France | featured news

The euro zone's two largest economies avoided shrinking between April and June, but the resilience of Germany and France wasn't enough to prevent the currency bloc's economy as a whole from falling back into contraction.

The names change, not the results. Just call the U.S. women's basketball team Olympic champion - again. The Americans won their fifth straight gold medal Saturday, routing France 86-50 and putting more distance between themselves and the rest of the world heading into the 2016 Rio Games.

In Washington, Republicans are bashing President Obama for inflicting “European-style socialism” on the United States. Here in Paris, a genuine socialist took the presidential oath in May, and he has wasted no time implementing policies designed to soak the rich.

Allison Schmitt rallies the Americans to victory with a strong anchor leg... The U.S. took the gold with in an Olympic record time of 7 minutes 42.92 seconds. Australia, which had led after three legs,
was second in 7:44.41 and France was well back in 7:47.49 to take the bronze.

France earned an Olympic-sized upset in the 400 free relay Sunday, when 20-year-old Yannick Agnel chased down Ryan Lochte on the final lap to avenge the Americans' 2008 victory... The win is France's first in the history of the event. Not only that -- it's France's first relay victory of any kind, men or women, in the history of the Summer Olympics.

The hiccups outnumbered the highlights, and for a while the U.S. racked up fouls faster than points. The opener wasn't artistic. However, it was enough - easily enough. Kevin Durant scored 22 points in his Olympic debut, Kevin Love added 14 and LeBron James had eight assists as the American men's basketball team overcame some sloppy moments with a 98-71 win Sunday over France.

A French man and one of his three children died after they jumped along with his wife off a 164-foot cliff into the sea to flee a raging wildfire that forced them out of their car just as they were about to cross the Spanish border into France at the end of their vacation, officials said Monday.

Bradley Wiggins became the first Briton to win the Tour de France, after safely protecting the yellow jersey during Sunday's final processional ride into Paris.

The Paris premiere of the new Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises" was canceled Friday after a gunman killed at least a dozen people at a Colorado opening of the same film.

France's far right National Front will sue Madonna after she screened footage of party leader Marine Le Pen with a swastika superimposed on her face at a concert in Paris.