London 2012 Olympics: Jessica Ennis's heptathlon team-mate Louise Hazel also told she was overweight

Hopeful: Louise Hazel is certain to compete alongside Jessica Ennis in the heptathlon at London 2012 Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Exclusive: Jessica Ennis's team-mate Louise Hazel has labelled remarks about Ennis's weight a disgrace and said she has been subjected to the same treatment.

Hazel's comments come after Ennis's coach Tony Minichello claimed that an unnamed "high-ranking person" within UK Athletics had described the World No 2 as fat.

Hazel called the behaviour "disgraceful" and said that she had also been subjected to negative comments about her weight by people in positions of authority, including being told she was overweight.

The revelations come soon after promising triathlete Hollie Avil retired having admitted to an eating disorder brought on by a comment about her weight from a coach.

Hazel, 26, said in relation to Minichiello’s claims: “I have experienced it first hand, also from people within the organisation that was supposed to be supporting us and I just think to a certain extent it is very disgraceful.

"When it comes to your weight there are certain ways to deal with it and there are certain ways not to deal with it.

“Obviously there are a lot of young girls out there who would take this on board as a real critique of their physical wellness and that has really detrimental effects

She added: “It’s not a nice feeling to be called overweight or things like that”

Entertainer: Louise Hazel impressed at the World Athletics Championships recording a personal best in the hurdles Photo: GETTY IMAGES

“Some people think that you have to look like you are completely emaciated to actually be in physical shape and that’s not the truth.”

Hazel said that the comments had upset her, and she feared for other young girls who are aiming to become top athletes.

"My warning is that coaches, people in positions of authority need to choose their words very carefully when they are bringing up a subject like that," she said.

Hazel said she thinks the problem stems from ignorance, and that attitudes within athletics need to change.

“I think more than anything it’s just ignorance. I just think it is a shame that those issues of females and their weight is dealt with in a negative way as opposed to support in a positive way”

"They maybe need to look at measures and mechanisms to make sure that people don’t fall into bad eating habits .

"There needs to be more support rather than more criticism and it is as simple as that.”

Hazel, who won a gold medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, said that Hollie Avil’s story was not unheard of among elite athletes.

She said: “There are a lot of girls even at the top of their sport that I think struggle with eating disorders but I think a lot of the time they are kept very much under wraps. How can you be seen to have an eating disorder and be an elite athlete?”

Photogenic: Louise Hazel posing for artist Rankin  Photo: PA

Hazel backed her team-mate to shake off the criticism.

“When Jessica is a world champion and performing as well as she does on a daily basis I don’t honestly think you can question what she does because whatever she does works.

"Jessica is an amazing role model and has got the perfect physical physique”.

On Friday Ennis laughed off the reports and said she was not going to let them bother her preparations for this weekend's World Combined Events Challenge in Gotzis.

"I think I came into this year expecting different things to happen, different articles and things like that," said Ennis.

Pride: Louise Hazel won gold for England at the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games Photo: GETTY IMAGES

"So I think if you come into it expecting those kind of things then it's not such a shock when you read things like that.

"I obviously see things. Things come up on Twitter and I read things. But I try not to focus too much on reading all the articles; just kind of get on with it, laugh it off really.

"It's not something I worry out. It's not something that's stressing me at the moment so I can kind of just brush it off and ignore it really."

Toned: Jessica Ennis shows off her physique Photo: GETTY IMAGES

French Open 2012: Andy Murray faces Japan's Tatsuma Ito in opener and could meet Rafa Nadal in semi-finals

Paris calling: Andy Murray will face Tatsuma Ito in the first round of Roland Garros

British No 1 Andy Murray has drawn Tatsuma Ito of Japan in the first round of the French Open, which gets under way on Sunday. 

Murray has never faced the world No 69 with Ito's best grand slam showing coming at this year's Australian Open where he suffered a second round defeat to Bernard Tomic.

A second-round match against either Jarkko Nieminen or Igor Andreev would await Murray, but from there things get considerably tougher for the world No 4.

Australian teenager Tomic and unorthodox Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov could await in rounds three and four, and tough Spaniard David Ferrer would have definitely been a man to avoid in the quarter-finals.

Murray must get through all that just to set up a semi-final rematch with Rafael Nadal, who beat him in straight sets 12 months ago.

Nadal, meanwhile, who warmed up for the second grand slam of the year with victory over Novak Djokovic at the Rome Masters, faces Italy's Simone Bolelli in his opener.

Djokovic will take on Italy's Potito Starace and could face former world No 1 Lleyton Hewitt in the second round as he bids to become the first man in 43 years to hold all four grand slam titles at the same time.

In the women's draw, British No 1 Elena Baltcha faces a tough opener against 2011 US Open champion Sam Stosur while Anne Keothavong will take on Hungary's Melinda Czink.

World No 1 Victoria Azarenka begins against Italian Alberta Brianti while Maria Sharapova starts against Alexandra Cadantu of Romania.

Defending champion Li Na starts against Romania's Sorana Cirstea.

England v West Indies: live

Skittled: Kirk Edwards (left) was clean bowled by James Anderson for just seven runs Photo: ACTION IMAGES

Over-by-over commentary of the first day of the second Investec Test match between England and West Indies at Trent Bridge. 

Latest

Can Stuart Broad become England's all-time highest wicket-taker? Would he deserve to sit atop that illustrious pile? Is Twitter for idiots? Email me alan.tyers@telegraph.co.uk with your views 
 

13.25 Steve Finn's being interviewed on the telly; he seems a bit down not to be in the team today, but as Broady points out, "Finn would get into any other Test side in the world." There's no doubt it's hard to get into this eleven. They showed Finn earlier on the balcony. Would he be better off bowling for Middlesex against Lancashire at Aigburth? Another fellow on the fringes of the England team, Ajmal Shahzad, took two wickets in his first five balls as a Lanky yesterday...

LUNCH: WI 84/4 (Chanderpaul 19* Samuels 9*) West Indies won the toss and batted, but must have regretted it right away. England were excellent. James Anderson bowled beautifully and took two wickets. He also clung onto two catches at slip off his buddy Stuart Broad; the first of them was a beaut. Broad bowled very well, as did Tim Bresnan; and the West Indies top order, sorry to say, was outclassed. Anderson had two chances go to ground between second and third slip, while Marlon Samuels was given out lbw and (correctly) reprieved on review, so it could have been even worse. Such hope as there is for Windies lies with the current partnership of 21* between Shiv Chanderpaul and Samuels, but this was England's morning beyond any question. Join me shortly and we'll see how things go after lunch.

OVER 27: WI 84/4 (Chanderpaul 19* Samuels 9*) In what I imagine will be the last over before lunch, Broad bowls a very rare poor ball, too legside, and Samuels helps it on its way to long leg for four. A single, then Shiv blocks one and West Indies have limped through to lunch without further damage.

