theindependent--2019-11-10--League of Legends World Championship Finals live: G2 take on FPX in 'biggest event in eSports h

League of Legends World Championship Finals live: G2 take on FPX in 'biggest event in eSports history'

The finals of the 2019 League of Legends World Championship are here at last, marking what many claim to be the pinnacle of eSports.  Nearly 100 million people around the world tuned in for the 2018 finals and this year's event is expected to be even bigger.  Billed as Europe vs. Asia, home favourites G2 ESports (G20 are hoping to become the first Western team to lift the Summoner’s Cup in eight years by beating China's FunPlus Phoenix (FPX).  The opening ceremony, featuring augmented reality hip-hop collective True Damage, will begin at 12pm GMT, with the finals clicking off 30 minutes later.  The Independent is at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris to bring you all the latest updates.  Please wait for the live blog to load.


thetelegraph--2019-09-27--World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 schedule Day by day timings and events to watch

World Athletics Championships Doha 2019 schedule: Day by day timings and events to watch

The 2019 World Athletics Championships take place in Doha from Friday September 27 until Saturday October 5 with athletes from across the globe competing for top honours.  Below is a day by day schedule for the 17th edition of the Championships along with an event to watch each day.  Few athletes competing in Doha will be as short-priced a favourite as Mariya Lasitskene. The Russian, who has been unable to represent her country since their ban in 2015, has lost just four times in four years and sits comfortably atop the global rankings. The main question is not whether she will win, but whether she can edge closer to the world record.


thetelegraph--2019-11-08--World Para Athletics defends decision to host championships in Dubai after events take place in near

World Para Athletics defends decision to host championships in Dubai after events take place in near-empty stadium

World Para Athletics Championships organisers have defended staging the competition in Dubai after the first two days played out in front of embarrassingly low three-figure crowds consisting of little more than team members and their families.  Tickets, which cost less than £5, are not available to buy anywhere online for an event supposed to represent the pinnacle of the sport, with sales taking place each day on the gate only. That has left the two small stands at the 2000-seater Dubai Club for People of Determination largely empty. More than 20 schools will be brought in to provide some atmosphere next week.  It is a stark contrast to the last edition of the championships, which were held in London two years ago and saw 305,000 tickets sold - more than the combined total for all eight previous editions.  Hopes the event might continue that upward curve were dashed by a lack of potential host cities for the 2019 championships and Dubai eventually stepped in at late notice last year.  British athlete Mickey Bushell said he was “disappointed” by the lack of crowds, while team-mate Sammi Kinghorn described it as a “backward step” after the success of London 2017.


birminghammail--2019-03-29--Championship permutations Norwich City can seal top-six spot playoff hunt continues

Championship permutations: Norwich City can seal top-six spot, playoff hunt continues

Championship football returns this weekend following the international break and there is still plenty to be decided at both ends of the table.  The fight between Norwich City, Sheffield United and Leeds United rumbles on, with two of the trio also looking to secure automatic promotion, while beneath them there is a real scrap taking place for a playoff spot.  At the opposite end of the standings, Birmingham City’s nine-point deduction has thrown another name into the ring in the relegation fight, which includes four sides separated by just three points with eight games to play.  As we enter the business end of the season, we’re approaching the stage where certain spots can be clinched and that is the case this weekend. Here, we’ve identified exactly what could be secured in the Championship this weekend.  Norwich City enjoy a four-point lead over Sheffield United and a five-point advantage over Leeds, with a dream scenario for the Canaries seeing them extend that margin if their two title rivals slip. However, it is still too early to secure the title.  Daniel Farke’s side can at least clinch a top-six spot with a win but they would also need either Aston Villa or Preston North End not to win.  Leeds and Sheffield United remain separated by a point, while West Brom would move three points behind Marcelo Bielsa’s side if they beat Birmingham City on Friday evening.  West Brom remain in a strong position in fourth and are likely to guarantee themselves a playoff spot in the coming weeks. Beneath them though, a real scrap is developing for two spots as fifth-placed Middlesbrough are separated by just four points from eleventh-placed Nottingham Forest.  With everything so tight, only the aforementioned Norwich can guarantee a playoff position this weekend.  Ipswich Town could end the weekend 16 points adrift of safety but that would not quite be enough to relegate them - although it would leave the Tractor Boys on the brink of League One football next season.  Plenty of twists and turns could occur this weekend, with just three points separating 19th-placed Wigan Athletic with Rotherham United, the side that currently occupy the final relegation spot.


birminghammail--2019-06-20--Predicted This is where Birmingham City West Brom and Leeds United will finish in the Championship

Predicted: This is where Birmingham City, West Brom and Leeds United will finish in the Championship table

The final Championship table has been predicted ahead of the 2019/20 season.  Anticipation is building ahead of the new campaign after fixtures for the season were released on Thursday.  Leeds United are tipped to secure promotion after last season’s play-off heartbreak, according to SportNation.Bet’s latest supercomputer.  Following the release of the Championship fixtures, the bookie has used a complex calculation based on winner and relegation odds to generate a predicted final Championship league table, with their Supercomputer considering a number of variables including fixture dates, derbies and previous finishing positions.  Marcelo Bielsa’s side look set to put their poor form from the end of last season aside as they enter the 2019/20 season 4/1 favourites for the title, while Fulham (8/1) are predicted to follow them straight back to England’s top flight in second place.  Relegated Cardiff City (9/1) look most likely to finish third and regain a place back in the Premier League via the play-offs, while West Brom (10/1), Middlesbrough (11/1) and Stoke City (12/1) are predicted to make up the remainder of the play-off spots.  The Potters are expected to be this season’s biggest movers with a leap into sixth following an embarrassing 16th place finish last season, while Boro will build on missing out on the play-offs by a single point last term with a fifth-place finish.  Huddersfield (14/1), who also fell through the Premier League trap-door last season, and last year's play-off finalist’s Derby County (16/1) are set to just miss out on a top six finish in seventh and eighth, respectively.  Birmingham City are predicted to finish 16th after Garry Monk's departure.  Meanwhile, League One winners Luton Town have the best chance out of the newly promoted sides with a 17thplaced finish predicted, although it is uncomfortable reading for Charlton and Barnsley, who are the likeliest sides to be relegated at 2/1 and 7/4, respectively.  They will be joined by Mark Warburton’s Queens Park Rangers, who are 5/2 to drop down to League One – however – it will be a close run-in with Wigan Athletic (11/4) and the sides are set to meet in a crucial relegation scrap just five games before the end of the season.  A SportsNation.Bet spokesman said: “With the Championship fixtures now out we can take a look at certain dates that will be crucial come to the end of the season and it is Leeds United who are outright favourites to lift the trophy.  “Fulham will be tightly pushed by Cardiff for second, but it looks likely that the Welsh side will have to earn their place back in the top flight with a play-off final win over West Brom.  “Meanwhile, Charlton and Barnsley fans look set to be in for torrid seasons with QPR are set to drop to League One for the first time in over 10 years."


eveningstandard--2019-07-02--Wimbledon 2019 Hana Cross and Romeo Beckham head to Centre Court for second day of tennis champions

Wimbledon 2019: Hana Cross and Romeo Beckham head to Centre Court for second day of tennis championships

Hana Cross was among the stars who headed to Centre Court to catch the action on the second day of Wimbledon.  The model, who is currently dating Brooklyn Beckham, looked season-appropriate in a green floral mini-dress by Realisation Par paired with a white denim jacket and black espadrilles.  Cross relaxed in the evian Live Young suite between matches, where she was joined by former Made in Chelsea star Ashley James and DJ Charlotte de Carle.  Her boyfriend’s younger brother Romeo was also spotted at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club for day two of the annual championships.  The 16-year-old looked ready for a match in a pristine white t-shirt and matching shorts with a black baseball cap.  The teen is a keen tennis fan and was previously described by Grigor Dimitrov as “a very talented kid” who “showed a lot of potential.”  Strictly Come Dancing star Katya Jones and Midsommar actor Will Poulter were also present for the second day of tennis.  The Duchess of Cambridge made a surprise visit to the championships to watch rising British star Harriet Dart take on American Christina McHale.  Wearing Wimbledon whites, the Duchess headed to Court 14 to catch the match, sitting alongside British Fed Cup captain Anne Keothavong and British player Katie Boulter, who is not taking part in the tournament due to a back injury.  She later headed to the royal box at Centre Court to watch Serena Williams take on Guilia Gatto-Monticone and was also photographed cheering for UK hopeful Johanna Konta as she played Ana Bogdan.  The Duchess is patron of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.  Yesterday saw the likes of Rebel Wilson, Rochelle and Marvin Humes and Lara Stone attend the opening day of the iconic sporting event.


eveningstandard--2019-09-25--World Athletics Championships 2019 Doha medal table and Team GB medallists

World Athletics Championships 2019: Doha medal table and Team GB medallists

The USA are hot favourites to top the medal table once again at the 2019 Athletics World Championships in Doha, Qatar.  The USA dominated at the last world championships in London, winning a total of 30 medals, including 11 golds.  Great Britain won six medals during those championships, but a third of them were claimed by Mo Farah, who will not be competing in Doha as he focuses on October’s Chicago Marathon.  Unsurprisingly, it is the USA who also lead the all-time medal table, having won 156 golds prior to these championships, with Kenya a distant second on 55 golds, the majority of which have been won in the distance running events.  Russia are third on the all-time table, but will not compete in Doha after the IAAF extended their ban against the country’s federation over doping violations, though some Russians will compete as authorised neutral athletes.  Jamaican sprint star Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce is the most decorated athlete to be competing at these championships, having won nine world medals, including seven golds.  Full medal table will appear below once the first final has concluded…


eveningstandard--2019-09-25--World Athletics Championships 2019 on TV How to watch and live stream online for free

World Athletics Championships 2019 on TV: How to watch and live stream online for free

