Sport Picture Post

Euro Under 21 finals

2009-06-27T07:34:00.000-07:00

The old enemy looms. Stuart Pearce rejigged his side for the last qualifying match and a 1-1 was the result. At half time in the semi-finals England looked to be cruising but defensive frailties let the swedes back and it went to penalties. The form book points clearly to an English victory. But old ghosts may be difficult to lay and the germans will be confident after their win against Italy. It should be a 2-0 to England which is 9/1 but 0-0 after 90 minutes is also an attractive 4/1.

Wimbledon fashionistas - Rafael Nadal, the cool white dude

2008-06-26T03:44:00.000-07:00

Wimbledon. Gone is the Incredible Hulk look of Roland Garros and that matador style green T shirt. Caught for a reflective moment before practice a contemplative Rafeal Nadal shows off the classic cool white dude look for Wimbledon, the hair loose and matching bandages under the knees.

Euro 2008 semi finals - Turkey you were a delight

2008-06-26T03:33:00.000-07:00

The Turks were brave and sharp in the Euro 2008 semi final but somehow they passed their luck on to the Germans. They flattered and they passed and they played with commitment around German footballers who could have been totem poles stuck in the ground - especially the two central defenders who had more beard than brawn or brains. Although the Germans go forward this game as did the Dutch trouncing of Italy and France has probably marked a new era of free flowing attack minded football with high tempo attacking, exuberance and skill. For which thank you Turkey. Thank you Fatih Terim

Wimbledon fashionistas - Serena Williams and the housecoat

2008-06-26T03:24:00.000-07:00

Wimbledon Centre Court - Serena Williams shows off her new all weather tennis protection in the shape of a slip on slip off raincoat. But when it comes down to the real business on court off it comes to reveal a tight little mini dress and an awesome forehand drive.

Wimbledon fashionista - Roger Federer cardigan chic

2008-06-26T03:21:00.000-07:00

Wimbledon Centre Court - the new look Roger Federer, no blazer instead the perfect cardigan in case of a chill, ideal for the yacht and Great Gatsby parties. He almost looks ready for a pipe and slippers, although perhaps only Rafael Nadal can send him on his way to retirement unless Novak Djokovic's conqueror 28 year old Marat Safin has more than one big game in his tank

Wimbledon fashionistas - Maria Sharapova

2008-06-26T03:11:00.000-07:00

Wimbledon Centre Court: Maria Sharapova unveils her new look for Wimbledon - men's loose boxer shorts, belt, see through net curtain top, ponytail...and her first match tennis was pretty hot too. Nicole Vaidisova of the Czech Republic reacts after winning a point during her nervy match against Samantha Stosur of Australia in more old style garb

Golf - great swing from Momoko

2008-06-26T03:02:00.000-07:00

US Women's Open, Interlachen Country Club, Edina: Momoko Ueda from Japan hits off the fourth hole tee during a practice round at the U.S. Women's Open golf championship. Now that is a proper golf swing.

Sheer Khan

2008-06-20T09:18:00.000-07:00

Amir Khan will be the dessert on ITV's menu after Holland v Russia on Saturdy night. Here he is at the weigh in for his fight with Michael Gomez Weigh-In at the National Indoor Arena, Birmingham. Amir will be looking to take further populist steps to the establishment of his new world Khandom with those flashing hard hands and speed of foot.

Soccer mudness

2008-06-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

With all the fuss over the Euro 2008 you could be forgiven perhaps for overlooking the annual Swamp Soccer World Championship taking place at Strachur, Argyll. The fat bastard is actually comedian Rory McGrath in action of a sort. The swan-like lass in the goal is only credited as a competitor, although she has a certain something about her. The result was...a bit of a mess. As the Glasgow Mail put it they were all up Mud For It and lamented the fact that Scotland has never hosted a Euro or a World Cup, poor chaps, albeit maybe they shoukld ask the penniless traders in Switzerland and Austria how they fared before processing their applications. You can keep up to date over the weekend at their web site at http://www.swampsoccer.co.uk/ but sadly entries are now closed

Lewis Hamilton - and an alien force

2008-06-20T09:06:00.001-07:00

This character may look like he is out of Dr Who as some form of alien lifeforce when in fact he is a French fireman at Magny Course at Nevers for the French Grand Prix. Captured in his visor is the Maclaren of Lewis Hamilton flashing by. He is good odds to win on Sunday bearing in mind he is starting with a 10 place penalty. See all the odds here.

More substantial fascinators

2008-06-20T07:44:00.001-07:00

The sport of kings is gradually becoming the sport of the slapper and the spiv. This traces back to the arrival of the sharabang. Go back 20 or so years and the punters arrived in their Rollers and Bentleys with their champagne and picnics which they shared around their friends.

But the toughening of drink driving laws led to racecourses hiring in their own caterers and the development of buses, stretch limousines and sharabangs so everyone could have a jolly good party

And of course have a jolly good excuse to dress up and pull a rich fella with a wadge of winnings

Butter, of course would not melt in any of these ladies mouths, although they seem to span an interersting age range if you double click and blow the pictures up full screen

Do keep your knickers on please dear

2008-06-19T06:27:00.001-07:00

Ladies day was blustery but warm, the umbrella for shade to protect that fascinator and definitely on the Queen's instructions - knickers on and well huidden!!!
Hang on to your hats...a quicky flurry of wind can play havoc with a fillies best hat

They're off..the horses that is

Euro 2008 - That save

2008-06-19T04:25:00.000-07:00

Of all the moments so far in Euro 2008 this was surely the one that will stay in the mind longest. The phenomenal Gianluigi Buffon's save from Adrian Mutu for Italy against Romania which with hindsight ensured the Italians went forward to a quarter final against Spain and sent the Romanians home. It was in a sense the story of the match Mutu v Buffon, the former Chelsea and now Fiorentina striker looking electric as he nipped in behind the Italian defencce for the first goal. There was never any doubt that the apparently reformed cocaine sniffer would take the penalty. It was a solid hit. Buffon throws himself left, the ball strikes his arm full on but squirts down on to his ankle and away. It was a save mothers will name their boys after...there will be many a Gianluigi over the next few years for sure.

We'll have a guinea on Yeats, please my man

2008-06-19T04:15:00.000-07:00

For all the hats and fascinators, the Queen was looking radiant herself at what is probably her favourite and local event. There was a book running on what colours she would wear in conjunction with BBC Breakfast, here in mauve to offset her pearls (real ones) and a form guide in her hand. The dress code seems to have been under instruction from the Palace itself. The press release on Ascot's site on Friday instructed: "Her Majesty's representative wishes to point out that only formal day dress with a hat or substantial fascinator will be acceptable. Off the shoulder, halter neck, spaghetti straps and dresses with a strap of less than one inch (2.5 centimeters) and / or mini skirts are considered unsuitable. Midriffs must be covered and trouser suits must be full length and of matching material and color."

The response from Tatler editor Geiordie Greig was: "What fantastic snobbery!"

Ascot - there's only one place like it

2008-06-19T04:01:00.000-07:00

The pinnacle of the flat racing Royal Ascot, the most famous race meeting in the world, it claims weith a pedigree that goes back to 1711. The Times in 1911 advised would be racegoers: “Doubtless the debutante will wear her skirt just off the ground, if it suits her, but the majority of dresses will just touch the ground”. This year the instructions were that knickers should be worn but not seen, dress straps should be at least an inch wide. Ladies should wear “only formal day dress with a hat or substantial fascinator will be acceptable”.

For men top hat, tails, and waistcoasts wereobligatory. £82 and sponsorship from a member who has attended at least four times previously are required to enter the Royal Enclosure.

