hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada, and all around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. ahead on "cnn newsroom." while presidents biden and putin held a critical fall aimed at preventing a global crisis, more countries urged their citizens to ave and ukraine officials urged calm. we're live from the russia/ukraine border. plus, the latest twists on the russian skater doeping scandal at the winter olympics. a live report from beijing. and let the countdown begin.

we're hours away from super bowl lvi as the los angeles rams take on the cincinnati bengals. we'll have a preview of the big game, coming up. >> announcer: live from the cnn center in atlanta, this is "cnn newsroom" with kim brunhuber. fears of a russian invasion in ukraine are so high is that countries are warning americans to get out while they can. the ukrainian government calls the moves an overreaction, but the uk has withdrawn staff at its embassy and is telling citizens to leave. and we received these images a short time ago. britain pulling out its observers with the organization for security and cooperation in europe. the u.s. is doing the same. now, in much of ukraine, there's no sense of imminent danger. large crowds again marched

through the capital on saturday to show their defiance of the ru russian threat. but both washington and moscow agree, saturday's call between their two leaders didn't yield any progress in ending the dangerous standoff. cnn correspondents are covering this story from across the globe. arlette saenz is at the white house. sam kylie is live from ukraine, and nic robertson is in moscow. we begin our coverage in washington, and president biden's latest attempt to dissuade his russian counterpart from further aggression. here's arlette saenz. >> reporter: the white house says there was no major breakthrough in that one-hour call between president biden and russian president vladimir putin. a senior administration official warns there's still a distinct possibility that russia moves forward with an invasion of ukraine. the president spoke with putin while spending the weekend at the presidential retreat at camp david. and the white house in a statement reading out, the call said that the president warned

of severe and swift costs that russia would face if it moves forward with an invasion of ukraine. the white house also said that president biden reiterated that a further russian invasion of ukraine would produce widespread human suffering and diminish russia's standing. president biden was clear with president putin that while the united states remains prepared to engage in diplomacy, in full coordination with our allies and partners, we are equally prepared for other scenarios. now, the u.s. has crafted sanctions with its allies to implement, should putin move forward with an invasion of ukraine. and the u.s. has also reiterated its commitment to offer defense support to ukraine, so the country would have means to defend itself in the event of an invasion. now, the u.s. at this moment says that they do not believe that president putin has made that final decision to invade ukraine, but they also note that what they are seeing on the ground in the area does not tend

to show de-escalation, which is what the u.s. is seeking in this moment. now, the u.s. over the course of the weekend has drawn down its embassy presence, evacuating most non-emergency personnel from the embassy in kyiv, and they are also warning americans to depart the country immediately, saying it is past time for americans to get out of ukraine. the u.s. is warning that they will not be conducting an american military mission to evacuate american citizens if an invasion occurs. now, going forward, president biden and his team plan to remain in contact with russia in the coming days as the threat of an invasion looms, but officials are warning, they also believe, while they are conducting and trying to stay in contact with russia, it is still very possible that putin moves forward with an attack. arlette saenz, cnn, the white house. >> and cnn's sam kylie joins us

now from ukraine. he's in the city of harkyiv near the russian border. so what's the reaction to the flurry of diplomacy that doesn't seem to have led anywhere? >> reporter: i think the simple answer to that, kim, is that the authorities, if not the population here, and i think that probably includes the population, too, are clinging, clinging to the idea, the hope that there could be a diplomatic solution. there is more than a russian division -- just 40 or 50 miles away from here, across north into the border, into russia, this city of 1.5 million people, 75% of whom are russian speakers, is very anxious about being invaded by russia, but at the same time -- in line with the messaging coming from their own president who's saying panic plays into the hands of the enemy. this is what he said on a visit

to the front line in the south yesterday. >> we have a lot of information, because we are on this border. it's our borders, it's our territory. you know, i have to speak with our people, you know, like, like president, and say people truths, and the truth is that we have different information. and now the best friend for enemies, that is panic, in our country. and all of this information that helps only for panic doesn't help us. >> reporter: now, what also doesn't help the ukrainian is a withdrawal of 160 u.s. and 100 british military trainers, who have been teaching the ukrainian armed forces to operate as a nato level of sophistication, but more recently, to use those shoulder-launched anti-armor jaffe lynn and missiles that the u.s. and uk have recently

