Sports News

Cricket has the potential to unite communities and help countries towards their development goals, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland has said. She was speaking at the ‘Bringing the Commonwealth to the ICC Cricket World Cup’ event – launching a landmark collaboration between the Commonwealth, International Cricket Council (ICC) Cricket World Cup 2019, and England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

High commissioners, renowned sportsmen and community project leaders were among those attending the presentation at the Commonwealth headquarters in London. The initiative aims to shift the focus beyond the playing field to the greater impacts of sport such as accelerating development, promoting peace and improving health and education.

Welcoming the new partnership, the Secretary-General said, “Sport is one of the great shared traditions across Commonwealth member countries. This collaboration will utilise our Commonwealth convening power - which is truly remarkable - to champion and promote cricket and broader sport-based initiatives being delivered by a diverse range of organisations, using the sport as a tool for development and peacebuilding.”

Secretary-General Scotland spoke about the Peace at the Crease initiative she launched earlier this year to enhance the impact of cricket as a tool for development. The programme will create a network of governments, cricketing and sporting bodies and community organisations, and includes training and capacity building to use cricket and sport more generally to advance development goals such as good health and wellbeing, peace and gender equality. Contributing to Peace at the Crease there are Commonwealth Community Cricketing Cups, with special exhibition matches and tournaments to mobilise action on specific development challenges.

The Commonwealth will also support the ICC Young Flagbearers programme, which will recruit young people from diaspora communities of each of the 10 world cup competing nations.

Commenting on the partnership with the Commonwealth, Managing Director of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, Steve Elworthy MBE said: “It is an honour to work alongside the Commonwealth ahead of what is a huge year for both the sport and the participating countries.

“The event provides a great opportunity for all members of the Commonwealth to be part of the World Cup and show how their communities can be part of cricket in the future,” he added.

Panel discussions at the event focused on the role cricket can play to promote social cohesion and sustainable development in local communities, as part of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Social Legacy programme.

Participants also learnt about related Commonwealth initiatives such as ‘Faith in the Commonwealth’, which was created to improve global citizenship and religious literacy among young people and build stronger social cohesion through greater respect and understanding across faiths and cultures.

Jonny Clayton overcame three-time champion Michael van Gerwen 5-4 in one of the greatest games ever seen at the bwin Grand Slam of Darts, as three players qualified from the group stage on a memorable Sunday in Wolverhampton.

Despite Van Gerwen averaging 107.92, and bordering on record-breaking territory for much of the game, Clayton punished the Dutchman's three missed match darts to edge a classic contest and end the reigning champion’s 21-game winning run in the tournament.

Clayton now tops Group A, while Rob Cross, James Wade and Gary Anderson became the first players to secure qualification to the knockout stages on a day which saw ten players average over 100 at the Aldersley Leisure Village.

"I don't think I'll stop shaking for a week after that one! I'm so happy to have won that game," said Clayton, who also defeated Joe Murnan in his opening game.

"Michael is a phenomenal player but I always concentrate on playing my own game and now I can take massive confidence from that win."

Day two of the £450,000 event saw all 32 players in action, with Saturday's winners facing off and Saturday's losers playing each other.

The other match in Group A saw debutant Gary Robson produce a stunning turnaround from 4-1 down, surviving two match darts in his 5-4 win over Murnan.

A masterclass from UK Open and World Matchplay champion Anderson saw him average 112.54, the fourth highest ever seen at the Grand Slam, in his 5-1 demolition of Ian White.

Anderson opened the tie with the first two of seven 180s, and although he missed out on a nine-darter the Scot powered to a second win of the weekend.

"I was thinking 'don't hit the nine-darter' because it can all go wrong if you do that!” said Anderson, a former Wolverhampton finalist.

"Ian is a great player and a good friend of mine so I knew I had to be at my best to win against a top player."

Group D's other tie saw German BDO qualifier Michael Unterbuchner take a big step towards qualification with a 5-2 win over Steve Hine, eliminating the Coventry man in the process.