For ten days, from September 27 to October 6, Doha will play host to the 2019 Athletics World Championships.  The planet’s finest athletes will head to the newly renovated Khalifa International Stadium to compete to be crowned world champion.  Dina Asher-Smith is Great Britain’s biggest individual medal hope as she goes into both the 100m and 200m among the favourites, while Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Laura Muir will hope to make the podium in the heptathlon and 1500m repectively.  There is a two-hour time-difference between Qatar and the UK, and with several events being held late in the evening to avoid the midday heat, viewing times are ideal for fans on these shores.  Scroll down for all the details on how to follow the action...  The BBC will be showing the majority of the championships live on free-to-air television on either BBC One or BBC Two.  A few select events, such as the marathons and racewalks, will only be available via the red button.  The BBC’s punditry team will be headed by its usual host of British athletics legends, including Paula Radcliffe, Denise Lewis, Colin Jackson and Steve Cram, as well as former world record holder Michael Johnson.  You can also follow the entire championships LIVE on Standard Sport's blog.  There will be live uninterrupted coverage of every event on the BBC Sport website and BBC iPlayer.  Mobile users who are also TV licence payers can also stream the action live for free on the BBC iPlayer app.


eveningstandard--2019-09-25--World Athletics Championships 2019 schedule and results The full IAAF timetable from Doha

World Athletics Championships 2019 schedule and results: The full IAAF timetable from Doha

The 2019 Athletics World Championships take place in Doha, Qatar, across the next ten days, as the planet’s best athletes compete to win gold.  The British charge will be led by sprint star Dina Asher-Smith, as she targets medals in both the 100m and 200m, as well as the 4x100m relay.  The men’s sprint relay team will be looking to defend the world title they won on home soil in London two years ago, with middle distance star Laura Muir and heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson among the other leading medal contenders.  In the first global championships since Usain Bolt and Mo Farah hung up their spikes, the stage is set for a new wave of international stars to make their mark.  American sprinters Noah Lyles and Christian Coleman are both chasing their first major outdoor titles, Nafi Thiam, Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Sifan Hassan all arrive in the form of their lives, while 400m hurdlers Sydney McLaughlin, Karsten Warholm and Dalilah Muhammad will all be looking to cap epic seasons with medals.  Scroll down for a full schedule of events…


eveningstandard--2019-09-25--World Athletics Championships records The full list of world records

World Athletics Championships records: The full list of world records

The 2019 Athletics World Championships have arrived in Doha, with the planet's finest athletes set to compete over ten days.  At the last World Championships, in London two years ago, there was just one new world record set, as Portugal's Ines Henriques smashed the men's mark in the 50km race walk.  However, this year already, US star Dalilah Muhammad has set a new world record in the 400m hurdles, while Karsten Warholm has his eyes on the men's equivalent.  Sprint sensation Noah Lyles has chosen to target the 200m, and has even spoken about having a crack at Usain Bolt's world record, while the Netherlands' Sifan Hassan broke the mile world record earlier this season and looks set to run in the 10,000m, as well as either the 1500m or 5,000m.  Scroll down for the full list of world records in events set to take place in Doha...


eveningstandard--2019-09-28--Athletics World Championships schedule today Menaposs 100m and womenaposs 10000m gold on the l

Athletics World Championships schedule today: Men's 100m and women's 10,000m gold on the line

There are six gold medals on offer on day two of the 2019 Athletics World Championships in Doha.  Every morning during the championships, Standard Sport will be bringing you a preview of the day's action.  Sifan Hassan goes into tonight’s women’s 10,000m final as something of an unknown quantity, but with the potential to be the star of these championships.  The Dutch athlete has been dominant over shorter distances so far this season, breaking the mile world record and winning the Diamond League titles over both 1500m and 5000m.  However, the schedule in Doha does not facilitate a double in the latter two events, so, in the form of her life, Hassan has decided to race the longest track distance first, and then decide which of her favoured events to take on.  The 26-year-old is only ranked tenth of those entered, behind Britain Eilish McColgan in ninth, but do not read too much into that  - she has only run one competitive 10,000m on the track in her life, and won it, at the Payton Jordan Invitational in May.  Christian Coleman shrugged off any suggestion that he was arriving at these championships rusty as he qualified fastest for today’s 100m semi-finals. The American was the only man to break ten seconds in yesterday’s heats, despite not having raced since July as controversy brewed over three missed drugs tests.  Rather than look vulnerable, the pre-event favourite enhanced his credentials, and looks the one to beat in tonight’s final, presuming he safely navigates his semi.  The good news for British fans is that Zharnel Hughes could well content for a medal on yesterday’s showing. Hughes recovered from an awful start in impressive fashion, quickening away to win his heat in 10.08. He also said afterwards that his struggles at the start were down to his blocks, rather than any technical deficiency, so you would hope that is something he can resolve today.  Britain’s (hopefully) golden girl begins her quest for a hat-trick of medals at these championships in the 100m on Saturday. She’s the fastest woman in her heat by some way this season, and shouldn’t have any trouble breezing into the semi-finals.  The 100m is supposed to be Asher-Smith’s weaker event, but there’s no doubt that her brilliant win in the Diamond League final earlier month, over a field that included world leader Shelly-Ann Fraser-Price, has changed the feel around what might be possible in the shorter sprint.  A gimmick that devalues the sport’s flagship event, or a positive move by a federation willing to experiment and reinvent to attract a new audience? You decide, but the 4x400m mixed relay will make its world championship debut later on today, and looks like it’s here to stay, having already been confirmed as an Olympic event for Tokyo next year.  No one really has a clue who is supposed to win, and given there are no rules about which gender athletes run on which legs, we probably won’t be able to work it out until the final few metres either, so it should be exciting, if not a little out of place.  The men’s 400m hurdles will continue to build towards what we’re expecting to be an epic final, though interestingly Abderrahamn Samba and Rai Benjamin, the pair who currently share third place on the all-time list, have been drawn in the same semi-final, so we’ll get a much better idea about the former’s fitness.  The men’s pole vault gets up and running, but as with the women’s equivalent on day one, you wonder whether the automatic qualifying mark looks a little low to really get the tension going with a drop of jeopardy.  Seventeen women qualified for the final yesterday, while 21 of the men’s field go into their qualifier knowing they have cleared the 5.75m benchmark at least once already this season.


eveningstandard--2019-09-29--World Athletics Championships Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce wins 100m gold as Dina Asher-Smith takes silv

World Athletics Championships: Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce wins 100m gold as Dina Asher-Smith takes silver

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce produced a sensational performance to take gold in the women’s 100m at the Athletics World Championships in Doha, as Dina Asher-Smith broke her own British record to win silver.  Asher-Smith had already made history by becoming the first British woman to ever reach a world 100m final, and delivered the best performance of her life with a run of 10.83 to win her first global medal. But it was not enough to deny Fraser-Pryce who stormed away to win in 10.71, with Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou taking the bronze.  Asher-Smith’s silver is Britain’s first medal of these championships, and the 23-year-old may yet add two more, with her preferred event, the 200m, still to come, as well as the 4x100m relay.  Christian Taylor won his fourth successive world title in the men’s triple jump as he survived a scare to take gold ahead of long term rival Will Claye, with Hughes Fabrice Zango of Burkina Faso taking bronze with a new African record of 17.66m.  Taylor was on the verge of going out after fouling with each of his first two attempts, but recovered in round three, before pulling out a season’s best 17.92m with his fifth jump to defend his crown.  Earlier in the evening, Anzhelika Sidorova produced a huge lifetime best of 4.95m to win gold with the final jump of a thrilling women’s pole vault competition.  The authorised neutral athlete had an identical card to America’s Sandi Morris, and both women failed with their first two attempts at the decisive height, before Sidorova went clear. Olympic champion Katerina Stefanidi of Greece took bronze, with Britain’s Holly Bradshaw an agonising fourth.  Alyson Felix became the most decorated athlete in world championship history as she helped the USA to victory in the inaugural mixed 4x400m relay final in a new world record time of 3:09.34. The 33-year-old has now won 12 world titles, one more than Jamaican sprint legend Usain Bolt.


eveningstandard--2019-10-04--World Athletics Championships Dalilah Muhammad breaks world record to take 400m hurdles gold

World Athletics Championships: Dalilah Muhammad breaks world record to take 400m hurdles gold

Dalilah Muhammad broke the 400m hurdles world record for the second time this season to take gold at the World Athletics Championships in Doha.  The Olympic champion ran 52.16, bettering the mark of 52.20 that she set at the US Trials earlier this year, to beat American rival Sydney McLaughlin, who smashed her own PB in taking silver in 52.23, just 0.03 outside the old world record.  Jamaica’s Rushell Clayton took a distant bronze in a new personal best of 53.74, while Switzerland’s Lea Sprunger broke her own national record in fourth, but the story was all about the two Americans, who have been going at it all season.  Muhammad’s victory at the US Trials had come as something of a surprise, with McLaughlin reversing the form in the Diamond League final in the build-up to Doha.  Both women had cruised through their heats, setting up another highly-anticipated hurdles match-up, after Karsten Warholm had edged out Rai Benjamin in the men’s equivalent.  Muhammad got out best, but McLaughlin was expected to come hard, and had she not checked into her eighth barrier turning for home it may have been her claiming gold and the fastest time in history.  Instead, she had to settle for silver, and the knowledge that it has taken the fastest run in history to inflict her only two defeats in the event this season, as Muhammad finally claimed gold, after finishing second at the 2013 and 2017 worlds.


eveningstandard--2019-10-10--London leads in race to host 2026 European Athletics Championships

London has moved into pole position to host the 2026 multi-sport European Championships.  Three UK cities are pushing to put on the event, which incorporates athletics, aquatics, cycling, golf, gymnastics, rowing and triathlon, and was launched last year across two cities, Berlin and Glasgow.  Munich is the favoured location for the 2022 championships from a shortlist which also included London.  The capital is now vying to host the subsequent championships, along with Birmingham and Gateshead. Birmingham will have the infrastructure in place in the wake of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, while Gateshead’s cause is being pushed by former British athlete-turned-commentator Brendan Foster.  But London looks to have moved into the top spot, the capital’s credentials making it an easier choice thanks in part to the venues already in place from the 2012 Olympics but also because of expected crowd numbers.


renegadetribune--2019-08-31--The World Heavyweight Championship Riyadh Follows Israels Lead in Whitewashing Its War Crimes

