Olympian heading into European Cross full of confidence after return to the UK provides plenty of benefits

IF the pursuit of happiness were an Olympic sport, then Andrew Butchart would surely be a strong gold medal contender right now. While the IAAF World Championships in Doha might not have brought much joy, the 28-year-old distance runner has been finding plenty of contentment away from the track. 

Long-term partner and fellow British international athlete Lynsey Sharp became his fiancée in October, while the couple have recently moved to a new house in Loughborough. 

Their return to the UK earlier this year followed a springtime decision to abort the adventure of upping sticks to train in San Diego with coach Terrence Mahon’s group. An American dream it was not, ultimately. 

There were no regrets on the part of either athlete, however, and both quickly set about finding a working environment more to their liking. 

Sharp’s UK return saw her team up with David Harmer while Butchart, content to set his own schedules and dictate his own training, is working with an “adviser” from British Athletics. 

The arrangement appears to be suiting everyone and, as the groom-to-be puts it: “This is where Lynsey’s happy to train and I can just blend in anywhere. If she’s happy then I’m happy and I think that’s how most guys should be with their girl.”

There have been simple, if perhaps unexpected, pleasures to be found when it comes to being back in UK climes, too. 

Butchart revelled in recent returns to Scotland to compete in the Scottish East District League cross country and the Lindsays Short Course Championships in Kirkcaldy. 

“It’s so good,” enthuses Butchart, the European cross country individual bronze medallist in 2017 who will lead the British team at this weekend’s championships in Lisbon. “Running in the pouring rain down here and up in Scotland has been so nice. This time last year I was in San Diego and it was really warm so we were still on the track. It’s been nice to do the hard grind, which I guess I’ve missed. It’s been lovely.

“I didn’t think I’d missed it because I didn’t think I’d got that far away from it but I obviously did.”

Life is now very far removed from the set-up under Mahon. 

“I don’t do any of the training that I used to do in America so that just shows how much of it I believed in,” adds Butchart.

“I’m so confident in my own ability to get myself into good shape that I just do what I know works for me. It was a case of me not talking to the coach enough about what I enjoy doing, him not telling me what he was wanting me to be doing…it was all just a bit in the middle of nowhere. 

“I think the downfall was the lack of communication between myself and Terrence but I don’t regret going to America and I know Lynsey’s the same. If I was still here (without having gone) I would have been thinking ‘should I be in San Diego? Should I be in America? Would I be the world champion?’ You don’t know these things so it was nice to give it a test and see what it’s like.

“It went awfully badly and we’re back here but that’s just the way it is. We missed a year but that’s not the end of the world.”

He adds: “You get given a lot of opportunities in the sport and obviously you can’t take all of them but if you get a good one then go for it. So many people are scared to go out of their comfort zones and we definitely did that. Yes, it didn’t work for us but it’s worked for others so there’s no right or wrong answer.”

So many people are scared to go out of their comfort zones and we definitely did that. Yes, it didn’t work for us but it’s worked for others so there’s no right or wrong answer

The key for Butchart since has been to take complete ownership and responsibility for his training. 

“Any mistake I make is down to me – there’s no-one else that’s telling me what to do,” he says. “I’m in charge 100% of what I’m doing. I am getting help from people and if I’m nervous about something I’ll say ‘what do you think about this or that?’. But it’s not a Sunday to Monday schedule that’s written out for me – I do that myself. I’m old enough, mature enough and smart and sensible enough to understand what works best for myself.”

After the transatlantic upheaval of March, coach Butchart had got his athlete into good shape ahead of Doha and he was a convincing winner of the British 5000m title to book his seat on the plane. 

A rollercoaster of an opening night in Qatar proved to be one of more downs than ups, however. Not long after Sharp had unexpectedly made an early exit from the 800m heats, Butchart finished outside the qualifying positions from undoubtedly the tougher of the two heats. 

