STOCKHOLM, May 9 (Reuters) - France scored one of the biggest ice hockey upsets ever when they defeated defending champions Russia 2-1 at the world championships in Helsinki on Thursday.

"When I'm 60 I'll tell my grandchildren that I was captain of the team that beat Russia at the world championships," a beaming Vincent Bachet told reporters.

All the scoring came in a see-saw second period, with Damien Fleury and Antoine Roussel notching the vital goals for France after Alexander Perezhogin gave Russia the lead. Alexander Radulov also missed a penalty for the Russians.

The defending champions turned up the heat in the final period but, even with a frenzied offensive effort in the final minutes, the Russians could not find a way through the massed ranks of the French defence.

Despite taking 29 shots to France's 19, Russia came off second best and their unbeaten streak at the world championships ended at 13 games.

In the late game in Helsinki, Martins Cipulis scored after just 15 seconds to put Latvia on the road to a 5-3 win over Slovakia, their first victory of the tournament.

Canadian goalkeeper Mike Smith was the hero in Stockholm, stopping 33 shots to shut out co-hosts Sweden as his side cruised to a 3-0 victory.

The Czech Republic defeated Denmark 2-1 in a shootout after a goal for each side from Zbynek Michalek and Morten Poulsen in the third period forced overtime in the early game in Sweden.

Switzerland remain top of the Stockholm group on 11 points from four matches, ahead of Canada (10), Sweden (9) and Norway (6).

Despite their defeat, Russia maintain their position as leaders of the Helsinki group on goal difference, level on nine points with the United States. Hosts Finland are third with eight with Slovakia in fourth place on six points.

The top four teams in each eight-team group go through to the quarter-finals.(Editing by John Mehaffey)

Some of the fast-track reforms he championed in August 2011 have been slowed down by the governing body's legislative process. Simplifying the rule book has proven trickier than expected. His own enforcement staff got swept into a major scandal earlier this year, and Emmert has come under increasing scrutiny for presiding over all of this.

Yes, it's been a rough start to 2013.

"It's just a demonstration that this is a membership association and decision-making is hard. It's hard to find agreement among all the members and that's the nature of democratic processes," Emmert told The Associated Press this week. "As Winston Churchill put it, it's the worst of all systems except for everything else."

At least Emmert can still laugh a little as the NCAA's board of directors prepares to meet Thursday. A lot has changed since the committee last met in person in mid-January.

Shortly after that meeting, Emmert announced publicly that the NCAA had botched its investigation of the University of Miami. A monthlong external investigation confirmed the initial findings and led to the ouster of NCAA enforcement director Julie Roe Lach. As speculation swirled about Emmert's own future, the board issued a rare -- and perhaps unprecedented -- vote of confidence in his leadership.

Last month, the board suspended rules passed in January that would have deregulated which coaching staff members could perform recruiting tasks and what printed materials could be sent to recruits. It also agreed to take a second look at a new rule that would have prohibited coaches from scouting future opponents in person and watched closely as at least 75 schools, the minimum needed to override a board vote, objected to allowing coaches unlimited contacts with recruits outside the traditional non-contact periods.

Those rules went into effect in men's and women's basketball last summer, and the coaches approve. Football coaches don't see it the same way.

"We have serious concerns whether these proposals, as currently written, are in the best interest of high school student-athletes, their families and their coaches," the Big Ten coaches and athletic directors said in critiquing the changes in February. "We are also concerned about the adverse effect they would have on college coaches, administrators and university resources."

It's enough to even make Emmert consider the possibility of implementing sport-specific rules -- something that would cut against his initial argument to shrink and simplify the NCAA's massive rulebook.

There was also Emmert's annual Final Four press conference, which turned contentious. Emmert now acknowledges the tone didn't help either side but made no apologies for what was said.

Two more enforcement staff members have left in the past month, and during Tuesday's opening remarks to a seemingly friendly audience at the NCAA's second Inclusion Forum, Emmert was questioned about the impact of the academic reforms that established new, tougher eligibility standards for incoming freshmen. The man who asked wondered if it would cause a growing disparity among college athletes from low-resource schools. Emmert explained that the new standards would lead to better results, such as higher graduation rates, rather than negative consequences.

