Italy's railway network suffered "serious sabotage" as the Winter Olympic Games began, while Japan prepared for a snap election and a Bermuda snail, once thought extinct, thrived again. Additionally, Storm Leonardo continued to batter Europe and northern Africa, and Lindsey Vonn aimed to become the oldest Alpine Olympic medalist.
Authorities in Italy reported three separate incidents involving damage to railway lines, which they believed were connected to the Games, according to BBC World. A fire hit rail infrastructure between Bologna and Venice, triggering delays of up to two-and-a-half hours. Police later found severed cables and an explosive device nearby. The Ministry of Transport called the incidents an act of "serious sabotage," mirroring vandalism during the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Meanwhile, Japan prepared for a snap election on Sunday, with the country's first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, betting on her personal popularity to secure a clear public mandate for the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), according to BBC World. This election was the second general election in as many years, catching the ruling party, the opposition, and much of the electorate off guard. Takaichi hoped to succeed where her predecessor, Shigeru Ishiba, had failed.
In Bermuda, conservation efforts led to the thriving of the greater Bermuda snail (Poecilozonites bermudensis), a button-sized mollusc once feared extinct, according to The Guardian. Conservationists bred and released more than 100,000 of the snails, which were once believed to have vanished from the North Atlantic archipelago.
Storm Leonardo continued to bring torrential rain and strong winds to Spain and Portugal, prompting severe weather alerts, as reported by The Guardian. The slow-moving system had been battering the Iberian peninsula since Tuesday. Spain's state meteorological agency, Aemet, issued its highest red alert for heavy rainfall in Cádiz and parts of Málaga.
Finally, Lindsey Vonn aimed to become the oldest Alpine Olympic medalist, despite a ruptured A.C.L., according to the New York Times. Vonn, who had finished sixth in her first Olympic race 24 years prior, had set a goal in grade school to win more Olympic ski races than any woman ever had.
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