Geoffrey Lippitt: "I agree with Andrew Holgate at over 23, it seems to be used to for exactly the purpse he says. Now Broad, yes he could become the highest wicket taker if he remains fit but I would rather it were Jimmy. He is inspirational a lot of the time and if the selection for a place were between the two of them I would want Jimmy."

OVER 26: WI 79/4 (Chanderpaul 19* Samuels 9*) Good start from Swann, on the button right away, and bowling with a nice shape. But Samuels plays the over impressively, using the bat and moving his feet. He strokes a drive through mid -off for four, and then hits hard down the ground to pinch the strike off the last ball of this over as well.

OVER 25: WI 74/4 (Chanderpaul 19* Samuels 4*) Well, no change in this over as Broad bowls a niggardly, remorseless set of pacy line and length. Samuels gets a single off the last ball.

OVER 24: WI 73/4 (Chanderpaul 19* Samuels 3*) Bres keeps Samuels honest with another tight over. Just one off it. Time to get Swann on before lunch to the left-handed Chanders?

OVER 23: WI 72/4 (Chanderpaul 19* Samuels 2*) More excellence from Broad, he pushes Shiv back and Der Crabber doesn't quite get a hold of a hook. Single, then Broad beats Samuels outside offstump and this pair are clinging on by their fingernails as England hunt what would surely be the killer wicket. Still, this pair showed a lot of fight and class at Lord's, so West Indies are not done yet. Shiv drives for a coulpe.

Andrew Holgate says: "I don't see the point of Twitter. I just seems to allow people, who would normally be largely ignored for being stupid, to air their views and cause controversy. Take Joey Barton (please someone take him!). He's an idiot yet the media go mad over his comments on Twitter. They shouldn't. They should just ignore him and let him be the small fool that he is. On another note, strange how the days of hoping for rain have gone away for England. Now we just want solid sunshine to batter all who stand before us. I say us, I mean them, but a childish part of me still believes I could make it as a Test player."

OVER 22: WI 68/4 (Chanderpaul 16* Samuels 1*) This is an excellent spell from Tim Bresnan. He's dragging Samuels across the stumps, most of the balls seaming back in, but there's the odd one that nibbles away. Quality maiden and the pressure is right on for Samuels.

OVER 21: WI 68/4 (Chanderpaul 16* Samuels 1*) England have got a plan for Shiv, and they are going about it well. Broad's banging it in from around the wicket, and then slipping in the occasional full one. Shiv now edges said delivery through where fourth slip would be. England have got Belly stationed at leg gully; Shiv hooks the ball into the ground and straight to him.

OVER 20: WI 64/4 (Chanderpaul 12* Samuels 1*) Marlon Samuels hit on the pads by a straight one. He shuffles across and tries to work it to leg. Hit on the pads and given out by Aleem Dar. He asks for the review - and quite right too. That looked high, to me. Decision overturned. The ball was going well over the stumps, good use of technology.

OVER 19: WI 64/4 (Chanderpaul 12* Samuels 1*) Marlon Samuels comes to the crease, wearing a jumper. Standard. It looks boiling out there, to these English eyes at least. He gets off the mark right away. And now poor old Shiv is hit in the...well... "in the Chanderpauls" as my colleague Giles Mole puts it. It looks a nasty one. As if there could be a nice one. Long delay as he gets such treatment as medical science has devised for being hit in the plums with a 85mph hard rock. Broad all over these West Indians.

WICKET! Powell c Anderson b Broad 33 Broad comes on to give Jimmy Anderson has a rest, and that's bad news for the West Indies, because it means he goes into the slip cordon at third slip... which is exactly where Powell now edges a good length ball. Jimmy pouches another one and West Indies are all over the place like an Essex girl on a hen do. That's a shame for Powell, who had played well so far, but the warning signs were there that his concentration was starting to go. FOW 63/4
 
OVER 18: WI 63/3 (Kieran Powell 33* Chanderpaul 12*) Bit of a silly pull from Powell, he doesn't really get in the right position and ends up just flicking the ball up in the air over the keeper/slips via the top edge. Strauss runs back from slip but it lands safe. Shiv clips a full one off his pads for four.

OVER 17: WI 58/3 (Kieran Powell 33* Chanderpaul 8*) Oooh, the best laid plans.... Jimmy Anderson comes around the wicket to Shiv Chanderpaul. Shiv gets off the mark with a drive, aided and abetted by some village fielding by Ali Cook. After a couple of bouncers, against which Shiv does not look too comfortable, Jim plays his ace: that one that angles in and nibbles away. It finds the edge of the great stonewaller's bat, but it flies between second and third slip, with neither Swann nor Bresnan getting a hand to it. I'm marking that up as a drop, the second off Anderson's bowling this morning in that second/third slip area. That's the delivery England have been searching for against Chanderpaul, so frustration for bowler, captain and coach. Can Shiv make them pay?

OVER 16: WI 50/3 (Kieran Powell 33* Chanderpaul 0*) Well played by Powell in that over. Leaves the good ones, and when Bresnan gets too full, he dinks the ball off his legs to bring up the West Indies fifty with a boundary.

OVER 15: WI 46/3 (Kieran Powell 28* Chanderpaul 0*) Jimmy Anderson greets Shiv with a snorting bouncer that flicks his arm guard and just flies over the slips. Wow, that would have been a disaster for West Indies if HE had gone first ball. Another brilliant over from Jimmy Anderson, who is just too good for these West Indies boys I am afraid. Now it's time for a round of Cricket Legend Weather Trivia, Sir Ian Botham versus David Ivon Gower..... where's the hottest place in the UK today? Fort William, according to Sir Ian.

DRINKS West Indies 42/3 We have a drink after that wicket. 14.3 overs. After the brief interval, it'll be Shiv Chanderpaul to face three more balls of Anderson's over, with West Indies once again needing him to save their bacon.

WICKET! Bravo c Swann b Anderson 7 Oh dear. Now it's officially a bad morning for West Indies. Anderson comes around the wicket, Bravo drives loosely at a wide one, it pings to Swann chest-high at second slip and he does the necessary. FOW 42/3
 
OVER 14: WI 42/2 (Kieran Powell 28* Darren Bravo 3*) Another lovely shot from Powell, this time off Bresnan, this time through the offside to give him another four. He's got some shots this fellow. Can he stick around long enough to hurt England with them? Looks like Jimmy Anderson is going to bowl the next one, that'll be his eighth over of the morning. Fitness as well as everything else.....

OVER 13: WI 37/2 (Kieran Powell 24* Darren Bravo 2*) Anderson continues. Nasser Hussain has a theory, about Jim having developed a new delivery with a scrambled seam. I think the idea is that it looks like an inswinger, but isn't. Scrambled seam or not, Kieran Powell shows his talent there with a sweet flip of the legs for four when Jim gets too straight.

OVER 12: WI 33/2 (Kieran Powell 20* Darren Bravo 2*) England make their first bowling change of the morning as Tim Bresnan comes on. He starts with a maiden, ball six of which is a snorter that nips away from Bravo and beats him.

