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3 Potential Irish Medal Winners for the 2021 Olympics

With the exception of the 1936 Berlin Games in which the country did not participate, Ireland has sent a team to every Summer Olympics since 1924. Over these 22 occasions, a total of 51 medals have been won with the most successful of the Games being London 2012 which saw one gold, one silver and four bronzes heading back over the Irish Sea.

Obviously, ambitions are high that the country will do better than this in Tokyo in 2021. To help this become a reality, Ireland has even sought inspiration from New Zealand, a country with a similar population but which has won almost as many medals in the last 20 years – 51 – as we have in the past 96.

While we may be some way off becoming a sporting powerhouse like New Zealand, there are some very good prospects across a number of disciplines, including these three.

Thomas Barr – Athletics

The Waterford 400m runner is arguably Ireland’s only true world-class athlete at the moment and at 28 this could be his final Olympics. So he’ll be hoping to improve on his fourth-place finish at Rio in 2016. With athletics being one of the most popular of the Olympic events at sports betting sites such as Mr Green Betting, you can be sure that many will be taking advantage of this simple and convenient way to back him. With a range of different wagers available, including spread betting and flexi-betting as well as a wide number of markets available, the site will also be anticipating a great deal of betting action across all 33 Olympic sports.

Mona McSharry – Swimming

Ever since the very appropriately-named Jon Rudd was appointed as High Performance Director of Ireland’s swimming team, there has been distinct upturn in its fortunes. One of the brightest of the rising stars is the 20-year-old Mona McSharry. In 2017 she became the junior world champion in the 400m breast-stroke at the finals in Indianapolis. Since then she’s tasted victory of another kind having been a winner, along with brother Mouric and parents Aiden and Viola, in the seventh series of the RTE reality show Ireland’s Fittest Family.

Bertram Allen – Equestrian

Equestrian is one sport in which Ireland can certainly consider itself to have under-achieved on the Olympic stage. But just as Jon Rudd has transformed the fortunes of the swimming team, the appointment of Roderigo Pessoa as chef d’équipe for the show jumpers is already having the same effect. A key member of the team will be Bertram Allen – the youngest-ever winner of a prestigious Longines Grand Prix back when he was just 23. Three years later he surely stands a chance of being in the medals both as an individual and as a team member in Tokyo 2021.

There are many others to look out for across other sports with one of the brightest prospects being the young gymnast Rhys McClenaghan who many see as a future world beater. So here’s looking forward to the games, and hearing Amhrán na bhFiann being played at more medal ceremonies than ever before.

Munster v Leinster – Preview & Team News – Kick off 7:35pm Friday

This Friday’s Pro 14 semi-final will be the third time in three years that Leinster v Munster faces off at this stage of the competition.

In their quest for three league titles in a row, Leinster are the favourites heading into this one. Comfortably topping Conference A, Leinster flexed the depth of their squad against Ulster on Saturday. Overcoming a second-half comeback, the holders ran out 28-10 winners to keep a 100% record since the restart.

Meanwhile, Munster earned the chance to rectify their two-point loss to Leo Cullen’s side a week ago. Needing just a point against Connacht, they coasted to second place in Conference B with a 49-12 win.

Leinster the ones the beat

If last week’s Leinster v Munster game between these two is anything to go by, Friday’s game is worthy of the big stage. It is undoubtedly Leinster who will be expected to advance, but there is optimism about Johann van Graan’s chances. The South African has given his men as good a chance as any to challenge for their first title since 2011.

He admits that “You’ll have to be at your best to beat Leinster away” and recent performances suggest his players just might be approaching their best. Earls and Conway are flying on the wings. De Allende is growing in stature beside Chris Farrell in the center. At 10, Hanrahan’s return to form overshadows Carbery’s injury.

Leinster’s depth of choices is impressive though. Their league form ensures they are still the team to beat. Cullen took advantage of Leinster’s security at the top of the table to rotate his squad against Ulster. Kearney, Byrne and Gibson-Park showed us their experience as they managed the game throughout. Ensuring they played the game in the right areas of the pitch, Byrne kept the points coming whenever opportunity allowed.

