Roger Black claims that the 28-year wait was “special” when the men’s 4x400m relay team from Great Britain finally received their gold medals from the 1997 World Athletics Championships.
At the Athens competition, Mark Hylton, Mark Black, Iwan Thomas, Jamie Baulch, and Mark Richardson finished second behind the USA.
The American teammate Antonio Pettigrew allegedly did something illegal, and the British line-up were later declared world champions.
According to Black, who also won gold in the 4x400m relay at the 1991 World Championships, “It was definitely a moment that was taken away from us and it definitely affected us.”
At Saturday’s Diamond League meeting in a sold-out London Stadium, Englishmen Black, Richardson, and Hylton, as well as Welsh duo Thomas and Baulch, were sadly presented with their gold medals.
It has been lingering over us for a very, very long time. Since 28 years is a long time, it was truly completed yesterday. It was fantastic, Black remarked.
“We were there with our families and our kids, who obviously weren’t born then,” said one participant, “in some ways, it was more special.”
You don’t get to share a baby with your families, as I do, and I don’t think Jamie did, but we did, and we did.
“A lot of them back then supported us, and more importantly, we shared it with 60, 000 British fans there.”
We loved it, and I believe that putting that all together made it a surprisingly emotional moment. It was truly unique.
We’re proud to be able to give these athletes their moment in front of a home crowd, said Cherry Alexander, UK Athletics’ strategic lead for major events.
Erica Roberts, a star of Married At First Sight, broke the tragic news about the passing of her grandmother Jessie in a heartfelt message on social media.
Erica Roberts, a MAFS star, recently shared sad news about her grandmother’s passing.
Married At First Sight UK star Erica Roberts shared with fans the loss of her beloved grandmother Jessie.
Taking to Instagram, the former bride who appeared on the E4 show back in 2023, shared an emotional post detailing the sad loss of her “beautiful nana.”
Erica, who was partnered with Jordan Gayle at the time, wrote: “I’m so grateful for the time we had together and that I got to say goodbye I will cherish the memories we made forever, heaven has gained the greatest angel.”
Erica’s photo collage of her and her grandmother’s life throughout the years was displayed alongside the post.
Erica’s grandmother Jessie had been an integral part of her upbringing as she looked after her as a child. And this explains why Erica said she felt grateful to be able to repay the favour by looking after her nan before her death.
Erica Roberts’ tragic news of the passing of her dear friend, Nan Jessie, is heartbreaking.
Erica recorded herself applying moisturising cream to her hands as she scrubbed her hair.
The reality TV star, who became a hot topic on the show because of her feud with fellow contestant Tasha, said: “I grew up with her looking after me, so it’s time to look after her.
Erica’s Nan is seen kissing her cheek in another image, and another image shows the pair holding hands.
Erica was flooded with comments from friends and followers shortly after posting her depressing news on Instagram.
Erica Roberts, the star of MAFS, posts a number of images of the pair to accompany their emotional post.
Sorry, Erica, but someone wrote: “Sorry for your loss.
And Adrienne Naylor, who also appeared on the show at the same time, expressed her love for Adrienne!
Amy Christophers, who appeared on the show in 2021, also said, “Sorry, babe, I’m sending you lots of love xxxx.”
It’s awful losing a grandparent, Jay Howard wrote in his song, “I’m so sorry for your loss, babe.” Thinking about your family and you.
After the reunion show aired last year, Erica and Jordan’s relationship broke down. And Erica said on Instagram that, in spite of the split, “we really wanted our relationship to work.” There is no bad blood between us, and I sincerely wish him the very best.
Erica Roberts and Jordan Gayle were paired together on the show in 2023 but split a year later(Image: Erica Roberts/Instagram)
However, Erica later explained to The Sun that she had spotted a number of red flags and that the split was a result of this.
Continue reading the article.
She acknowledged that in an effort to look after him, I “just started to lose myself completely.” He reportedly demanded a lot of things from me, and I believe he put a lot of pressure on me to be his one and only support system.
She continued, “And that’s too much for one person.” I’m not your mother or your therapist; I want to be your spouse and lover. Simply put, it’s too much for me.
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One royal author claims that Buckingham Palace was concerned about her plans when operating as a working royal, despite the Duchess of Sussex’ open admission of her struggles with adapting to royal life.
Meghan Markle allegedly believed the royals were acting like young children.
Meghan Markle’s life changed overnight when she met Prince Harry, and it’s no secret that she struggled to adjust to royal life before the couple’s self-exile to the States.
