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Powys County Times
07-08-2025
- Sport
- Powys County Times
Powys hockey player Leanne Davies shines in red of Wales
A POWYS hockey player is celebrating after a stellar summer. Leanne Davies is one of the most recognisable names in the local hockey scene having played for hometown club Llanfair Caereinion for more than two decades. And, it seems the 45-year-old is in no mood to slow down after enjoying her best season to date and a summer she will not forget for a while. Last week the Llanidloes-based player was part of the Wales squad which took part in the Veteran Home Nations in Scotland and played a key role for her country. Wales beat Scotland 3-0 before losing to Ireland and England to end third in the rankings. Davies was also nominated most improved player of the tournament and received an an award from Wales coach Andy Holland. She said: 'This moment means more than just putting on a jersey. It represents years of dedication, passion, and resilience.' Earlier in the summer the veteran was also part of the Wales squad to take part in the European Masters in Spain when ex-Newtown player Karen Bubb was also selected. Wales ended sixth after defeats to Ireland and Belgium. She said: 'I am so proud and feel so lucky to be able to play for Wales.'
Daily Mail
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Ludvig Aberg on Sir Andy Murray's golf swing, the influence of Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard and his hopes for The Open ahead of its Portrush return
'And I'm thinking to myself, how did I get here?' asks Ludvig Aberg with wide-eyed wonderment and it's not a bad question considering our conversation has wandered from Steven Gerrard to Sir Andy Murray 's golf swing to the possibility of a dream coming true. There is also an unexpected detour to his love for Bondi Rescue, a cult Australian TV programme, but first Aberg – the world's most exciting young golfer – is taking us vividly to the moment he knew life had changed in April 2024, on Augusta's picture-perfect eleventh fairway. Aberg had turned professional 10 months earlier and, in that time, he had accomplished what many tour pros could only dream about: he had been part of a successful European Ryder Cup team and won the European Masters, showing why there had been such hype around his rise. But this young Swede is like the rest of us. When good things happen so quickly that it almost seems impossible to process, there comes a point when reflection must be taken. For Aberg, it was a stroll with Rory McIlroy, someone at that point he had only really been accustomed to seeing on TV. 'Life has changed a lot, very fast,' he says. 'I remember I had this moment at last year's Masters. I was playing practice with Rory and we were walking down number 11. He was with Harry (Diamond, his caddie) and, just for a moment, I slowed down behind them to watch. 'You know the run around 11, 12, 13 (Amen Corner) – I'm looking at all thinking: 'I only turned pro a year ago.' I couldn't believe it. It was such a cool moment. 'It will stick with me for a long time and it's important to remember. You can't ever take these things for granted.' You can see Aberg, who actually finished second that week, means it. He has reaped rich dividends already through golf but it is the history that provides his greatest inspiration and what price would you give for him and McIlroy to be walking down the 18th together this Sunday? We can discuss that in due course but we have to return to not taking things for granted, for there was another ''is this really happening moment?'' when he was approached to give marks out of 10 for a YouTube feature on the state of Murray's game. Murray, ferocious competitor that he is, would love to get into a position where he could try to compete in next year's Regional Qualifying events for The Open and, from what Aberg saw, it might not be the flight of fancy it sounds. 'Hey, that swing was really good!' Aberg says, laughing. 'Like it was really, really good! Man, I was impressed! They told us: 'be as honest as you can with him!' but I just didn't know what to say. I think he's going to be able to play really good golf in the future.' Another man who would love to say he could do play to that level in the future is Gerrard, who was a bigger figure in his childhood than any golfer. 'Gerrard was my big hero growing up,' he declares, proudly. 'I played football myself and I loved him as a player. But I loved he was the captain and he'd carry the team. 'I supported Liverpool because of him. I'm a fan and always will be. The last few weeks have been awful. I just hope everyone is ok.' The reference to Diogo Jota's tragic death is the only time in this conversation, arranged by his sponsors Mercedes, that his demeanour changes. Aberg is respectful and courteous, a man who impresses with the clarity of his words and thoughts. It has been a privilege to see him striking balls so crisply on the range in recent days and the vibes he gives suggest he might not be too far away from emulating his compatriot Henrik Stenson, who made himself a national hero in 2016 when going head-to-head with Phil Mickelson at Troon. 