Sports News

Global golf stars are lining up to take on the ‘Toon’ at the acclaimed Close House in Newcastle for the US$2 million International Series England from August 17-20.

Lee Westwood, the former world number one with 44 career victories – including eight on the Asian Tour – spearheads a cohort of 10 LIV golfers set to wow the crowds over the Colt Course, situated just a few miles from Newcastle upon Tyne. Despite being born and raised in Worksop, and an ardent Nottingham Forest FC fan, ‘Westy’ moved to the region a number of years ago and struck up a long-standing partnership with Close House as its attached tour professional.

Multi global medallist Femke Bol will race in the women’s 400m Hurdles at the London Athletics Meet on Sunday 23 July. The Dutch athlete has been one of the leading super stars of the sport in recent times, winning 400m hurdles bronze at the Tokyo Olympic Games, before achieving double silver at the World Championships in Oregon, followed by a hattrick of gold medals at the European Championships in 2022.

World champion Jake Wightman and double 2022 European champion, Matthew Hudson-Smith will compete at the London Stadium on Sunday 23 July 2023.

Wightman will be targeting a strong performance in London ahead of his title defence at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest this summer when he takes on the 1500m.

The Edinburgh AC athlete captured world gold in Oregon last year, and after missing the indoor season due to injury, he will be back with a bang at the biggest one-day athletics spectacular of the year on the 23 July.

Racquets for children are hardly new, but until now, most of them have been simply smaller versions of a full-sized model. Thanks to Babolat's pioneering work with scientists, coaches and behavioural experts in France and America, the Lyon-based company has now brought out a whole range of racquets conceived, designed and developed with the specific needs of 4-12 year-olds in mind.

The popular Bears Roadshow returns in the coming weeks as Warwickshire takes the Club into the community for friendly matches against local league sides.

Bears men’s squad will be travelling to Kenilworth Wardens CC on Monday 5 June to take on a Birmingham & District Premier Cricket League Select XI. And on Tuesday 1 August they’ll face a side featuring top performing Warwickshire County Cricket League players at Sutton Coldfield CC.

Elena Rybakina, Kazakhstan's top tennis player, made it to the Forbes's 30 Under 30 Asia list, cementing her position as one of the most outstanding young athletes in the Asia-Pacific region. The tennis star rose to the 4th place in the world's tennis rankings after winning the Italian Open Tournament in Rome on May 20.

The list features 300 young entrepreneurs, leaders and trailblazers across the region, all under the age of 30, who are effecting positive change and driving innovation amid global economic uncertainty and a challenging environment.

The British Basketball League is pleased to announce that former London Lions star Paige Robinson has joined the league as its new Marketing Assistant following the conclusion of the Women’s British Basketball League 2022/23 season.

Paige joins the League’s marketing department following a highly successful on-court career, which has seen her pick up ten Women’s British Basketball League titles, including, most recently, the Play-off trophy at The O2 Arena in London whereupon the Lions reigned supreme over the Leicester Riders.

International superstar all-rounders Moeen Ali and Ellyse Perry will take centre stage this summer after being confirmed as Birmingham Phoenix captains for The Hundred. Ali, born just a few miles away from Edgbaston, will lead his hometown team for a third time, having skippered Birmingham Phoenix in the inaugural final in 2021.

Perry meanwhile will captain for the first time in the tournament, replacing Sophie Devine, who will still play for Birmingham Phoenix. Perry has a wealth of experience, captaining Sydney Sixers in the Women’s Big Bash, whilst being a senior figure in the Australia Women’s national team.

The Farmfoods British Par 3 Championship will celebrate its 90th birthday by welcoming the return of crowds to the event, it was announced. The Champions UK (Plc) organised event returns to Nailcote Hall, Berkswell, Coventry, between 8th-11th August.

Spectators will be able to see a host of tour professionals from past and present with the likes of Aaron Rai, Tommy Fleetwood, Peter Baker, and Ian Woosnam OBE gracing the Unique Par-3 course as well as celebrities from the world of screen, stage and sport, at the venue’s renowned 1,048-yard Cromwell Course. Entry to the event is free - and it will be the first time since the pandemic that spectators will be permitted at the Midlands venue - which will be hosting the Championship for the 25th year in a row.

Manchester City celebrated a third successive Premier League title triumph with victory over Chelsea in a relaxed party atmosphere at Etihad Stadium. City were confirmed as champions without even playing after Nottingham Forest's win against Arsenal on Saturday, allowing manager Pep Guardiola to make nine changes from the side that thrashed Real Madrid to reach the Champions League final.

After winning a maiden European indoor title in March, Jazmin Sawyers has confirmed she will compete in the long jump at the London Stadium on Sunday 23 July as athletics returns to the capital city.

Sawyers’ success led the headlines as she won the European title two months ago, the first continental title of her career. In a highly entertaining final, she moved up to the gold medal position with a British indoor record of 7.00m in the penultimate round, leading to joyous scenes in the aftermath. She became only the third British woman to jump over seven metres after Shara Proctor and Lorraine Ugen, and once again showed her credentials as a world-class championship performer.

An unusual duo is winning laurels for India in karate.

Geeta Godara, 60, and her 13-year-old granddaughter Aashka recently won medals in different categories at an international karate competition in Dubai.

Double Olympic shot-put champion and world record holder Ryan Crouser (USA) will be seeking to wow the crowds at the London Stadium this summer as athletics returns to the capital on Sunday 23 July 2023.

Crouser, who won his first world title in Oregon last year, is already a legendary figure in the sport having won Olympic titles in both Rio (2016) and Tokyo (2020). The 31-year-old holds the outright world record with a mark of 23.37m which came in Hayward Fields in Eugene back in 2021.

Reigning Olympic and world high jump champion Mutaz Barshim will compete at the London Diamond League on Sunday 23 July, the one-day spectacular marking the return of world class athletics to the London Stadium.

Barshim is the Qatar national record holder with a best of 2.43m, the second-highest jump of all time. Twice an Olympic silver medallist (2012 and 2016), he shared one of the greatest sporting moments ever when he was crowned joint Olympic champion with his long-time friend and rival Gianmarco Tamberi in Tokyo 2021.

Pakistan’s best women cricketers will be in action in the City of Lights, Karachi, from tomorrow (Friday, 19 May), in the Pakistan Cup Women’s Cricket Tournament 2022-23. The tournament has been designed to provide maximum matches to these cricketers and will be played in two iterations – in the first, four sides will play T20 matches on round-robin basis and three teams will play one-day matches on double round-robin basis with the final on 4 June.

The Great Britain and Northern Ireland U20 team has been announced for the Loughborough International which is taking place this Sunday 21 May. 

The European U20 Championships and Commonwealth Youth Games in August will be the target for many of those selected with this weekend’s event an ideal opportunity to gain valuable experience in an international environment. Qualification times will be up for grabs for the World Athletics Championships later this summer so the youngsters will be expecting top level competition with teams from England, Scotland and Wales plus Loughborough University at Sunday’s event.