The Week in Pictures

Denny Hamlin celebrates winning the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway in Virginia.  (Jason Hirschfeld / AP)

UCLA defender Tony Dye upends Tennessee kick returner David Oku in the second half of the Bruins’ 19-15 victory at Knoxville, Tenn.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Tens of thousands of people marched on the U.S. Capitol to protest big government, prompted by President Obama’s plan to overhaul healthcare.  (Nicholas Kamm / AFP/Getty Images)

Lightning strikes early today over the gulf of Izmir. Heavy rain is forecast for the next three days over western Turkey. Flash floods in the northwest forced the evacuation of about 200 workers at tile and brick factories by helicopter, near the town of Kumbag, in Tekirdag province.  (Mustafa Ozer / AFP/Getty Images)

A memorial gathering is held at Garden Grove High School to honor Kevin Telles, 17, a senior fullback on the football team who collapsed and died after his team’s final offensive play against host Westminster High School. A teammate, Max Diaz, right, hugs Brenda Rodriguez at the gathering. “You’ll always be in our hearts,” one friend wrote. Telles was taken by ambulance to Huntington Beach Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy was conducted on the 5-foot-11, 200-pound senior, but the results were withheld pending completion of toxicology tests, which could take several weeks.  (Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times)

Russia’s Yelena Isinbayeva, who won the gold medal, celebrates a successful jump in pole vault at the IAAF World Athletics Final competition in Greece on Saturday.  (Nikolas Giakoumidis / Associated Press)

Traditional Namahage costumes are part of the scene at an annual rice harvesting festival in downtown Tokyo.  (Itsuo Inouye / Associated Press)

The space shuttle Discovery and its seven astronauts landed safely at Edwards Air Force Base after bad weather prevented it from returning to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida for a second day.  (Lawrence K. Ho/Los Angeles Times)

A Volkswagen Polo model is retrieved last year by an automated palette from a storage tower. Volkswagen, the biggest European carmaker, said on Sept. 11 that it planned to invest 4 billion euros in China by 2011.  (John MacDougall / AFP/Getty Images)

A Palestinian protester throws a tear gas canister fired by Israeli soldiers away from him as a cameraman records his movements during a demonstration against Israel’s separation barrier in the West Bank village of Bilin, near Ramallah. Israel says the barrier is necessary for security while Palestinians call it a land grab.  (Nasser Ishtayeh / Associated Press)

Army cooks stand outside their kitchen at the 60th National Day Parade Village, where thousands of Chinese are preparing for celebrations to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The events will include a parade and mass pageant consisting of about 200,000 citizens in Tiananmen Square on Oct. 1.  (Feng Li / Getty Images)

A fan sits alone in the stands as rain delays the start of the women’s semifinals at the U.S. Open in New York. The semifinals were postponed to Saturday. Full story  (Timothy A. Clary / AFP/Getty Images)

The Turkish coal bulk carrier Seli-1 is grounded on a sand bank in Table Bay. The Panamanian-registered ship bound for Gibraltar is carrying 660 tons of fuel and 30000 tons of coal. South African Disaster Management officials fear environmental hazards should the 29-year-old ship be further damaged or sink. Salvage operations have not been launched because of heavy seas.  (Nic Bothma / EPA)

The Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building, is pictured at sunset. The exterior of the more than 2,600-foot-high structure is largely finished, and the tower is expected to be completed and ready for occupancy in the coming months.  (Brennan Linsley / Associated Press)

Filipino children frolic in a slum area in Quezon City in eastern Manila after a tropical depression hit the area. Five people were reported dead and tens of thousands were displaced after the storm.  (Alanah M. Torralba / EPA)

The Barnato Park High School gumboot dancers perform during the South African Tattoo. The international show features more than 500 performers from countries including Italy, Burundi, the U.S., and Germany.  (John Hrusa / EPA)

U.S. soldiers from the Combined Security Transition Command Afghanistan pay their respect during a 9/11 remembrance ceremony at sunset at Camp Eggers in Kabul, Afghanistan.  (Manish Swarup / Associated Press)

A World Trade Center flag is folded as friends and relatives of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks gather for a commemoration ceremony at New York’s Zuccotti Park, adjacent to ground zero, on the eighth anniversary of the terrorist strike.  (Jason DeCrow / Associated Press)