supplied into ukraine, not a great deal, to stand against the might of the russian army, though, kim. >> all right. thanks so much, sam kylie in northeastern ukraine. appreciate it. not all ukrainian political leaders are onboard with zelensky's message that you heard there. one parliament member joins us in about half an hour to explain why she feels a growing sense of panic in the face of russia's pressure. well, you're looking at scenes from early saturday morning in windsor, canada, as police began to clear a blockade at the ambassador bridge on the u.s./canadian border. what began as a handful of truckers protesting vaccine mandates has become a broader movement of canadians unhappy with current restrictions. several border blockades across canada have taken a toll on the economies of both countries. meanwhile, many american right-wing politicians are

weighing in, throwing their support behind the protesters. >> i'm all for it. civil disobedience. civil disobedience is a time-honored tradition in our country, from slavery to civil rights to you name it. peaceful protest, clog things up, make people think about the mandates. >> prime minister justin trudeau and other officials are discussing additional measures to break up the protests. cnn's lucy kafanov is at the border crossing in canada and filed this report. >> reporter: well, we are here in windsor, ontario. you can see the ambassador bridge behind me, that critical, vital link between the u.s. and canada. the bridge remains closed, but the crowd is significantly thinner since the early hours on saturday. that's when we saw a heavier police presence. they sort of pushed back the protest line a little bit. a lot of protesters leaving on their own. there's a lot fewer truckers and cars blocking that area. in terms of the crowd, it's been, you know, a lot of families, a lot of people

milling about. you hear the occasional honks, like you're hearing right now, shouts of freedom. there's been young kids and families, some religious minority groups walking back and forth with protest signs. a lot of frustration towards the vaccine mandates, but also towards the government of canada. a lot of different people joining these protests. but, again, the steam at least here in windsor seeming to thin out. that's due in part to the harsher restrictions that have been imposed. things like up to $100,000 fines, penalties for protesters, a potential year in prison. that may have had an impact in getting some folks to go home. but for now, the stalemate remains. lucy kafanov, cnn, windsor, canada. >> and those protests are inspiring similar action in france. the so-called freedom convoy descended on paris saturday, and blocked traffic at various locations around the city. cnn's jim bittermann has more.

>> france's so-called freedom convoy managed to make it into the center of paris saturday afternoon, despite the mobilization of 7,000 police and some pretty impressive armored vehicles and towing equipment. along the famous champs-elysees, where weekend traffic can frequently be a problem, it was made worse by several hundred demonstrators made it worse by parking their vehicles in the middle of the street. using tear gas and making arrests, police were able to finally get control of the situation. demonstrations were modeled after those taking place in canada, but protesters here are not only against the vaccination mandate, but also against the high price of fuel and increased cost of living. from paris, some of the demonstrators will try to go on north from brussels, the home of the european union. but authorities will say that they're going to control the convoy at the border.

jim bittermann, cnn, just outside paris. there's new scrutiny of federal u.s. covid guidance as more states move forward with lifting mask mandates. new infections are declining across the country, as the omicron wave subsides. well, that drop has led to a number of states relaxing measures towards a new normal. and even retailers are making the change. walmart is lifting its mask mandate, effective immediately for fully vaccinated employees. the chain also said that it's ending the required daily health screenings for employees by the end of the month, except for those working in states where it's still required. now, th ethe evolving guidance drawn attentions to federal recommendations. plus, the world health organization warns that the pandemic isn't over. >> we have seen the virus evolve, mutate, and in fact, the kromicron variant was detected

here in south africa. the whole world came to know about it because of the scientists here. so we know that there will be more variants, more variants of concern. so we're not at the end of the pandemic. >> earlier, i spoke with dr. koran. he's a physician and infectious disease specialist with stanford university. i asked if the disconnect between federal and local health officials is more about politics than good public health policy. here he is. >> i do think that a lot of this is being dictated by politics at this point, because if you look at the public health response, one of the most important things is to have a unified response. we can't have 50 separate responses that have different communications, different messaging. and the biggest problem to me is that the incidence is still very high. we have hundreds of thousands of new cases and when you pull back on restrictions, a time like this, and really not restrictions, but protections for people, you run the risk of having another large surge. i worked on a state health response for over eight months in massachusetts during our