In the background are a number of lawsuits against the NCAA, including the high-profile suit from Ed O'Bannon and others over the use of amateur athletes' images. Some critics have continued to call for a change at the top.

Don't bet on it after the board's unusual February announcement.

"Well, it was (unusual), but it was an unusual moment," Emmert said when asked directly about the vote of confidence. "They decided to take that action and there was, at that moment, I think so much discussion out there that they felt the need to make clear that they were supporting what I was engaging, a task that they wanted me involved in. I have great confidence in the board and the agenda we are trying to work through."

Several board members did not return messages seeking comment from the AP.

The hardest part is that little has gone right lately for Emmert and the Indianapolis-based NCAA. Thursday's agenda illustrates what's at stake.

More discussion is expected on a rule passed in October 2011 that allowed schools to give athletes up to $2,000 beyond the cost of tuition, room and board, books and fees. It was later overridden by the membership and the board has spent more than a year working on a new proposal.

Additional discussions are expected on a second phase of rulebook changes.

The board plans to talk about the recruiting rules that are now on hold. The board could take action, though the American Football Coaches Association has said the NCAA has asked the organization to serve on an advisory committee that will help draft modified legislation.

That's why Emmert describes this meeting as "framing" the big issues for the future rather than a headline-grabbing action meeting.

"We've been making really good progress, really great headway on a whole host of issues most notably the academic and rules reforms," Emmert said. "The work we've conducted on all of our enforcement work and those things have been really positive. Obviously, the distractions of the Miami case and the way that was handled have been frustrating to no end."

But when Nash went to pick up her prescription at the pharmacy she found that even with insurance, her out-of-pocket cost for the medicine would be $45 a month$540 per yearabout half her annual income from babysitting over the summer. She decided to ask her doctor to put her back on the generic. That decision increased Nash's risk for an asthma attack, and it also made her part of a group of Americans who are spending less on medicationsometimes at their peril.

He had Lou Gehrig's disease, and the governing body of men's tennis said in a statement he died at his home in Sydney.

Drewett was a top-40 singles and top-20 doubles player before he retired in 1990. He was hired in 2006 to lead operations in the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific regions. He led the ATP since January 2012.

International Tennis Federation President Francesco Ricci Bitti called Drewett "a valued friend and colleague."

"We were very happy to support him during his various roles at the ATP, most recently as chairman," he said. "His knowledge, experience and enthusiasm will be a great loss to the whole sport."

Players Rafael Nadal and Mardy Fish were among those expressing condolences.

"A very sad day for the world of sports and tennis in particular," Nadal, an 11-time major champion, wrote on Facebook. "Our president Brad has passed away. Rest in peace."

WTA chairman Stacey Allaster said the prize money increases were "perfect examples of Brad's brilliant strategic management, and another example of how much he cared about our athletes and the sport's long-term growth."

A moment of silence was observed Friday at the draw ceremony for the Madrid Open. The Portugal Open will hold a minute's silence Saturday before the first men's semifinal.

Drewett announced in January he had motor neurone disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The disease affects voluntary muscle activity, including speaking, walking, breathing and swallowing. It usually causes progressive disability.

Drewett's speech was noticeably slurred when he attended a news conference on the opening day of the Australian Open to announce a new sponsor. He had planned to step down once a successor was found.

"The tennis world lost a strong leader, true gentleman and a great friend," said David Haggerty, chairman and president of the U.S. Tennis Association.

As a player, he won 181 singles matches and two titles as well as seven doubles titles. In 1975, he captured the Australian Open boys' singles title and a year later made it to the Australian Open singles quarterfinals in his Grand Slam debut. He reached two Australian Open doubles semifinals and the Wimbledon doubles quarterfinals.

Drewett also developed and managed a number of successful businesses in the sport and fitness industry. He had worked as a commentator for two Australian television broadcasters.

