With his camera-ready good looks, quirky catchphrases and funky fashion choices, swimmer Ryan Lochte parlayed the five medals he won at the 2012 Olympic Games into a burgeoning media career.

But the 28-year-old athlete says he's back in the pool training for future competitions and only embraced Hollywood to raise his sport's profile.

Kenya's national track federation is investigating claims of doping among its famed distance athletes and said Thursday it had asked the World Anti-Doping Agency and police for help.

Athletics Kenya chairman Isaiah Kiplagat told The Associated Press that his organization was looking into allegations by a German reporter and Kenyan athlete that performance-enhancing substances were being made available to runners by people posing as doctors.

FIFA has selected kick-off times for 2014 World Cup group games, with several matches scheduled in early afternoon in tropical climates.

FIFA announced the north-east coastal cities of Natal, Recife and Salvador each have two of their four group-stage matches starting at 1 p.m. local time (1600 GMT).

Microsoft founder Bill Gates on Thursday called the new Windows 8 operating system scheduled for release next month "a very exciting new product" and "a very big deal" for the world's largest software maker.

Gates said in an interview with The Associated Press that he is already using Windows 8 "and I'm very pleased with it."

It's a medical nightmare: a 24-year-old man endures 350 surgeries since childhood to remove growthsthat keep coming back in his throat and have spread to his lungs, threatening his life. Now doctors have found a way to help him by way of a scientific coup that holds promise for millions of cancer patients.

The bizarre case is the first use in a patient of a new discovery: how to keep ordinary and cancerous cells alive indefinitely in the lab.

Time to get your flu vaccine — and a surprising new report shows babies and toddlers seem to be getting protected better than the rest of us.

Last year's flu shot won't shield you this year: Two new strains of influenza have begun circling the globe, and the updated vaccine appears to work well against them, government officials said Thursday.

Paris fashion has no boundaries and no borders. Thursday's cultural melting pot of spring-summer 2013 shows was proof enough.

Curious designers, thirsty for new inspiration, ventured across the globe to bring new ideas and exotic cultures back to the catwalk.

This week, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon joined the ranks of those pranked by a Quebec radio station, his office confirmed Thursday.

Montreal comedy duo Marc-Antoine Audette and Sebastien Trudel called Ban on Wednesday afternoon and pretended to be Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

A stage performance by bikini-clad women wearing headpieces styled after traditional Peking Opera has sparked debate in China after photos were made public this week, highlighting divided views on how to preserve the country's traditions.

Organizers of the Miss Bikini International Committee — which was responsible for the show staged in April to promote an upcoming bikini competition — defend the use of Chinese opera elements as a bold artistic attempt.

Talk about product placement: Target is releasing an episodic series of short films starring Kristen Bell and Nia Long and everything on screen is for sale.

The company unveiled the three episodes of "Falling for You" Thursday at a private event at the SLS Hotel in Los Angeles.