Paris: France's constitutional council has rejected a challenge by conservative lawmakers to the country's new gay marriage law, saying the law was constitutional.
That means France could see its first gay marriages by the end of May. France's Parliament passed the law legalizing gay marriage in April after a wrenching national debate.
Opponents led by the conservative UMP party immediately challenged the law in France's Constitutional Council, which rejected their motion on Friday.
The gay marriage law must now be published in the official journal. President Francois Hollande, who made legalising gay marriage one of his campaign pledges in 2012, has promised to see the law published as soon as possible....
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12:46 PM, May 18, 2013
Rome: Sania Mirza and her American partner Bethanie Mattek-Sands scored a straight set win over Francesca Schiavone and Samantha Stosur to move to the quarter-finals of the WTA Premier event, here. The sixth seeded Indo-American pair registered a 6-4 6-3 win over the Italian-Australian combination in one hour and 13 minutes in the second round of the prestigious clay court tournament. There was little to separate the two teams as...
03:55 PM, May 16, 2013
Milan: Palermo were relegated from Serie A after losing 1-0 to Fiorentina from former player Luca Toni's goal on Sunday. The result left the Sicilian side five points behind 17th-place Genoa, which drew 0-0 at home to Inter Milan. With one round remaining, Torino also secured safety with a 1-1 draw at Chievo Verona. It is six points above Palermo. Genoa's result meant Siena was also relegated, without kicking a...
08:21 AM, May 13, 2013
A French mayor says Oscar-nominated actress Keira Knightley has said "oui" to rocker James Righton in a small wedding ceremony in southern France. Aime Navello said the couple followed French tradition when he married them at the Mazan town hall. Navello read the service in French and the couple responded in French and English. He said about 10 people were present.Righton is keyboard player for the rock group Klaxons. He...
09:51 AM, May 06, 2013
St. Petersburg: Peaking at the right time, world champion Viswanathan Anand scored a facile victory against Laurent Fressinet of France to end up at a joint third spot after the seventh round of the Alekhine Memorial Chess Tournament on Tuesday. The victory helped Anand take his tally to four points out of a possible seven and the way it came was quite satisfying for the Indian ace. With just two...
02:54 PM, Apr 30, 2013
Barcelona: Seven-time winner Rafael Nadal advanced to the quarterfinals of the Barcelona Open by beating Benoit Paire of France 7-6 (2), 6-2 on Friday. Paire broke Nadal's first service game, but when the fifth-ranked Spaniard found his rhythm he had little trouble extending his winning streak on the Real Club de Tenis' red clay to 36 straight matches. The match was originally scheduled for Thursday but was postponed due to...
05:01 PM, Apr 26, 2013
Palermo: Roberta Vinci will face Petra Kvitova on the opening day of the Fed Cup semi-finals between Italy and the two-time defending champion Czech Republic. Vinci beat former Wimbledon champion Kvitova in straight sets in Poland last weekend to move up to a career-high ranking of No. 12. The semifinal opens Saturday with seventh-ranked Sara Errani facing the 25th-ranked Lucie Safarova. After reverse singles on Sunday on the red clay...
06:22 PM, Apr 19, 2013
Rome: Francesca Schiavone and Flavia Pennetta are back in Italy's team for a Fed Cup semi-final against the Czech Republic. The veterans sat out the first round when Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci led the Azzurre to a 3-2 comeback win over the United States. Errani and Vinci remain in the team. The semi-final is scheduled for April 20-21 on red clay at the Palermo tennis club. It's the fifth...
11:50 PM, Apr 10, 2013
Rome: Brazil playmaker Hernanes put Lazio ahead but later missed a penalty in a 1-1 draw with Roma in the city derby on Monday that left both clubs still battling for Europa League spots. Hernanes also fouled Miralem Pjanic to give away a penalty for Roma in the 56th minute that was converted by 36-year-old captain Francesco Totti. Hernanes scored in the 16th with a spectacular effort from 25 meters...
05:15 AM, Apr 09, 2013
Austin: Lance Armstrong has asked a Texas court to dismiss a lawsuit by a Dallas promotions company seeking repayment of more than $12 million in bonuses paid for winning the Tour de France. SCA Promotions sued Armstrong and his manager Bill Stapleton in state district court in Dallas in February, claiming Armstrong committed fraud by using performance-enhancing drugs to win the Tour seven times. SCA paid Armstrong's team management company...
05:28 PM, Apr 07, 2013
Buenos Aires: Richard Gasquet of France has been replaced by Gilles Simon for singles on Friday against Argentina in the Davis Cup quarter-finals. France captain Arnaud Clement withdrew Gasquet, citing an unspecified injury, at the draw on Thursday. In Friday's opening singles, Carlos Berlocq will face Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France. Juan Monaco will play Simon in the second singles match on the outdoor clay at Parque Roca on the outskirts...
09:10 PM, Apr 04, 2013
Paris' iconic Eiffel Tower was evacuated on Saturday after a bomb scare. Hundreds of people were visiting the site when France's anti-terrorism police made the decision to evacuate it. ...
09:25 AM, Mar 31, 2013
The 36-year-old Totti's contract runs out next year and he is keen to sort out a new deal. ...
03:19 PM, Mar 29, 2013
France's narrow defeat by Spain exposed Les Bleus's desperate need for a striker with a killer instinct. ...
09:12 PM, Mar 27, 2013
Spain bounced back from their mini-slump by beating France 1-0 to return to the top of their World Cup qualifying group. ...
08:04 AM, Mar 27, 2013
The best-of-five series will be played April 5-7 in Buenos Aires. ...
07:38 AM, Mar 27, 2013
French troops patrolling the international airport in the capital of the Central African Republic killed two Indian citizens when three vehicles tried to enter the facility, France's defence ministry said on Monday. ...
09:34 AM, Mar 26, 2013
France plan to attack Spain in their World Cup qualifier even though a draw at home would be enough to keep them at the top of Group I. ...
09:01 AM, Mar 26, 2013
In the slowly shifting landscape of Italian football, the past week has marked a relatively quick change of focus. ...
08:43 AM, Mar 26, 2013
