The Australian and international news stories you need to know today, Monday July 26.

Sydney records 145 cases, with 51 in the community. 

Sydney has recorded 145 new cases of COVID-19 to the 24 hours to 8pm on Sunday night, with 51 of these infectious while in the community. 

There were 98,000 tests in the past 24 hours, which NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said was a great sign for a weekend day.

NSW recorded 145 new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 in the 24 hours to 8pm last night. pic.twitter.com/TUUIDvd6SP

— NSW Health (@NSWHealth) July 26, 2021

Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said the cases numbers were being driven by ongoing contact between households, as she urged everyone in Greater Sydney to not mingle between households.

As for what life will look like past July 31 - when the lockdown is currently due to end - the Premier flagged: "We hope to provide announcement or updates to the community in the next few days.

"Our mission is to keep the community as safe as possible but also make sure the community can live as freely as we can."

The CHO has asked all adults in Greater Sydney to take up the opportunity to get the AstraZeneca vaccine. 

Friends remember Australia's youngest female COVID-19 victim, Adriana Takara.

A woman in her 30s who died of COVID-19 in Sydney over the weekend has been identified as a 38-year-old Brazilian national with no pre-existing medical conditions.

Adriana Takara, 38, died at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney's inner west. She deteriorated quickly after contracting the virus just 10 days ago. 

An accounting student at Sydney's Kaplan Business School, Adriana is the eighth person to die from the current virus outbreak in NSW. She is also the youngest. 

She said her goodbyes to family and friends in Australia and Brazil via Zoom, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.

"She was healthy, happy, working, she had a boyfriend. It's shocking," a friend told the Daily Telegraph.

Devastated friends have paid tribute to a “happy, healthy” Sydney student in her 30s who died from Covid. https://t.co/SKcOMT43im

— The Daily Telegraph (@dailytelegraph) July 25, 2021

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the younger woman's death was a warning.

"If anybody think this is a disease just affecting older people, please think again."

Adriana was one of two Sydney fatalities over the weekend - the other was a woman in her 70s. A teenager and seven people aged in their 20s are among the 43 critically ill patients being treated in ICU. 

NSW recorded 141 new cases on Sunday, from more than 100,000 tests.

Police tracking down 3000 lockdown protesters.

Thousands of people who attended anti-lockdown protests in Sydney and Melbourne at the weekend are in the sights of police.

Some 57 people have been charged and 90 fines issued after more than 3000 protesters marched through Sydney's CBD on Saturday, demanding an end to the city's lockdown. 

Can you help Strike Force Seasoned investigators identify this man as part of their ongoing inquiries into the Sydney CBD protest yesterday?https://t.co/br9r4mCD0s pic.twitter.com/SoZG0j4BvX

— NSW Police Force (@nswpolice) July 25, 2021

A 33-year-old Surry Hills man and a 36-year-old man from Edensor Park faced court on Sunday after they allegedly struck a police horse during the protest.

The Edensor Park man was also charged with assaulting a police officer.

NSW Police said they have received 5000 tip-offs and identified more than 200 people who attended after a special task force was set up in the aftermath of the protest.

A video of the encounter is being circulated in anti-lockdown groups, who are asserting the man did not 'punch' the horse. But there's more to the story. https://t.co/XJ7i6dpgLG

— Mamamia (@Mamamia) July 25, 2021

Members of the public are being asked to upload any videos or photos of the protest to CrimeStoppers to track down more participants.

In Victoria, 73 people have been fined and six people arrested for attending the protest.

Premier Daniel Andrews described protesters as "selfish" but was reasonably confident it would not become a super-spreader event, given the state's 11 new cases on Sunday had all been linked and were in isolation.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said she was disgusted and heartbroken by those who had shown "utter contempt for their fellow citizens".

"We know that events like that can cause those super-spreading events," she said on Sunday, as the state recorded 141 new COVID-19 cases and saw two deaths.

"Please know that all of the sacrifices we've made over the last three or four weeks in particular have resulted in us being able to stabilise the growth in cases.

"We don't want a setback, and yesterday could have been a setback."

PM promises more Pfizer for crisis-hit NSW.

Scott Morrison has promised an additional 90,000 Pfizer vaccine doses for crisis-hit NSW in the coming week and up to 110,000 more doses in the following weeks.

The prime minister says this comes on top of the extra 50,000 he offered the NSW premier last Friday and the 150,000 brought forward on July 7.

"That is a significant increase that we've seen since the early part of this month, to where we are now," he told reporters on Sunday.

The pledge of additional vaccines came after pleas last week from NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to her state counterparts for additional supplies fell on deaf ears.

Treasurer @JoshFrydenberg has confirmed Australia has secured 85 million Pfizer vaccines as booster shots that will start next year. #auspol #7NEWS https://t.co/Se4ZvkHQnS

— 7NEWS Australia (@7NewsAustralia) July 25, 2021

Mr Morrison reiterated the national vaccine program must work right across the country.

"We cannot disrupt its implementation around the country that would put other parts of the country at risk," he said.

Vic case numbers on track to ease lockdown.

Victoria's premier says the state is "well-placed" to end its fifth lockdown as planned this week, though some restrictions are likely to remain for some time.

The statewide lockdown was called on July 15 due to an outbreak of the highly contagious Delta variant, which originated from cases in NSW. 

Victoria's lockdown was meant to end after five days, but was extended for a week until 11.59pm on Tuesday. 

