States who advanced to the third position; Lina Nielsen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland passed the baton in fourth position. In the third leg, Lisanne de Witte of the Netherlands continued the leading position, while Charokee Young of Jamaica did not finish (DNF) after losing hold of the baton; Bailey Lear of the United States handed over second and Ama Pipi of Great Britain and Northern Ireland third. In the anchor leg, individual 400 metres gold medalist Femke Bol of the Netherlands, individual 400 metres bronze medalist Alexis Holmes of the United States, and Jessie Knight of Great Britain and Northern Ireland finished in the order they started.
The team of the Netherlands won the gold medal in a world leading time (WL) and national record (NR) of 3:25.07 min. It was the first time a Dutch women's team won this title. The team of the United States won silver in 3:25.34 min and the team of Great Britain and Northern Ireland won bronze in a national record (NR) of 3:26.36 min. Outside the medals, the team of Belgium set a national record (NR) of 3:28.05 min. Klaver had the fastest split time of 50.26 s.
Jason Henderson wrote for Athletics Weekly: "After setting a world record in the individual women's 400m, Femke Bol was always going to be difficult to beat in the final leg of the 4x400m. When she was given the baton in the lead, though, it looked a formality." Reporting for World Athletics, Simon Turnbull thought that "Bol was playing it safe" in order to avoid a repeat of her fall during the mixed relay at the 2023 World Championships where she also raced against Holmes. The final was Bol's last contest of these championships, where she ran five 400-metre races in three days, setting one world record and winning two gold medals. Afterwards she said in an interview: "I feel so tired. But the championships are like this. These girls give me so much energy to run and especially if they give me the baton on the first place. It is such a great team, you cannot let them down. If I was alone on the track, I would probably not have enough power but I just did it for these girls."


The mixed 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2024 World Athletics Relays took place in three rounds at the Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau, The Bahamas, on 4 and 5 May 2024. It was the fourth time that this mixed-sex relay was contested at the World Athletics Relays. The event was also an Olympic qualification: fourteen teams qualified for the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.
On 4 May, thirty national teams competed in round 1, where eight teams qualified for the finals and the Summer Olympics, and the rest advanced to a repechage round on 5 May, where another six teams qualified for the Summer Olympics. In round 1, the team of the Netherlands set a championship record of 3:12.16 minutes, which was improved by the team of the United States to 3:11.52 minutes shortly after, and the team of Ireland set a national record of 3:12.50 minutes. In the repechage round, national records were set by the teams of The Bahamas, Switzerland, and Canada in of 3:12.81 minutes, 3:14.12 minutes, and 3:14.66 minutes respectively.
On 5 May, seven teams competed in the final, which was won by the team of the United States in a championship record of 3:10.73 minutes, followed by the teams of the Netherlands in 3:11.45 minutes and Ireland in a national record of 3:11.53 minutes. Outside the medals, the team of Nigeria set an African record of 3:12.87 minutes.

2024 World Athletics Relays – Mixed 4 × 400 metres relay


At the World Athletics Relays, the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay was introduced at the 2017 edition in Nassau, The Bahamas, and had been contested three times before 2024. The 2024 edition was held on the 400-metres track of the Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau. For these mixed-sex races, each of the four team members was to run one lap in the mandated running order man–woman–man–woman.
At the start of the 2024 edition, the world record was 3:08.80 min set by the team of the United States in 2023, the championship record was 3:14.42 min set by the Bahamian team in 2017, and the world leading time was 3:13.26 min set by the Ghanaian team on 19 March 2024. The Italian team was the defending champion after winning this event in 2021.


On 4 May 2024, round 1 was held in four heats, starting at 19:05 (UTC−4). The first two relay teams of each heat qualified for the final (Q) and simultaneously qualified for the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France (*OQ). The other teams advanced into a repechage round, where they got another chance for Olympic qualification.
In the first heat, the Dutch and the Dominican team qualified for the final and the Olympics, and the Dutch set a new championship record of 3:12.16 min. In the second heat, the American and the Nigerian team qualified for the final and the Olympics, where the Americans broke the championship record again in a time of 3:11.52 min; the Bahraini team did not finish (DNF), because their third runner didn't complete his lap. In the third heat, the Irish and the Belgian team qualified for the final and the Olympics, where the Irish set a new national record (NR) of 3:12.50 min. In the fourth heat, the Polish and French team qualified for the final and the Olympics; the Mexican team was disqualified (DQ) for a fault at recovering a dropped baton (TR24.6).


On 5 May 2024, the three heats of the repechage round for the Olympic qualification were held, starting at 19:05 (UTC−4). Six relay teams, the first two teams of each heat, qualified for the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics (*OQ).
In the first heat, the Bahamanian and the Jamaican team qualified for the Olympics, where the Bahamanians set a national record (NR) of 3:12.81 min; the Brazilian team did not start (DNS). In the second heat, the German and the Swiss team qualified for the Olympics, where the Swiss set a national record of 3:14.12 min; the Canadian team set a national record of 3:14.66 min and the Czech and the Indian team did not start. In the third heat, the British and the Ukrainian team were the last two teams to qualify for the Olympics.


