Sports News

The British Open – one of the most prestigious and historic tournaments in professional squash – is being held in Birmingham for the first time in over two decades as the world’s best players are competing at the Birmingham Rep and Edgbaston Priory Club.

Considered the ‘Wimbledon of squash’, the British Open is squash’s longest-running tournament and has become the most distinguished event on the PSA World Tour calendar and is second only to the PSA World Championships in renown.

The league-leading London Lions went unbeaten in March and ended the month by lifting the Betty Codona WBBL Trophy, resulting in a Molten WBBL Coach of the Month award for Head Coach Stella Kaltsidou.

The former Greek international star took over the reins at Lions in February, joining from posts as Assistant Coach at powerhouse Olympiacos and with the Slovenian National Team, after a more than two decade playing career at the highest levels of the European game.

The experienced Head Coach of the B. Braun Sheffield Sharks, Atiba Lyons, has won the Kevin Cadle Molten BBL Coach of the Month award for March after leading his team to an unbeaten run in the BBL Championship.

The month had started on a disappointing note as Sharks were knocked out of the BBL Trophy at the semi-final stage in a narrow road defeat at Cheshire Phoenix, but it was all up from there as they bounced back with five straight wins in league play to currently sit on a 14-17 record.

A canoe race which sees people paddle 125 miles from Wiltshire to London is celebrating its 75th anniversary.

The annual Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Race is thought to be the longest non-stop canoe race in the world. Hundreds of people gathered at Devizes Wharf earlier for the start of the event which is held over four days.

Several trail athletes have been selected to compete for Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Innsbruck-Stubia, Austria on 6-10 June 2023. In the first wave of selections, eight athletes have been selected to represent the country in the long trail race, while four athletes have been pre-selected for the short trail race with the rest of the squad announced in May.

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An English FA (Football Association) trial has shown that grassroots referees say that they feel more confident and safer whilst wearing bodycams during matches. During the trial, launched in February, about 100 grassroots referees wore the technology during adult matches.

It comes after hundreds of grassroots referees said they feared for their safety when officiating. The FA said the bodycams act as a "deterrent" and, to date, no referee had needed to activate their camera.

Birmingham independent bar and live music venue Nortons Digbeth has pledged more support for women’s rugby in the city and extended its sponsorship of the Moseley Women’s Rugby team by another 12 months. In addition to helping to fund backline coaching for the all-women team based at the historic South Birmingham rugby club, the Digbeth venue continues to screen each of the TikTok Women’s Six Nations tournament games – hot on the heels of the Ireland Mens' historic Six Nation win.

When the arrival of the Women's Premier League (WPL) was confirmed in early 2022, it was immediately hailed as a game-changer for women's cricket. It was highly anticipated, a women's edition of the men's Indian Premier League - the world's biggest franchise T20 competition.

Following on from the publication of the World Athletics statement on Transgender and DSD regulations UK Athletics (UKA) has published a principle statement on Transgender Eligibility in Athletics in the United Kingdom.

The statement reads; ‘UKA are fully considering the details of the World Athletics statement on transgender and DSD participation in athletics and its implications for competition in the UK, but in principle we support and welcome the direction they have taken in protecting the female category.

A Birmingham based teenager has taken a step closer to his Olympic dream after winning big at the 2023 Gymnastics British Championships competition after competing at the Exhibition Centre, in Liverpool, where he became U18 All Around Silver medallist. In the individual apparatus finals, Zion Aserie became U18 Rings champion and also went on to win a bronze medal on the Floor and High Bar.

2023 is already being an exciting year for Kabaddi, as the second most popular sport in India - after cricket – with the established PKL (Pro Kabaddi League) a mega event in its native country. Far more a major sport there than the worldwide popular sport football, even if it doesn’t have enough fan-following elsewhere in the world, it has quite some popularity in India.

Natasha Cockram is the first Great Britain and Northern Ireland athlete selected for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary in August (19-27).

Following the completion of round one of the process outlined in the selection policy for road events, Cockram has been selected, with any further marathon places – as per the policy - being considered in round two at the end of April.

England Men’s batter Ben Duckett and New Zealand Women’s all-rounder Sophie Devine are two of the big-name selections at The Hundred Draft, powered by Sage. The pair were Birmingham Phoenix’s first-round picks of the competition, with Jamie Smith, Miles Hammond, Hannah Baker, Eve Jones, and Katie Levick joining them at Edgbaston.

Duckett, previously with Welsh Fire, will add more firepower to a top-order that already includes England Men’s duo Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone. Will Smeed, who hit the first-ever hundred in The Hundred last year, also returns.

It’s time again for March Madness in the United States. That is when millions of people throughout the country become devoted college basketball fans.

Why? Because March is the month when the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s and women’s basketball tournaments are played.

Tyler Roberts and Dexter Lembikisa made their senior international debuts for Jamaica in the recent round of fixtures.

The duo were selected in the senior squad for the first time, as the Reggae Boyz hosted Trinidad and Tobago in an international friendly double-header. Managed by former Iceland boss Heimir Hallgrimsson, Jamaica were beaten by a single goal on Saturday evening, before taking a share of the spoils in a goalless draw on Tuesday.