The Australian and international news stories you need to know today, Thursday July 22.

Brisbane voted as 2032 Olympic, Paralympic host.

Brisbane is celebrating after being awarded the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games by the International Olympic Committee in a landslide vote in Tokyo on Wednesday.

With three of the 80 members of the IOC abstaining, 72 voted for Brisbane and just five against in a sweeping show of support.

IOC president Thomas Bach said the bid ticked all of the boxes, underlined by Australia's "passionate love for sport".

BREAKING: Brisbane will host the 2032 Olympic Games #7NEWS #auspol 🥇 pic.twitter.com/N89MxQqhJP

— Jennifer Bechwati (@jenbechwati) July 21, 2021

"I think it's first of all a passionate love for sport, which the Aussies really demonstrate," Bach said. 

"You could feel this during the whole presentation and I could feel it already during my visit a couple of years ago in Queensland."

The city's bid had earlier earned praise from the IOC for its high percentage of existing venues encompassing south-east Queensland, support from all levels of government and experience in organising major events.

Despite the IOC claiming it wasn't a "done deal", the Tokyo organising committee released an embargoed statement before the vote congratulating Brisbane.

Brisbane was preferred ahead of Budapest, Korea, Doha and Germany's Ruhr Valley, who had all expressed an interest in hosting the Games. Bach said the IOC had previously discussed Brisbane's bid but there was no agreement.

BREAKING: Brisbane, Queensland has officially been named the host city for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. #Brisbane2032 pic.twitter.com/63yINm9WZf

— Annastacia Palaszczuk (@AnnastaciaMP) July 21, 2021

"You cannot blame the IOC members for a press release from the organising committee, I don't know what they had in mind ... but it had nothing to do with our procedures," Bach said.

The Brisbane 2032 delegation, including AOC President John Coates and Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, made a formal final presentation to the IOC meeting.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said securing the Games was a triumph for the nation.

"It's a historic day not just for Brisbane and Queensland, but for the entire country," he said.

"It also marks an important leap forward for Australia as we look toward major events that lock in economic growth and social benefits that will echo for years to come."

PM wants review of AstraZeneca age advice.

Australia's expert immunisation panel has been urged to consider expanding the age recommendation for the AstraZeneca vaccine to people under 60.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has revealed he is making constant appeals to the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation.

Pfizer is the preferred coronavirus vaccine for people under 60.

Scott Morrison says he has pressed Atagi to change its advice on AstraZeneca https://t.co/b5NaXyqV9E

— Guardian news (@guardiannews) July 21, 2021

"When they made the decision to restrict or have a preference for those under the age ultimately of 60 to have the Pfizer vaccine, they said they made that decision on the balance of risk," Mr Morrison said.

"Well, it's for them to now constantly reconsider how that balance of risk applies and provide their advice accordingly."

Australia has ample supplies of AstraZeneca, which is produced in Melbourne, but there is not yet enough Pfizer imports arriving to vaccinate people under 40.

Labor's health spokesman Mark Butler agreed with the Australian Medical Association that the prime minister had put unfair pressure on ATAGI.

"This is the prime minister using the power of his office, as the head of the country, trying to shelve responsibility for the terrible failures of this vaccine rollout onto them," he told the ABC.

Just 14.5 per cent of people over 16 have been fully vaccinated almost five months after the vaccine rollout began.

How is it that "the challenges" regarding the vaccination of Australians against COVID have put us in last position here? How did other countries overcome "the challenges" to achieve higher vaccination rates? https://t.co/BRvKXEKsvz pic.twitter.com/bIdoC1AUqv

— Georgie Dent (@georgiedent) July 21, 2021

The prime minister refused to apologise for the program's problems but acknowledged delays were regrettable.

NSW to wait until early next week to learn lockdown fate.

Sydney still has days to wait to see if stricter rules will help quash its COVID-19 outbreak and release the city from lockdown.

"We need to wait until at least the weekend and early next week to see the impact of those harsher restrictions," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said on Wednesday.

The state recorded 110 new local COVID-19 cases in the 24 hours to 8pm on Tuesday, up from 78 the previous day.