His time of 13:26.46 which ultimately saw him finish seventh, was not quick enough to earn him a fastest loser’s spot either and, such was his level of disappointment over his performance that, when he heard the news he was in the final due to disqualification of Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the Scot admits elation was not the first thing on his mind. When the young Norwegian was later reinstated, Butchart didn’t have the heart to protest.  

“I was obviously very upset and frustrated with how it panned out,” he says. “At the end of the day I didn’t run well enough. I got myself into really, really good shape – and certainly good enough to go sub-13 minutes for 5000m. 

“I could see my heat was stronger than the second one and I thought ‘if I can get through this then I’m doing well’. I knew I would be around either the last one to scrape in with an automatic spot or hope for a fastest loser’s place. 

“The way the race panned out, it was going well – it was going fast/slow with a lot of surges and then towards the end I did what I shouldn’t have been doing which was to leave it to the kick of the race. I know that’s not how I should be running because I can’t run a 50-second last lap.

“But the thing is that when you’re in a heat you want to get through it as easily as possible so it’s quite hard to be like ‘oh, from four laps out I’m going to nail it’ because you’ll be exhausted for the final. 

“You’re trying to run as sensibly as possible and I just missed out. After that it was a bit of a nightmare with being put into the final after a disqualification and then being taken out again. When it all happened I just wanted to go home.

“Because I didn’t get in the top five, I didn’t think I’d merited a place in the final. And then when I got qualified I wasn’t sure how to react.

“Then, when people were wanting me to protest…I felt it was a case of I didn’t do well enough so I didn’t deserve to be in the final. 

“I made the mistake so I have to take the repercussions of it. I just have to learn and understand that if I get myself into that shape again then I don’t f*** up the way I did in Doha.”

As with moving back from America, Butchart managed to find a positive. 

“Let’s say I’d gone to Doha, I’d qualified for the final, finished fifth and had had a good run. I would have had the biggest off-season celebrating and probably taken a more relaxed approach to next year, thinking I was the bees knees,” he adds. 

“At least now I’ve got the kick up the backside to say ‘You have to be that extra per cent better, you have to be that little bit faster, you have to be that little bit stronger’. I’d far rather it happened in Doha than in Tokyo.”

There can be few greater incentives for training through the winter than next year’s Olympics and 2016 Rio finalist Butchart intends to be in Japan come the summer. It is a challenge he will attack with renewed vigour.

“I’m still the same person and I haven’t changed too much,” he says of his development since that Brazilian summer. “The training that worked for me in Rio works for me now. You just learn little things about yourself. 

“Even though I’m 28 I still see myself as 22. I’m still freshly minded and open to ideas. I’m still like an excited puppy just wanting to crack on and go for a walk. That’s all I want to do. Just let me off the lead. I still feel fresh in the game but I understand I’ve achieved a lot since Rio. I still believe I’m on the right track.”

Bob Willis, legendary England fast bowler, dies aged 70
The former England captain and fast bowler, who will be forever synonymous with England's 1981 Ashes victory, died on December 4.

Icon, survivor, grandee: Farewell Bob Willis, the man with the longest run
Andrew Miller, ESPNcricinfo's UK editor, writes a moving tribute in memory of England's mightiest of fast bowlers.

Tributes: 'An English legend who inspired a generation of fast bowlers'
Willis' passing, at the age of 70, had the cricketing world in mourning.

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Willis had developed a reputation for his dry, acerbic and generally scathing verdicts during his punditry career working for Sky Sports.

Podcast: The late, great Bob Willis - Warm, generous ... terrifying
Mark Butcher, Andrew Miller and Alan Gardner reflect on cricket's sad loss, and look back on England's tour of New Zealand.

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How Willis' bowling England to an incredible Ashes win at Headingley was the culmination of a golden five-year period for him.

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What is less well known about Willis is that he was not even in the original squad picked for the Test.

Rachel Trenaman, the Sydney Thunder and New South Wales allrounder who has named in the Australia A squad to face India A, has taken time away from the game to focus on her mental health.

Trenaman, 18, played twice for the Thunder during this season's WBBL and was part of the Australia A one-day squad for the series that will take place in Brisbane next month.

