Norway

FOXBORO, Mass. - The goal that could have made it more comfortable in the second half never came. But the United States was making no mistakes last night. Norway was getting nothing. Abby Wambach scored the winner in the 24th minute as the United States advanced to the semifinals of the Women's World Cup with a 1-0 victory before 25,103 at Gillette Stadium. The Americans will play the winner of today's Germany-Russia match Sunday at 7:30 p.m. in the first game of a semifinal doubleheader in Portland, Ore. The U.S. team almost added to its lead twice within a minute, but goalkeeper Bente Nordby stopped a penalty kick by Mia Hamm and then dived to stop Cindy Parlow's header off Christie Pearce's cross in the 68th minute.

SYDNEY, Australia - They had won so much through so many years, and now they were settling for second best, standing on a podium, waiting for silver medals to be placed around their necks as a mist gathered and an era ended. And then one player, the most famous of them all, Mia Hamm, walked down the line, repeating the same words to teammates still dazed by a shocking defeat. "Keep your head up," Hamm said. After showing the world how to win at women's soccer, the U.S. team showed last night how to lose.

OSLO, Norway - Imagine a world so shielded from modern dangers that children accept candy from strangers. Think about a place where lifelong financial security is guaranteed, no matter how many layoffs, stock market crashes or catastrophic illnesses come your way. Consider the psychological well-being of belonging to a country where no one is homeless or hungry, where women and men are equal, where a pristine environment is reverentially protected and...

MIAMI - An explosion in the boiler room of a cruise ship killed at least four people and injured at least 19 others yesterday, just 10 days after the ship passed a federal inspection. Initially reported as a fire, the explosion aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines' SS Norway was the result of a huge buildup of scalding steam that, when released, thundered through the ship that had docked less than two hours before. Some passengers reported being awakened when their beds shook. Pat Ehrengruber, 58, was out on the deck at 6:30 a.m. watching the lights of Miami when the blast occurred.

OSLO, NORWAY -- All in all, these are good times in this Scandinavian capital. The Scream, Norway's best-known painting -- stolen in 2004 -- is back home in the Munch Museum. Today, the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony will take place at City Hall. And thanks to oil, which was discovered in the North Sea in the 1970s, Norway projects a state budget surplus of $59 billion for next year. On a recent visit to Oslo, I found a vibrant city of interesting contradictions and surprises. For instance, it's a mistake to think of it as a homogenous city of blond, blue-eyed Nordics.

Heard any good Norwegian jokes lately?Probably not. Despite all the attention focused on the winter games in Lillehammer, Norway, most of the humor emerging from the Olympics so far has had to do with either Tonya Harding or the word "luge." Even the local salmon has attracted more comedic attention than the natives.Granted, ethnic jokes aren't exactly in vogue these days, but it may also be that the Norwegians themselves are part of the problem. After all, any country whose cultural icons are the plays of Henrik Ibsen and Edvard Munch's "The Scream" isn't exactly going to come across as a laugh-riot.

LILLEHAMMER, Norway -- Tonya Harding, the legal pit bull of the U.S. Olympic Team, said thanks to God for answering her prayers and giving her the chance to compete in the Games of Lillehammer.Alberto Tomba, the famously nocturnal Italian skier, said that he had brought his own condoms from home.Tonya Harding said that she believed most of the people in the United States were cheering for her.Alberto Tomba said that he hoped the parties in the Olympic village would start getting better soon.

In Monday's Today section, a feature story about Norway contained inaccurate information. Norway gained its independence from Denmark, and the name of a Norwegian dish, Lapskaus stew, was spelled incorrectly.+ The Sun regrets the errors.

Regarding the horror in Norway, I have no intention of "looking inward," as letter writer Steve Devon suggests ("Norway tragedy should make us look inward," July 26 ). The devastating murder and destruction in that country had nothing to do with a failure to recognize the "value in multiculturalism. " I personally don't see much value in "multiculturalism" myself, but it would never occur to me to bomb buildings or open fire on helpless victims. As for living in a country "founded on the principle of equality" and Constitutional redress, Mr. Devon has a poor grasp of American history.

MenFourBjorn Dahlie, Norway, cross country skiing, 3 gold, 1 silver.NB Vegard Ulvang, Norway, cross country skiing, 3 gold, 1 silver.WomenFiveLyubov Egorova, Unified Team, cross country skiing, 3 gold, 2 silver.Elena Valbe, Unified Team, cross country skiing, 1 gold, 4 bronze.