And she’s not the only one who found life inside palace walls a heavy cross to bear. The late Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret, famously resented playing “second fiddle” her whole life, and Prince Philip’s world was upended when Elizabeth II suddenly became monarch. Princess Diana’s painful divorce led to her suffering with depression, for which she claimed she got no support from the royal family.
Few would attempt to break the norm in a business that values tradition, despite having trouble with the connotations of royal life at times. However, a royal author claims that the Duchess of Sussex made an effort to “outshine” other royals, including the late Queen.
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Meghan famously struggled to adjust to royal life(Image: Getty Images)
In his book, Yes Ma’am, Tom Quinn claims that Meghan’s declaration that she wanted to work independently from the Queen sparked a wave of agitation in the Palace during her brief tenure as a working royal.
The author penned: “Buckingham Palace became really worried when they became aware that Meghan had plans for her life as a working royal that were not going to be part of a general strategy agreed with the staff – she just wanted to do her own thing.
Although it’s fair to say that Meghan should always outshine Princess Anne, Prince Charles, and Elizabeth the Queen, as he once did, is acceptable if you’re not a member of a tightly controlled institution.
Elizabeth always had to be at the center and of the Royal Family’s mind, according to a former courtier for the late Queen, and I don’t think Meghan understood why that had to force her to do things she didn’t want to.
She misunderstood the notion that when you enlist in the Royal Family, you must follow orders. You essentially become a family servant.
The Duchess ‘didn’t understand’ why she ‘couldn’t do her own thing’(Image: Getty Images)
According to insiders quoted in the book, Meghan struggled to understand the many protocols and customs that surround the Firm, and she allegedly had a harsh opinion of the senior members.
A former team member said, “Meghan really disliked the hierarchy,” according to Quinn. The majority of the rules appear to be fairly pointless and only exist to safeguard each senior royal’s status relative. And the senior royals are such sensitive individuals that they all desire a gold pen or new car. They looked like babies, Meghan thought.
READ MORE: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s major decision on return to UK
The Sussexes recalled Meghan’s introduction to royal life in their six-part Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, and discussed her first meeting with the late Queen after they began dating in 2016.
In the documentary, Prince Harry claimed that Meghan’s grandmother was the first senior member of the family to marry. She “had no idea what it all contained.” So she experienced a little shock in the system.
Meghan then shared that Prince Harry questioned her about curtsy while they were on their way to meet the Queen. He said, “You know how to curtsy right? “we were driving in the car. and I initially believed it to be a joke, she said.
Prince Harry said explaining royal protocol to Meghan was ‘weird’(Image: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
Prince Harry expressed his difficulty explaining royal protocol to his American girlfriend, “How do you explain that to people? ” How do you explain your grandmother’s bow? And that you would have to be curtsy, especially an American. That’s weird”.
Meghan joked that “Americans will understand this,” and that she had compared curtsying to Medieval Times, Dinner and Tournament, a dinner theater featuring medieval-style games.
A rising Hollywood star was found dead by his friends in the early hours of the morning after he failed to turn up to a rehearsal – he had endured an agonising death it transpired upon investigation and was also hiding a chronic illness
Anton’s mum Irina was distraught at a press conference on his death in 2016
Best known for his roles as navigator Pavel Chekov in the Star Trek franchise reboot and Kyle Reese in Terminator Salvation, up and coming actor Anton Yelchin’s future in Hollywood was looking very bright indeed. However the young star’s life was tragically cut short at just 27 years old when he was involved in an horrific car accident.
Confirming the news of his death to the Mirror in 2016, his publicist Jennifer Allen said in a statement: “Actor Anton Yelchin was killed in a fatal traffic collision early this morning. His family requests you respect their privacy at this time.”
The much-loved actor, who had starred in TV shows such as NYPD, ER and Curb Your Enthusiasm, was expected at a rehearsal at 11pm on the Saturday night but failed to turn up.
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His worried friends discovered him in the early hours of 19 June 2016 dead outside his San Fernando Valley home. He was pinned between his car and a security fence. Pictures from the scene showed the bent bars of the metal gate.
It’s thought after leaving his home he had got out of his Jeep Cherokee to check his locked gate for mail and the vehicle rolled backwards down the steep driveway, trapping him. The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office identified the cause of death as ‘blunt traumatic asphyxia’.
