The head of Motorsport UK urged the government on Wednesday to spare Formula One from quarantine laws that threaten plans to stage a British Grand Prix this year.
Silverstone is planning to host two races behind closed doors this summer, subject to British government approval, to make up for some of the lost time in the 2020 F1 season with 10 races already either cancelled or postponed.
But Formula One said Tuesday the races would be "impossible" if overseas arrivals are not exempt from 14-day quarantine restrictions when entering the United Kingdom.
With the COVID-19 quarantine rules due to come into force on June 1, David Richards, chairman of Motorsport UK, called on the government to ensure two grands prix at the Silverstone circuit could go ahead as planned on July 26 and August 2.
"People forget that there is probably not one other sport that has such a big economic impact on this country as Formula One, in terms of the number of people employed here, either directly or ...

UK motorsport chief wants British Grand Prix to be spared quarantine laws

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Iconic Athletic Bilbao striker Aritz Aduriz announced on Wednesday that he has retired from professional football after revealing he needs a hip replacement.
Aduriz, 39, will be forever remembered in Bilbao for four glorious goals he banged past Barcelona while winning the 2015-2016 Supercup, and even last season he scored the goal that saw the Basques beat the Catalan giants in la Liga.
"This is how the road ends for me -- unforgettable and marvellous, from beginning to end," Aduriz said of his many seasons at Bilbao.
"The doctors told me to go see the surgeon, sooner rather than later, to get a prosthetic to replace my hip and to try and go about my everyday life, as normally as possible. Unfortunately, my body has said 'enough'."
Aduriz topped the La Liga scoring charts twice, first with 18 goals in the 2014-15 season and then with 20 the following campaign.
He was also twice Europa League top scorer, in 2015-16 with 10 goals and with eight -- joint with Lazio's Ciro Immobile -- ...

Hip replacement forces Bilbao hero Aduriz into retirement

The head of the team organising the 2022 World Cup pledged on Wednesday that they will run an "affordable" tournament in Qatar amid fears of a post-pandemic global recession.
"We have always said from day one this will be an affordable tournament; we want anyone who wants to be able to come to the World Cup to be able to come," said Hassan Al Thawadi, the secretary general of the supreme committee charged with delivering the tournament.
"We demonstrated that during the Club World Cup when we engaged with fans from all the different clubs, that the whole travel experience was affordable in terms of flights, in terms of accommodation."
Speaking at the LeadersWeek.direct conference Al Thawadi admitted he was worried about fans not being able to travel to the Middle East in an economy buffeted by the coronavirus crisis.
"There are significant implications for employment, livelihoods, and the problem we have today is, what is recovery going to look like?" asked Al Thawadi.
"It's all right .

Qatar aiming for 'affordable' 2022 World Cup amid global downturn

Watford defender Adrian Mariappa said news that he had tested positive for coronavirus came as a "big surprise" as he has felt no ill effects.
The 33-year-old was one of three positive tests at Watford with the other two among staff members.
The Hornets accounted for half the six COVID-19 cases detected from 748 tests of Premier League players and staff ahead of a return to training in small groups this week.
"Ever since I got my positive result back on Tuesday, I've been scratching my head to try to work out how I might have got coronavirus," Mariappa told The Telegraph.
"It was a big surprise because I haven't really left the house, apart from some exercise and the odd walk with the kids. I've mainly just been homeschooling and keeping fit."
Mariappa had been following a fitness programme prepared by the club without any trouble caused by the virus to his breathing.
"I've not had any symptoms and I've felt as fit as ever, probably fitter because I've been working really hard.
"I've .

Watford's Mariappa stunned by coronavirus diagnosis

The leader of the Taliban said on Wednesday that militants were committed to a landmark deal with the US, despite being accused of carrying out thousands of attacks in Afghanistan since it was signed.
In a rare message released ahead of the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan next week, Haibatullah Akhundzada urged Washington "not to waste" the opportunity offered by the deal to end America's longest war.
"The Islamic Emirate is committed to the agreement... and urges the other side to honour its own commitments and not allow this critical opportunity to go to waste," Akhundzada said in a statement, using the name the Taliban called Afghanistan when they were in power.
After months of negotiations, the Taliban and US signed a deal in February which stipulates Washington will withdraw all troops from Afghanistan by next year in return for security guarantees.
"I urge American officials to not afford anyone the opportunity to obstruct, delay and ultimately derail this ...

