Young Americans are embracing ‘Chinamaxxing’. That’s a soft power boost for Beijing

This article may be meeting you at a very Chinese time in your life. At least, if you’ve spent enough time recently on social media, where the phenomenon of “Chinamaxxing” has swept feeds with videos of people sipping hot water, shuffling around the house in slippers and donning a viral Adidas jacket resembling historic Chinese … Read more

Soft toys and a jagged edge: how Russia is circling the Winter Olympics | Winter Olympics 2026

First came the reverberating cheers. Then a deluge of soft toys lobbed from the stands. But across the face of the brilliant Russian skater Adeliia Petrosian there was only the faintest of smiles. For now. So far at these Winter Olympics, a Russian is yet to win a medal. But there is a possibility that … Read more