Category Sports News

Olav Kooij won a close-fought sprint on stage 12 of the Giro d’Italia as Isaac del Toro retained the pink jersey in Viadana.

Dutchman Kooij benefited from Visma-Lease A Bike team-mate Wout van Aert’s superb lead-out in the final kilometre.

Casper van Uden finished second with Britain’s Ben Turner of Ineos Grenadiers third.

“Only he [Wout] can do it, so to have him as support here is extraordinary,” said Kooij.

“I really need to thank him and also the rest of the team, they did a fantastic job.

“You don’t want to be too far [back] in that last corner, that’s maybe why we had to go a bit earlier than we wanted but I could jump on the wheel of Casper and pass him.”

Del Toro of UAE Team Emirates-XRG stayed out of the hectic fight for position in the closing stages to finish safely in the bunch and maintain his hold on the pink jersey.

A sprint for two bonus seconds at the Red Bull kilometre in Brescello means the 21-year-old heads into stage 13 with a 33-second lead over team-mate Juan Ayuso in the race overall.

1. Olav Kooij (Ned/Visma-Lease a Bike) 3hr 55min 40sec

2. Casper van Uden (Ned/PicnicPostNL) Same time

3. Ben Turner (GB/Ineos Grenadiers)

4. Mads Pedersen (Den/Lidl-Trek)

5. Kaden Groves (Aus/Alpecin-Deceuninck)

6. Milan Fretin (Bel/Cofidis)

7. Max Kanter (Ger/XDS Astana)

8. Paul Magnier (Fra/Soudal Quick-Step)

9. Matevz Govekar (Slo/Bahrain-Victorious)

French Open 2025

Dates: 25 May-8 June Venue: Roland Garros, Paris

Britain’s Emma Raducanu could face three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek in the second round of the French Open.

The 22-year-old, who was thrashed by Swiatek at January’s Australian Open, must first beat China’s Wang Xinyu in Paris.

British men’s number one Jack Draper plays Italy’s Mattia Bellucci in his opening match, with top-ranked Jannik Sinner a potential quarter-final opponent.

Italy’s Sinner, who has recently returned from a three-month doping ban, will start against France’s Arthur Rinderknech.

Defending men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz opens against Japan’s former world number four Kei Nishikori.

Novak Djokovic, who is aiming for a standalone record 25th Grand Slam, has been pitted against American Mackenzie McDonald.

Swiatek has dominated the women’s singles with four titles in the past five years, but comes into the clay-court major in uncertain form.

The Pole has not won a tournament this year and has dropped to fifth in the world – meaning she could face the leading players earlier than usual.

All eyes were on which quarter Swiatek would land in, with Italian fourth seed Jasmine Paolini – who Swiatek beat in last year’s final – her potential last-eight opponent.

To get that far, though, she might have to see off Raducanu and 11th seed Elena Rybakina – another former Grand Slam champion – in the fourth round.

Djokovic, perhaps not surprising as age catches him up, has also been well below his best.

He lost three matches in a row to start the clay swing and ended the coaching partnership with Andy Murray last week.

His draw could have been much worse in Paris.

The other British players in the men’s singles have landed eye-catching draws.

Jacob Fearnley’s rapid rise continues with a French Open debut against 40-year-old three-time major champion Wawrinka, who won the Roland Garros title in 2015.

Cameron Norrie has been given a rematch against Russia’s Medvedev after the former world number one beat the Briton recently in Rome.

In the women’s singles, British number one Katie Boulter starts against a qualifier as the 28-year-old aims to finally land her first Roland Garros main-draw win.

She warmed up by winning a WTA 125 title in Paris last week.

Sonay Kartal is playing in the main draw for the first time, having climbed more than 200 places in the rankings over the past year, and opens against Erika Andreeva of Russia.

If she wins her first two matches, 23-year-old Kartal could again face Coco Gauff – who beat her in the Wimbledon second round last year.

The first part of the European clay-court swing has been encouraging for the leading British players – now the real test of their credentials is about to begin.

Although Raducanu has made positive steps over recent months, she still does not feel totally at ease on clay.

Does she have enough natural movement and quality to cause a shock if she meets Swiatek? You would think not – even if the four-time champion has been below her best.

Draper, beaten in the first round last year, has become a genuine force on clay.

Reaching the Madrid final and Rome quarter-finals illustrated his rising stock, but the fifth seed has been handed a tough draw.

If he comes through against Bellucci – a creative left-hander trying to crack the top 50 – a host of bigger names are lurking down the line.

Men’s singles

Full draw

Women’s singles

Arsenal forward Leandro Trossard is in advanced talks over a new contract, with all parties now confident of reaching an agreement.

Trossard, whose current deal runs until 2027, has been in discussions with Arsenal since January, with the 30-year-old also subject to interest from Saudi Arabia.

However, the process has been accelerated in recent weeks and there is now growing optimism an agreement is close as multiple sources have indicated negotiations are likely to reach a positive conclusion.

Sporting director Andrea Berta, who joined the club last month, has led the most recent set of talks and it is understood Trossard has informed Arsenal his priority is to stay at Emirates Stadium.

Real Madrid captain Luka Modric has revealed he will leave the Spanish giants after the end of their Club World Cup campaign this summer.

The 39-year-old Croatia midfielder, the 2018 Ballon d’Or winner, will play his final match at Real’s Bernabeu home when they welcome Real Sociedad on Saturday in their final La Liga game of the season.

“The moment has arrived. The moment I never wanted to come, but that’s football, and in life everything has a beginning and an end”, Modric said on Instagram.

The Croat has won 28 trophies, including six Champions Leagues and four domestic titles, since joining Real from Spurs in 2012.

