Thirteen couples competed in the North American Wife Carrying Championship on Sunday in Newry, Maine, in which husbands run a 278-yard (254 meters) obstacle-filled course carrying their wives, in hopes of winning the wife's weight in beer and five times her weight in cash. The winning couple, Jerome and Olivia Roehm, took home the prize for the third consecutive time. "This year it was a really tough. We went up, I think, higher than we've done in the past, so running up that hill was tough," said Jerome. In addition to the beer and cash, the two were entered into the world championship held in Finland next summer.  

Here are a few reasons to pick up a copy of The Guardian on Friday. Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Friday.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣

After the end of the state of emergency decree in Egypt, analysts and human rights organisations doubt that the situation on the ground will change. A more tangible signal would be the release of political prisoners.

Japan is holding a parliamentary election, which is the first big test for the new prime minister. A poor showing for the ruling party could threaten a return to the country's history of revolving-door premiership.

The Taliban's reclusive supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, has been seen in public for the first time since he took control of the group in 2016, officials have said. His appearance may ease rumors of his death.

Speaking on the podcast WTF with Marc Maron, the 60-year-old actor discussed how he was committed to never getting married before he fell “madly” in love with the human rights lawyer.

Dawn Sturgess was exposed to Novichok found in a counterfeit perfume bottle in 2018. The incident occured shortly after the attempted murder of Russian double agent Sergei Skripal.

Amid a mounting economic crisis, the Taliban has pledged to pay three months' worth of lost wages to public employees. The group boasted of new revenue, but did not specify where it came from.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's wife, Carrie, has given birth to a baby girl, his office said.

The leader of the UK's opposition Labour party said on Sunday (December 12) that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had broken the public's trust over COVID-19 regulations, making him "unfit for public office." Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Keir Starmer said Johnson posed a risk to public health following reports that parties were held at Downing Street during a 2020 Christmas lockdown when such festivities were banned.

A quarter of couples experience infertility despite regular sex, according to the French national research institute INSERM. The reasons include exposure to pollutants, endocrine disruptors, trying for a child later on in life, smoking and obesity. But in more than 15 percent of cases, the cause of the infertility remains unconfirmed. France's health minister has decided to take action by putting together a working group to better understand the issue and suggest changes by the end of the year. FRANCE 24's Eléonore Vanel and Camille Nedelec report.

Japan's ageing society is forcing it to innovate in some unusual ways. Fifteen years ago, the western town of Hōki, where almost half the residents are aged over 65, started using recycled adult diapers to heat public baths and reduce energy bills. The project was highly successful and now the idea of turning diapers into fuel pellets has spread to other parts of Japan. Our correspondents report.