On 5 May 2024, the final was held, starting at 21:40 (UTC−4). Eight teams had qualified, but only seven competed in the final race, because the Polish team did not start (DNS).
During the opening leg, Matthew Boling of the United States took the lead and was the first to hand over the baton, followed by Isayah Boers of the Netherlands, Florent Mabille of Belgium, and Cillin Greene of Ireland. During the second leg, Lynna Irby-Jackson of the United States was able to keep the Americans in the lead, while Rhasidat Adeleke of Ireland moved up from fourth to second position, Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands moved down from second to third, and Imke Vervaet of Belgium dropped to sixth position. During the third leg, the running order of the first three teams remained unchanged: Willington Wright of the United States was first to hand over the baton, Thomas Barr of Ireland second, and Isaya Klein Ikkink of the Netherlands third. During the anchor leg, Kendall Ellis of United States was able to keep her team in the lead, while Femke Bol of the Netherlands switched positions with Sharlene Mawdsley of Ireland.
The race was won by the American team in a new championship record (CR) of 3:10.73 min, followed by the Dutch team in 3:11.45 min and the Irish team in 3:11.53 min, which was a new national record (NR). First-leg runner Boling had the fastest male split time of 45.11 s and second-leg runner Adeleke had the fastest female split time of 48.45 s, which was "sensational" as the fastest female split at the World Athletics Relays ever, according to Jon Mulkeen in a report for World Athletics. Outside the medals in fourth place, the Nigerian team set a new African area record (AR) of 3:12.87 min. The Belgian team was disqualified (DQ) for a fault at recovering a dropped baton (TR24.6).
Teams of the United States also won the men's and women's 4 × 100 m relay and the women's 4 × 400 m relay at this tournament. The men's 4 × 400 m relay was not won by the Americans, who had been disqualified in round 1, but by the team of Botswana.


The women's 400 metres at the 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held on the 200-metres track of Omnisport in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, on 7 and 8 March 2025. It was the 38th time the event was contested at the European Athletics Indoor Championships. Athletes could qualify by achieving the entry standard or by their World Athletics Ranking in the event.
Twenty-eight athletes from fifteen nations competed in the first round during the morning session on 7 March. Mette Baas of Finland set a Finnish record of 52.25 seconds. Amber Anning of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Nikoleta Jíchová of the Czech Republic, and Tetiana Melnyk of Ukraine were disqualified for lane infringement. Twelve athletes from nine nations competed in the semi-finals during the evening session on 7 March.
Six athletes from six different nations competed in the final during the evening session on 8 March. The race was won by Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands in 50.38 seconds, followed by Henriette Jæger of Norway in 50.45 seconds and Paula Sevilla of Spain in 50.99 seconds equalling the Spanish record.

2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships – Women's 400 metres


The women's 400 metres was contested 37 times before 2025, at every previous edition of the European Athletics Indoor Championships (1970–2023). The 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held in Omnisport Apeldoorn in Apeldoorn, Netherlands. The removable 200-metres track received a new top layer for these championships in September 2024.
Femke Bol of the Netherlands was the world and European record holder with a time of 49.17 s set in 2024. Bol is also the 2021 and 2023 champion in this event. She did not defend these titles in 2025 as she did not compete in individual events during the 2025 indoor season, only in relays. The championship record of 49.59 s was set by Jarmila Kratochvílová of Czechoslovakia in 1982.
On 1 March 2025, Aaliyah Butler of the United States set her world leading performance of 49.78 s. On 16 February 2025, Henriette Jæger of Norway set her European leading performance of 50.44 s, preceded by the next-fastest Europeans Amber Anning of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 50.57 s on 14 February 2025 and Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands in 50.76 s on 13 February 2025.


For the women's 400 metres, the qualification period was from 25 February 2024 until 23 February 2025. Athletes could qualify by achieving the entry standards of 52.10 s indoors or 50.70 s outdoor or by virtue of their World Athletics Ranking for the event. There was a target number of thirty athletes with a maximum of four athletes per nation that could be entered, of whom three athletes per nation could eventually participate. On 27 February 2025, a final entry list with thirty-four athletes was published.


Round 1 was held on 7 March, starting at 11:55 (UTC+1) in the morning. Twenty-eight athletes from fifteen nations competed in five heats (preliminary rounds). The first two athletes in each heat (Q) and the next two fastest athletes overall (q) qualified for the semi-finals. In the first heat, Mette Baas of Finland set a national record (NR) of 52.25 s and Amber Anning of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was disqualified (DQ) for violating the technical rule for lane infringement (TR17.2.3), which occurs when a runner steps over the line of the assigned lane once or steps on the line of the assigned lane multiple times. In the third and fourth heat, Tetiana Melnyk of Ukraine and Nikoleta Jíchová of the Czech Republic were also disqualified for lane infringement.


