Olympics

That ethic helped the 2011 World 100m champion become the fastest man in the world, not named Usain Bolt. His 9.69/19.26 over the 100 and 200m is testament to that fact. In fact, had it not been for the presence of Bolt, Blake might well have been a double Olympic champion in 2012 when his 9.75 and 19.44 saw him win double silver.

However, the past few years have been unkind to the man formerly known as The Beast. Hamstring injuries have slowed Blake to the point where he missed out on winning medals in 2016 in Rio and 2017 at the World Championships in London.

The Tokyo 2020 Games would have been another opportunity for the 30-year-old Blake to re-establish himself as one of the world’s best sprinters. However, with the Games being postponed to the summer of 2021, Blake is leaning once again on that work ethic. While the pandemic rages across the globe, Blake is putting the work he deems essential to get back to being at his best.

“My career in athletics has been a dream come true.  For that, I give thanks every day.  But with injuries things get difficult. Yet, I don't stop, I keep pushing to come back,” Blake said on Instagram on Wednesday under a 90-second video of him executing some excruciating leg exercises under the supervision of his coach Gregory Little.

“With Coronavirus everything is postponed right now I am making the most of it.  I am using this time to talk with my body and unlock the power of my mind to conquer and overcome what has been holding me back on the track. I am working hard to get back to that dangerous form.”

Perrett will be back at the Lee Valley Velodrome this weekend for the final two rounds of the UCI Track Champions League, 11 months after a stunning victory in the men’s scratch race here helped him force his way on to Britain’s podium programme.

At the time, Perrett had quit his job and was self-funding in a bid to prove himself to the national team coaches, and his Champions League display came after he had taken a points race fifth on his World Championships debut and won the British Madison title alongside Mark Stewart.

It worked and in January he was invited in to train full-time as part of the elite programme.

But nothing has come easily for Perrett and a fresh setback was just ahead. In March he was diagnosed with glandular fever as a result of the Epstein-Barr virus.

“Initially I was just incredibly ill,” Perrett told the PA news agency. “I had tonsillitis-esque symptoms and incredible fatigue. I’d go for a walk around the block, come back and sleep for an hour. It was horrible. You feel a bit helpless.”

Had it happened while Perrett was funding himself, the illness could have ended his elite racing career.

“I would have been absolutely screwed,” he said. “If I’d not been on the programme I wouldn’t have been able to race, I wouldn’t even have been able to work because I was so tired. It could have ended everything.

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“That’s a massive benefit of being on the programme. You get so much help from the doctors, the coaches. They’ve not been pushy. They’ve said, ‘Look, we need to rebuild your foundations and then build you back up.’ That’s what I’m hoping to do this winter.”

Perrett believes he is still missing around five per cent of his threshold – a massive number at the elite end.

Yet he was able to claim another fifth place in the points race at the World Championships in Glasgow and earn another invitation to the Champions League, the glitzy made-for-television series which is in its third season.

Perrett struggled for results in the opening three rounds in Mallorca, Berlin and Paris as he works his way back up to speed, but will come to London for the sold-out finale on Friday and Saturday buoyed by memories of last December.

“I’ve been a bit ropey after a bit of time off after the worlds but I’ve loved being back (in the Champions League),” he said. “It’s good fun, the racing and the atmosphere.”

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There will be plenty of British interest in London, with defending champion Katie Archibald top of the women’s endurance standings, Emma Finucane third in the women’s sprint, and Will Tidball and Stewart fourth and fifth respectively in the men’s endurance.

Perrett’s goal is to keep plugging away for form as he eyes selection for the Euros in January. He remains an outsider for Paris as only four male endurance riders will go, meaning those four must be competitive in the team pursuit, but a chance is all he asks for.

“At the moment I haven’t got the results or the experience at that level of team pursuiting,” he said. “Only four riders go to the Olympics. It’s a crazy stupid rule. The Madison is a 200-lap, 50 minute event but to get into that you have to be able to get into the one that lasts three minutes 45 seconds.

“It’s a stupid rule but it’s the one you have to aim towards…But I have an opportunity and as long as I get the opportunity, that’s what matters.”

Running in semifinal 3, Williams stopped the clock at 50.11 seconds to place third. She smashed the 43-year-old Barbadian record of 51.04 seconds. It is also, of course, her new personal best.

