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BBC News
22-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
New Zealand's Woodman-Wickliffe reverses retirement
New Zealand star Portia Woodman-Wickliffe has announced she will come out of international retirement and has set her sights on the 2025 World called time on her career with New Zealand after winning rugby sevens gold at the 2024 Paris 33-year-old winger rolled back on her initial decision after helping Blues Women to win Sky Super Rugby Aupiki, signing an eight-month contract."Each week in campaign I thought about the possibility of how I could potentially go to the World Cup more and more," Woodman-Wickliffe said."I thought about what it would mean to me but most importantly my whanau [family]. I needed time to process everything and making myself available for this team is where I've landed."Woodman-Wickliffe is the record try-scorer in World Cup history and helped New Zealand to the title in 2017 and was named by World Rugby as sevens Player of the Year in 2015, Women's Player of the Year (XVs) in 2017 and top women's sevens Player of the Decade in 2020.
BBC News
07-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Reddin in line to be named WRU director of rugby
Former Football Association (FA), England Rugby and Team GB performance expert Dave Reddin is the leading contender to become director of professional rugby at the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU).Reddin's most recent role was with the FA, where he left his post as head of strategy and performance in was a key member of Sir Clive Woodward's England management staff when they won the 2003 Rugby World held the role of director of performance services for Team GB at the London 2012 WRU is looking for somebody to oversee the professional men's and women's games in Wales following the departure of executive director of rugby Nigel Walker in December 2024. Once an appointment is made, the WRU must also name a new head coach to succeed Warren Gatland who left the role during this year's Six Nations. Wales have lost a record 17 Tests in succession, a run they will aim to halt when they play a two-match series in Japan in July. Reddin worked for England's Rugby Football Union as a fitness expert between 1997 and 2006 where the pinnacle came with the World Cup success in was also part of Woodward's backroom team on the British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand in his spell working with Team GB, Reddin joined the FA in 2014 as head of performance services under then director of elite development Dan role initially focused on England's development teams but he was appointed head of team strategy and performance in role included responsibilities for performance medicine, analysis, physical performance, nutrition and people development. Reddin worked with Gareth Southgate's senior England side, incljusing at the 2018 World Cup when they reached the chief executive Martin Glenn said Reddin had played a "key role across all 28 of our England teams" when he left the organisation in was subject to an FA investigation after a bullying allegation was made against him in 2017. After a thorough process, the FA said it was "entirely satisfied the matters were appropriately investigated and concluded".
BBC News
07-04-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
'Love to see more spectators' - was Grand Slam Track a success?
From empty stands and absent superstars to innovative formats and unusual match-ups - did the inaugural Grand Slam Track meeting deliver?The 12 athletes who left Kingston, Jamaica this weekend with an additional $100,000 (£77,500) after competing in just two events might suggest it was a huge huge swathes of empty seats at the National Stadium led to the feeling that the innovative new format, the brainchild of four-time Olympic champion Michael Johnson, has work to do in order to capture an audience."Obviously, look, let's be honest. We would love to see more spectators here, you know?" Johnson said."We think we'll get that, we think that'll happen. But the crowd was engaged, and that's what's really important. People were really engaged with what's happening here."American Johnson said he launched the concept, broadcast on TNT Sports in the UK, in a bid to maintain the attention and excitement athletics generates every four years at the event in Jamaica was the first of four scheduled three-day events - each of the next three take place in the United States - and Johnson was pleased with how it played out, although he admitted there are issues to iron out."Everything went smooth from a competition standpoint," Johnson added. "But we had a few things behind the scenes that we didn't like."Other people probably didn't notice it, but we did. We will look at everything. We noticed lots of different things. But those aren't the things we're going to get into right now."Right now we're just celebrating that we had a great event, athletes and fans enjoyed it. We'll continue to improve." How does Grand Slam Track work? A total of 96 athletes competed across three days in Jamaica, with 48 of those signed up to the four-meet season as 'Racers' while the remaining half are 'Challengers', who will swap in and male and female competitors are subdivided into six categories - each containing eight athletes - such as Short Sprints, with the eight featuring in that group competing in the 100m and 200m each win points for their finishing position in both races, with their combined tally determining the champion at each slam and securing the winner $100,000 (£79,500). Britain's Olympic medallist Matthew Hudson-Smith, who won 400m silver at Paris 2024, is one of the 'Racers' signed up for the Jamaica, he won