Sports News

The English Premier League is set to restart on June 17 with the games between Aston Villa and Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal the first two fixtures that will launch a deluge of games – subject to government approval.

As those two are games in hand that were still outstanding before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, a full round of fixtures would then follow during the weekend of June 19 to 21.

There are 92 matches still to be played with the first ones to take place bringing the number of games in the division equally up to scratch.

All of the matches will take place behind closed doors and will be broadcast live by Amazon Prime, BBC Sport BT Sport and Sky Sport.

It’s the first time since the inception of the Premier League in 1992 that the BBC will be showing live games.

Safety guidelines are yet to be issued by the government and decisions will remain subject to the continuing fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

Richard Masters, the chief executive of the Premier League said: “The Premier League and our clubs are proud to have incredibly passionate and loyal supporters and it’s important to ensure that as many people as possible can watch the matches at home”.

He added that the resumption date would not be unreservedly confirmed “until we have met all of the safety requirements”.

British Athletics have announced a crucial partnership with London Marathon Events to improve the future development of athletics talent with a structured network of talent development hubs - running programmes that provide athletes aged 16-21 years with a seamless experience through the performance pathway, to ultimately fulfil ambitions of success on the international stage.
 
The talent hubs, developed in collaboration with the Home Country Athletics Federations, will see talent hubs and academies developed across all home nations. England Athletics will be supported by the Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS) to implement the University of Birmingham and Leeds Beckett University Hubs.
 
London Marathon Events will play a key part in the structure by providing investment specifically for the development of 1500m-plus events based at the two universities with the aim to support endurance athlete and coaches to progress and transition from junior to senior success.
 
With Birmingham and Leeds already operational having taken part in the strategy pilot, and in light of the Covid-19 outbreak, part of the programmes are already being adapted into virtual, online based activity and e-learning to ensure the ongoing support for athletes and coaches and the ability of the programme to ensure safe activity at this challenging time.
 
The TASS element will be key in providing additional performance support services and quality assurance of delivery in sports science and medical support.
 
British Athletics Talent Director Jonathan Roberts said: “We are thrilled with the launch of the talent hubs at Leeds Beckett and Birmingham, as they play a key part of providing a dual career pathway for athletes and additional support for coaches.
 
“London Marathon Events’ investment into the endurance events is a hugely significant boost to this newly evolving talent pathway across the UK.  We are thrilled that they have given the talent hubs their endorsement and support and look forward to working with them in this area of talent development.
 
“To work in collaboration with London Marathon Events, England Athletics, the universities and TASS gives us the best opportunity to provide the best pathway for athletes and additional support for coaches, as one part of our vision for talent development in the UK.”
 
Hugh Brasher, Event Director at London Marathon Events, said: “We are passionately committed to supporting the overall development of British distance running and we believe the creation of these new talent hubs at Leeds Beckett and Birmingham offer vital support to young British athletes as they move from school to university.”
 

Birmingham-based Mondelēz International’s employees joined forces to raise money for two charities, by cycling, running and walking an incredible 10,000 miles throughout April.
 
The virtual challenge was devised after the team’s annual charity cycle ride was postponed due to the impact of COVID-19, with the group working towards its 2020 target of raising £10,000 for charity. Each person was able to complete their miles however they could, while adhering to government guidance on social distancing.
 
Throughout the month, 42 employees clocked up an impressive 11,903 miles, beating their target for the challenge and initially raising £1,340. The Cadbury Foundation stepped in to match the total raised and Mondelēz International’s employees also chose to donate to each charity through the company’s BOOST employee wellbeing initiative – bringing the total to an incredible £3,340.
 
A 30 team members from the snacking company’s Bournville site took part, with the rest of the group comprised of employees from Mondelēz International’s other sites in Zurich, Uxbridge, Sheffield, Marlbrook and Chirk.
 
For the challenge, the team raised money for both Acorns Children's Hospice and Grocery Aid. The hospice provides vital care for life limited and life threatened children and support for their families.
 
