TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have made Andy O’Brien the team’s vice-president of sport performance.

O’Brien will oversee the NHL club’s strength and conditioning, sport science and nutrition, injury rehabilitation and mental performance.

The 48-year-old from Charlottetown has been a personal trainer of Sidney Crosby, and was a director of sports science and performance for the Pittsburgh Penguins from 2015 to 2021.

O’Brien’s been a high-performance consultant with the Florida Panthers since 2021.

His experience working with NHL teams began with the Panthers in 2005 when he was strength and conditioning coach for four years.

Over his time with the Panthers and Penguins, O’Brien worked with four Stanley Cup winning teams (2016, 2017, 2024, 2025).

“Andy’s record as an innovator and winner, coupled with his values, philosophy and vision, are wholly aligned with what we are building here in Toronto,” Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka said Monday in a statement.

“Providing every resource possible to help our players perform at their best is the highest priority at every level of the organization. Our ownership group has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to investing in player care, the player experience, and the resources required to help our players succeed every day. We will continue to invest in every opportunity to maximize the development and performance of every player.

The Maple Leafs went 32-36-14 last season and finished outside the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.

Chayka has overhauled several departments since he was hired in May to replace fired GM Brad Treliving.

Maple Leafs star forward Auston Matthews missed the last 15 games of the regular season with a ligament tear in his knee and goaltender Anthony Stolarz was sidelined 36 games with injury during the season.

Joining O’Brien’s staff Monday were director of health and performance integration Dr. Craig Slaunwhite, strength and conditioning coach Jason Martin, assistant strength and conditioning coach Josh Crouse and human performance consultant Dr. Jordan Shallow.

“From my first discussions with John and the leadership group, it was clear that this organization is dedicated to industry-leading player care and supporting the individual athlete in every way possible,” O’Brien said in the statement.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with such an exceptional staff as we serve our players en route to our ultimate goal.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 3, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Two people have died from cyclosporiasis in Michigan, the state’s health department said on Monday, marking the first fatalities in the largest U.S. outbreak of the intestinal illness.

Both individuals had significant underlying health conditions that may have been impacted by cyclosporiasis and dehydration, according to medical records.

There are no updates on the investigation, the state health department told Reuters in an email.

An FDA investigation linked the outbreak that has expanded to nine states to iceberg lettuce sourced from privately held Taylor Farms operations in central Mexico, but authorities are still looking for other potential sources.

Cyclosporiasis is generally not a life-threatening illness.

Michigan health officials reported 11,234 outbreak-linked cases on Monday, up 461 from Friday’s update. The outbreak has resulted in 193 hospitalizations, according to the health department’s latest data.

Wayne County has reported the highest number of cases, with 1,379 infections. Adults aged 30 to 39 years have been the hardest hit, accounting for 2,216 reported cases, state data showed.

Cases of the intestinal illness caused by the Cyclospora parasite have been rising steadily across the United States in recent weeks, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Symptoms include severe diarrhea, nausea and other gastrointestinal issues.

Nationwide, the CDC has recorded 6,707 laboratory-confirmed cases of cyclosporiasis as of July 28, with more than 11,500 additional suspected cases still awaiting confirmation or further investigation.

The CDC surveillance updates include only laboratory-confirmed cases, while state health departments may also report probable infections, resulting in higher case counts. The agency has said it is working with states to update the national tally as additional cases are confirmed.

Former CDC officials and food safety experts have said cuts across federal health agencies have complicated the government’s ability to respond to foodborne disease outbreaks.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it is aware of the deaths in Michigan.

“This development highlights the importance of identifying the source of the outbreak and preventing additional illnesses,” said Wade Syers, food safety specialist at Michigan State University Extension.

Consumers in the U.S. have been steering clear of some restaurant chains and buying less lettuce in grocery stores as the ​multi-state outbreak of the parasitic disease has fueled confusion over what is safe to eat.

© 2026 Reuters

Four people are dead and several others were injured after a crash involving a vehicle that police say was driving the wrong way along Stoney Trail Sunday night.

It happened around 11 p.m. in the northbound lanes of the highway, just south of Glenmore Trail.

According to police, a vehicle was travelling southbound in the northbound lanes when it collided with multiple vehicles.