A woman is comforted during the ceremony at Zuccotti Park.  (Jason DeCrow / Associated Press)

Swans wade past a piece of art titled “La Fourchette Geante” (“The Giant Fork”) at its unveiling in Lake Geneva, near Vevey, Switzerland. The 26-foot-high fork is the work of Jean-Pierre Zaugg and was realized by Georges Favre.  (Jean-Christophe Bott / Associated Press)

A Palestinian child is rescued from the crowd at the West Bank’s Kalandia checkpoint as Palestinian women wait to cross into Jerusalem to attend prayers in the Al Aqsa Mosque compound on the third Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Israel loosened restrictions governing who can enter Jerusalem from the West Bank to allow in Palestinian men older than 50 and women over 45, as well as Palestinians with special permits. Under usual Israeli restrictions, only Palestinians with permits are allowed to enter Jerusalem.  (Bernat Armangue / Associated Press)

A survivor tries to collect her belongings two days after flash floods in Istanbul, Turkey, gushed across a major highway and a commercial district, killing 31 people. Authorities say they are bracing for more heavy rain in Turkey as rescuers continue searching for nine people dragged away by floodwaters in the country’s northwest.  (Ibrahim Usta / Associated Press)

A Pakistani girl collects oil spilled from tankers after two cargo trains collided in Kotri, south Pakistan. At least five people were injured in the accident Thursday, officials said.  (Pervez Masih / Associated Press)

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward is tackled by Tennessee Titans cornerback Cortland Finnegan after making a catch for a first down in the fourth quarter Thursday at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. The Steelers won, 13-10, in overtime.  (Keith Srakocic / Associated Press)

People attempt to put out a fire in Kampala. in Uganda, after riots rocked the capital leaving two people dead and several injured. Protesters clashed with police over efforts to stop a visit north of Kampala by Ronald Muwenda Mutebi, traditional ruler of the Baganda tribe, which is the majority in central Uganda. Ethnic Baganda lawmakers walked out of parliament in protest over the issue Wednesday.  (Peter Busomoke / AFP / Getty Images)

Makeup artists prepare a model for the L.A.M.B. spring 2010 show, part of New York’s Fashion Week.  (Stephen Chernin / Associated Press)

Georgia Tech’s Anthony Allen (18) scores on an 82-yard run as Clemson’s Chris Chandler gives chase in the first quarter Thursday in Atlanta.  (John Bazemore / Associated Press)

Chilean independent presidential candidate Marco Enriquez-Ominami holds his daughter after registering his candidacy in the Dec. 13 vote. Polls show he has 17% support.  (Martin Bernetti / AFP/Getty Images)

Juan Martin del Potro shows frustration after missing a point Thursday in the U.S. Open, but the sixth-seeded entrant from Argentina went on to defeat 16th-seeded Marin Cilic of Croatia and earn a berth in the semifinals.  (Charles Krupa / Associated Press)

Lance Armstrong, in center of the pack with a yellow-and-black helmet, leads a group of about 1,000 riders around Griffith Park on Thursday. Armstrong used Twitter to inform area riders.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Clouds reflect the reddish light of sunrise as rainy weather moves in to New York City on Thursday. The Weather Underground predicts rain for the next two days there.  (Rich Kareckas / Associated Press)

Police stand by packages of seized U.S. dollars being shown to the press at a military base Thursday. Colombian customs agents said they seized $11.3 million in cash Tuesday from a shipping container in Colombia’s port of Buenaventura. The cash was hidden in a shipment of ammonium sulfate that arrived from Mexico, according to authorities.  (William Fernando Martinez / Associated Press)

Soldiers of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army air force march as they rehearse Thursday for 60th National Day parade. The celebrations to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China are to include a mass pageant consisting of about 200,000 citizens in Tiananmen Square on Oct. 1.  (Feng Li / Getty Images)

A health worker gives a polio vaccination to a child Thursday in Mingora, where Pakistani forces have been engaged in an operation against Taliban militants. Several polio cases have been reported across the country in recent months, mostly in the northwest part of the country where religious clerics and pro-Taliban individuals try to convince residents that the U.S.-manufactured polio drops are designed to sterilize Pakistanis and reduce the Muslim population.  (Rashid Iqbal / EPA)