He is survived by his wife, Joanne, and children Jack, Ally, Joe and Tom.

So before deploying to Afghanistan last year for her second war tour, she legally changed her name to Naida Christian Nova.

This did not solve her problems.

Instead, matters escalated. Nova complained to her superiors about constant anti-Muslim slurs and jokes. She says they responded with a series of reprisals intended to drive her out of the Army, leading her to consider suicide.

"My complaints fell on deaf ears every time," said Nova, 41, a member of the Army's 82nd Airborne Division based at Fort Bragg, N.C. "Any time I would say something about it I was treated like I didn't know what I was talking about or that I'm an idiot or that I was a Muslim sympathizer. It was just a very lonely feeling."

Determined to remain in the service for at least eight years, until she is eligible for retirement, Nova recently re-enlisted. But she agreed to tell her story to The Associated Press because "I don't want this to happen to anyone else if I can help it. It's a horrible to feel like people are against you when you are supposed to be on the same team."

Fort Bragg spokeswoman Sheri L. Crowe said the Army would not comment on the case, and referred questions to the U.S. Department of Justice. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, assigned to defend the Army, also declined comment.

But her account is supported by an affidavit filed by an old friend, Sharon Deborah Sheetz, who said that Nova had confided in her about the harassment she had suffered, telling Sheetz that she was so unhappy that she no longer wanted to live.

A Farsi linguist who works in military intelligence, Nova's multicultural background exemplifies the kind of soldier Army recruiters prize U.S. citizens with ethnic ties to a part of the world many Americans can't find on a map.

Nova's father, Roy Hosein, was born into a Muslim family on the Caribbean island of Trinidad, where his parents had emigrated from India. He converted to Christianity after meeting Nova's mother, a Catholic from the Philippines, and became a U.S. citizen shortly after his daughter was born in New York. He changed the spelling of his family name to Hosan in the hope his children would avoid discrimination.

"He Americanized it," his daughter explained. "He got Hosan from Hosanna. He kept hearing it in church."

She reported for basic training two months after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

"Before 9-11, my last name never raised an eyebrow," she said. "But after 9-11, I felt compelled to tell people I am a Christian and felt I had to prove I was loyal to the United States."

Her first deployment was to Iraq in 2005. She said other soldiers, including her supervisors, mocked her family name and made crude jokes.

"I was called Sgt. Hussein, as in Saddam Hussein," she said. "Even when I would correct them on the pronunciation of my name, I was still called Sgt. Hussein. I was asked what God I pray to. And there were a lot of references to hajjis, used as a derogatory term."

Hajiis, in fact, are Muslims who have made the pilgrimage to the Saudi Arabian birthplace of the prophet Muhammad. But Nova said she regularly heard U.S. troops use the word as racist slang for enemy, terrorist or suicide bomber.

"My uncle is a hajji, because he made the pilgrimage to Mecca in 2005," Nova said. "I would stand up for what I thought was right and say, 'Not all terrorists are Muslims and not all Muslims are terrorists.' That just opened the door for more harassment."

Mikey Weinstein, a former U.S. Air Force officer who founded Military Religious Freedom Foundation, said Nova's experience is not uncommon. Military personnel who are Muslim or perceived to be of Middle Eastern descent are often targets for discrimination, he said.

"When a Muslim soldier, sailor or airman stands up for themselves, they are the subject of vicious reprisal and retribution," said Weinstein, who is Jewish. "What (Sgt. Nova) has gone through is horrible, but it is typical."

In 2007, while serving in Harrogate, England, Nova said co-worker told her and others a racist joke about Muslims. When she objected, Nova said, a supervisor warned her to stop making trouble. Instead, she filed a formal complaint with the Army's Equal Opportunity Branch, the program charged with ensuring the military provides an environment "free of unlawful discrimination and offensive behavior."

Within days, Nova said she was removed from her job and ordered to take a "command directed" mental health evaluation.

"In writing, the referral said my values were not in line with mission," she said. "They considered me a 'Muslim sympathizer,' that I was too loyal to Muslims."