Munster have fallen at this hurdle the last two years and came up short in the 2017 final. However, they have continued to knock on the door and this year will be no different. With a wealth of international experience and big game players, the southerners are no outsiders. Leinster are a different animal in the club game though so don’t be surprised if they continue the quest for three in a row.

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Alaphilippe wins stage 2 and takes yellow, Roche is leading Irishman

Frenchman Julian Alaphilippe, of Sam Bennett’s Deceuninck-Quick Step team, won his fifth Tour de France stage this afternoon and took over the race leader’s yellow jersey.

Alaphilippe, who was involved in one of the many crashes on the opening stage of the race on Saturday, launched a perfectly-timed attack on the final climb of the day, the Col des Quatre Chemins, before outsprinting former World U-23 champion Marc Hirschi of Nicolas Roche’s TeamSunweb and Adam Yates of Mitchelton-Scott.

Sunday’s stage, which brought the riders into the high Alps with ascents of both La Colmiane and the Col de Turini, saw Philippe Gilbert (Lotto-Soudal) and Rafael Valls (Bahrain-McLaren) fail to start due to a fractured kneecap and femur respectively, it really is like playing on Gclub with the fun and excitement.

In an eventful day on the 107th Tour de France, Alaphilippe attacked with 13km to go. Hirschi (Team Sunweb), the eventual stage runner-up, went across to him while Tom Dumoulin of Jumbo-Visma) crashed after touching the back wheel of Michal Kwiatkowski (Ineos).

Britain Adam Yates (Mitchelton-Scott) counter-attacked and rejoined Alaphilippe and Hirschi at the front. Yates took the 8 seconds bonus at the top, before Alaphilippe and Hirschi, with an advantage of 20 seconds over the peloton. They kept the same gap until the final kilometre before Alaphilippe outsprinted Hirschi, with Yates crossing the finishing line in third place.

A tearful Alaphilippe, whose father Jo died in June, dedicated the victory to him.

“It’s always a special emotion to win on the Tour” he said, “but this is a special year. I haven’t won a race since the beginning of the season, although I’ve always continued to work hard despite the difficult moments. I just wanted to dedicate this victory to my dad. It meant a lot to me and I’m happy I did it.”

A chasing pack of 32 riders came in just two seconds behind Alaphilippe, with Greg Van Avermaet (CCC) taking fourth place ahead of Sergio Higuita (EF Pro Cycling) and Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo).

Despite crashing on the final ascent after touching wheels with Michal Kwiatkowski (Ineos), General Classification contender Tom Dumoulin (Jumbo-Visma) came home in that group among the principal overall contenders, though Critérium du Dauphiné winner Dani Martínez (EF Pro Cycling) came home 3:38 down following his crash.

Stage 1 winner and yellow jersey wearer today Alexander Kristoff (UAE Team Emirates) struggled and came home over half an hour behind the stage victor.

Nicolas Roche was the first of the three Irishmen home today, as the Nice-based rider finished in 24th, 17 seconds behind Alaphilippe. Dan Martin was 17 minutes 45 seconds behind in 100th while Sam Bennett, who was fourth on Saturday’s opening stage, finished 168th, 28 minutes 55 seconds behind his stage-winning teammate.

In the overall standings, Alaphilippe holds a lead of 4 seconds over Yates with Hirschi of Switzerland a further 3 seconds back in third, while Higuita and the other GC contenders are 17 seconds behind the Frenchman.

Nicolas Roche is 26th overall, 17th seconds off the yellow jersey, Dan Martin is 101st at 18 minutes down, while Sam Bennett is 149th, 29 minutes and 10 seconds behind the race leader.

GAA Club Action Round-Up – 6th September 2020

It was another bumper weekend of GAA club hurling and football action.  Here’s the club GAA round-up of the major results from around the country.