The World Heavyweight Championship – Riyadh Follows Israel’s Lead in Whitewashing Its War Crimes

When it was announced earlier this month that the high-profile rematch between former world heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua and his conqueror Andy Ruiz would take place in Saudi Arabia, the news came as a surprise but not a complete shock to sports fans.  Although not as high profile a fight venue as Madison Square Garden or Las Vegas, several high profile bouts have taken place in the oil-rich desert kingdom over the past year; English Boxer Callum Smith defeated fellow countryman George Groves in front of a Jeddah crowd in September 2018 to claim the super-middleweight world title, and former light-welterweight world champion Amir Khan knocked Australian Billy Dib out in four rounds in April of this year at the same King Abdullah Sports City venue.  The magnitude of these fights pales in comparisons to that of the upcoming Joshua-Ruiz rematch, however.  Going into their original fight in June of this year, London-born Joshua was heavy favourite to sweep aside the then little-known Ruiz and retain his world heavyweight titles; in what was regarded as one of the biggest sporting upsets of all time, Ruiz would go on to floor the Briton four times before the referee halted the contest in Round 7 in favor of the Mexican-American.  A big-money rematch was immediately announced, with Madison Square Garden and Wales’ Principality Stadium being mooted as venues before eventually being settled on the town of Diriyah, north-west of Riyadh.  The staging of such a high-profile sporting event in the Gulf kingdom will not only allow the wealthy Saudi backers who procured the fight to generate a vast amount of money for themselves, the fighters involved and Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, it also gives Riyadh perhaps the biggest opportunity yet to polish its image on the world stage.  Over the past four years, the US-backed Gulf monarchy has been involved in a bloody war on neighboring Yemen in a bid to reinstall Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi as President; with the House of Saud’s favored candidate having been deposed in March 2015 by the predominantly-Shia Houthi movement, long accused of being backed by Riyadh’s main regional rival, Iran.  With US and British made weapons, and with the help of military advisors from both countries, Riyadh has laid waste to Yemen’s agricultural sector since the beginning of the conflict; leading to widespread famine in what is already the most impoverished country in the Arab peninsula, and the worst recorded cholera outbreak in history.  Although this genocidal campaign has received widespread criticism by international human rights groups, it was last year’s murder of Saudi dissident in exile and Washington Post correspondent, Jamal Khashoggi, by Saudi agents that most effectively placed the world’s focus on the US-backed Gulf regime.  Though this international outcry would ultimately amount to nothing more than empty rhetoric by Western governments, rather than the sanctions and military action that would have taken place had Saudi Arabia been a country opposed to the US-hegemony, the PR damage between Riyadh and potential business partners was done; Virgin tycoon Richard Branson suspended involvement in two Saudi-based tourism directorships as a result of the Khashoggi case, and the Future Investment Initiative (FII), a Riyadh-based high-level business summit, had several high-profile withdrawals in response to the killing.  Therefore, in a bid to improve its international image in the face of mounting international criticism over war crimes committed in Yemen and the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, Riyadh pursued the strategy of hosting high-profile sporting and media events, a strategy that has recently been used by fellow US-ally and human rights-abuser, Israel.  In May of this year, the Eurovision song contest was held in Tel Aviv for the first time; similar to Saudi Arabia’s hosting of the Joshua-Ruiz rematch, the staging of this high-profile event was also done with the intentions of whitewashing the war crimes committed by the host nation, in this case, it being the decades-long Zionist occupation of Palestine and the brutal suppression of the indigenous Arab population that goes with it.  However, Tel Aviv’s attempt at covering up its war crimes failed miserably, with huge international attention being drawn to Israeli war crimes by pro-Palestinian activists during the contest; a stance that one can only hope will be repeated with Saudi Arabia and its war crimes in Yemen, should Riyadh continue to host high-profile sporting events such as the World Heavyweight Championship.


tass--2019-10-02--Russian runner Shubenkov storms into 110 m hurdle final at World Athletics Championships

DOHA, October 2. /TASS/. Russian athlete Sergey Shubenkov has made the final of the 110 meter hurdle event at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar.  The Russian finished second in his semifinal, covering the distance in 13.18 seconds. Two best athletes in three semifinals progress to the final, as well as two best runners from the remaining heats. The final race will also take place on Wednesday evening.  Twenty-eight-year-old Shubenkov is a 2015 World Champion, as well as silver (2017) and bronze (2013) medalist. He has won European Championships twice (2012, 2014), European Indoor Championships (2013). Shubenkov is also a two-time Diamond League champion (2017, 2018) and two-time IAAF Continental Cup champion (2014, 2018).  The World Championships in Doha is scheduled to complete on October 6. Thirty Russian athletes were cleared to participate the event but they are competing as neutrals due to a ban imposed on the All-Russia Athletics Federation (RusAF).


thedailyrecord--2019-04-10--Huge boost for Wishaw as Red Bull bring World Championships to town

The UK’s top bikers along with international stars will descend on Craigneuk this summer.  The Wishawhill Wood pump track was this week confirmed as hosting the UK qualifying event for the Red Bull Pump Track World Championships.  After the Wishaw Press exclusively revealed back in January Red Bull’s interest in the Craigneuk track, it was revealed this week that track had beaten off competition from Glasgow’s Cathkin Braes track to host the event.  Dan Scott, from community interest company Socialtrack, has been one of the driving forces behind persuading Red Bull to come to Craigneuk as well as coaching local kids at the track.  He said: “It’s pretty awesome. A lot of work has gone into this but the hard work really starts now!  “It says a lot about the community that Red Bull have decided to come to our track. They could have held it in Glasgow but they are delighted to be able to bring it here.  “All the kids who use the track are absolutely stoked about having it here.  “They are desperate to get out on the track and do the laps.  “This is absolutely massive for them and they just want to get out there.  “This is the UK qualifiers for the world finals so we will have the best riders in the country here as well as a few international big names.  “It’s the only event being held in the UK this year so it shows just how big this is.”  The track was only formally opened in April last year.  Since then a talented group of Craigneuk kids have been showcasing their new skills at the £200,000 facility constructed by the Central Scotland Green Network Trust (CSGNT) in partnership with North Lanarkshire Council.  The work carried out by renowned international pump track specialists Velosolutions, who transformed the area of wasteland in to a world class track with the support of the local community.  It is supported by Socialtrack, Glencassels Community Development Project and Craignuek Community Council.  Craigneuk councillor Kenneth Duffy said: “This is a great news story for Craigneuk.  “The Red Bull Pump Track World Championship is held across the world, from South Africa, New Zealand, Japan and now Craigneuk.  “We can’t underestimate the great work by Social Track to attract the championships here and the support offered by North Lanarkshire Council, who will work in partnership with Social Track to make the event a huge success.  “The pump track has continued to bring nothing but benefits to our community and this recognition from Red Bull cements what I’m sure will be a lasting legacy for the track and North Lanarkshire.”  The Red Bull Pump Track World Championship qualifiers for 2019 are going to take place all around the world with more than 20 events in Europe, North America, South America and Asia.  In 2018, Mark Ducat and Alyssa Podesta were crowned the UK winners, but it was David Graf and Christa von Niederhäusern, both from Switzerland, who were crowned as world champions in the pouring rain at the Jones Center in Springdale, Arkansas.  The SNP’s Agnes Magowan added: “These days when young people are looking for activities it is amazing that the partnership of Social Track, the council and the Green Network Trust have made such a difference in the area of Craigneuk.  “Instead of pouring over screens and standing around street corners young people are outside keeping fit and socialising and widening their horizons.  “This has been widely recognised and now this prestigious world-wide event has chosen the Wishawhill Wood Pump Track for one of their UK qualifiers. What an honour!”


thedailyrecord--2019-06-19--The Stewartry Secondary Schools District Championships return after a 40-year wait

Pupils from the Stewartry’s secondary schools competed in the District Championships at Dalbeattie Learning Campus last week, a competition last held nearly 40 years ago.  Athletes from Castle Douglas High School, Dalbeattie High School, Dalry Secondary and Kirkcudbright Academy competed for the honour of lifting the Stewartry Schools’ Athletics Championship Shield.  Each school was invited to enter a team of pupils, three boys and three girls from each age group across S1-3, to compete within a number of events within track and field athletics. Points were awarded for each school finishing first to fourth with the team gaining the most points being awarded the Rotary Shield.  There were also individual medals available for pupils finishing first to third in each individual event, including opportunities for senior pupils to compete.  Perfect conditions led to some excellent performances with each winning performance setting a championship record for pupils to aspire to in future years.  Following a full morning of competition the destination of the shield was still up for grabs with Castle Douglas , Dalbeattie and Kirkcudbright all still in contention with only 10 points separating the three schools.  With only the mixed relays to be contested in the afternoon session and double points available, it was all still to play for. The team from Kirkcudbright Academy were eventually crowned champions, however, it went right to the last race.


thedailyrecord--2019-08-27--Coatbridge kid wins gold at prestigious Scottish skating championships

A Coatbridge youngster had the competition in a spin as she brought home the gold from the Scottish International Inclusive Skating Championships.  Megan Cassidy, a sixth-year pupil at Buchanan High School, was absolutely majestic on the ice as she had judges purring with excitement.  She won a gold medal for her superlative efforts during the sporting spectacular held at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield stadium.  A Buchanan High spokesperson said: “Megan had an amazing time and we are so proud of her fantastic performance.  “Her gold medal was very well earned and she also got to meet with Prince Edward at the event.”  Click here for more from Airdrie and Coatbridge

reporters@dailyrecord.co.uk (Airdrie and Coatbridge Advertiser)


thedenverpost--2019-08-08--Saints oppose fan lawsuit on NFC championship NOLA no-call

Saints oppose fan lawsuit on NFC championship “NOLA no-call”