Stephenie Ann McPherson from Jamaica won the race with a personal best of 49.34 while veteran Allison Felix was second with a season's best of 49.89.

Despite Williams' valiant run, she did not advance to the final. Her time is now the fastest run by an athlete to not make it to the final.

The finals of the women's 400 metres will take place on Friday.

The reigning Wimbledon champion recovered from losing the opening set at Roland-Garros, where she eventually prevailed 4-6 6-0 7-6 (7-3) in just under three hours.

Krejcikova has fond memories of Court Philippe-Chatrier, lifting the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen for her maiden singles slam three years ago, but fell behind after she was broken three times in the opening set.

Nevertheless, the Czech came roaring back with a bagel to set up a deciding set, which came down to a tie-break, before she held her nerve to set up a second-round clash with Wang Xinyu.

Data Debrief: Eight straight wins for Krejcikova

It was not easy, but the reigning Wimbledon champion eventually built on her momentum from SW19, stretching her singles winning streak to eight matches.

Although beaten by eventual gold medallist Belinda Bencic in round three in Tokyo three years ago, Krejcikova did triumph in the women's doubles alongside compatriot Katerina Siniakova.

She will hope that previous podium experience will help drive her towards crowning a memorable year with another gold in Paris. 

The American, who has the right to appeal against the ruling made by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), stands to miss the Olympic Games in Tokyo next year. 

The 24-year-old was provisionally suspended in June for whereabouts failures but disputed the third of those. He took responsibility for the first missed test on January 16, 2019 and claimed the second, on April 26 of the same year, was due to "a filing failure". 

Coleman said he was only notified of the third missed test on December 10, the following day. He said he had been out Christmas shopping but returned during the one-hour window to be tested and questioned why he was not contacted by telephone by the tester. 

In a lengthy Twitter post, he said: "I've been contacted by phone literally every other time I've been tested. Literally, Idk [I don't know] why this time was different. 

"He even said he couldn't hear the doorbell so why wouldn't you call me? Why would AIU tell him not to contact me? He put down the wrong address btw [by the way] so who knows if he even came to my spot. 

"That night I have multiple receipts of going shopping then getting food and coming back during this time, so I don't think he stayed for an hour and WHY WOULD AIU TELL HIM NOT TO CALL ME?! 

"The AIU has to stop playing, man. Two days later they came back to test me…and followed the normal protocol and called and of course there were no issues with my test. And I've been tested multiple times since, even during quarantine. 

"But of course that doesn't matter, and the fact that I have never taken drugs doesn't matter." 

However, a tribunal rejected Coleman's defence that he returned home within the one-hour period, citing shopping receipts showing he purchased 16 items from a Walmart after the time slot. 

"We regret to say that we do not think there is any mitigation which can fairly be relied upon to reduce the sanction from the two-year period," the tribunal said. 

"Unfortunately, we see this case as involving behaviour by the athlete as very careless at best and reckless at worst." 

Coleman won gold in the 100m and 4x100m relay in Doha last year, having claimed silver in each event in London in 2017, beating Usain Bolt into third in the individual final. 

He ran 9.76 seconds in Qatar in September 2019, the sixth-fastest 100m time in history and the third-fastest by an American, behind Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay. 

He set a new world record over 60m indoors in February 2018, clocking a time of 6.34 seconds in Albuquerque. 

The American missed three drugs tests in the space of a year and was initially hit with a two-year suspension after a ruling from the Athletics Integrity Unit.

Coleman took responsibility for a first missed test on January 16, 2019, and claimed the second, on April 26 of the same year, was due to a "filing failure".

He said he was only notified about a third missed test in December 2019, the following day. Coleman said he had been out Christmas shopping but had returned during the one-hour window to be tested and questioned why he was not contacted by telephone by the tester.

Coleman took his challenge to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which has partially upheld the 25-year-old's appeal.

CAS has ruled Coleman's ban, which was originally due to end on May 13, 2022, will now expire on November 14. It means he will miss the Olympics, which run from July 23 to August 8 in Tokyo.

However, he will be able to defend his world title in Oregon next year.

A CAS statement read: "In coming to its decision, the CAS Panel determined that Christian Coleman had indeed committed an Anti-Doping Rule Violation under Article 2.4 of the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules, but found the athlete's degree of negligence to be lower than that established in the Challenged Decision: the Athlete was not at home during the 60-minute time slot on the day of the out-of-competition doping control (9 December 2019), as he should have been, and the Athlete should have been on 'high-alert' on that day, given the two existing whereabout failures against him. 