Click here for GAA live scores

The last four line-ups for the Limerick SHC was completed on Sunday when Doon overcame South Liberties. David O’Neill, Pat Ryan, and Micheal Ryan all raised green flags for the victors. They face Kilmallock next Saturday.  Na Piarsaigh will play Patrickswell next Saturday in the other semi-final of the Limerick SHC. They eased to a 13 points win over Ballybrown at the LIT Gaelic Grounds.

In the Tipperary SHC, Loughmore Casrleiney had a surprisingly easy passage to the final. They accounted for a disappointing Nenagh side on a 1-22 to 1-12 scoreline. Tipperary marksman John McGrath added 12 points (0-7) from frees. His inter-county teammate Jake Morris was sent off for the losers. They will be joined by Kiladangan. The North Division side proved too strong for Drom-inch. 1-21 to 0-9 was the final tally in Thurles. Also in Tipperary in the SFC Clonmel Commercials reached the final. They dispatched a game Kilshellan-Kilcash by six points. They await the winner of Loughmore and Moyle Rovers who will square-off next weekend.

In Kilkenny SHC action the maroon and white of Dicksboro were the first side through to the semi-finals. They defeated Bennettsbridge at UPMC Nowlan Park. O’Loughlin Gaels also made the last four. They will be joined by powerhouses Ballyhale Shamrocks. The reigning All-Ireland champions hammered a hapless Clara by 19 points. The semi-final pairings are;  Dicksboro v O’Loughlin Gaels / Ballyhale Shamrocks v James Stephens.

In Galway Loughrea march on after overcoming Liam Mellows. St Thomas’ are also through to the last four.

In Dublin, Cuala are through to a  fifth Dublin decider SHC  in six years. They finished with a flourish to power past  Lucan at Parnell Park.  They’ll play Ballyboden St Enda’s next weekend. Sharp-shooter Paul Ryan contributed 1-8 of their tally (0-7) frees and a penalty., against Na Fianna.

Scotstown advanced to their eighth consecutive Monaghan SFC after  a convincing second-half performance against Carrickmacross

Ciaran Barker was the hero as a late winning score for Dungannon as they defeated Errigal Ciaran. Odhran Robinson and Ciaran McGinley struck goals for Errigal. In a tight tense match Barkers, late heroics Propelled Dungannon into  Tyrone SFC Final.

In the other semi-final, Liam Gray and Simon Garrity netted goals for Trillick, who defeated Coalisland.

St Brigid’s and Pádraig Pearses will square off in the  Roscommon senior football final for the first time since 2016. They defeated Boyle and Clann na nGael respectively in Sunday’s semi-finals at Dr Hyde ParkBreaffy advanced to another Mayo SFC decider. They edged a determined  Westport at Elverys MacHale Park. Westport had won when they clashed previously in the group stages. Colm Flynn played a starring role landed seven points. They included including three from play, as a relieved Breaffy squeezed through to the final. Knockmore will provide the opposition in the decider. They made a strong start and saw off Ballina Stephenites by four points.

 

 

 

Johann van Graan “pretty happy with that semi-final spot”

Munster Rugby Head Coach Johann van Graan gave his assessment post match of his side’s comprehensive 49-12 victory over 13-man Connacht in a 37-penalties game at the Aviva Stadium this afternoon.

The South African admitted that their main goal of achieving a semi-final place had been achieved:

“We set out to qualify for the semi-final which we did and take the five league points. In the first 28 minutes, when we were equal numbers, we really played well. We played against a team high in confidence, so firstly, pretty happy with that semi-final spot.”

Van Graan was full of praise for Guinness Man of the Match and try-scorer Tadhg Beirne, who returned to action with the side today. It was like roulette on Gclub to see who would win the man of the match, Bundee Aki was superb.

“Tadhg really played well,” van Graan offered, before adding, “I felt it was a good performance from him and Fineen (Wycherley) and Billy (Holland) coming on to close out the game. That’s the good thing about a quality squad, you need a squad.”