She has now stood down from that series and will be rested from the Women's National Cricket League which resumes in January.

"We're proud that Rachel was brave enough to speak up, and we're here for her," Dominic Thornely, the NSW Breakers head coach, said. "I know the cricket family is right behind her and we wish her the very best."

Sydney Thunder's acting general manager Chris Botherway said Trenaman had the full support of the Thunder, Cricket NSW and Cricket Australia.

"Rachel is a highly thought of young person who has the respect of her teammates, coaches and support staff at Sydney Thunder and NSW Breakers," he said. "Player health and wellbeing will always be our top priority and we will provide Rachel with all the time and support she needs to make a full recovery."

Trenaman is the latest Australian cricketer to step back from the game for mental health reasons this season. Sophie Molineux, the Melbourne Renegades and Australia allrounder, announced last month that she was taking a break which followed the decisions taken by Glenn Maxwell, Will Pucovski and Nic Maddinson.

Pucovski and Maddinson returned for Victoria in the last round of Sheffield Shield matches while Maxwell is back in training with Victoria.

Things didn't get any better for the New York Knicks and embattled coach David Fizdale on Thursday night as they dropped a 129-92 decision to the Denver Nuggets at Madison Square Garden.

It was the eighth straight loss for the 4-18 Knicks.

The Knicks trailed by 43 points in the fourth quarter three nights after a 44-point loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, and Fizdale said the team's effort was "sickening."

Last month, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Malika Andrews reported that league sources said Knicks president Steve Mills had started laying the internal groundwork for Fizdale's eventual firing.

After Thursday's loss, Fizdale was asked if he was worried New York's struggles would be blamed on him.

"I don't care about all of that, I don't even think about that really," Fizdale said.

The Knicks trailed 50-44 before the Nuggets went on a 17-1 run to take a 64-45 halftime lead.

Last month, Mills and general manager Scott Perry held an impromptu news conference after another loss to make their displeasure with the team's performance clear.

"Scott and I are not happy with where we are right now," Mills said. "We think the team is not performing to the level that we anticipated or we expected to perform at, and that's something that we think we collectively have to do a better job of delivering the product on the floor."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

The San Diego Padres, intent on winning in 2020, agreed to a trade for outfielder Tommy Pham and a prospect from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for outfielder Hunter Renfroe and prized second-base prospect Xavier Edwards, sources familiar with the deal told ESPN on Thursday night.

The trade, which the sides expect to be announced Friday upon the completion of medical reviews, will send Pham, who turns 32 in March, to a Padres team in need of a high-on-base offensive catalyst. The Padres, who had the fifth-lowest on-base percentage in the majors last season, already have acquired outfielder Trent Grisham and second baseman Jurickson Profar in trades this winter and are expected to continue dealing to alleviate an outfield glut as the winter meetings approach this week, sources said.

Tampa Bay, which bowed out to the Houston Astros in a tight five-game division series this season, will get Renfroe and Edwards, an athletic middle infielder with excellent bat-to-ball skills who is a favorite among evaluators.

For the better part of a year, Renfroe, 27, has been part of Padres trade talks, with his sub-.300 career on-base percentage a red flag for teams. But his prodigious power, well-above-average defense, elite throwing arm and four years of club control were strong selling points for the Rays.

After buying low on Pham in a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals, the Rays sold relatively high, as he will earn more than $8 million in arbitration this season and become a free agent after 2021. Still, the Padres, in win-now mode, see Pham as a strong enough upgrade to give up a high-floor, higher-ceiling prospect in Edwards.

Edwards was No. 46 on ESPN insider Keith Law's midseason top 50 prospects list. Though he hasn't developed power in his first two minor league seasons, Edwards has top-end speed and will play almost all of the 2020 season at 20 years old. The Rays could play him at shortstop, though a scout who saw Edwards multiple times this season says he believes he could be a Gold Glove-caliber fielder at second base.

