Merlin the duck steals the spotlight at President Sheinbaum's news briefing

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Wearing the green jersey of Mexico’s national soccer team and a FIFA tie, he waddled into the room ahead of President Claudia Sheinbaum, took a seat facing reporters and quickly became the star of her Monday morning news briefing.

Merlín the duck — Mexico’s unofficial World Cup mascot — didn’t take any questions; his owner, Carla Gómez, did that for him.

Gómez, a street vendor who sells water and soft drinks, introduced her family with pride and determination, presenting them as representative of countless other working-class Mexicans. “We are the working part” of Mexico, she said.

Sitting beside the lectern, with Merlín at the center, were her sons, Carlos, 22, and Cristian, 14, who “doesn’t rest after school” and helps her every day by selling goods and carrying packages.

Merlín, he said, is “the boss of our little business. He’s the one who follows behind us, making sure we’re working and doing things the right way.”

The family takes great care with his diet, feeding him small fish, crickets and, on Sundays, even a meat taco.

Gómez said she was moved by the way Merlín captured the hearts of World Cup fans.

“It has been the best thing that has happened to us in this life,” she said, though she noted that other ducks the family had owned also became local celebrities in Mexico City’s historic center, including Bruna, who wore tennis shoes.

Gómez said she believes the family went viral because people saw in them “a hard-working family, a family that gets up every day to make ends meet.”

The president eventually had to cut off questions to move the news conference along, but not before trying to pet Merlín and posing for a photo with the family.

The scene had barely ended when social media filled with criticism of the president’s decision to welcome the duck while relatives of missing persons — who have been demonstrating and seeking a face-to-face meeting with her since the start of the World Cup — remained unheard.

Wildlife advocates also warned that the popularity of pets like Merlín can have unintended consequences. In a Facebook post, the Wildlife Rehabilitation Unit of Pachuca, a city about 90 kilometers (55 miles) north of Mexico City, cautioned that fame can fuel “impulse purchases and abandonment.”

“Animals do not need owners for fashion; they need responsible caretakers,” the government-run agency wrote.

Merlín, at least, appears to have found them.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Merlin the duck, dressed in a Mexican national soccer team jersey, attends the daily press conference by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, left, along with his caretakers Carla Gomez and her sons Carlos and at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum interacts with Merlin the duck, dressed in a Mexican national soccer team jersey, during her morning press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Christian Gomez interacts with his duck Merlin, dressed in a Mexican national soccer team jersey, as they attend the daily press conference by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Merlin the duck, dressed in a Mexican national soccer team jersey, bottom right, enters the daily press conference by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, left, with his caretakers, brothers Carlos and Christian Gomez, at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Merlin the duck, dressed in a Mexican national soccer team jersey, attends the daily press conference by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, second from left, along with his caretakers Carla Gomez and her sons Carlos, and Christian who holds Merlin, at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, June 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova was suspended for four years on Monday for refusing an anti-doping test, the latest high-profile player sanctioned.

The Czech cited “mental stress” and fear when the testing agent “rang my door late at night without properly identifying themselves.”

The International Tennis Integrity Agency made the announcement, saying Vondrousova refused a test in December and the maximum four-year ban for a routine first offense was reached by an independent tribunal following a hearing this month.

Vondrousova became Wimbledon’s first unseeded female champion when she beat Ons Jabeur in the 2023 final. She reached a career-high ranking of No. 6 that year. She also reached the French Open final in 2019, losing to Ash Barty.

The 26-year-old Vondrousova detailed her reaction to the missed test in an Instagram post in April.

“It is very tough for me to talk about this, but I want to be transparent with you about my mental health,” Vondrousova said. “The recent doping control incident happened because I reached a breaking point after months of physical and mental stress.”

The ITIA said Vondrousova “did not submit a sample when notified by a Doping Control Officer during an out-of-competition test attempt at her home at around 8 p.m. on 3 December 2025” and that she instead signed a refusal form.

“I have never doped. I have never had a positive test,” Vondrousova wrote on Instagram after the ruling was released. “Throughout my entire career, I have undergone countless anti-doping controls and have always stepped onto the court with a clear conscience. Just three days after the incident that ultimately changed my life, I was tested again. The result was negative. Just like every test before it.”

Vondrousova was represented by Los Angeles-based lawyer Howard Jacobs, a specialist in doping rules cases. Jacobs helped two-time Grand Slam singles champion Simona Halep win an appeal case in 2024 at the Court of Arbitration for Sport against a four-year ban for doping.

Vondrousova becomes the latest high-profile tennis player involved in a doping case after Halep, Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek.

Sinner accepted a three-month ban in a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency at the start of last year and Swiatek accepted a one-month suspension at the end of 2024.

Halep, Sinner and Swiatek each proved they were not entirely responsible for their positive tests.

“We recognize this is a significant ban,” ITIA CEO Karen Moorhouse said. “You can’t have an anti-doping system where a player is in a better place by refusing to take a test than they would by taking a test and testing positive. So that feeds into the structure of the doping rules that provides for a starting point in the four-year ban for refusing to take a test.”

Vondrousova’s ban expires June 21, 2030. She can appeal the decision to the Switzerland-based CAS.

During a hearing before the tribunal, Vondrousova presented explanations that stress and poor mental health affected her decision making, in addition to concerns for her safety because she claimed the tester did not identity herself.

The tribunal also took testimony from the doping control officer and concluded the evidence offered “no compelling justification” for the test refusal.

Tennis players and other pro athletes are required by anti-doping rules to specify where they will be available for a one-hour period each day to give samples for testing.

The female testing agent showed up at Vondrousova’s home outside the assigned hour that the player signed up for that day — in a surprise test. Athletes are required to submit for testing if they are located for a surprise test outside their assigned hour. If they are not found when a tester shows up outside assigned hours, there is no sanction.

“Unpredictable testing is an essential tool to protect clean sport,” Moorhouse said. “The independent tribunal ultimately supported that principle. This case is an important reminder that players can be tested at any time, in any place, and that refusal comes with significant risk.”

The ITIA would not say if any inconsistencies were found in Vondrousova's previous anti-doping history.

“We wouldn’t disclose that,” said Nicole Sapstead, the ITIA's senior director of anti-doping, adding: “We look at all things like that.”

Vondrousova, ranked 122, hasn't played since January.

Wimbledon starts next week.

AP Sports Writer Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed to this report.

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

FILE - Marketa Vondrousova, of the Czech Republic, reacts after defeating Jasmine Paolini, of Italy, during the third round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Friday, Aug. 29, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, file)

FILE - Czech Republic's Marketa Vondrousova celebrates with the trophy after beating Tunisia's Ons Jabeur to win the final of the women's singles on day thirteen of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Saturday, July 15, 2023. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali, file)