Sports Digest/ GOLF: The European Tour's season-ending Volvo Masters is to continue at Valderrama in Spain until at least 2010.
George O'Grady, Tour chief executive, said: "In 1988, when we signed the initial agreement to stage the Volvo Masters at Valderrama, it would have been difficult to envisage that, in 2007, we would be celebrating this 20th anniversary and looking forward . . . to a minimum of another three years at Valderrama."
Last year, India's Jeev Milkha Singh claimed the tournament title, while Padraig Harrington pipped Paul Casey to the Order of Merit.
Barrera to go on the attack
BOXING: Marco Antonio Barrera will revert to his old explosive style for tonight's WBC super-featherweight title defence against fellow Mexico City native Juan Manuel Marquez in Las Vegas.
Barrera, 33, has honed his boxing skills in recent years after making his name as a cavalier, come-forward brawler. But he has been unable to ignore the fact Marquez remains the superior boxer.
He revealed he trained to match Marquez's style before adopting a different gameplan. "I tried to box against my sparring partners and I couldn't do it. I couldn't learn it, so I'm going to have to fight him."
Popovych takes stage honours
CYCLING: Yaroslav Popovych surged home in the finale of the 178km fifth stage of the Paris-Nice cycling race in Manosque to give Discovery Channel their second victory in succession yesterday.
The 27-year-old Ukrainian, a former under-23 world champion, parted company with his breakaway companions in the last climb to finish on his own and hold the chasing peloton at bay.
Italian Davide Rebellin finished in the main bunch to retain his overall leader's yellow jersey with a six-second lead over Popovych's team mate Alberto Contador, winner of the previous stage in Mende.
