Category: 6. Sports

His voice sets the rhythm, his calm keeps the partnership steady, and his bond with an athlete ensures that together, they glide through the intensity of Para Biathlon as one—proving that trust, communication, and resilience can turn two skiers into a single force on the snow. For the last three seasons, Florian Michelon has been the guide of successful French Para Biathlete Anthony Chalencon, who competes in the vision impaired category.

Michelon spent eight years competing in biathlon at the national level as part of the Équipe Savoie Nordique, the French regional biathlon team. When he retired from competitive racing in 2022, he thought his days on the shooting range and ski trails might be behind him. But an unexpected opportunity arrived.

“After I retired, Alexandre Pouyé, one of Anthony’s previous guides, asked me if I wanted to try guiding,” Michelon recalls. “I had no experience in para sport, but I was passionate about biathlon. Guiding felt like a chance to keep living my passion.”

A meeting with Chalencon, Pouyé, and head coach Vincent Duchêne sealed the decision. Soon after, Michelon’s journey as a guide began. Guiding a fully blind athlete (Chalencon competes in the B1/NS1 category) demands constant focus and communication.

It is a role that requires not just physical fitness, but also composure under pressure. “The key is to stay calm all the time. And of course, getting along well with each other—because we spend so much time together.”

Their cooperation brought good results from the very beginning. In their first season, they won the silver medal in the individual race at the World Championships. Over the following two years, they added four more WCH medals. Ahead of them—in just six months—lies their first Paralympic Games together. At previous Games, the now 35-year-old Chalencon had already claimed bronze. In 2018, he finished third in the 15km race, with Simon Valverde as his guide.

Beside him Chalencon had previously raced with guides Pouyé and Brice Otonello, and the foundations they laid helped Michelon quickly establish a strong working relationship.

“It wasn’t difficult to build a bond,” Michelon says. “Anthony already knew what he wanted from me, and I could learn from what had worked—and what hadn’t—with his past guides. That made our communication very effective from the beginning.”

Michelon and Chalencon’s training program mirrors that of able-bodied biathletes. From May to March, they work year-round, preparing for every possible race scenario. Their regimen includes running, roller skiing, tandem cycling, strength work, and, of course, cross-country skiing and biathlon. Together they build routines, from warm-up to cool-down, to ensure consistency and safety during competition.

“The preparation for a World Cup season is very similar to that of any other biathlete,” Michelon emphasizes. “We need to be ready for everything that can happen on the track.”

Biathlon runs deep in the Florian’s family. His cousin, Océane Michelon, is an accomplished able-bodied biathlete. Their shared passion often brings them together—whether on the trails near Chambéry or at family gatherings.

“With Océane, we often see each other while training,” says Michelon. “I follow her races, and I’m very impressed by her results. She follows ours too and often sends us congratulatory messages. I’m very proud that both of us have found success in biathlon and para biathlon.”

Michelon has also earned recognition beyond the ski trails. Trusted by both colleagues and rivals, he was elected—alongside Canada’s Mark Arendz and Germany’s Anja Wicker—to the Para Biathlon IBU Athletes’ Committee. Serving a four-year term, the trio represents both sexes and all three competition categories. Their role as Para Biathlon Athletes’ Representatives is to give active athletes a voice in the governance of the sport, ensuring their perspective is heard and providing advice to the IBU Executive Board on matters that shape the future of Para Biathlon.

Photos: Kacin | IBU, Krystek | IBU

Legendary artist Lauryn Hill, along with LIV Golf and CPR Group, have announced a contribution to Original Tee Golf, a nonprofit organization dedicated to breaking barriers and expanding access to golf for young people of color.

Original Tee Golf’s mission is to nurture the next generation of golfers by providing structured instruction, mentorship, competitive opportunities and financial support for elite Black athletes pursuing golf at the highest levels. The contribution will help amplify OTG’s transformative work and extend its reach to more youth across the country.

“Golf is a game that inspires discipline and focus,” said Hill, the multiple Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. “It’s a practice and a space of possibility. By supporting Original Tee Golf, we are helping to ensure that young people of color see themselves in this sport and know that they belong at every level of any game.”

OTG, based in New Jersey, is committed to expanding access to the sport of golf, particularly for inner-city and underrepresented youth. Its programs include:

• Youth Instruction Programs offering coaching, swing analysis, and etiquette education.
• Development Camps and Clinics to accelerate skill growth and competitive readiness.
• Mentorship and Life Skills Training to guide youth on college recruitment, leadership, and personal development.
• Competitive Exposure through tournaments and events that showcase talent.
• Elite Athlete Funding to provide financial support for Black golfers striving for collegiate, amateur, and professional success.

At the center of OTG’s impact is the Original Tee Golf Classic, the organization’s annual flagship event. The Classic gives youth predominantly from underserved communities free access to top-tier instruction, mentorship, and exposure to opportunities within the sport, creating a lasting and transformative experience.