OVER 11: WI 33/2 (Kieran Powell 20* Darren Bravo 2*) Touch of good fortune for Powell in that over when he inside edges Anderson past his stumps, picking up a streaky four.

OVER 10: WI 29/2 (Kieran Powell 16* Darren Bravo 2*) Broady continues, and Bravo's off the mark as he drives to mid off for two. Broad round the wicket. Pressure on this young pair. Powell's 22, Bravo 23. A lot of talent on display, but little experience. Come on West Indies! Dig in fellers.

Millfield's own Tony Blackburn. As a boy.

OVER 9: WI 26/2 (Kieran Powell 16* Darren Bravo 0*) Jim slants the ball across Bravo to start with, then makes him play. Windies one more wicket away from a full-blown crisis here. I'll tell you who else went to Millfield School. Tony Blackburn. Sophie Dahl. Police drummer Stewart Copeland. Victor Chandler. It's a dream eleven waiting to happen.

WICKET! Edwards b Anderson 7 Oh man, you can't say that didn't look likely. Edwards doesn't get his stuff together at all, leaves a great big gap between bat and pad, and Jimmy Anderson seams the back ball through it. For breakfast. Edwards prodded forward half-heartedly, the bat wasn't really coming down straight, and that is the end of that. Shame, I hate to say it, but Mr Edwards does not look a Test number three to my eyes. FOW 26/2.

OVER 8: WI 26/1 (Kieran Powell 15* Kirk Edwards 7*) As well he might, having seen the batsman's weakness against the short stuff at Lord's, Broad tries Powell out with a couple of bouncers. The proud son of the West Country is not tempted.

OVER 7: WI 24/1 (Kieran Powell 13* Kirk Edwards 7*) Nice couple from Edwards, punch through mid off. Anderson is hard to get away this morning.

OVER 6: WI 22/1 (Kieran Powell 13* Kirk Edwards 5*) Lovely shot there from Powell as he creams Broad away for four, no foot movemenet, all timing. Hey, how about this? Powell went to Millfield School, where he was a contemporary of Surrey skipper Rory Hamilton-Brown. According to our sources, Powell did not play cricket at the school! Anyone confirm this?

Here's this from the school's website: "Many Millfieldians go on to play at county level, and the School can count among its alumni David Graveney, England stars Simon Jones, Ben Hollioake, Craig Keiswetter and West Indies' Kieran Powell."

Leetle beet of zee news: "The ECB today announced that Yorkshire wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow has been awarded an England increment contract for 2011-12." Well done young'un. I hope he trains on.

OVER 5: WI 18/1 (Kieran Powell 9* Kirk Edwards 5*) Edwards is in rotten form on the tour so far, and he looks in a right pickle here. He edges Anderson. Tim Bresnan, diving to his left at third grabber, cannot hang on. Drop. Shame Jim can't field there off his own bowling. Kirk Edwards' set up looks all wrong: feet pointing to mid off, and sure enough, Jimmy Anderson tries him out with the inswinging yorker. It hits the pads alright, but going down leg. And the ball runs away for four leg byes.

OVER 4: WI 10/1 (Kieran Powell 9* Kirk Edwards 1*) Edwards leaves a ball perilously close to his stumps, then tries to leave another and finds the ball hit his bat. Looks a nervy customer, but he's off the mark at the end of that first over.

WICKET! Barath c Anderson b Broad 0 Just back of a length from Broady, and the ball seams away. Adrian B fences at it, not toally convincing. Well, not at all convincing, because he's edged that to third slip. Anderson takes a blinder, one-handed! He and the rest of the cordon have come in close due to the slow nature of the pitch, which makes that even more impressive. Splendid reactions. Best-fielding England fast bowler ever? Must be. Adrain Barath, who promised so much with that ton on debut at the Gabba but has failed again here. FOW 9/1
 
OVER 3: WI 8/0 (Barath 0* Kieran Powell 8*) Several indippers to Barath in this maiden over from Jim; perhaps he likes him more for the lbw than the nick. Struck on the pads several times in that over, albeit no major appeal as yet.

Oliver Budniak writes: "Twitter + KP = one massive headache, luckily it is a well known fact Ibuprofen was invented in Nottingham." I'm not so sure that's well-known, or even true, but fair enough.

OVER 2: WI 8/0 (Barath 0* Kieran Powell 8*) Short leg for Broady, and he bowls nice and full. It prompts a delish cover drive from Powell that purrs away for four. But the next ball, Broad finds an outside edge that drops a yard short of Strauss at slip. At least a yard, in fact. Further indications that this is a slow old deck, because that was a genuine 'snick'. It ran away for four, though. Puddingy bouncer in the over, too.

Gareth Butler writes: "I would like to say that there is something disconcerting about the picture of Jimmy at the top of the page. It feels like he is looking into my soul." I agree. It is disturbing, which is why I picked it. I'm messing with YOUR MIND Mr Butler.

OVER 1: WI 0/0 (Barath 0* Kieran Powell 0*) Anderson is bowling his outswingers agasinst the breeze, which is odd. Maybe Broad called dibs on ends on this, his home patch. The pitch looks really slow, some of these hardly carried through to the keeper. Ball four swings a bit, into right-handed Barath, who is hit on the pad. No run in the over.

10.58 So the players are out, Jerusalem blares. Jimmy has the new pill in his hand. Will he get it to swing?

10.56 Here's Derek Pringle on the KP business; and on the television, David Lloyd is quoting Donovan. Lovely.

10.55 Wow it looks nice at Nottingham. Have we been following the row involving KP and Nick Knight? Poor Knighty. What it is about sportsmen and Twitter? IT has a siren call for making a berk of themselves, doesn't it? Who wants to be our first emailer of the day. You can slag off KP, or Nick Knight, if you like. Or regale us with tales of Nottingham days of yore. It's a broad church here.

10.45 Mikey Holding identifies Greg Chappell, Javed Miandad and Sir Geoff as the three batsmen he least enjoyed bowling to. For Shane: Sachin. Sir Beefy: Sir Viv, obviously. Who would you least like to bowl to/bat against in Tests? Among current players, I reckon I'd least like to face Steve Finn.
10.41 It looks a lovely day for a bat at Trent Bridge. But Anderson won't be too worried about that; he is now the complete bowler, who can take wickets in any conditions. Here's our man Oliver Brown's interview with him.

10.40 Yay! Shane Warne is working for Sky.

10.36 West Indies win the toss and will bat. They include Shillingford and Rampaul for Edwards and Gabriel. England are unchanged. Can TT Bresnan make it 13 from 13? Yes, I reckon.

10.35 I quoted the Jimmy Anderson stat at you, but how's this for a record? West Indies have played eight at Nottingham, won four, drawn four. Yeah, but philosopher's axe, innit? Should this West Indies team even be called the same thing as the iteration with Viv, Malc, Gordon, Curtly etc in it?

