Defending London Marathon champion says a women-only world record could be on the cards for Sunday
Vivian Cheruiyot appears in a confident mood ahead of Sunday’s Virgin Money London Marathon, and with good reason.
The defending champion returns to the UK capital as a 66:34 half-marathoner, having improved her PB to claim victory in Lisbon last month. That run, she says, paired with her performances in training, proves she’s in even better shape than last year, when she defeated a field including her fellow Kenyan Mary Keitany after a superbly-judged race which resulted in a 2:18:31 PB.
“I am in better shape because last year I changed things and the programme of last year and this year has been the same,” says the 2016 Olympic 5000m champion, who made her marathon debut in London in 2017.
“We normally compare (the training of) last year and this year and I did better than last year which means I am in better shape than last year so I am happy about that.
“I also did a personal best at the half-marathon in Lisbon so I think I am going to run good on Sunday.”
Twelve months ago, in challenging hot conditions, Keitany and Tirunesh Dibaba had been accompanied by male pacemakers as they set their sights on Paula Radcliffe’s world record of 2:15:25. Keitany stormed through half way in 67:16 before fading in the final miles, with Cheruiyot coming through for victory after having sat back off the lead pack initially.
This time the race will feature female pacemakers, as it did in 2017 when Keitany ran her women-only world record of 2:17:01 to secure her third London Marathon title.
While Dibaba won’t be racing on Sunday as she is expecting her second child, Keitany does return and the pair will also be joined by two other sub-2:19 runners – Chicago champion Brigid Kosgei and Berlin winner Gladys Cherono.
Cheruiyot believes a women-only world record could be on the cards.
“The male pacemakers, they were quicker (last year) because the ladies wanted to run 2:15. I think now people are trying to run 2:17,” she says. “It’s possible (for the women-only world record to be broken) on Sunday if the weather is good because I know the athletes are very strong.
“I’m going to try my best (to break the record herself). It will depend on how my body responds. If it is going to respond very well, I am in good shape and I’ll try to do my best.
“If it’s going to be 68 (minutes) at half way, that is okay for me, I can stay with them all the way through. Last year 67 was too fast.
“Running a PB in Lisbon really gives me confidence because mostly I did it alone. We have people pacing us here so my chances of running 2:17 are very high.”
Since making her debut two years ago, Cheruiyot has raced three more marathons – in Frankfurt (first in 2:23:35), London and New York (second behind Keitany in 2:26:02) – and, despite missing the track, she insists she won’t be returning to in-stadium action.
“I miss it a lot because I really liked running on the track, especially the 5000m – it was really enjoyable for me,” says the 35-year-old four-time world track gold medallist.
“We used to go for 40 minutes, one hour training (for the track), but now you have to do 40km for training – it’s very hard.
“When I started training for the marathon I was like ‘I’m going to finish the training, I’m going to be tired forever!’ But now I am catching up, I am used to it and I love it now.”
Ulster and Leinster have both named entirely changed starting teams from their most recent outings for Saturday's Pro14 dead rubber.
Wing David Busby will make his first Ulster appearance in nearly a year as Darren Cave captains the side.
Johnny McPhillips and Dave Shanahan are named in Ulster's half-back roles.
Ulster-bound Jack McGrath is selected in the Leinster front row as fly-half Ross Byrne captains Leo Cullen's side for the first time.
Ballynahinch player Busby last featured in Ulster's European Champions Cup play-off win over Ospreys last May as he has been out of action since then because of a serious knee injury.
In their last outing, Ulster secured their Pro14 home quarter-final against Connacht by impressively beating Edinburgh 29-7 two weeks ago while Leinster's starting XV is totally altered from last weekend's European Champions Cup semi-final win over Toulouse.
Academy back row Marcus Rea is in line to make his Ulster senior debut after being named on the bench. Rea's brother Matty will start in Ulster's back row.
Tommy O'Hagan and Jack Owens will make only their second Ulster appearances if they come on as replacements.
Skipper Cave will be partnered by Peter Nelson at centre while the Ulster pack includes Andy Warwick, John Andrew and Ross Kane plus Ian Nagle, who is on a season-long loan from Leinster.
