Saracens start at Treviso July 20, 2011 RUGBY UNION: Premiership champions Saracens will begin their Heineken Cup campaign at home to Benetton Treviso in November and have confirmed they will tackle Welsh region Ospreys at Wembley on 10 December. Last year’s runners-up Northampton face a daunting trip to two-time champions Munster on the opening weekend.
I’m Britain’s best, claims Khan July 20, 2011 BOXING: Amir Khan believes his world title unification fight against Zab Judah on Saturday will prove beyond doubt he is Britain’s premier fighter. Khan, 24, will be defending his WBA light-welterweight crown in Las Vegas against IBF title-holder Judah. “Pound-for pound, I’m way ahead of all the other British fighters, and I think people know [...]
McLaren not ruffled by Ferrari July 20, 2011 FORMULA ONE: McLaren say they are “not intimidated” by Ferrari’s resurgence and plan to renew their rivalry with Red Bull at the German Grand Prix. Fernando Alonso took Ferrari’s first win of 2011 in Britain with McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton only coming fourth and Jenson Button being forced to retire. But McLaren managing director Jonathan Neale said: [...]
GB pair fail to secure 2012 place July 20, 2011 OLYMPICS: British open water swimmers Dan Fogg and Tom Allen missed out on a chance to qualify for the London 2012 Olympics by finishing outside the top 10 at the World Championships. The pair could not repeat the success of Keri-Anne Payne, who won the women’s event on Tuesday to become the first British athlete [...]
NBA star Ming forced to retire July 20, 2011 BASKETBALL: China’s biggest sporting star Yao Ming has confirmed that he is retiring from basketball, after suffering a series of injuries. The 7ft 6in Houston Rockets player, 30, broke his foot year. NBA official David Stern said: “Yao Ming has been a transformational player for our league and a source of enormous pride to the [...]
India hold no fears for us, insists Swann July 19, 2011 ENGLAND spinner Graeme Swann can’t wait to finally get down to the serious business of the summer and wrestle the No1 Test ranking from India’s grasp. The visit of a limited Sri Lankan side represented a low-key start to England’s summer campaign in a series heavily disrupted by the weather. India, cricket’s current world superpower [...]
Payne wins gold – and a 2012 place July 19, 2011 SWIMMER Keri-Anne Payne has admitted her “massive relief” after becoming the first British athlete in any discipline to guarantee their place at London 2012. The 23-year-old from Stockport ensured her qualification by defending her 10km open water title at the Fina World Championships in Shanghai yesterday. Payne said: “I really wish I could swear right [...]
Terry hoping world class Modric will join Chelsea July 19, 2011 CHELSEA captain John Terry believes the potential signing of Tottenham playmaker Luka Modric would significantly enhance his club’s chances of regaining the Premier League title. Modric has been the subject of two failed sub £30m bids this summer from the west London club with Spurs adamant that the Croatia playmaker will remain at White Hart [...]
Olympic preparations boosted by major reduction in building costs July 19, 2011 WITH just a year to go before the London Olympics encouraging new figures reveal that the anticipated final cost of the Olympic Delivery Authority’s construction programme has fallen to £7.25bn and is likely to come in £850m under budget. Sports and Olympics minister Hugh Robertson claimed the figure, a £16m reduction on the previous quarter, showed [...]
Barca will fight until the end for Fabregas July 19, 2011 BARCELONA manager Pep Guardiola is willing to wait until the dying embers of the transfer window to force through the transfer of Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas. Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has publically expressed a desire to retain the Spaniard’s services but his counterpart at Barcelona revealed the north London club’s resistance is lessening and is [...]