The Irish Times - Sport

McMahon close to her best as she takes fifth place in final

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:54:50 GMT

SWIMMING EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS:SYCERIKA McMAHON came home fifth in the final of the 100 metres breaststroke at the European Championships in Hungary yesterday, the 17-year-old marginally outside her best in a time of 1:08.72.

Biggar challenge whets Ospreys outhalf's appetite

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:54:49 GMT

Dan Biggar believes the Welsh side’s recent record against Leinster and their form give rise to confidence ahead of Sunday’s final, writesJOHN O'SULLIVAN

Puspure seals place at Games

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:51 GMT

ROWING:IT DID not happen as she expected, but she made it happen. Sanita Puspure gave Irish rowing a terrific lift when she finished fourth in the single sculls final at the Olympic qualifier in Lucerne in Switzerland and gave Ireland a rowing presence at London 2012.

Leader Rodriguez passes first major mountain test

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:51 GMT

CYCLING:GIRO D’ITALIA leader Joaquim Rodriguez passed his first major mountain test with flying colours as he won the 17th stage, his second stage win of the race, yesterday.

McLaughlin heroics go unrewarded

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:51 GMT

CYCLING:IF THE move had been successful, we’d be calling it one of the greatest An Post Rás stage triumphs of the modern era. For the sake of 100 metres, it’s been regarded as one of the bravest efforts.

McQuaid loses vote for IOC board role

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

BOXING:CHING-KUO Wu, the president of the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA), defeated Dubliner Pat McQuaid to be elected representative of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federation (ASOIF) on the International Olympic Committee Executive (IOC) Board in Quebec on Tuesday night.

Hurley calls time on Munster career due to back injury

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

RUGBY:Prop Darragh Hurley has been forced to call time on his career because of a persistent back injury. The 26-year-old Munster player, who made his debut in 2006, did not play this season.

US TV network to broadcast 5,535 hours of events

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

OLYMPIC GAMES:NBCUniversal yesterday unveiled plans to air more than 5,500 hours of coverage of the Olympic Games online and across its various TV networks, including more than 270 hours on flagship broadcaster NBC.

Irish hopes fade against Kent

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

CRICKET:Ireland A’s hopes of getting anything out of their game with Kent seconds were scuppered in the last 20 overs of the second day at Maidstone yesterday evening as they lost five wickets to leave their hosts in control.

Oscar set to keep winning streak going

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

RACING:NOTHING GOES into this evening’s Tipperary action on a hotter streak than Gale Force Oscar and the prolific point-to-point winner can successfully translate that winning form to the racecourse proper.

O'Brien eyes another Grade One hat-trick

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

RACING:AIDAN O’BRIEN has twice before pulled off the Grade One hat-trick of the Curragh’s Guineas festival and bookmakers aren’t ruling out a similar feat this weekend.

Oxx looks to Smullen to ride Born To Sea

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:50 GMT

RACING:PAT SMULLEN has picked up the choice spare ride on board Born To Sea in Saturday’s Abu Dhabi Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh as trainer John Oxx goes double-handed in pursuit of a first win in the first classic of the Irish season with both Sea The Stars’s half-brother and Takar.

Kilkenny defers trial Down Under

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:49 GMT

DUBLIN AND Castleknock dual star Ciarán Kilkenny had good news for the GAA yesterday when he confirmed he was deferring his trial with AFL club Carlton in order to further his football and hurling career.

Dowling set for Limerick debut

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:49 GMT

NA PIARSAIGH’S Shane Dowling will make his championship debut for Limerick on Sunday in their Munster senior hurling championship first round tie with Tipperary.

Working for chance to seize the day

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:49 GMT

GAELIC GAMES:THERE HAS been a fair bit of difference between John Allen’s managerial appointments.

McIlroy believes he's now the best

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:49 GMT

GOLF:AS SOMEONE once remarked, “the very act of believing creates strength of its own”. The anonymous philosopher has a believer in Rory McIlroy. Yesterday, on the eve of the BMW PGA Championship here at the Wentworth Club in Virginia Water in leafy Surrey, the 23-year-old Ulsterman – the world number one and seemingly pre-tournament favourite every time he tees up a ball – didn’t so much as bat an eyelid or raise his eyes to the heavens when asked when he started “thinking” he was the best player in the world.