Ascot - all the fillies

2008-06-18T08:13:00.001-07:00

The Ascot look

Tips- a little pout is mandatory and an ooohhh as the horses go by...binoculars are chic

Tips - A relaxed head behind the shoulders nonchalance is a sign of very good breeding

Phones are now acceptable

The Ascot look this year for aspiring young (and slightly older) fillies beyond the hat involves a slight lowering of the shoulder in a compliant I-would-love-some-more-champagne thank you style; a little pout as one regards the riders and runners, a double pout should it be the mount of a companion. A quick chat to your bookies is acceptable, but not to girlfriends but binoculars and lorgnettes are for more experienced hands who have already put their bets on before leaving the house. Absolutely mandatory is an upper lass oooooohh at the off and aaaaaghhhh at the finish. And it is necessary to announce that one has had at least three winners, even if a gal has to tell a white lie once in a while. far better, far more gravitas, far more cutting in this credit crunch era, is to mention that so and so is a good pal whose horse has just won. Next top Wimbledon.

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The awning is up but there is no one there

2008-06-18T07:15:00.000-07:00

From Europeansoccerchampionship.co.uk

The welcome awning is up, but there are no fans at Klaganfurt, Austria. The local council has had to resort to giving out 6,000 vouchers worth €5 each to try and drum up business in the deserted fan zones between matches.

The stadiums are full, but off sight from the TV cameras the fan zones are empty. Euro 2008 has become a virtual tournament except for the few fans lucky enough to find tickets for the game. It is a festival of football being played out on the airwaves rather than in the villages and towns of Switzerland and Austria.

Organisers have blamed the bad weather but fans having shelled out upwards of €1000 for a ticket have been travelling together and bring their own supplies of beer, sandwiches and facepaint. Typically they have been coming for one game and leaving. The celebrations in the stadium have hardly filtered down into the local economy or cheered local shopkeepers many of whom have been knocking out cut price T shirts all week.

Another issue could be the stringent policing Uefa has tried to bring in to make their sponsors happy. Try walking in a fan zone with Pepsi T shirt and you might be ejected.
Football has always been about money but Uefa’s greed has been unique. The organisation stands to make almost half the debt of an African nation.

There are so many sponsors of Uefa 2008 that no one actually knows who they are. In a survey almost half of fans in Europe said they had no idea who is sponsoring this year’s Euro 2008 Championship. Survey Sampling International found 41 per cent of self-proclaimed football fans could not name any of the tournament’s main official partners, namely Adidas, Canon, Carlsberg, Castrol, Coca-Cola, Continental, Kia, JVC, MasterCard and McDonald’s. Uefa in its rapacious wisdom, does not have one sponsor but has a staggering 10 who are contributing a stunning £382 million.

The Germans were most likely to identify a brand – 72 per cent, then Spain 58 per cent and England 23 per cent. An Ipsos Mori survey reported that less than five per cent of 600 respondents associated Coca-Cola with the event - down from 14.5 per cent for Euro 2004. Similar falls in recognition were found in Carlsberg, down from 5.5 per cent in 2004 to just 1.5 per cent in 2008. McDonald’s awareness levels have also slumped, from 4.3 per cent to 0.8 per cent this year. According to Ipsos, of all the official sponsors, only Adidas posted any improvement on its Euro 2004 recognition to-date, rising from 1.8 per cent to 3.3 per cent.

The 10 named sponsors are just the global partners. Beyond them come the other sub sponsors like UBS bank who are the official bank of the tournament – which they are going to need – and is “national supporter” whatever that means. They have picked up the dubious privilege of organizing Swiss fan zones.

Plus there are what are called ambush sponsors who get round the rules for example by sponsoring a shirt. So Puma, Nike and Adidas sponsor five teams each, although only Adidas is an official sponsor. Umbro sponsor Sweden.

There is a further question of who these sponsors are. Is it really a good idea for the governing body of a sporting association to take money to promote a fast food operation like Macdonalds. Twenty years ago maybe having an official beer sponsor might have seemed a laddish thing to be doing but with footballers now excruciatingly fit and healthy and the shadow of crowd violence never more than a doorway away, is this the kind of company to associate with?

Similarly Coca-Cola is a fizzy drink with a lot of sugar in it and an American export. Surely Europe could/should have mustered its own soft drink for its own games? And if there is a beer sponsor why not a wine organisation? Or whisky?

The trade of these firms just underline the unprincipled nature of the sponsorship contracts. Anybody will do so long as they are rich enough to pay Uefa’s price. Except, notably absent are any bookmakers as if there is more moral high ground to distance itself from betting on a match than against continent wide outbreaks of obesity and drunkenness. The chances of a threat from match fixing in the full glare of global multi channel TV would seem to be rather more remote than of a referee awarding or not awarding an offside in these championships.

But Uefa being Uefa it also has its range of good sponsors on which it can lavish its funds on aswell as cigars and champagne. It has an official sponsored charity – the Red Cross. There is a tri-nation schools tournament, won by Latvia. As part of its commitment to support disabled soccer, each of the quarter final matches will be opened by an exhibition match between teams of disabled players.

Lawyers have been active to try and enforce Uefa laws banning media sites from using photographs of footballers. The TV pictures have been stunning, the still image selections have been poor by comparison, illustrating that in Uefa’s world every image is worth a few bucks. Three bars near the fan zones were cordoned off this week because they sold beers other than Carlsberg.

Uefa predictably has denied it is being heavy handed. “A spectator wearing a non-authorised logo will not have any trouble to get in as long as it’s not part of a large scale organised ambush-action. We are acting with common sense and are by no means aggressive,” said chief operating officer Martin Kallen.

Ambush marketing has become the preferred route for many companies excluded from this rich man’s table. Many have picked up TV slots around ITV’s coverage. BetClick waved its own banner at the France game last week and had its own dancing for street entertainment.

In Basel a tiny local brewer has set itself up as a David taking on the Goliath of official beer provider Carlsberg. Unser Bier has had thousands of T-shirts, beer mats and bottle labels printed up with the slogan: Basel. Mehr als nur Calrsbreg - “Basel. More than only Calrsbreg”, a double pun on the city’s official Euro 2008 motto of Basel. More than 90 minutes.

In the end Uefa is only an organisation with headquarters in Nyon, western Switzerland, even if for these three weeks it is behaving like it is more important than its host countries, the nation state of soccer. But as marketing expert Uta Jüttner from Lucerne’s University of Applied Sciences commented.” We respect Uefa’s right to protect their trademarks, but we also think that one of the biggest sporting events in Switzerland has an economic relevance that goes beyond a small number of official event sponsors.”

Switzerland and Austria may well be hoping that there is a few euros left for them and the local population after Uefa has gobbled up the rest. Ukraine and Poland who host 2012 be warned.

Never mind the football - look at the fans

2008-06-18T02:55:00.000-07:00

Smile, you are on a camera. The discreet ladies style, as the Dutch fans seem to have reinvented football fashion on the terraces.

The latest in head gear for the travelling fan, taking a model of each member of his family with him or maybe they are voodoo dolls for each player to ever have scored against his team?

OMG, it is those Smurfs!!!!!Remember them? Best forgotten perhaps. The shaved look with stick ons.

The Elton John dyed poodle look

The Dutch football may have been a delight but what about those fans? They just get more and more outrageous - just face painting is sooo last week. We have the shaved and died hair in knots look; the return of the Smurfs; the Hannibal crossing the Alps look; the Elton John poodle attire; the little Dutch lady hairdo; and for the ladies just a little smear of

the appropriate colour on the cheeks and a big grin, well she would be grinning the way the Dutch have played. But the great thing about Holland has been the way their fans have got behind the team. Last night the whole stadium seemed to be Dutch. Not only are they playing awesome football, but they have awesome fans too. Anyone fancy a bet on Ajax to win the Champions League next year. They are not in the betting yet, but play in the qualifiers if Van Basten can get them going quickly...

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Lewis Hamilton - short pit strategy

2008-06-17T06:44:00.000-07:00

What do Formula 1 drivers have in common with the Queen? Answer they wave a lot. This in the agency caption is a Lewis Hamilton celebration after finishing third in last year's French Grand Prix. This year he starts at 10/1 with a 10 place penalty for crashing through a red light in Montreal. The young tyro was still upbeat. Mentally, it’s just something that you learn to overcome quickly,” he said. “We’ve already looked at the best ways of optimising the strategy to help us move up the field and I guess I’ll just have to pass some cars if I want to get into the points!" But this is a tough circuit for overtaking. "You can dive down the inside into the Adelaide Hairpin and also have a look into the penultimate corner,” he said. “But an area we can really focus on is the strategy - Magny-Cours has a relatively short pit lane which does open up the strategic options available to us in the race."

