CARL AZUZ, HOST, CNN STUDENT NEWS: One pro football could be playing next season without its head coach. We`re going to explain why in just a few minutes. I`m Carl Azuz, 10 minutes of commercial-free headlines start right now.
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AZUZ: First up, results from Tuesday`s Republican primary in Illinois. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney came in first place there, and he picked up at least 41 of the state`s 54 delegates.
That added to his lead among Republican candidates. What you`re looking at here are the latest delegate estimates from CNN. You can see it takes 1,144 delegates to win the Republican nomination. Governor Romney had that in mind after Tuesday`s win.
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FORMER GOV. MITT ROMNEY, R-MASS., PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Each day we move closer, not just to victory but to a better America. Join us. Join us. Together, we`re going to ensure that America`s greatest days are still ahead. Thanks, you guys.
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AZUZ: Former Senator Rick Santorum finished second in Illinois. He`s also second in the delegate count. He said Tuesday night was a good night for his campaign.
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FORMER SEN. RICK SANTORUM, R-PA., PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We did very well. We picked up a lot of delegates tonight in a very tough state, one that nobody had any expectations for us to win in. You know, we did what we had to do. We got the delegates that we could get and we (inaudible).
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AZUZ: The likely Democratic nominee, President Obama, is talking about energy policies this week. Today he is expected to make an announcement about an oil pipeline that was the subject of some controversy late last year.
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AZUZ (voice-over): It`s called the Keystone XL pipeline, and it would stretch 1,700 miles, from Canada all the way down to the U.S. Gulf Coast. Environmentalists protested against the pipeline in the past. In January, the president denied a permit for it.
But today he`s expected to change course to announce plans to push for a permit for the southern half of the pipeline, the part of the pipeline that would start in Oklahoma. That`s where a lot of oil from the Midwestern U.S. gets backed up while it`s being transported to the Gulf of Mexico. This part of the pipeline would help out with that.
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AZUZ: Protests across the United States, a petition with more than 800,000 signatures. It`s connected to a Florida teenager who was shot and killed last month. You might have heard about Trayvon Martin on the news or seen something about this story on social media.
This is what we know:
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AZUZ (voice-over): Trayvon Martin, who was 17 years old, was walking home after going to a convenience store. George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch leader, was patrolling the neighborhood that Martin was walking through. Zimmerman called 9-1-1 and reported what he described as a suspicious person.
A few moments later, other neighbors reportedly heard a commotion, then there were cries for help and a gunshot.
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AZUZ: We know Trayvon Martin was killed. We know George Zimmerman fired the gun. He told police he shot Martin in self-defense. Police haven`t arrested Zimmerman because they say they don`t have any evidence that contradicts what he said.
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AZUZ (voice-over): Part of this is a Florida law called "Stand Your Ground." It says that if a person thinks he or someone else is in serious danger, he can meet force with force. What`s not clear is what exactly happened in the moments leading up to Trayvon Martin`s death.
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AZUZ: Now this is an ongoing story. There`s a legal proceeding scheduled for next month. We`re going to bring you more details on it as we get them.
We have reported recently on an NFL investigation into a bounty program being run by the New Orleans Saints. The league discovered that for three years defensive players were paid for knocking opponents out of games.
Yesterday the NFL announced punishments for the New Orleans Saints. Head Coach Sean Payton, who was aware of the bounty program, was suspended for the entire 2012 season. That`s just the start. The Saints were fined half a million dollars. They lost draft picks.
The team`s general manager was suspended for eight games, and former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who ran the bounty program, was suspended indefinitely from the league.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today`s Shoutout goes out to Mr. Sonnek`s social studies classes at St. Joseph Catholic School in Waconia, Minnesota.
This is the flag of what African nation? You know what to do. Is it Ethiopia, Kenya, Swaziland or Uganda? You`ve got three seconds, go.
This is the flag of Kenya. The shield and spears in the middle represent the defense of freedom. That`s your answer, and that`s your Shoutout.
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AZUZ: Kenya has tropical areas down on the coast, desert up in the far north, mountains in the middle. And running through the middle of those mountains, the Great Rift Valley -- this is a region that`s home to an entire generation of Olympic champions. David McKenzie explores why.