Wentworth diary

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:48 GMT

Compiled byPHILIP REID

The Lowdown

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:47 GMT

A look at the PGA Championship

No what-might-have-beens for pragmatic Westwood

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:47 GMT

PHILIP REIDgets the views of the world number three who is back to make amends for last year’s play-off heartbreak.

Hyland succeeds by avoiding duds

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:46 GMT

THE STATS are bleak enough: after seven weeks of the competition roughly 22 per cent of our players have actually cost their managers points, rather than earning them any. Chris DiMarco and Mike Weir “lead” the way on that front, both players on minus eight after missing the cut at the Byron Nelson Championship.

Jones' degree of respect for pupil Healy

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:45 GMT

CIAN HEALY spoke this week of the schooling he underwent under the tutelage of Adam Jones. The lessons were painful and difficult but it seems they were absorbed.

O'Sullivan has talks with Super 15 team

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:45 GMT

EDDIE O’SULLIVAN is in line for a return to full-time coaching after holding talks with Australian Super 15 franchise the Western Force.

Soccer shorts

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:44 GMT

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Hunt not taking McClean challenge lying down

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:44 GMT

EMMET MALONEfinds the Wolves winger determined to accentuate the positive and embrace the European Championships experience

Defensive cover becoming a concern

Wed, 23 May 2012 23:23:44 GMT

SOCCER:ANOTHER DAY or two of this and, far from the “Hope” T-shirts that have managed to become an iconic image of Trapattoni’s time with Ireland, they’ll be flogging those ones based on the British second World War slogan “Keep Calm and Carry On” to fans on the way into the game against Bosnia Herzegovina this weekend.

Ireland A struggle on first day

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

Ireland A struggled on the first day of their three-day game against Kent seconds at Maidstone yesterday after making a promising start.

Gabriel to miss remainder of England series

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

West Indies fast bowler Shannon Gabriel, who took four wickets on his debut in the first test against England, will miss the remainder of the series after suffering a back injury.

Kauto Star regains top spot despite 'Istabraq moment'

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

Kauto Star has regained his crown as the top-rated steeplechaser, in the annual Anglo-Irish Jumps Classifications, for the second time in his remarkable career.

Vlasic unsure about fitness

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

Blanka Vlasic, one of the world’s best high jumpers, may miss the London Olympics because of health problems, the Croatian said yesterday.

European medallist Sweeney banned for doping

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

European Youth silver medallist Gary Sweeney has been handed a nine-month ban for a doping violation. The 18-year-old light-heavyweight from Ballinrobe tested positive for a prohibited substance during in-competition testing last October.

A danger of being becalmed after the storm

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

MAKING WAVES:THAT’S BETTER. After our rather lacklustre, back-of-the-pack start from Itajai one month ago on leg six, the latest stage of the Volvo Ocean Race was far more promising for us on Groupama 4 after we said goodbye to Miami on Sunday afternoon.

Samitar to face O'Brien big guns

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

RACING:MICK CHANNON’S Samitar is the only British entry in the Etihad Airways 1,000 Guineas with Sunday’s Curragh Classic dominated by Aidan O’Brien.

Six into four won't go as Puspure seeks one final push today

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

ROWING OLYMPIC QUALIFIER:IRELAND’S SANITA Puspure has to finish in the top four of six in one race today to qualify for the London Olympic Games. The Latvian-born Ireland sculler gave herself this chance with a compotent third-place finish in yesterday’s semi-final of the single sculls at the Olympic Qualification regatta at Lucerne in Switzerland.

Saipan 'civil war' revisited as Vinny stirs the pot

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

AGAINST THE ODDS:VINNY FITZPATRICK unglued himself from his perch in Foley’s, for it was a warm May evening and he was wearing baggy shorts, before clearing his throat.

Babe Ruth road jersey fetches $4.4 million at auction

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

SPORTS MEMORABILIA:BABE RUTH’S first season with the New York Yankees, 1920, is still reverberating. He batted .376, hit 54 home runs and drove in 137 runs. Attendance at the Polo Grounds more than doubled to 1.29 million. It was the season when the future Yankees dynasty began to take shape.

Solo attack gives Izagirre upper hand

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:30 GMT

CYCLING GIRO D’ITALIA:SPANISH PROFESSIONAL Jon Izagirre jumped into the limelight with a solo attack that earned the Euskaltel-Euskadi rider and his team their first victory of the 2012 Giro d’Italia yesterday.

