A University of Wolverhampton web developer has his sights set on sprinting to success in an international triathlon championship competition.

Adam Jones, 29 from Stourbridge, is crowdfunding to help him take part in the age group triathlon competition at the Team GB Championship being held in Russia later this year.

The web developer, who works in the External Relations department at the University and also coaches young athletes in his spare time, competed in the 2018 European Championships in Glasgow and hopes to take part in Kasan, Russia, in July this year.

The ‘sprint’ triathlon competition is made up of three different sports – swimming (750 metres), running (5 kilometres) and cycling (20 kilometres).

He said:  “It felt amazing to represent our country in the championships last year and I’m hoping to do it all again.

“As an age group athlete you have to fund everything yourself – the kit, flights, accommodation and visas – so I thought that crowdfunding would be an ideal way of helping me achieve my goal.”

Adam will be creating a video diary so that funders can track his progress on his journey towards achieving his goal in Russia.

Hick-kicking cabaret, breath-taking ballet, sublime singing and Parisian passion will inspire cinemas audiences when The Royal Opera’s ‘Faust’ is broadcast live in UK cinemas on Tuesday 30 April 2019, with an encore screening on Sunday 5 May 2019.

Director David McVicar’s theatrical production will captivate audiences with its beautiful sets and costumes, and a stunning cast including American tenor Michael Fabiano as Faust, Uruguayan bass-baritone Erwin Schrott as the devil Méphistophélès and German soprano Diana Damrau as Faust’s beloved Marguerite. Faust is the French composer Charles-François Gounod’s greatest masterpiece and a favourite with opera audiences worldwide.

The opera tells the tale of the disillusioned philosopher Faust who loses faith in God and summons Satan to help him. The devil Méphistophélès appears and offers to make a bargain with Faust: he will give him youth and the young Marguerite’s love if Faust hands over his soul. Faust agrees, seduces Marguerite – but then abandons her, with disastrous consequences. Gounod’s superb score includes some devilish songs for Méphistophélès, Marguerite’s ecstatic ‘Jewel Song’ and a thrilling ballet in Act V. 

The Royal Opera House cinema broadcasts offer audiences the best seats in the house, and include exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and detailed close-ups of performers. Audiences are never far from a Royal Opera or Royal Ballet performance, with most UK viewers located within 30 miles of a cinema screening. In the 2017/18 Season more than one million people globally saw a world-class opera or ballet production from the Royal Opera House, at one of more than 1,500 cinemas in 51 countries. 

The cinema broadcast of ‘Faust’ starts at 6.45pm and lasts three hours and 30 minutes including one interval. There is an encore screening on Sunday 5 May at 2pm. The opera will be sung in French with English surtitles.

British Athletics have today named a team of 26 athletes with 78 major international outdoor medals between them for the IAAF World Relays in Yokohama, Japan from 11-12 May 2019. The 26-strong British team includes seven Olympic, 17 World Championship and 21 European Championship relay medallists.

Adam Gemili, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake and CJ Ujah, who helped Great Britain & Northern Ireland to world 4x100m gold in 2017, are all selected and will be joined by fellow European champion from 2018 Harry Aikines-Aryeetey as well as British champion and European silver medallist over 100m Reece Prescod and two-time world indoor champion Richard Kilty.

In the women’s 4x100m, Olympic bronze medallists from 2016 and world silver medallists from 2017, Desiree Henry, Daryll Neita and Asha Philip; have been named on the British team. They’ll be joined by European champion from 2018 Bianca Williams, European champion from 2014 Ashleigh Nelson and double world junior bronze medallist Kristal Awuah.

In the women’s 4x400m, Emily Diamond, Eilidh Doyle  and Anyika Onuora all have Olympic bronze medals from 2016 and earn selection alongside Finette Agyapong, Amy Allock, Zoey Clark and Laviai Nielsen Clark and Nielsen won world silver with Diamond and Doyle in 2017 while Agyapong and Allcock won their first international relay medals with European bronze last year.

Martyn Rooney – the most decorated athlete on the team alongside Doyle with seven major outdoor relay medals – is the seventh Olympic medallist selected following his 4x400m bronze from 2008 and headlines a squad including fellow world bronze medallists from 2017 Dwayne Cowan, Rabah Yousif and Matthew Hudson-Smith–  also the reigning European champion over 400m.

European champions Dina Asher-Smith and Zharnel Hughes have been given permission by British Athletics not to compete at the IAAF World Relays in line with their individual competition plans for the 2019 season.

The 14 athletes selected across the men’s and women’s 4x400m are the athletes from which the team for the mixed 4x400m will be selected, which is being introduced to the IAAF World Championship schedule for the first time ever in Doha this year. Great Britain & Northern Ireland will not participate in the 4x200m, shuttle hurdles or 2x2x400m relays.