Caitlin Briasco of New Zealand practices backstage before her turn during the second round of the semifinals at the Genee International Ballet Competition in Singapore on Thursday. More than 50 dancers from around the world are competing in the prestigious competition.  (How Hwee Young / EPA)

A Kashmiri woman takes part in an Assn. of Parents of Disappeared People demonstration Thursday. Kashmir’s leading human rights organization, the association is demanding the establishment of a commission to probe the disappearances of people in Kashmir since 1989. An armed insurgency against Indian rule in Kashmir has claimed 47,000 lives since 1989, with separatists putting the toll twice as high.  (Tauseef Mustafa / AFP / Getty Images)

A man carries milk cans during heavy rainfall. Overnight rain caused traffic chaos on waterlogged roads and choked sewers in many places in and around the Indian capital city.  (Manan Vatsyayana / AFP / Getty Images)

Crew members climb the rigging on the Half Moon, a replica of the ship Henry Hudson sailed when he discovered Manhattan. The voyage is part of a weeklong 400th anniversary celebration of the arrival of the famed explorer, who sailed up the Hudson River, named after him, in September 1609.  (Mario Tama / Getty Images)

Apolo Anton Ohno, left, and Travis Jayner skate in the men’s 1500-meter final at the U.S. short-track speedskating championships in Marquette, Mich.  (Doug Benc / Getty Images)

A handout photo released Wednesday by the New York Times shows Times reporter Stephen Farrell in Iraq on July 16, 2007. Farrell, who had been captured by the Taliban on Saturday in Afghanistan, was freed when a British and Afghan special forces unit raided the compound where he was being held captive. A British soldier was killed during the operation.  (Marko Georgiev / EPA)

China’s Yang Xiang, center left, consoles Chen Xizhong, second right, also from China, who was suffering from a muscle cramp while backstage during the first round of semifinals at the Genee International Ballet Competition Wednesday in Singapore. Fifty-three dancers from around the world have gathered for this annual competition, a flagship event by the Royal Academy of Dance. It is one of the foremost platforms in launching the professional careers of many young dancers in the international arena.  (Wong Maye-e / Associated Press)

An aerial view of trucks stuck in floodwaters Wednesday. At least 14 people were killed as heavy overnight rains flooded parts of Turkey’s biggest city, stranding motorists and flooding arterial roads.  (AFP / Getty Images)

Two unexploded mines are detonated under controlled conditions in waters off Tallinn on Wednesday. Estonia’s military discovered 64 unexploded World War II sea mines in waters near the Estonian capital.  (Raigo Pajula / AFP / Getty Images)

Nine wedding couples sit on an above-ground platform in front of the Munich skyline Wednesday on the occasion of the lucky-digit date 09/09/2009.  (Peter Kneffel / EPA)

A cheetah cub (acinonyx jubatus) seen with its mother Msichana at the Basel Zoo in Basel, Switzerland, Wednesday. The cub is one of three born on June 17.  (Georgios Kefalas / Associated Press)

Evgeniya Kanaeva of Russia performs with the ribbon during the qualifying round of the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Ise, central Japan on Wednesday.  (Koji Sasahara / AP)

Buddhist monks gather at City Hall in Bangkok, Thailand, for ceremonies honoring Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej.  (David Longstreath / Associated Press)

Ethnic Chinese newlyweds pose during a photo session after a mass wedding ceremony for about 200 couples in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur. Many couples wanted to get married on Sept. 9, 2009--9/9/09--because Chinese tradition associates the number 999 with longevity and everlasting love.  (Saeed Khan / AFP/Getty Images))

Serena Williams celebrates after beating Flavia Pennetta of Italy, 6-4, 6-3, during the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament. Williams will play Kim Clijsters in the semifinals.  (Charles Krupa / Associated Press)

Nick Swisher of the New York Yankees joyfully rounds third base after his game-winning home run against Dan Wheeler, left, of the Tampa Bay Rays in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. Swisher’s second homer of the game gave the Yankees a 3-2 victory.  (Bill Kostroun / Associated Press)

Christie, a 23-year-old African elephant, plays with her baby at the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City. The still-unnamed female baby, born about a month ago, will go on exhibit Friday.  (Mark Stark / Associated Press)

The firefighter who was driving when his firetruck fell into a sinkhole walks the site of the incident. As water coursed down the street in Valley Village after a line burst, he started to back up when the pavement began to collapse beneath the vehicle.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)