The semi-finals were held on 7 March, the same day as round 1, starting at 19:58 (UTC+1) in the evening. Twelve athletes from nine nations competed in two heats. The first three athletes in each heat (Q) qualified for the semi-finals. Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands, Paula Sevilla of Spain, Henriette Jæger of Norway, and Lurdes Gloria Manuel of the Czech Republic were faster than in the first round, whilst the other eight athletes were all slower.


The final was held on 8 March, starting at 21:50 (UTC+1) in the evening. Six athletes of six different nations competed in this race. Lieke Klaver of the Netherlands was in the lead after 200 metres, running this first lap in 23.4 s, and she stayed ahead of the other competitors in the last 200 metres. Klaver won the race in a European leading time (EL) of 50.38 s, claiming her first individual title at an international championship. Henriette Jæger of Norway finished in second place in 50.45 s and Paula Sevilla of Spain in third place in 50.99 s, which equalled the Spanish national record (=NR). All athletes were faster in the final than they were in the semi-finals.
In an interview after the race, Klaver said: "I found it so exciting. It's just healthy tension, but of a higher level. I'm so proud, I just did it. This is peaking at the right time, this is what I train for." Regarding her absent compatriot Femke Bol, she said: "I did think about her during the race. Like: pretend Femke is running in front of you. Then I have to keep going."


The English author J. R. R. Tolkien has often been supposed to have spoken of wishing to create "a mythology for England". It seems he never used the actual phrase, but various commentators have found his biographer Humphrey Carpenter's phrase appropriate as a description of much of his approach in creating Middle-earth, and the legendarium behind The Silmarillion.
His desire to create a national mythology echoed similar attempts in countries across Europe, especially Elias Lönnrot's creation of the Kalevala in Finland, which Tolkien read, mainly in English, and admired. That in turn inspired him to study the Finnish language, which he found beautiful. He imitated some of its features in one of his constructed languages, which became the Elvish language Quenya. He studied Welsh, too, and it led to another Elvish language, Sindarin. He realized that he needed some speakers of those languages, leading him to create tales of elves divided into different groups. Meanwhile, his study of Old English led him to read Crist I, which mentioned a character named Earendel, described as the brightest. This attractive but puzzling description led Tolkien to write the 1914 "Voyage of Earendel the Evening Star": it became the first component of his mythology.
Tolkien attempted to reconstruct an English mythology, leading up to how the brothers Hengest and Horsa led the Jutes to Britain and founded England. He made a story that fitted together well, though he knew it was probably not what had happened. Without an actual mythology, he looked to Norse and other mythologies, and gathered hints from Old English and other medieval manuscripts. Beowulf gave him ents, elves, and orcs; Sir Gawain and the Green Knight lent the woodwoses.
The resulting legendarium, formed in the First World War and reshaped in the interwar period, reflected the state of twentieth century England, as the empire faded, wars threatened, and the country was filled with factions and dissenting voices. The result, Verlyn Flieger comments, is nearer to the vision of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four than escapist fantasy. Dimitra Fimi, on the other hand, comments that the setting is the whole of Northwestern Europe, not just England, and with its incorporation of the "Celtic", it could be described more inclusively as a "Mythology for Britain".


J. R. R. Tolkien was an English author and philologist of ancient Germanic languages, specialising in Old English; he spent much of his career as a professor at the University of Oxford. He is best known for his novels about his invented Middle-earth, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and for the posthumously published The Silmarillion which provides a more mythical narrative about earlier ages. A devout Roman Catholic, he described The Lord of the Rings as "a fundamentally religious and Catholic work", rich in Christian symbolism.


In his 1977 biography of Tolkien, Humphrey Carpenter wrote:


[Tolkien] read a paper on the Kalevala to a college society ... about the importance of the type of mythology found in the Finnish poems. 'These mythological ballads', he said, are ... [what] the literature of Europe has ... been steadily cutting ... for many centuries. ... 'I would that we had more of it left – something of the same sort that belonged to the English.
Carpenter commented that this idea was exciting, adding that Tolkien might have been contemplating the construction of just such a "mythology for England". Catherine Butler has called this a "resounding phrase".
The Tolkien scholar Jane Chance's 1979 book Tolkien's Art: 'A Mythology for England' analysed the idea that Tolkien's Middle-earth writings were intended to form such a mythology. She cited one of Tolkien's letters, sent late in 1951:


I had a mind to make a body of more or less connected legend, ranging from the large and cosmogonic, to the level of romantic fairy-story – the larger founded on the lesser in contact with the earth, the lesser drawing splendour from the vast backcloths – which I could dedicate simply to: to England; to my country. ... I would draw some of the great tales in fullness, and leave many only placed in the scheme, and sketched. The cycles should be linked to a majestic whole, and yet leave scope for other minds and hands, wielding paint and music and drama.
In a letter to The Observer about his 1937 book The Hobbit, Tolkien stated that the tale "derived from (previously digested) epic, mythology, and fairy-story", and one other source: the unpublished "'Silmarillion', a history of the Elves, to which frequent allusion is made." Chance commented that if indeed he was wanting to make a mythology for England, publishing books like that was an ideal way to make use of the medieval English literature such as Beowulf, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, and Ancrene Wisse and Hali Meiðhad, that he was writing on in his scholarly life.
The concept was reinforced by Shippey's 1982 The Road to Middle-earth: How J.R.R. Tolkien Created a New Mythology. He too quotes Tolkien's letter.
In his 2004 chapter "A Mythology for Anglo-Saxon England", Michael Drout demonstrates that Tolkien never used the actual phrase "a mythology for England", even though commentators nonetheless have found it appropriate as a description of much of his approach in creating Middle-earth. Drout comments that scholars broadly agree that Tolkien "succeeded in this project" to bring such a mythology into being. The mythology's initial purpose was to provide a home for his invented languages, but Tolkien discovered as he worked on it that he wanted to make a properly English epic, spanning England's geography, language, and mythology.