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Wimbledon Men's Odds

2008-06-17T06:38:00.000-07:00

With former champion in 2002 Leyton Hewitt and explosive hitter Marcos Baghdatis at 100/1 realistically the field is wide open for a big surprise winner and big oddds - certainly better odds than say the Grand National. Andy Murray is 35/1 although doubts about the pressure, his temperament and his thumb could mean that Murray Mountain will avalanche to oblivion for the second week.
The form book says it is a three way slug fest between Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal fresh from his double victories at Queens and Roland Garros and Australian Open winner Novak Djokovic. Nadal is beatable on grass and there was hardly the space to post an envelope between him and Djokovic at Queens which was only two sets. Over five it may be a different story. Of course, Federer has to be beaten aswell but he has shown signs of fallibility, although not at Halle where he did not drop a service game. Andy Roddick as fourth favourite is an astonishing 25/1 and other big hitters come in at fancy odds like David Nalbandian at 50/1, who was a finalist in 2002, Ivo Karlovic at 60/1 and Mario Ancic at 80/1. It would certainly take a big hitter to break the trio at the top of the draw’s powerplay in the same way that Goran ivanisevic did in 2001 beating poor old Pat Rafter in four epic sest running into the Monday 6-7(10-12), 7-6(7-5), 6-4, 6-2. Sadly oneperson who won’t be there who might just have fit that bill is the Australian losing finalist Frenchman Jo-Wilfried whoi has a knee injury.

All the Wimbeldon odds are here
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Wimbledon odds

2008-06-17T06:37:00.000-07:00

The young aspirant Nicole Vaidisova, pictured here and that old war horse Amelie Mauresmo are both 40/1 which shows the accordion style open nature of tennis betting these days. Either or both could be a surprise package and could certainly cause an upset. Martina Hingis is 100/1.
There are however probably only six or maybe seven players capable. Sharapova’s conqueror in Paris the gritty Dinara Safina is 25/1 as is the impressive Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova. But on grass neiother of the Williams sisters can be discoutned and Serena despatached Sharapova earlier in the season. She is second favourite at 4/1 and Venus fourth favourite at 6/1. Between them in the betting comes the new star of women’s tennis Ana Ivanovic, winner in Paris, semi finalist here last year and with the only real question against here being whether the faster courts will level the playing field against her. She says not.
And then there is Maria, piqued for sure by her defeat in Paris, back on the surface on which she feels most comfortabkle. For her and for Ivanovic Wimbledon will be the main ambition of the summer along with the Olympic games. How far the stardom has eroded her edge to win or how far she feels that the need to prove her credibility at the game that has brought her supermodel riches is really important anymore may be at the heart of what unfurls.
One thing is for sure. It will be the most glamorous Wimbledon for years.
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Petr Czech - it was the ball

2008-06-17T06:27:00.000-07:00

The great Petr Czech, looking here more like an incarnation of Arnold Scharznegger although Terminated is more the case than Terminator. He had an explanation for dropping the ball. He had an explanation for dropping the ball. "It was wet!"
Although pre-tournament there was a lot of discussion among keepers as to the aerodynamics of this ball and fears that long range shots would curl and dip. Michael Ballack showed that was possible for the Germans putting the Austrians out last night with a 35 yard screamer from a free kick, but largely goals have not come that way. Czech explained that he had tried to catch the ball and fluffed it when he should have punched it. All of which might not have mattered if the Turks had not also banged another two quick goals past him to pinch a slot against a Croatia team that are growing in confidence and self esteem under a mix of Slaven Bilic's tactics and naked patriotism.
Turkey are 18/1 to beat Croatia 2/1
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That's a load of Tosh, dad

2008-06-16T06:12:00.000-07:00

Oh, no. The odds actually were 29/1. That your team, your much vaunted team the Czech Repuiblic would go two goals to the good ahead, even though the weakest part of their game was in attack. The quarter finals did not so much as beckon but the door was wide open. Just hop over the threshold. But holay we are winning. And then the greatest goalkeeper on the planet drops the ball (just like he did at Highbury) and bingo the Turks whistle in three goals and you are out out out. Well my daughter it is like this, sometimes in footbally, unexpected things happen, even when you wear your biggest, grandest hat and get all that lovely face paint on, the team just goes out and plays like...lemons. Baaaaaaaaggghhhhhhhhhhh

More fans

2008-06-16T06:02:00.001-07:00

Well if there is one thing that England can learn from Euro 2008 - apart from how to play football, of course, then it is how to get dressed up for a game. Just getting the T shirt out is just an old slob's way of supporting. You need facepaint like this Turkish fan who went blushed red and had the star and crescent emblazoned on his bald head. And this Greek girl managed to find a good use for the national flag. But then what is the city symbol and flag for Grimsby, or Leeds, or Swindon anyway...pork pie hats? Some teams are easy although maybe Arsenal should lay off the Gunners imagery. Chelsea could have fur hats, United baseball caps, Liverpool could adopt Punch and Judy puppets. We think Manchester City fans would look lovely in sarongs too.

New dawn in men's tennis

2008-06-16T06:00:00.001-07:00

The history books will dryly record that Rafael Nadal won the Stella Artois Queens final against Novak Djojkovic 7-6 (8/6), 7-5. but no one who saw it was in any doubt that a new chapter in men’s tennis is unfolding. A repeat at Wimbledon would be a treat and Nadal knows that if either of them can beat The Federation who did not drop a service game in Halle, Germany that beating the Australian Open champion again will call for all his resources. And Wimbledon would be over five sets. Given the tempo and fire these two engendered on Sunday afternoon who kbnows how many more twists there could be in such molten pot.
Nadal is the first Spaniard to win on this surface since Andreas Gimeno in 1972. He is also the first player to win Queen’s after just winning Roland Garros, since the start of this tournament 30 years ago.

Italy expects....

2008-06-13T09:08:00.001-07:00

mwah mwah

Il serioso

France v Holland: the fans view

2008-06-13T09:04:00.000-07:00

Anna Keothanavong, British number one, 499/1 to win Wimbledon

2008-06-13T07:59:00.000-07:00

Sadly the English number one Anne Keothavong is bottom of the Wimbledon betting at an astonishing 490/1 against her winning the title this year. She was originally from Laos but raised and still lives in Hackney and has career winnings to date of £350,00 which is not bad. She is in fact the first British girl to earn her place automatically in the Wimbledon draw since Sam Smith in 1999 and thanks to some wins and finals in smaller tournaments has broken into the top 100. The bad news is…she does not like playing on grass.
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Great boy fans

2008-06-13T06:44:00.000-07:00

Do you like my tattoos...freaky

This chap is actually support the Czech Republic, although he looks like a Celtic relation of a Scottish supporter

That's pretty wicked face painting job, look at the forehead...scary

Steve MacLaren - you should have been here, mate

2008-06-13T06:42:00.000-07:00

Ex England boss Steve MacLaren having to endure the humiliation of commentating on Croatia v Germany. At least Steve Croatia showed they are good team so there is some consolation give than Spain ran Russia ragged 4-1. Time to get a new day-job, sunshine - in the sunshine so you don't need an umbrella.

Great girl fans

2008-06-13T06:36:00.000-07:00

No prizes for guessing who she is backing

This girl is supporting Austria who squeaked the draw thank to Howard Webb awarding a controversial 92nd minute penalty

All this football has gone to my head

2008-06-13T06:31:00.000-07:00

A Polish fan with magnificent face painting job...unfortunately he had to watch them draw to Austria thanks to a last minute penalty

Crouching Tiger, hidden line

2008-06-13T06:23:00.000-07:00

Tiger is back. The US Open. Surgery on his knee but such a hot hot favourite that he is almost out of site. He is already 7/4 for the British Open

but that makes orther players very interesting bets wirth Justin Rose at 24/1, Luke Donald 49/1, Ian Poulter 79/1 - all of which is much more attractive than a punt on ther Grand National. Last year's US Open winner Angel Carera is 49/1. You read it first here.