NEW ORLEANS — They were badly burned by the “Nola no-call,” but the New Orleans Saints have joined the NFL in opposing a fan’s lawsuit seeking damages over the missed penalty that helped the Los Angeles Rams beat the Saints in a January playoff game and move on to the Super Bowl.  The lawsuit by attorney and self-proclaimed fan Anthony LeMon resulted in a state judge’s recent order that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and three game officials submit to questions in September. The league appealed to the Louisiana Supreme Court on Wednesday night. And attorneys for the Saints filed an accompanying brief supporting the league.  At issue is officials’ failure to call a roughness or pass interference penalty on Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman for his helmet-to-helmet hit on receiver Tommylee Lewis well before a pass arrived during the NFC Championship game. The Rams won that game and advanced to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the New England Patriots.  “As the Saints have expressed, no team should be denied the opportunity to reach the title game (or simply win a game) based on the actions, or inactions, of those charged with creating a fair and equitable playing field,” Saints attorneys say in the brief. They go on to say that the team has sought rules changes aimed at addressing such possibilities.  However, the brief says, allowing the suit to proceed would be wrong.  “While the Saints appreciate the fervor and dedication of their deep and passionate fan-base, allowing such claims to proceed in court would open the door to countless legal claims brought by passionate sports fans that would inundate the courts and overburden sports leagues and their member teams, including the Saints,” the brief says.  LeMon, who filed with three other ticket-holders, answered the Saints and the NFL in a brief Thursday, noting that no other such suits are pending in the state court where he filed, and arguing that the circumstances of the game — and his lawsuit — are unique. The suit isn’t simply filed over a missed call, his filing said. Among its allegations are claims that fraud and “implicit or unconscious bias” on the part of game officials from the Los Angeles area led to the decision not to flag the penalty.  “We can assure you that the four ticketholders who initiated this lawsuit, including me, are passionate fans and do not want to cause any harm to the Saints organization,” LeMon wrote in an emailed statement.  The NFL’s filing asks the high court to halt proceedings in the lawsuit and grant a quick review of the case, which state Civil District Court Judge Nicole Sheppard of New Orleans allowed to proceed. NFL attorneys argue that LeMon and his fellow plaintiffs — all game ticket-holders — have no right of action under Louisiana law.  “Plaintiffs’ Petitions clearly seek legal redress for their frustration and disappointment with the outcome and rule-administration of a ticketed event, and the law is clear that ticket-holders lack a right of action to do so,” the NFL’s brief says.  LeMon counters that the suit isn’t about unhappiness with the outcome of a fairly played game, or a simple error by officials. “It is an entirely different situation when an NFL official clearly observes an infraction and purposely does not call a penalty,” his filing said.  LeMon’s lawsuit was crafted to avoid the NFL being able to move it to federal court, where three other lawsuits over the game have been unsuccessful.  “This lawsuit is very different from any other ticketholder lawsuit that has ever been filed against the NFL because it is based on the unique laws in Louisiana, rooted in the Napoleonic Code, which exists only in Louisiana,” LeMon added in his emailed statement.  One way of keeping it in state court was to keep damages low at $75,000. LeMon has said he intends for any money won to go to former Saints star Steve Gleason’s charity to aid people with neuromuscular diseases. Gleason was diagnosed with ALS in 2011.


theguardianuk--2019-02-17--UK Athletics selects only one male sprinter for European Indoor Championships

The UK Athletics performance director, Neil Black, has defended the bizarre policy that has led to only one British male sprinter being selected for the European Indoor Championships in Glasgow.  On Sunday Black named a record-equalling 48-strong team for the event and backed Laura Muir to “do something special” when she goes for the 1500m and 3,000m double in front of her home fans. However, in the men’s 60m only Ojie Edoburun – who finished last in the British Indoor Championships final – has been picked, with several big names, including Reece Prescod and CJ Ujah, deciding not to run.  That could have opened the door for Richard Kilty, the reigning European and former world 60m champion, who is recovering from serious injury and desperate to go for another title. But while European Athletics allows anyone who has run 6.78sec to compete, British Athletics decided to implement a far stricter selection requirement of 6.60sec – a time Kilty, who has run 6.63sec, is just outside.  Strangely the 60m standard for men is far tougher than that for any other event – and would have won a medal during the last European Indoors – while the British Athletics women’s standard of 7.25sec would not even have made the final. Black, however, insisted there was nothing wrong with it. “We had a very clear policy which says the qualification mark is 6.60sec,” he said. “That’s been the men’s mark since 2013 for the European Indoors. It’s never been questioned in the past and it’s a standard that we’ve all been comfortable with.”  When asked about Kilty’s frustrations at missing out, Black said they had to follow their own selection policy. “We can’t let emotions get involved in that process,” he added. It is understood that Kilty, who is ranked 11th in Europe, is appealing against the decision.  Black also denied feeling any unease at filling only one slot in an event where Britain has farmed medals at previous European championships. “It’s certainly not embarrassment,” he said. “The whole policy is based around selecting everyone who is selectable, selecting a large team, giving as many people as possible the experience of a championships. It’s a large and competitive team, it includes five previous gold medallists and other previous medallists. It’s a great team. There’s just one thing that looks unusual.”  Black also predicted that Laura Muir, who will be looking to retain her 1500m and 3,000m titles, would be one of the stars of the championships when they begin on 1 March. “We’ve all seen Laura evolve as an athlete and as a performer and as a person,” he said. “I am incredibly impressed with how she deals with the different circumstances she finds herself in. She has a brilliant team around her with her coach Andy Young sharing the responsibilities. I’m very confident she knows what she’s doing. She’s preparing seriously for this double-double and I think we’re really going to see something special. There’s the capacity for the whole country to stand still on that Sunday evening for the 1500m.”  He added: “I see an athlete who has complete confidence that she has the ability to win global medals.”  Elsewhere Adelle Tracey was handed the final 800m spot ahead of the Olympic finalist Lynsey Sharp, who has been out of form indoors this winter, while Andrew Pozzi will unexpectedly defend his 60m hurdles title despite picking up an injury over Christmas. “It’s brilliant that Andy is back,” said Black. “We didn’t think he would not be available because he asked whether he could be selected providing he demonstrated his fitness. If he does so, it will be fantastic for him to be there.”


theguardianuk--2019-02-28--Laura Muir sets sights on double-double at European Indoor Championships

The last time Laura Muir raced at a major championships in Glasgow, the hype and hope weighed her down like an anvil. Now, five years on from flopping at the Commonwealth Games, Muir is relishing the chance to make history at the European Indoor Championships.  If all goes to plan the 25-year-old will claim 3,000m gold on Friday night and then rapidly follow it up with a 1500m title on Sunday – an achievement that would not only repeat her success in Belgrade two years ago but also make her the first person, male or female, to ever achieve a “double-double” at these championships.  “Five years ago I struggled with pressure quite a lot,” admitted Muir, who finished 11th in the 1500m before pulling out of the 800m. “I just got really nervous and found that I didn’t race very well. Now I have psychologically flipped things and it has worked really well. I had a lot of pressure for Berlin last year for the outdoors but I dealt with that fine and came away with the win. So coming into Glasgow I feel more relaxed and more excited than anything.”  Not that it will be easy given that the German Konstanze Klosterhalfen, who has kicked on impressively since joining Alberto Salazar’s Nike Oregon Project group, is lurking in the 3,000m. To add to Muir’s challenge, she also has to race in the heats of the 1500m two and a half hours’ before the 3,000m.  However, the Scot is confident of rising to the challenge. “We would only do it if I was fit enough to do it,” she said. “I don’t want to go out there and do a mediocre performance. I want to go out there and smash it.”  Her coach, Andy Young, meanwhile, bills the 3,000m final as the race of the championships. “It’s an absolutely epic race, like Mary Decker-Slaney v Zola Budd in the 80s,” he says, with a smile. “Let’s just hope it ends better than it did for those two in 1984.”  Muir proved her form a fortnight ago by smashing the British indoor mile record by more than five seconds, but there were suggestions afterwards that her racing spikes may have been a prototype and thus illegal. Young, however, dismissed it as “a bit of a “non-story. The last time I checked there was no complaint.  “We brought them in for training rather than racing, but she liked them,” he added, pointing out that other athletes had worn the same-type spikes last summer. “I think she could have run near enough in high heels in Birmingham and it wouldn’t have made any difference.”  With Muir primed for success, the British team are hopeful of exceeding the 10 medals they won at this event in Belgrade in 2017, and they should get a second gold on the opening night with Katarina Johnson-Thompson an overwhelming favourite in the women’s pentathlon.  It helps the Briton’s case that the reigning champion, Nafi Thiam, is absent with a calf injury. However Johnson-Thompson, who believes she is in the best condition of her career, lamented the opportunity to put one over her great Belgium rival. “I’m sad she’s not here,” she said. “I love competing against her. I love the battle of it. I think she brings out the best in me.”  Elsewhere Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the brilliant teenage Norwegian, is favourite to win gold in the men’s 1500m and 3000m, while the German pole vaulter Katha Bauer will become the first athlete to compete in a major championships with a defibrillator, which she had fitted last year, although she is unlikely to win a medal.  However, the British team captain, Guy Learmonth, who is competing with a broken finger and badly bruised ribs sustained at the Birmingham grand prix two weeks ago, believes he can overcome his own medical problems in the men’s 800m. “If I break my hand in the process of winning, I won’t care,” he said.


theguardianuk--2019-06-18--Nations Championship proposals face World Rugby deadline of Friday