The folklorist and Tolkien scholar Dimitra Fimi writes that the desire to create a national mythology was not unique to Tolkien. Attempts, sometimes fraudulent, with varying degrees of success, had been made in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Scotland, and Wales in the 18th and 19th centuries. Maria Sachiko Cecire concurs, pointing out that the Brothers Grimm in Germany are the best known, but giving also the instance of Elias Lönnrot who travelled Finland collecting poems sung by the people, and then compiled the poems into a coherent narrative, the Kalevala. Cecire comments that the narrative, and the way that Lönnrot had compiled it, was certainly a major influence on Tolkien. He read and admired the Kalevala, mainly in translation, and was equally struck with what he felt was the beauty of the Finnish language. Many years later, Tolkien wrote: "It was like discovering a complete wine-cellar filled with bottles of an amazing wine of a kind and flavour never tasted before. It quite intoxicated me." He made use of some of the features of Finnish in his Elvish language, Quenya.


Tolkien began work on his mythology while still a student at Oxford University, from 1911. His interest in the Elder and Prose Eddas led him to the Kalevala in 1912. His interest in the languages used to write the mythologies caused him to study Finnish, which he studied from a grammar book, and Welsh; he found both languages beautiful. The pleasure he took in these languages triggered his construction of artificial languages, including what became the two main Elvish languages in his legendarium, Quenya and Sindarin. Tolkien stated that the tale of Kullervo in particular got him started on his legendarium: "the germ of my attempt to write legends of my own to fit my private languages was the tragic tale of the hapless Kullervo in the Finnish Kalevala". In a separate thread, his reading in 1914 of the Old English manuscript Crist I led to Earendel and the first element of his legendarium, "The Voyage of Earendel, the Evening Star".


Tolkien recognised that any actual English mythology had been extinguished. He presumed, by analogy with Norse mythology and the clues that remain, that one had existed until Anglo-Saxon times. Tolkien decided to reconstruct such a mythology, accompanied to some extent by an imagined prehistory or pseudohistory of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes before they migrated to England. Drout analyses in detail and then summarises the imagined prehistory:


The original settlers of Anglo-Saxon England were the sons and descendants of Ælfwine, the Elf-friend who had sailed across the sea to the Holy Isle of the Elves. The prehistory of the descendants of Ælfwine was Tolkien's invented mythology of Arda, but it also included the story of Beowulf, a depiction of the exploits of some others of their ancestors. The early history of Anglo-Saxon England was generated when the half-brothers of Heorrenda, Hengest and Horsa, led the migration of the Jutes from the continent to England. Heorrenda himself composed Beowulf and compiled the legends of Arda in the Golden Book of Heorrenda. Hengest is a character in Beowulf and in Finnsburg. The hero of Beowulf is a Geat, which equals a Goth, one of the continental ancestors of the Anglo-Saxons... It all fits nicely together even though it is probably not true (and Tolkien knew this).
The scholar of literature Nicholas Birns argues that Tolkien's work on the Finn and Hengest story combines aspects of his conjectural research into English origins and mythological arguments made in his legendarium. He chose to take the key word eotenas to mean "Jutes", not "monsters", allowing him to explore making Hengest into a kind of national hero of England.


Given that hardly anything was left of English mythology, Tolkien looked to Norse and other mythologies for clues as to what might have been there. He found hints in Beowulf, which he greatly admired, and other Old English sources, which gave him his ettens (as in the Ettenmoors) and ents, his elves, and his orcs; his "warg" is a cross between Old Norse vargr and Old English wearh. He took his woses or wood-woses (the Drúedain) from the seeming plural wodwos in the Middle English Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, line 721; that comes in turn from Old English wudu-wasa, a singular noun. Shippey comments that:


As for creating a "Mythology for England", one certain fact is that the Old English notions of Elves, Orcs, Ents, Ettens and Woses have through Tolkien been re-released into the popular imagination to join the much more familiar Dwarves ..., Trolls, ... and the wholly-invented Hobbits.
The linguist and Tolkien scholar Carl Hostetter comments that all the same,


even Beowulf fails to meet Tolkien's criteria for a truly English epic, for though it was composed in Old English, and makes a new and characteristically English use of Germanic mythological elements, nevertheless no part of it is set in England; and so though the poem moves beneath northern skies, those skies are nevertheless not English.
Hostetter notes that Eärendil, the mariner who ends up steering his ship across the heavens, shining as a star, was the first element of English mythology that Tolkien took into his own mythology. He was inspired by the Earendel passage in the Old English poem Crist I lines 104–108 which begins "Eala Earendel, engla beorhtast", "O rising light, brightest of angels". Tolkien expended considerable effort on his Old English character Ælfwine, whom he employed as a framing device in his The Book of Lost Tales; he used a character of the same name in his abandoned time travel novel The Lost Road.