⚠️PUBLIC HEALTH ALERT – VENUES OF CONCERN⚠️

NSW Health has been notified of a number of new venues of concern associated with confirmed cases of #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/jJi4G0zTTc

— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 21, 2021

That figure would have been "thousands and thousands" had Greater Sydney not entered lockdown, now in its fourth week, Ms Berejiklian said. 

The premier has said the virus must be quashed before restrictions can be lifted. 

But the premier refused to be drawn on whether her government could go harder if case numbers don't start to turn around.

"In truth, we won't live as freely as we need to or we would like until vaccination rates increase," she said on Wednesday.

"That is one thing the NSW government can't control."

At least 60 of the new cases were circulating in the community for part or all of their infectious periods.

More than half - 56 - of the new cases were still under investigation and had not been linked to existing clusters when they were announced. 

Vic lockdown avoids COVID 'world of hurt'.

Victoria would be facing a "world of hurt" in coming weeks if authorities had not immediately locked down the state, Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says.

Twenty-two new local cases were reported in Victoria on Wednesday, the state's highest daily total of the current outbreak. 

It took the total number of active cases in the outbreak to 107, all of which have been linked.

Check exposure sites often as new sites may be added and current sites may change based on further investigations.

🔶 For all testing locations, extended opening hours and wait times, visit: https://t.co/MISIpo0gkE

— VicGovDH (@VicGovDH) July 21, 2021

But Professor Sutton says he suspects the state would already be dealing with 200 to 300 cases if it had not entered lockdown a week ago, citing the highly infectious nature of the Delta variant.

"It is a variant that takes off from dozens to thousands of cases within just a matter of weeks," he told reporters on Wednesday.

"If we'd locked down today, instead of when we did, we would get thousands of cases in the next couple of weeks. We'd be in a world of hurt ... over coming weeks if we hadn't done what we've done." 

Health Minister Martin Foley said 16 of the 22 new cases were isolating while infectious, and the remaining six posed a low risk to the community as they visited few exposure sites. 

There are currently five people in hospital with COVID-19, including a man from Barwon Heads in intensive care. 

SA COVID-19 cluster expected to grow.

South Australia's COVID-19 cluster is expected to grow after jumping from six to 12 cases as more exposure sites are also identified.

Five of the latest cases are linked to the Tenafeate Creek winery at Yattalunga, north of Adelaide, with the sixth, a child under five, linked to The Greek restaurant in the city where a number of infected people dined over the weekend.

One of the cases from the winery, a man in his 40s, also attended a school at Gawler on Monday raising concerns for other staff and students.

South Australia’s #COVID19 cluster has doubled to twelve, with fears there could be more on the way. @ollie_haig #9News pic.twitter.com/FK2rpBlqJC

— 9News Adelaide (@9NewsAdel) July 21, 2021

Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier says with multiple cases linked to both the winery and the restaurant, both are considered superspreader sites.

Wednesday's rise in cases came a day into SA's week-long statewide lockdown.

The number of potential exposure sites has climbed well above 50, mostly in Adelaide's north and northeastern suburbs.

Premier Steven Marshall says authorities will do everything they can to increase testing resources amid reports of long lines forcing some to wait for more than 10 hours.

SA's virus cluster is linked to an 81-year-old man who recently arrived in Australia from Argentina and quarantined in Sydney before travelling to Adelaide, where he tested positive.

Genomic testing has confirmed the man became infected while in Sydney, not while in Argentina.

Olympics off to a celebratory start for the Matildas, but over before it started for another Aussie athlete. 

Australian showjumper Jamie Kermond says he's remorseful for taking cocaine and being suspended from the Tokyo Olympics.

Kermond has been booted from Australia's Olympic team after testing positive for a metabolite of cocaine on June 26.

The three-time Australian equestrian champion hopes one day to be forgiven.

"It is likely that the positive result was from a single recreational use of the drug at a social event and had no connection with my sport of equestrian," Kermond said in a statement.

#BREAKING: Controversy is following Jamie Kermond who has been sensationally dumped form the Olympics after testing positive for cocaine.

👉 https://t.co/7my5ayMIu3 pic.twitter.com/7mAaLrHDCj

— Herald Sun Sport (@heraldsunsport) July 21, 2021

"I am extremely upset and remorseful as to what has happened and I accept full responsibility."