Leading rugby nations face a deadline of Friday to back or reject World Rugby’s Nations Championship plan.  The governing body has confirmed the Six Nations and Rugby Championship unions must respond to the radical proposals by the end of this working week.  World Rugby needs unanimous support from the 10 unions that make up Europe’s Six Nations and the southern hemisphere Rugby Championship to progress its Nations Championship blueprint.  The proposed format would launch in 2022, with the Six Nations winners facing off with the top team from an expanded, six-team Rugby Championship.  Final competition proposals would eventually face a vote before the full World Rugby council, but not without full support from the top 10 European and southern hemisphere nations.  The proposals include creating two-tier tournaments for both the Six Nations and Rugby Championship, including promotion and relegation.  The Six Nations unions have previously shown resistance to promotion and relegation, while leading players criticised World Rugby’s lack of engagement over the issue in March.  Pacific Islands campaigners fear any shake-up would reduce opportunities for Fiji, Samoa and Tonga to take on the world’s top teams given the November internationals would be redrawn.  The Rugby Football Union’s new chief executive, Bill Sweeney, last week admitted there are still issues to be ironed out: “We support the concept. We think it makes sense. It’s good for the global growth of the game. From a financial point of view, the numbers are good to enable us to reinvest back into the game.  “It is such a complex proposal. There are a number of issues around governance, around competition structure, around player welfare that we need to see a bit more detail on before we sign on the dotted line and I think that is the same with some of the other nations, so we are right in the middle of that process right now.”  Mathieu Bastareaud has been left out of a 31-man France squad to prepare for the World Cup. The powerful Toulon centre, who has captained Les Bleus three times during his 54-Test career, missed out in a group announced by the head coach Jacques Brunel.  The squad, together with six named reserves, will work towards the tournament in Japan before a final squad is confirmed on 2 September.  Bastareaud, 30, will move to Major League Rugby in the US later this year, joining Rugby United New York.  The Toulouse centre Sofiane Guitoune looks likely to prosper from Bastareaud’s absence, while Brunel has included uncapped players in Guitoune’s clubmate Peato Mauvaka and the Toulon prop Emerick Setiano.  Bastareaud apart, other notable absentees include the wing Teddy Thomas, the scrum-half Morgan Parra and the prop Uini Atonio.  “We have followed Guitoune all year,” Brunel told L’Equipe. “He performed very well. We did not know if he would produce the [form]. He did it all year long. The group is rejuvenated with many players who are 25 years and under, but there are still players with experience with [Yoann] Huget, [Wesley] Fofana and [Maxime] Médard.”  France are in the same World Cup pool as England, Argentina, USA and Tonga. Their opening game is against Argentina in Tokyo on 21 September.


theguardianuk--2019-09-22--Tykes and bikes cycling Yorkshires World Championship route

Tykes and bikes: cycling Yorkshire’s World Championship route

I have achieved a sort of cycling singularity. The UK cycling scene is obsessed with professional racing, hills, Yorkshire, social media – and pretentious coffee. And a couple of weeks ago, I set out to ride the undulating West and North Yorkshire route of the 2019 Road World Championships with a small-batch coffee roaster called Ben whom I’d met on Twitter.  Over the past five years, Yorkshire has become a global cycling destination. As Ben and I, and another Twitter acquaintance called Tom, rode out of Otley, north of Leeds, there were dozens of other riders heading out of town, up Wharfedale towards Bolton Abbey. None of them was in an organised group – just ones and twos, including quite a few children and teenagers.  I doubt many of them were doing what we were planning: a 200km section of the men’s elite race, involving a long loop north from Otley to Hawes, east up the gloriously named Buttertubs Pass, and then south through Ripon to finish in Harrogate.  I’d mentioned my plans to Otley native and 2015 world champion Lizzie Deignan. “If I press on a bit it shouldn’t take more than about six hours,” I said.  There was a pause. “I think you might have underestimated that,” she replied.  I found it hard to find volunteers to keep me company. I asked the local Otley club. “Bit too much for most of us,” was the response. I was undeterred. I shouldn’t have been.  The explosion in Yorkshire cycling hasn’t happened by accident. In 2014, the Tour de France started in Leeds, after Yorkshire had snatched the Grand Depart from under the nose of a rival Scottish bidder – largely, so the story goes, because the then chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, Gary Verity, flew to Paris in a chartered helicopter and brought the Tour’s top brass back to Yorkshire for a pub lunch.  Verity was clear about his desire to win the bid for Yorkshire. “The world’s biggest sporting event is the Olympics. We couldn’t get that: it was too big. The Fifa World Cup was too big. But the Tour de France? We could get that.”  The event itself was extraordinary. No one had ever seen anything like it. Huge crowds lined the entire route, to the extent that staff in the team cars following the riders arrived at the finish with bladders the size of space-hoppers because there had been nowhere in 200km to stop for a quiet pee.  The 2014 Tour de France’s legacy is the men’s and women’s Tours de Yorkshire – held every year since and sufficiently Frenchified that the climbs are now “côtes”, as in the Côte de Buttertubs and Sheffield’s legendary Côte de Jenkin Road. Cyclists come from all over the world to ride the now-famous roads. The Zwift virtual cycling app has a Yorkshire route, allowing riders on stationary bikes to sprint past Betty’s Tea Rooms in Harrogate from the comfort of their own homes. And now the week-long World Championships festival is arriving.  To those of us who’ve been in the world of UK cycling for years, none of this was a surprise. Yorkshire is cycling country. It always has been. It is a wonderful place to go for a ride – as long as you like your riding hard.  Ben, Tom and I had three significant climbs to get over: Kidstones, Buttertubs and Grinton Moor. The first problem is that they sneak up on you. In the Alps, you can see a climb coming for miles as you approach along the valley. In Yorkshire, the roads undulate all the time. I was halfway up the Côte de Kidstones before it dawned on me this wasn’t just another random lump – this hill was going to keep going. By that point, of course, I was committed to riding up it at an unwise pace.  I suspect Yorkshire does this to you deliberately. And here is something else: in other cycling meccas, the climbs have hairpins to even out the gradient. In Yorkshire, the roads go straight up. The climbs are not long, but they are steep. It’s not at all unusual to find yourself out of the saddle, grunting to get the pedals round on a one-in-five gradient.  This sort of thing might punish the unwary outsider, but it manufactures great bike riders, such as Brian Robinson, the first British Tour de France stage winner, in 1958; Barry Hoban, who won eight Tour stages between 1967 and 1975; and world champion Tom Simpson, who grew up in Harworth, Nottinghamshire, but learned his riding over the border. Deignan will get to race through her home town at this year’s Worlds. And, of course, there’s the peerless Beryl Burton, winner of seven world titles in the 1960s and 70s and an astonishing 72 UK titles at various distances between 1958 and 1986.  It’s the relentlessness of the roads that makes it different. You have to work for everything. An hour’s ride in Yorkshire is worth an hour-and-a-quarter in most other places. “It’s not just that the roads are hard – the weather can be bad, too,” said Deignan. “When I turned pro, I’d find myself riding up some French mountain in the pouring rain, and that was fine.”  The Côte de Buttertubs is brutally steep, an incline of almost one in five. It comes too early in the race to really play a decisive part, but it’s the climb that will produce the defining images of the World Championships. Just a few minutes away from the little town of Hawes, it feels untouched and wild.  It’s barren and exposed, with no shelter beyond some low drystone walls. There are no trees on Buttertubs; even the grass is close cropped by the sheep. The narrow road clings to the side of the steep valley then turns inland to run through a natural amphitheatre which, when the race arrives, will be crowded with fans and flags. It’s the essence of Yorkshire, and it’s utterly lovely. The climb took us about 20 minutes – the pros will probably do it in 13.  But 200km was, as I’d been warned, too much. By the time we were heading back south towards Ripon and Harrogate, I was finding every excuse I could to freewheel for a moment’s respite. More than once I tried freewheeling only to discover that I wasn’t even going downhill, I just desperately wanted to be. Of course, I didn’t say anything. I was pleased beyond words when Tom said he was exhausted, too. “Go on ahead, if you want to get back,” he said. “That’s OK,” I said magnanimously. “Let’s back off a bit. I don’t mind at all.”  The sense of achievement in getting to Harrogate (after seven hours) was immense, but I’d have to admit that Deignan and the Otley club were right. I had underestimated it. And I’d do it again tomorrow.  • The UCI Road World Championships run from 22-29 September. For those who don’t fancy 200km of properly hard riding, the events are held over a variety of courses and distances, starting at 14km. See worlds.yorkshire.com for details and spectator guide  Bloomfield Square, Otley  The unofficial clubhouse for several local cycling groups, this cafe offers single-origin coffee from a variety of independent roasters. The (smallish) menu is spot on, and they’ll even lend you a lock. It’s co-owned by Terrorvision singer, Tony Wright.  Prologue, Harrogate  A bike shop-cum-cafe that offers good coffee and food, and the chance to ogle some nice kit. If you’re having doubts about your ability to complete a ride, it also sells a range of ebikes.  Penny Garth Cafe, Hawes  Before tackling Buttertubs, we stopped at this cafe that has been a Yorkshire Dales cyclists’ (and motorcyclists’) stopping-off point for many years. The food is straightforward and inexpensive – more bacon butty than smashed avocado – which is usually just what you want mid-ride.  The Commute, Ilkley  Another cafe-cum-shop, this is generally quite busy on any day with half-decent weather (ie, if the rain isn’t horizontal) and serves excellent coffee from Allpress.  Echelon Coffee, Leeds  Before you head out, fortify yourself with some excellent small-batch roasted coffee bought from Ben, my riding companion.


theguardianuk--2019-09-25--Cycling Road World Championships 2019 mens time trial live

Cycling Road World Championships 2019: men's time trial – live!