World Champion Cross became the first player through to the knock-out phase after surviving a match dart to beat World Youth Champion Dimitri Van den Bergh 5-4 in a repeat of their World Championship quarter-final.

Cross, who missed just two darts at a double, trailed 3-2 to the young Belgian before battling back to force a last-leg decider and, after Van den Bergh missed a dart at the bullseye, the world number three found double eight with his last dart in hand for the win.

"It's a good feeling to be through after two games and I had to play really well to beat Dimitri, he's a class person both on and off the oche,” said Cross.

"I have been feeling the pressure a bit in the last couple of months but as long as I play well for the rest of the year it doesn't matter."

Elsewhere in Group H, Ryan Searle's hopes of qualification were ended as he went down 5-4 to BDO number two Mark McGeeney.

European Champion and World Series of Darts Finals winner Wade extended his winning run on TV to 12 matches with a 5-3 victory over Keegan Brown in Group C.

Wade averaged 104.7 and fired in three ton-plus finishes, including a 101 to win the tie, as he saw off Brown - who averaged 102.1 in an exceptional match.

"Of course it's pleasing to get through after two games but this is just the start of the tournament,” said Wade.

"I always take my opportunities and I think my experience carried me through that one. Now I'm want to keep the winning run going."

The other game in the group saw three-time quarter-finalist Mark Webster eliminated following his 5-3 defeat to Dutch BDO qualifier Wesley Harms.

In Group E, 2017 runner up Peter Wright also made it two wins out of two as he beat German number one Max Hopp 5-2, while Josh Payne earned a 5-2 victory over BDO number three Jim Williams.

Stephen Bunting fired in a 104.36 average as he picked up a 5-3 win over Mensur Suljovic in a high-quality Group G affair, and former Lakeside Champion Scott Mitchell recorded a 5-1 rout of German youngster Martin Schindler to keep his qualification hopes alive.

Welshman Gerwyn Price struck seven 180s as he edged past Lakeside Champion Glen Durrant 5-4 in a gripping Group F contest, while superior doubling proving to be the difference for European Championship runner-up Simon Whitlock in his 5-2 victory over Andrew Gilding.

Former champion Raymond van Barneveld survived a scare as Adam Smith-Neale missed four darts to dump him out of the tournament, with Group B's second game seeing Premier League finalist Michael Smith produced a top-class 13-dart deciding leg to edge past Krzysztof Ratajski 5-4.

The final group matches will take place on Monday and Tuesday, with the top two players from each group progressing to the last-16 knockout stage.

ESL welcomes back the best crowd in Dota 2 to create more history and break more records.

Twelve of the world’s best Dota 2 teams will return to the UK in 2019 for an all improved ESL One Birmingham powered by Intel. The event will take place from May 31 - June 2, 2019 at Arena Birmingham, for three days of intense Dota 2 action in front of one of the best crowds in esports history, battling it out for a share of the $300,000 prize pool.

The teams will be divided into two groups of six, with a round-robin best-of-two group stage that will decide which eight teams qualify.  All eight matches will be played in the incredible atmosphere of Arena Birmingham. Regional qualifiers for ESL One Birmingham will take place in March and April 2019 across Europe, North America, China, and South-East Asia. Group stage matches will be played from May 28 - May 30.

The UK community shocked the world by making ESL One Birmingham ESL’s fastest-selling Dota 2 event to date and illustrated the strength of the burgeoning UK scene.  ESL has since been busy preparing an event that is not only a world-class Dota 2 tournament but also a festival of esports. The scene’s most passionate fans are invited yet again to fill the arena.

Margot James, Minister for Digital and the Creative Industries, said: “I’m delighted Birmingham will once again play host to an ESL tournament. It is a testament to the brilliant fans who made this such a success last year, and we look forward to welcoming fans from across the world. ESL’s presence here is a great boost for the Midlands region and further proof that esports in the UK is going from strength to strength.”