An announcement on the fate of Victoria’s lockdown – which is scheduled to end at 11:59pm on Tuesday – is expected sometime today or as late as tomorrow.https://t.co/MefYSQPloQ

— Sky News Australia (@SkyNewsAust) July 25, 2021

Premier Daniel Andrews on Sunday said he was confident the lockdown wouldn't be extended again, citing the downward trend in the number of people in the community while infectious.

Victoria recorded 11 new locally acquired COVID-19 cases on Sunday, all of which were linked to known outbreaks and were in quarantine for their entire infectious period.

It brings the total number of active cases to 179 in the state, 17 of which are in hospital including two people in intensive care.

SA record three cases in quarantine, with lockdown expected to end Tuesday.

South Australia has reported three new COVID-19 cases but the premier says because they were all in "strict quarantine" the state is still on track to end its lockdown on Tuesday.

Premier Steven Marshall said testing numbers on Saturday were "a new record", with 23,719 swabs received.

"It is very clear to me that South Australians are taking this lockdown order very very seriously," he said on Sunday.

"We want to come out on Tuesday and the actions of all South Australians are speaking volumes. Thank you very much."

SA COVID lockdown set to end on Tuesday but AMA warns of need for ongoing restrictions https://t.co/qJqfY2dBCP

— ABC Adelaide (@abcadelaide) July 25, 2021

Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier said one of the cases was a returned traveller, a young child of a parent who had already tested positive.

There were two cases associated with the Modbury Hospital cluster, bringing the number of infections linked to that cluster to 18.

COVID case travelled across NSW-Qld border.

Queensland has recorded no new local COVID-19 cases but a COVID-positive man who travelled across the NSW border is causing concern, authorities say.

The NSW man was deemed a COVID-19 close contact in Sydney and was instructed to get tested and self-isolate for 14 days, regardless of the result.

He received a negative test result but allegedly failed to adhere to the health orders and left self-isolation, catching the VA1139 Virgin flight from Sydney to northern NSW's Ballina on July 14.

Queensland faces fresh COVID-19 alert after man fled Sydney lockdown https://t.co/RU943r27JT

— ABC News (@abcnews) July 25, 2021

He then travelled across the Queensland border by car with the QantasLink flight attendant recorded COVID-positive on Friday.

It was later confirmed he was in fact COVID-positive and had received a false negative test result.

But both cases were active in and around Brisbane and the Gold Coast, with numerous exposure sites listed by Queensland Health.

COVID has travel sector at 'tipping point'.

Australia's travel industry is at a tipping point and could see major job losses unless more government support is provided.

About 15,000 travel sector jobs have been lost since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, as some travel agents have seen their revenue plummet by up to 95 per cent.

In the past 18 months, travel agents have handed out $8 billion in credits and refunds to customers from hotels, airlines, cruise liners and tour operators with $2 billion still outstanding. 

Australia's travel industry is at a tipping point and could see major job losses unless more government support is provided.https://t.co/7TE9wO2pPH

— Canberra Times (@canberratimes) July 25, 2021

Australian Federation of Travel Agents chair Tom Manwaring says the industry is at a tipping point and "massive job losses" are looming unless there is more government support.

"Right now every agent is 18 months into near zero income and the lack of cash flow clashes with the ongoing business and payroll costs," he said.

The industry is also joining calls for the reinstatement of JobKeeper.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said COVID disaster payments were more flexible than JobKeeper.

"These payments at $600 and $375 are at the level JobKeeper was in the December quarter last year," he told Sky News' Sunday Agenda program.

"It's available to casuals and it's money that is going out the door as quickly as 40 minutes."

Australia's women lead Olympic charge.

Swim queens have struck gold again as a high-profile batch of Australian women make heartening starts in their Olympic medal quests.

Australia's team in Tokyo features a highest-ever percentage of women - 53.5 per cent - and they largely delivered on Sunday, despite the crash of Ash Barty.

The women's 4x100m freestyle relay team - sisters Cate and Bronte Campbell, Emma McKeon and Meg Harris - set a world record to win Australia's first gold of the Tokyo Games.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mamamia (@mamamiaaus)

Cate Campbell joins swim legend Dawn Fraser and eight-time equestrian Olympian Andrew Hoy as Australians to win gold in the same event at three consecutive Olympics.

And Campbell is only the third to win gold after being Australia's opening ceremony flagbearer, joining rower Bobby Pearce (1928) and Hoy (1996).

Jack McLoughlin (silver, 400m freestyle) and Brendon Smith (bronze, 400m individual medley) also won medals on Sunday.

But Australia's world No.1 tennis star Barty logged 55 unforced errors in her first-round singles loss to Spain's world No.48 Sara Sorribes Tormo, 6-4 6-3, just 15 days after winning the Wimbledon title.

Around the world.

- The German women's gymnastics team have opted to wear full-body suits in qualifications at the Tokyo Olympics in a move they said was designed to promote freedom of choice and encourage women to wear what makes them feel comfortable. 

In Training, the German team debuted another stunning design sure to inspire! Team members have spoken about fostering confidence through apparel choice! #tokyo2020 #gymnastics pic.twitter.com/XtZifJQ3dx

— Inside Gymnastics (@InsideGym) July 22, 2021

- The United States is in an "unnecessary predicament" of soaring COVID-19 cases fuelled by unvaccinated Americans and the virulent delta variant, says Dr Anthony Fauci, the country's top infectious diseases expert.

- The number of people testing positive to COVID-19 has continued to fall in the UK as thousands packed nightclubs and bars to celebrate the first weekend of eased restrictions.

- With AAP

Feature image: Facebook/Don Arnold/Tim Clayton/Corbis/Getty.

Are you a mum to be or have little ones aged 5 or under? Take our survey for your chance to win one of four $50 gift vouchers.