[ 8.48am EDT 08:48 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b61e78f08fbb0c171b2f9#block-5d8b61e78f08fbb0c171b2f9)  Ireland’s Eddie Dunbar passes the first time check in 20’18” and is fastest on course right now. Navardauskas is second-fastest but is more and 90 seconds down. That illustrates that we will see some very big time gaps between the slowest and fastest riders in the early part of the course.  Updated at 8.49am EDT  [ 8.46am EDT 08:46 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b61108f08fbb0c171b2f0#block-5d8b61108f08fbb0c171b2f0)  Lutsenko will be off at 13.48. Here are all the riders and times up until the final 20:  Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakhstan) 13:48:30   Dylan van Baarle (Netherlands) 13:50:00   Nils Politt (Germany) 13:51:30   Alexander Evtushenko (Russian Federation) 13:53:00   Yves Lampaert (Belgium) 13:54:30   Ahmad Badreddin Wais (Syrian Arab Republic) 13:56:00   Jan Andrej Cully (Slovakia) 13:57:30   Luke Durbridge (Australia) 13:59:00   Ryan Mullen (Ireland) 14:00:30   Matthias Brändle (Austria) 14:02:00   Muradjan Khalmuratov (Uzbekistan) 14:03:30   Martin Toft Madsen (Denmark) 14:05:00   Alex Dowsett (Great Britain) 14:06:30   Filippo Ganna (Italy) 14:08:00   Josef Cerny (Czech Republic) 14:09:30   Benjamin Thomas (France) 14:11:00   Tanel Kangert (Estonia) 14:12:30    [ 8.43am EDT 08:43 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b60138f081108db9bc7a5#block-5d8b60138f081108db9bc7a5)  **Navardauskas** passes the first time check in 21’53”. Meanwhile there’s a shot of John Archibald, in Great Britain kit, in an impressively aerodynamic tuck position.  Updated at 8.43am EDT  [ 8.39am EDT 08:39 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5f698f084ab84172cdd8#block-5d8b5f698f084ab84172cdd8)  **Here are the final 20 riders** and their start times. There are 56 riders in total:  Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus) 14:14:00   Bob Jungels (Luxembourg) 14:15:30   Daniil Fominykh (Kazakhstan) 14:17:00   Stefan De Bod (South Africa) 14:18:30   Lawson Cradock (USA) 14:20:00   Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) 14:21:30   Jos van Emden (Netherlands) 14:23:00   Patrick Bevin (New Zealand) 14:24:30   Daniel Martinez (Colombia) 14:26:00   Maciej Bodnar (Poland) 14:27:30   Edoardo Affini (Italy) 14:29:00   Jonathan Castroviejo (Spain) 14:30:30   Tony Martin (Germany) 14:32:00   Stefan Küng (Switzerland) 14:33:30   Chad Haga (USA) 14:35:00   Nelson Oliveira (Portugal) 14:36:30   Kasper Asgreen (Denmark) 14:38:00   Primoz Roglic (Slovenia) 14:39:30   Victor Campenaerts (Belgium) 14:41:00   Rohan Dennis (Australia) 14:42:30  [ 8.36am EDT 08:36 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5ef68f084ab84172cdd3#block-5d8b5ef68f084ab84172cdd3)  Great Britain’s John Archibald is out on course now. His compatriot Alex Dowsett will be hoping for a positive result today. Meanwhile Jan Tratnik (Slovenia) has just set off ...  [ 8.34am EDT 08:34 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5e338f081108db9bc78e#block-5d8b5e338f081108db9bc78e)  Alexey Lutsenko **** (Kazakhstan) will go off at 13.48. The Astana Pro Team man is a contender in the mens’ road race, and will most likely be treating today’s event as some fine-tuning ahead of Sunday’s showdown.  Updated at 8.36am EDT  [ 8.31am EDT 08:31 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5d838f084ab84172cdc6#block-5d8b5d838f084ab84172cdc6)  **The UCI’s Twitter take on proceedings:**  Meanwhile Kamil Gradek (Poland) and Luis Mas Bonet (Spain) have just set off.    [ 8.27am EDT 08:27 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5cc38f081108db9bc77e#block-5d8b5cc38f081108db9bc77e)  **As always in a time trial,** most of the stronger riders and genuine contenders will be going out last. The wind is light, between 5 and 10km/h, which the riders will be grateful for. These guys have certainly got a better day than yesterday’s riders.  [ 8.24am EDT 08:24 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5c488f084ab84172cdb7#block-5d8b5c488f084ab84172cdb7)  Eddie Dunbar of Team INEOS rolls down the start ramp. I’ll bring you a time check for Navardauskas when he passes the 17km mark.  Updated at 8.36am EDT  [ 8.22am EDT 08:22 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5bdb8f081108db9bc769#block-5d8b5bdb8f081108db9bc769)  **Weather conditions** look much, much better than yesterday. The roads have dried out and although it’s a far cry from that famous sun-drenched Grand Départ in Yorkshire in 2014, there are some patches of bright sky among the clouds, if not _actual_ sunshine.  Updated at 8.22am EDT  [ 8.20am EDT 08:20 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5b808f081108db9bc764#block-5d8b5b808f081108db9bc764)  ## Race start!  Here we go: Navardauskas rolls down the ramp in Northallerton. The ‘Race of Truth’ has begun.  Updated at 8.21am EDT  [ 8.19am EDT 08:19 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5b228f084ab84172cdaa#block-5d8b5b228f084ab84172cdaa)  **We just had a shot on TV** of some very cheerful Belgian fans in Yorkshire. They were holding up a sign in support of the young Evenepoel. Here are the three Belgians racing today:  Updated at 8.20am EDT  [ 8.18am EDT 08:18 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b5a708f08fbb0c171b2ae#block-5d8b5a708f08fbb0c171b2ae)  **Champion Rohan Dennis** has not raced since walking out of the Tour de France with Team Bahrain Merida. He has not been happy with the equipment at his new team, apparently, after signing from the now defunct BMC Racing Team for this season. The wheels and skinsuits have been an issue. Given his lack of recent racing it is difficult to say how he’ll go today. It’s certainly an opportunity for his rivals to test him.  [ 8.10am EDT 08:10 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b57ef8f08fbb0c171b27e#block-5d8b57ef8f08fbb0c171b27e)  **Who are the other riders to look out for today?** **Remco Evenepoel** is certainly one. The 19-year-old Belgian prodigy has enjoyed a dream start to his pro career after signing for Deceuninck - Quick Step. The most eye- catching result has been his victory at the Clásica San Sebastián, a prestigious one-day race.  **Stefan Küng** , from Switzerland, is one of the most powerful riders in the peloton and already boasts nine top-10 finishes in ITTs this season.  **Yves Lampaert** could also be one to watch. He’s generates enormous power for a relatively small rider and this up-and-down course may suit him well.  [ 8.02am EDT 08:02 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b55fa8f081108db9bc719#block-5d8b55fa8f081108db9bc719)  **We are less than 20 minutes away** from the start of today’s race. Lithuanian Navardauskas, the first rider to start today, has an interesting history. He was the rider that replaced David Millar at the 2014 Tour de France, after Garmin-Sharp managers decided Millar didn’t have the necessary form. The Lithuanian went on to win [Stage 19 with a brilliant solo attack](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/jul/25/ramunas-navardauskas- wins-stage-19-tour-de-france), announcing himself on the global stage and justifying his selection. He then signed for Team Bahrain Merida, where a heart condition kept him out of racing for a year in 2017. Last season the 31 -year-old switched to Delko-Marseille Provence. He won the national road race title in Lithuania in June. It will be interesting to see how he goes today.  Updated at 8.04am EDT  [ 7.55am EDT 07:55 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b55698f084ab84172cd4e#block-5d8b55698f084ab84172cd4e)  **This was one of the more unpleasant crashes** yesterday in that under-23 race. Thankfully it seems Hungarian rider Attila Valter escaped without serious injuries:  Updated at 7.56am EDT  [ 7.52am EDT 07:52 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b54268f084ab84172cd31#block-5d8b54268f084ab84172cd31)  **A UCI video** of that wet and wild day yesterday:  **There was plenty of criticism** from riders yesterday aimed at the UCI. Some riders insisted the races should have been called off - especially the men’s under-23 race in the morning, when the riders were having to ride around, or in some cases into, massive puddles of standing water on the road. Thankfully, we should avoid such controversy today, even if the conditions will be far from perfect in sodden Yorkshire.  Updated at 7.52am EDT  [ 7.38am EDT 07:38 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b51338f081108db9bc6b5#block-5d8b51338f081108db9bc6b5)  **In the womens’ individual time trial** yesterday, Chloe Dygert Owen of the USA produced what some said was an almost-perfect time trial, beating her closest rival Anna Van der Breggen by 1’32”. Catch up on the action with William Fotheringham’s report:  [ 7.32am EDT 07:32 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b4fc98f081108db9bc6a4#block-5d8b4fc98f081108db9bc6a4)  **Today’s course is 54km long** , starting in Northallerton and ending in Harrogate.  There are timing points after 17km and 38km. Between those timing points are the two significant climbs on the route: Gate Bridge Road (1.1km, average 4.9% gradient) and a second climb of 0.7km (average gradient of 7%).  The route begins heading in a south-westerly direction out of Northallerton. There is a short, steep ramp as the road runs towards Masham, followed by a fast and flat section heading into Risplith. After that, the route undulates all the way to Harrogate, including those two climbs.  The way each rider paces their effort will be crucial to the final result. Go out too hard and fast on a course that is this long and demanding, and you will leave yourself short towards the end. All the up-and-down along the route means it should suit the lighter riders, like Dennis and Roglic.  Ramunas Navardauskas of Lithuania will be the first rider down the start ramp at 13.18 BST.  Updated at 7.47am EDT  [ 7.29am EDT 07:29 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b4eab8f08fbb0c171b1f4#block-5d8b4eab8f08fbb0c171b1f4)  **Here is how the podium looked last year.** Campanaerts, the current Hour Record holder, will be up against Dennis again today, but Dutchman Dumoulin is absent and not expected to return to racing this season. He suffered a bad knee injury during the Giro d’Italia in May, missing the Tour de France as a result.  Updated at 7.29am EDT  [ 7.23am EDT 07:23 ](/sport/live/2019/sep/25/cycling-road-world- championships-2019-mens-time-trial-live?page=with:block- 5d8b4df48f08fbb0c171b1e1#block-5d8b4df48f08fbb0c171b1e1)  **Preamble**  Greetings, and welcome to our live coverage of the mens’ individual time trial at the 2019 [Cycling Road World Championships](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/cycling-road-world- championships). In Yorkshire this afternoon, Australia’s Rohan Dennis will defend the world title he won in Innsbruck last year. It’s a 54km course including two significant climbs, which the fastest riders will complete in about an hour. Yes, that means they will average over 50km/h, an astonishing speed.  There are a few notable absentees - Tom Dumoulin, Chris Froome, and Geraint Thomas among them. But Slovenian Vuelta a España champion Primoz Roglic, Victor Campanaerts of Belgium and ‘Der Panzerwagen’ Tony Martin are among the riders with a realistic chance of stopping Dennis retaining his rainbow stripes.    Mercifully, the weather looks a lot better today than it did yesterday. It’s overcast, but the rain is expected to hold off. A closer look at the course is coming right up. Here is the kind of thing competitors were dealing with yesterday in sunny Yorkshire:    Updated at 7.35am EDT


theindependent--2019-03-01--Track Cycling World Championships Laura Kenny withdraws from the Omnium