“We witnessed unimaginable levels of support from the UK community which genuinely surprised us all earlier this year”, said James Dean, Managing Director at ESL UK. “We can’t thank everyone enough for making ESL One Birmingham an event to truly remember and ecstatic to be returning with more next year. We’re working on implementing improvements and some additional surprise features based on superb feedback from the community this year”

ESL One Birmingham, the UK’s first Major broke crowd capacity and streaming records across multiple platforms.  More than 30 million people viewed the action online across the five days of competition this year, and fans attended from more than 38 different countries and 120 different areas of the UK. ESL One Birmingham was also broadcast on BBC Three for the first time, with thousands of streams and hours of content watched across the weekend. ESL One Birmingham will deploy ESL’s best-in-class production team and equipment to deliver an incredible tournament experience for players and fans.

Team England has today revealed its new look and feel at the proposed site of the Birmingham 2022 Athlete’s Village.

Five members of Team England, who represented the nation at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, alongside Chief Executive Paul Blanchard unveiled Team England’s new logo on the proposed site that will aim to host 6,500 athletes and officials at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

While the organisational name for Commonwealth Games England remains the same, Team England is being pushed as the consumer facing name of the team, with its diverse group of athletes at the heart of it.

As part of this re-brand, Commonwealth Games England – working with award-winning creative agency Matta – consulted a number of its athletes that competed at the Glasgow 2014 and Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, to establish their understanding of Team England and its proposed position.

At the proposed site of the future Athletes’ Village, Commonwealth Games England Chief Executive, Paul Blanchard, was joined by Birmingham artistic gymnastics star Dom Cunningham, hockey star Lily Owsley, double Commonwealth S14 swimming champion Tom Hamer, Birmingham-born rhythmic gymnast Mimi Cesar and Commonwealth bronze medal winning basketball player Siobhan Prior.

Hamer, Cunningham and Prior also attended Commonwealth Games England’s Annual General Meeting which took place at the ICC in Birmingham and saw a number of panel discussions with Team England athletes and officials.

Prior, Hamer and Blanchard were joined by Team England’s head doctor Dr. Mike Rossiter on a panel discussing Team England at the 2018 Commonwealth Games – reflecting on the nation’s successful medal haul, including 45 gold medals, as well as the achievement of taking the largest ever sporting team to leave the UK for an international Games.

With Birmingham set to host the 2022 edition of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, gymnast Dom Cunningham, who came away from the Gold Coast with two medals, formed part of a Birmingham 2022 focused panel. He sat alongside Commonwealth Games England Chairman, Ian Metcalfe, Interim CEO for Birmingham 2022, Ian Reid, and Paul Oldfield from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

Commonwealth Games England Chief Executive, Paul Blanchard, said:

“Team England is a brand that the nation can get behind – it is diverse, united and representative of England.

“With a home Games on the horizon, and after a hugely successful 2018 Games, now is the right time to refresh our brand as we begin preparations for Birmingham 2022.”

Artistic gymnastics team Commonwealth champion, Dom Cunningham, who was born in Birmingham added:

“Birmingham is my home town, and England is my nation – so to be able to represent Team England at Birmingham 2022 will be an incredible honour.

“I am very excited to be here today where hopefully I will be in less than four years’ time wearing this logo and getting the chance to compete for Team England in Birmingham, in front of my home crowd.”

University of Wolverhampton (UWR) Race Team engineering students narrowly missed out on the top place position in this year’s national MSV F3 Cup Championship title – coming third in the competition.

For the past two years, the Race Team has clinched second place in the national F3 Cup Championship title – marginally missing out on a first place spot last year by 1 point.

As the only University competing in the MSV F3 Cup competition, the Race Team has competed at Brands Hatch, home of the British Grand Prix, Silverstone, and Donington Circuit.

An investment of £10 million in the University’s engineering facilities at its Telford Innovation Campus in Priorslee has recently been completed, creating world class education facilities for engineering students including industry standard design, development and testing facilities as well as Motorsport workshops.

UWR takes part in the F3 Cup, the IMechE Formula Student competition, the British Hillclimb Championship (driven by University of Wolverhampton Honorary Graduate, Graham Wynn OBE) and also work on two Morgan development cars which the team raced in this year’s AR Morgan Challenge on behalf of the Morgan Motor Company.