The contribution to OTG seeks to help expand access to golf for youth who might not otherwise have the opportunity; support pathways for young golfers of color to advance to college, amateur circuits and professional competition; provide financial resources to elite Black golfers; and strengthen communities through mentorship, education and character development fostered by the game of golf.

“This contribution allows us to reach more youth and provide them with the tools, training, and mentorship they need to succeed on and off the course,” said Wendell J. Haskins, President and Founder of OTG. “Together, we are building pathways for excellence and representation in golf.”

For more information on Original Tee Golf, please visit their website.

Three governing principles will guide the committee in its efforts: parity, scarcity and simplicity. The committee will aim to further strengthen the TOUR’s commitment to a meritocratic structure, increase fan engagement by ensuring top players compete together more often and better connect the regular and postseason to magnify the TOUR Championship.

As a general rule, it is almost always best to sleep on things before making important decisions or reacting to provocations. So why, at close to midnight on Tuesday, did Newcastle rush out a seemingly kneejerk response to Alexander Isak’s incendiary Instagram post claiming that, amid broken promises, his relationship with the club was over?

In a statement reflecting an appreciably tougher tone than at any time during this summer saga, Newcastle insisted no promises had been broken and that their intention is to keep Isak. The message was that the Sweden striker’s attempt to force a move to Liverpool had failed and he would need to end his one-man strike before being welcomed back to first-team training. The only problem is that while you can lead a horse to water it sometimes really is impossible to make them drink.

Even if – and right now it looks a pretty big if – Isak stops training alone and agrees to rejoin Newcastle’s first-team fold, how can Eddie Howe ever trust him again? Howe’s high-intensity, hard‑pressing approach is extremely demanding and, if Isak is anything less than fully engaged, he will prove detrimental to the team. Yes, Isak is supremely gifted, but the standard in the Premier League and Champions League is so high that even he is not capable of drifting through games and scoring goals out of nothing.

Howe has already acknowledged that Isak’s behaviour in skipping Newcastle’s pre-season tour of south-east Asia disrupted dressing‑room morale. Does he really want a player, however talented, polluting behind‑the‑scenes atmosphere with his grievances? Given Newcastle fans have taken to chanting about “one greedy bastard”, maintaining his personal security in the face of intense supporter anger may not be exactly straightforward, either.

Moreover, Isak knows that with every poor performance the price tag around his neck will drop. Given that Liverpool have shown no indication of pursuing alternative strikers, they could end up playing a slightly longer game and waiting until Newcastle are desperate to offload their No 14 in January. In reality it will be a major surprise if this saga endures that long. Indeed a careful reading of Newcastle’s statement conveys a hint that maybe it is part of a haggling manoeuvre as the club’s Saudi Arabian owners aim to extract the maximum possible price from their Anfield counterparts. As the former Newcastle and Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez used to say: “All football is a lie.”

In their statement on Tuesday night Newcastle said: “We have been clear that the conditions for a sale this summer have not transpired. We do not foresee these conditions being met.” The conditions in question refer to the need for Newcastle to sign two strikers to not merely replace Isak but also Callum Wilson, who is now at West Ham. There is a theory that Isak’s withering social media outburst reflected his frustration at the club’s unwillingness to pay Brentford’s £50m-£60m asking fee for Yoane Wissa to fill at least one of those slots. In an uncanny parallel, Wissa has also absented himself from first-team involvement at his club as he attempts to seal a longed‑for move to St James’ Park.

The ostensibly weird thing about the proposed Wissa deal is that the Saudis want £150m for Isak but have offered Brentford £40m for the DR Congo forward. Statistics can be deceptive but in this case they seem pretty compelling. Last season Wissa scored 19 goals in 35 Premier League appearances. Significantly, none were penalties. Isak, meanwhile, scored 23 times in 34 league appearances for a much stronger side. Four of his goals were also penalties.

There is a reasonable case for claiming that Isak’s all-round game is superior to Wissa’s, but Brentford watchers demur, making the point that Wissa is also a pretty useful attacking threat from wide on the left. The big difference is that Wissa is three years older than Isak. Perhaps more importantly, while three years remain on Isak’s contract with Newcastle, there is only one year left on Wissa’s with Brentford.

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Newcastle’s £40m offer for Wissa, made on Wednesday afternoon, was swiftly rejected by Brentford but the hope of the club’s Saudi owners will be that a deal will eventually be done. They also know that keeping Isak for another year could prove rather pointless given that he is clearly not committed to Howe’s cause and next summer’s price for a then 26-year-old with two years left on his contract is going to be nowhere near £150m.

Despite appearances to the contrary, the prospect of such a dwindling profit margin means it is still eminently possible to envisage Isak waking up as a Liverpool player on 2 September. Similarly, Jørgen Strand Larsen or Gonçalo Ramos could join Wissa on Tyneside by the time the transfer window has shut. And should that all transpire, what’s for sure is that Newcastle’s dressing room would be an infinitely healthier, happier place.

