The Guardian

British 800m record holder pulls out of 400m final ‘I wasn’t feeling 100% – I didn’t want to risk anything’ Keely Hodgkinson’s camp moved swiftly to play down concerns after the Olympic 800m champion withdrew from the 400m start line in tears just seconds before she was due to race at the UK Athletics Championships on Sunday. Using the weekend in Birmingham as a speedwork opportunity, Hodgkinson …

28-year-old is first US player to win at Halle since 1993 Tiafoe will climb to No 19 as Wimbledon nears Frances Tiafoe beat fellow American Taylor Fritz 6-4 6-4 to win the ⁠Halle Open on Sunday, sealing the biggest title of his career and becoming the first American since 1993 to lift the ATP ⁠500 grass-court trophy. Tiafoe ⁠set the ​tone early, breaking serve in the opening set and remaining com…

Midfielder says schedule ‘obscene’ for club and country But adds he is ‘ready and fit’ for England game v Ghana Declan Rice has revealed he has been managing nerve pain in a hamstring since Christmas as he reflected on the “obscene” amount of matches he has played this season. The England midfielder sparked concern when he was forced off in the 72nd minute of the 4-2 World Cup win over Croatia la…

The Blues have not found a saviour but five wins in as many AFL matches under Josh Fraser leaves them with an unusually difficult decision to make Footy can turn quickly. One minute you’re seven goals up at the MCG. The next minute Kozzy Pickett is coming at you with bazookas under both armpits. One minute you’re walking into training with the snout of a microphone in your face, as you apologise …

Hughes family heartbroken at unexpected loss Father of two joined Mariners as recruitment lead in 2025 Grimsby have paid tribute to Alex Hughes after his death at the age of 38. Hughes, the son of the former Manchester United and Wales striker Mark Hughes, was player recruitment lead at the League Two club. The Hughes family said in a statement released via the League Managers Association that th…

It is difficult for the meeting to sell itself as the pinnacle of Flat racing if so many of its races favour runners on one side of the track Big numbers were something of a theme at Royal Ascot this year. Aidan O’Brien became the first trainer to saddle 100 winners at the meeting when Scandinavia took the Gold Cup on Thursday. Attendances were up throughout the week leading up to Saturday’s annu…

For one day every June, South Africa’s searing racial inequality seems to melt away at Comrades race In the early morning dark, thousands of runners waited, jostling with anticipation. South Africa’s national anthem rang out. Then the haunting swell of Shosholoza , first sung by Zimbabwean migrant workers in South Africa’s goldmines. Finally, that unmistakable, spine-tingling piano: Chariots of F…

⚽️ Kick-off: 12pm local time/5pm BST/2am (Mon) AEST ⚽️ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Email John Perhaps one of the Saudi -players can write themselves into this high-grade selection? Perhaps it can be their goalkeeper. Continue reading...

Brendon McCullum: England ‘planning’ to recall captain Bowler Gus Atkinson also stood down from county duties The England head coach, Brendon McCullum, has confirmed Ben Stokes is likely to return as captain for the third Test against New Zealand. Speaking to Sky Sports after his side’s heavy defeat in the second Test was confirmed on Sunday, McCullum was asked if Stokes’ withdrawal from county d…

Ghana midfielder has denied all accusations as he prepares to begin his World Cup campaign in Boston on Tuesday The Football Association has remained coy over what will happen when England line up for their next World Cup match against Ghana on Tuesday and come up against a familiar opponent in Thomas Partey. The former Arsenal midfielder played for Villarreal this season, but will be released at…

Fox’s broadcast at the tournament has become a story of two contrasting styles. And there is one clear winner We all know someone like Alexi Lalas. He’s the ranter whose rants never actually say anything, the life of the party at the party no one enjoys attending, the “big personality” who’s always misjudging the size of the room. He’s corporate America’s idea of a fun guy, the type of workplace …

We pick an XI of players who have impressed during the initial rounds of games in Canada, the US and Mexico A star was born, at 40, when a player whose highest-profile employers were Portugal’s Gil Vicente, denied Spain’s all-stars in that historic 0-0 draw . His Christian name being Josimar may well have pointed to him being a nascent World Cup cult hero. So huge was his impact that the US autho…

European champions were frustrated by Cape Verde and know there is little margin for error against Saudi Arabia Cape Verde are not the only ones to have kept Spain out at this World Cup. Turns out it was even harder to get past security on the gate of the team hotel in downtown Chattanooga. Two days after the 0-0 draw in their opener , Luis de la Fuente gave his players the day off, a chance to c…

Two goals from Ueda, plus strikes by Kamada and Ito, sealed the fate of Tunisia and their new coach Hervé Renard Perhaps the manager wasn’t the problem after all. Tunisia sacked Sabri Lamouchi after last week’s 5-1 defeat to Sweden, appointing Hervé Renard as their seventh manager since qualifying began. But it turned out a diffident side lacking defensive conviction are a diffident side lacking …

Durham: Stokes withdrawn ‘at request of ECB’ Email Tanya with your thoughts on the day’s action Morning everyone a nd a happy summer solstice to you all. Breaking news at The Oval and here at CLS that Stokes and Atkinson and have been withdrawn from duty and will presumably be meeting up with England after the denouement to the second Test at The Oval. But away from that, there are eight games of…