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Gimme, Gimme the ball

2008-06-13T06:19:00.000-07:00

Antje Roeder of Germany waits for the ball during a match against Mexico at the FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour Grand Slam in Berlin on Wedesday...looks like the Petr Czech of the beach volleball world

There's another Euros going on...

2008-06-13T06:15:00.000-07:00

This is the other Euros...beach volleyball in Germany. This lot unfortubnately are not competing they are just the razzmatazz. There are 32 men's and women's teams playing for a total of €600,000 Euros in prize money until 15.

Nude glamour golfer quiz!

2008-06-10T05:01:00.000-07:00

So here is an interesting little quiz to test you knowledgeable boys and girls...which professional woman's golfer also poses nude for her own calendars which you can buy on the net...a few clues

She was born in France, is Italian but lives in Monaco

She has a BA in marketing from UCLA

She counts the Internet as one of her interests

Her best result was second in the Catalunia Ladies Masters in 2005

She said of her profile: “I’m strongly convinced that women’s golf needs more visibility and glamour and to present itself in a new, younger and intriguing way. In the last few years women’s golf has made some giant steps but the road is still long. I wish that my calendars could bring more notoriety and a bigger diffusion to the sport I play and I love so much.”

She appeared (clothed) in Playboy April 2008 as Europe's sexiest golfer-ess

Check her out here http://www.sophie-sandolo.nl/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/

Green is the colour

2008-06-10T04:48:00.000-07:00

Notice this chap's hat is also shaped like a football. Singing along with his Holland team as they dismantle Italy in the first game of the Euro 2008. There is a curious aside to the Group of Death with just a one strip of colour seperating the three key teams - red, white, blue, green - perm your choice

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life

2008-06-10T04:46:00.000-07:00

Italy and Holland fans painted up for the big match...before the Catenaccio era was blisteringly brough to an end by a display by the modern Dutch masters 3-0.

3-0

2008-06-10T04:34:00.000-07:00

Even if it is a bit grainy in this blow-up the look of sheer angst on Italian keeper Gianluigo Buffon says it all. Skipper for the night after Canavaro's injury, the world champions crash to an inspired Holland team. From 15/1 the Dutch are now 6/1 to win. The Italians are down to 10/1.

Long live football! Love live the Dutch

2008-06-10T03:45:00.000-07:00

This was the moment last night that Real Madrid and Holland's Wesley Sneijder finished off the perfect team goal that had flashed from a goal line clearance at one end to the Italian net at the other in less than 15 seconds and made it 2-0.

The politics of European soccer changed. A seismic shift in the tectonic plates of the beautiful game. And the Italian house came down. After decades of catenaccio, strong arm defence, niggling, nasty midfield, histrionic gamesmanship, sharp incisive striking, the Dutch showed there is another way to play. To play and to win. This was the first Dutch victory over Italy since the 1978 World Cup.

The Dutch express of the early 90s was derailed at Wembley by Terry Venables England at Euro 1996 - 12 years and 10 days ago - with four goals two from Alan Shearer and two from Teddy Sheringham. Last night was the renaissance. After more than a decade of paranoia, schizophrenia, introspection, valium, Proxac and other nuerosis like fear of flying, a Dutch side emerged from its cocoon to show why they are one of the spiritual fathers of world soccer. Like the Brazilians, they bring another dimension to the modern game. Even if beating Italy was a one – off, they left their mark. Dutch football was here on June 9, 2008. Enjoy.

They were lucky. The Italians were unlucky. After so many offsides that have been down to the width of an elbow, a toe, a lock of hair, Ruud Van Nistelrooy was offside by an avenue, a motorway, the Atlantic ocean of space. As the Daily Telegraph put it, he was almost in Austria. But the flag stayed down. The goal stood. Apparently the fact that Christian Panucci was comatose knocked off the picth by his own goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon meant Fifa regulation 11, sub-clause 11 passed apparently mysteriously five years ago, says he was played onside. This must be the first time such a rule was actually enmforced. Throughout, the Swedish referee Peter Fröjdfeldt, was supremely lenient and let the game flow to increasing Italian chagrin in the second half. Sweet revenge for all those teams over the years that have suffered from over zealous refereeing as the Italisn strove to break up a game.

The victory was no more than the Dutch deserved after rolling the Italians back, like so much bedding back on themselves And for once the Italians to whom playing from the back was never an issue, were undone.

In a sense the mood of the match surrounded the superbly fit RuudVan Nistelrooy. In the 18th minute he burst through, caught his foot on the diving Buffoon but instead of falling as he might have done in the old days at Old Trafford he struggled gainfully for his footing and caught the ball on the byline but missed the chance of a penalty or an open goal. After the second goal, he could have had another bursting past the muscle of Marco Materazzi but only to shoot at Buffoon who saved it with an ankle.

And then there were two goals of sublime team play. Both came from goal line clearances. Giovanni van Bronckhorst, saved at one end, sprinted the length of the field crossed to the dynamic Dirk Kuyt who sent an angled ball in for an inspired conversion by an on rushing Wesley Sneijder. The second came after Edwin Van De Saar had saved brilliantly from a 30 yard free kick by Andrea Pirlo. The ball spiralled in the air was booted clear to another orange shirt. Again Van Bronckhorst was quickest up the field and set up Kuyt, who was denied by Buffon, but recovered, and chipped across the box, where it was headed in by Van Bronckhorst.

This is not strictly a team like those of Johan Cryuff or Ruud Gullit of the days of total football. It was a team in almost a mirror inversion of the Jose Mourinho Chelsea. Where Mourinho with his defensive mind set stuffed the midfield and moved forward like a tank with midfield runners and flying wingers and the brute brilliance of Drogba, here Van Basten had only two in the midfield, Nigel de Jong and the massive Orlando Engelaar holding the play, breaking it up and bringing everyone else into the game. It was a 4-2-3-1 formation. When the Dutch broke they did not attack down one side of the field, but both sides at once. They crossed from one side of the pitch to the other for both goals while running the length of it and could have come in from either side.

It was some stuff. And they ran. My did they run. By the end they had run Italy ragged despite the subtle beautiful threat posed by the substitute Del Piero towards the end. But even then players like Boulhrarouz who had looked clodden and out of his depth in the Premiership filled in at the right back slot which has become such a strange poisoned chalice at Chelsea and played with the heart of a lion or like a boulder rolled into the doorway of the defence. There was another ex-Chelsea right back on display in Panucci who again looked another class to his days at Stamford Bridge, except when he went missing for the offside goal.

And Italy were unlucky, not just for the first goal but on another day they might have scored but even if the result had been 3-3 it would not have altered the reality that here was a team capable and willing to depose the champions. Italy were good which makes the victory all the more important. Compared to the vapid French a few hours ealier Italy had tenacity, flying full backs that ran to the byline, they had in Luca Toni a big centre forward in Drogba fashion who was always going to be troublesome. The obituaries on them can wait. At 10/1 they are not a bad bet to still win the championship, especially after such a rude wake up call. If they have the legs in this ageing team, they probably have the nous and the acumen.

And then there were the fans too. Two thirds of the stadium ws orange. The Dutch were dressed in wigs and painted faces so much so the authorities had issued a warning about smoking (and this the Eurioopean country that discovered and introduced tobacco in the 1600s). They were there because they wanted to see it. They saw it. They sang: Always Look On the Bright Side Of Life.

