The defence team for Oscar Pistorius plans to close its case after its last witness completed his testimony at the murder trial today, a lawyer said.

An Australian who threw his Canadian girlfriend off the balcony of their high-rise Sydney apartment in a crime that captivated the nation has been sentenced to 26 years in jail.

Rory McIlroy was doubly satisfied after he claimed his first title in over a year with a dramatic one-shot victory at the Australian Open in Sydney.

An Australian election candidate who thought Islam was a country has stepped down.

The Australian DJs behind the hoax call to the hospital that treated Kate Middleton said they were “gutted, shattered, heartbroken” by the death of a nurse they had duped.

Pope Benedict XVI gave Australia its first saint today, canonising a 19th century nun who was briefly excommunicated and also declaring five other saints in a Mass attended by tens of thousands of people.

THERE’S a story that may interest the GAA hierarchy and send a shiver down the spines of RTÉ executives.

British raiders Carte Diamond and Razkalla were out of luck in the Carlton Draught Caulfield Cup in Australia.

Australian tennis star Lleyton Hewitt and his 21-year-old girlfriend, actress Rebecca Cartwright, are expecting a baby, a television network reported today.

CORK-BORN Jackie Cott has been living the dream of many golfers this week by caddying for Greg Norman at the Heineken Melbourne Open.

Jana Pittman, the 400 metre hurdles world champion, today conceded she will not run at the Athens Olympics after damaging her right knee in a freak training accident on Friday.

Australian Olympic chief John Coates today described the possibility of world 400m hurdles champion Jana Pittman missing the Olympics as “tragic”.

An old man’s claim that he shot a wild dog that snatched a baby at Ayers Rock in the Australian Outback nearly a quarter of a century ago today revived an investigation into one of the country’s most enduring mysteries.

Australians will continue working in Saudi Arabia despite an Australian engineer being shot dead in an attack probably linked to al-Qaida, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said today.

Having been here now for two weeks, I have been able to form a good idea of the Australian way of life.

THE South African Springboks may have handed the Wallabies a blueprint on how to defeat the All Blacks and retain rugby’s Bledisloe Cup next weekend, Australian coach Eddie Jones said yesterday.

Australian star Shane Warne has pulled out of the Cricket World Cup after apparently taking a banned substance inadvertently while recovering from a shoulder injury.

Andre Agassi was handed a simple route into the quarter-finals of the Australian Open today when Guillermo Coria retired halfway through their match.

Cathy Freeman will be running from memory when she competes in the women’s 4x400metres relay at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.

The Australian government today defended the use of tear gas and water cannons to break up protests at detention centres for illegal immigrants.