Paolo Tiralongo pips Alberto Contador to win Giro d’Italia stage
• Tiralongo 'delighted' with grabbing 19th stage
• Contador maintains grip on leader's pink jersey
The Astana rider Paolo Tiralongo edged Spain's Alberto Contador to win the 19th stage of the Giro d'Italia. With 500 metres to go, Tiralongo went for the line and although Contador was in close pursuit, the Italian held on to claim his first win in this year's edition. Vincenzo Nibali of Liquigas was third, three seconds behind.
Tiralongo, who had broken clear of the leading group in the final six kilometres, completed the 209-kilometre ride from Bergamo in five hours, 26 minutes and 27 seconds. "I am delighted with this victory," Tiralongo said. "I have to thank Contador. We are great friends and I have a lot of respect for him.
"He saw that I was in good form and told me to go for it. He is a great rider and he is very important to cycling."
Contador increased his advantage in the overall standings to five minutes and 18 seconds over Lampre's Michele Scarponi. Nibali is third, five minutes and 52 seconds adrift of Contador with two stages remaining.
"The important thing was to maintain the [leader's] pink jersey," Contador said. "I have to thank my team-mates because they did a good job today. I felt comfortable in the rain and I am satisfied with how the stage went. Right now all my focus is on holding on to this jersey until Sunday."
Lars Bak (HTC), Jérôme Pineau (Quick Step) and Matteo Rabottini (Farnese Vini) broke away 39km into the stage and built up a lead of more than 11 minutes at the halfway point.
Stefano Garzelli of Acqua & Sappone was determined to hold off Contador in the green jersey standings and the Italian rider broke clear of the peloton in pursuit of the leaders.
But Garzelli narrowly missed out on catching the trio before the Mottarone summit and Pineau took the maximum bonus points ahead of Bak and Rabottini.
Garzelli went over as fourth to lead with 67 points in the green jersey standings, 11 ahead of Contador heading into tomorrow's final mountain stage.
Mickaël Cherel (Ag2R) and Johann Tschopp (BMC) then caught up with the leaders as they headed for the descent with 60km to go.
As weather conditions deteriorated, with heavy rain falling, the American Craig Lewis was involved in a crash. The HTC rider was conscious as he was carried by stretcher into an ambulance.
With 27km remaining, the peloton split and a group that included Contador, Nibali and Scarponi, pulled away from the pack as they headed uphill from Piedimulera to the finish in Macugnaga.
The chasing group led by Katusha Team caught up with the leaders with less than 14km to go but Tiralongo pulled away for the stage win.
Giro d'ItaliaAlberto ContadorCyclingguardian.co.ukBernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore condemn ‘insulting’ offer for QPR
• Amit Bhatia's offer for 67% shareholding was 'insultingly low'
• QPR co-owners say Neil Warnock 'has full support of the board'
Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore have hit out at Amit Bhatia's "insultingly low" offer to buy QPR outright.
Bhatia, the son-in-law of Rangers' billionaire co-owner Lakshmi Mittal, resigned as the club's vice-chairman on Wednesday after revealing attempts to buy out Ecclestone and Briatore's 67% shareholding at Loftus Road had failed.
Bhatia also condemned the Formula One tycoons for removing the QPR Holdings chairman, Ishan Saksena, from his position, and for their 40% hike in ticket prices for next season.
But while the boardroom squabbling threatens to overshadow Rangers' promotion back to the Premier League, Ecclestone and Briatore have come out fighting.
In a joint statement, they said: "Both Ecclestone and Briatore believe that Amit Bhatia's recent comments and the subsequent press coverage have been damaging to QPR and do not fairly reflect the reality of the situation.
"They have not received a written offer from the Mittals for their QPR shares and feel strongly that the verbal offer made to them was insultingly low. Bhatia appears to be using the press to try to force the price of any deal down, which is disrespectful to both the club and its fans."
The departures of Bhatia and Saksena, two of Neil Warnock's staunchest allies on the board, have once again cast doubt on his future as manager. But Ecclestone and Briatore have reiterated Warnock will be in charge when the Premier League season kicks off in August.
The statement continued: "As both Ecclestone and Briatore have stated in recent days, Neil Warnock's post as manager remains secure and Neil has the full support of the board.
