Search results

London picked to host 2016 Track World Championships Chief executive Ian Drake is relishing the challenge ahead after British Cycling earned the right to host the 2016 UCI Track World Championships in London. British Cycling began the process to bring the World Championships to the capital in...

Kvitova downs Kerber to take Tokyo title Czech Petra Kvitova overcame a second set meltdown to dispatch Angelique Kerber 6-2 0-6 6-3 in the final of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo on Saturday to claim her 11th WTA tour title. The 2011 Wimbledon champion sealed victory on her fourth match point...

Athletics - Johnson hopes for 'new chance' after being 'nailed to the cross' Cheat. ********. Canada's shame: Ben Johnson has been called all these things and more in the last 25 years. Few athletes evoke the same depth of disdain as Johnson, the Canadian sprinter whose steroid-fuelled surge...

Martin defends title, Wiggins second German Tony Martin crushed his rivals including Olympic champion Bradley Wiggins to clinch a third consecutive time trial title at the cycling world championships on Wednesday. Martin, the 2011 and 2012 world champion, clocked 1:05:36 over 57.9 kms from...

Nadal merits mention in all-time great debate - Sampras Spaniard Rafael Nadal's name should be mentioned in any debate on the greatest tennis player of all time, according to former world number one Pete Sampras. American Sampras, owner of 14 grand slam titles, considers Swiss Roger Federer as...

Athletics - Disgraced Johnson no longer running from doping past For 10 awe-inspiring seconds on September 24, 1988, Canadians held their breath then exhaled and exploded in the type of wild chest-thumping celebrations usually reserved for the hockey-mad nation's greatest victories on the ice...

Kvitova ends Venus's run in Tokyo Former world number one Venus Williams' strong run in the Pan Pacific Open came to an end with a narrow semi-final defeat to seventh seed Petra Kvitova. Kvitova rallied to beat the former world number one 3-6 6-3 7-6 (2) in Tokyo to set up a final against...

Dowsett backing himself in time trial Sir Bradley Wiggins may be the second favourite for time trial gold at the Road World Championships in Tuscany but Alex Dowsett insists he shouldn't be written off himself. Wiggins and Dowsett are the two Brits chosen for the time trial in Italy with...

Athletics - Johnson scandal stunted sport's commercial growth Marketing experts fondly recall Seoul 1988 as the Games when the Olympic movement put behind it political boycotts and started to develop its true commercial potential. However, the sensational Ben Johnson ***** bust in Seoul and...

Van Dijk claims second gold Ellen van Dijk secured her second title at the 2013 World Championships with a dominant display in the elite women’s time trial. The 23-year-old Dutch rider, who had earlier won gold in the team time trial on Sunday, was last to set off across the 25.3km course from...

Venus denied fastest serve in absence of technology Venus Williams was denied a chance to better her world record for fastest serve in women's tennis in absence of proper measuring technology at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. Williams blasted a 209km-per-hour serve during Thursday's 6-3 6-7...

Athletics - Sprint doping scandals since Johnson's downfall Twenty-five years ago this week, in the biggest scandal to hit the Olympics, Ben Johnson was stripped of his 100 metres gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Games after testing positive for ****** steroids. Johnson served a two-year...

Barker ready for 'different' team pursuit Elinor Barker admits the changes to the women's team pursuit will be noticeable at the British Cycling National Track Championships this week even if the outcome is starting to feel the same. Barker will ride the team pursuit alongside Laura Trott...

Serena to end year as world number one for third time Serena Williams has clinched the year-end women's world number one ranking for the third time in her career after winning two grand slam titles during an excellent 2013. The American has compiled a 67-4 record this season and won nine...

Athletics - Bolt commits to Puma until after 2016 Olympics Olympic sprint champion Usain Bolt has renewed his long-standing sponsorship deal with Puma until after the 2016 Games in Rio, the German sportswear company said on Tuesday. Bolt has been with Puma for a decade and the renewal of the...

Williams reaches semi-finals in Tokyo Venus Williams continued her run of form in Tokyo with a battling 6-3 6-7(4) 6-3 win over Canadian hope Eugenie Bouchard. Williams came into the quarter-final match off the back of an impressive win over top seed and world number two Victoria Azarenka. But...

Cilic cited injury to hide failed ***** test Marin Cilic cited a knee injury at Wimbledon this year to hide the fact he had failed a dope test, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) has revealed after handing the Croatian a nine-month suspension. The former world number nine, ****** last...

