Cycling: Five-time Tour de France King of the Mountains Richard Virenque has been suspended by the Swiss Cycling Federation (FSC) for nine months after admitting taking performance-enhancing drugs.
The independent commission, set up by the FSC, voted unanimously to suspend him and also fined him 2,500 francs (£1,500).
The suspension for the 31year-old, who was cleared earlier this month of supplying drugs to the rest of his former Festina team during the 1998 Tour de France, could well spell the end of his professional career.
The ban will not take into account the winter months and will start on February 1st, ruling him out of the Tour de France.
Virenque, who admitted he had taken drugs at the Festina trial in Lille in October after consistently denying he had taken drugs for the past two years, must lodge an appeal within 21 days at the sport's Arbitration Tribunal in Lausanne.
Virenque is a French national who lives near Geneva. His licence is held by the Swiss federation but he is without a team for the 2001 season after his contract with the Polti team expired.
Rowing: An Oxford University rower was feared dead last night after his boat became waterlogged in a training session during a freak storm in Spain.
Seventeen other squad members from two coxed eights were rescued, but Leo Blockley, from Lancashire, vanished from sight after swimming for the bank.
The Oxford University Lightweight Rowing Club boats were hit by sudden gusts of wind in Amposta, near Barcelona, flooding the boats. While the rest of the crew sat tight and waited for help, the 21-year-old postgraduate maths student - one of the usual eight rowers and a cox on the coxed eight boat - tried to swim for the bank through the turbulent waters.
Darts: Gayl King gave Graeme Stoddart an early scare before bowing out of the Skol World Championships at Purfleet yesterday.
The Canadian, who was making history as the first female ever to take part in the tournament, did the women's game proud by winning the first set against the world number 32.
But the 40-year-old from Newcastle kept his composure to win the next three sets as King's brave challenge faltered.
Tennis: Australia's Mark Philippoussis says his latest knee surgery will legitimise his complaints about injuries this year which have prevented him from playing Davis Cup for his country.
Philippoussis, who has been criticised for making himself unavailable for Davis Cup ties, said the operation to repair damaged cartilage showed the injury was genuine.
He appeared at a press conference in Melbourne yesterday on crutches and said he will be sidelined for the next eight weeks, missing next month's Australian Open, the first grand slam tournament of 2001.