Bagdonas battles back to take stage

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

CYCLING AN POST RAS:THE GENERAL classification battle is still five stages from being settled but the An Post Grant Thornton Seán Kelly team has already give its Irish sponsors a boost with a strong stage victory on yesterday’s third day of the race.

GAA must make the most of their old 'product'

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

ON GAELIC GAMES:Enhanced awareness of the requirement to promote and market is important for the GAA, but there’s only so much even the most ingenious campaigns can achieve

McEnaney feels some calm after the storm

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

LEINSTER SFC FIRST ROUND:IT’S JUST over a month since Meath manager Séamus McEnaney survived an attempt to depose him at a meeting of the county committee.

O'Sullivan and Kerry have their eyes on the ball

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

MUNSTER SFC FIRST ROUND:PLAYING FOOTBALL for Kerry may be enviable but it can also be a slog. Darran O’Sullivan’s star has been in the ascendant since he took the fight to Tyrone in the 2004 All-Ireland minor final defeat and got fouled eight times in nine possessions for his speedy trouble making.

Woods confident his time will come again

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

GOLF DIGEST: US TOUR:Tiger Woods insists he is close to contending on a weekly basis, even if recent results suggest otherwise.

Els feels players' Wentworth criticism is par for the course

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

BMW PGA CHAMPIONSHIP:ERNIE ELS hopes the moaning and groaning about his new-look Wentworth becomes a thing of the past at the BMW PGA Championship this week.

Healy ready to front up to Jones

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

RUGBY DIGEST:CIAN HEALY thrived against the Ulster scrum and All Black tighthead John Afoa during last Saturday’s European Cup final. Next on the chopping block for Healy is the Ospreys, Wales and Lions number three in Sunday’s Pro 12 decider.

Leinster believe they're in rightful place

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:29 GMT

FROM THE BLINDSIDE:SUCCESS IS what makes sport what it is. It’s the one thing everybody is after, which makes it the one thing that’s hardest to get your hands on. The flipside of that is learning what to do with it when it arrives. Because it’s so rare, because you spend far more of your life chasing it than enjoying it, it can be hard to know how to feel about success when it comes your way.

Penney must replace former stalwarts from within Munster squad

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:28 GMT

ROUND-UP:MUNSTER WILL not be replacing David Wallace and Denis Leamy, both contracted for next season, with international players of equal stature as their foreign quota has already been filled.

Leamy sees bright future for Munster

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:28 GMT

INTERVIEW:MUNSTER MAY have lost another cornerstone of the glory days but Denis Leamy believes there is enough talent coming through for them to become a major force again.

Van Gaal set for role at Anfield

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:28 GMT

Louis van Gaal is in line for a senior managerial role at Liverpool. The Dutchman was linked with a move to Liverpool in the wake of Damien Comolli’s dismissal as director of football in April.

Solskjaer reported to have pulled out of running

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:27 GMT

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is believed to have pulled out of the running to become the new Aston Villa manager.

Nsekera becomes the first woman to join executive board

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:27 GMT

Fifa yesterday appointed a woman to its executive board for the first time in the soccer body’s 108-year history.

Big steps made to Fifa membership

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:27 GMT

Kosovo took a huge step towards Fifa membership yesterday when the world soccer’s governing body said its 208 member countries could start playing friendly internationals against teams from the Balkan province.

Champions League victory prompted Drogba's exit

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:27 GMT

Didier Drogba would have sought to stay at Chelsea had the club been thwarted in their pursuit of the Champions League and the team’s success in Munich on Saturday provided the perfect denouement to his eight-year career at Stamford Bridge.

McGeady goes on the attack to defend his worth

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:26 GMT

EURO 2012 REPUBLIC OF IRELAND:ALMOST EVERY time Aiden McGeady sits down with Irish journalists during a spot of international duty there is, it seems, at least one question that rattles his cage just a little.

City aim high but WBA gesture is just the ticket

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:26 GMT

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE:ENGLISH PREMIER League clubs can be accused of many things, but colluding over ticket prices is not one of them.

Keane surprise at Neville's dual role

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:26 GMT

EURO 2012 ENGLAND:ROY KEANE has suggested that Gary Neville was not as influential in the Manchester United dressingroom as many assume and has expressed surprise that he will combine his media work with a role on Roy Hodgson’s England coaching staff.

Mourinho signs on with Real Madrid until 2016

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:25 GMT

SPANISH LA LIGA:JOSE MOURINHO has signed a contract extension to keep him and his staff at Real Madrid until 2016.