Alonso won't abandon cycling team plans Fernando Alonso says he remains determined to have his own cycling team after his plans to purchase Euskaltel Euskadi collapsed. The Spanish squad, which with Alonso had reached an agreement at the end of last month, said on Monday that talks had come to...

WTA hail Li as China production line continues WTA chief Stacey Allaster hailed Li Na's rise as a key factor behind the growth of women's tennis in Asia as the next generation of Chinese players follow in the Grand Slam winner's footsteps and make their mark on the game. Li's 2011 French Open...

Snooker - Lee ****** for 12 years Stephen Lee has been ****** for an unprecedented 12 years and ordered to pay £40,000 costs after being found guilty of match-fixing charges. The World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) said in a statement that Lee, 38, was barred from...

AFC Champions League - FC Seoul eye Champions League final after first leg win FC Seoul took a big step towards the AFC Champions League final by overcoming Esteghlal of Iran 2-0 in the first leg of their last-four clash on a poor pitch in the South Korean capital on Wednesday. Montenegro...

Sailing - Ainslie guides Oracle to brink of miraculous America's Cup comeback Oracle Team USA came from behind in race 19 of the America's Cup to defeat Emirates Team New Zealand and tie the series, which now heads into a final race scheduled for Wednesday that will decide the trophy winner...

Liga - Atletico Madrid stay perfect, Malaga beat Almeria Atletico Madrid continued their perfect start to the season courtesy of a 2-1 win against Osasuna. Diego Costa grabbed a double as the capital club made it six wins from six to sit just behind Barcelona on goal difference. First, he...

Athletics - Smith true winner of 'dirtiest race' in history If anti-doping regulations had been strictly enforced, Calvin Smith, a gifted American sprinter with a distinctive upright style, would have left the 1988 Seoul Games as the Olympic 100 metres champion and world-record holder. On the...

Europa League - Swansea outclass woeful Valencia Europa League Group A, Mestalla Stadium - Valencia 0 Swansea 3 (Bony 14, Michu 58, De Guzman 62) Swansea made a brilliant start to their Europa League campaign, beating 10-man Valencia 3-0 in the Mestalla. The Welsh side thoroughly outclassed...

Athletics - Photographer's account of Johnson's downfall Gary Hershorn gained the trust of compatriot Ben Johnson in the run-up to the 1988 Seoul Olympics and had special access to the sprinter's training. Here he looks back at that time and at Johnson's downfall. Standing shirtless on the...

Europa League - Defoe nets brace as Spurs brush aside Tromso Europa League Group K, White Hart Lane - Tottenham 3 (Defoe 21, 29, Eriksen 86) Tromso 0 Jermain Defoe scored twice as Tottenham overcame Norwegian minnows Tromso 3-0 in their opening Group K game in the Europa League. As expected...

Athletics - Reporter recalls sleepless night of Johnson's ******** Mike Collett recalls covering the unfolding story of Ben Johnson's downfall at the Seoul Olympics. Covering sport in 55 countries over the last 40 years I have seen the greats reach the stars and I have seen the stars fall from...

Europa League - Shock home defeat for PSV The opening group stage matches threw up a shock in Eindhoven where PSV, one of five teams in action who have previously won the UEFA Cup or Europa League, were beaten 2-0 by Bulgarian champions Ludogorets Razgrad in Group B. PSV goalkeeper Jeroen...

Triathlon - Dame Kelly's pride in Stanford's world success Double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes watched with pride as Non Stanford stormed to the women's world triathlon title in London. Holmes spotted the sporting potential of the 24-year old nine years ago, though initially she backed...

Downey appointed LTA chief executive Michael Downey has been named the new chief executive of the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA). Downey, who has been CEO of Tennis Canada for the past nine years, will replace Roger Draper, who leaves the position at the end of the month after more than seven...

Liga - Sanchez at the double as Espanyol beat Bilbao Victor Sanchez scored twice as Espanyol leapfrogged opponents Athletic Bilbao into fifth place with a 3-2 victory. Javier Aguirre's side took the game to their Basque opponents, pinning them in their own half during the opening 10 minutes –...

Snooker - Lee match-fixing sentence deferred Stephen Lee must wait until Wednesday to find out his sentence for match-fixing after tribunal chairman Adam Lewis QC deferred the decision. The hearing took place as expected on Tuesday but the sanction for what the sport's governing body described...

