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Belfast Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Automotive
- Belfast Telegraph
Michael Dunlop: I'm not happy with just 32 wins at the Isle of Man TT
Dunlop will be in action on Friday in the second Superstock and Supertwin races before the prestigious Senior race brings the curtain down on Saturday. The Ulsterman extended his incredible tally of wins around the iconic Mountain Course with a double in the Supersport class on the Milwaukee Ducati and a Supertwin victory on his MD Racing Paton. Dunlop will take some beating in Friday's second Supertwin race (4:15pm) on the Italian machine in his quest for a third consecutive TT four-timer. He was a runaway winner of the first Supertwin race on Tuesday by more than 22 seconds from Manxman Michael Evans and should emerge victorious again barring any unforeseen issues. His task will be tougher in the Opul Superstock race on Friday (10:45am), when Dean Harrison (Honda Racing UK) is seeking a double. Harrison won the first race for his fourth TT win and his first since he triumphed in the 2019 Senior. The English rider set his fastest ever lap at 135.692mph and brings formidable form to the table, while Davey Todd is a former Superstock winner who is eager to make amends on the 8TEN Racing BMW after finishing second to Harrison. Dunlop – third in the first Superstock encounter after he was hampered by an electronics issue – will be looking to close the gap to Harrison and Todd on his MD Racing BMW. 'I want to still win races and I wanted to come here and get into the thirties, and we're into the thirties,' Dunlop said. 'I've got three more races to have a go at and I will definitely be having a go – it won't be for the lack of trying, so we'll see what happens.' Dunlop is on the brink of a 50th TT podium after breaking John McGuinness's record of 47 rostrums this week. The second Sidecar TT race (1pm) is part of a packed schedule, when Manx brothers Ryan and Callum Crowe will be the favourites after a dominant win and 121mph lap record in Monday's race.
Belfast Telegraph
29-05-2025
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
‘It's the right time to step away': GB Olympic hockey hero confirms international retirement
The Ulsterman, who represented Great Britain at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and Tokyo in 2020, steps away from the game having won 141 caps, as well as winning 19 for Ireland. As well as being a two-time Olympian, Sloan also won bronze with GB at the EuroHockey Championships in 2017 and both the 2018 and 2022 Commonwealth Games. A co-captain of the national side since 2017 with Phil Roper and George Pinner, the curtain has now come down on a glittering career for Sloan but he admits that it is the right time for him to hang up the stick and move into a new role. "I have loved being part of the senior squad but it's the right time to step away. I was in the squad for ten years, which is quite a long stint, and in my last few years, I suffered a lot of injuries and, as the gears progressed, I started to get more and more into coaching,' he explained. 'I definitely want to thank my family. My parents got me into the sport and followed me across to England and I have been a huge help in my career and all of my family constantly travelling over from Northern Ireland to support me has made a huge difference. "Also, my first club was Cookstown Hockey Club and it was an amazing place to grow up and learn how to play the game and a lot of club members have continued to support me over the years, which I'm very grateful." Sloan will now move into a role as coach developer for England Hockey, aiming to bring the experience that helped him play in all 11 Olympic matches GB played in across his two Games and in four Pro League campaigns to the next generation.
Belfast Telegraph
26-05-2025
- Climate
- Belfast Telegraph
Rain thwarts first day of practice at Isle of Man TT with more forecast for later in the week
Further rain is expected on the island on Tuesday, but Clerk of the Course Gary Thompson is confident the weather will change for the better on Wednesday, issuing a 'positive' update for the remainder of practice week. Roads are scheduled to close this evening for practice but it could be tomorrow before Michael Dunlop and his fellow TT contenders complete their first laps of the 2025 event in anger. Thompson said high pressure was set to bring improved weather from Wednesday. 'We had to take the decision to cancel the rest of today's schedule, which was going to be a free practice for all the solos and Sidecars,' said Thompson. 'We gave it a go this morning and obviously we were aware there was going to be a weather front coming in, but we were expecting that weather front to come in slightly later. 'We got the newcomers' lap out of the way for both solos and Sidecars but unfortunately the rain came in earlier than expected. 'There is another weather front coming in on Tuesday evening so we're going to take that as it comes and try to get all the sessions out, but if not, we're looking good for Wednesday, and the rest of the week is looking much more positive. 'We've got a ridge of high pressure coming in on Wednesday for a couple of days, so we'll try tomorrow but if not, then we're going to go on Wednesday evening.' The first Supersport and Sidecar races are scheduled to take place on Saturday but further disruption to practice and qualifying could potentially see the start of racing pushed back. Ulsterman Dunlop is gunning for a landmark 30th TT win after becoming the most successful rider in the history of the event in 2024, when the 36-year-old won four races to overtake his uncle Joey's 24-year-old record of 26 wins. Dunlop is poised on 29 victories and arrived at the TT on the back of a confidence-inspiring treble at the North West 200 earlier this month.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Economic expert says EU deal won't remove all sea border trade frictions relating to goods