first surges in 2020. and when the epidemic is well controlled, i would say that our test positivity rate was below 2%, closer to 1%. and in california, for instance, that number was closer to 8% this week. and that's just far too high, and we're dealing with a more transmissible variant now. and i think that a lot of people are kind of discounting the potential harms that are associated with infection alone. you know, it's been now over a year, and we're starting to get some of the results back, showing that long covid is a problem. there's an immunologic infections, as well. i'm a clinician, taking care of patients and i've also worked on the public health side and i realize this is going to be a problem. now to some other covid developments around the world. hong kong reported over 1,500 new covid cases on saturday, the highest daily case load recorded to date. a top health official says he's not ruling out the possibility

of placing hong kong into a citywide lockdown as cases surge. iceland's prime minister tested positive for covid-19 after contracting the virus from a family member. he'll have to isolate for five days, according to iceland's rules. and in frankfort, germany, reuters reports that hundreds gathered on saturday to protest goechbs against covid regulations and potential mandatory vaccinations. ahead here on cnn, the beijing olympics are halfway over and all eyes are on the doping scandal. let's bring in steven jiang. >> reporter: all eyes indeed on this virtual hearing by the court of arbitration taking place in about three hours. and they will determine the future of a figure skating star and their team's gold medal. with fragrance that's always fresh, never oveverpowering. aiair wick. connect to nature.

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well, it's another day of intense competition at the beijing winter olympics. 18-year-old american skier eileen gu, who is competing for china, was supposed to hit the slopes in a qualifying event today, but it's been postponed due to weather. we're also following the latest in the doping scandal over

russian figure skater kamila valiyeva. a hearing is set to be held in just a few hours to determine if the 15-year-old will be allowed to continue to compete. world sport's patrick snell joins us here in atlanta. but first, let's bring in cnn's steven jiang live in beijing. so, steven, on that doping controversy, we're still sort of in a waiting pattern here, but bring us up to speed on what's been happening in the meantime on this story. >> kim, we're learning valiyeva has been named on the roster for tuesday's figure skating event. that, of course, is the next event she is scheduled to appear. and as we've said, that decision by the court of arbitration for sport on monday will indeed determine whether or not she will go ahead to compete in that event. the international olympic committee still saying very little about this case, citing this ongoing process. a complicating factor here, of course, is that positive test sample was collected on december 25th, well before the winter olympics. that's why it wail falls outside the jurisdiction of the ioc.

but that's also why the russian anti-doping agency said it decided to lift a temporary ban on valiyeva, because she's been passin ing her doping tests bot before and after that date, including testing negative since she arrived here in beijing. and the russian sports authorities have been throwing growing support behind her with the country's sports minister and the head of its figure skating federation, both saying that they have no doubts over her honesty, with them also pointing to the circumstances surrounding that positive test result, saying how unusually long it took the lab in sweden to analyze the sample. of course, there have been some reports saying that that was due to a wave of covid cases in sweden at the time, but that obviously is going to be one point being raised during this hearing. that's why a lot of people around the world eagerly awaiting the court's decision, including many here in a very snowy beijing. kim? >> absolutely. all right, steven jiang, thank you so much. seven medals are up for grabs

today at the winter games, germany and norway leading the way with eight gold medals. the u.s., netherlands, and sweden have five, austria has four. pat, speaking of gold, switzerland struck gold again. >> reporter: yes, absolutely, and a short wile ago this sunday. day nine, of course, of the winter games in china, despite the adverse weather steven was referring to, we had a delay of over an hour, really challenging conditions. it would be swiss great marco odemeyer to celebrate his gold medal. the 24-year-old overcoming the heavy snow and all the poor, really challenging visibility that had been causing havoc. many in the field actually really struggling to even deal with the conditions in the first place, the mist and the fog taking old, but the swiss great showing all of his class, resolve, expertise, coolness personified to beat slovenia and

france amid really challenging conditions there. oddermatt was the favorite going into this. he leaves the giant slalom standings having won four of the five races, having finished second in the other. no surprise, he shows his class and wins gold. the chinese capital there in beijing, they're coated for the very first time during these games. a really heavy snow and they're right to just sludge it away there. and these are the scenes around the genty snow park, as well, where the women's ski free style were supposed to takes on sunday morning, but the poor weather causing that to be rescheduled until monday morning. you mentioned eileen gu, who's already won gold in the big air event, the women's finals, the men's qualification will now take place tuesday. and the men's findings, you can see the knock-on effect here, kim. the men's finals concluding now on wednesday. >> all right. now, you know, yesterday, you