'Oh I remember that day,' he says enthusiastically. 'We usually have a tournament that weekend in Sweden; in 2016 it finished on the Saturday, so we sat down to watch every shot. I thought that shootout was the coolest thing I had ever seen. 'Henrik has the biggest profile in Swedish golf and he's done so much for the game. That was the pinnacle. A couple of months later, Henrik almost won the Olympics as well, so for a little 15-year-old, it was incredible to see that. This is the tournament that has such history and means so much.' You can tell, clearly, that Aberg believes his game is in the right shape to contend. He has power and sorcery, intuition and imagination and there won't be any excuses if it doesn't go as expected. Deep down, though, you suspect he will be just fine. 'I definitely feel like I have the tools and the capabilities,' he says. 'The experiences I've had recently have made me feel like I can do it. I want to win here and I want to perform. Anyone who is in the field should be thinking like that. 'If there was one thing I learnt last year it was 'it is what it is' with the weather. If it rains, I'll get my rain gear. If it's windy, I'll keep the ball flight a little bit lower. It's all part of it. I will be ready for whatever comes my way.'
Edinburgh Live
03-07-2025
- Sport
- Edinburgh Live
Scottish powerlifter who trains in Edinburgh breaks records at 50 years old
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info For Scottish powerlifter Mandy Williams, it has been a long journey to sporting success - from hating PE lessons to breaking records and barriers as a top performer in her sport at the age of 50. Mandy only took up the event ten months ago but has already blazed a trail through the Scottish scene - including being crowned as the top powerlifter for her age group at a UK-wide championships in London at the end of last month, reports The Daily Record. The pocket powerhouse, who trains with coach Kim Wilson at the Athena Personal Training gym in Edinburgh, broke her own bench press record with a 50 kilogram lift, alongside a deadlift of 105 kilograms and a 67.5 kilogram squat. And she done all of that despite only weighing 45 kilograms - or just over seven stones - during the competition. Mandy's journey to powerlifting prowess, however, has been far from easy, taking up the sport after time spent in mountain and long-distance running and then completing the gruelling 'Hyrox' training. Mandy admits her progress has shocked many, but hopes she can offer inspiration to women who are also in the middle phase of their lives to try new things and leave no regrets. She the Stirling Observer: 'It's been a bit of a shock considering I'm only ten months into doing this, but I seem to be really powerful and I'm pulling more than two times my body weight which is crazy. 'The powerlifting came about because I was a runner and then was competing in Hyrox for three years where I struggled with the sled pull aspect of it. 'I was turning 50 and it made sense to get into weights; I hired a coach to help me with my dead lift and fell in love, then it was off to enter a competition with Scottish Powerlifting around Christmas which I won in the 'Masters' category - for people 50 and older. 'When I was younger, I hated PE at school and I only got into running after I had my kids to get out of the house for a bit and then it just became an interest for me, I ran four marathons and was doing ultra-marathons as well. 'One of my biggest regrets would be not starting lifting and even the exercise side of things earlier. 'As women, we get hung up on how we look, but I'm caring more about strength than my appearance at the moment and it makes me happy. 'I think it's an important message that just because you reach 50, that you can start something new and where people think it all starts to go downhill at this age, that is far from my experience at all.' Mandy is set to compete at the European Masters powerlifting event in Finland next February, before a trip Stateside for the Worlds in Autumn 2026. Her journey of self-discovery in the gym also led to a diagnosis of autism just over six years ago, with Mandy admitting it brings both positives and negatives to competing in high-level events. 'One of the elements it brings is it allows me to have an intense focus on something and even thought the training can be quite repetitive - it's only really three moves - I'm happy for things to be quite monotonous,' Mandy continued. 'I just find myself desperate to lift that weight off the ground and it gets the neurons in my brain really engaged so it makes the constant training enjoyable. 'But that has it's own issues as well, I used to get injured when running because I over-trained and because I don't have as much of a pain threshold, that desire to push through things can be dangerous. The lights and noise at the competitions can also be quite difficult for me, so that's where it's great to have Kim there as a coach who understands me and gets me to focus on the right things. 'The Europeans and then the Worlds coming up are just really exciting and I know I've got the chance to do something cool at 50.'