‌Professor Ian Oakes, Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Wolverhampton, said: “"Although this has been a challenging year, we are delighted with the progress we have made in all of the championships in which we have competed, including the F3 Cup, the AR Morgan Challenge and Formula Student.

“The massive investment that has gone into our facilities provides a really attractive course offering for students who want to study engineering.

“We have committed sponsors on board, students have their own cars to work on and we’re competitively racing, providing real, hands-on engineering experience for the team.”

Shane Kelly, UWR Racing Driver, said: "After a third season in F3Cup, UWR have always been in the top 3 for the driver standings, which is a phenomenal achievement. We’ve come so far and learned so much, and this wouldn’t be possible without our Engineering students who commit so much of their time to a full season of Formula 3 racing.

"These students have raced all over the Country, in all-weather scenarios, winning and losing together.

“We are already looking forward to the 2019 season and more than 100 students from the School of Engineering have expressed an interest in being a Racing Wolf.”

Anyone interested in studying Engineering courses on offer at the Telford Innovation Campus should register for the next Open Day on Saturday 17^th November 2018. Follow the UWR Race Team’s progress on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter@UWRacing and Instagram@uwracing.

TWO-TIME bwin Grand Slam of Darts finalist James Wade has secured his place in Wolverhampton next month after winning the Unibet European Championship.

Wade, the 2010 and 2016 runner-up at the Wolves Civic, qualified for November's tournament at the Aldersley Leisure Village with a memorable triumph in Dortmund on Sunday.

Less than two weeks after becoming a father for the first time, Wade ended almost four years without a televised title as he scooped the £100,000 top prize at the European Championship.

The left-hander is now looking forward to returning to Wolverhampton for the Sky Sports-televised event from November 10-18.

"I've qualified for the Grand Slam now so it's a great feeling," said Wade, the 35-year-old from Aldershot

"It's ticked a few boxes in my head. I've gone through my troubled times but I've shown that I'm dangerous and everyone needs to watch out."

Wade dedicated his European Championship success to new-born son Arthur, and admitted: "I've won TV titles before and I've never made the most of it. It's an amazing feeling."

Australian star Simon Whitlock also secured qualification for the Grand Slam after reaching the European Championship final, where Wade denied him a second triumph in the event.

Players have a final chance to secure automatic qualification in next weekend's bwin World Series of Darts Finals in Vienna, before eight players come through the last-chance qualifier for PDC Tour Card Holders on November 5.

The bwin Grand Slam of Darts will be held from November 10-18 at the Aldersley Leisure Village.

Midlands air conditioning and heating specialist Coolair Equipment Ltd has pledged its support for grass roots football after becoming the first sponsor of a local junior team.

The company’s Midlands operation, based on Walsall Road in Cannock, teamed up with its manufacturing partner Daikin to sponsor the jerseys of Shelfield United FC's Under 11s who are beginning their third season in the Lichfield & District Recreational League.

The two-year deal, which extends to providing home and away strips branded with the sponsors' logos, will help secure the future of the team which provides an outlet for local youngsters who are keen to play competitive football in a fun environment.

The Under 11 team plays its home matches on Sundays at Shelfield United's ground at Rushall in Walsall. The club is run entirely by volunteers and has Community Charter Standard Club and Community Amateur Sports Club status.

Cil Spencer, Coach of Shelfield United Under 11s, said: “We are extremely grateful and excited to get sponsorship from Coolair and Daikin. The 14 players who have signed up for Under 11 matches this season are all good athletes and are overcoming their lack of competitive experience and training discipline fast. They give their all in training and in every game we play.

“From finishing bottom in the league in our first year, we are now competitive with all teams in the league this season while also enjoying our football. Most of our players are from Walsall and surrounding areas.”

Cill added: “As a charity accredited club, we also play a wider role in the community with our CRB-cleared and FA-qualified coaches enhancing the lads’ social skills including teamwork, communication, cooperation, fitness and confidence.”

Neil Gibbard, Regional Director of Coolair, whose nephew Theo plays for the team, said: “As a successful Midlands company that is fully committed to the training and personal development of our young people, many of whom come from the local community, we regard sponsoring Shelfield United's Under 11s as a way of giving something back.”