Arsenal have agreed a deal worth up to £67.5m for Eberechi Eze and look poised to sensationally hijack Tottenham’s move for the England forward.

It is understood that Mikel Arteta’s side made an approach to Crystal Palace over Eze after Kai Havertz sustained a knee injury during Arsenal’s win against Manchester United on Sunday. Arsenal are continuing to assess the injury but fear that the German forward could be absent for an extended period, even if the early indications are that it is not extremely serious.

But the uncertainty prompted Arsenal to accelerate their interest in Eze, with sources indicating that they have remained in constant contact with the 27‑year‑old’s representatives all summer.

Tottenham had looked in pole position to sign him after stepping up their interest over the weekend and are believed to have agreed a deal worth close to his release clause of £68m, which expired last week.

Yet with Arteta keen to add to his attacking reinforcements as they attempt to become champions for the first time since 2004, it is understood that the sporting director, Andrea Berta, and vice-chairman, Tim Lewis, contacted Palace on Wednesday to gazump their north London rivals.

Eze, who has made no secret of his desire to test himself at the highest level by playing for a club in the Champions League, has indicated he would prefer to join the club that released him at the age of 13 rather than their north London rivals.

Arsenal are believed to have agreed a deal with the Palace chair, Steve Parish, in which they will pay a large chunk of the initial £60m fee up front, with another £7.5m in bonuses. QPR, from whom Palace signed him in 2020 for £19.5m, are due a 15% sell-on fee of any profit they make. Personal terms are not expected to be an issue.

It is understood that Eze will play for Palace in the first leg of Crystal Palace’s Conference League playoff on Thursday and have an opportunity to bid farewell to the supporters after scoring the winning goal in the FA Cup final in May. He is then expected to complete his medical and become Arsenal’s seventh summer signing.

Oliver Glasner, the Palace manager, praised Eze’s attitude as speculation has mounted over his future, with doubts over whether he would feature against Chelsea in their opening Premier League game when he had a free‑kick disallowed by the video assistant referee. “I’m still disappointed that this goal was disallowed and he will show a great performance tomorrow,” Glasner said.

Havertz, who played 31 minutes as a substitute at Old Trafford on Sunday, did not take part in an open training session at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday morning. His absence would leave Arteta with the new signing Viktor Gyökeres as the only available recognised striker in his squad, with Gabriel Jesus not expected to return from a knee injury in the near future. Mikel Merino filled in when Havertz missed 18 matches last season after sustaining a hamstring injury in February, and the Spain midfielder scored seven goals from then until May. Arteta expressed his desire that Havertz could play alongside Gyökeres in pre-season.

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“Kai can play in different positions, as well,” he said. “I think it elevates the quality in the squad, the goal threat that we have in the team, the options that we have to change and provide oppositions with a lot of problems.”

Arsenal have already spent almost £200m this summer and are still hoping to move on a number of fringe players before the end of the transfer window. Jakub Kiwior and Oleksandr Zinchenko both have interest from Porto, with Italian clubs having also been linked to the Poland defender.

Kiwior is understood to prefer to move overseas despite interest from other Premier League clubs after he deputised for the injured Gabriel Magalhães last season. Arsenal are in talks with Stuttgart over a move for Fábio Vieira, while Reiss Nelson could rejoin Fulham after spending last season on loan in west London. Eze’s potential arrival could also mean they step up attempts to sell Leandro Trossard.

Australia’s teenage batting sensation Sam Konstas has voiced his excitement about joining forces with Pakistan’s Shadab Khan in the upcoming Big Bash League (BBL) season, describing the all-rounder’s arrival as a game-changer for the Sydney Thunder.

Konstas, who has just inked a new four-year deal with the Sydney Thunder, said the squad is shaping up to be one of the most balanced in the tournament, and that Shadab Khan may be the missing ingredient to get them over the line this year. “With Shadab Khan in the side, I feel we can put on some outstanding performances this year,” the 19-year-old said, outlining his ambition to step up as a consistent match-winner.

The Pakistani all-rounder was selected 12th overall by the Thunder in this year’s BBL draft. While he has plenty of experience in the Australian league after stints with the Sydney Sixers, Hobart Hurricanes, and Brisbane Heat, this will be his first time taking the field for the Thunder since the 2022/23 season.

Shadab is currently undergoing rehab following shoulder surgery but is expected to be fit enough to take part in the competition, which will serve as a crucial testing ground ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.

Konstas, meanwhile, made headlines last year when he smashed the fastest fifty in the Thunder’s history on debut. In just five BBL outings, the youngster has already showcased glimpses of star potential.

With Shadab’s experience and Konstas’ youthful energy, the Thunder are aiming to build a side that blends flair with stability—one that can challenge for top honours in the new season.