His heartbroken co-star Zachary Quinto, who played Spock in the Star Trek films, wrote a tribute at the time. It read: “Our dear friend. Our comrade. Our Anton. One of the most open and intellectually curious people I have ever had the pleasure to know. So enormously talented and generous of heart. Wise beyond his years. And gone before his time. All love and strength to his family at this impossible time of grief.”
Star Trek director JJ Abrams also penned a heartfelt tribute. “You were brilliant. You were kind. You were funny as hell, and supremely talented. And you weren’t here nearly long enough. Missing you… JJ.”
A lawsuit later stated: “Anton Yelchin was crushed and lingered alive for some time, trapped and suffocating until his death.” The manufacturer of the Grand Cherokee was reportedly aware certain models had problems with ‘rollaway’ incidents, with drivers being unsure if they were parked or in gear. At the time of Anton’s death, the roll away problem had been tied to at least 68 injuries, 266 crashes and 308 reports of property damage. Unfortunately a software patch didn’t reach dealers until after his accident.
Anton (r) and Sam Worthington (l) in 2009’s Terminator Salvation
Fiat Chrysler and his family eventually reached an out of court settlement, with the manufacturer saying it was “pleased” to have reached an “amicable resolution” in the matter. The car company also extended its “deepest sympathies” to the Yelchin family for their tragic loss.
Born in Russia, Anton emigrated to the USA with his parents, celebrated Russian figure skaters Victor and Irina Yelchin, at six months old. He had a love for TV and movies from a young age and in 2001, at just 11 years old, he landed a role in Hearts in Atlantis opposite Sir Antony Hopkins. He found early success in Indie films before landing his parts in Star Trek and Terminator.
After his death, in 2019 Love Antosha – a film about Anton’s life was released. It features personal footage, archives, letters and interviews with leading Hollywood stars who knew him, such as Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pine, Zoe Saldana, Anya Taylor-Joy, Willem Dafoe and Simon Pegg.
The film also revealed he was secretly suffering with the chronic and inherited illness cystic fibrosis. The genetic condition causes damage to the lungs, digestive system and other organs and shortens life expectancy.
Love Antosha’s director Garret Price told Fox News: “The first thing that surprised me was his chronic illness, which he was secretly dealing with throughout his career. And that in itself was totally admirable. No one knew about it. Even some of his closest friends didn’t know about it until he passed away.”
There was no mistaking the word of the night at the Suncorp Stadium after the British and Irish Lions’ first Test win over Australia – desperation.
As in, Wallaby desperation. As in, they’ll be so desperate to keep the series alive in Melbourne on Saturday they’ll metamorphose into a team of belligerence and belief – a band of brothers who will blow the Lions away.
“We expect them to be desperate,” said Lions centre Sione Tuipulotu after the 27-19 victory.
“When an Australia team becomes desperate, it’s difficult to handle,” said head coach Andy Farrell.
“The desperation is all on the line for them at the weekend,” said prop Tadhg Furlong.
Flanker Tadhg Beirne also spoke about Australian desperation. So did Wallabies head coach Joe Schmidt, repeatedly, and so did his replacement scrum-half Tate McDermott and others.
And they will be desperate, no question, but how far does desperation get you?
Schmidt said his team had desperation written all over their performance in Brisbane, and he meant it as a compliment. He admired their hunger and their refusal to wilt.
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For drama and intrigue, we want the series to go to the wire, so we construct an argument around that.
The fightback exposed weaknesses in the Lions make-up. Things might have been closer had big calls gone with the Wallabies – a possible yellow card for Tom Curry for taking Tom Lynagh in the air, a possible yellow for Furlong going high on Len Ikitau, a possible yellow for a Ben Earl no-arms tackle on Joseph Suaalii. What might have been…
So, the argument goes that the hosts will have confidence going to Melbourne because of the second-half tries and all their possession and territory and near-misses in the try stakes. Will Skelton and Rob Valetini will come back into the side and make them way better. More grist to the mill.
A counterpoint is this: they’re both class players, but Valetini won’t have played in over five weeks by the time Saturday comes around, and Skelton won’t have played in six weeks.
It should also be remembered the pair of them – plus Langi Gleeson and Noah Lolesio, both injured – all played and lost comprehensively when the Wallabies faced Scotland last November.
We can overdo the notion that adding Skelton and Valetini to the mix is going to fundamentally change a team that is sixth in the world – and only sixth because Argentina dropped below them after losing twice to England, and Scotland dropped below them after being beaten by Fiji. They’re sixth by default. Realistically, they’re eighth in the world.
