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Madrid, Jan 12 : FC Barcelona striker Leo Messi said that he hoped to add further Balon d'Or trophies to the four he has won in the past four years.

Messi was given the award last Monday. This is an award given by France Football and FIFA to the best player in the world.

It was the fourth successive time Messi has won the Balon d'Or, something nobody has ever done. But aged just 25, there is still plenty of time for the Argentinean to add more to his trophy cabinet, reports Xinhua.

"I hope to win more but it is not an obsession, at least not at the moment," said Messi Friday in an interview with France Football.

Los Angeles, Jan 12 : Britney Spears and Jason T

London, Jan 12 : The Duchess of Cambridge's first official painting has been unveiled, receiving mixed reviews from critics.

Paul Emsley's work took several months using a technique of building thin layers of oil and glazes on canvas.

The artist had two sittings with the duchess and also worked from a series of photographs he took, the BBC reported.

The portrait is now on display at London's National Portrait Gallery, which commissioned the work. The duchess is the gallery's patron.

Allahabad, Jan. 12 : The cremation of a constable of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in whose body Maoists had surgically inserted an IED, took place near Allahabad late on Friday evening.

Constable Babulal Patel was cremated at his village Malak Balau near Allahabad.

The cremation was attended by a large crowd, including people from adjoining villages.

Constable Patel's body was brought to Allahabad by CRPF officials by air and then taken to his house by road, reaching Malak Balau in the afternoon.

London, Jan 12 : Martial Saugy, director of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Lausanne laboratory, has rejected United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) claims that they helped banned cyclist Lance Armstrong to avoid detection for the blood-boosting agent EPO.

 Saugy admitted that in 2001 he met Armstrong and his team manager, Johan Bruyneel, and explained the tests for EPO, but he denied allegations this enabled Armstrong to avoid failing tests, the Telegraph reports.

Washington, January 12 : In a new study, researchers have identified microorganisms that live inside salt deposits in the acidic and ferrous environment of the Tinto River in Huelva, Spain.

The extreme conditions of these microniches appear to be similar to those of the salt deposits on Mars and Jupiter's moon, Europa. This possibility should be borne in mind on missions operating in these places, such as Curiosity.