10.30 Good morning all and welcome to our live coverage of the second Test at Trent Bridge.
West Indies put up a game fight for almost all of the match at Lord's, and a lot of people are hoping that they can build on that to be even more competitive in this game. Sorry to be a Debbie Downer, but I don't see it panning out like that. I reckon it might be the ole one-step forward... routine for West Indies, and on a ground where England have an excellent recent record, I fancy the home side to give West Indies a good old fashioned doing in this game.

Large parts of that belief are formed by the record of Jimmy Anderson at this ground: the Burnley swing king has four five-wicket hauls in his five Tests at Trent Bridge. His last three Test matches here? 25 wickets at 12. That's going to be far too good for the West Indies flaky top order. And never mind Jimmy, here's MP Vaughan tipping Stuart Broad to become England's all-time leading wicket-taker. Not in this match, obviously.

It is not just his skill levels but his competitive nature. He had a fire in his belly that I like in a bowler. All bowlers need to have that desperation to succeed. He hates being hit for runs and it is good to see a bowler show passion even to the extent of questioning the umpire when he doesn’t give runs as leg byes. 
 

Team news and toss as soon as I have it.

Rory McIlroy's bogey six lands him in trouble at Wentworth

Fired up: Rory McIlroy in action during his troubled first round in the BMW PGA Championship

The fine will not bother Rory McIlroy but what probably will are the replays of his frustration boiling over. The club flew out of his hand in anger here yesterday and some rare criticism duly headed in the direction of the young Northern Irishman. 

McIlroy is famous for the boyish smile and the unaffected nature with which he approaches a profession for which he is born and, to be fair, this was a highly uncharacteristic reaction. Lest we forget, there is a fierce competitor behind everyone’s favourite golfer.

As he watched his second shot fly towards the out-of-bounds on the par-five 12th, the fury at an attempted fade becoming a ruinous pull burned deep. And then his provisional headed into a bunker. Farewell, seven-iron.

The bogey six led to a 74 which left him eight off the pace after the first round of the BMW PGA Championship. After missing his third cut in a row at the Players Championship a fortnight ago, the world No 1 was threatening to double up at another course which does not bow to his majesty.

McIlroy’s last two visits to Surrey have yielded a tie for 24th and a tie for 48th. Strangely, the admiral-elect of golf turns into a midshipman come the flagship events of the European and PGA Tours. The Tour’s usual policy is not to publicise fines. But McIlroy should expect a bill.

McIlroy was a picture of despondency after signing for a card which featured an eagle, three birdies, five bogeys and a double bogey on the 16th. “It was a bit of déjà vu from last year,” he said, thinking back to his five-over beginning in 2011.

“I struggled with the pace of the greens. On the 12th, I was trying to hold it up against the wind and double-crossed it. I ended up out-of-bounds by an inch.”

However unfair it may be to over-state the misguided passion of a 23 year-old, it was inevitable McIlroy’s response to adversity would be compared to that of his compadre Graeme McDowell. McIlroy threw a club, McDowell had the rulebook thrown at him. The latter provided an exhibition in chin-taking, although not everyone here was so magnanimous.

“Obviously a lot of gin-swigging goes on up there.” That was the classic quote delivered by Ernie Els when informed of the two-shot penalty. A reference to the rulemakers?

McDowell’s punishment came as a result of him daring to step to within six feet of his ball. And so his bogey six at the 18th became a triple bogey eight and a 72 turned into a 74.

McDowell’s drive into the trees nestled on a bed of leaves with branches underneath. As he peered through to consider his options, he later discovered “the ball moved a few dimples”. He felt there was something wrong with the scenario, but crucially he did not call an official. He should have replaced his ball at the cost of one shot, but as he did not the sanction was doubled.

“How are you supposed to attempt to place the ball when you’re not sure it’s moved in the first place?” McDowell said. “It’s a harsh one – one of those freak scenarios in golf.”

Harsh, indeed. Els’s bemusement very neatly and rather wryly summed up the mood. Yet, typical of the man, McDowell refused to blame anybody but himself and certainly not the armchair vigilante who so courageously rose from his cushions to phone the Tour.

“It’s my fault. I should have called in a referee,” said McDowell who, in effect, called it on himself by asking for the video to be checked. “I’ve cost myself by getting careless.”

Still, it does not seem right for a player to be penalised simply for venturing close enough to look at his ball. It is another rule for the lawmakers to analyse. It would not have even been an issue if those “high def, super slo-mo” replays did not exist.

But they do, and so McDowell, like McIlroy, must try to make up the eight-stroke deficit. For both the first challenge is to make the weekend. If McIlroy fails, then Luke Donald need only finish in the top eight to claim back the world No 1 tag.

The Englishman shot a highly-controlled 68 to stand two off Scotland’s David Drysdale and Ireland’s Peter Lawrie. Donald’s playing partner, Justin Rose, fired a 67 and seems in ominous nick. But golf takes as much as it gives. Yesterday reminded it can get to the very best of them.

London Welsh to appeal against 'unfair' RFU decision to deny them promotion to Aviva Premiership

Full steam ahead: Max Lahiff breaks through a Pirates tackle as London Welsh secure victory and a showdown with the RFU

London Welsh are optimistic they can persuade the Rugby Football Union’s appeal panel to overturn what they described as the “inequitable, unreasonable and unfair” decision by the governing body’s board to deny the championship club the chance to win promotion to the Aviva Premiership. 

The RFU board ruled on Wednesday that London Welsh — who hold a 16-point advantage going into the second leg of the championship play-off final against Cornish Pirates – did not meet the minimum standards to be promoted. The RFU said the primary failure of London Welsh’s application, which was independently audited, was that the club did not hold primacy of tenure at the 12,500-capacity Kassam Stadium in Oxford.

London Welsh, however, insist they have a legally-binding agreement with the owners of the stadium that includes a provision for flexibility to meet the scheduling demands of the Premiership.

The club, who beat Pirates 37-21 in the first leg on Wednesday just hours after receiving the RFU board’s decision, will launch an appeal, which will be heard by an independent panel appointed the governing body’s disciplinary manager, Bruce Reece-Russell, within 14 days.

Bleddyn Phillips, the chairman of London Welsh, onThursday night suggested the club were also prepared to take legal action, claiming the club had received a groundswell of support since the decision.

Phillips said that he had still not received full details of the decision despite submitting a request to the RFU within an hour of the decision on Wednesday.

“If we win our match against the Cornish Pirates in Oxford next week, given the fact that we have a legally-binding agreement to use a top-notch stadium and that other clubs appear to be allowed to groundshare with other Football Association clubs, to my mind I would think it highly inequitable, unreasonable and unfair if we are told that we can’t go up,” said Phillips

“That would to my mind, and I think to other impartial observers, appear harsh.

“I would hope that if we can demonstrate that we have a legally-binding agreement to use a top rugby venue, that would be enough to persuade the RFU that they should allow us entry to the top flight.