Grocery Aid helps people across the whole of the grocery industry – from the largest factory, through the supply chain, to the smallest store. The charity provides support to members of the industry in times of need, both financially and emotionally.
 
Catriona Newman at Mondelēz International said: “We’re so happy to have been able to complete this challenge and we’re thrilled to have gone further and raised more money than we originally set out to do.

“Both charities are incredibly important to the beneficiaries they support, so we’re happy to be able to continue supporting them with our fundraising. We are still planning on completing our charity cycle ride later this year to boost our funds, either as planned or virtually.”
 
Kelly Farrell, community affairs manager at Mondelēz International, said: “With COVID-19 disrupting so many of our colleagues fundraising initiatives, we’re proud that the team didn’t let it stop them from raising money for two deserving charities. The Mondelēz International April 10,000 was an incredible undertaking and we want to thank everyone for their unwavering support.”
 

Hana Kimura, a professional Japanese wrestler who also appeared in the latest series of Netflix's reality show Terrace House, has died at the age of 22.

Stardom Wrestling, Kimura's organisation, confirmed the news and asked fans to be respectful.

The cause of death was not immediately clear.

Shortly before she died, she issued a series of troubling social media posts implying she had been cyber-bullied.

The most recent update on her Instagram story on Friday featured a photo of her with her cat, with a caption that read "goodbye".

A winner of Stardom's 2019 Fighting Spirit Award, Kimura was one of the cast members of Japanese reality TV show Terrace House, before it was suspended due to coronavirus. The show follows three men and three women as they temporarily live toagether in a house.

Confirming her death on Twitter, Stardom said: "Please be respectful and allow some time for things to process, and keep your thoughts and prayers with her family and friends."

Her mother was also a well-known wrestler, Kyoko Kimura.

Golfing legend Tiger Woods teamed up with former American football hero Peyton Manning to beat sporting counterparts Phil Mickelson and former New England Patriots record-breaking quarterback Tom Brady in a charity match which raised $20,000,000 for coronavirus relief efforts in the United States, with the legend that is Brady hitting the shot of the day by holing out from the fairway on the seventh.

It was Woods and Manning who came out on top here after holding off Mickelson and Brady in what was a highly-anticipated ‘The Match: Champions for Charity’ exhibition match at the Medalist Golf Club in Florida which originally set out to raise $10m.

However online donations helped the end result reaching $20m.

“I take my hat off to Tom and Peyton”, Woods said. “This is our arena and what we do for a living.

“I couldn’t imagine going on the field and doing what they do”, he added.

British Athletics have had to confirm the cancellation of the 2020 Müller Anniversary Games - part of the Wanda Diamond League - scheduled for July 4-5 at the London Stadium.
 
The decision has been made in light of the ongoing global pandemic, with the safety of all athletes, coaches, volunteers, spectators and members of staff, at home in the UK and abroad, the upmost priority.
 
Joanna Coates, UK Athletics CEO, said: “We are hugely disappointed to confirm the cancellation of one of the flagship events of the global athletics calendar, but we must place the safety of the entire athletics family at the forefront of every decision we make during these unprecedented times and ensure we are following Government advice.
 
“Cancelling the event will have a significant financial impact on UKA and the wider sport. The revenue we generate from events - through ticketing, broadcast and sponsorship helps administer the sport and provide the essential governance services that we, as an NGB, oversee.
 
“We’re incredibly thankful to our commercial partners, some of which are continuing to support us during these tough times but there will be a substantial reduction in income from the cancellation of this event and this will have an impact moving forwards.”
 
Müller Anniversary Games ticket purchasers will receive an automatic refund via the method of payment originally used to buy tickets and will not need to do anything or make contact. However, given the extraordinary circumstances and high volumes placed on banks during these times, the refund process may take slightly longer than usual.
 
