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• On this day 2013: Six-time Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy announces retirement

  Six-time Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy announced his retirement from competitive cycling 11 years ago, admitting: “I know it is the right decision.”

  The 37-year-old Scot had been contemplating continuing until the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow but revealed he was quitting the sport at a press conference in Edinburgh on April 18, 2013.

  Hoy was Britain’s most decorated Olympian after his haul of two gold medals at London 2012 saw him surpass rower Sir Steve Redgrave’s record of five, although he was overtaken by former team-mate Sir Jason Kenny in 2021.

  In explaining his decision, Hoy said: “I think in sport at the highest level you’re dealing in such small margins and you can tell when you’re good but not good enough.

  “It was very emotional coming in there (to the press conference) and I was trying not to watch the video montage with the sad music.

  “I don’t want it to be a sad moment.

  “I want to celebrate it and be happy because I know it is the right decision.

  “It’s a decision that I didn’t take lightly and I thought about it very hard.”

  As well as six Olympic titles, Hoy’s 13-year career featured 11 world titles and two Commonwealth crowns.

  Hoy’s final race was the Olympic Keirin final on August 7, 2012 – on the final day of the London 2012 track programme.

  Following retirement, Hoy pursued his passion for motorsport, including competing in the Le Mans 24 Hours, while he has also written children’s books.

  In February 2024, the 48-year-old announced he was undergoing treatment for cancer.

• Coventry’s play-off hopes all but over after Birmingham loss – Mark Robins

  Coventry manager Mark Robins wrote off his side’s Sky Bet Championship play-off hopes after their 3-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Birmingham.

  An own goal by Bobby Thomas in the 12th minute and strikes from Ivan Sunjic and Jay Stansfield condemned the visitors to a third loss in four games.

  Coupled with Norwich’s 1-0 win at Preston, it left the Sky Blues in eighth place, eight points adrift of the top six with four games left.

  They have an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United next weekend and next play in the Championship on April 24 when they host Hull.

  “We had to pick points up in three out of the four games we have lost and you can’t do that if you are realistically challenging, so it’s massively disappointing,” said Robins.

  “We have given ourselves a mountain to climb. We could be 12 points adrift (of the top six) by the time we next play (in the league) and Norwich are too good.

  “We didn’t start at all. Initially we had a couple of shots dragged wide, but they were first to the ball in every challenge. Every first contact they seemed to win.

  “It looked like a lethargic performance and people made poor choices and it cost us three goals.

  “They took the lead from an own goal where we didn’t get close enough to the attacker (Keshi Anderson), then for the second one, (goalkeeper) Brad Collins was unsighted.

  “For the third goal we got dragged all over the place because we weren’t talking and that smacks of fatigue.”

  The victory was Birmingham’s biggest win since October – and only their second in 11 games – and it moved them out of the relegation zone after Bristol City denied Huddersfield victory at the death.

  Blues led when Anderson’s cross hit Thomas and deflected in at the near post.

  Sunjic doubled the hosts’ lead with a rasping low drive that caught Collins flat-footed after a corner and Stansfield made it 3-0 when he clipped the ball past Collins following a superb diagonal run behind the defence which was spotted by Tyler Roberts on the left.

  The closest Coventry came to scoring came in the 20th minute when Haji Wright’s lob hit the bar after keeper John Ruddy headed away a clearance.

  Birmingham interim manager Gary Rowett challenged his side to repeat the performance for the next three games to avoid relegation.

  “That was a much better performance and it had a lot more of what we expect and, lo and behold, you get your rewards,” he said.

  “You might not find yourself solid defensively, but you find yourself scoring and creating chances.

  “Some of the senior lads held the others to account in midweek (after a 1-0 home defeat to Cardiff) and everyone has taken that on board, which is what should happen. I thought we showed it.

  “Now we’ve got to replicate that in the last three games.”

  Rowett also praised the positive impact of the 26,811 crowd.

  “It’s been no coincidence we’ve had five full houses this season and won all five games,” he added.

  “If that doesn’t show the power of our fan base, nothing will. They were brilliant – the atmosphere was incredible.

  “It was nice to reward that loyalty with a performance that had a similar edge.”

• Michael Van Gerwen ends Luke Littler’s Premier League winning run

  Michael Van Gerwen ended Luke Littler’s Premier League winning run to claim victory on night 11 in Birmingham.

  Littler had been targeting a third consecutive nightly victory following back-to-back successes in Belfast and Manchester, which put him top of the table.

  The 17-year-old had looked to be building up another head of steam after earlier edging out Rob Cross in a last-leg decider and then holding off a stirring fightback from world champion Luke Humphries to win their latest epic tussle 6-5 – landing five maximums with a match-average of just over 107.

  Dutchman Van Gerwen, though, capitalised on a low-key start to the final, before eventually breaking twice to close out a 6-3 win and rekindle his own play-off ambitions.

  Van Gerwen, the defending Premier League champion, had avoided another early exit after coming from behind to beat Nathan Aspinall in his first match and then eased past Michael Smith 6-4.

  Littler remains top of the table with 26 points, two clear of Humphries, while Van Gerwen sits third on 22 and Aspinall fourth.

  Van Gerwen hopes he can now head into night 12 in Rotterdam with renewed confidence.

  “I have made it hard for myself to be fair,” the Dutchman said on Sky Sports, “But more importantly it is about how you bounce back.

  “I know the last few weeks have not been great for me, but to come back with a win tonight feels good for me.”

  Van Gerwen added: “I had to go really deep tonight and at the end, Luke and I neither really played our A-game, but when you win nights like this, it is not always about who is playing well – sometimes it is who can handle it.

  “I had a struggling few weeks, but to bounce back with a win like this gives me confidence of course.

  “People will write you off when you off when you lose, that is how things go, but I believed in my own opportunities and you need to make sure you keep your mind focused.

  “I know there is more to come – the fighting spirit in my body is still there. I need to make sure I am good for next week.”

  In the night’s opening quarter-final at the Utilita Arena, Humphries – who enjoyed European Tour success at the recent German Darts Grand Prix in Munich – came from 4-1 down to claim five straight legs and beat Peter Wright, who remains cut adrift at the bottom of the table.

  Littler had been trailing 3-1 and then survived a match dart as he eventually battled past Cross, before former world champion Smith put last week’s defeat by Gerwyn Price behind him with a 6-3 win over the Welshman.

  Van Gerwen landed an impressive 152 checkout as he came from 4-2 behind to take control of his quarter-final against Aspinall, going on to close out a much-needed 6-4 win.