Britain's Tasha Danvers, the bronze medallist in the 400m hurdles at the Beijing Olympics, has retired after conceding defeat in her battle to be fit for the London 2012 Games. The 34-year-old has suffered a series of injuries and ahead of the preliminary squad announcement for the Games this week Danvers, from south London, has quit.
"It's extremely disappointing not to be able to put myself into contention for selection for London 2012," she said. "Based on my training at different stages my coach and I believed we had a genuine chance of making it. But the setbacks have been too many to overcome.
"Since winning Olympic bronze in Beijing I have made so many sacrifices to fulfil my dream of competing in London. Making the decision to relocate back to the UK meant leaving my seven-year-old son behind in America, which is the hardest thing in the world to do. But we genuinely believed I could step on to that podium again and with the support of my family, [coach] Malcolm Arnold, UKA, the medical team and the National Lottery, I've done everything possible to try to achieve that. Sadly my body has had enough."
Danvers, who also won Commonwealth Games silver in 2006 – less than 18 months after giving birth to her son – has made every final she has contested since 2004.
Arnold said: "This is the worse possible news for Tasha but there is no doubt she has thrown everything at trying to make London. She is an Olympic medallist and that pedigree doesn't just disappear. I was confident that if we could get her to the Games she would have been very competitive.
"This is the flipside of the Olympic dream but career-ending injuries are a fact of life at this level of sport. Our medical team have worked incredibly hard but sometimes the body knows best."
Great Britain's head coach Charles van Commenee added: "We don't have too many current Olympic medallists in our team and in an ideal world they would all be with us in London. Tasha knows what it takes to be competitive and make the podium, which would have been a huge advantage. Retirement is a hard decision for any athlete but when the decision is taken out of your hands so close to an Olympic Games, it must be even tougher. I wish Tasha all the very best."
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
London to Brighton bike ride attracts 27,000 cyclists - BBC News
More than 27,000 cyclists are taking part in the 54-mile London to Brighton bike ride in aid of the British Heart Foundation.
Riders set off from Clapham Common from 06:00 BST, with the first arriving at the finish just before 09:00.
The toughest part of the ride is the climb up 813ft (247m) Ditchling Beacon just outside Brighton, which takes an average of 15 minutes to scale.
The event, which is now in its 37th year, has raised more than £50m.
Among the riders taking part was Toby Field from Eastbourne, also known as the Fat Cycle Rider, who has lost 8st 14lb in weight since taking up cycling.
His father died from a weight-related heart attack at the age of 55, and Mr Field said after his father's death he was in denial about his own health problems.
"I wanted a cheap bike so I could ride around the park with my kids. I was walking and they were leaving me behind. That's where it all started."
Road closures have been in place along the route out of London, through the boroughs of Reigate and Banstead and Tandridge in Surrey and through Sussex into Brighton.
Southern Railway and First Capital Connect do not allow bikes to be carried on trains on race day, but a park and ride service operates between Brighton Racecourse and Madeira Drive.
Bus services have been redirected and Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach company said the A23 into Brighton was gridlocked at about midday because of the race.
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Liddle stars as Sussex win at Lord's (From The Argus) - The Argus.co.uk
Liddle stars as Sussex win at Lord's
5:37pm Sunday 17th June 2012 in Sport By Steve Hollis
Chris Liddle was the hero as Sussex Sharks belatedly got their FL T20 campaign off to a winning start.
Liddle took 5-17 - including three wickets in the penultimate over - as Middlesex fell 11 runs short of Sussex's total of 143-8 at Lord's.
Sussex's total was largely down to the efforts of Goodwin and Styris.
The experienced duo rescued the Shraks after they had slumped to 26-3 from the opening six overs.
Goodwin put on 30 with Joe Gatting before adding a further 56 with Styris in good time.
The veteran was making his comeback after being dropped for the last two matches and made 43 before being bowled by Tim Roland-Jones.
Styris made the most of being dropped on 25 to score 48 when he was caught off the bowling of Roland-Jones, who finished with figures of 2-19.
Middlesex looked on course to chase down their target after recovering from the early loss of Joe Denly and Paul Stirling.
Dawid Malan made 38 while Neil Dexter (36) and Gareth Berg (23) put on 53 for the fourth wicket to put the hosts in a strong position.
Juan Theron struggled on his debut with his four overs going for 43 but Liddle ensured it was Sussex's day.
He removed Berg in the 17th over and then got rid of Dexter, John Simpson and Chris Rogers to leave the Panthers needing 22 off the final over.
Source: www.theargus.co.uk
London 2012: Sex Pistols on list for Olympics' opening ceremony - Daily Telegraph
Tracks by the elder statesmen of British pop music are included, such as The Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd and David Bowie.
And there are classics such as London Calling by The Clash, Going Underground by The Jam, My Generation by The Who and Rudy by The Specials.
They come alongside more recent tunes such as the Sugababes, Push the Button, Amy Winehouse’s version of Valerie and Adele’s Rolling in the Deep.