“We have had a lot of support from neutral and impartial observers. Our best hope however is to persuade the RFU, if we win, that it is in the interests of the game and in the interests of the spirit of the game that London Welsh should be allowed to go up rather than have this legal argument, which nobody really wants, but if necessary we will follow up.”

Within minutes of the final whistle of their victory in the first leg, London Welsh are understood to have had three QCs offering their services free for a battle that now looks likely to end up in court. The RFU declined to explain or defend its position yesterday.

London Welsh are also frustrated that they have been denied a place at the top table despite the fact that this season London Irish, Saracens, Wasps and Sale did not enjoy primacy of tenure, a position that was allowed following a ruling by the Office of Fair Trading in 2002.

“This is a massive issue; it’s about the professional game in England,” said John Taylor, the former Wales and Lions flanker who is now managing director of London Welsh.

“You cannot have a situation where the movement between the Premiership Rugby and the Championship is suddenly prohibited, it just doesn’t work on any level. I don’t really see how the RFU can be happy with that.”

Have belt, will travel

BUTE CALL ... Carl is ready for action

CARL FROCH will have to get on his bike straight away if his bid to recapture the world super-middleweight title is successful tomorrow.

The former champion fights in home town Nottingham for the first time in three years when he takes on IBF belt holder Lucian Bute at the city’s Ice Arena.

Canadian Bute, 32, has negotiated an immediate rematch should he suffer the first defeat of his career.

Promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed: “We couldn’t agree to this first fight in Canada because Carl is overdue a fight at home.

“But we are committed to the return over there if Carl wins.

“Also there is so much interest in Canada there could be a second fight there whatever happens.”

Froch, 34, said: “Bute is not proven. This is the first time he’s fought away from home. He’s had a protected career.”

Giro d'Italia 2012: Joaquin Rodriguez retains lead

First to the finish: Joaquin Rodriguez eases past the line

Spaniard Joaquin Rodriguez retained the leader's pink jersey in the Giro d'Italia after winning stage 17 from Falzes to Cortina d'Ampezzo. 

The Team Katusha rider led home a six-man breakaway group to record his second stage win on this year's event and remain 30 seconds ahead of Garmin-Barracuda's Ryder Hesjedal in the general classification.

The Canadian was third behind Ivan Basso of Liquigas, who lies third in the standings and trails leader Rodriguez by a minute and 22 seconds.

Team Sky's Rigoberto Uran was fourth in Wednesday's stage and retains the white jersey as the best young rider. His team-mate, Great Britain Olympian Mark Cavendish, tops the points standings and will wear the red jersey for Thursday's 149-kilometre stage from San Vito di Cadore to Vedelago.

Defending champion Michele Scarponi of Lampre and Colnago's Domenico Pozzovivo completed the leading group over the mountainous 186km.

Royal Ascot refuses to move Frankel race from its curtain-raising slot on the first day of the meeting

Centre of attention: Tom Queally on Frankel salutes the crowds after the pair's stunning victory at Newbury

One might have imagined that two important announcements regarding Frankel might have had a bearing on the order of the race programme at Royal Ascot next month. But officials at the Queen’s racecourse remain adamant – there will be no changes. 

First, Sir Henry Cecil confirmed that the one-mile Queen Anne Stakes was the first preference for Frankel, and then Dominic Gardiner-Hill, the British Horseracing Authority handicapper, revealed that he had raised the colt’s rating 2lb, to a figure of 138, which makes him the highest-rated in the world in 25 years.

The Queen Anne is traditionally the first race on the first day. So, in effect, Ascot is doing the exact opposite of what any promoter would normally do, which is putting the star act on last, thus allowing a build-up.

Nick Smith, Ascot’s head of communications and international racing, said the course was happy to be “topping and tailing” the meeting with the two best horses in the world, Frankel and the Australian sprint champion Black Caviar, who will run in the Diamond Jubilee Stakes on the final day.

“We have been criticised in the past for having three Group Ones as the first three races on the first day. It has been tradition to do that, but the issue of whether we should move one or two of them has always been on the table for discussion, and will remain so,” he said.

“Tuesday and Wednesday are usually the quietest days, so you have to ask what effect would it have to move one or two of them? We expect sales to go up for the first day if Frankel runs in the Queen Anne, but we are not talking about thousands more.”

Smith said Ascot was proud to be preparing to accommodate the five highest-rated horses in the world. “Last year, everybody said that to have Goldikova and Canford Cliffs clashing in the Queen Anne, as well as Frankel running in the St James’s Place, plus the international sprinters, provided the best Royal meeting ever. Now, it looks likely that could be surpassed,” he said.

Frankel remains a constant talking point, and it is interesting that Gardiner-Hill believes there could still be improvement that might take the colt past Dancing Brave. “I think he can go higher,” he said.

“I watched the Lockinge again, and to be honest, he did it very easily. To go higher, he is going to have to beat something other than Excelebration. I suspect he can be a 140-horse. It just depends if he gets the opportunity.”

Dancing Brave sailed past a collection of Group One winners when he won the 1986 Arc and it was this, rather the devastating style of victory, that was crucial to his high rating.

Will Hall's call cap Hendrick's recent run of fun?

Rick Hendrick goes along for the ride as Jimmie Johnson celebrates his All-Star victory. (Getty Images)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Rick Hendrick flashed a broad smile Tuesday afternoon, as he and driver Kasey Kahne cut a wide red ribbon to open a new automotive dealership bearing the car owner's last name. Of course, after all Hendrick has experienced in the past two weeks, it's amazing his face isn't frozen in a permanent grin.

Eleven days earlier, his race team's long quest for its 200th victory in NASCAR's premier series finally ended when Jimmie Johnson prevailed at Darlington Raceway -- very near to the small South Carolina town where Hendrick opened his first car dealership many years ago. He returned home to learn one of his BMW outlets had earned a national accreditation, cause enough for a party up in Raleigh, N.C. Then, Johnson's team won the Sprint Pit Crew Challenge. And last Saturday night, Dale Earnhardt Jr. won a qualifying race that preceded Johnson's triumph in the Sprint All-Star Race, which led a joyous team owner to jump halfway into the No. 48 car and hang on as it made its victory lap.

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever done," Hendrick conceded. "I think [it was] that night. Dale running good, and Kasey running well, and Jimmie going out there and taking it. Man, that's our home track. ... I was excited. And then all the things that have happened all week ... I got caught up in it."

Hendrick didn't realize until too late that there was nowhere for his legs to go in the web of bars and components inside the vehicle, leaving him to shove his feet under the dash and cling to the B pillar as Johnson held onto him. Because Johnson couldn't get to the clutch with his team owner sitting on the sill, the driver had to gun the throttle -- which was when Hendrick realized he was in for more of a ride than he had bargained.

"I don't think you'll see me do that again," he said.