Rather than address her complaint, Nova said, the Army transferred her to the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg. Though she hoped to make a fresh start with her new unit, word of her complaint followed her to North Carolina.

That treatment worsened after a November 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood in Texas. Maj. Nidal Hasan, a Muslim, is charged with killing 13 people. His name sounded a lot like hers.

Nova changed her name shortly before deploying to Afghanistan last year. She arrived just after worn copies of the Quran were found to have been burned with trash from a U.S.-run prison outside the capital of Kabul, a widely reported incident that triggered violent protests.

The Army responded by initiating a new training program on the proper handling and disposal of Islamic materials. But Nova said she discovered that her unit trashed and burned documents collected through intelligence gathering that contained what could be considered sacred writings.

Nova conferred with an on-base military chaplain, and suggested designating a special box for Islamic materials so they could be disposed of in a more appropriate manner.

"When I brought this up, I was told 'Sgt. Nova, you can't bring your religion to work ...,'" she recalled. "I changed my name, but that didn't change other people's ignorance."

After just two months in Afghanistan, she said her commanders removed her from her job and ordered her back to Fort Bragg.

With the help of a Fayetteville lawyer, Mark Waple, she filed a formal complaint with the Army's Inspector General in October seeking a voluntary discharge due to being subjected to "adverse treatment and negative, prejudicial remarks ... concerning the Muslim faith."

Nova said she grew so depressed that she considered suicide. She checked herself into an on-base hospital for treatment, staying for about a week before returning to duty.

After learning of her IG complaint and hospitalization, Nova's commanders at Fort Bragg responded by filing paperwork to involuntarily end her military career and bar her from reenlistment for "ineffective leadership."

Nova's Army performance review from a few months earlier, a copy of which she provided to AP, shows her as meeting expectations in all categories, with her senior commander rating her potential for promotion and increased responsibility as "superior."

The forced discharge could have imperiled Nova's ability to get a civilian job, denied her Veterans Affairs medical care and educational benefits.

After exhausting her administrative options for fighting her case, Waple helped Nova file a complaint in federal court alleging discriminatory treatment and asking a judge to prevent her discharge.

Rather than fight the case in court, the Army retreated. Shortly before a key hearing before the judge, Waple says he got a call from Army lawyers informing him that the disciplinary action against Nova was "completely off the table." She, in turn, agreed to drop the lawsuit.

Nova re-enlisted in the Army on April 8. She recently married, and is preparing to ship out next month to attend a senior leadership course and then report to a new assignment in Germany.

"I want to put all this behind me. I want to move on to my next duty assignment ...," said Nova. "My beliefs aren't any different from what the Army states as its beliefs and values. I would like to be treated fairly."

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Follow Associated Press writer Michael Biesecker at twitter.com/mbieseck

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Thursday he is comfortable with a U.S. government agency's decision to allow over-the-counter purchases of a morning-after pill for anyone 15 and older.

Some critics have complained girls that young should not be allowed to purchase the pills without a doctor's approval. But Obama told a news conference in Mexico City that the decision was based on "solid scientific evidence."

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday appealed a court order directing the agency to make morning-after emergency contraception pills available without a prescription to all girls of reproductive age.

Lawyers with the Justice Department filed the appeal with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York, according to court documents.

The appeal is the latest foray in the years-long legal battle over the pill known as "Plan B," a drug that has also sparked political and religious clashes. If taken up to 120 hours after unprotected sex, it is designed to prevent pregnancy.

The government is seeking to overturn U.S. District Judge Edward Korman's ruling from April 5 that required the FDA to make the emergency contraception available over-the-counter to women of all ages within 30 days.

Obama said it was not his decision to make, that it was up to the FDA and his Health and Human Services secretary, Kathleen Sebelius, to decide.

"The rule that's been put forward by the FDA, Secretary Sebelius has reviewed, she's comfortable with. I'm comfortable with it," he said.

(Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

By then, fear had spread through the 3,200 people who worked in the five clothing factories that jammed the upper floors of Rana Plaza, and the handful of shops on the lower ones. Most of the workers had gathered in the street out front. Few wanted to go back in. Inspectors said the eight-story building should be closed until it could be inspected.