British Athletics Performance Director Neil Black said: “We are extremely proud of the successes of our relay teams over the past three years and our athletes take each and every opportunity to compete on the international stage incredibly seriously, as proven by the sheer strength of the team selected for Yokohama.

“We expect our athletes to continue that tradition of success in Japan and guarantee qualification for all five events for the IAAF World Championships later in the year. The introduction of the mixed 4x400m for Doha is something we are all excited about and we look forward to testing our skills in that event.

“The IAAF World Relays provides us with a great opportunity as we prepare for not only Doha but also for the Olympic Games, which we all know are also being held in Japan in 2020. The opportunity to train and compete in Japan 14 months before the Games is invaluable to all those selected.”

Antoinette “Toni” Harris is the first woman ever to attend college on a full football scholarship. She has overcome challenges brought about by her gender, build, what other people say, and even a fatal illness she was diagnosed with. In fact, she dreams of being the first woman to play in the NFL.

Harris, 22, who was born and raised in Detroit, has always been a football fan since she was 4-years old. Even though she also liked cheerleading and track-and-field, she really enjoys football the most.

She started just watching her cousins play until she herself played football during grade school. Eventually, she entered the high school football team but with teammates who “weren’t really accepting,” it wasn’t easy at first.

She said: “It took them some time to warm up to me. But once they did, they were loving, they were supportive — and eventually everybody else got on board.”

Harris, who was proclaimed the homecoming queen on her senior year, still had doubts with herself. Being younger and a lot smaller than male players didn’t stop her though. She realized she just has to learn to live with it.

“At the end of the day, I told myself, ‘I cannot allow myself to live in fear.’ You don’t really live if you live in fear,” she said.

Her bravery has been ultimately tested when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the age of 18. She lost half of her body weight and she went through remission later that year.

She continued with her dreams despite people telling her she couldn’t move from high school football to college. While enrolled at Golden West College, she entered East Los Angeles College to be able to play free safety with the community college team.

After two years in college football, she has received dozens of scholarship offers to play. Most recently, she marked history as the first woman to sign a letter of intent for a four-year college football scholarship. She accepted the scholarship with Central Methodist University to continue her studies and play football in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Moreover, Harris has also caught the attention of giant companies. In January, a Toyota advertisement featuring her with a RAV4 Hybrid was premiered in their Super Bowl commercial.

After college, Harris dreams of playing for her favourite team, the Seattle Seahawks, or “any other team in the NFL — as long as I got my chance,” she said. Additionally, she also plans on becoming a “homicide detective with a background in forensics.”

In his first fight at super-middleweight, former British and Commonwealth middleweight champion Tommy Langford was made to work hard for his points win against Frenchman Baptiste Castegnaro at the Walsall Town Hall on a BCB Promotions event.

Langford didn’t have it all his own way against the tough 28-year-old from southwest France with the six-round super-middleweight contest scored at 58-56 to the 29-year-old from Birmingham.

He started off on the front foot and took the fight to the Frenchman, who has previously shared the ring with Olympic bronze medalist Joshua Buatsi.

Langford, born and raised in North Devon, was dominant behind his double jab and landed a neat left to the body midway through the first round. Castegnaro did manage to have some success in the opener and when he landed cleanly, it visibly incentivised him to follow up, forcing the home fighter backwards. The French fighter did manage to ruffle Langford’s feathers a little bit, who took a tiny tumble at the end of the opener, but was ruled as a slip.

He started the second stanza behind a stiff jab, backing Castegnaro up. They were soon tangled up in the centre of the ring until Castegnaro forced Tommy back to the ropes without managing to land anything at all as Langford ducked and weaved and soon answered with a one-two to the head. It was a clean, controlled round for Langford on the scorecards, as he began to lose his nerves and find his rhythm.

Langford landed a peach of a left hook as the pair traded in the centre of the ring in the third, but Castegnaro managed to score back with one of his own seconds later. This round was contested in close quarters for the first time in the fight as Castegnaro held his feet a bit longer and there was success for both parties during the three minutes of action.

Despite Langford producing the more dominant and aggressive display, Castegnaro enjoyed spells of success and produced a late flurry seconds before the end of the fourth segment.

The fifth round was far more controlled, as Tommy stalked his opponent, who occupied all four corners of the ring for the duration of the round as he attempted to move away from danger. Langford unloaded when he trapped Castegnaro in his home corner and a left hook to the body followed by another to the head sent the Frenchman backpedaling across the ring.

Castegnaro came out swinging in the final round and the pair finished with a firefight in the middle of the ring.

The official scored it four rounds for Langford and two for the visitor.