Shelfield United Football Club has a variety of teams from Under 7 to Under 16 and operates a football-for-all policy. It also prides itself on being a community club and raises money for many local causes. More details are available on the club's website at www.shelfieldunitedfc.com.

Coolair Equipment Ltd, which also has offices in Manchester and Kent, is a specialist provider of tailored cooling and heating services to the retail, residential, commercial, education and hotel sectors. The company is a Daikin D1+ accredited installation partner.

New South Wales and its State capital Sydney were placed firmly on the map as the world's most-loved sporting destination in the 2000 Olympic Games. Fast forward 18 years and the iconic Harbour City is getting ready to host another internationally renowned sporting event, the 2018 Invictus Games.

Launching on 20 October as an international adaptive sports event for wounded service members and veterans, athletes will compete in 11 events staged across Greater Sydney, including Sydney Olympic Park and in and around Sydney Harbour. An estimated 1,000 family and friends are expected to accompany the competitors, with the event being supported by around 1,000 volunteers.

For visitors inspired by the amazing armed forces members and veterans, there are plenty of outdoor options throughout Sydney and regional NSW in stunning locations to help you stay active during your visit.

Amateur golfers will be given the chance to experience what it feels like to be a professional by playing courses of the calibre of Real Club de Golf El Prat thanks to the inaugural Emerald Golf Tour.

The innovative tournament, is played at four prestigious courses across Spain by 72 players, has prizes worth more than €400,000 up for grabs.

Emerald Golf Tour's aim is to give amateur golfers experience of playing in a professional golf circuit – with one 18-hole round also being played at Santander Golf, Madrid (June 29 and 30), El Prat (September 15 and 16) and Real Club Sevilla (December 1 and 2).

El Prat, which dates back to 1912, is one of the most exclusive golf clubs having played host to the Spanish Open on 10 occasions, while also remaining one of only a small number of clubs to have been granted royal status by King Alfonso XIII.

The tournament will follow an Individual Stableford format, with a €400,000 prize pot to be shared for a hole-in-one on any of the four designated par-three holes, longest drive and nearest the pin challenges.

Marcello Della Vecchia, director of sales and marketing at El Prat, said: “We are very much looking forward to hosting what is one of the best amateur competitions in Europe. Golfers will get the chance to play some of the finest courses in Spain and get to experience the closest thing to feeling like a professional in a tournament.

“We will host the second round in September where competitors will get to enjoy our Open Course, which is the most popular at El Prat. It is challenging but varied in its layout. I am certain that golfers playing in the Emerald Tour will absolutely love the course for many reasons and it will live long in the memory for them.”

El Prat, one of the oldest clubs in Spain, has also hosted some of the biggest names in golf, including Spanish legends Severiano Ballesteros and José Maria Olazábal, eight-time Major winner Tom Watson and European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjørn.

The 45-hole Greg Norman-designed course, which is just a 35-minute drive from the centre of Barcelona, was recently named one of the 125 Platinum Clubs of the World – Five-star Private Club – in recognition of attaining a standard of excellence by an international panel of experts, historians and connoisseurs in a confidential ballot, as well as being granted the Golden Plaque of the Royal Order of Sporting Merit.

Since 2002, Real Club de Golf El Prat's layout stretches across the 518-acre estate of BonVilar and cleverly utilises its 45 holes over an exciting and varied mix of five highly acclaimed courses – the Open, Blue, Yellow, Pink and Green.

The prestigious venue has been home to major Spanish and international amateur tournaments, such as the 2013 European Amateur Championships and has held more than 250 national and international championships.

Four more Wolverhampton sports stars are set to be inducted into the city’s Sporting Hall of Fame during a celebratory event later this month.

Kristian Thomas and Stuart Dangerfield have represented the city in gymnastics and cycling respectively and have many accomplishments in their sports.

Paralympic athlete, Mark Farnell, will also be inaugurated at the ceremony on Saturday 22 September, along with the city’s only winter Olympian, Andrew Booton.