Daily Record
03-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Callander powerlifter shares inspiring story after breaking records at 50
For Callander's Mandy Williams, it has been a long journey to sporting success - from hating PE lessons to breaking records and barriers as a top powerlifter at the age of 50. Mandy only took up the event ten months ago as she brought up the milestone, but has blazed a trail through the Scottish scene - including being crowned as the top powerlifter for her age group at a UK-wide championships in London at the end of last month. The pocket powerhouse broke her own bench press record with a 50 kilogram lift, alongside a deadlift of 105 kilograms and a 67.5 kilogram squat. All of that despite only weighing 45 kilograms - or just over seven stones - during the competition. Mandy's journey to powerlifting prowess, however, has been far from a straight one, taking up the sport after time spent in mountain and long-distance running and then completing the gruelling 'Hyrox' training. Mandy admits her progress in powerlifting has shocked many, but hopes she can offer inspiration to women in the middle phase of their lives to try new things and leave no regrets. She told the Observer: 'It's been a bit of a shock considering I'm only ten months into doing this, but I seem to be really powerful and I'm pulling more than two times my body weight which is crazy. 'The powerlifting came about because I was a runner and then was competing in Hyrox for three years where I struggled with the sled pull aspect of it. 'I was turning 50 and it made sense to get into weights; I hired a coach to help me with my dead lift and fell in love, then it was off to enter a competition with Scottish Powerlifting around Christmas which I won in the 'Masters' category - for people 50 and older. 'When I was younger, I hated PE at school and I only got into running after I had my kids to get out of the house for a bit and then it just became an interest for me, I ran four marathons and was doing ultra-marathons as well. 'One of my biggest regrets would be not starting lifting and even the exercise side of things earlier. 'As women, we get hung up on how we look, but I'm caring more about strength than my appearance at the moment and it makes me happy. 'I think it's an important message that just because you reach 50, that you can start something new and where people think it all starts to go downhill at this age, that is far from my experience at all.' Mandy - who trains with coach Kim Wilson at the Athena Personal Training gym in Edinburgh - will next compete at the European Masters powerlifting event in Finland next February, before a trip Stateside for the Worlds in Autumn 2026. Her journey of self-discovery in the gym also led to a diagnosis of autism just over six years ago, with Mandy admitting it brings both positives and negatives to competing in high-level events. 'One of the elements it brings is it allows me to have an intense focus on something and even thought the training can be quite repetitive - it's only really three moves - I'm happy for things to be quite monotonous,' Mandy continued. 'I just find myself desperate to lift that weight off the ground and it gets the neurons in my brain really engaged so it makes the constant training enjoyable. 'But that has it's own issues as well, I used to get injured when running because I over-trained and because I don't have as much of a pain threshold, that desire to push through things can be dangerous. The lights and noise at the competitions can also be quite difficult for me, so that's where it's great to have Kim there as a coach who understands me and gets me to focus on the right things. 'The Europeans and then the Worlds coming up are just really exciting and I know I've got the chance to do something cool at 50.'