Great fans

2008-06-09T08:53:00.000-07:00

All the anguish and hope of the football fan is caught in this Polish fan's face. Much fancied and psyched up ahead of the game but sloppy defending that had Alan Hansen wringgling in his armchair saw the accomplished looking Germans open their account with a 2-0

Great fans

2008-06-09T08:42:00.000-07:00

Warpaint. Poor Turkey. They have the passion. If the fans could enter the Euro 2008 Fan championship they might be favourties. But against an inspired Portugal their neat tidy passing did not have the Brazilian style thrust and flair that Felipe Scolari has imbued in his talented young team. Deco, Pepe, Ronaldo ran riot and posted a message that maybe this could be their year. Their odds are down to 6.00, Turkey's to 100.00

Wimbledon odds

2008-06-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

Straight sets. Against Federer. Fourth time in a row. Never lost. Next time on grass. The early Wimbeldon betting has him only as third favourite behind Novak Djokovic at 4.00, Nadal at 6.00, Roddick at 16.00 and a bad tempered Andy Murray at 18.00 who needs to make some more friends. If there is room for a surprise outside the Frenchman J0-Wilfred Tsonga is 25.00. Old Wimbeldon watchers though could be interested in the long odds being offered on the likes of Lleyton Hewitt at 60.00 and also Marcos Baghdatis

Dinara shines like a saphire

2008-06-05T06:42:00.000-07:00

Dinara Safina strikes a pose of ultimate concentration in her quarter final against Elena Dementieva 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-0 to set up an all Russian semi final with 2004 U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova. "She has many lives, so I have to be careful with her," said Svetlana. Dinara has already accounted for Maria Sharapova and whoever wins the semi finals there will be a Serb v Russia summit for woman's clay court tennis underlining the increasing power of the former eastern bloc countries. Strange that the same does not seem to be happening to the same extent in the men's game.

Jelena's well heeled

2008-06-05T06:39:00.001-07:00

The interesting thing about this gratuitous photo call for Serbia's Jelena Jankovic

is the shoes. Why you may wonder does a 5.10 tennis diva wear heels that from the look of them would not be out of place in a sado masochism movie. The answer of course might be that her semi final opponent at Roland Garros is fellow Serb Ana Ivanovich who has a good three inches on her. Maybe they could settle it playing in heels for a change?

England Captain plays and misses

2008-06-05T06:34:00.000-07:00

This is the once elegant Michaerl Vaughan doing what he seems to do best these days...bowled bowled O'Brien for 16 off
22 balls...a bit of a nothing innings from the England Captain who may be scratching around on the county circuit if any of the other batsmen were any good

Keeping an eye on the Federation

2008-06-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

Girlfried Mirka Vavrinec is a frequent spectator at Roger Federer matches, usually with a handsome blade in toe. Or maybe she is just keeping an eye on the prize money. She is a former Slovakian tennis player herself until a foot injury ended her professional career. The couple met at the 2000 Olympics and have been togetehr ever since. Her parents have a jewellery business, so a ring would not be a problem - that's a hint Roger.

Mummy's boy

2008-06-05T06:22:00.000-07:00

Arsenal's Togolese born striker Emmanuel Adebayor hugs his mother as he attends a ceremony to receive the 2007 BBC African Footballer of the Year trophy in the capital Lome. Strange that in a year of the African Nations Cup which featured some awesome shooting (and missing) that a player who was not there should win it ahead of Drogba, Essien, Eto' etc but African politics are often difficult to comprehend. Emmanuel's mum though deserves an award for best matching hat and dress and best knitted tablecloth

How's that for biceps

2008-06-04T03:44:00.000-07:00

Rafael Nadal slams a fore hand winner loping and curling down the line at the French Open. The sheer force of his play is obvious from his physique. He may have the grace and balance of a great sportsman but his sheer muscle strength sets him out. Beyond timing and speed there is the anvil might of his body that he throws into his baseline game. The long curved back lift and sweeping follow through drive the ball not just at speed but also with spin so it fizzes through the air in a deceptive curve and spits off the slow red lay of Roland Garros. Like Maria Sharapova, he is a sportsman that the camera loves, each game leaving not just memorable shots in the midn of the people lucky enough to see him live, but also memorably caught on digital imagery. On his website www.rafaelnadal.com it says that every shot has a bit of him in it and it is easy enough to believe that such psychology has an element of truth to it. Although, like gthe web site, it is still a bit work in progress. Check the latest odds on him here. He looks a good bet for Wimbledon.

Mwa Mwa

2008-06-03T09:10:00.000-07:00

Thanks guys...

Or these?

2008-06-03T09:08:00.000-07:00

Faithless fans as we are, this shapely ankle belongs to...interestingly we cut this one down from a whole high quality photo, where Maria's was very poor quality, Ana Ivanovic looks virgin white and just ready for some sponsor to write a slogan across it

Kiss my shoes

2008-06-03T09:05:00.000-07:00

Just to illustrate that this site's obsession with Maria Sharapova is an Internet phenomenon, this piocture was circulating on the wire yesterday following her exit from the French Open...

Ana's a new favourite

2008-06-02T10:15:00.000-07:00

Last year's finalist who lost to Justine Henin Ana Ivanovic is 6.1 Serbian born in Belgrade and stands against the Russian tide.
The essential things you need to know about her are...

Favourite food - sushi

Favourite drink - water
No, she is not a babe at all and in 2007 started studying finance online which she may well need pretty soon. She is superstitious and refuses to walk on the lines of the court and tends to always eat in the same restaurants each night which will be good news for the Feng Shui branch at Wimbledon. Before a match she plays sudoko or backgammon.

She says she is "strong-willed, sensitive, determined and extremely competitive". Already she is 8/1 to pick up the Wimbledon title. You can bet on her here

A champion in defeat

2008-06-02T09:58:00.000-07:00

So Roland Garros eludes her again. Her determination and steely will drip from her brow in the moment of defeat. The queen is deposed, at least for a few weeks. The virtual icon is undone by the wet thick clay of the real world and an opponent with nothing to lose. The sealed lips could tell a story...perhaps best say nothing as in truth she has struggled on the surface, although as ever the camera adores her.

Gael blows a storm

2008-06-02T09:21:00.000-07:00

Gael Monfils's victory over Austria's Juergen Melzer meant five Frenchmen had reached the last 16 for the first time since 1971, but he is the only still standing at close of play and is obviously delighted.
Montfils is i nthe same side of the draw as Roger Federer so a high noon awaits the young Frenchman there.
Ranked 69 in ther world he has amassed 639 points this year compared to Federer's 6675

Ronaldo tops the Euro betting

2008-06-02T09:12:00.000-07:00

Forty two goal Cristian Ronaldo is joint favourtie to repeat the feat at the Euro 2008. He squares up as the bookies favourite alongside Germany's Miroslav Klose and liverpool's Fernando Torres all at 9/1 today.

Behind them are Italy's Luca Toni14/1 and Holland's Ruud Van Nistelrooy at 15/1.

But there are some interesting bets taking place with the option to bet on doubles and trebles for different goalscorers for each team at http://www.betclick.com/sport/EventDetail.aspx?id=122&t=Ftb_Ttg

Maria tumbles out of Paris

2008-06-02T09:06:00.000-07:00

Top seed, top babe, top blonde...exit stage right.

Dinara Safina proved her title credentials with a 6-7 (6-8) 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 win over Maria Sharapova in the fourth round of the French Open.
Sharapova had struggled for form in her opening three matches and many tipped her fellow Russian to cause an upset.
And after letting two set points slip by in the opener, Safina saved a match point in the second set before battling through in a tense decider.
She will play fellow Russian Elena Dementieva in the quarter-finals. The wet red clay of Roland Garros was always going to test the mettle of the supernova that is Sharapova these days. Wait for the revenge on grass at Wimbeldon and DecoTurf’s multi-layer cushion tennis at Beijing which is also used for the US Open and Davis Cup.

Lightning Bolt smashes 100 metre world record

2008-06-02T05:12:00.000-07:00

His name is the Bolt and like a thunder-bolt he smashed the world the world 100 metres record on Saturday.

The 21 year old Usain Bolt left the field gasping behind him as he notched the distance in 9.72 seconds on a rain drenched New York's Randall Island.

At 6.5 looking ungainly and awkward he split a field that included the US world champion Tyson Gray. Technically, the Jamaican had a poor start, seemed to even ease up at the end and in fact specialises in the 200 metres, but on Saturday's showing even at such a raw point in his development, people are starting to wonder what he might achieve next...