The Padres dipped into a farm system considered perhaps the best in the game, and sent Edwards to a Rays team that is in contention with it for that title. After a frustrating 2019, the Padres fired manager Andy Green, hired the well-thought-of Jayce Tingler and have taken an aggressive tack to reflect owner Ron Fowler's mandate to win next season.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Three-time NASCAR Cup series champion Darrell Waltrip has been named recipient of the National Motorsports Press Ass’n’s Myers Brothers Award.

The award, named in honor of former NASCAR competitors Billy and Bobby Myers, was presented Thursday during the annual Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Awards banquet held at the Music City Center in Nashville, Tenn.

The native of Owensboro, Ky., began his driving career in go-karts at age 12 in 1959 and graduated to stock cars by the mid-1960s. Numerous victories on area short tracks led to track championships at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds Raceway in Nashville and further cemented his passion to be successful in NASCAR’s premier Winston Cup circuit beginning in the early 1970s.

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Over a 30-year period, he became one of the greatest stars in NASCAR history, logging 84-career victories, including the 1989 Daytona 500. All three of Waltrip’s Cup series titles in 1981, 1982 and 1985 came while driving Chevrolets for driver turned team owner Junior Johnson, a fellow NMPA Hall of Fame inductee. During his illustrious career, Waltrip also wheeled cars for Bud Moore Engineering, Digard Racing, Hendrick Motorsports, Dale Earnhardt, Inc. as well as his own team, to name a few.

He was named Driver of the Year in 1979, 1981, and 1982 and was chosen the Driver of the Decade for the 1980s. He was also awarded the NMPA Most Popular Driver in 1989 and in 1990 and named one of NASCAR’s 50 Greatest Drivers in 1998.

Upon his retirement from driving in 2000, Waltrip worked as analyst and race commentator for FOX Sports NASCAR telecasts from 2001 to 2019.

“I had no idea, this is a huge surprise,” Waltrip said. “To tell you the truth, Stevie (his wife) and I almost didn’t come. That would have been really embarrassing. This is a thrill. What a thrill. I thought retirement, kind of, sucked. But maybe with these things before I me, I will enjoy it a little more.

“I am really humbled for this award. I am really appreciative, thank you so much.”

The Myers Brothers Award is determined by a vote of the NMPA membership. It recognizes individuals and/or groups who have provided outstanding contributions to the sport of stock car racing and has been presented annually since 1958.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, has been named National Motorsports Press Ass’n Most Popular Driver presented by Hooters.

The award is the second of his five-year Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series career.

Elliott’s selection was announced Thursday during the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Awards program at the Music City Center in Nashville, Tenn.

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The 24-year old native of Dawsonville, Ga., was named through 39 percent of the votes cast by fans. His father, 1988 Cup Series champion Bill Elliott, has won the NMPA Most Popular Driver Award 16 times between 1984 and 2002.

The young rising star won races in 2019 at Talladega, Ala., Watkins Glen, N.Y. and Concord, N.C. and finished 10th in Monster Energy Cup Series points.

Completing the top-five in this year’s voting were 2019 Cup series champion Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota, Matt DiBenedetto, driver of the No. 95 Leavine Family Racing Toyota, Martin Truex Jr., driver of the No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Toyota and Ryan Blaney, driver of the No. 12 Team Penske Racing Ford.

Elliott was excited to receive the award for the second year in a row and, once again, he gave the credit to the fans, saying the coolest thing is seeing their support by wearing No. 9 hats, shirts and other gear. For the humble driver him, the fans are more important than hardware.

“I’m honored to have two. Last year, I was honored to have one,” Elliott said. You try to learn things here and there. And as I have told several people, it is really more than a trophy or an award, it is about the people at the racetrack. Some of them are hear tonight and I really enjoy seeing them wear your hat or t-shirt.”

The Most Popular Driver Award is the only major NASCAR award determined solely by fan vote. It has been presented annually since 1953; the recipients were originally determined by a poll of competitors. It became a fan-driven program in 1984 under the guidance of the NMPA.

In addition to hosting the voting platform for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Most Popular Driver award, fan votes to determine the Most Popular Driver in the NASCAR XFINITY and Camping World Truck Series were also hosted on NASCAR.com.