Metro
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Metro
The players who had dream and nightmare first weeks of the snooker season
The snooker season got underway in low-key fashion over the last few days, but it has already seen some players make an ideal start to their campaign and others face early worries. The Wuhan Open qualifiers begun on June 22, with the British Open qualifying starting straight after on June 25. Both qualifying events were held at the Mattioli Arena in Leicester behind closed doors, so they won't necessarily live long in the memory, but could prove vital in the world rankings over the season. Winning the opening match in the Wuhan Open is worth £4,500 and the winner of the event will pick up a very healthy £140,000. The British Open is a small step down, with £3,000 won in the first round and the champion claiming £100,000. A number of players have started in perfect fashion, winning both their qualifiers and will be booking their trips to Wuhan and Cheltenham. Others will already be reckoning with gaps in their calendar when those events come round after suffering back-to-back defeats over the last week. There was a dramatic and brilliant start to the campaign for Marco Fu, the 47-year-old who has really struggled for results in recent years but still has some of the old magic in there. He had a really tough draw against Chris Wakelin to get to Wuhan but knocked in three centuries to win 5-3, then bounced back from 3-0 down to beat Stephen Maguire 4-3 and make the British. Louis Heathcote also picked up two wins from tricky draws, impressively downing Wu Yize 5-2, then edging out Jordan Brown 4-3. There was also a brace of victories for Stan Moody, the 18-year-old who continues to make great strides in the game, beating Antoni Kowalski to reach Wuhan and then Zhou Yuelong to make it to Cheltenham. 12-times women's world champion Reanne Evans has started the campaign ideally, with wins over David Lilley and new professional Lan Yuhao. There was also a pair of victories for the likes of Liam Davies and Jackson Page, two young British stars who will hope to move up a level this season. Zak Surety also kept up the good form he finished last season in, with wins over Gong Chenzhi and Zhao Hanyang, while Ben Woollaston, Lei Peifan, Matt Selt, Joe O'Connor, Noppon Saengkham, Matthew Stevens, Jak Jones, Ben Mertens, Xu Si, Chang Bingyu and Jack Lisowski all landed two victories. A number of players came away with a win and a defeat from the two sets of qualifiers, which they will be able to live with, but two losses will sting for those who came away without a victory. Ricky Walden was a notable name to lose on both outings, beaten 5-4 by David Grace to miss out on Wuhan, then downed 4-2 by Joe O'Connor in the British. The 42-year-old is down at number 49 on the end of season rankings and these early setbacks will be a concern. Fan Zhengyi is another to have gone winless in two games, losing 5-3 to Ben Mertens and then 4-2 to Robert Milkins. The former European Masters champ remains an unpredictable force, capable of brilliance but really lacking consistency. A number of the players who won their way onto the professional circuit through Q School, Q Tour or other routes had difficult starts and are still looking for their first victories of the campaign. Liam Pullen may well be the most frustrated of them after both his matches went to deciding frames and he lost both, beaten 5-4 by Jimmy Robertson and then 4-3 by Mertens. While it can't be considered a nightmare as he chose to do so, Luca Brecel is also winless so far after failing to turn up for his Wuhan Open qualifier and then pulling out of the British