Even so, it was another celebration in a span that's been full of them. Tuesday afternoon brought balloons and music as Hendrick opened his first hendrickcars.com store in the Charlotte area. That night, country-music star Brad Paisley was being flown in to sing at a Hendrick Motorsports party. And Wednesday brings what could be the greatest honor of them all -- potential election to the NASCAR Hall of Fame. Hendrick is one of 25 people nominated for enshrinement, and the five members of the class of 2013 will be selected by a panel of 55 voters. The announcement is slated for 6 p.m. ET and will be broadcast by SPEED and streamed live on NASCAR.COM.

It's a crowded field populated by several drivers with multiple championships, and car owners who enjoyed great success within the sport's national divisions. Hendrick's numbers, though, are impossible to ignore -- the 200 victories compiled by Hendrick Motorsports rank second all time behind Petty Enterprises, which won 268 times on NASCAR's premier division. His 10 Cup titles and 13 national-series titles are both all-time records. Hendrick's organization is clearly the most successful of the sport's modern era, and arguably the best all time, but the owner won't lobby on his own behalf.

"I'm honored if that happens, but there are a lot of people that are not around today that deserve to be in the Hall of Fame," he said. "It's an honor, and I know when I look at the numbers that one day I'll get there. But I'm not going to be disappointed. I'd like to see some folks that deserve it that maybe are dead and have been gone for years. Before the fans forget them, I'd like to see them in. I wish we could have done about 10 or 15 in one lick, and gotten the Wendell Scotts, and I hope Tim Richmond gets in one day, and Harry Hyde. There are so many people out there that are deserving. You can't put everybody in, but you don't want the fans to forget those folks that you never knew."

The election panel is comprised of NASCAR executives, track operators, media members, broadcasters, manufacturer representatives, a handful of retired drivers, crew chiefs and car owners, and select industry leaders. Within that group, there sometimes seems to be a movement to elect those nominees in advanced age, or those who made contributions to NASCAR's growth. That kind of sentiment could end up working against an active owner like Hendrick, despite his staggering achievements.

"I don't know that it works against me, but I'm not done, I hope," he said. "Look, it's an honor. Now, maybe if two active guys went in before me that didn't do what we've done, you'd say that would bother you. But I'm not bothered by any of it. I think all of the folks who deserve it should get in. I think we've got more to do. We'd sure like to win some more championships and more races and try to add to what we've got."

And right now, he has plenty going on, including two drivers -- Johnson and Earnhardt -- who have to be considered favorites in Sunday's Cola-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. "This has been kind of like having a birthday every day," he said of his team's run of success since breaking down the dam at Darlington. Wednesday's Hall of Fame election could be a capper to it all. Hendrick said he plans to be in attendance for the ceremony, but he won't be heartbroken if he's not selected.

"It's not my way to be thinking I deserve something over somebody else," he said. "I'm comfortable with where we are, and I'm still active. So I'm not going to be disappointed."

Thorpe's legacy: Native American's Olympic dream

Mary Killman will be the youngest member of the U.S. synchronized swimming team at the London 2012 Olympics.

A century after her childhood inspiration Jim Thorpe won two gold medals at the Stockholm Olympics, synchronized swimmer Mary Killman will be competing in her first Games in London this year.

Like the legendary athlete, Killman comes from a part Native American background in Oklahoma, and is a registered member of Citizen Potawatomi Nation (CPN).

Thorpe, who grew up in the Sac and Fox Nation, was spoken of in hushed tones by her elders.

"I'm very proud of my background," Killman told CNN. Her tribe are proud of her as well, regularly highlighting her achievements in their publications.

In her first solo synchronized swimming competition in 2003, Killman's routine was set to North American flute music and she wore a decoration of the CPN seal on her hip.

While growing up, she visited the house where Thorpe had lived -- and he was the subject of one of her school projects.

Thorpe was one of the greatest all-round athletes in sporting history, playing professional American football, baseball and basketball as well as his track and field exploits -- he won gold in the pentathlon and decathlon at the 1912 Olympics.

He was controversially stripped of his Olympic medals when it was discovered he had earned a few dollars while playing semi- professional baseball, but the International Olympic Committee restored them in 1983 -- 30 years after he died in poverty.

Effortless performance

While she has a long way to go to match Thorpe's Olympic achievements, Killman is already making her name in a sport where the required elegance and good timing in the pool is forged by a grueling training regime of up to 60 hours per week.

But all the work in the water paid off when she and duet partner Mariya Koroleva qualified for the 2012 London Olympics earlier this year. A seventh-placed finish at the Olympic qualification event at the Aquatic Center in London served notice of their potential and sealed a place in the Games proper.

At just 21, Killman will be the youngest member of the United States team and will be gaining valuable experience.

Denise Shiveley, the national team manager for the squad, has high hopes for Killman and Koroleva, who has taken a break from her studies at Stanford University to concentrate on the Olympics.

They formed their partnership only last year and soon won the silver medal at the Pan-American Games behind Canada.

"They are both so young but their goal will be continue to improve and to keep getting better," Shiveley told CNN.

Early years

Killman was already a competitive swimmer in Texas when she was first introduced to synchro, aged 11.

"One of my friends invited me over to a summer program that she had got involved with and I absolutely fell in love with it," she said.

"The combination of music and athletics was amazing. It was something I felt I could do it for a long time. "

Showing early talent, Killman has made steady improvement each year, winning a clutch of junior and age group national titles, competing in both the solo discipline and duets.

Her first team was Pirouettes of Texas, where she was inspired to greater things by the exploits of Sarah Lowe, who represented the United States at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

"I also looked up a lot to Ana Kozlova, a three-time Olympian, who won bronze in the duet in Athens," said Killman, who now competes for the Santa Clara club in California.

Grueling regime

To reach that medal-winning standard at major games, Killman knows that many hours of training are required both in the pool and gym.

"I train between eight and 10 hours per day, " she said.

Two three to four hour sessions in the pool are interspersed with a weight-training program that lasts about an hour.

This schedule is repeated six days a week, and absolute dedication is required.

"It's mentally difficult just to push yourself that hard every day. A lot of people don't realize just how difficult it is," she admitted.

MK squared

All that hard work has started to pay off, particularly since she formed her partnership with Koroleva last year.

At 22, Koroleva is slightly older but they had known each other after competing for several years at the same competitions and they have formed a strong friendship.

"She's like a sister to me," said Killman. "We have to think the same, we have to hear music the same and we have to go to practice everyday and spend eight to 10 hours in the water with just each other."

Fellow U.S. squad team members have coined a nickname for the pair: "MK squared" as they share the same initials and have the same tastes.

Olympic dreams

The duo will go into their first Games without the pressure of medal expectation in a sport currently dominated by Russia, China and Spain.

But Killman is certainly not writing off their chances of causing an upset.

"There's always that chance that if we push ourselves hard maybe just maybe we can reach the podium," she said.

"This is it, this is what we've been working for. We really want to go out and show what we can do. "

With synchronized swimmers reaching their peak from their mid-20s onwards, Rio in 2016 remains a long-term target for Killman.