kind of rubbed my nose in it. you showed me canada's bad loss to the americans in men's hockey, but canada got a bit of revenge today on the ice, but a different sport. >> well, i hope you can find a little bit of forgiveness for me, kim. it was all well intentioned, but yet, you're right. canada, indeed, emerging triumphant on this day. the men's and the women's curling round robin games getting underway on sunday and the men's team canada defeating team usa, the reigning olympic champions, no less, kim. a really important, and i'll say it, impressive victory for the canadians, who snap a two-game losing streak as a result with just four games left to qualify for the semis. and an emphatic win it was, too. canada even leading the way at 7-1, at one point. 10-5 in the end, the final score on their way -- well, just on their way to winning gold. just going back four years now, on their way to winning gold at the 2018 winter games in south

korea. america beat canada twice, including a 5-3 victory in the semi-finals, so they would have enjoyed this particular success before, then, canada, had won the last three olympic golds. this was the round robin stages, it's still a lot to play for. but a morale-boosting win there. >> good news like that, you're welcome back anytime. >> good to hear. patrick snell, thanks so much. well, french and u.s. leaders again try to talk russia out of invading ukraine, but after investing in a massive military buildup, is the kremlin even listening? we'll have reaction from moscow after the break. plus, we'll talk to a ukrainian lawmaker about the growing fierce of a russian invasion, and so far, while most ukrainians aren't panicking. stay with us. can be transformational. daddy! for the best audio entertainment and storytelling. audible.

welcome back to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada, and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom." the threat of a russian invasion of ukraine has been build for months, but the u.s. and its allies fear it could happen very soon, as diplomatic efforts stall. the uk foreign office says british observers with the organization for security and cooperation in europe are being withdrawn from ukraine for their own safety. u.s. observers have also been told to leave. both countries are among the dozens telling their citizens to get out of ukraine and the u.s. is drawing down its embassy staff. heavily armed russian forces surround ukraine on three sides. the u.s. says poland will allow americans to cross ukraine's western border into poland without prior approval. russian president vladimir putin spoke with president biden on saturday, and separately with

french president emmanuel macron, the top diplomats from russia and the u.s. also had a call. cnn's nic robertson explains what came out of the flurry of high-stakes diplomacy. >> well, from any of these three big phone calls today, president biden, president putin, president putin, president macron,er eer ersergey lavrov w secretary of state blinken, hard to see any advancement. the kremlin's readout from the phone call that president obama was coming from a position of hysteria about this supposed russian invasion of ukraine. the russians pushing back, as well, to what secretary of state antony blinken said on that particular issue, saying that this is really sort of a propaganda position. that this is, you know, allowing the ukrainians the opportunity to rye to start a war in ukraine, start it with the pro-russian, russian-backed

separatists in the east of the country. in all of these diplomatic phone calls, talking past each other, it seems to be the case. and the kremlin in all of these calls, as well, making the point that they haven't had their core issues addressed. those core issues being denying ukraine to be able to have membership of nato and nato to go back to its 1997 lines and membership positions. so the kremlin just staying in their current position, i think, one takeaway, certainly from the phone call with president macron and the phone call that secretary of state antony blinken had, as well, both right to get russia to commit to a track of diplomacy, but by getting to that track, de-escalate the forces around ukraine, show that you're committed to moving forward with diplomacy. that's the way to go. really trying to just test and see if russia does actually have an intention to try to talk this lu. through. or are they really just building

up their forces as a threat, and as the u.s. assesses, they say putin hasn't made a decision, but as the u.s. assesses, increasing looking likely of a possibility of a russian invasion. very hard to make a determined read. president putin just not conceding any ground or developing a new position at all. nic robertson, cnn, moscow. >> a member of the ukrainian parliament joins me now from paris. thanks so much for being here with us. i wanted to start with the strain of this ongoing threat. it's obviously something that many in your country are used to dealing with on some level, but you've written about your own sense of growing panic. why is that? >> the reason being that, obviously, right now, we are all witnessing an escalation of russian aggression towards ukraine. russian aggression, which has