The City of Wolverhampton Council and the Wolverhampton City Sports Advisory Council launched the Sporting Hall of Fame in 1999 to recognise and celebrate the achievements of sportsmen and women who have represented the city on an international stage.

Chairman of Wolverhampton’s Sports Advisory Council, Peter Holmes MBE, said: “We are looking forward to inducting four more inspirational Wulfrunians into our Sporting Hall of Fame.

“They are individuals who have performed with great success on a world stage and have been true ambassadors of everything that is good about the city of Wolverhampton.”

Kristian Thomas, who is from Wednesfield, represented Great Britain in the Olympic Games in 2012 where the country came third and again in 2016 where he captained the squad to fourth place.

He has also won a number of gold, silver and bronze medals whilst representing his country in the Commonwealth Games and European Championships. He has now retired from competition.

Stuart Dangerfield was a member of Wolverhampton Wheelers Cycling Club and has represented the country in the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games and World Time Trials. In 2001, he broke the British record for the 10-mile time trial.

Visually-impaired athlete Mark Farnell will be the first Paralympian to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Mark ran his first marathon in 1981, and since then has taken part in a further 81 marathons where he has represented the country numerous times in the Paralympic Games, World Para Athletics Championships and Para Athletics European Championships.

Andrew Booton is Wolverhampton’s only winter Olympian and competed in the games in 1992 as part of the bobsleigh team. He took up the sport after responding to a magazine advert asking for civilians to train with the Armed Forces to qualify for the British Bobsleigh team.

Previous inductees include athlete Denise Lewis, racing driver Richard Atwood and Wolves footballers Bert Williams and Billy Wright.

This year’s ceremony will take place on Saturday 22 September at WV Active Aldersley where the Sporting Hall of Fame books and wall plaques are displayed.

Councillor Steve Evans, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for City Environment, said: “The City of Wolverhampton has a long history of producing top level sportspeople and we are delighted to celebrate their achievements through our Sporting Hall of Fame, which is proudly held at WV Active Aldersley.

“I would like to congratulate Kristian, Stuart, Mark and Andrew on their successes, and welcome them into Wolverhampton’s Sporting Hall of Fame.”

The Blenheim Palace Festival of Transport is gearing up for the 13th annual weekend celebration on 26 - 27 August,bank holiday weekend.

Perfect for families and auto enthusiasts the Festival of Transport is a celebration of hot rods, vintage classics, exhibitions, trade stands, competitions and history.

The Festival of Transport will also feature an exciting new section of electric cars and motorcycles displayed in an Electric Vehicle Zone. Full electric, hybrid, bridging cars and classics converted to electric will be on display plus the latest electric cars and bikes, most of which will be available for test drives.

Sunday 26 August will feature the Classic Car Show and Monday 27 August will include not only the Classic Cars but also motorcycles, Minis and VW's, Customs, Hot Rods and Americans, Kit and Sports Cars.

The bank holiday experience this year includes vehicle judging lead by former BBC radio presenter Les Clayton. Les, whose apprenticeship at Triumph and subsequent 19 years of specialist commentary will get all the family excited about the vehicular spectacle. Expect plenty to see and do around the grounds.

Event organisers Classic Shows have been running auctions and specialist car shows for almost 30 years and know exactly what gets the 'petrol head' in all of us hot under the bonnet. The show will have exhibitors, trade stalls and plenty of knowledgeable amateurs and motoring professionals offering a wealth of information, history and tonics about specialist vehicles.

From young to old the Festival of Transport is a true celebration of motoring history and achievement with plenty of exciting things to see, hear and do to keep all the family entertained.

One of the most prestigious titles in European MMA - the Cage Warriors featherweight title - will be decided by a four-man tournament across two blockbuster events.

The Cage Warriors featherweight title has catapulted the likes of Conor McGregor and Paddy Pimblett to MMA stardom, and four of the last five Cage Warriors featherweight champions ended up signed by the UFC.

The most recent example of this was Cage Warriors' last featherweight champion - Nad Narimani - whose impressive title-winning victory over Pimblett saw him snapped up by the UFC.