Langford commented post-fight, “Back to winning ways! I was a little jittery to begin with, I have to admit, but I soon warmed up. To be completely honest, I was actually very nervous and a bit tentative early on, which resulted in a hesitant first few rounds.

“It was to be expected after the lay off and moving up a weight division, but I warmed into it and started to box well and by the end I was really dominating and hurting my opponent, especially with the left hook.

“It was good to get the experience at 168lbs against a fully-fledged super-middleweight who has fought two of the best light-heavyweights in the country in Olympian Joshua Buatsi and English champion Liam Conroy.

“He was a strong, durable opponent, so the experience will be invaluable as I push on to bigger fights. Many others would have had a more conventional or less dangerous opponent for their first step up to a new weight, and, if I’m going to be completely honest, I probably would have liked to have had an easier opponent, but now the job’s done and I’ve come through well, I’m very happy.

“It means the questions that I’ve had have been answered and I’m happy to push on now and look for bigger opportunities at 168lbs.”

The ‘Baggies Bomber’, named so by his huge following of West Bromwich Albion FC fans, has already declared his intentions to become a two-weight British or Commonwealth champion. Zach Parker from nearby Swadlincote is the current British super-middleweight titlist and world title challenger Rocky Fielding last held the Commonwealth strap.

“I’m fully aware that most domestic champions won’t want to give me a shot at their titles, so I’m prepared to work my way into the mandatory position.”

He concluded, “Big thank you to all the fantastic support, it always means a lot. Thanks to BCB Promotions for giving me the platform to fight. We move on to the next one!”

The BCB Promotions ‘Pride of the Midlands’ event also featured Midlands Area middleweight champion Tyler Denny (10-1-2) who earned a shutout points win over six-rounds and has plans to fight for bigger titles in 2019.

Ricky Hatton-trained welterweight Conah Walker (4-0) remained unbeaten as he scored his second KO and unbeaten lightweight Connor Lee Jones moved up to 3-0 with a points win.

Wolverhampton welterweight Kirstie Bavington (2-0-1) scored her first stoppage win in a very one-sided fight.

A team captain from the University of Wolverhampton has scored a trip of a lifetime to go behind the scenes at an international football stadium.

Student Lowri Walker is one of a select group of leading footballers from women’s football clubs at UK universities who will join a programme of events, tours and training.

The programme, organised by Santander Universities, is designed to help build critical thinking and management skills for female talent, both through sporting and wider leadership activity.

The 21-year-old, who captained her team to BUCS Conference Cup glory this week, will jet off to Barcelona this month for three days of activities at the iconic Camp Nou.

In celebration of Santander’s sponsorship of the UEFA Champions League, Lowri will have the chance to watch Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique and their Barcelona team mates play in the club’s vital round sixteen tie against Olympique Lyonnais.

Lowri, who has a sports scholarship from the University, will also take part in a panel event on women’s leadership, and have the opportunity to benefit from a training session with Chapi Ferrer, professional football coach and ex-player of both FC Barcelona and Chelsea FC.

The visit also includes a tour of the Camp Nou stadium and time to visit the sights of Barcelona.

BSc (Hons) Sport and Exercise Science student Lowri, from Aberystwyth, said: “I’m so grateful to Santander Universities for this amazing opportunity, and I hope I can do the University proud when I represent our team in Barcelona. I’m really looking forward to visiting the Camp Nou and making the most of this exciting trip.

“As Captain of the women’s football team, I’m a role model for my players and having that on my shoulders has helped mould me into the person I want to be, and it has massively helped me on the pitch too. The Sports Scholarship from the University has developed me as a person and has made me feel like part of a wider team, so I’m incredibly grateful for the support I’ve received.”

Dr Richard Medcalf, Director of the Institute of Human Sciences, said: “I’m delighted that Lowri has been given this opportunity and am very grateful to Santander for their part in this.

Women’s football is a hugely important sport for us at Wolverhampton, the team is on course to gain promotion this year and Lowri is an excellent example of a sports scholar who takes a professional approach to both sport and study.”

Matt Hutnell, Director, Santander Universities, said: “We are thrilled to offer this opportunity to top female football talent from across the UK to help develop their leadership skills, both within and outside a sporting context.  We are committed to supporting higher education and we know that those selected for this programme are equally committed to their sport, investing hours into training and are an inspiration to their peers both on and off the pitch.

We hope the trip will motivate and support female talent with their career ambitions – whether in the world of sport, finance or beyond.”

Emilio Botín launched Santander Universities in Spain in 1996, as an effective vehicle for business investment into its communities.  The programme now has over 1,200 University partners across 20 countries. Santander Universities UK launched in 2007; encompassing 84 universities, and providing over £10m of funding in 2018 alone. The programme focuses on education, entrepreneurship and employability giving all students the opportunity to succeed.