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A “heroic” group of cyclists in the US fought off a cougar for more than 15 minutes after it grabbed a woman in its jaws.

Keri Bergere, a member of the group, suffered neck and face injuries in the attack but escaped with her life thanks to her comrades.

The cyclists were riding on a trail in Washington state when a pair of the big cats, also known as mountain lions, suddenly ran up.

One of the animals then grabbed Ms Bergere and dragged her off her bicycle.

It happened on 17 February but details of the struggle have only now been revealed in a TV interview.

“I just remember getting tackled from this side and ending up at the other side of the road pinned to the ground and hearing all the ladies rallying and fighting for my life,” Ms Bergere told KING, an affiliate of NBC News, Sky News’ US partner network.

The other cougar ran into the hills, while the four riders with Ms Bergere mounted a counterattack to save her from the grips of the attacker’s jaws – which at that point were around her face and exerting pressure.

“Erica and Tisch come over with sticks and a rock and we’re hand-to-hand combat-battling this thing,” fellow rider Annie Bilotta said.

Cougars use the powerful force of their jaws to crush the skulls, neck bones and windpipes of prey, experts say.

For a time it seemed that the 34kg cat would not relent, despite Ms Bergere also fighting back by poking at the creature’s eyes and nose, she said.

But about 15 minutes into the saga, the cyclists said, the cat weakened its pressure on her and she was able to slip her face out of its jaws.

The group then managed to pin the mountain lion down with a bicycle while they waited for help to arrive.

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Officers from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife later arrived on the scene and shot dead the animal. Officials have concluded the animal had no diseases or abnormalities that might have contributed to its behaviour.

“We may have had a very different outcome without their heroic efforts,” the department’s Lieutenant Erik Olson said of Ms Bergere’s friends.

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Will a second Trump assassination attempt shift the polls?

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Will a second Trump assassination attempt shift the polls?

With seven weeks to go until the US goes to the polls, Sky’s dedicated team of correspondents goes on the road to gauge what citizens in key swing states make of the choice for president.     

This week they focus on the second assassination attempt on Donald Trump.

Mark Stone travels to Florida where the foiled attack took place, while James Matthews has been finding out more about the suspected would-be assassin in his hometown of Greensboro, North Carolina.

Plus, Martha Kelner attended a Trump town hall in Flint, Michigan, to hear him speak for the first time after the attempt on his life, and asked voters if it will impact the way they vote in November.

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Producer: Rosie Gillott
Editor: Philly Beaumont

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‘All it could do was spin in circles’: Previous Titan sub passenger says his mission was aborted

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'All it could do was spin in circles': Previous Titan sub passenger says his mission was aborted

A previous Titan submersible dive to the Titanic was aborted due to an apparent mechanical failure, one of the mission’s passengers has said.

Fred Hagen had paid a fee to go on a dive in the Titan in 2021, two years before it imploded and killed all five passengers onboard.

He told a US Coast Guard panel investigating the tragedy on Friday that his trip was aborted underwater when the Titan began malfunctioning and it was clear they weren’t going to reach the Titanic wreck site.

“We realised that all it could do was spin around in circles, making right turns,” Mr Hagen said. “At this juncture, we obviously weren’t going to be able to navigate to the Titanic.”

He said the Titan resurfaced and the mission was scrapped.

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Trump-backed North Carolina Republican Mark Robinson denies calling himself ‘black nazi’ on pornographic forum

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Trump-backed North Carolina Republican Mark Robinson denies calling himself 'black nazi' on pornographic forum

A Republican backed by Donald Trump in his bid to be North Carolina’s governor denied reports he called himself a “black nazi” on an online message board.

CNN reported Thursday that Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson posted racial and sexual comments on a pornography website more than a decade ago.

In a video posted on social media, the Republican nominee said he would not leave the race over “salacious tabloid lies”.

“We are staying in this race. We are in it to win it. And we know that with your help, we will.”

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Mr Robinson also referenced the CNN report and said: “Let me reassure you the things that you will see in that story – those are not the words of Mark Robinson.

“You know my words. You know my character.”

More on North Carolina

The US outlet reported Mr Robson wrote of being aroused by a memory of “peeping” women in gym showers when he was 14.

He was also said to have used a racial slur when discussing civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr, referred to himself as a “black nazi,” and said: “I’d take Hitler over any of the shit that’s in Washington right now.”

CNN said it matched details of the account on the pornographic website forum to other online accounts held by Robinson by comparing usernames, a known email address and his full name.

Sky News has not verified whether the account is linked to Mr Robinson.

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Eight minutes after the report was published on Thursday, vice president Kamala Harris’ campaign started sharing videos of Donald Trump praising Mr Robinson.

One video from the campaign on X shows the former president at a March rally in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he called the lieutenant governor “Martin Luther King times two”.

“I think you’re better than Martin Luther King. I think you are Martin Luther King times two,” Mr Trump said.

Scott Lassiter, a GOP Senate candidate in a swing district in the state, called on Mr Robinson to “suspend his campaign to allow a quality candidate to finish this race”.

Mr Trump’s campaign also appeared to be distancing itself from Mr Robinson.

The ex-president did not refer to the controversy when he addressed Jewish donors on Thursday night, instead vowing to be ‘the best friend Jewish Americans ever had”.

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