The Munster boss made every effort to save some of his key players for Friday night’s semi-final by taking Conor Murray, CJ Stander, Tadhg Beirne, JJ Hanrahan, Peter O’Mahony and Damian de Allende off the pitch in the final 20 minutes.

Despite what van Graan describes as “the shortest turnaround that we’ve had in years,” he accepts the situation, stating:

“That’s just how the cards have been dealt to us, so we’ll get back to Limerick and Cork tonight, literally have one training session and we’re back here (in Dublin) on Thursday. It’s all about recovery, but that’s the challenge of sport and that’s what we’ve got to do. We’ll be back here on Friday evening against the champions in their back yard.”

Munster will play Leinster at the Aviva Stadium at 7.35pm on Friday night in the first of the Guinness Pro14 semi-finals.

Ulster travel to Edinburgh on Saturday in the second last-four game, with the final scheduled for Saturday, 12th September, at a venue yet to be confirmed.

Ireland wins Drammen Nations Cup

The Irish Showjumping team has won the Nations Cup in Drammen, Norway, this afternoon.

The Michael Blake-managed team of Shane Breen, Eoin McMahon, Jason Foley and Michael G Duffy finished on a two-round total of just four fault to take the competition ahead of Denmark, Britain and Germany in second, third and fourth places respectively.

The victorious Irish team, which delivered three clears in the second round, included three riders under the age of 25 as well as two Irish Sport Horses. It really was thrilling and like a great hand of blackjack on Gclub.

Ireland was drawn first to go in the five-team competition in the eastern Norwegian venue where a Shane Carey-managed Ireland side had also won the 2019 Nations Cup.

Shane Breen, who won Friday’s featured class at the venue, was pathfinder for Michael Blake’s men as the experienced Hickstead-based rider and Z7 Ipswich went clear. In the second round the Tipperary rider had one down, a score which ultimately was the discard score in the final round.

Clare’s Eoin McMahon and Chacon 2 completed their first round with just four faults and were then clear in the second.

Jason Foley and the Martin Egan-owned Castlefield Vegas were perfectly clear in both rounds as the 2018 European Under-18 (Junior) Show Jumping Champion put pressure on the other competing teams.

Michael G Duffy and Lapuccino 2, the anchor combination for Ireland, had four faults in round one, before producing a clear in the second.

Speaking afterwards, Irish manager Michael Blake was delighted with how his team performed, stating:

“Shane got us off to a great start and then Eoin’s horse went a bit green in front of the double for some reason and he looked at it a little again in the second round but Eoin did a great job with him. Jason was superb, his first Nations Cup and only 19 years of age, he was incredible. Michael was really unlucky in the first round and got a deserved clear when last to go. The team really pulled together in the second round with three clear rounds in-a-row.”

The victorious team manager continued:

“This was our sixth win this week at this show. All of the riders who came here including Harry Allen and Jack Ryan who won the Derby did a fantastic job and we have won the Grand Prix and the Nations Cup three times here in the last four years. Some of the lads bypassed other competitions here to target the Nations Cup and they deserve enormous credit. We didn’t come to take part, we came to take over and that is what we did.”

Ireland finished in the runner-up spot in the Czech Nations Cup in Prague last weekend with an entirely different team.

Munster Rugby 49 Connacht Rugby 12

In a game dominated by ill discipline, yellow and red cards, Munster Rugby defeated their provincial rivals to advance to next weekend’s Guinness Pro14 semi-final against Leinster Rugby.

Munster came into this afternoon’s game knowing that two points from the fixture would secure a place for them in next weekend’s Guinness Pro14 semi-final at the Aviva Stadium, and they made the breakthrough as early as the eighth minute.

Shortly after former Munster player Conor Oliver was yellow carded for continuous Connacht fouling, Chris Cloete crashed over to give the designated ‘home’ side a try.