British Athletics will continue to provide updates concerning the competition calendar and all other athletics activities, in collaboration with the Home Country Athletic Federations, as and when there is further information.

Warwickshire County Cricket Club has reinforced its fundraising plans for Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham Charity and the NSPCC Childline service in Birmingham by releasing a new Bear & Ragged staff t-shirt, which is based on a design from men’s First Team Coach Jim Troughton.

Available in men’s, women’s and children’s sizes, the t-shirts are priced at £15 each with all proceeds raised being donated to the two charities.

Bears fans can now pre-order one of the special edition Bear & Ragged Staff charity t-shirts online at Store 94. However, please do bear in mind that all deliveries will take place once the current Government working guidelines are amended and staff can return to Edgbaston.

The charity t-shirts follows on the commitment from Warwickshire CCC and Edgbaston staff to raise funds for both charities through the 2.6 Challenge; a series of exercise-related challenges undertaken individually before the end of May. These challenges include Safety Manager David Clarke cycling 260 miles, Executive Membership Account Manager Heidi Smith undertaking 26 minutes of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) on 10 consecutive days, and Head of Conference & Events Sales Maria Clune running 2.6 miles each day.

Donations to the team’s fundraising efforts can be made at: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/Team/Bears4

The Club has also promised to use one of its Vitality Blast fixtures to celebrate the efforts of NHS staff later in the summer, whilst its home of Edgbaston has been donated for use as a COVID-19 drive-through testing centre, which is used to support the Government’s testing of key workers.

NBA legend turned social entrepreneur, Magic Johnson, has committed to providing $100 million in capital to fund small business loans through the SBA's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). His companies, Magic Johnson Enterprises and EquiTrust Life Insurance Company, have partnered with a New Jersey-based lender called MBE Capital Partners that specializes in financing minority and women-owned businesses.

In total, his investment will fund loans for about 5,000 small businesses.

The former LA Lakers great reportedly has launched the initiative to help the many Black and minority-owned small businesses that were overlooked during the first round of loans that the U.S. government launch. Many who applied never even heard anything regarding their application.

“What we’re launching here now is so important because we’re going to save a lot of small, minority businesses because they can’t just walk into the bank and get that loan,” Johnson said.

Black and minority communities in the U.S. have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Major cities like New York City, Chicago, and Detroit have all seen higher African American death rates because of the virus. Even worse, their local business communities have been shattered leaving many Black entrepreneurs with no other option but to shut their enterprises.

Following an announcement by the English Premier League, the twenty clubs in the top division have agreed to stage one of the return-to-training protocols, which allows teams to start training in small groups.

Clubs voted unanimously to the decision at the recent ‘Project Restart’ meeting.
Players must observe social distancing rules, and contact training is not permitted.

The first stage was agreed in consultation with players, managers, club doctors, independent experts and the government.

Some players, however, are not totally convinced with Watford captain, Troy Deeney, saying that concerned players are yet to receive ‘simple answers’ on health implications of ‘Project Restart’.

He voiced his concerns after being contacted by fellow-players who have shared his fears, but are reluctant to speak pout openly.

“I think that the concern is with Phase 2 (that is when players start to make contact in training)”, he said. “And Phase 3 is not yet clearly laid out. A lot of ‘simple questions’ have not been answered yet.

“One, for example, is the BAME situation, where government guidelines are saying that people of colour are four times more likely to get coronavirus and twice as likely to have lasting illnesses. But, there is no extra screening or additional checks carried out on players because it costs too much money. Simple things like that are where people are asking questions and they are not being answered when people can answer the questions, you start panicking and worrying”.

Adding to his worries, the Chelmsely Wood-born star continued: “I saw Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham saying that he lives with him dad who has asthma and he has concerns there.

“It just shows that from the Premier League to League Two, there are concerns right across the board”.

The Premier League had previously identified June 12 for matches to possibly restart but there is now an expectation that this will need to be pushed back.