Emergency Health Services Alberta tells Global News that three vehicles were involved in the collision.

In a release, Calgary Fire says upon arrival its crews found two of those vehicles engulfed in flames and at that point, “crews immediately initiated an aggressive fire attack while simultaneously conducting rapid searches of the involved vehicles and providing emergency care to those who could be reached.”

It’s unknown how many people were in the vehicles that caught fire, but paramedics have confirmed that a total of four occupants were declared dead at the scene.

Paramedics say the third vehicle had four people inside who were all taken to hospital. Two adults were transported to Foothills Hospital while two children were taken to Alberta Children’s Hospital. The extent of their injuries is unknown.

The Calgary Police Traffic Unit is investigating.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Russian planes dropped eight powerful glide bombs in a span of 90 minutes on residential districts of the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing one person and wounding dozens of others, regional chief Ivan Fedorov said Monday.

Meanwhile, six people were killed by Ukrainian drone debris in Arkhipo-Osipovka, a small town on Russia’s Black Sea coast in the Krasnodar region, regional governor Veniamin Kondratyev said, adding that 40 others were wounded.

Three other people were killed and two were wounded in Ukraine’s overnight attack on the illegally annexed Crimea, said the peninsula’s Russian-installed head, Sergei Aksyonov. He gave no details.

Neither side’s claims could be independently verified.

Ukraine’s innovative long-range drone technology developed during the war has enabled Kyiv to sign military cooperation agreements with nine countries, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday.

Under the deals, Ukraine receives long-term funding for its defense industry while partner countries get new defense capabilities, he said, adding that agreements with 15 other countries are being negotiated.

Ukraine is using its long-range strike drones to hit targets deep inside Russia in an effort to push Russian President Vladimir Putin into seeking a peace settlement, Zelenskyy said in a speech to Ukrainian diplomats.

“We will work very hard to make that happen this fall,” he said.

Ukraine wants countries to adopt heavier international sanctions on Moscow, but existing sanctions also need tightening to prevent Russian companies from exploiting loopholes, he said.

Zelenskyy also announced he is appointing Rustem Umerov, who has been involved in U.S. diplomatic efforts to stop the war, as head of the Foreign Intelligence Service.

Russia has used glide bombs against Ukrainian towns and cities since it invaded its neighbor more than four years ago. The Soviet-era bombs are retrofitted with guidance systems and can carry up to 3,000 kilograms (6,600 pounds) of explosives, leaving huge craters. Ukraine has no effective countermeasures.

The Sunday evening onslaught on Zaporizhzhia killed a 71-year-old woman and wounded 31 people, including a 16-year-old girl, as the glide bombs damaged 22 apartment buildings in four districts of the city, Fedorov said.

While Moscow’s forces have captured the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and hold other parts of the region, its capital city of the same name remains in Ukrainian hands. It is one of the four regions, along with Donetsk, Kherson and Luhansk, that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 even though its forces do not completely control them.

Other large-scale damage of civilian areas has resulted from Russian ballistic missiles, and late Sunday Zelenskyy made another urgent plea for countries to send Ukraine more U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems.

Only Patriot interceptors can reliably stop ballistic missiles, but they are in short supply due to the Iran war.

“The United States knows what we need. Europe knows what we need. Anti-ballistic missiles must protect people — not sit in stockpiles,” Zelenskyy said on social media.

U.S. President Donald Trump last week appeared to back off from his earlier commitment to give Ukraine a license to make Patriots itself. He said Friday that he hasn’t made a final decision.

Zelenskyy has suggested an alternative to Trump whereby Elon Musk allows Ukraine to use Starlink satellites to target ballistic missile launch sites inside Russia. Officials haven’t publicly said whether that is being considered.

Russia attacked Ukraine with 181 long-range strike drones overnight from Sunday to Monday, according to the Ukrainian air force. It said air defenses jammed and intercepted 163 drones, but 14 caused damage at 13 locations.

The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces struck four bulk carriers carrying cargo for the Ukrainian armed forces, including three in waters of the Black Sea and one in the port of Mykolaiv, but provided no further information.

Ukrainian drones also struck another major warehouse belonging to Wildberries, Russia’s biggest online shopping company. The strike was part of a campaign that has hit more than a dozen of the retailer’s distribution hubs and severely disrupted its business.

