Daily Briefing: Swimming their way to Paris

With only two spots available for each event, the cutoffs at the U.S. Olympic swimming trials are as cutthroat as ever. Russia and North Korea's leaders meet on Tuesday amid the continued war in Ukraine. Boston conquered a championship-clinching 106-88 victory against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. Happy Birthday, Paul McCartney.

Time for the USA to form its Olympic team

The 2024 Paris Olympics are nearly upon us, but the United States has yet to determine which athletes will represent them at this year's games. While some sports have already determined their participants, none of the big three – gymnastics, track and field, swimming – have finished their trials yet.

Famous faces like Katie Ledecky have already secured a spot on the U.S. swimming team at the trials in Indianapolis, but there are many more races to go. And the races are intense: only the top two swimmers in each event are expected to qualify for Paris.

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60 million people under heat advisories

A heat wave is expected to expand from the central Plains into the eastern U.S. and remain across the Northeast through at least midweek as a winter storm drops snow on Montana and Idaho, according to the National Weather Service. Read about the weather in your area.

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What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

It's feeling a bit like the Cold War

Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to North Korea on Tuesday for a summit with its reclusive leader Kim Jong Un − his first visit to the country in nearly a quarter of a century. It was also Putin's first trip to North Korea since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and comes as the two nuclear-armed states have appeared to deepen ties amid their isolation from the West. There's a Cold War-era subtext to the trip for both leaders.

Dozens killed in shootings nationwide over Father's Day weekend

Dozens of people were killed and hundreds more injured in shootings across the nation over the weekend, and experts warn gun violence could increase as summer officially gets underway this week. Since Friday, at least 73 people were killed and 308 were injured in shootings including several incidents at outdoor spaces and gatherings like a Juneteenth celebration in Texas, a splash pad in Michigan, a park in Illinois, and a party in Massachusetts, according to the most recent data from the Gun Violence Archive. Read more

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New immigration rule affects married couples

Thousands of immigrants who are married to U.S. citizens but are in the country illegally would be protected from deportation and would be allowed to work while they seek permanent legal status under a sweeping new government program to be announced Tuesday. The program, which President Joe Biden will unveil during an immigration event at the White House, would allow undocumented spouses and their children to apply for permanent resident status without leaving the country - but only if they meet certain criteria.

Photo of the day: Confetti for the Celtics

The Celtics celebrated with lots of green confetti after Boston claimed a record 18th NBA title Monday night. The team rode hot stretches and took advantage of key swings in momentum to win their first championship since 2008. Here are five moments that cinched Game 5.

Game 5: Confetti is released after the Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks to win the NBA Finals, four games to one.
Game 5: Confetti is released after the Boston Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks to win the NBA Finals, four games to one.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Paris Olympics, heat, weather, Putin, Russia, North Korea, immigration, border, Celtics: Daily Briefing