Afghan Taliban leader says committed to deal with US

Tottenham have launched an investigation after Ivory Coast defender Serge Aurier appeared to flout social-distancing rules for a third time by getting a haircut during the coronavirus lockdown.
Aurier posted an Instagram photo on Tuesday showing off his new haircut and tagged the barber Justin Carr in his post.
"Yes Sir @justscuts #LeCoiffeurEstBon?? (the hairdresser is good)" Aurier wrote next to the picture.
Hairdressers are closed in Britain in line with the government's rules on social distancing.
They are not expected to open again until at least July 4.
"We are investigating the circumstances and will deal with the incident appropriately," a Tottenham statement said on Wednesday.
Aurier has already been in trouble twice during the pandemic lockdown after going out for a run with a friend and training too close to Tottenham teammate Moussa Sissoko.
The 27-year-old and Sissoko apologised and made a donation to the National Health Service.
Tottenham have been plagued by ...

Spurs probe Aurier's third apparent lockdown breach

Zinedine Zidane expressed admiration at both the physical and mental form in which his Real Madrid players have returned from the coronavirus lockdown and vowed they would give everything to win a trophy.
"The players have worked well from home and that's why they have come back on great form, this is going to be crucial," Zidane said of their individual training plans.
"This week has been great because even working in small groups we can go further, work better, and next week will be even better."
Real are two points behind Barcelona in Spain's La Liga and the 12-time European champions also trail Manchester City after the first-leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
Frenchman Zidane led Madrid to three Champions League titles in his first tenure at the helm of the club and hopes to win something in his first full season back in charge.
"After almost 60 days everyone is happy to get back here and catch up with each other, and to play some football, which is what they all love," 

Zidane hails fit and ready Real Madrid

The coronavirus pandemic has forced the world's athletes to keep fit in confinement, and for top Iranian athlete Maryam Toosi, that has meant training on the rooftop of her apartment.
Toosi's exploits as a sprinter have made her a household name in the Islamic republic.
She holds Iran's records for 100, 200 and 400 metres and claimed two gold medals at the Asian Indoor Championships in 2012 and 2014.
But now the 31-year-old is confined to her home and has even taken to training on the roof of her apartment block in a bid to stay in shape.
"I train at home, in any space I can use, like the rooftop, inside the house or even in the alley next to the apartment," she told AFP.
"There's a green space there, and I train there when no one is around," said Toosi, who has 159,000 followers on Instagram.  Her apartment is in Shahr Ara, a densely populated neighbourhood of the sprawling capital where there are few open areas.
"We have to keep our strength up, because competition will start later .

Athletics star takes to rooftop to train in virus-hit Iran

German club Kaiserslautern said Wednesday it had halted team training after three suspected positive tests for coronavirus.
The four-time German champions, now in the third division, said the three people concerned will be re-tested during the day.
They, and anyone who came into contact with them, have been placed in strict quarantine.
The two top divisions of the Bundesliga resumed the season behind closed doors last weekend after a two-month suspension, but play in the third division is suspended until May 30.
Players, coaches and backroom staff are being regularly tested for the virus.
The German league has claimed its restart under stringent conditions that can serve as a blueprint for other leagues, but officials were forced to remind players of social distancing rules after several instances of hugging in goal celebrations in the weekend's matches.

Kaiserslautern halt training after suspected coronavirus cases

England defender Danny Rose says players are being treated like "lab rats" after Watford and Burnley revealed they were among the Premier League clubs affected by six positive tests for the coronavirus.
Teams have started socially-distanced training in small groups this week, but several Premier League stars have expressed concerns about plans to resume the season.
The Premier League conducted 748 tests on players and staff on Sunday and Monday as part of their bid to restart matches in June.
Burnley assistant manager Ian Woan, one unnamed Watford player and two members of the Vicarage Road staff tested positive in the first batch of medical checks.
While the positive test numbers were relatively low, Rose has joined Watford captain Troy Deeney and Manchester City pair Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling in speaking out about the potential health risks of pressing ahead with "Project Restart".
Rose, currently on loan at Newcastle from Tottenham, told the Lockdown Tactics podcast: ...