"Discussions have already taken place between Neil and the board, in which Neil outlined his thoughts on player acquisitions ahead of the new Premier League season and was assured that he will be able to keep his best players for QPR's return to the Premier League."
QPRBernie EcclestoneFlavio BriatoreLakshmi MittalBusinessguardian.co.ukFrench Open 2011: World No1 Caroline Wozniacki crashes out
• Top seed beaten 6-1, 6-3 by 28th seed Daniela Hantuchova
• Wozniacki turns focus to Wimbledon
When Caroline Wozniacki joined Kim Cljsters on the outside looking in at this French Open – the first time the No1 and No2 seeds have failed to reach the last 16 of a women's slam in the Open era – she was as embarrassed as the Belgian, but a little tetchier. It's not a great look for the women's game, especially following the earlier exit of last year's finalist Sam Stosur, who lost to Gisela Dulko.
Wozniacki's tennis was all over the place against the 28th-seeded Daniela Hantuchova, who won with startling ease, 6-1, 6-3. "She played very, very well today, better than me," she said. "She was just too good."
Asked if these defeats illustrated depth or weakness across women's tennis, she said: "There's a lot of great players out there. Kim had a tough loss yesterday, I had a tough loss today. Since we're No1 and two, it means that we must be doing something right."
Despite never having won a slam, Wozniacki will keep the crown going into Wimbledon unless the third seed, Vera Zvonareva, wins here and at Eastbourne. "When I was younger, people told me, you'll never be a top player, you're from Denmark, we don't have the mentality. And, you know, it really doesn't matter. I know what I'm capable of. I know I'm a great player. I'm doing well. I had a loss today. That's what happens. I'll be back even better."
As for her chances at Wimbledon, she said: "I definitely enjoy playing on grass. I've done well on it before. There is something homey about Wimbledon and living in a house and having the whole family there. I'm really looking forward to that tournament. I think I can do well."
Nor did she think her schedule was a hindrance. "I'm feeling fine. Obviously I would have loved to be here still. I'd be playing for the next eight days, no doubt about it. I don't like to be around a tournament when I'm not playing. I might go home for a few days and come back for [a sponsors' engagement] Tuesday … I don't know what I'll do."
She sounded as confused after her defeat as she looked during it.
Stosur at least had an excuse. "I have had a cold for about four, five, six days," she said, conceding that Dulko had outplayed her. The Argentinian next plays the French 11th seed Marion Bartoli, who needed three sets to beat the new hope Julia Görges from Germany.
French Open 2011French OpenTennisKevin Mitchellguardian.co.ukNorwich set to sign James Vaughan from Everton for £2.5m
• 22-year-old scored nine goals for Crystal Palace last season
• Injuries ruined forward's prospects at Goodison Park
Norwich City have begun strengthening for their return to the Premier League next season by agreeing a £2.5m fee with Everton for the striker James Vaughan.
The 22-year-old spent the majority of last season on loan at Crystal Palace, where he scored nine goals to help the club avoid relegation from the Championship, and is available for a permanent transfer as David Moyes seeks to raise funds for new arrivals. The two clubs have agreed an initial £1.5m deal, rising to £2.5m on appearances, and Norwich have been given permission to discuss personal terms with the former England Under-21 international.
Vaughan was tipped to have a successful career at Everton having risen through their youth system to become the club's – and the Premier League's – youngest goalscorer, against Palace in April 2005. However, the Birmingham-born forward missed crucial years in his development due to a dreadful catalogue of injuries that included a ruptured cruciate ligament on England Under-18s duty, a dislocated shoulder and a severed artery in his foot. He rarely had an extended run in the Everton team as a consequence and, despite being a firm admirer of his abilities, Moyes sanctioned a series of loan moves to increase Vaughan's playing time.
Palace wanted to sign the striker on a permanent basis this summer but they are likely to miss out due to both finance and the lure of the Premier League. The Crystal Palace chairman, Steve Parish, had admitted: "It is going to be difficult for us to compete with top-flight clubs."
