We’re so glad to have you join us for another year in the news - it’s set to be a big one.

If you were taking it easy and having a digital detox over the break, or keeping busy working and didn’t catch the news, today’s podcast is just for you.

We have put together a recap of the news you may have missed over the summer break for today’s podcast - you can listen to that here.

Have a brilliant Monday!

The quote
"I just ran straight away… other kids were trying to grab them. I might have to get security to escort me back to the car." – 12-year-old cricket fan Brody Quin, who was handed David Warner’s batting gloves and helmet as the cricketer walked off the SCG in his final test match for Australia.

The stat
3
The number of Australian actors nominated for the Golden Globes. The three actors are Margot Robbie for Barbie, Sarah Snook for Succession and Elizabeth Debicki for The Crown. The Awards will take place at 11am AEDT today.

Today in history
2011: U.S. Congresswoman Gabby Giffords was shot in the head, along with 18 others, in a mass shooting in Tucson, Arizona. Six people died in the shooting, but Giffords survived. Giffords has gone on to become an advocate for gun control, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022.

Some headlines from this morning:

TW: Domestic violence

A minute’s silence was held for Australian Olympic cyclist Melissa Hoskins at the Australian National Road Race Championships in Ballarat, Victoria, yesterday.

Hoskins, 32, died after she was hit by a car in Adelaide on 30 December.

South Australia Police said a man known to the woman was charged for allegedly driving the vehicle that hit her.

The police did not name the man, however it has been widely reported by media outlets that Hoskins' husband, fellow Olympian Rohan Dennis, was arrested for allegedly causing her death.

Tributes:
On Sunday, Australian cyclist David McKenzie told ABC: "We've all really been feeling it… In time, and even now, we're celebrating her short life and what she achieved.”

AusCycling CEO Marne Fechner previously said in a statement: “Melissa described her team pursuit gold medal at the 2015 UCI Track Cycling World Championships as the highlight of her career, but for the rest of us, the highlight was just having her around.”

Further details:
Just after 8pm on 30 December, SA Police and emergency services were called to Medindie, a suburb in Adelaide, after calls a woman had been hit by a car.

Police said the 32-year-old woman had suffered serious injuries and was rushed to hospital, but died overnight.

The man was arrested and charged with causing death by dangerous driving, driving without due care, and endangering life. He has been released on bail and will appear in court in March.

Melissa Hoskins:
Melissa Hoskins is a two-time Olympic track cyclist. She represented Australia in the team pursuit event in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic games.

Hoskins was also part of the winning team that broke the record at the 2015 World Championships in France. Hoskins retired from cycling in 2017.

In 2018, Hoskins married fellow Olympic cyclist Rohan Dennis. The couple have two young children.

1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732

TW: Sex abuse

The names of numerous people potentially connected to the late sex offender Jeffery Epstein have been revealed in previously sealed court documents.

It includes former U.S. President Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew.

First, who was Epstein?
Jeffrey Epstein was a well-known American hedge fund manager and a convicted sex offender.

In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty in a controversial deal to charges related to sex-trafficking minors. He served 13 months in jail.

In 2019, he was arrested again on new federal sex trafficking charges. Epstein was denied bail and died in his jail cell at age 66 while awaiting trial. His death was ruled a suicide.

He was known to be friends with an array of high-profile politicians, celebrities and wealthy men.

What’s happened now?
Last week, historical court documents related to Epstein were made public. They had been previously sealed to hide the names of victims, witnesses, associates or friends of Epstein.

Associates named in the documents include former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, as well as Prince Andrew (the second son of Queen Elizabeth II). Many of the people named had already been publicly identified as associates of Epstein before today.

Being named in the documents does not mean they are accused of wrongdoing.

What do the documents say?
The documents reveal testimonies from women who were victims of Epstein.

It mentions Bill Clinton several times. One alleged victim of Epstein, Johanna Sjoberg, testified that Epstein told her "[Bill] Clinton likes them young, referring to girls".

Clinton is not accused of wrongdoing in the documents and said in a statement in 2019 that he knew "nothing about the terrible crimes" of Epstein.

Sjoberg also claimed Prince Andrew "put his hand on my breast" while they posed for a photo at one of Epstein's houses.

Prince Andrew has repeatedly rejected allegations of wrongdoing in connection to Epstein. He settled a lawsuit in 2022, without admitting wrongdoing, where it was alleged Epstein had arranged for Prince Andrew to sexually abuse and rape a 17-year-old.

Sjoberg also said she saw Michael Jackson at Epstein’s house in Palm Beach. When asked if she massaged him, she said: "I did not."

Why were the documents released?
The documents relate to a 2015 defamation lawsuit brought forward by Virginia Giuffre, a victim of Epstein, against Ghislaine Maxwell.

Maxwell is the former partner of Epstein who helped facilitate his crimes. She is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for helping Epstein sexually abuse young girls.

The defamation lawsuit was settled out of court, but a lot of the evidence in the case was sealed.

American newspaper The Miami Herald commenced a legal battle to obtain the sealed court documents.

The newspaper won, leading to these public releases.

1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732

LIFELINE: 13 11 14

At only 21 years old, Australian tennis star Olivia Gadecki is just getting started. She’s in good form - earlier this month, she qualified for her first WTA 500 tournament and put in a strong performance at this year’s Brisbane International. It was the perfect warm-up for this year’s Australian Open, where Gadecki is a wildcard.

It’s not all been smooth sailing for the rising talent. When TDA sat down with her before this year’s Australian Open, she spoke about the tough times on the professional circuit - from living out of a suitcase to the knockbacks of facing tough opponents. But when she plays at home, she gets goosebumps - and she’s focused on making her home crowd proud of her when she hits the court in Melbourne this summer.

With the Australian Open only days away, it’s time to get to know Olivia Gadecki. You can watch our chat with her here, before securing tickets here to see her live on court.

Get all the news you need to know today in your ears on The Daily Aus podcast!

Australian tennis player Alex de Minaur has broken into the men’s world top 10 rankings for the first time ever.

De Minaur beat world number seven Alexander Zverev over the weekend at the Australia-Germany United Cup semifinal in Sydney. It followed an earlier win over world number one Novak Djokovic.

De Minaur is the first Australian men’s player to enter the top 10 since Lleyton Hewitt in 2006.

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If you’re a nervous flyer, best to stop reading.

Over the weekend, an Alaska Airlines plane lost a window mid-flight.

Yes. Passengers were sitting on a plane that had a gaping hole where a window should be.

In videos circulating online, passengers are seen wearing oxygen masks. The craziest part of the videos though, is how completely calm everyone seems - they’re all just sitting with their masks on, not making much sound.

Following the incident, the US airline regulator has ordered the grounding of some Boeing 737 Max 9 jets. The good news is that nobody was injured in the incident.

What a coincidence! That’s exactly who The Daily Aus reaches. Get in touch with us to see how we can work together.