Verlyn Flieger writes that "the Silmarillion legendarium" is both a monument to his imagination and as close as anyone has come "to a mythology that might be called English". She cites Tolkien's words in The Monsters and the Critics that it is "by a learned man writing of old times, who looking back on the heroism and sorrow feels in them something permanent and something symbolical". He was speaking about Beowulf; she applies his words to his own writings, that his mythology was meant to provide

A reflection of twentieth century England


the illusion of surveying a past, pagan but noble and fraught with deep significance—a past that itself had depth and reached backward into a dark antiquity of sorrow".
Flieger comments that "Tolkien's great mythological song" was conceived as the First World War was changing England for ever; that it grew and took shape in a second era between the wars; and that in the form of The Lord of the Rings found an audience in yet a third era, the Cold War. She writes:


If Tolkien's legendarium as we have it now is a mythology for England, it is a song about great power and promise in the throes of decline, racked by dissensions, split by factions, perpetually threatened by war, and perpetually at war with itself.
In her view, this is nearer to the vision of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four than to the "furry-footed escapist fantasy that detractors of The Lord of the Rings have characterized that work as being". She states that the main function of a mythology is "to mirror a culture to itself". She follows this up by asking what the worldview encapsulated in this mythology might be. She notes that Middle-earth is influenced by existing mythologies; and that Tolkien stated that The Lord of the Rings was fundamentally Catholic. All the same, she writes, his mythos is fundamentally unlike Christianity, being "far darker"; the world is saved not by a god's sacrifice but by Eärendil and by Frodo, in a world where "enterprise and creativity [have] gone disastrously wrong". If this is a mythology for England, she concludes, it is a caution not to try to hold on to anything, as it cannot offer salvation; Frodo was unable to let go of the One Ring, and Fëanor could not do so the Silmarils. A shell-shocked England, like a battle-traumatised Frodo, did not know how to let go of empire in a changed world; the advice is, she writes, sound, but as hard for nations to take as for individuals.


Scholars including Fimi have questioned the applicability of the phrase "a mythology for England" to Tolkien's work. She notes that while some of Tolkien's legendarium writings envisaged a frame story about travel backwards in time from modern England, as in the unfinished The Notion Club Papers, The Silmarillion became the ancient history of a region in the north of Europe, far less precisely located. In Fimi's view, Tolkien's enthusiasm for English nationalism had faded by the 1950s. She notes, among other things, that he ended up incorporating the "Celtic" into the legendarium, rather than opposing Englishness with Welshness or Irishness, so he constructed more of a "mythology for Britain" than one purely for England. Further, in her view, Tolkien became increasingly interested in the spiritual aspect of his mythology, such as what happened to the souls of Elves after their deaths: and this "competed for precedence in Tolkien's mind" with the mythology's nationalistic aspect.


In Liberia, abortion is only legal in cases of rape, fetal impairment, or risk to the mother's physical or mental health or life, up to the 24th week of pregnancy. About 32% of women have had abortions, which Liberians call "spoiling the belly". Unsafe abortions are common and account for 15% of maternal deaths in the country. Self-induced abortions are common. Medical abortion is legally restricted. Post-abortion care is available from public and private facilities.
Liberia's abortion law is from 1976. The Legislature of Liberia introduced a bill to legalize abortion in 2020. The legislature began debating the revision in 2022 after it was introduced by Senator Augustine Chea. Pro-abortion advocacy groups have said it will reduce the high rate of unsafe abortions. Religious leaders have opposed it, saying it violates fetal rights. As of 2024, the bill is being debated.


Section 16.1 of the penal code of Liberia criminalizes abortion without a legal defense, and Section 16.3 sets the gestational limit at 24 weeks of pregnancy. A 1976 law permits abortion in the cases of rape, incest, risk to the physical or mental health of the mother, or risk to the life of the mother or the fetus. Police and judiciary investigations are required in the case of rape or incest, and medical exemptions require written agreement from two physicians. The law defines that pregnancy begins after complete implantation and specifically does not apply to actions taken to prevent pregnancy.


In July 1976, an amendment to the penal code received presidential approval, which included Section 16.3 on abortion. Liberia legalized the abortion pill mifepristone before 1996.