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DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN REPORTER: There`s something extraordinary about Kenya and the Olympic Games. Athletes from just the Rift Valley have won more medals in the last 50 years than any other country, in the middle and long distances.
And that`s almost impossible to get your head around. So let`s find out just how they do it.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): First on the list, altitude. We`re heading to 8,000 feet. And those sorts of heights help peak running performance. But mountains are everywhere. So what makes Iten the home of champions?
Well, first, the runners. Iten is home to about 1,000 athletes. Hundreds meet six days a week on this rural road. No coaches are necessary. They thrive on teamwork and competition. But with so many, is running in the blood here?
At this high school, it seems to be.
Brother Colm O`Connell has coached champions at St. Patrick`s for decades.
BROTHER COLM O`CONNELL, RUNNING COACH: From one school we had 10 representatives in this whole Olympics.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): He says genetic theories of dominance are rubbish.
O`CONNELL: Nobody has yet come up with any conclusive evidence to say that there is what you might call a natural advantage here. So I think a lot has got to do with early identification of talent, the lifestyle of the people when they`re young.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): So they put the photos in the dining hall to motivate future champions, which brings us to another point.
MCKENZIE: The Kenyan diet in this part of the Rift Valley is very rich in carbohydrates, and very low in fat, and really they feel that the secret weapon is this: it`s ugali. It`s just very simple maize and water, and it`s a staple here.
Runners love it, often eat it in the evening. And running legend has it that it`s so popular and so effective that one coach in Europe shipped this all the way to his runners to improve their times.
MCKENZIE (voice-over): So what then, ultimately, makes Kenyans the best? Perhaps it`s just the magic of these mountains -- David McKenzie, CNN, Iten.
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AZUZ: Makes you want to go there. All right. We wrapped up yesterday`s show at the bottom of a ski slope. Today, we are up at the top, with a fourth grader who`s getting ready to face some serious fear. Jeanne Moos has the story.
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JEANNE MOOS, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): This is how ski jumping looks when the big girls do it. But to a little girl, it looks like this.
ZIA: I`ll be fine.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have fun.
ZIA: Don`t do it.
MOOS (voice-over): Her name is Zia, and she`s a fourth grader in Park City, Utah.
ZIA: Here goes something, I guess.
MOOS (voice-over): But it`s not going yet.
ZIA: You can do this. I`m going to -- I`m going to jump.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You got it.
ZIA: Whoa, my ski`s slipping off.
MOOS (voice-over): Zia`s mom, Jennifer Terry, posted the helmetcam video on YouTube.
MOOS: Now she`s not up there alone. You can hear an instructor chiming in.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Remember, never snowplow, OK?
ZIA: No snowplows.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Keep it straight. You`ll do fine.
ZIA: OK.
MOOS: But she`s standing atop the 40-meter jump, having already mastered the 20.
ZIA: It`s longer. Just a bigger 20, that`s all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Have fun.
ZIA: It`s a bigger 20.
MOOS (voice-over): But even a self-described tomboy is entitled to a last minute whimper.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s fine. You`ll do fine.
ZIA: OK. Go.
MOOS (voice-over): This viral video reminded America`s most accomplished female ski jumper --
ZIA: Yes!
MOOS (voice-over): -- of herself.
MOOS: You mean you grew up on that very jump?
LINDSEY VAN, PROFESSIONAL SKI JUMPER: Yes, I grew up on that jump and I did that same thing and about 20 years ago.
Yes, it seemed huge to me then.
ZIA: Just the suspense at the top at the first time freaks me out. That`s the only thing. It`s so fun.
MOOS (voice-over): Though even on a beginner`s 40-meter jump, that last step --
ZIA: Here goes something.
MOOS (voice-over): -- is a doozy -- Jeanne Moos, CNN --
ZIA: Sixty seems like nothing now.
MOOS (voice-over) -- New York.
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AZUZ: It`s a great story, but looking down, I think could I do it? And the answer`s probably no way. Now, do you think she`s going to get scared of the 60-meter slope? Snow way. You`ve got 23 hours and 50 minutes to get ramped up for tomorrow`s edition of CNN Student News, when we will jump into more global headlines. So we`ll "ski" you later.
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