Hey, everybody.
I'm Mina Derson, back in the chair for Koi Wire and I'm excited to be with you for another fresh edition of CNN 10.
It is Thursday, February 12th, and we have some really important stories to tell you about today.
So let's do it.
We begin in Italy, where a helmet is turning heads and making headlines at the Winter Olympics.
It belongs to Ukrainian flag bearer, Vladislav Horoskevich, who is competing in skeleton, an event similar to luge, where racers hurtle down an icy track headfirst.
The helmet in question features portraits of Horoskevich's fellow Ukrainian Olympians who were killed during Russia's war in Ukraine.
But he says he's now been barred from wearing it by the International Olympic Committee.
Check this out.
Why did this helmet get banned by Olympic officials?
A Ukrainian athlete says it's because of the people who are pictured on it.
Skeleton racer Vladislav Garskevich wants to keep the world's focus on the war in Ukraine.
His helmet is decorated with portraits of fellow athletes who were killed in the war.
I feel that I fulfill someone's dreams.
These people deserve to die so young.
Haraskevich says he was prevented from wearing the helmet by the International Olympics Committee.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy praised Haraskevich on X for quote, reminding the world of the price of our struggle.
Some things are more important than sports.
And it's no medal that's worth the same as the life of people.
And we lost many of them.
I believe that it's important to show that also.
Ukraine's National Olympic Committee says they appealed the International Olympic Committee's decision earlier this week.
The IOC, for their part, says the helmet was banned for violating their guidelines on athletes making quote political statements.
They've instead encouraged Hershkiewicz to wear a black armband during competition to commemorate his teammates.
What we've tried to do is to address his desires with compassion and understanding.
He has expressed himself on social media and in the training.
And, as you know, we will not stop him expressing himself in press conferences.
As he leaves competition in the mixed zone and elsewhere.
And we feel that this is a good compromise in the situation.
But a defiant Hraskiewicz has told CNN that he doesn't think that's enough and he plans to wear the helmet anyway.
Yes, I wear this helmet two days ago, yesterday, today.
I will wear it tomorrow and I will wear it for the race day.
These people sacrifice their lives.
And because of that, I'm able to be here today.
I'm able to be at the Olympics and I will not betray them.
So what do you think?
Should Olympic athletes be allowed to make statements like this?
Is the IOC right to try and keep things fair for all participants?
How would you handle this situation if it was up to you?
Teachers, feel free to pause and take a moment to discuss amongst yourselves.
Now to some more breaking news, literally, elsewhere at the Olympics.
As some gold medal winners celebrate with their hard-earned bling, they're getting an unwelcome surprise.
Their medals are falling off their ribbons.
Our Samantha Lindell has a look at how the awkward moments are taking center stage at this year's Games.
So there's the metal and there's the ribbon.
Here's the little piece that is supposed to go in the ribbon to hold it in the metal.
And yeah, it came apart.
Some Olympians are celebrating their wins with broken metals.
It's real.
Thank you.
I broke it.
After winning Team USA's first gold medal of the Games in downhill skiing, Breezy Johnson showcased her medal, which had separated from its ribbon.
Do not jump in there.
It broke.
Meanwhile, Germany's ski team were jumping in celebration when one member's medal slipped off its ribbon.
And figure skater Alyssa Liu said her gold medal doesn't even need a ribbon.
These medals are the most expensive in Olympic history, thanks to the price of gold and silver skyrocketing.
Chief Games Operations Officer Andrea Francici says they're looking into the problem.
We are aware of the situation.
Obviously, we are trying to understand in detail if there is a problem.
But obviously, we have the utmost attention to this event, being the medal the dream of Atleti.
So we obviously want everything to be absolutely perfect at the time of delivery, because we really consider it the most important moment.
So we are working on it.
Time for 10-second trivia.
Manatees are most closely related to which animal?
Is it walruses, elephants, hippos, or whales?
If you said elephants, you are manatee-rific.
Both animals share a common ancestor and, despite their different habitats, they have a lot in common.
Manatees' snouts are actually shortened versions of elephant trunks, and they even have elephant-like toenails on their flippers.
Speaking of manatees, one of these gentle giants is getting a second chance thanks to an amazing rescue in Florida after he became stuck in a storm drain.
City workers stumbled upon the stranded sea cow while working on a baffle box which prevents trash and debris from flowing back out into a nearby lagoon.
Following a round-the-clock rescue effort, the 400-pound marine mammal was finally freed and taken to nearby SeaWorld to recover.
It's unclear exactly how the manatee ended up stuck in the drain, but officials think he may have been seeking out warmer water.
Manatees require warm water to survive, and they'll often migrate to many of Florida's natural springs to wait out the winter.
Meanwhile.
This lucky manatee is now on the mend and he's enjoying a lettuce buffet, while SeaWorld staffers work hard to get him ready for release.
Once we can get his blood analyzed and we can get a treatment plan, then I'm hopeful for his recovery.
China's AI competition is bubbling over, and this time it comes with tapioca pearls.
CNN's Mike Valerio takes us to Beijing, where a free bubble tea promotion brewed up massive chaos for delivery drivers.
Okay, what does it look like in some of these videos?
China is having a national boba emergency.
Tons of delivery drivers absolutely packing these stores.
We'll call it China's AI bubble tea.
One of China's biggest tech companies Alibaba, gave out millions of vouchers for free boba, all to get people to download its AI chatbot Quan.
You ask it to find bubble tea.
It suggests options.
You choose how much sugar you want, put in your address, and then done.
The result?
In just nine hours, people placed more than 10 million free drink orders, the company said.
Some bubble tea shops were out of cups.
Other stores had to shut down for the day and the app temporarily crashed.
But Quen shot to number one on app stores in China, beating offerings from Alibaba rivals like Tencent, ByteDance and Baidu.
All these Chinese tech giants are pouring billions of dollars into AI labs, a key part of Beijing's push to challenge Silicon Valley's early lead as US-China tensions continue to simmer.
But in the increasingly heated domestic AI race, especially during the Lunar New Year holiday, when companies duke it out for attention and market share, Chinese tech firms are now enticing users not just with better benchmarks, but also with tastier freebies one bubble tea at a time.
Today's story getting a 10 out of 10 is Ready for Takeoff.
At 88 years old.
Frances Dahlke has reached plenty of milestones, but she'd never stepped foot on an airplane until now.
And I says, well, I'll fly when Alex gets his pilot license.
That was her one condition.
If she was going to take to the skies, her grandson Alex had to be the one flying the plane.
And after years of hard work, the moment finally arrived.
As an airline employee, you do get these flight benefits.
I was able to throw her name on the list and then put her on the standby list.
Frances and her family boarded the flight from Wisconsin's La Crosse Regional Airport to Chicago, with her grandson in the cockpit, making sure the trip was one to remember.
It was very, very nice.
I felt like a spoiled celebrity.
I had the first seat in the first class.
A full circle moment, years in the making and a memory this family will hold on to long after the flight touched down.
All right, superstars, I've got time for two shout outs today.
The first one is going to Miss Barone at Marley Middle School in Glen Burnie, Maryland.
Thank you for subscribing to our YouTube channel.
And this next one is going all the way to Africa.
Mr. King Fisher at Lusaka International Community School in Lusaka, Zambia.
Wow, thanks for watching.
I hope you guys have an awesome day.
It's almost Friday.
We'll see you right back here tomorrow.
I'm Mina Derson, and this is CNN 10.