Narimani's UFC call-up means the title is now vacant, and Cage Warriors can now officially announce a four-man tournament to determine the next 145-pound champion, with a quartet of the best 145-pounders on the continent set to battle for the belt.

The tournament will kick off with the two semi-finals at Cage Warriors 98 on Saturday, 20 October, as Dean Trueman takes on Lewis Monarch, and Aiden Lee faces off against Paull McBain at the Genting Arena in Birmingham.

The two semi-final winners will then face off for the vacant Cage Warriors featherweight title at Cage Warriors 100 in December.

Cage Warriors 98 marks the occasion of the organisation's first event in Birmingham for eight years, and Cage Warriors president Graham Boylan said he plans on delivering a blockbuster show for the city's passionate fight fans.

"We're excited to return to Birmingham and to give these four athletes the chance to fulfil their dream of being the CW champion," he said.

"We're going to stack this card and have more big fight news to come in the coming days and weeks. Get your tickets early. This one's going to be big."

Before the World Cup began, the England football squad had been written off by many as a bunch of separate egos, not interested in playing as a team and with little hope of making it out of the qualifying stages.

The job of bringing this group of players together fell to the manager, Gareth Southgate. And, against all odds, he took the England football team to their first semi finals since 1990, uniting a team of players and a nation in the process.

Much can be learnt from Southgate’s vision of keeping a team motivated, happy and performing at full capacity and brought within the business world.

Chris Morgan, CEO of Staff Skills Training, a new online e-learning portal for businesses, has provided his own top tips for getting the most out of your staff and building a superstar business team.

“Gareth Southgate won over the hearts of the nation, thanks to his leadership qualities,” says Morgan. “There are important lessons we can learn from him in business – and ultimately we should all aim to be a bit more ‘Gareth’!”

Triple World and double Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya has been confirmed as one of the headline star due to compete at the Müller Grand Prix in Birmingham.

The South African star will compete over 1500m at the Alexander Stadium, with her presence sure to excite the legion of fans that she has built in the UK following her successes at both London 2012’s Olympic Games and last summer’s IAAF World Championships in the same city.

Having established her status as the 800m athlete to beat following three successive world titles and back to back Olympic golds over the distance, Semenya’s outing in Birmingham over 1500m - a distance which she has claimed world bronze and Commonwealth gold in the past 12 months - will see her have one eye on breaking her own South African record time of 3:59.92 set earlier this year in Doha.

27-year-old Semenya said: “It has been such an amazing 12 months for me and I cannot wait to continue it by competing back in the UK again and in Birmingham for the first time ever. It is rare that I get to race somewhere for the first time, so that in particular is really exciting and will motivate me to perform very well in what I know will be a great, great race.”

In an exciting 1500m race Caster will be up against the Netherlands’ five-time World Championship medallist Sifan Hassan who impressively won the inaugural Millicent Fawcett mile in London less than two weeks ago in a time of 4:14.71, the fourth quickest women’s mile time in history, and is sure to relish returning to Birmingham having set Dutch records on her previous two outings in the city.

Also set to be present is Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay - who carries extraordinary range with sub-2:00, sub-4:00 and sub-15:00 minute personal best times for 800m, 1500m and 5000m respectively, while Kenyan World Championship finalists Winny Chebet, and Britain’s Laura Weightman are joined by 2017 European indoor finalist, and fellow-Brit Sarah McDonald.

British Athletics’ Major Events Director, Cherry Alexander said: “We’re delighted to have Caster racing in Birmingham and are very much looking forward to welcoming her to Birmingham for the very first time.

One of the most pleasing things we hear from overseas athletes come from them speaking about the warmth of the UK crowds and how strong a reception they receive, and I know that Caster will be sure of just that in Birmingham.

Having Caster present in the race alongside fellow world-class names such as Sifan and Laura means we are in for a fantastic spectacle. The fields are really coming together across the board and will be some of the strongest we have ever assembled, so the meeting will give the athletics-loving crowd another preview of the amazing action we are sure to see come 2022’s Commonwealth Games in the city.”