A statement – by the Premier League – added; ‘Strict medical protocols of the highest standard will ensure that everyone will return to training in the safest environment possible. The health and well-being of all participants is our priority, and the safe return to training is a step-by-step process. Full consultation will now continue with players, managers, the clubs, the PFA (Professional Footballers’ Association) and the LMA (League Managers’ Association) as protocols for full-contact training are developed.’

Meanwhile, in the Scotland’s SPL, Celtic was confirmed as champions for the ninth consecutive year after the SPL ended its season, with Hearts being relegated. The decision follows a board meeting after the 12 clubs agreed that completing the campaign was unfeasible.

Average points-per-game played was used to determine the final placing.

English Premier League clubs are hoping to give their players the go-ahead to return to training in small groups this week.

But, there is a growing feeling that the intended June 12 date set for matches to start again will need to be pushed back.

A vote was due to take place on training and medical protocols when the 20 top-flight clubs where due to hold their next meeting.

If at least 14 of the 20 clubs passed through, players would be able to train in groups of five thereafter.

The Premier League would have been encouraged with the return of the Bundesliga, in Germany, this weekend.

They were the first major football league to in the world to resume after the easing of the lockdown.

As in Germany, Premier League will have to undergo safety measures including tents where temperature checks will be conducted, strict hygiene criteria, no canteens and no showers.

A maximum of five players will be allowed per pitch with tackling forbidden.

Players will be tested twice per week and are being asked to provide written approval that they have received and understood the club’s Covid-19 policy.

The prospect of clubs playing their remaining fixtures at neutral grounds has receded with more than half speaking out against such a proposal.

Players and staff at Birmingham City F.C. got together to take up the challenge of covering the entire distance between John O’ Groats to Land’s End to help to raise funds for local hospitals during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Championship club’s players and staff; including Men’s and Women’s First Team, Academy, BCFC Community Trust, the Former Players Association, Media, Ticket Office, Commercial and Retail recorded their cumulative miles travelled by either running or walking in their respective local surroundings whilst adhering to guidelines on exercise and social distancing.

Backed by Principle partners, Boylsports, who took part themselves, they chose to support the University Hospital Birmingham Charity.

A statement from the club said: “The money raised can now go to delivering care packs to nurses, provide ‘wobble rooms’ for staff to get psychological and emotional support, helping patients to stay in contact with their families by providing tablets with video conferencing apps and much more”.

Charlotte Schofield, Director of Fundraising at the University Hospital Birmingham Charity said: “Our thanks go out to everyone at Birmingham City who took on, or supported the Keep Right On Challenge, as their support will now help us to do more for our NHS Superheroes and the patients who they are treating at these difficult times/

The eyes of the football world are fixed on Germany as the country’s Bundesliga are preparing for a restart next weekend.

And, with it already suffering a major setback, the powers that be there are determined to push forward nevertheless.

Dynamo Dresden, who plays in the second tier of German football, have put their entire squad and coaching staff into two-week isolation after two of their players tested positive for coronavirus.

The Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 are due to restart on Saturday May 16 and is still fully set to be the first European league to restart following the Covid-19 shutdown.

A spokesperson at Dresden said: “The fact is that we can no longer train nor participate in a game in the next 10 days or so”.

The decision was taken after laboratory samples revealed the news, although the two players concerned are currently free of any symptoms of the virus.

In a statement, the club’s sports manager, Ralf Minge, said; “In the past few weeks, we have made enormous efforts in terms of personnel and logistics in order to strictly implement all of the prescribed medical and hygienic measures.

“We are in contact with the responsible health authorities and the DFL to coordinate all further steps”.

Dresden was due to resume their season on May 17 at Hanover 96, but that match has now been cancelled due to the quarantine measures.

The Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 are set to resume behind closed doors – subject to strict safety checks.

The English Premier League’s ‘Project Restart’ (Their plans to restart their season) was set to step up pace this week.

However, the revelation that three Brighton players tested ‘positive’ for coronavirus may well ‘kick’ those plans further down the road.

