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• Wightman expects big things at Paris Olympics amid Team GB 'golden era'

  Jake Wightman believes Team GB athletics are enjoying a 'golden era' and could record one of their best medal hauls at the Olympic Games in Paris.

  Wightman won 1,500m gold at the 2022 World Championships, the first global gold won by a Brit in a middle-distance event since Sebastian Coe's 1,500m gold at the 1984 Olympics. 

  The Scot has been tipped to compete for a medal in the French capital, having also taken bronze at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and silver at the European Championships that same year.

  With Team GB looking to better their total of five athletics medals from the delayed 2020 Tokyo Games, Wightman thinks an impressive haul could be on the cards.

  "I think collectively it should be one of the best games we could have in athletics. I think it's a bit of a golden era at the moment," he told Stats Perform.

  "A lot of people are shaping up to give the best performance they'll ever have. Sadly, the state of global athletics is that it's probably in a bit of a golden era as well. 

  "Every event has some pretty tough competitors to beat, but if you look at all the British athletes that could medal, then you could end up with a huge tally, not just of medals, but of golds."

  Wightman finished 10th in the 1,500m final in Tokyo three years ago, when crowds were limited to fellow athletes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

  He is excited to soak up a different type of atmosphere this time around, adding: "The fact that the last one was Tokyo meant people were going to be watching it in the early hours, so it probably didn't get the reach from home that it could have. 

  "Whereas this one, an hour's difference, there's no excuse for the British population to get behind it and to support our athletes.

  "Personally, it's a chance for me to go out there and try and see what I can do. Once you get to a final, who knows what you could do from there. So for me, it's just taking it each day at a time."

  Wightman's father Geoff was also an endurance runner, representing England at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland. 

  Having moved into television since his retirement, he was also on commentary duties when his son triumphed at the World Championships, a moment Wightman remembers fondly.

  "It's pretty unique within sport that your dad is the one that's commentating. He's done it for a very long time," he said.

  "For me to win a global title with him on the mic was probably the dream scenario for him. It was a special moment."

• Nayoka Clunis's Olympic dreams shattered by administrative oversight: CAS declares 'No Jurisdiction'

  In a decisive ruling on Monday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) Ad Hoc Division concluded that it lacks jurisdiction to hear the dispute brought forward by Jamaican hammer thrower Nayoka Clunis. The decision came after a detailed examination of the timeline and events leading up to the application filed by Clunis on July 18, 2024.

  On July 4, 2024, Clunis's name was omitted from the list sent to World Athletics (WA). By July 7, she was informed by the JAAA that her name was missing from the list, and on July 8, WA confirmed that her name could not be added. Despite Clunis's contention that the dispute only crystallized when she received detailed submissions from WA on July 19, the CAS determined that the dispute had arisen earlier.

  The CAS proceedings began on July 18, 2024, with a videoconference hearing on July 20. The parties involved included Clunis and her counsel Dr Emir Crowne and Sayeed Bernard, representatives from the JAAA, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), WA, and the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA). The panel, consisting of President Dr. Annabelle Bennett and arbitrators Ms. Carine Dupeyron and Ms. Kristen Thorsness OLY, found that the timeline of events placed the dispute outside their jurisdiction.

  Clunis's submission stated that due to an administrative error and the impact of Hurricane Beryl, her name was not submitted to WA for the Paris Olympic Games. She argued that this exceptional situation warranted the CAS Ad Hoc Division's intervention to prevent an unjust outcome. However, the IOC and WA contested the jurisdiction, pointing out that the dispute arose before the 10-day window preceding the Opening Ceremony.

  The CAS panel reviewed the chronology of events, noting key dates such as World Athletics (WA’s) confirmation of qualified athletes on July 5 and the JAAA’s attempts to rectify the error from July 6 onwards. The dispute, according to the CAS, did not arise when Clunis received the detailed correspondence but rather when she was first informed of the omission.

  Ultimately, the CAS concluded that it had no jurisdiction as the dispute arose before the 10-day period leading up to the Olympics. The panel acknowledged the unfairness to Clunis, who was deprived of the opportunity to compete due to circumstances beyond her control. Despite recognizing the hardship, the CAS emphasized that jurisdiction could not be assumed where it does not exist under the rules.

  Mike Morgan and Ben Cisneros appeared for the JAAA; Antonio Rigozzi and Eolos Rigopoulos for the IOC, Ian Wilkson for the JOA and Catherine Pitre (Counsel) and expert witnesses Carlo de Angeli and Marton Gyulai for World Athletics.

   

• Verstappen fumes at 's***' Red Bull strategy after finishing fifth at Hungarian Grand Prix

  Max Verstappen raged at Red Bull's strategy after finishing fifth at the Hungarian Grand Prix, declaring the team are no longer able to rely on a pace advantage.

  Verstappen recorded his joint second-worst finish of the year at the Hungaroring as Oscar Piastri led Lando Norris in a McLaren one-two.

  The three-time world champion's race was defined by a collision with old rival Lewis Hamilton, coming into contact with the Mercedes on lap 63 when he overshot a corner on an attempted overtake.

  Verstappen vented his frustrations over team radio, telling race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase: "You gave me this s*** strategy. I'm trying to rescue what's left."

  Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, the Dutchman refused to apologise for those comments as he said: "I don't think we need to apologise. 

  "I just think we need to do a better job. I don't know why people think you cannot be vocal on a radio. This is a sport. If some people don't like that, then stay home."

  Verstappen, who also dropped below Charles Leclerc late on, continued: "I'm not happy.

  "On a day when we're lacking pace compared to McLaren, you hope we do the right things with strategy, which was not the case.

  "You can't rely on a little pace advantage. Maybe last year when the car was quite a lot faster than everyone else, but in the position we are in now, we can't do that.

  "Naturally that frustrates me because I want things to be done better. I'm realistic.

  "Today we couldn't have beaten the McLarens, but a P3 was on the cards if we were on it a bit more."