Rose says Premier League players treated like 'lab rats'

LG Group chairman Koo Gwang-mo apologised on Wednesday over two fatal accidents at LG Chem facilities in the past two weeks, reports said, including a gas leak in India that killed 12 people.
LG Group is the fourth-biggest of the chaebols, the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate business in South Korea, the world's 12th-largest economy.
LG Chem, the group's key subsidiary and South Korea's largest chemical company, is reeling from the deadly gas leak at its LG Polymers India subsidiary, which left 12 residents dead and saw more than 1,000 hospitalised.
On Wednesday, a fire broke out at LG Chem's plant in Seosan, around 120 kilometres south of Seoul, killing a researcher and injuring two workers.
"I express my deep condolences and consolation to victims and their families," Koo said at the Seosan plant, according to Yonhap news agency.
"I am very sorry for causing concern to many people," Koo added, noting that management felt "heavy responsibility" for the safety ...

LG chairman apologises over gas leak, fire

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin is confident "good old football with fans will come back very soon" despite the chaos caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Domestic and continental club competitions were halted across Europe in mid-March due to the COVID-19 crisis and Euro 2020 was postponed.
The Bundesliga made a successful return to action behind closed doors at the weekend and many other leagues are preparing to resume in front of empty stands, with Ceferin sure the situation will soon improve.
Asked whether he would bet a million dollars that Euro 2020 would be played in 2021, the chief of European football's governing body told the Guardian: "Yes, I would. I don't know why it wouldn't be.
"I don't think that this virus will last forever. I think it will (change) sooner than many think.
"I don't like this apocalyptic view that we have to wait for the second and third waves or even a fifth wave."
Ceferin said football would follow the recommendations of the authorities but he was ..

'Football with fans will be back soon,' says UEFA chief

Japan's beloved high-school summer baseball tournament has been cancelled for the first time since World War II due to the coronavirus -- causing heartache across the country and millions of dollars in lost revenue.
It is hard to over-emphasise the importance of the tournament, which attracts wall-to-wall coverage on Japan's national broadcaster NHK and has launched the careers of many Japanese baseball stars.
Masahiro Tanaka of the New York Yankees, Yu Darvish of the Chicago Cubs, and Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels all earned their spurs in the tournament played at Koshien Stadium near the western city of Osaka.
The high-school tournament "was scheduled for a 16-day run from Monday, August 10... but we have decided to cancel the tournament," the Japan High School Baseball Federation said in a brief statement on Wednesday.
The competition is seen as even more important than the professional leagues in the baseball-mad country -- the local Hanshin Tigers pro team have to play .

Japan scraps beloved high-school baseball tournament over virus

Roberto Martinez has extended his contract as Belgium coach until 2022 to take him up to the World Cup in Qatar, the Belgian football federation announced Wednesday.
The 46-year-old former Everton manager took over as head coach of the Belgian national side in 2016, leading them to third in the 2018 World Cup.
The Spaniard's initial contract ran until Euro 2020, which has been postponed a year because of the coronavirus pandemic.
He has overseen the Red Devils in 43 games in total, notching up 34 wins, six draws and just three defeats, leaving Belgium as FIFA's number one ranked team.
Martinez kicked off his coaching career with Swansea in 2007 before moving on to Wigan in 2009, notably winning the 2013 FA Cup against Manchester City but also suffering relegation from the Premier League.
He then coached Everton before signing up with Belgium, taking over from Marc Wilmots.

Belgium coach Martinez extends contract until 2022

A top South Korean football club accused of using sex dolls to fill empty seats in its stands will face disciplinary proceedings this week, K-league officials said.
With fans banned from matches because of the coronavirus, FC Seoul came under fire for deploying dozens of silicone spectators wearing T-shirts or holding placards with the logo of a sex-toy seller.
The K-league said its disciplinary committee will review whether the use of the mannequins violated the league's rules on promoting obscene materials.
Officials will also discuss whether the incident damaged the league's image and integrity.
Violating those rules can result in five league points being deducted, or a fine of more than five million won (US$4,066).
FC Seoul -- who beat Gwangju FC 1-0 in the match -- apologised earlier this week for causing "deep concern" to fans, but has insisted the mannequins had no connection to sex toys.
Reports say the mannequin distributor approached the K-league offering to provide its ...

South Korean football league to investigate 'sex doll' row

The Chinese Super League (CSL) will be stripped of exuberant goal celebrations -- and fans -- as it attempts to start during the coronavirus pandemic, reports said on Wednesday.
The CSL has ambitions of launching the season in late June or early July, and Chinese football authorities have drawn up detailed plans to keep players and fans safe.
The Chinese Football Association (CFA) has taken a keen interest in South Korea's K-League and Germany's Bundesliga, which led the way in restarting despite lingering virus fears.
CSL matches will be held initially behind closed doors, in step with the K-League and Bundesliga, before fans are gradually allowed in, state media said.  Supporters will then have to sit at least one metre (three feet) apart, the Beijing Youth Daily said, while substitutes will also be spaced out on the sidelines and must wear masks.
"In addition, for the game itself, the league will also cancel (child) mascots, team handshakes, group photos and other activities," the .