There are a number of uncertainties about this week's reset deal between the UK and the EU, but one thing we can be fairly certain of is that one of the main economic benefits, either for the UK overall or Northern Ireland separately, is the impact on agriculture and food products. Once implemented, the new arrangements should provide for fairly seamless movement of food products from GB to the Continent and in the reverse direction. Importantly, from a Northern Ireland point of view, because the UK overall will now be applying EU SPS (food and animal) standards, this should remove almost all of the checks on agricultural and food products moving across what has become the Irish Sea Border (and, similarly, for plants). READ MORE: Heartbreak as young Ulsterman dies in drowning incident in Portugal READ MORE: Details as Department of Health unveils plans for NI's first obesity management service This removal of frictions on the trade in food between GB and the EU will contribute much of the £9bn economic gain which the Government projects by 2040. Admittedly, there are some costs which may not be so obvious. The UK, including Northern Ireland, is certainly going to become a rule-taker with respect to EU food policies. If disputes emerge, the UK will be subject to the oversight of the European Court of Justice. The UK has promised to 'dynamically align' to any future changes in EU food regulations. Whether that means we are ruling out the UK using new food technologies like gene editing seems unclear. If farming is the apparent 'winner', the obvious 'loser' in Monday's deal is UK fishing, as the Continental fish fleets will continue to get access to British waters until 2038. Fishing is a relatively small economic sector, representing about 0.04% of UK GDP (or slightly more in Northern Ireland, 0.06%). The UK government is promising a generous subsidy for the sector (does that include Northern Ireland?), but presumably the workers would have preferred simply to catch more fish in UK waters. Northern Ireland already has a single electricity market arrangement with the Republic of Ireland. This week's deal provides for the UK to merge with the EU's carbon trading arrangements and may foreshadow GB moving closer to the EU's energy single market. In the absence of this arrangement, the UK would have been paying £800m annually on goods exported to the EU, and such carbon trading would have had scope to create big problems for Northern Ireland's trade flows North-South and East-West. Very importantly, while this deal has important implications for the trading of food products from GB to Northern Ireland, it will not remove all the other Irish Sea border trade frictions relating to goods of GB origin being brought into Northern Ireland. There are many uncertainties relating to this deal. Aside from the important question of when it will come into force (given the need for legislation, probably not for several years), a lot of the details have to be further negotiated.. For example, how many EU visitors will be allowed through the Youth Mobility scheme, what fees would EU students pay when the UK (re-)joins the EU's Erasmus student programme, when will British air travellers be able to use EU e-gates and what is the 'subscription fee' which the UK is paying to be allowed to bid for the EU's Euros 150bn rearmament fund? Here in Northern Ireland, over the years, we have become rather used to the problems generated by a 'nothing is agreed until everything is agreed' approach, but we might be quite surprised by an agreement which has quite a few holes throughout its structure. To be fair to PM Starmer, he is now trying to balance the three spinning plates of trade deals with the USA, India and the EU. This will require quite a lot of agility.' For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our politics newsletter here.
Belfast Telegraph
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Belfast Telegraph
Jonathan Rea focused on making progress as comeback from injury continues in Czech Republic
Rea made his long-awaited comeback at the beginning of May after spending more than two months out with a foot injury. The record-breaking six-time champion suffered fractures in a crash in testing a few days before the season commenced in Australia. Rea endured a tough return at Cremona in Italy at round four but now wants to put the injury behind him as he concentrates on making further progress this weekend, where the 38-year-old is seeking to score his first points of 2025. 'If I could come away from Most feeling good with the bike, riding the bike in the proper way, making the correct adjustments, that would be something to be satisfied with because there's still a lot of the season left,' said Rea. 'Now, I'm not racing for classification because I've been injured — it's all about trying to maximise the opportunities that come my way and to do that we have to prepare in the best way, so Most is a good place to try and regain that feeling, and consistency and performance. 'I still have a lot of pain day to day but the body is clever to understand the pain, so it becomes easier if you like. 'I think with the plates inside my foot, and you walk on that with every movement, two of the metatarsals are fused together, so it offsets a lot of the force and pain. 'I think until I get those plates out, I'm going to have that feeling, so we need to check in the summer break if there's enough gap (to have them removed) or whether that can be done at the end of the season,' he added. 'Honestly, functionally and strength-wise, my foot is at quite 100 per cent let's say; aside from the pain and discomfort, it's quite normal and it shouldn't be an excuse from now on. 'Now is more about me getting a feeling on the bike and trying to forget the foot injury.' Turkey's Toprak Razgatlioglu has a strong record at Most and was fastest in both free practice sessions on Friday for the ROKiT BMW Motorrad team. The reigning champion is 34 points behind Ducati's Nicolo Bulega ahead of Saturday's first race (1.00pm) and is eager to close the deficit. Bulega was involved in a huge high-side in FP1 but was able to participate in the afternoon session, ending the day fourth. Razgatlioglu was two-tenths quicker than Sam Lowes (Marc VDS Racing Ducati) with brother Alex (bimota by Kawasaki Racing Team) in third. In the British Superbike Championship, Ulsterman Glenn Irwin led the time sheets in free practice at Donington Park on the Hager PBM Ducati. Irwin, who is tied on 32 points at the top with Bradley Ray and Leon Haslam after the opening round at Oulton Park, was 0.093s ahead of Yamaha rider Ray, with Rory Skinner third on the Cheshire Mouldings Ducati for TAS Racing. Current champion Kyle Ryde (OMG Nitrous Competitions Yamaha) was fourth with Haslam in fifth. Andrew Irwin was 10th fastest for Honda Racing UK with fellow Northern Ireland man and BSB rookie Scott Swann in 12th (Send My Bag IWR Honda). The first BSB race of the weekend on Saturday is set for 4.15pm with tomorrow's races due at 1.15pm and 4.20pm.