Open. The early-season action continues on Monday with the start of the Championship League, a sprawling event which runs all the way until July 23. Many of the big names are not playing in the tournament so there is a good chance for some of the lower-ranked players to either continue a strong start to the campaign or turn around a difficult one. Ishpreet Singh Chadha 5-1 Yao PengchengElliot Slessor 5-4 Oliver LinesRicky Walden 4-5 David GraceChris Wakelin 3-5 Marco FuAnthony McGill 2-5 Jimmy WhiteWu Yize 2-5 Louis Heathcote Matthew Selt 5-4 Sunny Akani Xu Si 5-1 Chris TottenJak Jones 5-0 Oliver BrownJamie Jones 5-4 Liu WenweiBarry Hawkins 5-1 Julien LeclercqNoppon Saengkham 5-0 Robbie McGuiganZhou Yuelong 5-2 Lan Yuhao Stan Moody 5-2 Antoni Kowalski Mark Williams 5-0 Chatchapong NasaMark Davis 4-5 Liam DaviesJoe O'Connor 5-4 Jiang JunBen Woollaston 5-1 Ken DohertyMark Selby 5-1 Alexander UrsenbacherMichael Holt 5-3 Liam GrahamDavid Gilbert 5-1 Cheung Ka Wai Haris Tahir w/o Luca Brecel Daniel Wells 4-5 Chang BingyuStuart Bingham 2-5 Liam HighfieldSanderson Lam 1-5 Zhao HanyangZhang Anda 5-2 Steven HallworthJimmy Robertson 5-4 Liam PullenLei Peifan 5-3 Ng On YeeAaron Hill 5-1 Sam Craigie Kyren Wilson 5-0 Connor Benzey Liu Hongyu 5-3 Ian BurnsJack Lisowski 5-3 Amir SarkhoshRyan Day 5-1 Jonas LuzShaun Murphy 5-0 Michal SzubarczykJordan Brown 5-1 Duane JonesGary Wilson 5-2 Gao Yang Lyu Haotian 5-3 Bai Yulu Martin O'Donnell 1-5 Haydon PinheyTom Ford 5-2 Mateusz BaranowskiDavid Lilley 4-5 Reanne EvansNeil Robertson 5-0 Leone CrowleyHe Guoqiang 1-5 Artemijs ZizinsYuan Sijun 5-1 Xu YichenLong Zehuang 3-5 Dylan Emery John Higgins 5-2 Huang Jiahao Scott Donaldson 5-4 Mitchell MannPang Junxu 5-4 Hatem YassenThepchaiya Un-Nooh 5-0 Fergal QuinnZak Surety 5-1 Gong Chenzhi Fan Zhengyi 3-5 Ben Mertens Jackson Page 5-3 Ross MuirAli Carter 5-2 Florian NuessleRobert Milkins 1-5 Wang YuchenSi Jiahui 5-2 Bulcsu ReveszStephen Maguire 5-1 Kreishh Gurbaxani Matthew Stevens 5-2 Sahil Nayyar Chang Bingyu 4-2 Kreishh GurbaxaniJak Jones 4-1 Gong ChenzhiNoppon Saengkham 4-1 Liu WenweiLiam Davies 4-2 Jimmy WhiteMartin O'Donnell 4-1 Sahil NayyarOliver Lines 4-1 Stuart CarringtonUmut Dikme 4-3 Michal Szubarczyk Anthony McGill 4-3 Dylan Emery Ashley Carty 4-2 Alexander UrsenbacherBen Mertens 4-3 Liam PullenMitchell Mann 4-3 Wang YuchenMatthew Stevens 4-2 Huang JiahaoYuan Sijun 4-3 Jamie JonesDavid Lilley 4-2 Liam GrahamJoe O'Connor 4-2 Ricky Walden Antoni Kowalski 4-0 Chris Totten Reanne Evans 4-1 Lan YuhaoLei Peifan 4-0 Mateusz BaranowskiRobert Milkins 4-2 Fan ZhengyiLeone Crowley 4-0 Hatem YassenMatthew Selt 4-0 David GilbertXu Yichen 4-2 Oliver BrownStan Moody 4-2 Zhou Yuelong Jackson Page 4-2 Elliot Slessor Gao Yang 4-2 Fergal QuinnMarco Fu 4-3 Stephen MaguireHe Guoqiang 4-0 Farakh AjaibSunny Akani 4-0 Steven HallworthXu Si 4-0 Florian NuessleRyan Davies 4-3 Jimmy RobertsonHaris Tahir 4-3 Ken Doherty Long Zehuang 4-3 Thepchaiya Un-Nooh Bulcsu Revesz 4-1 Robbie WilliamsScott Donaldson 4-2 Ishpreet Singh ChadhaRobbie McGuigan 4-2 Lyu HaotianAmir Sarkhosh 4-1 Mink NutcharutJack Lisowski 4-3 Liam HighfieldIulian Boiko 4-2 Connor BenzeyBen Woollaston 4-2 Julien Leclercq Allan Taylor 4-2 Chatchapong Nasa Zak Surety 4-2 Zhao HanyangLiu Hongyu 4-0 Ng On YeeCheung Ka Wai 4-1 Jonas LuzIan Burns 4-1 Michael HoltStuart Bingham 4-2 Ryan DayLouis Heathcote 4-3 Jordan BrownSam Craigie 4-1 Yao Pengcheng Bai Yulu 4-2 Artemijs Zizins MORE: Sam Craigie feared for snooker career after neck surgery but now feels better than ever MORE: Snooker chiefs reveal fines for Ding Junhui and Seniors champ for disciplinary issues MORE: Three major World Snooker Tour events move to new TV channel