started back in 2014, it will being ayeeight years on februar 22nd. we ukrainians have learned to live with this and to constantly be prepared for the worst, although hoping for the best. but at this point in time, it seems like the west, all of our allies, have also woken up to the fact there is an aggressor in this world, that is breaching all rules of international law. >> i think we may have lost our guest, but -- >> -- but also -- >> sorry, go ahead. we lost you there for a second, but hopefully you finished your thought there about the growing threat that people are seeing

from russia. much of the focus has been on the high-level diplomacy between russia and the u.s. and other western countries like france, where you are right now. do you feel like ukraine is being cut out of the discussion. is your nation having enough say here? >> i think that ukraine needs to be more involved in the negotiations which are happening about and around ukraine. it cannot be just a discussion between putin and biden or between macron and putin. it needs to be involved in the process. what the world cannot afford is for this escalation to turn into world war ii, which will then lead to world war iii. and this is what's going to happen if countries continue to think in terms of spears of influence and if the race for

domination over international affairs continues between france, the uk, or whatever other nation. what is at stake here is the independence of a sovereign st state. what is at stake is the lives of people who chose to live in a democratic country and choose to defend their homeses, their territories, their families and the lives of their children. >> you say you obviously don't want another world war just now. but you tweeted, for every american citizen out of ukraine, the u.s. should send in a soldier now. i'm wondering how that would help. wouldn't that just escalate the conflict and increase the chances of a catastrophic military confrontation between the u.s. and russia? >> appeasement for sure didn't work. and eight years of russian

soldiers being station and eight years is the result of that towards putin and trying to talk to him and look into his eyes and find some kind of solution there. wherever the aggressor or a bully is being appeased, they just go on the offensive even more. and the world has been witnessing that for the last eight years. so the only way out is to actually stand up and stand strong together, with all allied partners behind ukraine, and also within ukraine, ready to fight back putin, and sending him a strong signal that this fight is going to happen, and there's no way out of it for him. and. and another thing that a lot of people are talking about, well, a lot of people, a lot of --

>> i think we might have actually lost her signal there. we would like to thank her very much, ukrainian member of parliament, leslie vasalenko. all right, still ahead, today is the day for super bowl lvi. the l.a. rams and cincinnati bengals hope to hoist the lombardi trophy. we'll have a preview of the big game, coming up. and if the pressure playing on football's biggest stage isn't enough, well, players will have to battle record heat. we'll have the super bowl forecast when we come back. stay with us. comfortable anywhere and spread germs everywhere. wherever they rest protection nothing kills more viruses, including the covid-1919 virus, on more surfaces than lysol disinfectant spray. lysol. what it takes to protect.

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football's biggest day is here. the los angeles rams will take on the cincinnati bengals, just hours from now in super bowl lvi. it's a matchup few people expected before the season started. the bengals are led by upcoming

superstar quarterback joe burrow, while the rams have stars all over their roster. here's cnn's sports aindy schols with a preview. >> reporter: it's finally here. super bowl sunday. the cincinnati bengals and los angeles rams set to take the field later today at sofi stadium in super bowl lvi. it's going to be a hot one. it got up to 90 degrees on saturday. a heat advisory is in effect until later tonight. the game likely going to set the record for hottest super bowl in history, breaking the record by los angeles back in 1973. and this is a game that no one expected. the bengals had 120-1 odds of winning it all before the cinci season. cincinnati, one of 12 teams that have never won a super bowl. the rams trying to become the second straight team to win the big game at home. and all the players on both sides hoping they'll be the ones hoisting the lombardi trophy by

the end of the day. >> these opportunities are what you play the game for. i'm so lucky to be in this situation and being able to go out and battle one more time with this great group of guys that i have as teammates and coaches. >> it's a dream come true. i've been saying this, talking about it since i was a kid. >> in eight years, i accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. and one thing i feel like i'm lacking is being a world champion. so it would mean a lot to me. >> i think as a team, we're excited to put a product on the field that the fans can be proud of and gives them bragging rights. i'm excited to give them that. >> reporter: there are a lot of fans invested in this game. joe burrow has the entire state of ohio plus luxury su nation rooting for him. matthew stafford, meanwhile, has his hometown dallas, georgia, where he went to college, and detroit cheering for him.