A Wildberries warehouse in the Vladimir region east of Moscow caught fire in the latest attack, the company said Monday. Three people were injured, Vladimir Gov. Alexander Avdeyev said.

Ukrainian drones also struck the Saratov oil refinery in southwestern Russia, Zelenskyy said. Kyiv has repeatedly targeted that refinery, and many others, since last year as it tries to choke fuel supplies to the Russian army and deny Moscow income from oil exports.

Zelenskyy said the Engels military air base near Saratov, the main base for Russian nuclear-capable strategic bombers, and other places inside Russia, including fuel storage tanks at the Lyudinovskaya oil depot in Russia’s Kaluga region, were targeted.

The Russian Defense Ministry on Monday reported that its air defenses overnight intercepted 131 Ukrainian drones over a number of Russian regions, as well as Crimea and the Black Sea.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Nova Scotia’s Liberals will elect their first woman leader this fall, and while the two challengers say that’s a good thing, it’s more about picking the right person for the job.

Running for the leadership are Becky Druhan, who represents Lunenburg West in the legislature, and Amanda Mombourquette, the deputy warden of Cape Breton’s Richmond County.

They are both hoping to become the party’s first permanent leader since the Liberals dropped to just two seats in the 2024 election.

Mombourquette says the prospect of a woman leading the party is exciting, but her focus is on rebuilding the party while offering strong opposition in the legislature.

Druhan says it’s exciting to have so many women in politics, but the key is choosing the person with the skills and experience to lead the party and be prepared to govern.

The Liberals will choose their next leader on Nov. 21, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Ontario Provincial Police say the bodies of two people have been recovered from Lake Rosseau in central Ontario’s Muskoka region following a boating crash Friday night.

Investigators say with the help of the OPP’s Underwater Search and Recovery Unit, they have been able to confirm the deaths of a 32-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman, both from Toronto.

Bracebridge OPP say officers got the call to Lake Rosseau, about 225 kilometers north of Toronto, at around 10:40 p.m., where they found a severely damaged boat resting on a rock ledge.

At the time, officers said two people believed to have been aboard were missing.

The investigation into what led up to the collision is ongoing.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Bracebridge OPP.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Two Republican senators who threatened to block acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s bid to lead the Justice Department said Monday that they will vote to advance his nomination, ending an impasse over plans to create a fund to compensate allies of President Donald Trump.

The statement from Republican Sens. John Cornyn and Thom Tillis came after Blanche issued an order late Sunday formally rescinding the $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” to compensate people who believe they were unfairly prosecuted by the Justice Department.

Cornyn and Tillis, whose votes Blanche needs to advance through the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday, had said they would not endorse his nomination without written confirmation that the fund is dead.

“We want to express our gratitude to Mr. Blanche and his staff for working with us on this, and we look forward to voting to advance his nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee soon,” Cornyn and Tillis, who are not returning to the Senate next year, said in a statement.

Blanche said at a June hearing that the Justice Department would not move forward with the fund as he faced bipartisan outrage over the possibility that violent rioters who attacked police at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, could be considered for payments.

But skeptical lawmakers said they were concerned that it could be revived without a commitment in writing, especially because Trump has continued to defend the idea.

In a statement accompanying the order Sunday, the Justice Department said that “although the Acting Attorney General has repeatedly advised Congress through testimony, including under oath, as well as in written responses, that the Fund is not moving forward, and the Department has repeatedly represented to district courts that the Fund is not moving forward, today’s Order officially rescinds the May 18, 2026 Order.”

Since the settlement of the president’s lawsuit against the IRS was announced, “No Members were appointed; no funds were transferred; no process for receiving claims was established; no claims were paid,” the order says. “This order establishes, beyond any doubt, that there is no Fund.”

The document released by Blanche on Sunday night also limits the scope of another provision of the settlement that provided broad immunity for Trump and members of his family from tax audits.

The deal clarifies that the tax audit immunity agreement “applies by its terms only retroactively” to claims open at the time of the settlement and does not protect the president from examination of future tax filings.

Cornyn, who lost reelection this year after Trump endorsed his primary opponent, and Tillis, who is retiring when his term ends in January, have blocked Blanche’s nomination as many of their GOP colleagues have criticized the fund.