“I arrived in 2012 with the hope of wearing the jersey of the best team in the world and the ambition to do great things, but I couldn’t have imagined what came next”, he said.

“Playing for Real Madrid changed my life as a footballer and as a person.

” I’m proud to have been part of one of the most successful eras of the best club in history. “

Real will open their Club World Cup campaign against Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal on 18 June and will also face Mexico’s Pachuca and RB Salzburg of Austria in the group stage.

Modric bagged two goals and six assists in 34 appearances in the Spanish top flight this season, as Real were pipped to the title by Barcelona.

He also featured in every game as Carlo Ancelotti’s side reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League, where they were beaten 5-1 on aggregate by Arsenal.

Following the announcement that the Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) has formally joined World Boxing, Team Ireland’s future participation in the Olympic Games has been secured.

Although the Irish Boxing Association (IBA), the governing body for amateur boxing in Ireland, has a long history, IABA members overwhelmingly voted in favor of changing.

In an extraordinary general meeting in April, 116 of the 117 clubs represented approved of constitutional reform, which made it possible for an international federation to join the IBA and World Boxing.

Following a provisional recognition of World Boxing, the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) executive board made the recommendation to include boxing in the Los Angeles 2028 summer Olympics program.

After the IOC stripped the IBA of recognition in 2023 for its failure to implement reforms in governance and finance, the IOC held the boxing competition at the Paris 2024 Games.

When the schedule for LA 2028 was first announced in 2022, the IOC had encouraged the sport’s national federations to establish a new global body.

The IOC stated that only World Boxing athletes whose national federations were members of the World Boxing organization could compete in Los Angeles at the time the 2028 Olympics qualifying events began.

Niall O’Carroll, the head of IABA’s board of directors, referred to the development as “an historic moment for Irish boxing.”

Every boxing player in the Association has a right to the Olympic dream, and their clubs have ensured that dream will continue into LA 2028 and beyond, he said.

“Irish Boxing has always valued our Olympic journey, from our first team of nine boxers in Paris in 1924, to maintaining our position as Team Ireland’s most successful Olympic sport.”

We have more Olympic podiums to climb and medals to win, but Kellie Harrington, a double Olympic gold medalist from Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, Katie Taylor, a champion boxer from Ireland in 1992, and Michael Carruth, a champion of boxing, are “the best of us.”

Despite a heavily crowded end-of-season schedule, England manager Thomas Tuchel is expected to name a strong squad on Friday. He is unlikely to negotiate with clubs.

According to sources, the England boss wants to work with as many players as possible and for as long as possible, so he won’t offer guarantees to Premier League managers on workload.

Before the 2026 World Cup begins, Tuchel emphasized before victories over Latvia and Albania in March that he has only 60 days and 24 sessions with his squad.

Gareth Southgate was replaced by a German manager with a mandate to win the tournament.

A six-day England training camp will take place from 4 to 10 June, with a qualifier for the World Cup in Andorra on June 7 and a friendly encounter with Senegal on June 10.

Manchester City, Chelsea, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich will compete in the expanded Club World Cup that Fifa will host on June 15 through July 13 during the course of its expanded run in the United States.

The tournament’s participating clubs are eager to release their players from June’s international window, not just England.

Tuchel and the players’ briefing before the World Cup was made clear from their first meeting, though.

In his first team, Tuchel makes big selection calls and makes justifications in press conferences, as evidenced by the surprise calls-ups of Jordan Henderson, Marcus Rashford, and Dan Burn.

The FA cited the Club World Cup as a “significant challenge” for protecting players’ welfare, which could also have “financial implications.”

Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is currently a free agent, might also be called up because the Spanish team is attempting to complete his Liverpool transfer before the Club World Cup begins.

Phil Foden, a player from Manchester City, started Tuchel’s first game but has struggled this season.

The attacker claimed that the incident from the Manchester derby on April 6 caused him to “struggle” this season and that he has been “struggling” mentally due to “things going on off the pitch.”

If Tuchel chooses Foden, it may also spark the club versus country debate by giving him a few weeks off to get it back to 100%.

Harry Kane has been celebrating his first trophy with Bayern Munich, and England is expected to take home another one before the Club World Cup.

With their Europa Conference League final in Poland on May 28th, Cole Palmer, who missed the first games while Tuchelis was unavailable, is another player in contention for the Club World Cup with Chelsea team-mates Reece James, Levi Colwill, and Noni Madueke all in contention.

Tuchel once said in March in the club versus country debate, “We do what’s good for us.” We stay in touch with the clubs, monitor the statuses closely, and take no unprofessional risks. Because I consider the players to be first and foremost. The player should not suffer any injuries.

In the end, we take good care of ourselves, the clubs take good care of themselves, and the main focus is the players. This is where it is.

Morgan Gibbs-White, a late call-up at Nottingham Forest after missing out on the first team, is another option. Will Ipswich’s forward Liam Delap, who is in demand at various Premier League clubs, be called up for a senior role?

Rashford, an on-loan at Aston Villa, has been sidelined for several weeks with a hamstring injury, so his fitness is unknown, while Anthony Gordon, a Newcastle player, has suffered a decline in performance. Eberechi Eze, who won the FA Cup with Crystal Palace, could now have a clear shot at the left-wing position in Tuchel’s side.

Eze has scored seven goals in his past six games and is currently in excellent form in the latter part of the season. In the win over Lativa in March, he scored his first England goal.

In midfield, Tuchel might turn to teammate Adam Wharton for assistance. Although Tuchel was a member of the U21 squad during Tuchel’s first training camp, he was unable to play in the 4-2 victory over Wolves on Tuesday due to a concussion. However, he did train with the senior squad during Tuchel’s first training camp after that.