Norwich CityEvertonTransfer windowAndy Hunterguardian.co.ukMy masterplan: how Manchester United can beat Barcelona | David Pleat
Barcelona can be overcome if Manchester United keep their wits about them and follow five golden rules
1. Ferdinand must step out to pick up MessiBarcelona's principal threat is obvious, the mesmeric Lionel Messi and the combination play he strikes up with Xavi Hernández and Andrés Iniesta in particular, bursting through the centre and bypassing defenders with clever passing exchanges. Manchester United will be aware of that and must seek to close the space between their own back-line and midfield ranks to make sure Messi has less room to work in. Occasionally, Rio Ferdinand will have to be brave and step out to pick up the Argentinean. By doing that, they will clearly risk leaving open space in behind, but Barça aren't a team who seek to play David Villa in with balls over the top. Even so, Edwin van der Sar will have to be alert and sweep up any passes lofted over his defenders. The Premier League side must keep their shape and, when Messi drifts to the flanks, Patrice Evra and Fábio da Silva must be aware. To take a man out and man-mark the brilliant Argentinian would be counter-productive.
2. Encourage Park to attack marauding AlvesUnited must be proactive in terms of their selection and approach. In Rome back in 2009, Wayne Rooney was asked
Yorkshire in running for Grand Départ
• 'We hope to persuade them' say Yorkshire's organiser
• 'It started as speculative approach and has gone from there'
Yorkshire is bidding to host the Grand Départ of the Tour de France in 2016, nine years after the start in London which was termed the most successful in the race's 108-year history. With Scotland having announced its candidature for a start, possibly in 2017, the arrival of a second British bidder increases the chances of the Tour returning to Britain, while London may return to the table as well in future.
"We have had several meetings with them and we hope we can persuade them we have something of interest to offer the Tour," the chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, Gary Verity, said. His organisation has been talking to the Tour organisers, ASO, for just under a year and is hoping they will visit the region this autumn. "It started as a speculative approach from our side and has gone from there.
"We are giving them a choice of possible routes. They can start in Leeds and have two or three days based there, including going out into the Yorkshire Dales, or go from York up across the North Yorkshire Moors to Scarborough. If they want flat roads we have those, if they want iconic scenery we have plenty of that."
There is massive competition to host the Grand Départ of the Tour, usually a five-day affair leading up to a weekend's racing, with two or three days of pre-race formalities including the team presentation, followed by a short prologue time trial on the Saturday and a road-race stage on the Sunday. Under the guidance of the recently appointed organiser, Christian Prudhomme, however, the Tour has moved away from the old format, sometimes including road-race stages on both days.
Currently the race starts within France every other year at least, restricting the opportunities for foreign bidders. Next year's start is in Liège, Belgium, while other contenders for the Grand Départ include Utrecht and the Limburg region, both in the Netherlands, Krakow, Barcelona, Florence and Qatar. "We have never had so many candidates," Prudhomme said.
The usual budget for a Grand Départ runs into several million pounds but the region hosting the race recoups that through the income brought by the race caravan and fans. The London start generated more than £88m for south-east England. Verity said the plan would be for a "cocktail of funding" including private money.
Momentum is building for a British start. Prudhomme said he had noted that Ken Livingstone, the former mayor of London, had said he wanted the race to return to the capital. "London was extraordinary, unforgettable, a step up for us. It added another dimension to the Tour, the idea that the race can be used to get people on their bikes."
Negotiations began over a possible Scottish start back in 2007, and Prudhomme is to visit the Edinburgh Tattoo later this year on the invitation of the Scottish bid organisers. "Everyone says it is phenomenal," he said. The Scottish bid is for a start in either Glasgow or Edinburgh.
Yorkshire has hosted the Tour of Britain and the British round of the Mountain Bike World Cup recently. The national road-race championships have been held regularly in the area, and there are other initiatives such as the 146-mile Yorkshire Wolds cycle route. The area has an incredibly strong cycle racing tradition, from champions such as Beryl Burton and Barry Hoban in the past, to Russell Downing, Ben Swift and Ed Clancy at present.
Tour de FranceCyclingWilliam Fotheringhamguardian.co.ukSkirts-for-women edict splits world of badminton
UK sport minister Hugh Robertson condemns 'damaging attempt to sex up the game'
An attempt by badminton's governing body to force professional female players to wear skirts or dresses has been condemned as "a regressive and damaging attempt to sex up the game" by Hugh Robertson, the minister for sport.
The Badminton World Federation says the dress code is necessary to make women athletes appear more feminine, thereby reviving flagging interest in the sport from fans and corporate sponsors.