No hugs as China football draws up coronavirus battle plan

The National Football League is still aiming to start its 2020 season on time on September 10, but chief medical officer Allen Sills said it remains unclear when players will be welcome to train at club facilities.
"We are not putting dates on the calendar at this point," Sills said after NFL owners held a virtual meeting on Tuesday.
Traditionally clubs bring players in for mini training camps in June.  But club facilities have been closed amid the coronavirus pandemic, with only a limited number of non-player and non-coaching staff allowed to return, starting on Tuesday.
Which teams could welcome staff back to their offices was dependent on local government lockdown rules and only a handful of clubs made the move on Tuesday.
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones called it a "big day" for clubs all over the league as he attended the virtual meeting from his office at the team's practice facility.
"It's great to be back in the office this morning," he told the Cowboys website. "I thought ...

No date yet for NFL teams to open training facilities

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes his runaway leaders will cope without the "best kick in your ass" of their Anfield crowd should the Premier League season resume.
English top-flight players are set to be back in training this week after a Premier League meeting on Monday gave the go-ahead to the first stage of the return to play protocols.
If matches do eventually take place again this season, they will be behind closed doors and possibly at neutral venues.
Liverpool were left 25 points clear at the top of the table when the coronavirus saw the season suspended in March.
They now need just two more wins to claim a first English title in 30 years and German boss Klopp, having watched his native Bundesliga resume last weekend without spectators at matches, is confident his players can motivate themselves without a crowd.
"The competition will make the intensity," he told Liverpool's website.
"So it's not about 'oh, Liverpool have to win two games'.
"By the way, we have to win two 

Klopp backs Liverpool to manage without 'Anfield boost'

German FA president Fritz Keller and Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge want to propose a salary cap to UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, it has been revealed.
"There are absurd salaries and transfer fees that are no longer credible," Keller, boss of the German Football Association (DFB), told reporters.
"We have to talk about salary caps. I am glad that I agree with Karl-Heinz Rummenigge on this point.
"Therefore we will write a letter to UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin." Rummenigge touted the idea at the weekend in an interview with broadcaster Sky.
"(Former UEFA president) Michel Platini had the idea years ago to introduce a salary cap in Europe based on the American model," Rummenigge said.  While the Frenchman allegedly had the support "of all the big clubs in Europe. However, we were told from the outset that this could not be brought into line with competition laws," Rummenigge added.
Now Keller wants to write a combined letter to persuade Ceferin.  The restricting 

German FA, Bayern want salary cap for 'credible' football

Slovenia's Football Association (NZS) has announced that top flight matches will resume on June 5 after a two-month interruption caused by the coronavirus epidemic.
"The NZS expects all the measures to prevent the spreading of COVID-19 will be put in place before the competition resumes," the NZS said in a statement, without specifying if first league matches will be played behind close doors.
It added a detailed calendar of the remaining matches will be published next week.  The Slovenian federation interrupted the league on March 12 as the country of two million moved into a coronavirus lockdown.
At that point 25 rounds out of 36 in the season had been played.
Currently Ljubljana's Olimpija is at the top of the league table with 50 points, ahead of Celje and Aluminij who have 45 points apiece.
The NZS also announced that the cup competition will resume in June with the final to be held behind closed doors on June 24.
Slovenia declared last week the epidemic in the country was over ..

Slovenia's football league to restart on June 5

Several races will be staged in the run up to the rescheduled Tour de France which starts at the end of August, an updated cycling calendar revealed.
As the ban on the sport is lifted the first race in France will be the Route d'Occitanie between August 1-4 followed by a one day mountain challenge at Mont Ventoux and then the Tour de l'Ain from August 7-9.
Also packed into the programme is the shortened Criterium de Dauphine between 12-16 August and then the four-day Tour du Limousin from August 18.
The International Cycling Union insisted the dates would be constantly evaluated according to the health situation regarding the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
The Tour has been rescheduled to embark from Nice on August 29 from its original June start date in an attempt to make sure the sport's central financial pillar can be staged this season.

AFP

AFP

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