Johnny Sexton was interesting on Friday when asked about the fire and brimstone the Wallabies were expected to produce from the off in Brisbane.
The Lions kicking coach said that kind of thing only gets you so far. It might buy you five or 10 minutes but then peters out and there’s a game to play. Desperation guarantees nothing.
Everybody who believes the series is best served by the Wallabies delivering a bloody nose to the Lions and taking it to a third game will have a quiet support for Schmidt’s team.
It’s more an exercise in wishful thinking than anything else. The optimists from an Australian perspective will look to the final 30 minutes in Brisbane for hope. So let’s look at those 30 minutes and ask if the Lions are as likely to be as wasteful and ill-disciplined for a second week in a row.
A sloppy Jamison Gibson-Park pass to Finn Russell and a knock-on. Freakish inaccuracy from two majestic operators. A Russell kick charged down, Furlong conceding a penalty, Andrew Porter conceding a penalty, Curry conceding a penalty, an offside penalty, then another, then a forced pass from Jack Conan to Bundee Aki and a spillage, then another Australia penalty.
That was all in 15 minutes or so when the Lions were 24-5 ahead. And it continued. Tommy Freeman forces a pass and knocks on, Maro Itoje knocks on, Hugo Keenan misses a tackle on Harry Potter.
After all of that, the Lions still had a 15-point advantage, only reduced to eight a couple of minutes from time. The difference between the Lions from minute one to minute 49 and the Lions from minute 50 to minute 80 was stark.
If they play for 60 or 70 minutes on Saturday the way they played for 50 in Brisbane they’ll win by a street because the Wallabies are undercooked and not particularly good – despite many of us wishing they were good enough to make a proper series of it.
And the Lions at their best were very, very good. They were on a different plain, physically and creatively, than the Wallabies. When Dan Sheehan finished off their third try – a thing of real beauty – the temptation was to reach for the record books because it really did feel like an epic shellacking was on its way.
Maybe tiredness derailed the Lions. Maybe subconsciously they switched off – an idea floated by Farrell, then shot down by Itoje. The Wallabies grew into it only when the game was already over. The chances of a repeat of such a high error count? Limited.
The show has now moved on to Melbourne, where the Lions will play arguably their most meaningless game since 1950, when they went to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) to play a side consisting of local businessmen, some armed forces and a cricketer.
On Tuesday, the Lions will face First Nations and Pasifika. They’ve called up a 45th player – Scotland’s Gregor Brown. He’ll join Ewan Ashman, Rory Sutherland, Darcy Graham, Jamie Osborne and Tom Clarkson as the ‘Geography Six’ of 2025.
It has been referred to as the world’s most well-known bench for almost 15 years.
It has become a viral hit at this year’s Open, and it features proudly on the sixth tee at Royal Portrush, with views of the beach below and the coast miles either side.
Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, and Jon Rahm are just a few of the sport’s biggest names who have been photographed resting up at the back end of the course.
“Jim McDowell – from just a few of his many golfing friends to celebrate his 70th birthday” is written on the inscription.
What’s the background to it, though? Camaraderie and friendship are at the heart of the game of golf.
Dad is no longer with us, but he used to play with a group of hackers at Royal Portrush, according to his daughter Zoe.
“They had the best time,” according to the report from the back nine, where they could have a wee regroup at the halfway point.
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The location on the iconic sixth tee was chosen, according to Zoe, and Jim received a surprise surprise when the secretary of Royal Portrush at the time chose it.
Zoe added, “She knew the lie of the land and we believe she chose the best location.”
He said, “It was unexpected, and it’s been a joy to enjoy it ever since.”
“Dad was really excited because he was one of the few people to receive a bench while they were still alive. He would frequently have the craic while sat on it with his friends.
It’s been amazing to see how many people from this Open are enjoying it because there have been many family memories and stories from the bench.
Claire, Jim’s other daughter, claimed that her father “would have loved watching some of the sport’s biggest names enjoy his bench at the Open.”
The sisters continued, “Every year, they visit the bench and reflect on their dad’s memories.” Most people go to a grave, according to Claire. We reach a bench.
She said while watching Zoe play the Open on Saturday, “We were so excited and we know Dad would have loved it.”
If he had been here, he would have loved it.
Although it’s been a little crazy, we always believed it to be the best golf bench. It’s pretty cool, there was never any dispute about that for us.
