By Steven Downes February 5 - Controversial athletics coach David Farrow (pictured) has been in the dock at the High Court in London this week, accused of being over-controlling and failing one of his charges.

Farrow denies all liability, insisting he has no recollection of his charge complaining of serious back

pain throughout 2004 and that he at all times acted in what he believed to be Davenport's best interests

, reaching the 400m hurdles final at the 2004 World Junior Championships with a British junior record

He was fast tracked into the senior British 4x400m relay squad, winning silver medals at the European

By Mike Rowbottom at Eton Dorney January 22 - Steve Williams (pictured), Britain’s double Olympic champion, has confirmed that he has retired from competitive international rowing.

This quiet man of the British rowing team leaves the international scene with a record of towering achievement

– as well as the gold medals he won at the last two Olympics, he has four World Championship golds

drawing on his competitive experiences of the last ten years, his theme being "Winning in tough times

, leading in tough times".

"All of last year none of the rest of us knew if he was going to carry on and he’s never actually

By Tom Degun December 16 - Ben Rushgrove (pictured) has reaped the rewards of his hard work off-the-track as he today received his Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Sports Performance from the prestigious University of Bath.

Rushgrove holds the world record in T36 200 metres after he became the first athlete in the category

"I'm not going to start predicting gold medals for myself at the Games or anything like that at this

"But I am very proud of what I have done both on the track and academically and all I can do is just

He said: "Without giving too much away, my times in training are looking very good in the sprints.

December 12 - Saina Nehwal (pictured), India's top badminton player and one of the nation's brightest hopes for an Olympic medal, has signed a three-year contract with Olympic Gold Quest, a not for profit sports foundation until the 2012 London Olympics.

Olympic Gold Quest was co-founded by Indian sporting legends Prakash Padukone, the former All-England

badminton champion, and snooker player and Geet Sethi, winner of the world billiards title six times

Its mission is to help the nation's most talented athletes in individual Olympic sports to win gold medals

World record holder rifle shooter Gagan Narang and four-time World boxing Champion Mary Kom are two of

"She is a wonderful role model for all sportspersons in the country.

week teaching rowing to novice crews at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), the novices all

technician, is gathering his resources for the next stage of a career that has already brought him gold medals

win double sculls bronze at the world championships, Purchase having won the single sculls in a world record

The following year they were unbeaten all season, with their 13th and final win coming in the Olympic

final as they set an Olympic record.

Previously he has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, the Sunday Correspondent and The

December 2 - Reigning champions Sammy Wanjiru and Irina Mikitenko (pictured) will return to defend their Virgin London Marathon titles next April against two of the strongest fields ever assembled in the 29-year history of the race.

than six men who have run faster than 2:05:30, including reigning world champion Abel Kirui and three-times

runner of all time thanks to his 2:04:27 victory in Rotterdam this year.

Kifle, and the triple World Half Marathon champion Zersenay Tadese - will also be in the hunt for medals

"   In all, six athletes in the 19-strong field have broken 2:22 while 12 have run faster

  She is one of five strong Russians, including fellow veteran Svetlana Zakharova, three-times

  It is as I battle my way back across Putney Bridge that they pass me - all wearing international

One of my favourite sporting quotes is from Dave Bedford, the former world 10,000 metres record holder

    I remember once controlling my controllable all the way round Woodfield Stadium near

" Essentially, Naber, who had missed out on medals at the 1972 Munich Olympics, set his sights

Previously he has worked for the Daily Mail, The Times, The Observer, the Sunday Correspondent and The

Tour de France and Cav may have recently been voted the overseas sportsman of the Year in Belgium, of all

    Should you wish to watch entrance is free for all but a couple of the evening sessions

  Elsewhere there was also a hat-trick of gold medals for Vicky Pendleton, who seems likely to

stunning early season form, decimating the fields in the 500m time-trial, sprint and keirin posting times

A key member of the world record breaking team pursuit squad in Beijing, Thomas posed two back to back

In his heyday, he was  the most powerful man in world sport, but in a peculiarly British way. Lord Burghley, Marquess of Exeter, was President of the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF), vice-president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and a fierce defender of the amateur code. He had been a world class athlete and Olympic 400 metres hurdles champion.