Such is the strength in Leinster's squad, their line-up includes Ireland internationals Fergus McFadden, Noel Reid, Dave Kearney.
Skipper Byrne is partnered at half-back by Nick McCarthy while the back row includes emerging talents Max Deegan and Caelan Doris.
Ireland Under-20 player Ryan Baird is in line for his Leinster debut after being included in the replacements.
Busby comeback 'ahead of schedule'
Ulster coach Dan McFarland said Busby's return comes ahead of schedule in the contest between the sides who contested a thrilling European Champions Cup quarter-final won narrowly by Leinster four weeks ago.
"Dave's planned comeback date was not even now and he has worked so hard to come back," added the Ulster coach.
"He has played for Ballynahinch and I watched that game and he had a fantastic game for them and it will be really special for him to be able to play against Leinster at Kingspan Stadium.
"For guys like Marcus Rea this is going to be the biggest day of his rugby career. Marcus was not playing in the [Champions Cup] quarter-final so this will be his day and everyone has to respect that."
Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones will return from a knee injury for Ospreys' crucial Pro14 derby with Cardiff Blues at Judgement Day.
There were fears the 33-year-old would not play again this season after injuring himself in Wales' Grand Slam-clinching win over Ireland in March.
Gareth Anscombe, who joins Ospreys next season, switches to full-back in what could be his final game for the Blues.
Jarrod Evans replaces the Wales fly-half at 10 in one of four changes.
The others see number eight Nick Williams return as captain with Seb Davies reverting to the second row, Lloyd Williams restored at scrum-half and Aled Summerhill replace Jason Harries on the wing.
Fourth place in Conference A is on the line in this encounter - a regular season finish that offers a place in next season's European Champions Cup via a play-off against the team finishing in the same slot in Conference B.
However, there is still a danger of no Welsh region qualifying for the premier European tournament in 2019-20.
"I have no doubts over Gareth's commitment," said Blues head coach John Mulvihill.
"He is the consummate professional and is hugely competitive. He has had a great season here at Cardiff Blues and will want to go out on a high."
On Saturday's game at the Principality Stadium, Ospreys head coach Allen Clarke said: "Our goal for the season has been to achieve Champions Cup qualification.
"We're under no illusions to the challenge and level of performance required against Cardiff on Saturday."
Cardiff Blues: Gareth Anscombe; Owen Lane, Rey Lee-Lo, Willis Halaholo, Aled Summerhill; Jarrod Evans, Lloyd Williams; Rhys Gill, Ethan Lewis, Dillon Lewis, Seb Davies, Rory Thornton, Josh Turnbull, Olly Robinson, Nick Williams (capt).
Replacements: Kirby Myhill, Rhys Carre, Dmitri Arhip, George Earle, Shane Lewis-Hughes, Tomos Williams, Garyn Smith, Jason Harries.
Ospreys: Dan Evans; George North, Cory Allen, Owen Watkin, Hanno Dirksen; Sam Davies, Aled Davies; Nicky Smith, Scott Baldwin, Tom Botha, Adam Beard, Alun Wyn Jones, Olly Cracknell, Justin Tipuric (capt), James King.
Replacements: Sam Parry, Rhodri Jones, Ma'afu Fia, Bradley Davies, Dan Lydiate, Matthew Aubrey, Luke Price, Keelan Giles.
BATAVIA, Ohio – Ongoing rain in the days leading up to the events at Tri-City Speedway and Macon Speedway in Southern Illinois has forced the cancellation of this weekend’s Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series events.
The Hoker Trucking Best in the Business 50 at Tri-City Speedway will now take place on Thursday, July 11 in conjunction with the NAPA Know How 50 on Friday, July 12.
The action at Macon Speedway will shift to Tuesday, July 23, capping off a busy Midwest swing for the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series.
PARK CITY, Kan. — After several near misses in the early going this season, Zack VanderBeek found the road to victory lane and garnered his 48th career USMTS win at 81 Speedway Thursday night.
The 34-year-old from New Sharon, Iowa, hasn’t employed any drastic measures to get faster, just plugging away.
“We made some little changes, but we’re just working hard and not giving up,” he said. “It’s a heck of a lot easier when you can start in front of these guys.”