Bet on Sharapova

2008-05-29T09:55:00.001-07:00

Maria Sharapova is an amazing 1/10 to win the first set against Mattek tonight. And 1/10 to win the second set. To get more interesting odds you have to try Live Betting set by set and work up an accumulator.

There is a free prize draw all next week for any £5 sports bet on the French tennis plus a £10 free bet for new members here.

No odds as yet on what dress she wears tonight...

But is she any good at tennis?

2008-05-29T06:40:00.000-07:00

Matt Cronin

filed this Special to FOXSports.com

You can look at Maria Sharapova's chances at her first French Open title in four different ways.

She's not fast or balanced enough to win seven matches on red clay against the world's best.

She's merely using this Grand Slam as a tune-up for another assault on the Wimbledon title.

She's the most mentally tough player out there and will out-gut the rest of the tour regardless of surface.

She's improved her overall arsenal enough and has figured out how to use her best weapons on clay to be able to snare the title.
On Wednesday, little became clear in Sharapova's quest to be the queen of Paris as she needed two hours and 28 minutes to best the unknown Evgeniya Rodina 6-1, 3-6, 8-6.

It was a brutal day all around for the world's No. 1 Sharapova, who could take little out of the experience save for that she grabbed a gutsy win while playing nowhere near her best. For much of the second and third set, she looked like the underdog against the scrappy Rodina. She bore through to victory, but only because her vast experience at negotiating the big points overcame a complete lack of rhythm.

"It was survival," said her coach, Michael Joyce. "That's all you can do. She got through and lives to play another day."

Had Sharapova lost, she would have become the first top-seeded woman at the French Open to fall in the first round in the Open era. With the wind blowing the top layer of clay off an already soft, rain-soaked court and Rodina playing steady until she had clear shots at the line, Sharapova was faced with the decision to try and hit out, or to move the ball around until her foe cracked.

She mostly chose the latter, which is not her game. Plagued by 17 double faults and an inability to read her foe's serve, all she could do was scratch and claw and face Rodina down during the big points, which she did at 4-4 in the third set when she fought off three break points with two service winners and a crosscourt forehand winner.

She struggled with her shot selection, her footwork and her forehand. But despite that, Sharapova was more secure mentally than her opponent and at the majors, that's of utmost importance. She finally broke Rodina to win the contest when she ripped a crosscourt backhand winner, and the expression on her face wasn't one of joy, but pure relief.

"Usually I'm a pretty good wind player," Sharapova said. "I adjust very well, because maybe 95% of the time my ball goes through the wind. And when you are out there and you're playing 14-and-under tennis and you're pushing the balls, then you create many problems. You start thinking your opponent is doing something out of the ordinary. Well, what she's doing is she's making you hit another ball and she's forcing you to hit an error. You start thinking and you are becoming tentative and you're not playing your game."

Evgeniya Rodina made one of the best tennis players in the world look like one of the worst. (PIERRE VERDY/AFP / Getty Images)

If recent Roland Garros history teaches us anything, it's that tall, movement-challenged powerballers like Sharapova have the odds stacked seriously against them. In fact, the last player of similar height and velocity-based game to even reach the final was Venus Williams in 2002, when she fell to her more sure-footed sister, Serena. Venus is far faster than the Russian and still couldn't pull off the win.

If Sharapova can take inspiration from anyone over the past decade, it would be from Mary Pierce, a true tear-the-cover-off-the-ball player with limited speed who was able to thrill Paris by winning the 2000 title.

But Pierce had two built-in advantages over Sharapova: she trained and lived at Roland Garros as a kid and was much more familiar with the surface and her French mother played Fed Cup for France, someone Sharapova had solidly in her corner.

Sharapova's resume on clay this year is mixed: she won her first medium-sized clay court title at Amelia Island with gutsy wins over Anabel Medina Garrigues and Alona Bondarenko; took a three-set loss to Serena in the quarters of Charleston; and scored marathon wins in Rome before she pulled out of her semifinal match against Jelena Jankovic with a calf injury.

When she's winning on dirt, it's not coming easily, but no one is rolling over her either. The WTA Tour is not the ATP tour, where fast-court specialists (like Andy Roddick) can be easily had by a low-ranked clay-court specialist. Sharapova might be vulnerable to dirt lovers in the top 35, but unless there are gale force winds howling like on Wednesday, she's too mentally tough for the rest, even if she once described herself on clay as a "cow on ice."

If she's to advance further, she has to be more imposing.

"I was quite tentative," Sharapova said. "I was giving her the opportunities to take control of the points, and not really playing the way I play my game. I was trying to maybe be somebody else that I'm not, and that can get you into trouble. You should be doing the things that you do best."

Sharapova stands reasonably tall in a Russian-packed top half of the draw. In the fourth round, she could face her quick-footed friend, Maria Kirilenko, or the woman who stunned her two years ago at the French, Dinara Safina, who just came off the biggest title run in her career in Berlin.

Even if she avenges the ghost of Safina (who came back from a 1-5 deficit against her in the third set in what was the first significant choke of Sharapova's career), she may have to confront another Russian, the revived Elena Dementieva, whom she owns a good record against but who reached the 2004 final here. There are numerous other rousing Russian possibilities in the semis: Svetlana Kuznetsova, the rugged 2006 finalist; the smart sixth seed Anna Chakvetadze; or the enigmatic veteran, Nadia Petrova, who has reached the French semis twice.

Speed, sliding, and standout defense are all key elements to clay-court success. As a stubborn teenager, Sharapova vowed not make any sizeable adjustments to her game on dirt, but as she matured, she changed her mind and has added more topspin to her forehand, makes better use of her drop shot, and in general, constructs points better.

But if the three-time Grand Slam champion wants to become only the seventh player in the Open Era to win all four majors, she's going to have to firm up her power base. She's not going to go much further at Roland Garros if she can't keep her opponents on their heels.

"I don't think I'd be able to get away with not playing and not serving that well with a different opponent and somebody that has more experience, a top player," Sharapova said. "But I'll work on it and it will be better. Sometimes you end a match and you win it and you come off the court and you say, it's pretty impressive considering you didn't play your best tennis and you played against somebody that was very consistent. You can be proud of yourself, but you obviously know you have to get better and it's going to get tougher, and you're going to step up to the line and you have to challenge them."

The big M

2008-05-29T06:27:00.000-07:00

For $49 you can smell as fragrant as Maria Sharapova with her exclusive range of Parlux perfumes. This is a distinction she shares with Andy Roddick, logically, and Chelsea Hilton, illogically. “They will make you feel feminine and confident with its fresh fragrant garden florals appeal…perfect for day and night”.

Earlier this month the enigma that is Maria came to the fore when she refused to do a promotional event for the World Tennis Association in Rome saying she was only there to play tennis. They threatened to fine her $300,000 and a compromise was brokered with a 90 minute promotion, with Maria dressed in a swimsuit. The authorities are as confused as everyone else by this icon who is still playing tennis and caught in the vortex of a global media machine and dealing with everything with the kind of calm, sang froid that might make her a great poker player.

She won on clay in Amelia Island this year, lost to Serena Williams in Georgia, played some long games in Rome before pulling out with a pulled muscle or wanted to make a point...The WTA may have felt that it has helped make her what she is, but it is Sony Eriksson for whom she is a mobile ambassador who have made her the richest girl in the game and it is Tiffany’s who like to style her jewellery alongside Nike designing her dresses. After Wimbledon the richest sports woman in the world heads for the Olympic ideal in Beijing. Despite all this, she is favourite to win at Roland Garros and favourite to win at Wimbledon. She is already 2/1 to win on grass which has some sense to it. To win on the slow clay at Paris is perhaps another story. But then with Maria, it is very often, another story

But then this girl is just turned 21 in April. She opens her MySpace page with this explanation of her down home, orange county values.

