Was is really almost exactly two decades ago that I sat in a draughty hall in Barnsley, a town in Yorkshire in the north of England, watching a teenage kid from across the county lines in Bolton, Lancashire, by way of Pakistan, razzle-dazzle his way too a Channel Schoolboys Championship.

I would like to use this week’s column to make a small proposal - if and when cricket gets back on an Olympic sports programme - an inevitability if you accept that India will one day host the Summer Games - teams should pause for tea between innings.

It was fitting in many ways that Mark Noble, who called time on his West Ham United career yesterday after 549 appearances, should receive a framed copy of his Number 16 shirt during an emotional farewell at a full London Stadium from Sir Trevor Brooking.

A debate is underway in France over the name of one of the venues for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, pitting sponsorship revenue against sporting heritage.

On April 27, British Blind Sport (BBS) and our partners Birmingham City Council, Sport Birmingham, UK Sport, MLS GB and the University of Birmingham celebrated the launch of the official countdown to the International Blind Sport Federation (IBSA) World Games, a multi-sport event for blind and partially sighted athletes that will take place in venues across Birmingham from August 18 to 27 2023.

There comes a point in the life of every host city when the idea that they are about to host the Olympic Games becomes frighteningly real. 

The summer of 2012, when London hosted the Olympics and Paralympics, was such a glorious time in Britain that it is no wonder that, as the 10th anniversary of those Games approaches, there is growing interest in bringing them back to the capital for a record fourth time.

On Monday (May 9), Vladimir Putin presided over Russia's lavish annual Victory Day parade in Moscow’s Red Square.

I recently realised with a mixture of astonishment and horror that this month brought the 25^th anniversary of the date when John Major ceased to be Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

In rugby union it’s a handshake. In boxing it’s raising another’s gloved arm. In swimming it’s ducking under the lane marker to tread common water. In athletics, in women’s athletics at least, it’s a kind of bumper-car embrace with optional "mwah mwah" kisses.

One of the lasting thoughts when leaving China after the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics was "how exactly do they get out of this?"

Athletes are at the heart of the Olympic Movement, their voice should be listened to and respected, their opinions should matter. Without the athletes, there is no sport.

The record breaking sale of a jersey worn by the late Diego Maradona for £7.1 million ($8.9 million/€8.4 million) has once again demonstrated the astonishing demand for sports memorabilia and the eye watering sums it commands.

I am currently in Blackpool, an old-style English seaside resort on the Irish Sea coast, for a few days spring break.