Local favorite and Wichita native Cody Schniepp snagged the Sybesma Pole Award, but VanderBeek muscled his familiar No. 33z Casey’s General Stores VanderBuilt Race Cars USMTS Modified into the top spot to lead the first lap.
About 20 minutes and 40 laps later, ‘The Z-Man’ finally had a checkered flag to take home from C. Ray Hall’s historic facility-a place where VanderBeek had piled up several near-misses over the last decade.
“King of America was tough, and then going down south there’s a lot of good cars,” VanderBeek added. “We’ve been kind of right there but you just have to get in the right position. I think we’ll have some more wins this year.”
Conversely, Rodney Sanders has a series-best four triumphs at the 81 Speedway and two wins under his belt this season already. This time, however, “The Sandman” had to follow his long-time nemesis to the finish line.
Sanders chased Schniepp for the first half of the main event before eventually working his way into second, but he was never able to mount a serious challenge on the leader despite two caution flags late in the race.
“Once I got to second, I knew Zack was probably not going to make a mistake,” said the 2013 and 2014 USMTS National Champion. “At that point, I was just trying to save my right rear tire and just kind of hang on.”
For his part, Schniepp kept pace with the lead duo until the end, coming home with a career-best third-place USMTS finish, holding off Ryan Gustin over the final laps.
Jake O’Neil returned to USMTS action after nearly a month off to recover from an apparent staff infection in his legs, and snatched a top-five finish.
The finish:
Zack VanderBeek, Rodney Sanders, Cody Schniepp, Ryan Gustin, Jake O’Neil, R.C. Whitwell, Dereck Ramirez, Hunter Marriott, Joe Duvall, Chad Wheeler, Tanner Mullens, Bryce Schniepp, Tyler Wolff, Austin Siebert, Dustin Hodges, Scott Green, Mike Striegel, Cole Traugott, Nathan Hagar, Terry Phillips, Adam Kates, Jake Nightingale, Dan Powers, Josh Lanterman, Tyler Davis, Darron Fuqua.
EAGLE, Neb. — Leading the only lap that pays, Canadian Thomas Kennedy made a stunning last-lap pass of Matt Covington to win with the Lucas Oil American Sprint Car Series presented by the MAVTV Motorsports Network Thursday night at Eagle Raceway.
“I knew I had the fastest car; it was just a matter of time and I was either going to make it or break it,” said Kennedy. “Luckily traffic held him [Matt Covington] up a bit and I was able to get underneath him, but this is awesome. Especially starting 13th and wheeling my ass all the way to the front.”
The Buffalo Wild Wings No. 21k rolled to the white flag with a nearly half straightaway disadvantage to the A-Rock Materials No. 95 of Covington. Finding his lane blocked by slower cars through the first and second turns, the brief slowdown by Covington was just enough for Kennedy to pounce. Rushing the bottom of the high-banked oval, Kennedy made the pass off the second turn.
Racing into the final two turns, Covington tried to retake the top spot but would have to settle for second.
“Last week it was lapped traffic that won me the race, and tonight I lost it. I just took it too easy on them. These guys out here are fast, and you have to go every lap and I just got conservative and gave it away,” explained Covington.
Wayne Johnson finished third with Cody Ledger and Josh Baughman rounding out the top five.
A field of 35 was on hand for the Track Enterprises promoted event.
FULTON, N.Y. – A poor forecast with temperatures in the 30s and 40s has forced Fulton Speedway and Super DIRTcar Series officials to cancel the High Bank Holdup Weekend scheduled for Friday and Saturday.
No rescheduled dates for either event have been scheduled at this time.
The Super DIRTcar Series returns to action on Tuesday, May 7 for the Ultimate Outlaw 100 at Outlaw Speedway in Dundee, N.Y.
After a shocking first round, who is ready for more? The second round is officially underway and looks to bring just as much excitement despite both higher seeds winning on Thursday night (for a change).
Game 1: Boston Bruins 3, Columbus Blue Jackets 2 (OT) (Bruins lead the series, 1-0). The Bruins came out hot. The Blue Jackets looked like a team settling in after a week off. But then, Columbus scored two goals in 13 seconds (by Brandon Dubinsky and Pierre Luc-Dubois, after the scoresheet was corrected) and we had a game. In the end, it was third-line center Charlie Coyle who played hero to the home crowd at TD Garden and all the hometown fans back in Weymouth, Mass.