Athletes' representatives have said they will seek to have the decision scrapped at a meeting of the world's badminton-playing nations in Qingdao, China, on Saturday.
If the motion is carried, Badminton England has said it will make a "strong protest". Robertson has said he will support any opponent of a dictate he has called "a bit silly [and] not terribly 21st-century".
"Within reasonable limits, the dress on courts should be a matter for the athletes," said Robertson. "To instruct people to wear unnecessarily short skirts is a regressive and damaging attempt to sex up the game. Sport should be judged on the merits of the contest and not on attempts to sex it up artificially."
The new dress code – formulated in consultation with Octagon, an international marketing firm – states that women can still wear shorts or long pants for cultural and religious reasons – as long as they are worn underneath a dress or skirt.
The code requires male players simply to dress in "proper attire".
Paisan Rangsikitpho, the US deputy president of the Badminton World Federation – which has only two female members on its 25-member board – denies the new ruling is "an attempt to use sex to promote the sport".
"We just want them to look feminine and have a nice presentation so women will be more popular," he said. "Interest is declining. Some women compete in oversize shorts and long pants and appear baggy, almost like men.
"Hardly anybody is watching [the sport]," he added. "TV ratings are down. We want to build them up to where they should be. They play quite well. We want them to look nicer on the court and have more marketing value for themselves. I'm surprised we got a lot of criticism."
But William Kings, spokesman for Badminton England, called the attempt "a bizarre move". "We're hoping it will turn out to be the result of something having been lost in translation," he said.
Kings said diagrams by the federation showing how Muslim women could wear skirts over long trousers were "very strange". "The drawings are embarrassingly laughable," he said. "We're rather hoping that at the meeting tomorrow, the federation will be given the opportunity to withdraw, review or have second thoughts about this statement that will lead to its abandonment. But if they don't drop it, we will be making a very strong protest."
He said, however, that UK badminton had a "dilemma" over the issue. He pointed to the support for the new dress code from Nora Perry, a former world doubles champion from England and member of the council of the world governing body.
Kings said of Perry that "the problem is that although she always used to play in a skirt, she was a very attractive woman player while lots of the opponents of this action come from those not quite as fortunate in the good-looks stakes".
Dr Janice Forsyth, director of the international centre for Olympic studies at the University of Western Ontario, said the code was "a blatant attempt to sexualise women". "It is amazing," she said. "You'd think, at some point, somebody would have said, 'Wait a minute. What are we doing?' "
"When you dictate apparel for reasons of sexuality, it should be offensive," said Donna Lopiano, a former chief executive of the Women's Sports Foundation.
If passed, the ruling would have little impact in the UK. The only female British player not to wear skirts or dresses on court is Imogen Bankier, 23, a Scottish doubles player. Bankier said she would contest the ruling. "It is sexist to demand the women wear skirts while the men can wear short shorts, baggy shorts, whatever they want," she said.
GenderBadmintonAmelia Hillguardian.co.ukDanny Brough and Kevin Brown have one last chance to make England case
• Huddersfield half-backs have eye on game against Exiles
• Coach Steve McNamara will name squad on Wednesday
One is a Yorkshireman who captained Scotland in the last World Cup, the other is a Wiganer who appeared to have been cast into the outer darkness by the England coach, Steve McNamara, after his lack of impact in last autumn's Four Nations series. But Danny Brough and Kevin Brown have one last opportunity to convince McNamara that their Huddersfield half-back combination could be effective at a higher level in Sunday lunchtime's televised Super League match at in‑form
Fifa ‘farce’ means election should be delayed, sports minister says
• Hugh Robertson says 'sensible election' is impossible
• FA give Fifa file of evidence about Lord Triesman's allegation
The British government has called on Fifa to postpone its presidential election after Sepp Blatter was called to appear before the world governing body's own ethics committee alongside two other senior members of its executive committee.
The sports minister, Hugh Robertson, said the proceedings were fast becoming farcical after Fifa's ethics committee announced Blatter would face a hearing on Sunday alongside Mohamed bin Hammam, his presidential challenger, and Jack Warner, the controversial Concacaf president.
"I think the process is fast descending into a farce," Robertson said. "It's impossible to have a sensible election when both of the candidates have been accused of corruption. The sensible thing would be to suspend the election until these allegations have been properly investigated."