From a lineout, Peter O’Mahony claimed the ball for the men in red who drove with power to their opposition’s line, allowing South African Cloete achieve his 6th try in Munster colours. A straightforward conversion for JJ Hanrahan saw the Kerryman put his side into a 7-0 lead after 10 minutes of the game.

With Munster in the ascendancy, the Connachtmen didn’t help themselves with a succession of penalty concessions. While the westerners had Oliver in the bin, referee Frank Murphy warned Connacht captain Quinn Roux that another penalty concession within the following five minutes would see another of their players yellow carded, after Sammy Arnold was caught on the wrong side of the ruck.

Munster soon had a scrum in front of the posts and with Connacht a man down, Munster drove putting Andy Friend’s team in trouble and their scrum buckled under pressure. Murphy immediately ran under the posts to award a penalty try, putting Munster 14-0 ahead.

Abraham Papali’i, on his Connacht debut, was the dominant player in the green shirt until a dangerous tackle on Conor Murray. When the No. 8’s elbow made contact with Murray’s head in the 25th minute, the New Zealander received a straight red card from the referee. 

With Munster having 62% possession and 63% territory in the opening half hour, Connacht were starved of the ball, and with the side down in personnel, they struggled to make progress out of their own half for much of the early period.

Just 5 minutes to the interval, Connacht saw another red card. Shane Delahunt led with the arm into CJ Stander’s neck, leaving the officials with no option, other than to show a second red card in the game.

Down to thirteen men on the field, Connacht very quickly saw themselves further down on the scoreboard as front row Jeremy Loughman burrowed his way over to touch down for 19-0. Another easy conversion for JJ Hanrahan gave Munster a 21-0 advantage.

In the dying minutes of the first half, Munster had two players yellow carded for continuous fouling, as first Peter O’Mahony and then Tadhg Beirne, were sent to the sin bin. Connacht, finally with numerical equality on the field of play, made it count when replacement Bundee Aki beat the red defence for his side’s first score. Conor Fitzgerald added the extras to reduce his side’s deficit at the break.

Half-time: Munster Rugby 21  Connacht Rugby 7.

In a fruitful early 15 minutes after the restart, Munster turned the screw on Andy Friend’s side, as the southern province achieved three converted tries.

Murray floated a lovely ball out to Tadhg Beirne who came onto it with pace. The Wexford native burst through the Connacht defence as he scored his side’s fourth five-pointer of the afternoon. Minutes later, it was another five pointer, as Johann Van Graan’s men burst from their own half. With Beirne again involved, as well as new centre signing de Allende, speedy winger Andrew Conway finally took possession to score. Shortly afterwards, JJ Hanrahan drilled the ball  down the touchline and the ever alert Conway showed his pace to gain possession and touch down in the corner, despite the best defending efforts of Colm de Buitléar.

Replacement James Cronin got in on the try-scoring when a Munster drive set him up for a score, before Rory Scannell added the extras for 49-7.

Jonny Murphy went over in the corner, after some good link-up play, to get a late consolation score for Connacht, but with the conversion attempt which followed missed, the game ended with a comprehensive 49-12 victory for Johann van Graan’s side.

Final score: Munster Rugby 49  Connacht Rugby 12.

Munster will play Leinster on Friday night (7.35pm) in the first semi-final of a changed Guinness Pro14 competition at the Aviva Stadium.

Ulster will travel to Edinburgh for the second semi-final on Saturday, with the final taking place on Saturday, 12th September.

Munster Rugby:
15. Shane Daly, 14. Andrew Conway, 13. Chris Farrell, 12. Damian de Allende, 11. Keith Earls,10. JJ Hanrahan, 9. Conor Murray.

1. Jeremy Loughman, 2. Niall Scannell, 3. John Ryan, 4. Fineen Wycherley, 5. Tadhg Beirne, 6. Peter O’Mahony (captain), 7. Chris Cloete, 8. CJ Stander.

Munster Rugby Replacements:
16. Kevin O’Byrne, 17. Liam O’Connor, 18. Stephen Archer, 19. Billy Holland, 20. Jack O’Donoghue, 21. Craig Casey, 22. Rory Scannell, 23. Jack O’Sullivan.