But Mohammed Sohel Rana scoffed.

"The building has minor damages," Rana, the building's owner, told gathering reporters. "There is nothing serious."

The next morning, many of the building's shops and a first-floor bank remained closed. But the factories' 8 a.m. shift began as usual. About 45 minutes into the shift, the building suddenly collapsed, killing at least 350 people in a fury of falling concrete. It was the worst industrial accident in the history of Bangladesh. More than three days later, rescuers are still crawling through the wreckage, hoping to find anyone who has managed to survive so long. By Saturday, nearly all the people being carried out were dead.

Rana, though, has disappeared. He hasn't been seen, according to local media reports, since he left his basement office in Rana Plaza and drove away, just before the collapse. Today, his political patron has abandoned him and authorities want to arrest him.

Rana sits at the nexus of party politics and the powerful $20 billion garment industry that drives the economy of this deeply impoverished nation. Experts say this intersection of politics and business, combined with a minimum wage of $9.50 a week that has made Bangladesh the go-to nation for many of the world's largest clothing brands, has created a predictable danger for factory workers.

Government officials, labor activists, manufacturers and retailers all called for improved safety standards after a November fire in the same suburb, when locked emergency exits trapped hundreds of garment workers inside amid spreading flames and 112 people died. But almost nothing has changed.

"Successive Bangladeshi governments have paid lip service to worker safety but in reality it is only the factory owners who have the ear of policymakers," Brad Adams, the Asia director for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. "How many factory tragedies will it take before the Bangladeshi government ends its cozy relationship with powerful company owners and prioritizes worker safety?"

Before the collapse, Rana was little known outside of the few blocks of his tiny empire, a grid of poorly paved streets in the crowded industrial suburb of Savar, built up over the past decade or so around hundreds of garment factories.

The son of a local businessman with political connections, Rana became a neighborhood force by working as an organizer for the two political parties that have competed for power for decades in Bangladesh, according to local politicians, as well as someone who grew up near Rana and still lives in the area.

While Rana is currently a leader of the youth group of the ruling Awami League, he has also worked for that party's archrival, the Bangladesh National Party.

"He doesn't belong to any particular political party," said Ashrafuddin Khan Imu, an Awami League leader and longtime Rana rival. "Whatever party is in power, he is there."

In essence, these people say, Rana is a neighborhood political enforcer, regularly ordering thousands of people into the streets for rallies. Most recently, Imu said, he has been working for Awami League lawmaker Talukder Touhid Jang Murad. When Murad was asked about Rana after the collapse, Murad denied any connections. The next day, Dhaka newspapers printed photographs of Murad kissing Rana on the forehead after a successful rally earlier this year.

"He used to intimidate people whenever he needed them, like bringing people out for street marches in support of the lawmaker," said the neighbor, who spoke on condition he not be named, fearing Rana would send his men to beat him up after having been threatened once before. "Neighbors would avoid him ... No one wanted to upset him."

Money came with his political connections, with wealth built upon a string of government-owned properties he acquired at reduced prices, according to local media reports. He built a small apartment building and a small commercial building, where a Bata shoe store is now on the ground floor. In 2010 he built Rana Plaza on land that had once been a swamp. He had a permit to erect a five-story building, but built three additional stories illegally.

Until Wednesday, he lived just a few blocks from Rana Plaza, in a five-story red-brick building he owns at the end of a narrow alley.The ground floor has a hand-painted medieval scene, with an aristocratic woman, or perhaps a bride, being carried by scowling bearers in a covered palanquin. The neighbor says he is married, and has two children. The buildings indicate he is a man of considerable stature locally, but is almost certainly not a member of the country's tiny elite.

After the cracks appeared in the building, witnesses say Rana quickly went to work. On Wednesday morning, he and a number of factory managers ordered nervous workers into the building shortly before the collapse, according to the neighbor, who was present at the scene, and local press reports.