Justin Allgaier won the NASCAR Xfinity Series Most Popular Driver award while Ross Chastain was voted Camping World Truck Series Most Popular driver. Allgaier and Chastain were honored Nov. 22nd during NASCAR Champions Week in Charlotte.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Love him or hate him, Kyle Busch was the man of the hour during Thursday’s NASCAR Cup Series Awards held at Nashville’s Music City Center.

Busch, Joe Gibbs Racing team owner Joe Gibbs and crew chief Adam Stevens were honored as the champions of the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Thursday. It was Busch’s second time at the head of the table while Gibbs was making his fifth appearance as a champion car owner.

Busch, 34, collected five NASCAR Cup Series victories this year, including one in the season-ending Ford 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway that allowed him to capture his second series championship.

The Las Vegas native began his speech by remembering J.D. Gibbs, the son of team owner Joe Gibbs who died in January following a long battle battle with a degenerative neurological disease.

“Challenges in life are inevitable. Being defeated is optional,” Busch said. “Through unimaginable loss, the legacy of J.D. Gibbs was felt throughout everything we did at Joe Gibbs Racing. While we raced with heavy hearts, we determined not to be defeated.

“We raced with never any more motivation to win, but every single person back at the shop dug a little bit deeper and gave a little bit more each and every week even though we raced with heavy hearts.

“Obviously the results speak for themselves.”

Busch made sure to thank all of NASCAR’s fans for watching the sport each week, even if they aren’t always rooting for him.

“I certainly want to give a special shoutout to Rowdy Nation. I see all your gear every week at the race track and you guys ain’t afraid to show everyone who your driver is,” Busch said. “More importantly, I certainly want to thank all the NASCAR fans that watch us every week and that support us at the race track, no matter what finger you’re supporting me with.”

Busch closed his speech by speaking directly to his wife, Samantha Busch, whom Busch revealed has gone through multiple failed in vitro fertilization attempts this year as the pair attempted to have their second child. Samantha Busch gave birth to the couple’s son, Brexton, in 2015 after going through in vitro fertilization.

“I’m right here with you knowing how hard it has been to go through multiple failed attempts of IVF this year,” Busch said. “To walk around and try to face people week after week is always difficult knowing in the back of my mind how helpless I feel in life knowing how much I wanted to answer your prays to be able to give you a gift of our baby girl.

“While those loses way on us each and every day, I also want to reflect on the many blessings we do have in our lives. To the biggest one, which is our love for our amazing son Brexton, you guys are my rock and my place of piece. I thank you for being there for me as I’ll always be there for you in the toughest of times when we need each other the most.

“You are not only the greatest mother, but of course the greatest supporter and greatest wife I will ever have.”

As an owner, Gibbs had about as good a season as anyone could have hoped for. His four drivers, including Busch, Martin Truex Jr., Denny Hamlin and Erik Jones, won 19 of 36 races on the schedule to set a series record for wins by one team during a season.

Busch, Truex and Hamlin all advanced to the championship race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, with Busch claiming the title, Truex finishing second and Hamlin finishing the season in fourth.

“We know that you win with people, so I know that any success we’ve had at Joe Gibbs Racing is because of the employees, the talent, the people we have that really care and the loyalty. I just want to say thanks to all of you guys,” Gibbs said.

“It’s an honor for us to be in NASCAR. We get a chance to go to the race track each weekend and race against these owners that I have so much respect for. I can’t believe I have a chance to do that. It’s a thrill for us,” Gibbs added.

Gibbs also took time during his speech to pay tribute to his late son J.D. Gibbs.

“We appreciate so much the fans, the teams, the sponsors, NASCAR for all the notes, all the letters, the little stories about J.D. and all the prayers. We thank you so much for all of that that was sent our way,” Gibbs said. “We miss him, but we could feel his spirit all year long.”

In addition to being honored as the champion owner, Gibbs was honored with the Bill France Award of Excellence. The award is given sporadically, with the most recent recipient being Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2017.