“For those who don't know me, I'm Maria Sharapova. I'm a Women’s Pro Tennis Player. My Ranking is Number 1. I am 21 Years Old, Living in Bradenton, Florida. I love playing tennis and practicing on my game.

“I started hitting tennis balls at the age of four. At the age of six, I participated in a exhibition in Moscow that featured Martina Navratilova. So, at the age of nine, I began training at Nick Bollettieris Tennis Academy located in Brandenton, Florida, Therefore, during those two years, I was separated from my mother for two year due to visa restrictions and finances. …During my leisure time off court, my interest includes modeling in fashion, singing, jazz dancing and movies. In 2004 I won Wimbledon!”

For her foundation to help disadvantaged children get a start in the world she spells the mission out like this

M otivate children worldwide
A ddress thier individual strengths and weaknesses
R ealize thier potential
I ntitate, and
A chevie their dreams

That’s her spelling, not mine, but then my Russian is crap.

Maria sells her bits

2008-05-29T05:45:00.000-07:00

Another aspect to the Maria Sharapova phenomenon is that Maria has been auctioning off her old clothes to support her Foundation which supports a community projects in the nuclear disaster zone around Chernobyl and other ideas to empower disenfranchised children. Quite what and why people buy into this extremely sensible act of charity is revealed off her web site. Her 2007 Wimbledon winning dress sold for $4,200. For you fashionistas here are some other examples:

Signed 2007 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Calendar - $551.00
Nike Visor - Signed - $770.00
2007 Australian Open Nike Match Dress -$7,700.00

Pair of Nike Shoes - $520.00
2007 French Open Dress $3,000.00
2008 Australian Open Nike Dress $10,000.00

Missed him

2008-05-29T04:40:00.000-07:00

Wayne Rooney does what he does best, keeping well out of trouble... well on the ball at any rate as last night he seemed to have the old red mist descending on him in the second half. His tackling is starting to remind older readers of Chopper Harris and was it not Rooney who was at the back supposedly marking Croatia when they eleminated England? The boy wonder has been getting a bad press for someone so supremely gifted and who has illuminated Manchester United's season with movement and passing of the top drawer. OK, so he did not score 42 goals, but he was still probably the difference between United and Chelsea, and Arsenal et al and when he keeps his shirt on he is a joy to watch. He is getting married to Coleen in July which could see the stag and hen nights of all time. Perhaps she can calm him down a bit. (Coleen? Ed)

Redemption man

2008-05-29T04:35:00.000-07:00

One week after slipping and missing the penalty that would have won the European Cup, John Terry steals into the curve of a David Beckham cross and celebrates getting the English captaincy back with a trademark goal. Before the succession of injuries that have dogged him in the last 15 months, this was a regular one two of the old Jose Mourinho era and a bet on John Terry to score was a Stamford Bridge banker.

War paint

2008-05-29T04:32:00.000-07:00

The best painted fan at Wembley last night singing along to the Land of the Home and the Brave, although she looks like she has a touch of the Alohas to her...

Here's one in your eye, Joe

2008-05-29T04:25:00.000-07:00

There is a bit of a twinkle in Welsh boxer Joe Calzaghe's eye as he arrived at the movie premiere of 88 Minutes with girlfriend Jo-Emma Larvin and sons Conner - left - and Joseph at the Planet Hollywood hotel and casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, April 16, 2008. Jo-Emma's web site has her down as an ac tress specialising in parts like barmaid, dolly and dancer. She lists belly dancing as a special skill. Asked if she would appear nude, she answers, somewhat unfortunately "only professionally"!

Fast talker

2008-05-28T09:01:00.000-07:00

This is Roger Federer's girlfriend Mirka Vavrinec being chatted up by ace Moto GP rider Valentino Rossi who might just be worth as much as the Fed himself. Funnily enough she bears an uncanny facial resemblance to Maria Sharapova. Or is that Princess Anne?

Scarlet woman

2008-05-28T08:08:00.001-07:00

Ever since Marilyn Monroe stood over the gush of air from under the street grills, photographers have dreamed of finding another woman who could play the role. This one does not appear in the collection of 2994 photos on her own official site but is in the style of Kim Bassinger in Basic Instinct. In case you did not guess it is the richest girl in sport.

Ave ave Maria

2008-05-28T06:44:00.000-07:00

Maria Sharapova survived a third set tie break scare to keep her Roland Garros ambitions alive amid the showers in Paris but her tennis career is starting to look like a side show to other activities. Her iconic looks, svelte limbs, graceful blonde hair, sharp eyes seem to bend the camera to its will. Suddenly we have Maria not just the on court tennis player, but Maria the fashion icon who has the deal with Tiffany's Paris to make her earrings and a pearl button for her exclusive Nike dress. We have Maria holding her birthday party at Tejune New York. We have Maria the richest girl in world sport, bar none.

This girl turned 21 on April 22. Her fashion birthday party was hosted for by TAG Heueur watches. She is sponsored by Sony Eriksson. Her web site http://www.mariasharapova.com/has flash and wallpapers, videos, her blog and forums. This girl is turning into the face of the summer and probably the face or maybe the body of the decade. And she is still reassuringly good at tennis. Already she is 2/1 to win Wimbledon.

There is something in the way she handles herself that is immediately recognisable. Sometimes it is not even remotely elegant, she can look like a gangling young giraffe on court, when she launches herself into her serve she has both feet off the ground and is propelling herself like a child jumping on a bed, or when she wins a point and hunches in on herself in that familiar I-am-not-praying rather I-am-piston-machine like gesture of triumph clutching her racket like it is a teddy bear. What she never does is look like the blonde from next door. It is always Maria. Maria S. Or as the tennis commentators still have it onomatopoeically Shara-pova. It is the pout of the lips, but also the length of her legs. And there is a certain style too as photographers try to manipulate her into poses where her dress will float up or let her knickers slip into lens. She is not an arse girl, not like the iconic girl who scratches her naked bum playing tennis that bedecked a generation of student dorms, but rather a front girl. That is, deliberately or not, her best side and will be the images that stay with the legend as it unfolds.

And a legend is emerging before the world, a legend that rarely speaks, although when she does it is unerringly sensible.

Have you been in love?

I am waiting for it to come to me

Would you pose nude for Playboy

They have not asked me.

The legend that has started to move beyond the confines of the tennis court. Babe or bitch? Who knows?

The truth is she is neither. Like with her tennis she is resilient, committed, feet on the ground and although she comes across visually as the dizzy air head blonde she is in reality hard, sensible, practical, all traits that were instilled in her from her childhood in Siberia. The truth is she is a lot more mature than most girls on the circuit, most girls of her age. The image is the product of manipulation. And this steely approach to everything Maria has made her the richest sportswoman on the planet.

The full background is capably captured by Paul Kimmage for Times Online here . Read and it be amazed as much by her life as her tennis

Time waits for no one

2008-05-28T06:33:00.000-07:00

Riders cycle in front of a military museum of the Spanish civil war during the 163-km fifth stage of the Tour of Catalonia cycling race from Asco to El Vendrell May 23, 2008. Cofidis' Sylvain Chavanel of France won the stage and Credit Agricole's Remi Pauriol of France retains the leader's jersey.
The Volta a Catalunya is the third oldest cycling stage race in the world (1911), only behind the Tour de France (1903) and the Giro d'Italia (1909).

The big cheese

2008-05-27T07:41:00.000-07:00

No, this is not a bunch of youths fleeing the latest outbreak of knife violence or even questioning by ant-terrorist police but the equally lunatic practice held on the bank holiday each year at Tetbury in Gloucestershire of racing a cheddar down a steep hill. But if you look closely on the top right, the cheese, that big beige wheel, itself is about to catch up fast...the cheese usually wins, although technically the winner in blustering winds of up to 50mph and hailing rain was, Christopher Anderson from Brockworth, who predictably perhaps left the Cooper's Hill site in an ambulance after appearing to be knocked out as he descended the slope in pursuit of a Double Gloucester cheese. The 19-year-old was later released from hospital with just cuts and bruises clutching his prized cheese.