"On the other hand, however, had the Athlete been called by the Doping Control Officer, he would have been able to return to his apartment during the 60-minute window and a test would have been concluded. Although a telephone call during the 60-minute window was not required by the rules, it was nevertheless reasonable for the Athlete to expect such a call, as a matter of standard practice among other Doping Control Officers.

"In conclusion, the CAS Panel determined that an 18-month period of ineligibility was the appropriate sanction in the circumstances."

The 28-year-old two-time Olympic champion has announced that she is pregnant with her first child with husband Estonian decathlete Maicel Uibo, whom she married in 2017.

She made the announcement on Instagram on Saturday.

“New Year, New Blessing. We can’t wait to meet our little bundle of joy. Happy sixth anniversary,” she posted underneath pictures of her and her husband.

Miller-Uibo won Olympic 400 titles at the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro and defended her title at the 2020 Toyko Games held in 2021. She won her first world title in the 400m in Eugene, Oregon in 2022 after being the runner-up in Beijing in 2015 and Doha in 2019 when she was sensationally beaten by Salwa Eid Naser, who ran a blistering 48.14, the third-fastest time in history.

Last season, Miller-Uibo stated that 2022 was the last time she was going to be running the 400m and stepping down to the 200m.

The IOC confirmed on Sunday it was considering pushing back the Olympics amid the coronavirus pandemic and would make a decision in the next four weeks.

However, cancellation of the Tokyo Games is not on the agenda, it said.

The announcement came after USA Track and Field and USA Swimming urged for a postponement of the event.

Following the news, World Athletics revealed it had written to the IOC with feedback from its athletes, and it was keen to look for a new date in the calendar.

"World Athletics welcomes discussions with the IOC to postpone the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and wrote to the IOC earlier today to relay this feedback from its area presidents, council and athletes," a statement read.

"We stand ready to work with the IOC and all sport on an alternative date."

The Games is currently scheduled to start on July 24.

Olympian and World Championship gold medalist Chrisann Gordon-Powell has officially announced her retirement from track and field, closing a decorated career that saw her shine on the global stage. The Jamaican 400m/800m specialist, who has represented her country with distinction for more than a decade, revealed that she is stepping away from competition to pursue a career in nursing.

Dacres, who has already qualified for the Olympic Games, revealed his wrist in a cast on social media after reportedly undergoing surgery on the weekend while announcing that he had started his own YouTube channel.

With the rescheduled 2020 Olympic set to run from July 23 to August 8, 2021, a mere eight months away, Dacres could be hard-pressed to be healthy in time as there is the chance that his repaired wrist could take as long as six months to heal. There is chance, however, that he could be fully healed before then.

His coach, Julian Robinson is optimistic that the 2018 Commonwealth champion and national record holder will be able to recover in time.

“There is some physical work that we can do on the intervening period. We will try and maximize that,” he said.

“However, the throwing part will have to start after he has recovered. When that is, I don’t know. Time will tell. I am praying that its sooner rather than later.”

The affable 26-year-old is Jamaica’s most successful thrower. He became the first Jamaican to win a World Championship medal when he claimed silver in Doha in 2019. In 2018, perhaps his most successful year as a professional athlete, Dacres won gold medals at the Commonwealth Games in Australia and the NACAC Championships in Toronto, Canada.

He is the 2015 Pan Am Games champion and has a national record of 70.78m set in Rabat on July 16 2019. He is the only Jamaican to ever throw 70m in the men’s discus.

The highly rated Butcher’s Barrel is known for sourcing the finest USDA Choice, Prime, and wagyu beef. The restaurant’s dinner menu boasts a variety of premium dishes, including the Delmonico ribeye, foie gras burger, Colorado bison burger, and Nebraska wagyu burger, making it a go-to destination for steak lovers.

Blake, who in October 2023 launched the Revierie Purified Water brand in Kingston, has been venturing into various business opportunities as he plans for life after athletics. The Butcher’s Barrel marks his first major restaurant venture in the United States.

“If you’re in Florida, come have dinner with me on October 8th, reserve your table early or just come by,” Blake posted on Instagram on Sunday. The post accompanied a brief video where Blake personally invited patrons to the restaurant, saying, "You’re officially invited to my restaurant launch on October 8th in Fort Lauderdale. Come on down."