In February 2020, a revision to the Public Health Bill addressing abortion was introduced to the Legislature of Liberia. The proposal would amend Section 16.3 to legalize abortion for socioeconomic reasons. It would lower the limit for legal abortions to the fourteenth week of pregnancy. Deputy Health Minister Varfee Tulay said the limit would emphasize that the law intends to avoid maternal deaths rather than promote widespread abortions. If passed, the law will be one of the most liberal in Africa, where a vast majority of women live in places with restrictive laws.
On 13 June 2022, a joint committee began debating the bill. The debate was introduced by Augustine Chea of Sinoe County, who was chair of the Senate Health Committee and a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Speaking to the Women's Legislative Caucus as a proxy for President Pro Tempore Albert Tugbe Chie, Chea said his goal was to stop abortion being a criminal offense. The House of Representatives passed the law. The proposal addressed sex education and family planning, as well as other major health issues, despite a public perception that there was a standalone bill about abortion. A special session convened on 22 August 2023 and adjourned on 5 September after anti-abortion groups called for the legislature to reject the bill. As of February 2024, the Senate is reviewing the law. The Coalition for Democratic Change opposes the proposal. The party's Secretary General, Jefferson Tamba Koijee, argued that the bill would threaten population growth.
Advocates for legalizing abortion have cited high rates of illegal abortions in Liberia and the risk of complications. An anonymous group of senators told the Liberian Observer, "Don't you think it's finally time for a change? Yes. Having an illegal abortion may cause more deaths because it is done in backyard clinics and sometimes we throw our babies in dumpsites because most women can't even afford a daily meal or provide a good home for the children." The Community Health Initiative, an advocacy group campaigning for the law, worked with the national government to form coalitions and led workshops with journalists to report on the topic. The national not-for-profit organization Sister AID Liberia held media dialogues to discuss prevention of unsafe abortions. Vice President Jewel Howard Taylor voiced support for the law in an interview with state broadcaster ELBC-FM.
Many religious and traditional leaders believe abortion is against Christian teachings and local traditions. Opponents have argued that prioritizing abortion rights ignored the rights of the unborn child. Bishop Kortu K. Brown, former president of the Liberian Council of Churches, has been a vocal protestor. His organization, the Campaign to Stop Abortion in Liberia, urges citizens to write to their representatives opposing the bill. Members of Liberia's Religious Council criticized the Swedish Embassy and other organizations that funded activism supporting legal abortion. Swedish ambassador Urban Sjöström defended the country's support for legal abortion, and the embassy denied allegations of bribing lawmakers. A Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, Chris Smith, called for Liberian legislators to reject the bill and for the US Congress to investigate whether Joe Biden's administration had illegally advocated for legal abortion in Liberia.


According to a report by the Ministry of Health, 38,779 abortions occurred in Liberia in 2021, equalling 30.7 per 1,000 women (of reproductive age), or 229 per 1000 live births. The country's abortion rate increased from 28 per 1,000 women in 1990–1994 to 42 per 1,000 women in 2015–2019. In the latter period, 49% of pregnancies were unintended and 40% of unintended pregnancies resulted in abortion. As of 2015, the only representative survey of abortion in Liberia is the 2007 Demographic and Health Survey, in which 6% of women, speaking face-to-face, reported having had abortions. Anecdotal evidence and statistical analysis indicate that 32% of women have had abortions as of 2013.
In Liberia, abortion is referred to as "spoiling the belly" or "taking the belly". Backstreet abortions are commonly available. Some providers are nurses who use speculums and syringes, some use knives or sharp bones, and others use remedies such as herbs, ground avocado, or chalk. A 2013 study of six counties of Liberia found that over 10% of women had undergone unsafe abortions. Many young women have performed self-induced abortions by vaginally inserting cassava, chalks, or an herb mixture known as "rocket-propelled grenade". This sometimes results in fatal sepsis. Some have drunk water mixed with ground glass or an herb known as "Christmas leaf". The most common demographics recorded to have unsafe abortions are young women, students, and people who have previously been pregnant. Risks include sepsis, which accounts for 15% of maternal deaths in Liberia, and haemorrhage. Septic abortions are a common cause of tetanus.
Liberia has no government-supported training for abortion providers. Medical abortion is provided by private organizations that import registered abortion pills, but distribution is legally restricted. Public and private facilities such as Planned Parenthood offer post-abortion care. Some unsafe abortions result in severe pain or the need to remove the uterus. Liberia's standard treatment guidelines include misoprostol for post-abortion care and haemorrhage treatment. Most cases of unsafe abortion requiring surgery are referred to the John F. Kennedy Maternity Center in Monrovia, the only tertiary medical facility in the country. The center's exploratory laparotomy surgeries have a fatality rate of 22.4%, as of 2022. Delays in treatment contribute to the fatality rate, caused by cost of travel, fear of legal or social ramifications of abortion, or time taken by primary care.