and lions fans going so far as to make detroit rams t-shirts to show their support. and lots of excitement surrounding this year's super bowl halftime show, featuring dr. dre, snoop dogg, eminem, mary j. blige and kendrick lamar. this is going to be the first time ever that the halftime show features hip-hop artists at the main act. >> so as andy mentioned, the heat could be a big factor in the game. los angeles is currently under a heat advisory and game day temperatures will be in the mid-80s. meteorologist tyler malden will take us through it. so just what's it going to be like there in the stadium? >> yeah, so it's going to be feeling springlike, if not summer like, as we get into this afternoon. as you can see behind me, the forecast is calling for temperatures to be around 80 degrees or so. as you can see. well, it looks like my graphic system here is not wanting to cooperate with me.

let me step off-camera real quick. we'll see if we can get this to work for us. now, those temperatures are going to be in the mid-80s once we get later on into the afternoon. and that warrants a heat advisory. here we go! i got the graphics ready! live tv, isn't it fun? so heat advisory is in effect for us until 6:00 p.m., down here in southern california. temperatures nearing 90 degrees. these temperatures are record-breaking. and we've hit 90 degrees, as andy mentioned just a second ago. that did rewrite the record books for you are here down in southern california on friday. we'll hit repeat, but it won't be quite as warm on super bowl sunday. the hottest super bowl on record was back in '73. a temperature of 84 degrees. we could tie, if not break that. and we do expect this to be a top five warmest super bowl on record, for sure. again, right around game time, temperatures will be if the low,

low 80s. mind you, it is february, so it is wintertime. we expand the view and you can see it's not summerlike across the midwest and much of the east coast. it's feeling like wintertime. we have cold air spilling down from canada, and that's being felt in the midwest. portions of the midwest are waking up to temperatures feeling like they're around minus 30 to minus 40 degrees. and meanwhile, from the virginias all the way up into new jersey and on up into new england, we're expecting some wintry stuff later on today. look at these temperatures. 10 degrees in mainneapolis. this is for a high this afternoon. 43 in st. louis. 35 in louisville, and seasonable temperatures across the south and the plains. the really warm stuff is out there across southern california. what about the snowfall that's going to be featured on super bowl sunday across the east coast? we could see several inches from

north carolina on into new jersey, where we do have winter weather advisories up. about 21 million of us under that winter weather advisory. eventually, we will see boston be included in that. and also, rhode island as well. cape cod and rhode island could see about 6 to 8 inches of snowfall when it's all said and done. after sunrise, i expected you to be added to that winter weather advisory later on today. kim? >> what a contrast with the west coast. thank you so much, tyler malden. appreciate it. well, about 100 million people will watch the super bowl. but for some, it's not about the game, it's about the commercials. and this year, advertisers are shelling out $7 million for a 30-second spot during the super bowl. that's $233,333 per second. that's a record high. and while fans around the world wait for the super bowl to kick off, there's perhaps a cuter bowl game capturing the attention of many viewers.

puppy bowl xviii. this year, more than 100 adoptable puppy players will square off on two separate teams. team can yruff coached by marth stewart will team off against team fluff coached by snoop dog. the event is available to viewers on discovery plus and animal planet starting at 2:00 p.m. eastern time here in the u.s. it's a great cause. well, you might have heard a chant recently from bengals fans. it's from decades of failure and misery by long-suffering fans. have a listen here. >> the bengals' super bowl chant is on his right foot, the kick is up, it is good!

♪ chanting: who dey? ♪ >> how happy are you, dad. >> the cincinnati bengals are headed to super bowl 56. >> so see their reactions on social media, to see the emotion and passion around this team, this city is on fire for the cincinnati bengals. it's awesome. >> the first thing i did is i called my dad and got him crying too. >> i was at the afc championship game and cried my eyes out. >> you see more people out, more people in their orange and black, shouting who dey than ever before. it is everything we believe and it's time. >> there's a lot of swagger, a lot of energy, a lot of excitement here in the city. everybody is wearing bengal gear. we came to keep black and orange on the shelves and hangers. it's crazy. >> and joe burrow as done that.

he's made the bengals cool. >> the swagger of joey bags. >> joe burr. >> joey franchise. >> smoking joe. >> can't go wrong with joe shysty. >> he brings a calm, cool, collected demeanor and that transfers to the rest of the team and weirdly, that transfers to the rest of the city, as well. we're feeling it. >> his fan base, i think, is the most deserving fan base in the nfl. what we've suffered through, we deserve super bowl. >> be grateful, you know, us. you know, alumni, you know, we're rooting on those guys, we're behind them 1,000%. >> when we win the super bowl, you will see this town party like you've never seen us party before. >> it would mean everything. we have been waiting three decades. >> i can't put it into words how much it would mean if the bengals won the super bowl. >> i'm going to die a happy man at that point if the bengals get that super bowl win. >> i can't even imagine. the energy in the city right now is crazy and we haven't even won it all yet. >> this tiger will have some

tears rolling out of these eyes. it's been a long time coming. >> who dey think going to bengals? nobody! not ththose rams. who dey cincinnati.