He could trace his lineage back to Elizabethan times, and on the sports field he was the ultimate gentleman

His winning time  53.4sec was a new Olympic record.

Ontario for the inaugural  British Empire Games (now the Commonwealth Games)  he won three gold medals

"The Olympic spirit fired all those who worked in the organisation." he said.

 "He would have all the support of the Eastern European countries, they liked him and

By Tom Degun September 8 - Darren Campbell, one of Britain's most successful sprinters, has claimed that Jamaica's Usain Bolt (pictured) is "putting the fun back into athletics".

Olympics in Beijing and then again at the World Championships in Berlin, breaking the world record

“He plays around and gets the crowd involved and then goes on to win races in unbelievable times.

Chambers did well by claiming fifth place as Bolt shattered his own world record to run 9.58sec.

no animosity towards Chambers even though Campbell himself was forced to give back gold and silver medals

Campbell, a member of Britain's 4x100m relay team that won the Olympic gold medals in Athens in 2004

By Tom Degun, Paralympics Correspondent September 1 – The London 2012 Paralympics are only three years away and Dame Tanni Grey Thompson (pictured), Britain’s most successful Paralympian, believes that the city will host a spectacular event. 

of the London crowd on many occasions, having won the capital's annual marathon an astonishing six times

  "Athletic crowds are always brilliant and all athletes from all countries will get a huge ovation

Certainly, the track record testifies to this astounding athlete who has won 16 Paralympic medals, 11

  The three-times BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year is also a patron of numerous charities

He equalled her total of 11 gold medals with four victories in Beijing last year and needs only more

By Tom Degun, Paralympics Correspondent September 1 – The London 2012 Paralympics are only three years away and Dame Tanni Grey Thompson (pictured), Britain’s most successful Paralympian, believes that the city will host a spectacular event. 

of the London crowd on many occasions, having won the capital's annual marathon an astonishing six times

Certainly, the track record testifies to this astounding athlete who has won 16 Paralympic medals, 11

on the board of the London Marathon as well as the Board of Transport for London.   The three-times

He equalled her total of 11 gold medals with four victories in Beijing last year and needs only more

"Dave works really hard and will fully deserve my record if and when he gets it.

By Tom Degun, Paralympics Correspondent  September 1 – The London 2012 Paralympics are only three years away and Dame Tanni Grey Thompson (pictured), Britain’s most successful Paralympian, believes that the city will host a spectacular event. 

of the London crowd on many occasions, having won the capital's annual marathon an astonishing six times

Certainly, the track record testifies to this astounding athlete who has won 16 Paralympic medals, 11

on the board of the London Marathon as well as the Board of Transport for London.   The three-times

He equalled her total of 11 gold medals with four victories in Beijing last year and needs only more

"Dave works really hard and will fully deserve my record if and when he gets it.

By Tom Degun  September 1 – The London 2012 Paralympics are only three years away and Dame Tanni Grey Thompson (pictured), Britain’s most successful Paralympian, believes that the city will host a spectacular event. 

of the London crowd on many occasions, having won the capital's annual marathon an astonishing six times

  "Athletic crowds are always brilliant and all athletes from all countries will get a huge ovation

Certainly, the track record testifies to this astounding athlete who has won 16 Paralympic medals, 11

  The three-times BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year is also a patron of numerous charities

He equalled her total of 11 gold medals with four victories in Beijing last year and needs only more

By Tom Degun, Paralympics Correspondent  September 1 – The London 2012 Paralympics are only three years away and Dame Tanni Grey Thompson (pictured), Britain’s most successful Paralympian, believes that the city will host a spectacular event. 

of the London crowd on many occasions, having won the capital's annual marathon an astonishing six times

Certainly, the track record testifies to this astounding athlete who has won 16 Paralympic medals, 11

on the board of the London Marathon as well as the Board of Transport for London.   The three-times

He equalled her total of 11 gold medals with four victories in Beijing last year and needs only more

"Dave works really hard and will fully deserve my record if and when he gets it.