In Senegal, abortion is illegal unless the life of the mother is in danger. Senegal is one of the only countries whose criminal code completely bans abortion. An exception requires a medical certificate and the approval of three doctors. Illegal abortion is punishable by fines and prison. Nearly all abortions in the country are unsafe. Post-abortion care is widely available.
Abortion was banned in the colonial era. In 1967, an exception was made in the case of threat to life. After concerns about unsafe abortion as a public health crisis in the 1990s, Senegal ratified the International Conference on Population and Development and the Maputo Protocol. In 2005, the National Assembly declared that women have a right to post-abortion care. Efforts for this law to legalize abortion in the cases of rape or incest failed. In 2013, a group of NGOs called the Task Force formed with the goal of aligning Senegal's abortion law with the Maputo Protocol. The National Assembly considered a bill in 2024 that would guarantee legal access to medical abortion. International organizations have called for abortion law reform. Domestically, religious families and organizations influence widespread opposition to abortion due to Islamic beliefs.
Many women perform self-induced abortions. Abortion pills are available through the black market. Some medical professionals provide or advertise illegal abortions. Post-abortion care (PAC) has been available since the 1990s, for which Senegal is known as the "PAC pioneer of West Africa". The Ministry of Health promotes the use of manual vacuum aspiration or misoprostol for PAC. Curettage remains common, despite not being recommended, as MVA is often difficult to access. PAC providers sometimes report clients to legal authorities, but most maintain patient confidentiality by implicitly labeling abortions as miscarriages. Senegal has a high rate of infanticide, which is often attributed to the lack of legal abortion. In the 2010s and 2020s, many infant corpses have been discovered in landfills and other places. Women charged with infanticide comprise over one-third of all arrested women.


The criminal code of Senegal completely bans abortion. The code of medical ethics allows abortion when it is necessary to save a woman's life. A medical exception requires the approval of three doctors and a medical certificate costing 10,000 CFA francs. Giving advice about accessing abortion is a criminal offense. The United Nations Population Fund considers Senegal to have one of the strictest abortion laws in Africa. As of 2017, it is one of twenty abortion laws that completely bans abortion.


The public largely supports the ban on abortion due to social norms, religious beliefs, and the traditional large family structure. The government is secular yet influenced by powerful religious families. Legislators face pressure from religious leaders to hide support for abortion and fear losing political support. A 2020 survey by L'Association des Juristes Sénégalaises (transl. Association of Senegalese Women Lawyers, AJS) found that 58% of people in the country opposed medical abortion. Most said that it would be acceptable if the woman's health was threatened, but did not agree that it was acceptable in the case of rape.
The prominent Islamic NGO Jamra campaigns against abortion reform. Its spokesman, Mame Mactar Guèye, has said pro-abortion activists are controlled by Western donors against African values. Jamra and its allies have argued that Senegal has always supported abortion only if it threatens life, but feminists shift the discussion toward legalization. A collective of 48 Islamic organizations called "Non à l’avortement" (transl. No to abortion) opposes pro-abortion advertising. Though some Islamic scholars in Senegal say abortion does not violate Islamic law, few of the prominent Islamic groups oppose anti-abortion movements. Health workers have pushed for access to birth control, which is allowed in Islamic law.


Abortion was illegalized in the French period. In 1967, an exception was added allowing abortion if the life of the mother is in danger. In the 1990s, studies on the prevalence of unsafe abortions led to the public health community viewing abortion as a public health problem. Senegal ratified the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD). In 2004, Senegal was one of the first ratifiers of the Maputo Protocol, which provides a right to abortion in the cases of rape, incest, or danger to the health of the mother or fetus. In 2014, the government formed a group of activists, lawyers, doctors, and MPs to align the penal code with this policy. The International Federation for Human Rights, with three other groups, drafted a proposal for a law that would align with the treaty. The AJS and the advocacy group J-GEN have advocated to align Senegal's abortion law with the treaty.
In 2005, the National Assembly passed a reproductive health bill entitling all women to family planning and obstetric care services, including post-abortion care. AJS and Ministry of Health (MOH) officials wanted the law to provide for abortion in the cases of rape or incest. This failed after some members of the National Assembly said they would withdraw support of the law if it included these provisions.


Organizations such as AJS and the Dakar-based Open Society Initiative for West Africa have worked to educate judges and politicians. Siggil Jigeen, a network of 18 women's rights groups, began discussions of legalizing abortion in July 2010, led by Fatou Kiné Camara of the University of Dakar and the AJS. Since 2008, the AJS has run a free drop-in center in Dakar that provides advice and trauma counseling and trains paralegals to help provide justice. On International Women's Day 2011, L’Association des Médecins Femmes (transl. Association of Women Physicians) gave a presentation urging abortion law reform.
A report written in November 2014 by the NGOs International Federation for Human Rights, African Meeting for the Defense of Human Rights, and Senegalese League of Human Rights called for legislation on safe abortion. Multiple United Nations bodies have advised that Senegal decriminalize abortion: Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in July 2015 and the Committee on the Rights of the Child in March 2016. In 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Committee urged Senegal to legalize abortion as well as homosexuality.
During the presidency of Macky Sall, some supporters of abortion had hoped he would support legalization of abortion, while others were skeptical. In 2015, Sall said he may eventually support legalizing abortion in the cases of rape and incest. In January 2017, the League of Senegalese Ulama declared a fatwa against politicians supporting legalization. In 2020, only 20 of the 165 members of parliament supported it. Pro-abortion activists then paused activities for a few months.