Murray tweets thanks after successful surgery Andy Murray's back surgery is likely to rule him out for the remainder of the season. Murray, who won Olympic singles gold at London 2012 last year before returning to SW19 to claim his first Wimbledon career title this summer, went under the *****...

Bundesliga - Freiburg still without a win after Hertha draw Freiburg again failed to hang on to a lead in a 1-1 draw at home against Hertha Berlin to remain winless in the league. Freiburg, who squandered a 2-0 lead against Slovan Liberec in the Europa League on Thursday, took a sixth-minute...

Bundesliga - Bayern catch Dortmund after win at Schalke Bayern Munich ruthlessly closed the gap at the top of the Bundesliga courtesy of a 4-0 win against Schalke at the Gelsenkirchen. First-half goals from Mario Mandzukic and Bastian Schweinsteiger were added to by Franck Ribery and Claudio...

Bundesliga - Dortmund's winning streak ends at Nuremberg Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund struggled to a 1-1 draw at Nuremberg on Saturday that ended their perfect start to the season of five straight league wins. Despite several changes to the team that lost 2-1 at Napoli in the Champions...

Bundesliga - Moenchengladbach go fourth with big win Borussia Moenchengladbach crushed promoted Eintracht Braunschweig 4-1 on Friday for their third straight home win that lifted them to fourth place in the Bundesliga. Gladbach, who have lost all three away games this season but have scored 11...

Ligue 1 - Saint Etienne stunned by Toulouse Saint Etienne missed out on the chance to go top of Ligue 1 when they were stunned 2-1 by Toulouse at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard. The hosts began well enough with Romain Hamouma capitalising on a mistake from Toulouse goalkeeper Ali Ahamada to put...

Serie A - Sampdoria snatch 2-2 draw at Cagliari, Livorno held Sampdoria twice came from behind in the dying moments to rescue a 2-2 draw at Cagliari while Chievo Verona recovered from an early setback to win their first Serie A game of the season 2-1 at home to Udinese on Saturday. Livorno...

Gymnastics - Whitlock level headed as he aims to repeat European success at worlds Max Whitlock is under no illusions as to what it will take to repeat his European Artistic Gymnastics Championship success at the world equivalent in Antwerp next week. The 20-year-old Olympic pommel *****...

Championship - Lingard revels in ***** debut Jesse Lingard described his full senior debut as "a ***** come true" after netting all four goals in Birmingham's 4-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday. The Manchester United forward only arrived on loan at St Andrew's on Thursday but required little...

Basketball - France beat Lithuania to win Eurobasket An inspired France won their maiden basketball title in any major competition after overwhelming Lithuania 80-66 in an enthralling European championship final on Sunday. Thriving On long-range shooting and an effervescent performance by...

Scottish Football - Rangers edge past Forfar Rangers just about made amends for their League Cup exit at the hands of Forfar the last time the two sides met by scraping a 1-0 victory in their Scottish League One meeting at Station Park. The Light Blues were sent crashing out of the cup after...

Basketball - Spain beat Croatia to win Eurobasket bronze Outgoing champions Spain claimed their fourth successive podium finish after beating Croatia 92-66 in the bronze medal match at the European basketball championship in Slovenia on Sunday. The Spaniards bounced back from their dramatic...

Eurobasket - France and Lithuania reach Euro final France earned a shot at their first major basketball title when 31-year-old playmaker Tony Parker inspired an epic 75-72 overtime win over holders Spain in their European Championship semi-final. The French, beaten by Spain in the 2011 final...

Australia’s Howson wins U23 time trial Australia’s Damien Howson took victory in the under-23 time trial at the world championships ahead of France’s Yoann Paillot and Denmark’s Lasse Norman Hansen. The 21-year-old was the only rider to break the 50-minute barrier over the 43.5km route between...

Eurobasket - Lithuania and Croatia march into semis Former winners Lithuania and perennial underachievers Croatia overpowered their opponents on Thursday to march into the semi-finals of the European Championship. Lithuania, champions in 1937, 1939 and 2003, produced a strong final quarter to...

Euskaltel to fold after Alonso negotiations collapse Team Euskaltel have announced they will fold at the end of the season, less than a month after Formula One driver Fernando Alonso had reached a principal agreement to take over the team’s WorldTour licence. But those negotiations collapsed...

Basketball - Spain crush Serbia to reach Euro semis Holders Spain stayed on course to win a third successive European championship title after guards Rudy Fernandez and Sergio Rodriguez inspired them to a 90-60 mauling of Serbia in Wednesday's quarter-final. The Spaniards, who finished...