The 21-year-old will compete in the duet discipline with swimming partner Mariya Koroleva, having booked their places at the Olympic qualification event in London in April.

Killman and Koroleva (right) on the podium of the 2011 Pan American Games, where they won the silver medal behind the Canadian pair in the duet competition.

Killman and Koroleva (right) have been performing together since last year.

Killman on her way to fourth place in the solo event at the 2007 United States Championships at Indiana State University. She was still a junior.

Newcastle Falcons avoid relegation from Premiership as London Welsh fail promotion criteria

Tried... denied: London Welsh have failed to meet promotion criteria

London Welsh have had their ground audit for Oxford United's Kassam Stadium turned down and will not be allowed to play Premiership rugby should they earn "promotion" from the Championship. 

They play the Cornish Pirates in the first match of a two-legged final in Penzance tonight when we will have the perverse spectacle of neither side being eligible for promotion to the top flight.

The Exiles have 14 days to appeal against the decision and have, in the past, hinted that they would consider legal action if their application was turned down.

As it stands now, however, Newcastle Falcons will not be relegated from the Premiership, a cause of some celebraton in the North East.

The decision was made this lunchtime by the RFU board. In a statement, the RFU said: "The Rugby Football Union’s Board of Directors has considered the findings of the independent audit report requested by London Welsh, which determines a club’s eligibility for promotion to the Aviva Premiership in line with the Minimum Standards Criteria (MSC).

"The report, carried out by independent auditors, found that London Welsh has not met the MSC for the Aviva Premiership. The independent auditors identified various failures, including not having Primacy of Tenure at their nominated ground.

"This states that a club must demonstrate that they can host home fixtures at the time stipulated by Premiership Rugby and/or the host broadcaster.

"The RFU Board ratified the findings and agreed, should London Welsh win the RFU Championship final following the second leg on May 30, they would not be eligible for promotion and Newcastle Falcons would remain in the Aviva Premiership.

"Cornish Pirates did not choose to have an independent audit of the Mennaye Field and so do not fulfil the criteria for promotion should they win the final. As a result, there will be no promotion from the RFU Championship this season."

The Exiles knew the decision was due today and have tried to prepare themselves mentally for both scenarios during the long trip down to Penzanceeg.

"It won't affect our players one way or another," said London Welsh coach Lyn Jones. "The two legs over the next week is the culumination of nine months hard work from a great set of lads and winning the Championship is incentive enough.

"That will be our motivation when we cross the whitewash. Everything else, the politics, will take care of itself. It always does.

"Our backroom staff have done a great job putting our application together, our sole task is to produce two top level peformances against talented and respected opponents."

Newcastle's commercial director Duncan Edward added: “To be given the lifeline of playing in the Aviva Premiership next season and keeping top-class rugby in the region is unbelievable."
The Exiles lock horns with Cornish Pirates tonight in the first leg of the Championship play-off final.

London 2012 Olympics: Didier Drogba carries the flame through Swindon as torch relay heads to Cheltenham

Stay on your feet: Didier Drogba was mobbed by thousands of screaming fans today as he carried the Olympic flame through Swindon Photo: PA

Former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba waved goodbye to England by carrying the Olympic flame through Swindon on day five of the torch relay. 

The Ivory Coast international was greeted by thousands of people when the torch arrived at Wharf Green, in Swindon town centre at around 2pm on Wednesday afternoon.

"To carry the Olympic torch is, I don't know if there are enough words to describe it," Drogba said.

"My only disappointment is that I can't do the Olympic Games."

The 34-year-old helped the Blues win the Champions League in Munich to bring the curtain down on a trophy-laden spell in west London but has confirmed he is leaving the club.

He now looks certain to join Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua but said he would have stayed had they not collected European club football's biggest prize.

“I would have stayed if we hadn’t won the Champions League,’’ he said. "We’ve been chasing this trophy for eight years. We even saw the cup in Moscow [in 2008], walking by it, and we could not touch it. "

“To play for Chelsea was the best thing that could happen to me in my life, not only as a player but as a person. I made a lot of friends here which is very difficult normally in football, and they will be my friends for life because we made history here.”

Drogba now represents Chelsea's past but representing their future on the torch relay was midfielder Josh McEachran. He carried the flame on Wednesday morning in Calne.

Gold rush: Didier Drogba has picked up plenty of valuable metal this year Photo: PA

Popular man: the Champions League winner salutes the Swindon crowd Photo: PA

Young hope: Chelsea's Josh McEachran carries the flame  Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Ken Block is back! Ford star in Gymkhana Four Bonus Edit

BLOCK ROCKIN' BEATS ... Ken Block stars in Gymkhana Four Bonus Edit

BLOCK is back — and this time he’s crazier than ever. 

The smash-hit Gymkhana Four video released last summer, showing US ace Ken Block going bonkers in his Ford Fiesta world rally car, has been viewed more than 17MILLION times. 

But there was lots more footage from several more camera angles that was never seen in the final edit. 

And significantly, much of it focused on Block’s sensational precision driving. 

Now the film’s producers Ford and DC Shoes have put things right in a new, much more pulsating film showing Block at his spectacular best. 

And we’ve got hold of it to show you. 

Just click on our video to enjoy the thrills as the Yank cranks it up in Hollywood. 

But remember one thing. If Ken Block ever offers you a set of his used tyres, just say No. You’ll see why...

London 2012 Olympics: Australian men's hockey coach Ric Charlesworth complains about schedule

Losers: Australia are defeated by Germany in the hockey test event at the Riverbank Arena in May

Sport fans Down Under normally save the 'whingers' tag for their British rivals but the Australian's men's hockey team are making a strong claim for the label, with their latest complaint being directed towards the schedulers of the Olympic hockey tournament.

Coach Ric Charlesworth has slammed London Olympic schedulers for lumbering his team with three early starts in their round-robin matches at the Games.

The 'Kookaburras' are favourites to win the gold medal in London but Charlesworth said the schedule, released on Tuesday, was unfair and would be disruptive to his top-seeded team.

"I don't expect special treatment, I expect not to be disadvantaged, out of five matches you may expect one 5am start for our athletes not three," Charlesworth told Hockey Australia's website.

"It interferes with momentum, as major finals won't be played at that hour and it interrupts our routine over two weeks. Early games should be fairly distributed between all teams."

While over the tournament, which runs from July 30 to Aug 11, Australia face Spain, Argentina and Pakistan in matches starting at 8.30am local time, second seeds and defending champions Germany play all their games later in the day.

Charlesworth, who led the Australian women's team to gold at the Atlanta and Sydney Olympics before taking over as coach of the Kookaburras in 2009, also pointed to the fact that the top seeds in the women's tournament, the Dutch, had no 8.30am starts.

"It's not that they are number one, again it's just that it's not equally shared when some teams have to play three early matches and others none," he said.

