Drugs in sport: The Australian government has allocated an extra £368,000 for blood testing for the banned hormone EPO at the Sydney Olympics.
Announcing the increase as part of the federal budget, Australian Sports Minister Jackie Kelly said a blood test for EPO was now "likely to be ready", in time for the Games, which begin on September 15th. She said the funding would be given to the Australian Sports Drug Agency, and warned that athletes competing in the 2000 Olympics would be subjected to the most stringent anti-doping measures ever. "We won't tolerate tracksuit fraud," Kelly said.
Meanwhile, in Lisbon sports ministers from the 15 EU countries debated yesterday on what role the bloc should play in the new World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and how the EU should fund it, but they postponed a final decision. Instead, the ministers said they wanted a working group set up to propose how EU member states should be represented on the agency, established by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to carry out random drug tests.
Boxing: Belfast's Eamonn Magee will challenge America's world light welterweight champion Mickey Ward on July 15th at the London Arena. Commonwealth champion Magee's first shot at a world title will be on the supporting bill to world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis' title defence against South African Frans Botha.
Ward, from Boston, has already seen off one fighter with Irish connections - he wrenched the WBU title from Liverpool's Shea Neary in March, stopping him after a thrilling encounter.
Motor sport: A medical undertaken yesterday in London revealed David Coulthard sustained three cracked ribs in last week's air crash. Coulthard will sit out testing in Spain this week as he recovers full fitness before next week's European Grand Prix.
Equestrian sport: Robert Power, riding Honnie, snatched the Speed Challenge at the Royal Windsor Horse Show to help Ireland take a slender half-point lead over Britain.
Royal Windsor Horse Show: Traxdata Speed Challenge: 1 Honnie (R Power,Irl) 2 Garronturton Lady (D Lennon, Irl), 3 Virtual Village Randi (R Whitaker, Gbr), 4 Antonis (W Funnell, Gbr), 5 Warren (M Armstrong, Gbr), 6 Antoinette II (G Luckett); Halloween Cup pts: Ireland, 1.50, Great Britain, 1.0
Olympics: The Olympic flame was lit at Olympia in Greece yesterday at the start of a journey that will climax in the opening ceremony in Sydney on September 15th. The flame was lit by a candle contained in a vase carried by Greek actress Thaleia Prokopiou.