Connacht Rugby:
15. Tiernan O’Halloran, 14. Colm de Buitléar, 13. Sammy Arnold, 12. Tom Daly, 11. Matt Healy,10. Conor Fitzgerald, 9. Caolin Blade.

1. Paddy McAllister, 2. Shane Delahunt, 3. Dominic Robertson-McCoy,4. Niall Murray, 5. Quinn Roux (captain),6. Eoghan Masterson, 7. Conor Oliver, 8. Abraham Papali’i.

Connacht Rugby Replacements:
16. Jonny Murphy, 17. Conor Kenny, 18. Matthew Burke, 19. Ultan Dillane, 20. Seán Masterson, 21. Stephen Kerins, 22. Peter Robb, 23. Conor Dean.

Sam Bennett 4th as Alexander Kristoff wins stage 1

Carrick-On-Suir rider Sam Bennett finished fourth on stage 1 of the 2020 Tour de France in Nice this afternoon as Norwegian Alexander Kristoff took the stage win along with the race leader’s yellow jersey.

Sam Bennett, who crashed earlier in the day and also suffered a puncture in an eventful 156 kilometre opening stage, found himself boxed in at a crucial time in the final sprint as Kristoff powered past the field to seal a surprise win for UAE Team Emirates.

Speaking at the finish line, Bennett gave his assessment of the day’s final sprint:

“At the end of the stage with the roads being so slippy, I tried to do my best, I tried to stay safe. I made a wrong decision in the final but when (Michael) Morkov [Bennett’s teammate] went, I saw (Jasper) Stuyven and I thought ‘ok, I’ll let him in and hopefully he’ll go early’ but he waited too long for me to get a run at Michael (Morkov) and I should have really fought for my teammate’s wheel and gone from there. I dropped the speed too much and I had to try and accelerate it again but it was just too late.”

World Champion Mads Pederson of Trek Segafredo took second in today’s stage with Nicolas Roche’s teammate Cees Bol third, just ahead of Bennett.

Today’s Grand Départ which consisted of three loops around Nice, with two third category climbs and a flat finale was made for the sprinters.

As the nerves in the peloton came to the fore in dangerous cycling conditions, a mix of single riders losing traction on corners to large falls that brought down entire sections of the peloton marred Saturday’s action.

Sam Bennett, who was one of those to go down early in the day, also required a wheel change which forced him to chase back into the main peloton. Contenders for the General Classification Colombian Nairo Quintana and Julian Alaphilippe also fell, as did Australian Caleb Ewan, who was seen as a pre-stage favourite for victory today.

Alexander Kristoff’s 4th career stage victory at the Tour de France gives UAE Team Emirates their first ever yellow jersey and it is the first time for the Norwegian in yellow.

Stage winner Alexander Kristoff receives the yellow jersey: Credit: Bettini Photo/UAE Team Emirates.

Reacting to his victory, the 33-year-old former Norwegian National Road Race Champion admitted:

“It’s a dream to wear the yellow jersey, I don’t think you can ask for anything better. The team came here to aim for the General Classification and some sprint stages. I was hoping, but I didn’t think I would win so early. Today I was riding well and I was able to give my best on the final straight.”

The other Irish riders in this year’s Tour, Dan Martin (Israel Start Up Nation) and Nicolas Roche (Team Sunweb) were both caught up by late crashes but appeared uninjured as they crossed the finishing line on Promenade des Anglais in Nice.

Tomorrow’s second stage of 186 kilometres will start and finish in Nice. The hilly route features the Col de la Colomiane, Col de Turini, Col d’Eze and Col des Quatres Chemins.

Stage 1 Result:
1. Alexander Kristoff (UAE Team Emirate) 3h46’23 “
2. Mads Pedersen (Trek – Segafredo) s.t.
3. Cees Bol (Team Sunweb) s.t.
4. Sam Bennett (Deceuninck – Quick Step) s.t.