Game 1: St. Louis Blues 3, Dallas Stars 2 (Blues leads the series, 1-0).Vladimir Tarasenko's first of two goals came on the power play (for a penalty he drew), and his second proved to be the game-winner. It's the first power-play goal the Stars have allowed this postseason. It wasn't the best night for Dallas goalie Ben Bishop, who allowed a goal to Robby Fabbri on the opening shot, then heard his hometown St. Louis crowd chant his name derisively for most of the night.
play
0:47
Tarasenko nets 2 goals in Game 1 win vs. Stars
Vladimir Tarasenko helps the Blues take a 1-0 series lead against the Stars by scoring two goals to secure the 3-2 Game 1 win.
Hometown boy comes home, does good. Coyle, who fell out of favor in Minnesota, has been everything you'd want in a trade deadline acquisition; at times, he was the Bruins' best forward in the first round series. Now he scores the game-tying and overtime goals to open Round 2.
Tarasenko started the season slowly as he recovered from offseason shoulder surgery. He's as hot as ever, with two goals on Thursday. Only two Blues players in history have more playoff goals than Tarasenko: Brett Hull and Bernie Federko.
The kid continues to impress. He stopped 16 of 17 shots in the third period alone (including a few wild ones). Binnington's five postseason wins are now the most by a St. Louis rookie goaltender.
These are two plucky underdogs battling it out, but there's one storyline you'll hear more than any other one heading into Game 1: the Canes are likely exhausted -- physically and emotionally -- after grinding out their series against the defending champion Washington Capitals two days ago. The Isles have been resting up for a week. Our take? That might make for a sloppy first period, but things should settle after that.
The Sharks are a bit banged up, and will be without captain Joe Pavelski for at least one game. The Avs, meanwhile, are getting healthier. Defenseman Samuel Girard, who missed the last three games of the Calgary series, is healthy and ready to go. Could we see both Girard and Cale Makar on a power-play unit together (as suggested in practice on Thursday)? Derick Brassard (illness) is available too.
A sweet moment for Canes defenseman Jaccob Slavin and his family.
Quotable
George McPhee said the NHL apologized to the Knights, and added: "There will be no pity parties. Stuff happens in games. We're going to take the rearview mirror out and put a real good team on the ice next year. We're not going to carry around a big suitcase full of yesterdays."
Ben Foakes is set to make his England white-ball debut in Dublin next week, after being called up for the one-off Ireland ODI as a replacement for Sam Billings, who suffered a dislocated left shoulder while fielding for Kent against Glamorgan on Thursday.
Foakes, whose 71 from 80 balls for Surrey against Middlesex on Thursday was his third half-century in consecutive Royal London Cup games, is also set to keep wicket in the T20I against Pakistan in Cardiff on May 5, in the absence of England's first-choice keepers, Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow, who are being rested after their stints in the IPL.
His inclusion comes after a cruelly timed injury for Billings, one that would appear to have ruined his own chances of playing any part in England's World Cup campaign.
Although Billings had not been named in England's provisional 15-man squad for the World Cup, which gets underway in just over a month's time, he had seemingly put himself at the head of the queue of batting reserves, should anything befall the men ahead of him in the pecking order between now and the climax of the tournament on July 14.
Instead, having played just once for Chennai Super Kings in this year's IPL (and scored a duck in that solitary outing), Billings' start to the English season lasted just a matter of minutes.
Fielding at mid-off in Harry Podmore's opening over in Cardiff, he dived to intercept a drive from Glamorgan's Australia allrounder, Marnus Labuschagne, and landed awkwardly on his left shoulder.
In obvious pain, Billings was left prone on the outfield for several minutes, and treated with oxygen before being helped from the field.
He was taken to hospital, where the shoulder was relocated, and though he is scheduled to undergo scans when he sees a specialist on Friday, Billings was under no illusions about the extent of his injury when he returned to Sophia Gardens after the incident.
"Without a doubt, it's the most painful thing I've experienced," he told BBC Radio Kent. "An hour and 20 minutes with your shoulder not back in its right place isn't a great time for anyone."