The 36-year-old from Victoria was to have made his Olympic debut in Tokyo, among three showjumpers on a nine-strong Australian equestrian team.

Meantime, the Matildas have won their first round match against New Zealand opening up Australia's campaign for Gold in Tokyo.

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A post shared by Mamamia (@mamamiaaus)

With the Opening Ceremony officially getting underway on Friday, the host city's COVID-19 infections have hit a six-month high, with Tokyo recording 1832 new cases on Wednesday. 

Victorian slave keepers jailed for 'owning' woman.

A Melbourne woman who has shown no regret or sorrow for holding another woman captive as a slave over eight years will spend the same time behind bars.

Kumuthini Kannan was found to be more culpable than her husband Kandasamy Kannan, who was described as susceptible to a degree of domination by his wife.

They were convicted of enslaving a vulnerable Tamil woman in their Mount Waverley home between 2007 and 2015.

BREAKING: Mt Waverley husband & wife who kept an Indian grandmother as a slave for almost a decade have been sent to prison. Kumithini Kannan (R) jailed for 8yrs, and Kandasamy Kannan jailed for 6yrs. The victim is now being cared for in a Melbourne nursing home. @9NewsMelb pic.twitter.com/x0sbPFviJa

— Eliza Rugg (@Eliza_Rugg9) July 21, 2021

Kumuthini Kannan must serve at least four years behind bars, while Kandasamy Kannan must serve at least three years of a six-year sentence.

Justice John Champion said both had persistently failed to come to grips with the reality of their situation.

"You both grossly exploited a vulnerable person for which you should be ashamed," the judge said in sentencing them on Wednesday in the Supreme Court.

"I am quite convinced that you both believe you did nothing wrong."

Despite desperate pleas to be allowed to return home, the woman was forced to work up to 23 hours a day caring for the couple's children, cooking, cleaning and doing chores.

In exchange she was paid what amounted to $3.36 per day.

Australia's oldest man dies at 111 in Qld.

Australia's oldest man Dexter Kruger has passed away peacefully at the age of 111.

Mr Kruger, who achieved the milestone in May, died in his western Queensland home after a brief illness.

A former outback grazier and veterinary surgeon, Kruger previously attributed his long life to a select diet and the simple lifestyle he lived on his property.

Speaking from his Roma nursing home in May, he told the ABC a special poultry delicacy was one of his secrets.

Australia's oldest man Dexter Kruger passes away peacefully, aged 111 https://t.co/13KgwPQnce

— ABC News (@abcnews) July 21, 2021

"Chicken brains. You know, chickens have a head. And in there, there's a brain. And they are delicious little things. There's only one little bite," he said.

Born on January 13, 1910, Kruger spent his life as a farmer on a 5300-hectare cattle property which he eventually retired from in his 90's.

He lived through both world wars, numerous droughts and 30 prime ministers in his lifetime. 

The centenarian, who was raised by German immigrants, wrote 12 books, with the last before his passing an autobiography.

At 111 years and 188 days old, Mr Kruger in May became the oldest ever living man.

Weinstein pleads not guilty to charges.

Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has pleaded not guilty in Los Angeles to charges of rape and sexual assault, prosecutors say.

Weinstein, 69, arrived at Los Angeles Superior Court for his first appearance there in a wheelchair after being extradited from New York on Tuesday where he was serving 23 years in prison for rape and other sex crimes.

Harvey Weinstein pleaded not guilty to four counts of rape and seven other sexual assault counts in a Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday. Weinstein has already been convicted in New York, where he was serving a 23-year prison term.https://t.co/UhqZcMQ6Vh

— The Associated Press (@AP) July 21, 2021

In Los Angeles he faces 11 charges of attacking five women between 2004 to 2013. If convicted, Weinstein could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Around the world.

- Staff in England's National Health Service who have been on the frontline battling the COVID pandemic, will receive a three per cent pay rise, to be backdated to April 2021.

- Video streaming giant Netflix has announced it will offer video games in its existing subscription plans at no extra cost.

- With AAP

Feature image: Toru Hanai/Lisa Maree Williams/Dan Mullan/Getty.

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