A round-up of other sports news in brief...
Hatton to take on Pacquiao
BOXING: Britain’s Ricky Hatton has vowed to become the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world after announcing a May 2nd clash with Filipino Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas.
“I’ve challenged the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world once and came second. Now I’ve got another chance and I’m not going to let you down,” the former WBA and IBF light-welterweight champion said.
The Manchester boxer is the world’s top-ranked light-welterweight following his return to that weight after losing to Floyd Mayweather Jnr in a WBC welterweight title fight in December 2007.
Former four-weight world champion Pacquiao outclassed 10-time world champion Oscar De La Hoya in Las Vegas in December to confirm his reputation as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
Kuerten competes in three-star Nantes show
EQUESTRIAN SPORT: Jessica Kuerten drops down a couple of grades as she competes for the next four days at the three-star show in Nantes, writes Margie McLoone.
Winner of the Leipzig and Zurich qualifiers for the FEI Rolex World Cup in Las Vegas in April, Kuerten travels to the French venue with Castle Forbes Cosma, Fashion and Cokoa 2. She will also partner the mares Miribel d’Auvray and Myou de Gigny, both owned by Lady Georgina Forbes, in the show’s one-star section confined to women riders.
Denis Lynch will also be in action at Nantes. The Tipperary-born rider will compete with Abbervail van het Dingeshof, Upsilon d’Ocquier, First Love and Double O Seven.
Across the Atlantic, Shane Sweetnam and Richie Moloney are both riding at the US’s winter equestrian festival in Florida.
Sweetnam, who finished second in the World Cup qualifier at the Green Cove Springs show just over a week ago, will campaign the same horse, Amaretto d’Arco and also Little Emir. Moloney, who is staying with Cork-born Sweetnam at his Spy Coast Farm base, will ride the yard’s Think Twice.
At home, ShowjumpingIreland launched its redesigned website and this weekend introduces a new system of pony jumping at nine shows across the country.
Andrew's and Alex in repeat final
SCHOOLS’ HOCKEY: St Andrew’s and Alexandra College will meet in the Junior League final at Grange Road on February 12th in what will be a repeat of last season’s Junior Cup final after coming through their semi-finals at the same venue yesterday, writes Mary Hannigan.
A first-half goal from Laura Pinder proved decisive in the game between holders St Andrew’s and Loreto Beaufort, while penalty strokes were required to find a winner in the second semi-final between Alexandra and Mount Anville, for whom Hannah McDermott and Aisling Naughton scored, respectively, in the 1-1 draw.
Alexandra won out, 6-5.
Dementieva will lead Russia
TENNIS: Elena Dementieva will lead holders Russia in next month’s Fed Cup first-round tie against China.
She heads a powerful team that includes world number eight Svetlana Kuznetsova and 18th-ranked Anna Chakvetadze.
Russia captain Shamil Tarpishchev also called up Fed Cup debutant Alisa Kleybanova for the February 7th-8th tie at Moscow’s Olympic arena.
British Olympic funding cut
OLYMPIC GAMES: British Olympic officials have expressed their disappointment after it was announced that eight sports have had their funding cut by up to 76 per cent for the run-up to the London 2012 Games.
It was confirmed yesterday that the sports will get only between a quarter and a half of the cash they received in the build-up to the Beijing Games.
Shooting has been the hardest hit with a drop from €5.6 million in the build-up to the Beijing Olympics to €1.3 million for the next four years.
British Olympic Association (BOA) chief executive Andy Hunt said: “The BOA is disappointed that eight of the Olympic sports cannot be fully funded through to the London 2012 Olympic Games at this time.”
The sports are the casualties of a €60 million funding shortfall brought about by the failure of a government campaign to bring in a single penny from the private sector.