The Judiciary Committee postponed a vote on Blanche’s nomination that had been scheduled for Thursday morning after Tillis and Cornyn said they needed more from the administration before they could provide the necessary votes.

The two senators have repeatedly said the Justice Department seemed interested in reaching an agreement, but the White House wouldn’t budge even to aid the confirmation of Trump’s loyal former personal attorney, who has aggressively pursued the administration’s priorities as acting attorney general.

“I think as far as Blanche and the Department of Justice, we were pretty much on the same page,” Cornyn said Thursday. “But then when the president got wind of it, he wasn’t willing to go along with it.”

Blanche, who served as Trump’s defense lawyer in his criminal cases, entered the Justice Department last year as deputy attorney general. He was elevated to the top post after Pam Bondi was fired in April by Trump, who was frustrated by her failure to successfully prosecute his political enemies.

Though Blanche insisted he wasn’t auditioning for the permanent job, he has moved aggressively to pursue the Trump administration’s agenda and accelerate investigations into the president’s perceived foes.

The two sides have been negotiating for weeks, but Trump has said repeatedly during the talks that he thinks the fund should go forward and threatened to move forward with it if Blanche was not confirmed.

After the Thursday vote was delayed, Trump said in a social media post that he might pull Blanche’s nomination and resubmit it after Cornyn and Tillis leave office next year.

On Sunday evening, Trump said that people who had faced charges from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and could have benefited from the fund had “their lives destroyed.”

“This would be a reimbursement for the pain that they suffered,” Trump said. “A lot of people like it.”

On Friday, Trump’s attorneys notified a court they would appeal a judge’s scathing ruling that characterized the settlement of the president’s lawsuit against the IRS as an improper exercise in self-dealing. The judge in her order last month referred one of Trump’s attorneys for potential disciplinary action and criticized Blanche’s involvement in the settlement, given his prior representation of Trump.

Blanche has said he disagrees “with the judge’s insinuations” about him. Justice Department lawyers had previously written in court papers that the fund was not moving forward but they refused a judge’s request to have Blanche and other administration officials file a declaration under penalty of perjury that the administration would not take any further action to create the fund.

The Justice Department said the court’s demands were “unnecessary.”

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Ariana Grande has pulled out of an upcoming stage musical in London, producers said, and plans to withdraw from the public eye for a break from the intense scrutiny she faces.

Grande had been due to star alongside her “Wicked” co-star Jonathan Bailey in a production of Stephen Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park With George” at the Barbican theater in 2027.

Empire Street Productions said Sunday that Grande will no longer be part of the London production. A representative for Grande told People magazine that the 33-year-old singer “will be taking a step back from visibility after she completes the Eternal Sunshine Tour.”

“She looks forward to finishing the tour and ending it on a high note, both healthily and happily, and then taking a much-deserved break from public-facing work and appearances, which has led to endless, ongoing public scrutiny,” the statement said. A representative for Grande did not offer further comment to The Associated Press.

With Grande’s recent breakup from “Wicked” co-star Ethan Slater, the ongoing tour and last week’s release of the album “Petal,” attention has swelled, fueling rampant speculation online about her health and appearance. Grande has previously expressed discomfort with public discourse around her weight.

“I think we should be gentler and less comfortable commenting on people’s bodies, no matter what,” she said in a 2023 TikTok video.

Late last year, while promoting “Wicked: For Good,” she reshared a 2024 interview in which she said it was uncomfortable having being picked apart for her appearance since she was a teenager. In the December social media post, she called the clip a “loving reminder to all.”

Grande found fame as a child performer on Nickelodeon before releasing her debut album, “Yours Truly,” in 2013. She has won three Grammy Awards and was nominated for a supporting actress Oscar for her role as Glinda in “Wicked.”

Grande’s next concert is Monday in Chicago. Her tour is due to wrap up in London on Sept. 1.

“We know this cannot have been an easy decision, and she makes it with our complete understanding and support,” Empire Street Productions said. The company said “Sunday in the Park With George” will open next summer as planned, and that casting would be announced “in due course.”

© 2026 The Canadian Press

U.S. President Donald Trump said new talks to wind down the war in Iran will start Monday, after announcing he is holding off on new massive strikes he had threatened to unleash on the country.