Even before the latest round of corruption allegations, Robertson had said he planned to talk to fellow sports ministers in Australia, the Netherlands, Poland and elsewhere to put pressure on Fifa to reform.
"Fifa needs to urgently reform in the way that the IOC [International Olympic Committee] did after Salt Lake City. Sports governing bodies have to be transparent and accountable and change has to happen for the good of world football."
He said he also expected other like-minded governments to back his call for Wednesday's election to be postponed. "Anybody with any common sense that looks at this will come to the same conclusion that we have come to. I would be amazed if other countries didn't echo this, especially given that a number of other countries are also concerned about what is happening at Fifa."
Robertson is due to attend the Champions League final on Saturday night and said he would discuss the situation with the Football Association, Fifa and Uefa. Blatter and many other senior Fifa executives are due to attend the final at Wembley, though it is unclear if the 75-year-old president will now do so.
The FA has passed a file of evidence to Fifa collected by James Dingemans QC in the wake of allegations made by the former FA chairman Lord Triesman against four executive committee members – Warner, Nicolás Leoz, Ricardo Teixeira and Worawi Makudi – of soliciting inducements during the World Cup bidding process.
"Mr Dingemans has raised with the FA several outstanding issues with the current ethics code and bidding rules that Fifa would be well placed to address," an FA spokesman said. "The FA notes these concerns and will be raising them with Fifa in due course.
"Mr Dingemans cannot make a final determination on whether there has been any wrongdoing because he does not have jurisdiction to speak to the Fifa executive committee members. It is for Fifa to do this and for Fifa to determine whether any of its rules have been breached."
The claims from Bin Hammam that Blatter broke Fifa's ethics code mean that 10 of the 24 members of the executive committee now face allegations of impropriety.
The latest crisis was this week precipitated by claims from the US executive committee member Chuck Blazer that Bin Hammam paid cash bribes of $40,000 (£24,500) to members of the Caribbean Football Union at a specially convened conference organised by Warner.
Bin Hammam had earlier failed to make the full Concacaf congress in Miami for visa reasons.
Evidence in the file collated by the US lawyer John Collins, including signed affidavits, text messages, photographs and email conversations, includes claims that Bin Hammam made "football development" payments of $40,000 to the 30 member organisations of the CFU.
The Qatari challenger is now claiming that Warner told Blatter about the payments and the president failed to do anything about it. Article 14 of the ethics code states: "Officials shall report any evidence of violations of conduct to the Fifa secretary general, who shall report it to the competent body."
Bin Hammam, the Asian Football Confederation president, has said the bribery claims are "without substance".
FifaSepp BlatterMohamed bin HammamFootball politicsThe FAOwen Gibsonguardian.co.ukNewcastle United ready to offer José Enrique lucrative new deal
• Spanish full-back linked with move away from St James' Park
• 'We're going to make José a very good offer' – Alan Pardew
Newcastle United are poised to offer José Enrique a lucrative new contract in an effort to keep the Spanish left-back at St James' Park. Already reportedly the Premier League's second-best-paid player in his position, behind Ashley Cole, José Enrique was signed by Sam Allardyce in 2007 from Villarreal for £6.5m and has one year remaining on his contract.
After shining this season, the 25-year-old is admired by, among others, Liverpool, Milan and Bayern Munich. But Alan Pardew, the Newcastle manager, is extremely keen to keep him on Tyneside and the club's board are prepared to fund an expensive new deal.
"We are going to make José a very, very good offer and we are hoping he's going to accept it," said Pardew, who has recently seen talks with Joey Barton over a proposed new contract collapse and is still hoping to reach an agreement with his captain, Kevin Nolan, over an extended deal. "We are realistic about José as the ball is in his court, not ours, but he will be offered a fantastic contract and I'm hopeful he'll sign it."
Pardew has offered Shane Ferguson, the 19-year-old Northern Ireland left-back who serves as José Enrique's understudy, and can also play in midfield, a new five-year deal. Newcastle's manager also confirmed the club have lodged a bid for a player, understood to be the Lorient striker Kevin Gameiro, who is priced in the £10-12m bracket.
Newcastle UnitedLouise Taylorguardian.co.uk