A world half-marathon record was broken at a race in China this weekend. But the winner wasn't an Olympian or even a competitive racer. It was a bright red humanoid robot. Nickname? Lightning.

The autonomous robot was competing in a robot versus human half-marathon race in Beijing, China, an annual event featuring the country's top robotics companies in a foot race test against their human counterparts.

Lightning was built by Honor, a Chinese robotics and smartphone maker. The company tested other running robot variants at the race, including the bots that took home second- and third-place titles.

Mashable got an early look at Honor's new line of AI-powered humanoid bots at the latest Mobile World Congress. The bots had an impressive stability (many of these two-legged bots are prone to tumbling) and even a crowd-pleasing dance performance. The company also debuted a new "Robot Phone," featuring a robotic eye and arm that juts out from the smartphone to take photos and respond to requests.

During Sunday's race, the company showed that the new era of humanoid robots aren't just dancers, but competitive athletes, with Lightning taking home the gold in a 50-minute and 26-second sprint — that's six minutes quicker than the fastest human and nearly two hours faster than its time in last year's race. Honor engineers explained that the robot's fast upgrade came from modeling its design after top athletes, including elongated legs and an internal liquid-cooling system.

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Chinese robotics companies have been accelerating their development of humanoid robots over the last several years in direct competition with U.S. manufacturers. Lightning's record-breaking win was taken as a sign that the country's investments may be paying off.

Still, many of the robots needed assistance to cross the finish line. In addition to starting line stumbles and a few falls, about 60 percent of the competing bots were remotely operated by their human teams.

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Today's Connections: Sports Edition will be a little easier if you love baseball.

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections: Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. The sports Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words, and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes before the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: East Coast

• Green: Back end

• Blue: They don't call it soccer

• Purple: Past and present names

Here are today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: AL East Teams

• Green: First Words of Football Positions

• Blue: Premier League Managers

• Purple: Nicknames for the Dodgers Franchise, Over Time

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #573 is…

What is the answer to Connections: Sports Edition today?

• AL East Teams — BLUE JAYS, ORIOLES, RAYS, YANKEES

• First Words of Football Positions — DEFENSIVE, RUNNING, TIGHT, WIDE

• Premier League Managers — EMERY, GUARDIOLA, MOYES, SLOT

• Nicknames for the Dodgers Franchise, Over Time — BRIDEGROOMS, DODGERS, ROBINS, SUPERBAS

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you have a sweet tooth.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

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Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Lippy

• Green: Gowns

• Blue: Played in Vegas

• Purple: Sweet treats

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Cheeky

• Green: Dress measurements

• Blue: Cards in Texas Hold 'Em

• Purple: Last words of candy brands in the singular

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #1043 is…

What is the answer to Connections today

• Cheeky: ARCH, FRESH, SASSY, WISE

• Dress measurements: BUST, HIPS, LENGTH, WAIST

• Cards in Texas Hold 'Em: FLOP, HOLE, RIVER, TURN

• Last words of candy brands in the singular: CAP, DUD, KID, MINT

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.