Opportunity knocks, however, for Foakes, who was Man of the Series on his maiden Test tour of Sri Lanka last year after being called up - again as an injury replacement - after Bairstow turned his ankle playing football.
Speaking ahead of the announcement, Surrey's coach, Michael di Venuto, admitted that Foakes' calm, accumulative approach meant that he didn't stand out in the way of some of his rivals in white-ball cricket, but said that his one-day county performances over the past three years would fully merit an England call-up.
"I think he averaged 91 here [at the Kia Oval], he averaged 60 last year, he's doing the same this year," said di Venuto. "In white-ball cricket he's probably one of the form players in the country, it's just unfortunate that England are blessed with batsman-wicketkeepers who do it more explosively than he does."
Jason Roy has missed Surrey's last two London Cup games, after suffering a back spasm earlier this week, while Eoin Morgan sat out Middlesex's match at The Oval after complaining of sore shins.
Kent's other England selection, Joe Denly, was not included for the trip to Glamorgan after himself suffering a back spasm while batting against Gloucestershire on Tuesday.
Alex Hales, meanwhile, has been put on indefinite leave by Nottinghamshire for personal reasons, but is expected to link up with the England squad for a pre-season training camp in Cardiff this weekend.
His hitting exploits have already made him a social media sensation. He has a Hall of Fame father, a dynamic swing and an electric presence. His at-bats promise to be must-see viewing from the very start -- and the very start is now.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will make his much-anticipated major league debut for the Blue Jays Friday at Toronto against the Oakland Athletics. We asked three of our national baseball writers for their takes on what the moment means and what they expect from Baby Vlad.
When was the last time you were this excited for a prospect to reach the majors?
Jeff Passan: June 8, 2010. I remember traveling to Nationals Park for Stephen Strasburg's debut fueled by a concoction of curiosity and hype. And when he struck out 14 Pirates amid seven glowing innings, the home run he gave up to Delwyn Young didn't spoil anything. This was curiosity sated and hype warranted. It felt like the beginning of something special. It has not become that. Strasburg, now 30, isn't that transcendent pitcher he seemed that night. But it's still a game that resonates clearly nearly a decade later.
David Schoenfield: Kris Bryant was the biggest story of spring training in 2015. He'd hit .325 with 43 home runs in the minors in 2014 -- and, remember, that was a season when offense across the majors collapsed to its lowest levels in more than three decades. Bryant was the best power-hitting prospect in a long time, plus there was the soap opera of whether he would make the Opening Day roster. He didn't and made his debut on April 17, going 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. But he homered the next game and was the MVP as a sophomore as the Cubs ended their World Series drought.
Bradford Doolittle: Excited might be a strong word, but I must admit I had a very similar feeling of anticipation this season for the arrival of Eloy Jimenez as I do for Baby Vlad. It's probably because I haven't seen Guerrero play in person yet, although his epic moonshots that people have shared on social media have been great. I saw Jimenez for the first time in spring training last year, though, and the ball coming off his bat was just notably different. So I couldn't wait to see him in Chicago, and I have to say, so far I have not been disappointed. There could be a great race between Jimenez and Guerrero for this year's AL rookie award.
play
0:24
Vlad Jr. takes 1st batting practice with Blue Jays
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. takes batting practice at the Blue Jays' facility prior to his 1st MLB appearance.
Who was the last prospect to enter the majors with this much buzz around their name?
Passan: Has to be Bryce Harper, right? The kid who was on the cover of Sports Illustrated at 15 years old and skipped his senior year of high school and slayed the minor leagues before debuting in the majors at 19. And remember, Harper really played only one full season in the minors. We've had to wait nearly two extra years for Vlad Jr.
Schoenfield: Bryant or Harper. In Harper's case, his buzz surpassed Vlad Jr.'s, given all the attention given to him since that SI cover. Heck, I remember listening to the radio broadcast of his first minor league game.
Doolittle: I'm going to keep waving the Eloy Jimenez banner. The kid is special.
Who does Vlad Jr. remind you most of as a hitter?