Rock acts such as Radiohead, Coldplay, Muse, Oasis and Blur are on the list alongside rappers such as Rizzle Kicks, Tinie Tempa and Dizzee Rascal.
Classic TV and radio theme tunes include Eastenders, Coronation Street, the Archers and the BBC news and film theme tunes such as Chariots of Fire and the James Bond Theme.
Among the fun tunes listed are My Boy Lollipop and Tiger Feet, but there is no room for performers at the Diamond Jubilee Concert including Cliff Richard, Elton John, and Tom Jones.
The music will be mixed together by Underworld – DJs Karl Hyde and Rick Smith – at Abbey Road Studios and the pair have included their own dance music classic Born Slippy, which featured in Boyle’s film Trainspotting, as well as the Prodigy’s Firestarter.
Mr Boyle, 55, has already revealed that the spectacular will feature a Glastonbury-style “mosh pit” but an Olympics spokesman said: “We want the ceremony to be a fantastic surprise for the watching world, and we want the British public to be proud of it.
“There is endless speculation about the content – much of which is simply guesswork, as we are keeping the show under wraps.”
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Golden generation offer bright future for Bridges - crawleyobserver.co.uk
THREE BRIDGES may have gone down last year but their future is most definitely looking up.
While relegation from the Sussex Premier League was a huge disappointment, it opened the door for a new generation to begin a regeneration of the cricket club.
Bridges changed their philosophy, put the emphasis on youth, and the kids have risen to the challenge.
So much so that those in the hierachy are now targeting county titles, national finals and even the possibility of producing an international cricketer.
Nine months ago, it would have been tough to conjure up such optimism. But Bridges lie top of Division Two, are on course for immediate promotion and are celebrating the emergence of youngsters such as Brad Gayler, Conor Golding, Abidine Sakande and Sanjay Amin,
And when you add the up-and-coming talent of Tim Moses, Hugo Cowan, Dominic Keats, George Garton and Alex Harbourne, it’s easy to see why Bridges are not afraid to think big.
Chairman James Chadburn said: “We have set out a five-year plan to be the best side in Sussex and go as far as we can in the ECB National Club Cup. In reality, to do that we need a good, young side.
“We had been flirting with relegation for some time and it lit a fire under our backsides to try to resurrect something.
“You’ve got to start generating through the youth ranks. That’s the future of the club and, if we handle it in the right way, it can only get better.
“It will be good for the next generation of kids when their turn comes if we can create a structure where they feel comfortable playing for the club.
“It could make Three Bridges one of the most prominent sides in the county and the South East and allow us to have a crack at the National Cup. Why not? We’re ambitious.”
Of course, it helps when you have a talent pool that includes a host of county colts and area players coming through the production line.
Nathan Amin and Ollie Brown are playing for Sussex Under-14s this season while, below that, Milo Price and Alex Walker are in the Under-13s squad and Harper Earl-Tame has been selected for the Under-10s.
And in the county Under-12s, Bridges have an impressive five representatives - Arran Brown, Joe Walker, Harry Bryant, James Russell and George Cave.
Chadburn added: “I know we have got some very good colts coming through. The whole section is very strong and a huge resource for the club and the county.
“We’re trying to create a bridge between the junior and senior sides. We want to show the county we are a safe pair of hands for their young talent.
“One of the best ways we can do that is to produce a first-class cricketer and maybe even an England cricketer.
“I played a lot of my youth cricket with Matt Prior, Mike Yardy and Mark Newell and we shouldn’t be scared of that ambition.
“In terms of raw talent, there are guys here who have got the ability. It’s definitely a realistic aim and it benefits everybody.
“As a club, our long-term health would be secured if we had a reputation of producing not only good club players but also people who make a living out of the game.”
Steve Brown won the Sussex League with Bridges in 1996 and is now coaching their Under-12s and Under-13s.
He said: “I don’t think we have had a crop of colts, certainly in my time with the club, with as much talent from the age of nine to 18.
“In the 12s and 13s, we have seven county players as well as three area ones. It’s phenomenal and we’re blessed.
“But it’s now up to us to nurture that talent and develop it to its full potential.
“There’s a similiarity to us winning the title 16 years ago. I joined the club in the early 90s and some of the good players were coming to an end in the first team. As a consequence, the side was in the bottom part of the table.
“All of a sudden Keith and Mark Newell came from Crawley, they progressed here and became a magnet for a multitude of players.
“We have now got a lot of aspiring professional cricketers and I can see good things in three years’ time.
“I’m just glad the boys are realising the potential they have and have been given the opportunity of achieving what is possible for them.
“I want to be sitting at the club on a Saturday, seeing guys I’ve been involved in coaching, playing for the club - possibly Sussex, maybe even internationally.”
One of the biggest success stories this season has been the introduction of an academy side, run by Tom Blandford and Doug Cooper for 14 to 18-year-olds.
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