Jackson may miss Junior World Cup

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:25 GMT

PADDY JACKSON may be withdrawn from next month’s Junior World Cup in South Africa following a request by Ulster that their starting outhalf is not considered for underage selection.

Nocher and McMahon book their seats

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:25 GMT

IRISH SWIMMERS took another two seats on an increasingly crowded aircraft to London yesterday as Melanie Nocher and Sycerika McMahon both posted A standards at the European Championships in Hungary. They will join Gráinne Murphy and Barry Murphy in the Aquatic Centre at this summer’s Games.

Trapattoni likely to err on the side of caution

Tue, 22 May 2012 23:54:24 GMT

IT MAY be nothing remotely as serious as the great north-south divide that, legend has it, plagued the England squad at the last World Cup but Giovanni Trapattoni revealed yesterday that he is embroiled in a battle of wills with senior players who want to play this Saturday when he believes they should rest.

No disguising Meehan's pleasure

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:51:21 GMT

The Caltra man has played in bigger games but Sunday’s win was huge on the injury front, writesKEITH DUGGAN

Short game

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:51:21 GMT

BySHAY KEENAN

Skipper aboard: Keane arrives from USA to complete Ireland's Euro 2012 squad

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:51:21 GMT

IRELAND captain Robbie Keane completed Giovanni Trapattoni’s squad when he arrived into Dublin from the United States yesterday morning, reportsEMMET MALONE.

Now for a right go at those pesky All Blacks

Tue, 22 May 2012 07:51:21 GMT

ON RUGBY:All credit to the IRFU, the Irish players are still in fine fettle after such a long season, writesGERRY THORNLEY

Sports digest

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Dejected runner will not appeal decision

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

ATHLETICS:MARIA McCAMBRIDGE put on a brave face yesterday after learning that she was the marathon runner to lose out in the selection process for the three women who will make up the Irish challenge in the event for the Olympic Games in London during the first two weeks in August.

Lang dons yellow jersey after gruelling stage to Gort

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

CYCLING:CLOCKING UP one of the top results of his career, Swiss rider Pirmin Lang (Atlas Jakroo) blasted home into Gort yesterday afternoon, outpacing six breakaway companions and grabbing the yellow jersey as a result.

Cook and Bell guide England to victory

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

CRICKET:ALASTAIR COOK and Ian Bell made composed fifties to guide England to a comfortable five-wicket win over West Indies in the first Test at Lord’s yesterday.

Frankel best rated in 25 years

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

RACING:DOMINIC GARDINER-Hill believes Frankel is capable of taking his rating to even more astonishing levels after the British Horseracing Authority’s handicapper assigned the colt a mark of 138 for his victory in Saturday’s JLT Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.

O'Brien has seven left in 2,000

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

RACING:AIDAN O’BRIEN is responsible for seven of the 15 confirmations as he searches for an eighth victory in the Abu Dhabi Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh on Saturday.

Shefflin's no-show a precaution

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

THOSE DRAWN to Clara on Sunday evening in anticipation of Henry Shefflin’s return to the Kilkenny jersey may have been disappointed by the failure of the eight-time All-Ireland medallist to appear, but team-mate Jackie Tyrrell has attributed his non-appearance to nothing more than careful planning to get the sport’s most decorated hurler fit and ready for the championship.

Getting in the swing of things

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

JOHNNY WATTERSONwatches Ireland’s next generation of golfing heroes throw a tee party in Portmarnock

Irish hex can be laid to rest

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:15 GMT

WHY WENTWORTH should prove to be such a barren outpost for Irish golfers down the years is a riddle at odds with success achieved elsewhere.

Leamy set to retire: hip injury forces decision

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:14 GMT

IRISH INTERNATIONAL Denis Leamy looks set to become the latest Munster player forced to retire because of injury.

Muller salutes Leinster

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:14 GMT

ULSTER SKIPPER Johann Muller has admitted that Ulster could never have lived with Joe Schmidt’s Leinster side last Saturday evening.

Derry rally for third win on trot

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:14 GMT

Derry City 3 Bray Wanderers 2:STEPHEN McLAUGHLIN netted for the third time in three games as Derry City bounced back to defeat a dogged Bray Wanderers at the Brandywell last night.

Drogheda again fail to seal deal

Tue, 22 May 2012 00:16:14 GMT

Drogheda Utd 1 Cork City 1:DROGHEDA DROPPED two points yet again last night in what has become a bad habit for the home side who dominated this game.