102. Nicolas Roche (Team Sunweb) s.t.
118. Dan Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation) s.t.

General Classification after Stage 1:
1. Alexander Kristoff (UAE Team Emirate) 3h46’13”
2. Mads Pedersen (Trek – Segafredo) + 4 seconds.
3. Cees Bol (Team Sunweb) + 6 seconds
4. Sam Bennett (Deceuninck – Quick Step) + 10 seconds

102. Nicolas Roche (Team Sunweb) + 10 seconds.
118. Dan Martin (Israel Start-Up Nation) + 10 seconds.

The full stage result and overall classification can be viewed here.

Tour de France 2020 stage by stage updates

Every Irish cycling fan will be hoping that Sam Bennett can win a stage at the 2020 Tour de France. Sports News Ireland will provide stage by stage updates and will also have news on the other riders Nicolas Roche and Dan Martin at this year’s Grand Boucle.

Monaco resident Sam Bennett will cycle on roads very familiar to him when the 2020 Tour de France gets underway in Nice on Saturday.

The Flanders, Belgium-born Irish rider will head the Deceuninck – Quick Step team along with Frenchman Julian Alapjilippe, the man who lead the 2019 Tour de France until the last Friday of the race.

Twenty-nine-year-old Bennett admits that the local roads will pose a test for the participants, jokingly admitting:

“Normally I should be looking forward to the Tour but I know how hard the roads are so it’s going to be difficult, but yes it’s very nice to be racing on ‘home’ roads, well second-home roads.”

STAGE 1

Bennett finishes fourth in his first sprint finish

 

World Darts Grand Prix moves from Dublin to Coventry in 2020

The World Grand Prix Darts will be held behind closed doors at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena from October 6-12 2020.

The famous double-start tournament had been due to be held for a 20th time at Dublin’s Citywest Convention Centre later this year, with the venue having become a popular destination for darts fans since first hosting the World Grand Prix in 2001.

However, the ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic mean that it is not possible for the World Grand Prix to be held in Dublin in 2020, as the event follows the World Matchplay and Premier League in being staged behind closed doors.

The World Grand Prix will now take place from October 6-12 at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry, a venue which has previously hosted the Premier League as well as a number of PDC ProTour weekends.

“The BoyleSports World Grand Prix is one of the highlights of the PDC calendar and whilst we’re disappointed we will not be at the Citywest Convention Centre in 2020, we can now look forward to an exciting and entertaining event at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry,” said PDC Chief Executive Matt Porter.

“We saw an outstanding standard of play at the recent World Matchplay and are sure that will continue in the World Grand Prix, which remains a challenging and unique event due to the double-start format.

“The Citywest Convention Centre remains part of our plans for 2021 and beyond and we thank them for their support in exploring all options for the event to have taken place in Dublin this year.”

Ricoh Arena Commercial Venue Director Paul Michael said: “We are really excited and honoured to be able to host the 2020 BoyleSports World Grand Prix behind closed doors.

“This event will strengthen our relationship with the PDC, and demonstrate the diversity of the venue and its ambition to encourage more elite sports to Coventry.”

Play will commence with the first round split across two nights on October 6-7, with the second round taking place on October 8-9.

The quarter-finals will be held on Saturday October 10, with the semi-finals on Sunday October 11 and the final on Monday October 12.

Coverage will be shown on Sky Sports, as well as through the PDC’s international broadcast partners including RTL7 and DAZN and for PDCTV Rest of the World Subscribers.

2020 BoyleSports World Grand Prix

Ricoh Arena, Coventry

Tuesday October 6 (1900 BST)

8x First Round

Wednesday October 7 (1900 BST)

8x First Round

Thursday October 8 (1900 BST)

4x Second Round

Friday October 9 (1900 BST)

4x Second Round

Saturday October 10 (1900 BST)

Quarter-Finals

Sunday October 11 (1900 BST)

Semi-Finals

Monday October 12 (2000 BST)

Final

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