The talks will seek to end the conflict and revive stalled cargo traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway through which about a fifth of all traded oil and natural gas passed before the war.

Iranian state media quoted the country’s foreign ministry as saying Tehran was not currently holding negotiations with the United States.

Elsewhere, Israel struck the Gaza Strip over the weekend, days after the U.S. and Hamas said a deal was reached for the militant group to disarm, a potential step toward ending the war in Gaza.

Hospitals in Gaza said at least 17 people were killed in the weekend strikes, including children. A strike on a residential apartment in southern Gaza killed three family members, including a 4-year-old child, according to Nasser hospital, where the bodies arrived.

The Israeli military said the strikes targeted militants.

Trump announces renewed talks

Trump said Sunday that he decided against carrying out major strikes against Iran at the urging of Gulf allies Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. He said a plan was in place for U.S. forces to carry out “the biggest attack since World War II,” but he decided to give diplomacy more time after hearing from key Gulf leaders, as well as at the request of unnamed Iranian officials.

“Now what we’re doing is we’re talking to them in the form of a negotiation. It begins tomorrow afternoon,” he said. He did not provide further details or say who would be involved in the talks.

Trump has had a pattern of threatening massive strikes that he later calls off, with the announcements often later upended by renewed attacks. The abrupt shifts have been a defining feature of the five-month war that has upended global markets and sent the prices of fuel and other basic goods soaring.

Iran negotiates with Oman on contested trade route

The Iranian Foreign Ministry said Tehran is not currently holding negotiations with the United States.

Esmail Baghaei, an agency spokesperson, said Monday that ongoing talks were with Oman, the country that lies on the other side of the strait, and were focused only on establishing a temporary route for safe navigation through the channel.

Nine vessels transited through the strait Sunday, most of them using an Iranian-controlled route, according to trade data and analytics platform Kpler.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived Monday in Iraq’s holy city of Najaf to participate in the Arbaeen commemorations, an annual pilgrimage for Shiite Muslims, his office said on social media.

Araghchi’s trip comes as Iraq has been walking a tightrope between Iran and the U.S., an act that has only grown more fraught since the U.S. and Israel went to war with Iran in February.

Syrian and Iraqi leaders discuss security concerns

Syrian interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa and Iraq’s Kurdish regional president met Monday to discuss ways of improving mutual cooperation and contributing to regional security.

The meeting between al-Sharaa and Nechirvan Barzani came amid regional tensions as Iranian-backed Iraqi militia groups carried out multiple drone strikes targeting American interests across Iraq, including the country’s Kurdish region.

Syrian state media reported last month that authorities at the country’s border with Iraq thwarted an attempt in June to smuggle weapons believed to have been headed to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon. Hezbollah denied the charges.

Iran executes 2 men it says spied for Israel

Iran’s judiciary said it executed two men Monday after convicting them of spying for Israel during both last year’s 12-day war and the ongoing conflict.

The judiciary’s Mizan news agency identified the two as Omid Behzad and Pouria Safvat, who were accused of providing military coordinates, images and other intelligence used in attacks on Iranian targets. It did not specify where the executions took place.

Last week, Iran publicly hanged two men convicted of killing four police officers during nationwide anti-government protests in January.

Gaza’s residents swelter in tents

Soaring temperatures in Gaza this summer have turned the makeshift tents sheltering hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians into suffocating ovens. Made of plastic sheets, the shelters trap heat during the day and offer little ventilation, forcing many families to spend hours outside.

The extreme weather compounds an already dire humanitarian crisis. With limited access to clean water, electricity and sanitation, overcrowded camps are grappling with flies, mosquitoes and other insects. Humanitarian agencies such as the Norwegian Refugee Council warn that the conditions heighten the risk of dehydration, heat-related illnesses and the spread of skin infections, diarrheal diseases and other communicable illnesses.

“It’s very hot. We can’t stay inside the tents. Our tent is made of nylon,” said Aida Abu Hadeesha, a woman displaced from the town of Rafah, near the border with Egypt. “There is no breeze, nothing, and our kids are suffering,” she said, adding that the stifling heat continued all night. “The flies and the cockroaches attack us.”