At the Müller Grand Prix Birmingham, on Saturday August 18, Caster Semenya will be join global stars Greg Rutherford, Luvo Manyonga and Juan Miguel Echevarria.

Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth champion Greg Rutherford will take to the long jump runway for the final time in Birmingham at next month’s Müller Grand Prix Birmingham on Saturday 18 August.

Competing at the Alexander Stadium for the last ever time following countless outings in the city for both the British Championships and IAAF Diamond League meetings over the years, Rutherford’s outing next month will be his final competition in the second city and his last British Athletics meet.

The 31-year-old British record holder has struggled with injury since taking Olympic bronze in 2016 but has committed to one more Stadium competition in Birmingham in order to bid farewell to many of his fans, though the competition in Birmingham will be nothing short of stiff.

Among those in the field are the two best long jumpers in the world at current: world champion Luvo Manyonga of South Africa and current world leader Juan Miguel Echevarria of Cuba.

Echevarría, 19, is widely regarded as one of the most exciting young talents in global athletics having recorded the longest jump in 23 years last month with 8.83m,

The Cuban missed the recent Müller Anniversary Games in London due to injury but will return to Birmingham and compete in the UK for the first time since he won gold at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in March earlier this year.

Looking ahead to an emotional farewell in Birmingham, Greg Rutherford said: “I am really excited. As the crowd sees you appear, there is a sort of rippling effect of cheers and every year that I have competed there has been relatively emotional for me. Ever since London 2012, the crowd have been amazing towards me. So, to do it, for what will be the last time in such a great Stadium with so many memories for me, is going to be very emotional and I am probably going to cry.

“We are very lucky in Great Britain that the crowd who come along generally are very knowledgeable and in Birmingham it’s generally the big athletics fans that are there, so they really do get behind you and know what is good and what’s bad. They know the athletes and will know that I am not at my full strength but they will get massively behind me with every jump so it will be really special.”

On his excitement of competing against Echevarría, Rutherford added: “I am really excited to have him there in Birmingham too, and that I will have the chance to compete against him before I retire. He, in my opinion, will go on to become the world record holder and will become the greatest ever so it will be wonderful to compete against him in Birmingham.

“It’s a bit of a change of the guard, and that’s how I am looking at it. I have had my time in the sun and been the best in the world for all of those years, but now it’s like I am passing the torch on. Hopefully he will run with it and elevate the event to where it should be.”

Rutherford also hopes that having world class names in the event will help to grow the sport, concluding: “The long jump is such an incredible event and I hope that from Echevarría’s successes, we see a whole new flood of new young athletes getting involved with long jumping.

“And once we keep pushing these kinds of athletes out and letting people see how incredibly talented they are, what we find is that those events will come to the top and people will really enjoy it.”

Give Greg a memorable send-off as he jumps in Birmingham for the last time on 18 August at the Müller Grand Prix Birmingham.

Scores of families and young people have already signed up to a free Summer of Sport being offered by WV Active over the next six weeks.

The City of Wolverhampton Council’s three leisure centres, WV Active Aldersley, WV Active Central and WV Active Bilston-Bert Williams, will be providing a wide range of free activities for adults and children of all ages between Monday 23 July and Friday 31 August – from badminton, tennis, squash and table tennis to family swimming lessons and fitness classes.

Those who want to take advantage of the offer must be residents of Wolverhampton and will need to register for free Summer of Sport membership via the WV Active website.

Councillor Steve Evans, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for City Environment, said: “We are delighted to be offering a wide range of free activities for local residents of all ages during the school holidays, and I’d encourage people to sign up for their Summer of Sport today.”

The Summer of Sport programme is being supported with funding from the council’s Public Health service.

Cabinet Member for Public Health and Wellbeing, Councillor Hazel Malcolm, said: “It is important that as many people as possible have the opportunity to enjoy sport and exercise, and by offering a wide range of free sessions at our leisure centres from 23 July to 31 August we hope that even more residents will be able to enjoy a fit and active summer.

“This ties in well with our Vision for Public Health, whereby we create the right sort of environment in which people are better able to look after their own health and wellbeing.”