Track Cycling World Championships: Laura Kenny withdraws from the Omnium

Laura Kenny has withdrawn from riding the Omnium at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Pruszkow, with Katie Archibald set to ride in her place for Great Britain.  Kenny, a two-time Olympic champion in the event, indicated after Thursday's team pursuit that she had been feeling off her game this week, prompting her to step aside.  "I am absolutely gutted to announce that I won't be riding in the Omnium at the world championships today," Kenny wrote on Instagram.  Kenny added: "I haven't been feeling right all week for reasons we're not sure of, but we do know my performances in the team pursuit over the last two days have been well off where I have been in training over the last two weeks.  "I would have given the Omnium my best shot and I really wanted to do it but with the depth of the squad it was decided that it was better that I didn't compete and give someone else the opportunity.  "I agree with the decision and I think Katie will do a brilliant job. I wish her, and all my team mates, the best of luck for the rest of the competition."  Archibald won the Omnium world title at the 2017 world championships in Hong Kong. The 24-year-old is also slated to ride in the Madison on Saturday alongside Neah Evans.  These championships have not proved a particularly happy one for the Kennys.  Laura sought to take the blame for Britain finishing second to Australia in the women's team pursuit on Thursday, saying she was unable to do full turns on the front, while on Wednesday Jason and the men's team sprint squad were disappointed to miss out on the medal rounds.  Keep up to date with all the latest news with expert comment and analysis from our award-winning writers


theindependent--2019-04-12--Five-day Championship cricket Why the county game needs new vision to stand out from the background

Five-day Championship cricket? Why the county game needs new vision to stand out from the background static

It looked like the start of summer, even though it didn’t really feel like it. Through the Hobbs Gate they filed in their overcoats and scarves, clutching their brand new Wisdens and Playfairs, the old members and the hardy perennials: flasks of tea rather than chilled pints the drink of choice, the temperature resolutely marooned in single figures. Out in the middle, Essex’s Jamie Porter galloped in from the Vauxhall End, provocatively clad in short sleeves. At the other end, Surrey’s Will Jacks stared him down in a sturdy cable-knit sweater.  Yes, the County Championship is back – in fact, it’s been back for over a week – and if its onset somehow slipped under your radar, then in many ways that’s the point of it. County cricket doesn’t announce its return with big-budget television montages or garish promotional campaigns. It sneaks back into your life like hope, like limescale, like lower back pain. It doesn’t demand that you watch it. In fact, for most of its recent history it’s actively tried to stop you: shifting start times, shifting venues, and only the most threadbare broadcast coverage.  These days, there are other obstacles in its path. April has always been a tough month for any sport to make itself heard above the cumulative din of the climax to the football season, the Grand National, the Masters golf, the Boat Race and the London Marathon, cycling’s Classics. Then, of course, there’s the minor inconvenience of other cricket. The Indian Premier League has parked itself in the spring schedules, draining attention that would – surely! – otherwise have been ruthlessly trained on Dawid Malan’s watchful century for Middlesex against Northants at Wantage Road.  Before long, the drumbeat of international cricket will begin: a World Cup, men’s and women’s Ashes. And so county cricket simply slips into the background static: reassuringly there, but for the most part something you follow without ever physically seeing. Occasionally you feel a slight pang of guilt about this, but then you remember that we’ve all got busy lives, and even the cricket correspondent of The Times is in Augusta this week watching the golf, so maybe we should cut ourselves a little slack. Besides, it’s a long old season – six months from tip to tip – and even the most dedicated follower will struggle to keep up with it all.  It feels strange that for a nation supposedly falling out of love with cricket, we’re being fed more of it than ever. This year’s Championship will feature 126 fixtures, the 50-over competition 77 more, the T20 Blast another 133. Then you have the 26 fixtures that the England men’s and women’s teams will play this season, not including the World Cup (58 games, including warm-ups). And that doesn’t include the litany of university games, Lions games, tour games, second XI games and all the other unloved little pebbles that together make up the vast strand of the English domestic season. It’s a ridiculous load, and one that will increase further next summer with the introduction of The Hundred.  Something has to give. And – sorry, everyone – it needs to be the Championship.  Before you all leap out of your freezing plastic seats and pelt me with Scotch eggs, hear me out. What, would you say, are the Championship’s major issues right now? A packed calendar. Matches being shunted to the margins of the summer. A shortage of decent spin bowlers and top-order batsmen. A widening gulf between the biggest and the smallest counties. A widening gulf to the Test game. Result pitches. Dead rubbers. Not to mention the weird unevenness of the two Championship divisions, with one division of eight, one of 10, and a highly unsatisfactory 14 games a season, as if the schedule had been designed by Picasso.  Here, then, is the solution to all of them: five-day Championship cricket.  “You’re an idiot, Liew,” you respond. “Five days is more than four. How’s that going to solve the scheduling pile-up?”  The plan is simple enough: you keep the 18 counties in two equal divisions, playing eight five-day games each. Four at home, and four away, with the option of a grand final between the top two, as in Australia’s Sheffield Shield. At a stroke you free up around a month from the schedule, even up the divisions and make the competition fairer.  But the rationale behind a five-day Championship goes beyond logistics and aesthetics. It will, quite simply, produce better-quality cricket. No more sporting declarations and joke bowling. Fewer matches ruined by weather. Five days will allow teams to prepare longer-lasting pitches and give spinners a fighting chance. Batsmen will get more time to build an innings. It feels incongruous, given the interminable debates English cricket has had over the years about aligning its domestic one-day competitions with the 50-over ODI format, that a first-class player can go into Test cricket never having played a five-day match before.  For the rest of us, an eight-game campaign concentrates the intensity of the season. It makes every match an event. A grand final to decide the county champions might even – who knows? – attract some of those fabled ‘new audiences’ to the game. Given that Championship cricket is a loss-maker for most counties, it would ease the financial burden on the poorest and safeguard the future of 18-county cricket.  There are valid counter-arguments, of course. There would be a knock-on effect on outground cricket. Cutting six games per team might lead to some trimming of squads. Alternatively, it might hasten the separation of red and white-ball formats, and the increasing proliferation of specialists. Yet this is a process that is already taking place. And besides, every other country in the world seems to get by on between six and 10 first-class games a season. English cricket’s bloated calendar may once have been an emblem of a rich and vibrant domestic game. These days, it feels more like quantity over quality.  It has become something of an eye-rolling cliche to state that English cricket is at a ‘crossroads’. But with the domestic one-day game about to undergo its biggest transformation in a generation, this is a moment when the first-class game demands similarly bold thinking.  Sure, the Championship could roll on indefinitely: a minor facelift here, a little finesse there. They’ll still faithfully turn up at The Oval and Hove and Headingley and Bristol for years to come. Doing nothing, in this case, is certainly an option. But that doesn’t make it the best option. The Championship is fine. The Championship is great! But with a little love, and a little vision, it could be so much more than that.


theindependent--2019-11-10--China's FPX wins 2019 League of Legends World Championship finals

Chinese team FunPlus Phoenix (FPX) have won the 2019 League of Legends World Championship, defeating European challengers G2 ESports (G2) in the finals to take home more than $2 million prize money.  In front of a hyped Paris crowd, home favourites G2 were hoping to be the first Western team to win the Summoner's Cup in eight years.  The European team were slight favourites ahead of the match, having not lost a tournament match all year.  But FPX dominated from start to finish to win the five-game series 3-0, thanks to an inspired performance led by Korean captain Kim ‘Doinb’ Tae-sang.  Riot Games CEO Nicolo Laurent described the finals as ”the biggest event in the history of eSports”, with an estimated 100 million people around the world watching the finals.  In front of a sell-out crowd at the AccorHotels Arena, FPX gave G2 fans little to cheer.  Their dominance was most clear in the battle between Gao “Tian” Tian-liang and Marcin “Jankos” Jankowski, which earned Tian the title of Most Valuable Player.  "I did think that I did all that was required of me in the three games today, but I’m actually very surprised that I became the MVP," Tian said.  "I often read comments in the communities when I was in China, and people often said that Tian plays like this player or that player. I think I proved myself today and showed the world what kind of player Tian is.”


theindependent--2019-11-10--League of Legends World Championship 2019: live stream details, predictions and key players

The City of Lights will become the City of Legends this Sunday, as the world championships for one of the planet's most popular video games comes to Paris.  The finals of the 2019 League of Legends World Championship mark the pinnacle of eSports competition, with nearly 100 million people viewing last year’s event.  Months of intense clashes have whittled 24 teams down to just two: G2 Esports (G2) and FunPlus Phoenix (FPX). It is being billed as Europe vs China, with the home team of G2 hoping to become the first Western team to lift the Summoner’s Cup in eight years.  Follow live coverage of the League of Legends World Championship finals  After unexpectedly beating three-time world champions SK Telekom T1 in the semi-finals last month, G2 are the slight favourites. They also appear to have the backing of the CEO of Riot Games, the game developer behind League of Legends.  At a press conference up the Eiffel Tower on Friday, French CEO Nicolo Laurent described the finals as ”the biggest event in the history of eSports”. When asked if he had a favourite, he hinted that he would be supporting the European team.  “As a CEO I’m supposed to be impartial so I’m not gonna tell you my favourite is G2,” he said. “Instead, I’m going to say I’m going to hope for a full five-game match for the best of eSports.”  If they do win, they will become the first ever team to win every single tournament in a single year and will immortalise their names in the annals of the storied online battle arena game.  Marcin ‘Jankos’ Jankowski plays as the jungler for G2 and his consistent heroics from the shrubbery have provided the solid foundation upon which the team has built its success in 2019.  Jankos, who names Chuck Norris as his role model, is an eSports veteran after five years of top-flight League of Legends competition. The 24-year-old Polish star is only the second European player to reach 1,000 career kills and will be hoping to add to his impressive tally on Sunday.  Key to FPX’s progression to the final was Kim ‘Doinb’ Tae-sang. The team has built its playing style around the 22-year-old Korean, whose self-sacrificing lane awareness and idiosyncratic champion picks have made FPX so strong this year.  At Friday’s press conference, which took place halfway up the Eiffel Tower, Doinb trash-talked his opponents in his typically confrontational style. With G2’s Perkz missing from the event due to an unspecified illness, Doinb suggested he had psyched out his adversary by singing loudly the night before through the walls of his hotel room.  Not showing any of the pressure of the occasion, Doinb took the opportunity to claim that the European team were only there because of the luck of the draw. “If they’d met us in th quarter finals or semi finals, they would not be in the finals,” he said.  How to watch the live stream online  Tickets for the finals at the 20,000-capacity AccorHotels Arena in Paris sold out in 10 minutes. Those not lucky enough to get a ticket will not be short of options to follow the action.  The best-of-five series between G2 and FPX begins at 12pm GMT on Sunday, 4 November, and will be preceded by a performance from True Damage – an augmented reality hip hop group comprised of League of Legends champions.  ESports fans will be able to watch the opening ceremony and finals across a variety of platforms, including the official League of Legends Twitch channel and Riot Games’ LoL eSports site.  A live stream will also be hosted on YouTube.  The performance of both teams through the worlds mean there is little to separate them in terms of betting odds, with G2 placed at 4/5 and FPX at 9/10.  Ultimately, it could come down to the individual battles played out across each lane and in the jungle. FPX may just have the edge in the top lane, while G2 are expected to have an advantage in the bottom lane.  The middle lane clash between Doinb and G2’s Rasmus ‘Caps’ Borregaard Winther is too close to call, meaning what happens in the jungle between Jankos and FPX’s Gao ‘Tian’ Tian-Liang.  Bookies have G2 as slight favourites and it might be their home advantage that clinches it for them.  Please wait for the live blog to load.