—Becatoros reported from Athens, Greece. Associated Press reporters Julia Frankel in Jerusalem and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Sarah Batchelor says it started a few weeks ago when a large blue flag bearing Alberta’s shield of arms appeared on her neighbour’s window in Airdrie, a city north of Calgary.

The 49-year-old music teacher, who has lived in the province for most of her life, says she would not have been bothered if her neighbour put it up a couple of years ago.

But now it irks her because of its widespread use by separatists.

“It’s just a weird vibe … It makes my heart sad,” she said.

“The Alberta flag is a hallmark of our heritage.”

Batchelor says she has since put a Canadian flag in her garden. Several neighbours have followed in her footsteps, proudly displaying the Maple Leaf on lawns and porches.

“The Canadian flag people, we all kind of see each other and wave at each other on the street. There’s some solidarity even in that,” she said.

The Alberta and Canadian flags have taken on a new meaning as the province nears a vote on whether the province should remain in Canada or hold a second, binding referendum on leaving the country.

Batchelor said it feels as if locals are duelling over separatism through symbols, but she’s OK with that.

“This is a democracy, and you have the freedom to express your views. But we need to be just as loud with our voice.”

The reasons for the referendum are in dispute.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith ordered up the vote for Oct. 19, noting hundreds of thousands have signed petitions for and against separation. Smith says she supports staying in Canada but that it’s time to put the issue to rest once and for all.

Critics, pointing to long-standing opinion polls indicating massive support for Alberta staying in Canada, accuse Smith of self-serving politics by calling up the vote merely to placate restive separatist hardliners in her United Conservative Party.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has opposed the separation push and described the fall vote as a “dangerous bluff.” He has compared it to Brexit in the U.K., adding that separatists are making unrealistic promises and refuse to acknowledge the pitfalls of separation.

Groups for and against have since begun stumping the province to push their messages. For separatists, the Alberta flag — with its snowcapped mountains, wheat fields and green foothills – has become their unifying symbol, much as the Maple Leaf has become for the federalist side.

The debate at times has become personal, and ugly, in small towns and workplaces.

A rodeo parade in the town of Sundre, northwest of Calgary, was cancelled last month amid threats and abuse after parade organizers rejected a float festooned with Alberta flags they feared would be viewed as a political statement.

A union representing workers for grocer Sobeys Inc. recently filed a grievance after several of its stores in the province displayed the Alberta flag.

The United Food and Commercial Workers union said in an online statement that the supermarket chain is alienating those customers and employees who love Canada by displaying a flag that represents separation.

“It is a simple hard truth that the Alberta flag has become a symbol of the Alberta Independence Movement,” it said.

Sobeys Inc., did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

People also point out flags, and question their meaning, when they appear in social media posts by politicians, including in the comment section of Smith’s post last week showing a pilot at the Red Deer Air Show in central Alberta flying an Alberta flag while falling from a plane.

Last week in Red Deer, a clutch of Alberta flag-waving separatist supporters were also heard shouting from a distance at a housing announcement by Smith and Carney.

A spokesperson for Smith says the Alberta flag is a symbol of unity.

“(It) belongs to every Albertan who calls this incredible province home,” Sam Blackett said in a statement.

“All Albertans and businesses should be proud to fly and display Alberta’s flag. It is not a divisive symbol — it represents our natural landscapes, agricultural wealth, and British heritage.”

A flag expert says he’s not surprised the flags divide.

“Flags are, in my view, the ultimate icon of our tribalism,” Ted Kaye said in an interview, noting they are prominent in everything from sports to politics.

Kaye, with the North American Vexillological Association, said that during the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, the Canadian flag became representative of the so-called Freedom Convoy, an anti-government movement.

Now it’s displayed by proud federalists in Alberta.

“We use flags to show what groups we belong to. That’s the fundamental purpose of flags and the fundamental purpose of the Alberta flag is to show that people belong to Alberta.”

Alberta’s current flag, he said was created in 1967 to salute the 100th anniversary of Confederation.

Back in Airdrie, Batchelor says she is leaving pamphlets at doors of neighbours flying the Alberta flag to remind them their symbol began as a way to honour Canada.

“That,” she said, “is my polite, Canadian, sarcastic way to deal with (separatism).”

© 2026 The Canadian Press