An iconic mural featuring the face of Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara has been painted over by a local authority just weeks before a local Latin-American cultural festival.

The organisers of the second annual Che do Beatha festival in Kilkee have found — in Declan Ganley — an unlikely ally in playing down the controversy around the festival’s inspiration, Che Guevara.

Viva La Revolution!

THE Cuban ambassador to Ireland will formally open one of the country’s more unlikely festivals of the year at the end of this month.

Cuba has published revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara’s journal from the guerrilla campaign he fought with Fidel Castro.

DAVID VILLA almost had a perfect night as a goal in each half from the new Barcelona recruit helped Spain get their World Cup campaign back on track in Ellis Park last night.

SPAIN’S Carles Puyol is treating today’s World Cup group match against Honduras like a “final” for the European champions after their shock defeat to Switzerland in their opening game.

CHILE coach Marcelo Bielsa claimed his team must play better despite opening their World Cup campaign in impressive fashion yesterday.

Costa Rica’s governing party candidate swept to an election victory today that made her the first woman president in the Central American nation.

Bolivia’s president participated in a tribute to the guerrilla leader Ernesto “Che” Guevara, who was captured and killed by Bolivian soldiers 42 years ago while trying to foment revolution in the Andean nation.

Benicio Del Toro has become such a big fan of Ernesto 'Che' Guevara after playing the revolutionary in director Steven Soderbergh's four-hour epic, he's keen to defend the leader from his critics.

TWO of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara’s children have said they are tired of seeing their father’s image used to sell everything from T-shirts to vodka, calling the growth of the revolutionary as a global super-brand embarrassing.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez met for more than four hours with Fidel Castro and state media today published two new official photos of the men together, but provided no new details about the ailing Cuban leader’s health.

COMMUNIST Cuba paid tribute yesterday to Ernesto “Che” Guevara, 40 years after the guerrilla fighter was captured and executed in Bolivia.

COMMUNIST Cuba paid tribute yesterday to Ernesto “Che” Guevara, 40 years after the guerrilla fighter was captured and executed in Bolivia.

Joanne Cuddihy made a confident start to her World Championship campaign in Osaka with a season's best in her 400 metres heat, but the Kilkenny woman will have it all to do to progress out of tomorrow's semi-finals.

Communist officials have rallied hundreds in outdoor meetings to publicly declare their support for ailing leader Fidel Castro to reassure Cubans’ worried about their long-ruling leader.

Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez went on a pilgrimage yesterday to Che Guevara’s house.

Cuba’s Fidel Castro and Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez rallied thousands of leftist sympathisers after a South American trade summit at Cordoba, in Argentina, railing against the US-backed free market policies they blame for many of Latin America’s woes.

THIERRY HENRY put on a brave face after once again losing out in the FIFA World Player of the Year award as Barcelona’s flamboyant Brazilian attacker Ronaldinho took the honour.

Thierry Henry chose a blazing red Che Guevara T-shirt and a black-and-white wristband for his appearance at FIFA’s world player of the year awards gala to make a point about racism in football.

BRITAIN’S Foreign Office succumbed to the “Irish charms” of iconic revolutionary Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara, a previously unseen document reveals.

SONIA O’SULLIVAN put in a spirited finish in the 3000m in Zurich last night and almost snatched second place from Russia’s Tatyana Tomashova, but neither were a match for winner Berhane Adere.

Costa Rica continued their impressive run in the Copa America with a crushing 4-0 victory over a disappointing Bolivia.