Breakaway union stands behind Tara Moore’s $20m legal battle against WTA

The breakaway players’ union that is suing the tours and grand slam tournaments has thrown its weight behind Tara Moore’s $20m (£14.7m) legal battle against the Women’s ­Tennis Association in a new front in the sport’s civil war.The Guardian has learnt that Moore, a former British No 1 doubles player who this week brought a legal action for negligence against the WTA after being handed a four‑year ban for doping, is using lawyers from the Professional Tennis ­Players Association’s legal partner, King & Spalding.The PTPA has already brought a legal claim against the WTA, the men’s Association of Tennis Professionals and three of the grand slam tournaments, accusing them of collaborating to reduce prize money and imposing a restrictive ranking system, in the same US federal court where Moore has filed her claim, that of the southern district of New York.The players’ union, which was set up by Novak Djokovic six years ago but which he left last month, is also in the midst of a $1bn investment round to fund a new global tour, in another potential threat to the WTA and ATP

Constitution Hill out of Champion Hurdle and ready for next chapter on the Flat

Constitution Hill, the brilliant Champion Hurdle winner in 2023, has been ruled out of this year’s race on 10 March and any further races over jumps after a schooling session at Nicky Henderson’s yard on Wednesday, with the trainer saying in a statement that “it is not fair to ask him and Nico [de Boinville, his jockey] to do it again” following three falls in the nine-year-old’s last four races.Confirmation that Constitution Hill will pursue new opportunities on the Flat follows his astonishing debut on the level at Southwell four days ago. While some jumps fans will regret the fact that one of the best hurdlers in racing history will not get a final chance to reclaim his former crown, others will feel relief that the risks attached to another fall have weighed heavier in the balance than the lure of a final run at the festival.“Michael Buckley [Constitution Hill’s owner] and I have not surprisingly spent a lot of time soul searching and thinking over Constitution Hill’s future,” Henderson said in a statement on X on Wednesday afternoon, “and have sadly concluded that he will not be running in the Unibet Champion Hurdle the week after next.“Last Friday night was for us all a magical occasion and we so appreciated his popularity and the love and admiration everybody showed to Conrad, as he is fondly called here

MPs back UK broadcasters in push to expand sport’s free-to-air ‘crown jewels’

Public service broadcasters are making renewed attempts to persuade the government to expand the list of televised sport’s free-to-air “crown jewels”.A call from the then BBC director of sport, Barbara Slater, to add the Six Nations Championship to the group A list of events that must be offered to terrestrial channels was rejected three years ago, but a group of Labour MPs is understood to be working with broadcasters to force a change of policy.BBC and ITV have since extended their joint rights for the Six Nations until 2029 despite fears they would be outbid by a subscription service such as Sky Sports and TNT Sport, but with budgets tight they are still seeking legislative protection.While BBC and ITV would be the main beneficiaries of any change, Channel 4 has significantly increased its sport offering in recent years and will be the free-to-air home of the Winter Paralympics next month, as well as beginning exclusive contracts to broadcast the men’s and women’s Boat Races and Women’s FA Cup this year.In addition to pushing for the Six Nations to be moved from the group B list, which permits live events to be behind a paywall as long as highlights are made available free-to-air, the public service broadcasters also want the A list expanded to include the home nations’ men’s and women’s international qualifiers for the World Cup and European Championship, one Champions League tie involving a British team from each round of matches and the men’s FA Cup

The US men’s hockey team at the State of the Union showed proximity to Trump is never neutral

During Tuesday’s State of the Union, Donald Trump welcomed members of the US men’s national hockey team to the House gallery to chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A!”. Trump revealed that Team USA’s goaltender, Connor Hellebuyck, will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. “What special champions you are,” Trump told the players, who had beaten Canada on Sunday in the gold medal game of the Winter Olympics.In Trump’s America, proximity is never neutral.While the hockey players were greeted with warm applause from both Republicans and Democrats, Trump also had used the team as props in his speech

Among the gangsters, gamblers and high rollers: a master bookie’s life in Las Vegas

Forty years ago, the New England Patriots played in their first Super Bowl. It ended disastrously for New England, who lost 46-10 to the Chicago Bears. The Bears’ mammoth defensive tackle, William “The Refrigerator” Perry, even got involved in the scoring with a touchdown.That moment looked like it would cause serious problems for Art Manteris, who at the time ran the sportsbook at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Under Manteris, Caesars had offered odds on whether Perry would score during the game – and, as fans scrambled to back the popular player, the house stood to lose a significant sum if he did

The Spin | Zimbabwean breakout at T20 World Cup has fans rejoicing renaissance

Dean du Plessis could tell Zimbabwean cricket had turned a corner by the noise of the crowd. The veteran broadcaster, who was born blind, has forged a remarkable career as a commentator by distinguishing the game’s almost imperceptible audio shifts. He can tell a slower ball has been bowled by the fractional delay before ball meets bat. He can tell if a batter has pressed forward or back by the scratch of spikes against the hard pitch. And, in 2018, he could tell the sport he loved would never be the same again