Tottenham Hotspur forward, Son Heung-min, has won an award for the best performance after he completed his three-week military service in his native South Korea.

Officials said that the 27-year-old Premier League superstar had excelled in his shooting skills and he was also the top performer among a group of 157 trainees.

He was due to serve 21 months, but earned an exemption after being part of the South Korea team which won the Asian Games in 2018 and, as a result, only had to complete three weeks.

Son returned to his homeland, in March, to continue with his recovery from a fractured arm while the season is in suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is mandatory that all South Korean men must complete military service in their country by the time they reach 27.

With the Premier League’s ‘Project Restart’ hoping to see the top-flight resume in July, it could mean an official return to group training very soon – which Son could miss, due to him having to spend a period of time in quarantine on his return to the UK.

The Spurs star underwent exposure to rear gas, went on lengthy hikes and was trained in how to fire guns during his national service.

Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspurs, Celtic and Rangers are among a number of leading European clubs who will be using social media platforms to help find missing young people.

The project, which will run on International ‘Missing Children’s Day’, on May 25, was inspired by Serie A giants, Roma.

The Italian club showed videos of missing children when they were signing players over the past two transfer windows, and six children who were featured have since been found.

The ‘Football Cares’ imitative is being supported by world football’s governing body FIFA.

The European Club Association, who is co-ordinating the project, said: “With the huge following and global reach that these clubs boast, we hope that someone, somewhere might recognise one of the missing children and young people in the videos so that they can be reunited with their loved ones”.

Clubs who have signed up for the initiative so far include Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund in Germany, Inter Milan, Juventus and Lazio in Italy, Barcelona, Athletico Madrid and Valencia in Spain, Irish side Cork and Linfield from Northern Ireland.

 The NFL has made the decision to cancel the four gridiron games scheduled to take place in London later this year.

Two of the fixtures, involving the Jacksonville Jaguars were scheduled for Wembley Stadium, with two further fixtures due to be played at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

They will now be rescheduled to be played in the United States after organisers decided it was impossible to arrange games in a different continent because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The London games were set to be played in autumn 2020, but no dates had yet been set.

It will be the first time that an NFL regular-season game has not been played in London since 2006.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell made the decision after consultation with a number of stakeholders including clubs, local governments and medical authorities.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan said it was “absolutely the right decision to ensure the safety of everyone involved in the sport”.

Tottenham Hotspurs’ chairman, Daniel Levy, said: “We fully appreciate the difficult decision that the NFL has had to make”.

The NFL had also been planning to play one game at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico, but that too will take place in the US.

The United States Women’s football team’s bid for equal pay has been dismissed by a court, with the judge rejecting the players’ claims that they were underpaid compared to the men.

The lawsuit was filed by 28 women’s national team players last year against the USSF (US Soccer Federation).

They had been seeking $66 million (£52.6m) in damages under the Equal Pay Act.

Molly Levinson, the spokesperson for the players, said that they planned to appeal against the decision.

The players filed the law suit against the USSF alleging that they were underpaid compered to men in the same sport last year.

The Judge, R. Gary Klausner, said that the players haven’t ‘demonstrated a triable issue’ that they’re paid less than their male peers.

The Women’s national soccer team once openly protested against the USSF when, in a game against Japan Women’s team, when they took to the field wearing their warm-up vests turned inside out so that the U.S badge could not be seen.- although the 4 stars, which represent the US Women’s team’s four World Cup victories were left visible.

They left their jersey inside-out during the U.S. national anthem, before turning them the right way round just before the start of the game.

In a statement, issued by Levinson, she said: “We wanted to stand together as a team and make a statement on behalf of all women and girls that the federation’s comments are unacceptable.

“We love this sport and this country and we cannot stand for this misogynistic treatment”.

At the request of supporters, USWNT (United States Women’s National Team) has begun selling officially licenced T-shirts and hoodies emulating the inside-out jersey.