ATHLETICS

Four top Welsh athletes will celebrate this weekend after being selected for the UK Athletics Olympic World Class Programme.

Melissa Courtney-Bryant and Jake Heyward have received nomination for the Olympic Podium Potential category, whilst Jeremiah Azu and Joe Brier have been nominated for the Olympic Relays Programmes, ahead of next year’s Olympic Games in Paris.

The Olympic WCP is UK Sport’s National Lottery funded initiative which has the purpose to identify, develop and support talented athletes towards medal success at the Olympic Games and other major Championships.

To qualify for the funding, UK Athletics says it “must be confident that any athlete nominated has the realistic potential and demonstrable performance capability and capacity to make the necessary progress to achieve a medal at least in one of the next two Olympic Games”.

RALLYING

Carmarthen will host the start of next month’s Roger Albert Clark Rally, which is the biggest event of its kind in the UK.

Up to 170 rally cars and support crews will assemble in the West Wales market town for the biennial rally, which has attracted competitors from all over the world and headed by international star drivers Kris Meeke, Oliver Solberg and Chris Ingram.

There will be plenty of Welsh crews contesting the event too – including one of the favourites for victory, Jason Pritchard/Phil Clarke.

They were battling for the win last time the rally took place in 2021, but retired their North Road Garage Ford Escort RS1800 in Dyfi forest.

“I’m looking forward to starting this year’s Roger Albert Clark Rally in a town that’s very close to my heart, as both my boys were born in Carmarthen,” says Pritchard.

Other top Welsh crews include Lyn Davies/Aled Richards, who are on the cusp on winning the Historic class W9 title in the Pirelli Welsh Rally Championship in their Escort Mk2.

GYMNASTICS

Great Britain pair Ruby Evans and Poppy-Grace Stickler will headline for Wales as full men’s and women’s teams compete at next month’s artistic gymnastics Northern European Championships in Sweden.

Wales will include five Commonwealth Games stars after selection was confirmed for Halmstad and this year’s event from November 24 to 26.

GB World Championship duo Evans (Cardiff Olympic/Clwb Cymru) and Stickler (Capital/Clwb Cymru) lead the women’s team, which also includes Mali Morgan (Capital/Clwb Cymru) and Evie Flage-Donovan (Cardiff Central Youth Club/Clwb Cymru), along with twin sisters Abigail Roper and Emily Roper (both Pipers Vale).

Mia Evans (Park Wrekin) and Sofia Micallef (Cardiff Central Youth Club/Clwb Cymru) are named as reserves.

Some of Wales’ big hitters return on the men’s side.

Joe Cemlyn-Jones, Jacob Edwards and Josh Cook are back and are named alongside Theo-Amari Ochana (Heathrow) along with Leeds duo Henry Lewis and Elliot Vernon.