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well, a huge roar of a crowd is something you might see at a football game or a rock concert, not a golf course. so let's explain why they went so crazy here. pga tour golfer sam ryder teed it up in front of a massive crowd at the phoenix open on saturday. the ball bounced on to the green and right into the hole. ryder can't believe it. he's jumping up and down. thousands of fans watching in the stands go crazy, throwing beer cans into the air, cups on to the course. that's obviously a moment ryder won't soon forget. have a look here. colorful lights, floats, and dancers parade the streets of southern france, loudly celebrating the return of the nice festival. it was canceled last year due to covid, but opening on friday, roaring the theme, king of the animals. organizers hope to seat 5,000 people and welcome 7,000 standing spectators. attendees must wear face masks and carry proof of vaccination,

according to local news reports. the carnival is open for 15 days, closing on february 27th. well, valentine's day is tomorrow and love is in the air, but thanks to supply chain issues, the cost of celebrating could spell heartbreak for your bank account. cnn's lynda kinkade explains. >> the classic red rose, a symbol of romance, and a staple of valentine's day around the world. but this year because of covid-19 and supply chain issues, florists are facing some thorny issues like price increases. >> according to the society of american florists, in some areas, the cost of valentine's day day roses is as much as 60% higher than their everyday price. but that increase can voyary bad on locations. shipping and increased labor cost have driven up the price, which they pass on to the consumer. >> definitely higher prices.

double, double from last spring. >> reporter: despite the high prices, people are still buying. sales of valentine's day, flowers, candy and cards in the u.s. are expected to rake in nearly $24 billion this year, according to the national retail federation. just two years ago, flower growers in the netherlands, the world's biggest flower exporter, were destroying their stems because of a lack of demand. many florists around the world have temporarily closed their business because of covid lockdowns. but the industry is blooming once more. weddings are back on and florists say people send flowers as a way of keeping in touch during the pandemic, and that hasn't slowed down. flower growers in columbia who primarily sell to the u.s. say the biggest challenge this year is keeping up with demand. >> the difficulties has been

huge. the main thing is to protect the health of the workers and on the other side, the logistical problems. the lack of areal transport. >> reporter: experts say it's best to beplexable when shopping for flowers this year. >> there's a shortage in what i understand with white flowers and roses and what not. but there are other products and other floral products that are readily available and abundant. >> as shakespeare wrote, a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. this year, consumers might have to look to other options if the price of that perfect red rose is too dear. lynda kinkade, cnn. well, here's another gift idea for valentine's day. the idaho potato commission has launched a french fry-scented perfume. that's right, if your love one loves the smell of this salty side item, this might be the gift to get. it's made from distilled potatoes and essential oils and retails for just under $2, and that's about the price of a large order of fries from a fast food restaurant here in the

u.s.. why? i'm kim brunhuber. i'll be back with more "cnn newsroom" in just a moment. please do stay with us. can be transfoformational. daddy! for the bestst audio entertainment and storytytelli. auaudible. for rob, it took years to find out why his constipation with belly pain just wouldn't go away. despite all he did to manage his mptoms... day after day. awful feings he tried not showing. finally with the help of his , that his symptom were all signs of ibs-c. and that's why he said yess to adding linzess. linzess is not a laxative. it helps you have more frequent and complete bowel movements, and is proven to help relieve overall abdominal symptoms belly pain, discomfort, and bloating. do not give linzess to children less than two. it may harm them. do not take linzess if you have a bowel blockage. get immediate help if you develop unusual or severe stomach pain. especially with bloody or black stools. the most common side effect is diarrhea, sometimes severe.

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hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada, and all around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. ukra ukrainians raise their voices in unison. we have reports from washington, moscow, and eastern ukraine. plus, a third weekend of demonstrations in canada, as truckers protest vaccine mandates by blocking vital trade routes into and out of their own