"I was too afraid to go inside the building. But the factory officials assured us they would also be in the factory, so there should not be any problem," said Kohinoor Begum, a factory worker who survived but whose hands were injured.

By Saturday night, Rana was still nowhere to be found. Authorities say they detained his wife on Friday, apparently as a way to convince him to surrender.

What will happen to him? At first glance, the situation doesn't look good: He's on the run, his political allies have publicly abandoned him, Bangladesh's most powerful garment industry association says he ignored their warnings to shut the building, the prime minister has called for his arrest.

But in the streets of Savar, many people note that while three managers have been arrested in connection with the Tazreen fire, the factory owner remains free.

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Sullivan reported from New Delhi, India. Julhas Alam in Dhaka contributed to the report.

From the site:

We see some great things here at the White House every day, and sharing that stuff with you is one of the best parts of our jobs. Thats why were launching a Tumblr. Well post things like the best quotes from President Obama, or video of young scientists visiting the White House for the science fair, or photos of adorable moments with Bo. Weve got some wonky charts, too. Because to us, those are actually kind of exciting.

The maiden post featured a sunburst diagram of potential content (pictured). It also included a call for submissions from the public.

The president previously used Tumblr as a tool for his 2012 campaign, but this is the first White House account.

The White House has been increasing its social media engagement in an effort to directly communicate with the American public (and sidestep the media).

The White House on Monday , adding that social media tool to a long roster of programs run by White House staff including Facebook, Twitter and Flickr. And a new Twitter account was announced for second lady Jill Biden.

Nova left Friday night's game against Toronto because of tightness in his right triceps.

"Hopefully, he can knock it out fairly quickly," manager Joe Girardi said.

Cervelli exited with a broken right hand and is expected to miss at least six weeks. Cervelli and Nova joined All-Star teammates Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixiera on the sidelines.

The Yankees recalled catcher Austin Romine from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and also signed and selected lefty reliever Vidal Nuno from their top minor league team. Jeter, out until after the All-Star game because of an injured ankle, was transferred to the 60-day DL.

Kevin Youkilis returned to New York's lineup after missing six games because of tightness in his lower back. He was set to play first base and bat fifth against the Blue Jays.

"Our hope is that he's OK," Girardi said.

There had been an initial report Nova had pain in his elbow when he left after the second batter in the third inning. Girardi said that wasn't the case and that he thought the right-hander wouldn't need extra time to recover.

"That's going to heal," Girardi said.

David Phelps, who struck out a career-high nine in four innings against the Blue Jays after relieving Nova, is set to start in his place. Nova is 1-1 with a 6.48 ERA in four starts.

Cervelli was injured when he was hit by a foul tip off the bat of Rajai Davis on Nova's fifth pitch of the game. Cervelli is hitting .269 with three home runs and eight RBIs.

Catcher Chris Stewart started Saturday night against the Blue Jays.

Romine made his big league debut with the Yankees in 2011. He spent last year in the minors while rehabbing a strained lower back. He was hitting .333 with one homer and four RBIs in Triple-A this year.

Romine caught bullpen sessions by Andy Pettitte and Hiroki Kuroda on Saturday, and Girardi said he would get a chance to start.

"He's going to catch some," Girardi said.

Nuno has never played in the majors. He was 1-1 with a 1.54 in four starts at Triple-A this year.

At the Yankees' spring training complex in Tampa, Fla., Granderson took on-field batting practice for the second straight day. He also threw after fielding balls in the outfield and ran the bases.

The All-Star outfielder is recovering from a broken right forearm.

"Everything is continuing to move forward," Granderson said. "Lots of good things. No issues swinging. No issues throwing. Just have to get stronger and repetitions on both, throwing and hitting. So, now it's a mix of strength, timing and endurance for those activities."

Also, right-hander Michael Pineda threw in his first extended spring training game against Pittsburgh minor leaguers. He faced four batters, walking two and allowing two soft singles.

Pineda missed all of 2012 with a shoulder injury and is expected to be out until at least June.

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AP freelance writer Mark Didtler contributed to this report.