the 200m race and came second in the 400m to top the combined standings and claim the top the 12 champions, nine were 'Racers' with the victors from the 'Challengers', including Emmanuel Kenyan specialises in the 800m but stunned a high-calibre 1500m field, beating Yared Nuguse and Olympic gold medallist Cole Hocker, who finished second and third respectively, while Britain's Josh Kerr, the reigning 1500m world champion finished came second in the 800m to amass 20 overall points and finish top of the Short Distance Danielle Williams and Ethiopian Ejgayehu Taye were the other two 'Challengers' to cause an upset. Jury still out for some elite contenders Olympic medallists Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Gabby Thomas, Kenny Bednarek, Fred Kerley, Daryll Neita and Dina Asher-Smith are among the high-profile names signed up, but some of the biggest stars from the 2024 Olympics were notably Noah Lyles, who won 100m gold in Paris, British 1500m Olympic gold medallist Keely Hodgkinson and double gold medallist Jakob Ingebrigtsen opted to steer clear of the event.A growing calendar could be the reason some are yet to have a third World Championships in the space of four years to prepare for in Tokyo in September, while many were involved in the World Indoor Championships in China in Diamond League will also once again hold 15 meetings across 2025 with record prize money totalling $9.2m (£7.3m) on Grand Slam Track format has a prize pot of $12.6m (£10m) with the 48 contracted 'Racers' also receiving a base salary to compete at all four slams."I heard them on the home stretch - '$100,000 on the line' - and so it really motivated me," Thomas, who finished as the Long Sprints champion, next meet runs from 2-4 May in Miami before moving to Philadelphia between 30 May and 1 June and the final event takes place in Los Angeles from 27-29 June.
BBC News
23-03-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Eccles undergoes surgery in latest injury setback
Rossie Eccles has undergone surgery as she bids to recover from a second injury setback since the 2024 28-year-old controversially exited the Paris Olympics last summer following a split-decision loss to Poland's Aneta Rygielska in the women's 66kg the crushing blow, Eccles confirmed in September that she would continue to target the 2026 Commonwealth Games in having fractured her back while training in November, the Newport-born boxer has now needed an operation after tearing the root of the meniscus in her knee."For everyone who has been asking me if I am still boxing, the short answer is yes..." she wrote on Instagram. In her post Eccles thenwent on the give "the long answer"."Since being back in full training and making the decision to keep boxing toward one more Commonwealth and Olympic Games, in November I fractured my back in a freak accident by falling off a pull-up bar (yes, I know), which meant eight weeks of complete rest," she added. "Then on week seven back into training, just as I started prepping for my first tournament back, I tore the root of the meniscus in my knee."Surgery on Thursday went well but a long recovery ahead. Beyond grateful for my amazing team and unbelievable family support around me."I'm currently a very useless and pretty annoying human, but I'll be back." Speaking in September, Eccles admitted she had not closed the door on potentially competing at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles."At the moment looking at LA directly is too far, it's too painful, but going forward in the future, you never know when it comes to the world of sport," Eccles told BBC Sport won gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham having won silver in the Gold Coast, Australia four years earlier.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Judge banned for helping compatriot reach Olympics
A Cypriot rhythmic gymnastics judge has been banned for four years for manipulating scores to help her compatriot qualify for the Paris Olympics. The Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) found that judge Evangelia Trikomiti altered the scores at the European Championships to ensure Vera Tugolukova clinched the final European qualifying spot for the Olympics. Russia-born Tugolukova, who began competing for Cyprus at the end of 2022, finished 16th in the individual all-around competition in Paris. "Trikomiti is declared ineligible for a period of four years of all gymnastics-related activities, excluding coaching activities, starting on the date of notification of this decision," FIG's gymnastics ethics foundation said in a statement. "European Gymnastics is held responsible for the offence committed by Trikomiti." The FIG also ordered European Gymnastics to pay 8,000 euros (£6,670) for the reimbursement of investigative costs and added that it could not stop 16-year-old Tugolukova from competing in the Olympics because it was not a 'field of play' decision. Trikomiti, president of the superior jury at the European Championships held in Budapest in May 2024, was found to have "unduly interfered" with the judges' work to help Tugolukova secure Olympic qualification ahead of Poland's Liliana Lewinska. Trikomiti had previously judged at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Her daughter, Chrystalleni, represented Cyprus at the 2012 London Olympics and won two gold medals in rhythmic gymnastics at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. European Gymnastics said it would consult with lawyers before considering an appeal. The Cyprus Gymnastics Federation said it would "thoroughly review" the ruling. "We are committed to taking all necessary actions in accordance with the law and ensuring that the appropriate measures are implemented," it said.