theindependent--2019-11-10--League of Legends World Championship Finals live: FPX defeat G2 as home favourites flounder

China's FunPlus Phoenix (FPX) have won the finals of the 2019 League of Legends World Championship, achieving victory over home favourites G2 ESports (G2) in what many claim to be the pinnacle of eSports.  Nearly 100 million people around the world tuned in for the 2018 finals and this year's event may go on to smash that figure when viewing figures across all streaming platforms are tallied up.  Billed as Europe vs. Asia, G2 were hoping to become the first Western team to lift the Summoner’s Cup in eight years.  But after a spectacular opening ceremony that featured augmented reality hip-hop collective True Damage, FPX dominated their rivals with a clean sweep of victories to win the match 3-0.  The Independent was at the AccorHotels Arena in Paris to cover the event.  Please wait for the live blog to load.


thesun--2019-02-10--Norwich 3 Ipswich 0 Norwich move top of Championship by thumping Ipswich as Paul Lambert is sent of

Norwich 3 Ipswich 0: Norwich move top of Championship by thumping Ipswich as Paul Lambert is sent off after touchline bust-up

NORWICH are top of the Championship after cruising past Ipswich in the East Anglian derby.  Onel Hernandez and a Teemu Pukki double did the damage to make it an afternoon to forget for former [Canaries](https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/team/1196667/norwich-city/) boss [Paul Lambert who was sent off after a touchline fracas](https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/8395853/paul-lambert- restrained-by-police-ipswich-norwich/).  ![ Teemu Pukki bags a double in East Anglia derby]()  Reuters  Teemu Pukki bags a double in East Anglia derby  ![ Paul Lambert involved in touchline fracas at Carrow Road]()  Sky Sports  Paul Lambert involved in touchline fracas at Carrow Road  The home side got off to a flier when Hernandez punished some slack defending to score inside two minutes.  Both sides were forced into changes before the break with the Canaries losing Mario Vranic and the Tractor Boys withdrew Freddie Sears.  Then the controversial moment Jon Nolan crunched into Max Arons near the technical area sparking a melee between both benches.  Tempers flared and when order was restored referee Peter Banks sent off the Lambert and Canaries coach Chris Domogalla.  ![ Onel Hernandez scored the opener after last than two minutes]()  Reuters  Onel Hernandez scored the opener after last than two minutes  ![ Paul Lambert watched the second half from the stand]()  PA:Press Association  Paul Lambert watched the second half from the stand  After the break, Alan Judge went close for Ipswich as they finally began to get a foothold in the game.  But it was short-lived as they were punished on the break when Emiliano Buendia fed Pukki and the Canaries top scorer found the bottom corner with a precise, low drive.  Pukki though he got his second of the game minutes later when he headed from a corner, but his strike was ruled out for offside.  But Pukki eventually got his brace and City’s third Buendia wriggled free of a challenge, surged forward and fed Pukki who poked home his second of the game and 20th league strike of the season.  The win takes City back to the top of the Championship ahead of Leeds United who dropped points at Middlesbrough.  Saturday Round-up: Watch all of the best Premier League action of the day


thesun--2019-11-07--Para-athlete Juliana Ngleya Moko collapses at World Championships in 30C-plus Dubai heat before medi

Para-athlete Juliana Ngleya Moko collapses at World Championships in 30C-plus Dubai heat before medics rush to her aid

PARA-ATHLETE Juliana Ngleya Moko collapsed at the World Championships after temperatures soared above 30C in Dubai.  Medics were forced to rush to the aid of the runner during the women's 400m T11 final at the World-Para Athletics Championships after she collapsed amidst the horrendous weather conditions.  Moko was taken off the track in a wheelchair as she became the latest star to struggle with the soaring temperatures in the Middle East.  Worrying pictures showed the Angolan runner lying flat on the track before she was eventually taken to safety, slumped in the wheelchair.  After the incident, governing body - World Para-Athletics - said it was "constantly monitoring temperature and humidity."  Their statement added: "World Para-Athletics has a heat countermeasure policy that has been successfully applied to previous events such as the Doha 2015 World Championships and the Berlin 2018 European Championships.  "The same protocol will guide the operations in Dubai and also at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.  "World Para-Athletics and the local organising committee will be constantly monitoring temperature and humidity during the World Championships.  "The average temperatures in the region were one of the factors taken into account when planning the competition schedule.  "Dubai has hosted para-athletics events for more than a decade and many teams and athletes are familiar with the conditions they will find during the World Championships."  British para-athlete Kadeena Cox, 28, had earlier revealed her fears over competing in the scorching Dubai heat.  Cox told BBC Sport: "It's very, very hot. Unfortunately, I'm heat intolerant."  "I tend not to go in heat, I avoid the bath, I have lukewarm showers - and now I am throwing myself into the heat of Dubai and trying to run.  "But it's a challenge and we've got a lot of strategies to try and keep me cool."  Earlier this year, a number of competitors collapsed in Doha, Qatar as temperatures rose to worrying levels.  In one particularly touching moment, Braima Suncar Dabo sacrificed his own time to help stricken Jonathan Busby in the men's 5,000m heats.  With one lap to go, the Guinea-Bissau athlete stopped running after noticing that Aruba’s Busby was struggling and could barely stand up.  He put his arm around his opponent's shoulder and carefully guided, sometimes dragged, him to the finishing line along the final lap – with the crowd cheering him home.  Marathon runners were also left wiped out by the heat, despite the race being held at midnight in a desperate bid to tackle the conditions.


thesun--2019-12-13--World Darts Championship: Fixtures, live stream FREE, TV channel, and start time from the Ally Pally

THERE's a festive feast of darts action on the way from Alexandra Palace.  A whole host of stars will be on show over three weeks of action in the capital, with the grand final set for New Year's Day.  The tournament features afternoon and evening sessions as players compete in seven rounds over a knockout format.    When is the PDC World Darts Championship?  THIS year's competition will get going on Friday, December 13.  The first evening session starts at 7pm.  Michael van Gerwen, the three-time champion, will begin his challenge on an evening which also features Jelle Klaasen and Luke Humphries.  Which TV channel and live stream can I watch on?  YOU can catch all the action live on Sky Sports Arena and Main Event.  Coverage begins on both channels at 7pm.  If you're not a Sky subscriber, grab a NOW TV pass from £9.99 to stream on a number of devices.  How can I watch for free?  THE opening night of action - December 13 - is being shown live on Sky Sports Mix.  This channel is FREE for everyone with a Sky subscription, regardless of whether you have Sky Sports or not.  You can find it in HD on channel 121.


abcnews--2019-01-10--Trump threatens to cut FEMA funds to aid California fires

President Donald Trump threatened to end federal emergency funding to help aid California’s destructive wildfires on Wednesday.  Trump tweeted that "billions of dollars" are sent to California and with proper forest management, the forest fires ‘would never happen’.  “Unless they get their act together, which is unlikely, I have ordered FEMA to send no more money. It is a disgraceful situation in lives & money,” he stated in his tweet.  Although the president is casting blame on California officials, most of California's forests are owned and managed by federal agencies. Federal agencies manage 57 percent of the approximately 33 million acres of forest in the state, according to research done by the University of California.  This time of the year, the forest management teams are busy -- removing brush, dead trees, and clearing trails. But as the government shut down lingers, the U.S. Forest Service can only respond and try to put out fires, while they aren't being paid. That means there is little to no work being done to manage forests while the government is closed, except responding to immediate safety issues.  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi fired back stating the president's statement "insults the memory of scores of Americans who perished in wildfires last year & thousands more who lost their homes."  The threat comes one day after California governor Gavin Newsom attacked Trump for his oval office address on the southern border calling on the president to end the government shutdown.  Newsom fired back against Trump's desire to cut FEMA funds. "Disasters and recovery are no time for politics," Newsom said in a tweet Wednesday.  The newly elected governor stated he, along with the governors of Washington and Oregon sent a letter to the federal government asking for their help in relief efforts.  "The people of CA – folks in Paradise – should not be victims to partisan bickering," Newsom stated saying he's ready to take action on modernizing forest and emergency responses.  President Trump surveyed the devastation from the California wildfires in November touring Paradise and Malibu, two areas charred by the flames. At the time, he pledged the full support of the federal government in recovery efforts. Trump also met with then governor-elect Newsom and former governor Jerry Brown.  During that trip, the president also blamed "poor forest management" for the severity of the fires. More than 13,000 families lost their homes from the fires that ripped through Butte County in Northern California. At least 85 people died from the blaze.

disaster, accident and emergency incident