Sports digest

A round-up of today's other stories in brief

An Post team tackle Tour of Oman

CYCLING: Following an aggressive showing in the Tour of Qatar, where Niko Eeckhout and Gediminas Bagdonas were in long distance breakaways and the Continental squad punched above its weight, the An Post Grant Thornton M Donnelly Sean Kelly team will line out in the six-day Tour of Oman today, writes Shane Stokes.

The 40-year-old former Belgian champion Eeckhout will once again lead the team. He will be joined by the young Irish riders Sam Bennett and Mark Cassidy, Britons Mark McNally and Andy Fenn, plus the Belgian trio of Kevin Claeys, Maxim De Busschere and Pieter Ghyllebert.

“I’m really proud of the effort the team put in Qatar and I am looking for the same in Oman,” said general manager Kurt Bogaerts. “If I get the same commitment, we will go close to reaching our targets.”

The event is held in the same region as the Tour of Qatar, but over much tougher terrain.

Contador appeal succeeds as one-year ban to be lifted

CYCLING: Tour de France champion Alberto Contador will have his provisional one-year ban for failing a dope test lifted on appeal by the Spanish Cycling Federation (RFEC), Spanish media reported yesterday.

The 28-year-old three-times Tour champion has been suspended provisionally since August after the Spaniard tested positive for a small amount of the banned anabolic agent clenbuterol.

The Federation said it was unable to comment on the reports, and whether Contador was to be officially informed of their decision today, as it was a secret process.

Contador’s agent Jacinto Vidarte said: “We havent heard any official information from the federation.”

Spanish daily El Pais said that according to sources close to the RFEC disciplinary committee, the committee had decided to accept Contador’s appeal that he had inadvertently consumed the banned substance after eating a piece of contaminated meat during the Tour.

Morgan to make quick return

CRICKET:Eoin Morgan has suggested that England may have been premature in cutting him from their World Cup plans after revealing he will return from injury sooner than expected, writes Andy Wilson.

England reluctantly replaced Morgan with Ravi Bopara in their 15-man squad when the finger injury suffered by the Irishman during the one-day series in Australia was confirmed as a break, which was thought to need an operation ruling him out for at least six weeks.

But Morgan posted on his Twitter account yesterday that surgery is no longer needed, implying he could be fit to bat well before the World Cup final on April 2nd. “Some good news this morning,” he tweeted. “No need for an op on my finger . . . pretty much healed . . . will be back sooner than expected.”

However it is too late for England to change their squad again, so the beneficiaries of Morgan’s good news will be the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League.

Kolkata and Mumbai grounds ready

CRICKET:Kolkata and Mumbai grounds have been given the final clearance to stage Cricket World Cup matches after concerns about their readiness, the head of the governing body said yesterday.

“Those venues have all been squared off, they’re ready,” International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Haroon Lorgat said ahead of the February 19th-April 2nd tournament.

There isn’t an issue about readiness of stadiums.

This means only one match, India’s fixture with England on February 27th, had to be switched from Kolkata’s Eden Gardens to Bangalore.

Mumbai has been given the go-ahead to stage the final on April 2nd as well as two group fixtures.

“We’ve got to the point now when all of the venues are going to be ready for the games scheduled,” Lorgat said.

Taylor, Kavanagh for Multi-Nations

BOXING: World and European champ Katie Taylor and Drimnagh BC middleweight Sinéad Kavanagh have been named in a two-strong squad for the Elite Stranja Multi-Nations which begin in Bulgaria tomorrow. The tournament, which will take place in the town of Pazardjik, will feature the three women's Olympic weight categories of flyweight, lightweight and middleweight.

According to Taylor’s coach and father Peter, who will be working Ireland’s corner in Bulgaria along with Pat Ryan, the Multi-Nations will be ideal preparations for the 2011 European Championships.

Taylor, the World and EU lightweight champ, will be aiming for her fifth European title in a row in the Netherlands in October.

The only Olympic qualifier for female boxers will be at the May 2012 AIBA World Championships in Qinhuangdao, China, where Taylor will be aiming for her fourth title .

Kubica set for elbow operation

MOTOR SPORT:Injured Polish Formula One driver Robert Kubica will have a final operation on his elbow in Italy tomorrow after surgery last week, his Renault team said yesterday.

“The latest update on Robert is that his condition remains positive,” the Lotus-backed team said in a statement. “His good general condition means that the final surgery is scheduled for Wednesday.”

Kubica suffered serious injuries in a February rally crash.