On the red clay of Roland Garros

2008-05-27T07:34:00.000-07:00

Serbia's Jelena Jankovic at full stretch for her first round victory 7-6 (7/3), 6-2 over Romanian Monica Niculescu. The 23-year-old, a semi-finalist last year, took 92 minutes to see off her 86th-ranked opponent.

The third seed is one of the more fancied players in the draw since the retirement of Justine Henin. The rich red clay slows games and so favours those with stamina and long back of court baseline return games in the Nadal mode.

Never mind the Hat, what about the trousers

2008-05-27T07:21:00.000-07:00

Never mind the fist work, how's about that for a pair of trousers. Ricky Hatton on his way to a points decision at City of Manchester Stadium where he broke all UK records for attendance at a live boxing match attracting 55,000 fans. The luminescent light blue evocativly echoed the City colours too. As predicted, his opponent Mexican Juan Lazcano was tough, durable, brave and would not go over.

The light-welter division currently now has no fewer than five accredited champions
WBA – Andreas Kotelnik
WBC – Timothy Bradley
IBF – Paul Malignaggi
WBO – Ricardo Torres
IBO – Ricky Hatton

So it is an interesting scenario as to who will dare to take on whom next

Muscle man

2008-05-23T07:10:00.000-07:00

Ricky Hatton at the weigh in for his comeback fight against Mexican Juan Lazcano at the City of Manchester Stadium. The fight could break all UK box office records. Currently the most watched live boxing spectacle in Britain was Nigel Benn against Chris Eubank at Old Trafford in October 1993. Last year 35,000 saw Joe Calzaghe beat Peter Manfredo at the Millenium Stadium. The City of Manchester stadium cold possibly hold 55,000. Lazcano is a stayer having only been stopped once in four losses, so his chin may test the Hitman’s power, but at 32 the feeling is that he is passed his best…or maybe he isn’t?

Watching the races, Monaco style

2008-05-23T03:09:00.000-07:00

A Ferrari whizzes past in practise for the Monaco Grand Prix while the girls catch a bit of a sunbathe

Guess that's why they call it the blues

2008-05-23T03:04:00.000-07:00

John Terry unconsolable after missing the penalty that would have won the European Champions League for Chelsea

That's it. Over and out.

2008-05-22T08:34:00.000-07:00

Avram Grant surely shelled out £15million on Nicolas Anelka for just moments like these...

Oh no, no, no, no (part two)

2008-05-22T08:32:00.000-07:00

Of all the guys you might want to take a penalty kick to win the European Cup, John Terry would probably figure but ...wrong. Come to think of it

Didier Droga might have been another if he had not been red carded for flicking a bif dust of Vidic's face

Oh no, no, no, no (part one)

2008-05-22T08:30:00.000-07:00

Petr Czech goes the wrong way in the penalty shootout. His luminescent orange is supposedly scientifically proven to make opponents think he is bigger than he is though he only fooled Ronaldo of the penalty takers. By the same token it might be worth a punt on Holland for the Euro 2008

Thanks, Frank

2008-05-22T08:28:00.000-07:00

Chelsea this year has been their tactic of playing quickly and really getting into opponents before they are ready, often with huge kicks from Petr Czech. Here it was Essien charging from right back and letting loose a vicious forty yarder which picks up a deflection and falls into the on running Frank Lampard's path. Edwin and Rio look well horrified.

1-0 to United

2008-05-22T08:26:00.000-07:00

It was an amazing leap and a precision accurate header. The redoutable Michael Essien is dwarfed by the jump and sinking in the dodgy Moscow turf. Carlos Tevez menacingly cruises the penalty spot like a mad dog looking for scraps

Boy that feels good

2008-05-22T08:24:00.000-07:00

That leap. The celebration leap from Cristian Ronaldo was actually higher than the one he did to score as the Chelsea defence found itself stuck i nthe boggy Russian grass

The night the gods shone on Manchester

2008-05-22T08:18:00.000-07:00

Manchester United turn Moscow into tinseltown after their epic 6-5 penalty shoot out victory over. Honour was probably satsified on all sides but the gods appear to have shone on the reds who after a scintillating first half looked to be falling apart as Chelsea attacked in wave upon wave...

Cheesey Hamburger for Jol

2008-05-21T08:41:00.000-07:00

Martin Jol reflects quetly before the press conference to announce him as Bundesliga side Hamburg's new boss. As at Spurs this is another one of those could-you-please-get-us-into-the-top-four-jobs, but with bitte und danke sehr, sehr viel. Hamburg finished the season fourth ten points off third placed Schalke and 22 points behind Bayern. Good defensively, it is goals he needs to bring with him. A couple of good front men and they could be a handful. Maybe Darren Bent might be on his list? Suggestions on a postcard please

All fired up for the Indy 500

2008-05-21T08:17:00.000-07:00

Team driver Phil Giebler was released from the hospital but not cleared to drive because of a cervical sprain from this awesome crash during practice for the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday.

It may be a contentious race. Giebler was rookie of the year last year and old pros are warning new drivers to take it carefully but the line up has 11 rookies or almost a third of the field.
There have been thirteen crashes since practice started on May 4 - nine of them by rookies.

Former 2004 Indy winner Buddy Rice said: “I think some get it and some don't. "This place demands a lot of respect. It will do a lot of things you have never seen a track do. "When you get your bell rung by this place, you start really paying attention. That's why you see the veterans progressively get to the front,”

This year Rice, who started from the pole in his win four years ago, qualified for his fifth Indy start at 222.101 mph, giving him a spot in the middle of the sixth row. Eight of the rookies will be starting behind him.

Great fan pictures

2008-05-20T10:36:00.000-07:00

Pompey fan at the FA Cup Final. Portsmouth won 1-0 with a goal from Kanu

Tibetans hold their own Olympics

2008-05-20T10:33:00.000-07:00

And no suprises as to which sports to choose... A Tibetan exile tries out her air gun in the northern hill town of Dharamsala . Exiles are holding their symbolic Tibetan Olympics 2008 from May 15 to 25 in Dharamsala as a protest against the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing and the crackdown on Tibet by the Chinese authorities.

Champions League Final betting

2008-05-20T03:00:00.000-07:00

The big occassion and you can lob the form book into the bin. These are not teams that like each other so pride will be as sharp as Gordon Ramsay's knives and one moment of folly, a referee's decision (and this is the guy who gave Liverpool the goal that wasn't against Chelsea in 2005), a vision of greatness. Who knows. United have only actually beaten Chelsea three times in the last eight matches at Old Trafford. The last time United won at Stamford Bridge was April 2002. Chelsea have played miserably for much of the season but in April looked back on song where United were hanging in. And of the two Chelsea are better away from home. All the bet prices are here.

Well done, Alex

2008-05-20T02:55:00.000-07:00

Now there's the look of a man who's done a good job...if Chelsea don't derail him in Moscow tomorrow night

Not so serene, Serena

2008-05-20T02:53:00.000-07:00

Revving up for Wimbledon...Serena Williams has lost none of that will to win...She is 3.5 odds on favoutie to win at Roland Garros next week

Horse breath

2008-05-20T02:51:00.000-07:00

Blow hard...you have to raise a sweat on the gallops for the Kentucky Derby

Oh, Ashley, how could you...

2008-04-28T08:33:00.000-07:00

Proof perhaps that Ashley Cole is not the brightest boy in the Premier League. This is Mrs Cole. Cheryl. FHM has just rated her in the top 109 most goregeous women on the planet. Anyone want to disasgree?

Spot the trophy

2008-04-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

Luca Toni, reportedly on €5.5m a year with the Bundesliga trophy and girlfriend Marta Ceccheto. She is on the left

Mr and Mrs Frank Ribery

2008-04-28T08:25:00.000-07:00

So which is the trophy Frank? Wahiba Ribery seems to sport a very similar nose to her French ace husband. But then you know what they say about dogs. The trophy is for winning the Bundesliga 2007-8

Victorious Galatasary fans

2008-04-28T07:50:00.000-07:00

Victorious Galatasary fans celebrate title victory over rivals Fernabache...