On 6 November 2013, the Task Force, which included eighteen organizations, published a petition to uphold the protocol. They argued that illegal abortion amplified inequality between women who could afford abortions from gynecologists and those who could not. AJS is part of this task force. Camara, as president of AJS, led a campaign to legalize medical abortion unconditionally up to twelve weeks of pregnancy.
Moustapha Diakhaté, head of the United in Hope party, voiced support for a law allowing medication abortion, saying it would decrease arrests and deaths. He worked with AJS to speak with politicians and civil society groups. The Task Force conducted a study on women incarcerated for abortion in 2022. In February 2023, the Task Force and Planned Parenthood led a discussion urging the president to bring the law in line with the Maputo Protocol. In Parliament, Diakhaté and Sokhna Ba supported their goal to decrease abortion-related incarceration.
On 2 February 2024, the National Assembly met to discuss medical abortion reform. The director of the advocacy committee for access to medical abortion in the cases of rape and incest, Aissatou Ndiaye, spoke about the importance of such a provision. Mame Guèye Diop, president of the National Assembly's Health Commission, said it was a "great occasion to review the legal outlines of reproductive health in Senegal, particularly medical abortion." J-GEN voiced its support for the advocacy.
The Task Force ran a campaign to gain the support of religious authorities but received strong opposition. It responded to religious backlash in a 2021 press release maintaining that it was "not about legalizing abortion" but that its goal was to save lives. The Caliph of the Tijaniyyah of Tivaouane, Serigne Babacar Sy, told the Minister of Interior he opposed the medication abortion reform. The League of Imams issued a statement opposing the law. Jamra was a major opponent. The Task Force spoke to Senegal's major religious families and gained support from many of them.


In 2015–2019, there were 57,900 abortions in Senegal. Since 1990–1994, the unintended pregnancy had gone down 34%, and the share of unintended pregnancies resulting in abortion went from 17% to 25%. The abortion rate is 17 per 1,000 women, as of 2012. Dakar has the highest rate in the country, at 21 per 1,000 women. As of 2022, unsafe abortions are the fifth-leading cause of maternal mortality and comprise 50% of urgent maternity care. As of 2012, 5.5 per 1000 women of reproductive age experience abortion complications.


Nearly all abortions in Senegal are unsafe. As of 2012, 38% by are performed by untrained providers (including traditional healers), 21% are self-induced, 20% are by nurses or midwives, 17% are by doctors, and 4% are from pharmacies. The most common methods are drinking corrosives, drinking herbal mixtures, and surgical procedures. Though abortions by trained health professionals are safer than those that are not, they must work secretly, which increases risk. Complications are present in 22% of abortions performed by doctors and 35% of those by nurses and midwives. Gynecologists risk their careers to provide abortions. The Ministries of Health and Social Action have noted the commercialization of illegal abortions through online advertising. In 2022, a Facebook page advertised abortions for 27,000 francs.
Self-induced abortions are punishable by a fine of 50,000 to 1,000,000 francs and a prison sentence of six months to two years. Some women induce abortions with plants such as mbanté-maré, chemicals such as methylene blue, bleach, or wire. Some women punch themselves in the stomach or throw themselves off of stairs. Self-induced abortions have become more common since the internet has enabled women to find information about it. A pharmaceutical black market in Dakar's city center, Keur Serigne Bi, is a popular place to buy abortion pills. Customers can buy pills within minutes. The pills cost between 10,000 and 25,000 francs, and some are fake. Some women receive pills from pharmacies that do not work.


Abortion is stigmatized as the society values women's fertility. Women who seek abortions experience harassment and violence. Abortion is widely seen as a women's issue that is not a high priority. Its association with women's sexuality contributes to another taboo. Authors such as Mariama Bâ and Ken Bugul have written against the abortion stigma.
About 25% of married women have an unmet need for birth control. As of the 2010s, the average woman gives birth to one or two children more than desired. Birth control is uncommon as the topic is taboo, some husbands do not allow their wives to use it, and people have misconceptions about negative health effects. Many women are unaware of family planning in Senegal, especially in rural areas. Marie Stopes International (MSI) provides family planning services through mobile clinics, education sessions, and individual discussions. After the Mexico City policy was reinstated in January 2017, MSI and the UNFPA had U.S. funding cut off. Some women seek menstrual extraction as a way to prevent unwanted pregnancies that would require clandestine abortions. Many providers disapprove of the method for its similarity to abortion.
Sixty percent of illegal abortions are done on young women. Some who are unmarried or who were raped feel they have no other solution. Extramarital pregnancy and being raped are viewed as shameful and have caused families to disown their daughters. It is often difficult for rape victims to get abortions. According to the Family Child Guidance Center, 30% of people aged 7 to 14 who are sexually abused get pregnant, which often causes complications. The law does not classify incest as rape and does not allow victims of incest to abort their pregnancies. Abortions result in complications for 73% of poor rural women, 69% of poor urban women, 48% of nonpoor rural women, and 35% of nonpoor urban women, as of 2012. Poor women are less likely to be treated for complications.