“You guys ought to give somebody a heads up. I had no idea this was going to happen,” Gibbs said after receiving the award. “We just appreciate everything about this sport. We were welcomed here. I was so worried about coming into NASCAR and not knowing people. This NASCAR family welcomed us in and it’s been a thrill for us.”

Also honored during the NASCAR Cup Series Awards on Thursday were the drivers who finished second through fourth in the standings – Truex, Kevin Harvick and Hamlin. Each had the opportunity to address the room and discuss their seasons and look ahead to 2020.

Two other major awards were handed out during the NASCAR Cup Series Awards. Three-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Darrell Waltrip was named the winner of the NMPA Myers Brothers Award and Chase Elliott received the NMPA Most Popular Driver Award for the second-straight season.

In addition, Joe Vaughn, a longtime volunteer and leader with the South Carolina-based Project HOPE Foundation that serves the autism community, was announced Thursday night as the winner of The NASCAR Foundation’s Ninth Annual Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award.

Cameron Green, the Western Australia allrounder who has been tipped to soon feature for Australia, will be unable to bowl for the foreseeable future after suffering a stress fracture of his back.

Green, 20, has been lauded by Ricky Ponting and compared to Andrew Flintoff after starring for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield with two centuries this season but has been unable to bowl in the last two matches and that will now extend at least throughout the Big Bash.

ALSO READ: Cameron Green dampens hype around Australia prospects

"Follow up scans this week on Cameron's lower back have revealed the early stages of a lumbar stress fracture," Western Australia sports science medicine manager, Nick Jones, said. "This will require an extended period of rest from bowling to ensure the fracture heals adequately.

"No timeframe has been set for Cameron to return to bowling, however we are not expecting him to be bowling during the BBL. He will continue to be available for selection as a batter."

Speaking earlier this week, Green had been confident that his current back soreness had not been serious and viewed himself as a genuine allrounder in the future.

"Coming through as a junior I've always seen myself as a genuine allrounder," he said. "At times for WA, I was definitely a bowling allrounder, batting nine or ten and not scoring too many runs. So I'm pretty happy I'm getting a couple of runs out the way but in the future, I'd like to be a genuine allrounder."

Trevor Hohns, the Australia selection chairman, said that picking someone at a young age would not be an issue but Green's back problem would be monitored.

"I don't have an issue with his age, it's more about whether his body can cope and what he can do bowling, particularly in the allrounder category," Hohns said. "We know he's a very good bat, he is a fine up-and-coming young player."

New Zealand have had a major boost ahead of the first Test against Australia next week with Trent Boult and Colin de Grandhomme both making good progress in their recoveries from injury.

NZC confirmed the pair would travel to Perth with the squad on Saturday having come through a training session in Mount Maunganui on Friday. Boult (side strain) and de Grandhomme (abdominal tear) had missed the second Test against England in Hamilton.

"Trent Boult and Colin de Grandhomme are both making good progress with their injuries and successfully trained today at Bay Oval," NZC posted on Twitter. "The pair will travel with the team to Perth tomorrow."

There still remains a question mark over their participation in the day-night Test at Perth Stadium which starts on Thursday, but the progress is encouraging.

Boult, especially, is vital to New Zealand's hopes of pushing Australia with him potentially being a handful with the pink ball and his side strain was causing the most concern after he picked it up against England in Mount Maunganui.

"I don't know if I'm really confident, but I'm quietly optimistic they're tracking where we want them to be," New Zealand coach Gary Stead said earlier this week.

In Boult's absence, Matt Henry played the second Test against England but New Zealand will need to give serious consideration into introducing the extra pace of uncapped Lockie Ferguson. Tim Southee and Neil Wagner, who has yet to play a Test in Australia, were the other members of the pace attack.

De Grandhomme provides important balance to the New Zealand side. He averages 40.33 with the bat and 29.63 with the ball in 19 Tests. His injury handed a Test debut to Daryl Mitchell who made 73 but went wicketless in Hamilton.