Passan: To say his Hall of Fame father would be fair because so much of what Junior does well -- hit the ball hard, go to all fields, make contact -- mirrors Pops. I'm going to go with a contemporary of the elder Vlad: Manny Ramirez. The swing is powerful and consistent. The eye isn't otherworldly but good enough. The bat-to-ball ability is keen. It's just Vlad Jr. being Vlad Jr.
Schoenfield: The comparisons to his dad are pretty obvious, but I'm going to bring up Mike Piazza. I always described Piazza as looking like he's swinging a sledgehammer up there. That's what Junior reminds me of, whipping a big ol' hammer through the zone. Piazza started with the bat more straight up while Guerrero has it flatter behind his head, but the swing and follow-through are similar. Piazza was a great contact hitter with power (he never struck out 100 times), and that's what Guerrero projects to be as well.
Doolittle: It's easy to say his father, and there are some obvious similarities. But I don't think Vlad Sr. had the same kind of raw power, and his swing was longer. Junior's combination of exit velocity with elite bat-to-ball skills is hard to match. Statistically, Miguel Cabrera is a pretty good match, or at least a good target for Junior to shoot for. Guerrero doesn't release his top hand on his swing like Miggy does, though. I guess the best combination of numbers forecast and swing mechanics is probably Manny Ramirez.
What's your favorite Vlad Jr. viral moment/story from his career so far?
Passan: The Montreal home run. Barely 19 years old, playing in an exhibition game in the stadium his father owned once upon a time, Vlad Jr. broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the ninth with a majestic home run off a pitcher, Jack Flaherty, who looks more and more like an elite major leaguer. It was a perfect snapshot of what Vlad Jr. can be and what he can do -- all in front of a crowd that by the time he's a veteran could have a team of its own.
Schoenfield: Definitely the home run in Montreal. Proof that he probably should have been in the majors last season.
Doolittle: Ditto the Montreal home run. When was the last time there was that kind of memorable moment in one of those end-of-spring exhibition games?
Predict Vlad Jr.'s 2019 stat line.
Passan: .301/.372/.515 with 22 home runs, 78 RBIs, 72 runs scored, 3 stolen bases and 18 errors.
Schoenfield: FanGraphs projects a .306/.371/.517 line with 19 home runs in 106 games. Assuming he stays healthy, he'll play more than 106 games, so he may go over on the power -- although I wonder if it will take another season before the power fully arrives as he'll learn to better launch the ball in the air. So I'll go .315 with 18 home runs.
Doolittle: .295/.358/.490 with 23 homers, 76 RBIs and minus-11 defensive runs saved.
Predict Vlad Jr.'s next five years: How many All-Star appearances and MVPs -- and what category will he lead the majors in first?
Passan: Four All-Star appearances, one MVP and he'll win a batting title first.
Schoenfield: I'll go five All-Star appearances (hey, look at the Blue Jays roster, he could make it this season), no MVPs (not enough of an all-around game and the Jays don't look close to playoff contention) and I see him as a batting title guy more than a home run title guy.
Doolittle: Four All-Star appearances. Zero MVPs. A batting title seems inevitable. He's a .346 hitter for his career in the minors at a time when the AL and NL have a hard time populating a top 10 with .300 hitters.
Across any sport or beyond sports, who's your all-time favorite Junior?
Passan: Sorry, Vlad, but you've got a long way to go to top Martin Luther King Jr.
Schoenfield: How are you supposed to follow up Martin Luther King Jr.? Cuba Gooding Jr.? Ed Begley Jr.? Junior Spivey? How about Junior Ortiz. I once lost a sim league playoff game when Junior Ortiz hit a home run -- in a season in which he hit zero home runs in real life. Not that I'm still bitter or anything 29 years later.
Doolittle: Kurt Vonnegut Jr. Not to overstate my own literary accomplishments, but his work had meaningful impact in how I view writing. His father, by the way, was an architect.
I Dig® is a leading global brand that makes it more enjoyable to surf the internet, conduct transactions and access, share, and create information. Today I Dig®attracts millions of users every month.r
Phone: (800) 737. 6040 Fax: (800) 825 5558 Website: www.idig.com Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Phone: (800) 737. 6040
Fax: (800) 825 5558
Website: 
Email: 