As he transitions from his illustrious career on the track to life as a businessman, Blake's latest venture signals his growing focus on expanding his brand and interests beyond sport. Fans and food lovers alike are now eagerly anticipating the launch of the Butcher’s Barrel in Fort Lauderdale, where Blake will bring his signature energy to the world of fine dining.

The Serb secured the top prize at the Games for the first time, completing a career golden slam with a 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-2) victory.

Alcaraz, who beat Djokovic at Wimbledon to claim his second grand slam of the season last month, was reduced to tears after the match, having to step away from his post-match interview.

Djokovic was full of praise for the Spaniard's performance and predicted the silver medal is only the start of his success at the Olympics.

Another epic final, Carlos Alcaraz. El Clasico," Djokovic posted on X.

"Congratulations to you and your team for an excellent Olympics. Considering your age, your energy and the way you play, you probably have 20 more Olympics ahead of you.

"Your gold will come. Until next time, amigo."

Djokovic's appearance in Paris was his fifth Games for Serbia, and he became just the second player in the Open Era to win all four grand slams, the Olympics gold medal and the ATP Tour Finals, after Andre Agassi.

He is also the oldest player to secure the top prize in either the men's or women's singles at 37 years and 74 days since the sport returned to the schedule in 1988. 

China's Zheng, who ousted world number one and three-time reigning French Open champion Iga Swiatek at Roland-Garros en route to the final, prevailed 6-2 6-3 in Saturday's final.

It makes the 21-year-old the first Asian-born player to win gold in the women's or men's singles at the Games since tennis was first introduced to the Olympics in 1896.

Zheng started the encounter fiercely, earning an early break in the second game and raced into a 3-0 lead on Court PhilippeChatrier. 

The world number seven would stay in cruise control for the remainder of the opener, seeing out her service games before ending the set with another break. 

Zheng threatened to take the match away from Vekic in double quick time as she again found a swift break of serve in the second set.

Croatia's Vekic responded well, though, hitting back by reeling off back-to-back games.

However, a break at the fourth time of asking to make it 5-3 proved decisive for Zheng, who duly served out to clinch gold.

Data Debrief: 

Zheng's triumph saw her become the second player to win the women's singles at the Olympics on clay after Jennifer Capriati (1992), since the sport's reintroduction to the Games in 1988.

She has now won 28 matches out of 36 (77.77) on the surface since the start of 23. Among players with 10+ matches played on clay in that time, only three have a better win percentage - Swiatek (91.7%), Elena Rybakina (85.2%) and Aryna Sabalenka (80.6%).

Zheng is the first Chinese player in the Open Era to claim a medal in the women's or men's singles at the Olympics, while she also joined an elite list of women to have reached the finals of the Olympics and the Australian Open in the same season. 

Steffi Graf (1988), Justine Henin (2004), Maria Sharapova (2012) and Angelique Kerber (2016) are the other players to have achieved that feat.

The sixth seed took one hour and 50 minutes to get a 6-2 7-5 win on Court Philippe Chatrier, earning her first-ever win over Swiatek.

Zheng's last two matches have both lasted three hours, but there was no sign of tiredness as she quickly stated her intent.

An early break each had the players level at 2-2, but Swiatek lost her next two serves as well, with Zheng taking advantage of her uncharacteristic mistakes to take the first set after a four-game winning run. 

The Pole looked back to her usual best at the start of the second, racing into a 4-0 lead before stumbling again as Zheng's aggressive approach saw her claw back to level 4-4.

The reigning French Open champion then had no answers after edging in front again, losing her serve once more as Zheng won the final three games to book her place in the Olympics final.

She will play either Croatia's Donna Vekic or Slovakia's Anna Karolina Schmiedlova for the gold medal, while Swiatek could still take bronze.

Data Debrief: Zheng ends Swiatek's Roland-Garros run

Swiatek was the favourite to take the gold medal at the Olympics, especially considering her 20-match winning run on clay heading into the semi-finals.

Not only that, but she was unbeaten at Roland-Garros for 1,149 days, winning 25 consecutive matches, along with a 47-4 completed sets record during that span.

But, the five-time grand slam winner had no answers for Zheng on Thursday, who prevailed for the first time in seven meetings against Swiatek.