Meanwhile, Hockey Australia chief Mark Anderson reflected Charlesworth's dissatisfaction with the schedule.

"When you look at the schedule it is patently unfair in our opinion," he said. "None of the teams want to play in this early morning time slot.

"We have been scheduled to play at this time on three occasions. The world ranked number two, three and four teams do not have any matches scheduled for this time. The fifth and sixth ranked teams feature once.

"Out of the 12 teams in the competition, only six teams play at this time and Australia features three times. We are not looking for an unfair advantage, we just want to compete on a level playing field."
The criticisms are the latest in a growing list and come after the team played the test event at the Riverbank Arena on the Olympic Park and Charlesworth criticised the surface of the new pitch.

“The pitch is an issue: you make more mistakes than you would like and it brings down the standard of the game," he raged at the time, in early May, despite the fact that most of his key players had praised the surface.

"The ball bobbles a fair bit," he continued, "and it doesn’t reward skill. We have been playing on the one [blue pitch] in Perth for three months and it started off good and then it went bad and now it’s getting better.”

PGA Tour rookie Harris English books his Open place after winning international qualifier in Texas

Tyro banks: Harris English has booked his place at Lytham after a stunning couple of rounds in Texas

American rookie professional Harris English will never forget how he qualified for his first Open Championship.

Eight months after playing in the Walker Cup in Aberdeen the 22-year-old from Georgia booked his place at Royal Lytham in July with rounds of 60 and 63 in the international qualifier in Texas.

He beat England's Greg Owen by four as eight spots were secured.

That included included six successive birdies in a front nine 29 and English later told the Open website: ''I kind of lost track of how many I made.

''I was relaxed. I had some fun. I was striking the ball really well. In fact, I was doing everything really well.

''I knew the wind wasn't going to be blowing, so I knew the scores were going to be low. I couldn't let up.

''I decided to keep the pedal to the metal on the last 18 holes, where I left myself in really good position to make putts.

''It's awesome. I told my parents and my agent that I really, really wanted to play in the British Open, so I came here today with that goal - and here I go.''

Owen, who had an albatross and led for a while the last time The Open was at Lytham in 2001, added an afternoon 61 to his opening 66 to finish 13 under par.

''It was just a good round where everything just kept going the right way,'' the US-based Mansfield golfer said. ''I haven't had a round like that in years.''

Joint third on 10 under were Canadian Stephen Ames, Argentina's Andres Romero, who led with two holes to play at Carnoustie in 2007, and American Justin Hicks.

A play-off for the last three spots was determined by a play-off involving Americans James Driscoll and Bob Estes, Sweden's Daniel Chopra and Scot Russell Knox.

Estes birdied the first, while a pair of pars at the short 17th was good enough for Driscoll and Chopra.

Among those to miss out was Swede Henrik Stenson, twice third in the last four years, and Londoner Brian Davis.

Nigel Redman leaves RFU to join Worcester as forward coach

Club return: Nigel Redman will join Worcester as forwards coach

Nigel Redman, the Rugby Football Union’s elite coach development manager, has been appointed as Worcester’s forward coach for next season, Telegraph Sport understands.

Redman, the former England lock forward, is understood to have agreed terms with the Aviva Premiership club and will fill the vacancy left by Phil Davies, who has been appointed director of rugby at Cardiff Blues.

It is understood Wasps’s forward coach Trevor Woodman and Plymouth’s ex-director of rugby Graham Dawe were also considered for the position.

Redman, 47, took up his current role with the RFU in 2008 having coached England Under-20s and Under-19s and was formerly academy manager at Worcester.

Redman’s return to Sixways will also see him re-unite with Worcester’s head coach Richard Hill – both were team-mates at Bath. Redman won 20 caps for his country and also played on the 1997 Lions tour to South Africa.

Meanwhile, Northampton Saints have announced the signing of Australia back Cameron Shepherd from the Western Force.

The 28 year-old full-back or wing has won nine caps for the Wallabies and is Western Force's leading points-scorer.

"Cameron is a very talented player who has shown regularly that he has the ability and temperament to compete at the highest level," said Northampton's director of rugby Jim Mallinder.

"He has a positive impact for his team's attacking capability but is also solid defensively and under the high ball. He will also give us another goal-kicking option."

David Haye v Dereck Chisora fight at Upton Park condemned by German Boxing Board

Collision course: David Haye and Dereck Chisora are due to fight at Upton Park in July

The German Boxing Board has written to the European Boxing Union (EBU) and the British Boxing Board of Control condemning the proposed clash between David Haye and Dereck Chisora at Upton Park on July 14, sanctioned by the Luxembourg Boxing Federation. 

The German Board said the contest "should not take place and cannot be tolerated or even supported by the EBU or any of their affiliated commissions or federations" adding that the sanctioning bodies should keep to their "ideals and values and are not the promoters, fighters or anybody’s puppets".

The BDB president Thomas Pütz has joined his WBC counterpart José Sulaimán over the controversial contest and in his letter he has urged the EBU to expel the LBF and for the sport to stand firm in condemning the July 14 show.

“Like most of the boxing world I was surprised, disappointed, upset and shocked when I heard that not only is Frank Warren planning to promote a fight between Dereck Chisora and David Haye in London on July 14, but that the LBF is willing to approve and sanction this fight,” wrote Pütz.

“For obvious and good reasons Dereck Chisora has lost his license with the BBBoC, is under suspension from the BDB and has been suspended indefinitely by the WBC.

“Neither Chisora nor David Haye hold a valid license with the BBBoC; still they are planning to fight each other in Great Britain.

"This fact alone justifies Wladimir Klitschko’s comment that we should not talk about a boxing fight but about a ‘freak show’.

"I have to say that even though I would choose a different wording I totally agree with our World heavyweight champion in this point.

“I think most of my colleagues from the boxing commissions and federations all over the world and the world sanctioning bodies agree that the fight between Haye and Chisora on July 14 should not take place and cannot be tolerated or even supported by the EBU or any of their affiliated commissions or federations.

“As a Union we have to respect each other and support each other for the sake of the EBU and the sport in general.

"Therefore I cannot understand the decision of the Luxembourg Boxing Federation (LBF) to support the ‘freak show’ against the explicit will and decision of the BBBoC, the BDB and the WBC.

“As you may have heard even big TV stations like ARD here in Germany has come to its senses after all the public outcry and criticism over the last few days.

"I believe that other institutions will follow ARD’s example and withdraw from their decisions to support this event in any way.

“However, if the LBF sticks to its decision and plans to actually sanction the ‘freak show’ I hereby officially request to expel the LBF from the EBU for not respecting the authority and decisions of other affiliated members of the EBU.

“In my opinion, especially in difficult times like these where promoters try all different kinds of moves to undermine the decisions made by commissions and sanctioning bodies and new unreliable and suspicious federations are founded every day, the EBU has to make a clear statement, show strength and unity and let the world know that we stay true to our ideals and values and are not the promoters, fighters or anybody’s puppets.”