He risks up to two years in prison.Sylvie Voët’s remarks corresponded with the picture of systematic doping among Festina and other teams being painted here in broad strokes in a week of testimony.Yesterday’s court session was cut short because bad weather that prevented a key witness, the head of the International Cycling Union, Hein Verbruggen, from leaving Manchester. He was rescheduled to appear today, along with other officials of the cycling world, including Daniel Baal, the president of the French Cycling Federation, and Jean-Marie Leblanc, the director of the Tour de France.The organisations are civil parties in the case, a role often taken in judicial proceedings in France by those who consider themselves to be among the victims in a case.. The England and Wales Cricket Board expects to unveil a new sponsor for the County Championship before Christmas after PPP Healthcare yesterday announced that it is withdrawing from its contract after two years “for commercial reasons”. The England and Wales Cricket Board expects to unveil a new sponsor for the County Championship before Christmas after PPP Healthcare yesterday announced that it is withdrawing from its contract after two years “for commercial reasons”.
The health company released a statement which read: “Our contract with the ECB was developed in a way that would enable us to review our participation after two years. For commercial reasons, we have decided to exercise our option and withdraw.”Our decision has nothing to do with dissatisfaction with cricket, the state of the game in this country or the way it is organised by the ECB. We have had a very good working relationship with the ECB and derived many benefits from the sponsorship and wish them well in attracting a new sponsor.”The unexpected news has left the ECB without sponsors for three major competitions, after the NatWest Bank opted not to renew its contract to support the domestic limited-overs knock-out competition and the Cornhill insurance group decided against putting its name to any future Test series in this country.The ECB must also line up a replacement for Benson and Hedges, its secondary limited-overs sponsors, because the tobacco company will be banned from sponsoring any event should Government legislation be pushed through Parliament.However, the ECB director of corporate affairs John Read, refused to accept that the game is now in crisis and added that talks are under way with a number of organisations in an attempt to fill the gaps.”We do not feel there is any problem making this sport attractive,” he said. “We understand why PPP healthcare have withdrawn from their sponsorship.”.

There was always the chance that this one-day series would end in tears for England, but nobody quite foretold how they might fall. As their batsmen were again lured to a pitiful downfall by Pakistan’s spin bowlers – reason enough for a good weep – the team’s obvious discomfort was aggravated by crowd disturbances. There was always the chance that this one-day series would end in tears for England, but nobody quite foretold how they might fall. As their batsmen were again lured to a pitiful downfall by Pakistan’s spin bowlers – reason enough for a good weep – the team’s obvious discomfort was aggravated by crowd disturbances.
The first one came outside the ground when hundreds of police, confronted by thousands of fans desperate to get into the match and climbing walls to do so, twice restored order by releasing several canisters of tear gas after wading in with their batons. On both occasions the gas wafted on to the pitch, forcing the match to be held up for 10 minutes while the players covered their eyes, and on both occasions England lost a wicket immediately after the resumption.The second intrusion came midway through Pakistan’s innings when Andrew Flintoff, who was fielding on the boundary, had plastic bottles thrown at him. No more than boisterousness perhaps, but it was, at the least, disconcerting.

Flintoff was unhurt but the potential disruption was clear and England’s captain Nasser Hussain approached the umpire, Mian Aslam, and asked him to intervene All the time, England were losing the match and the series. They might have anticipated this but their disappointment must have been heightened because of the way in which they set off, winning the first match by chasing 305 to win. It was a week ago and now it seems like a century.Pakistan won the second match easily and deservedly eased home by six wickets in the decider. They had only to overhaul England’s miserable total of 158 from 42.5 overs and, despite the loss of two wickets to the new ball, were rarely troubled.Once more, the tourists were not up to the job of rebuffing Pakistan’s spinners.

It was the turn of the off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq to reap a rich harvest, helped at every turn, as it were, by England’s batsmen. Their plan was to attack but they did so injudiciously and Saqlain’s 5 for 20 was his best return in 129 one-dayers.A couple of dismissals were grotesque and it is certain now that Pakistan will prepare spinning pitches for the Tests. England’s footwork was based on the rules for three-legged races and if the occasion got to them – there was mayhem outside the ground for hours beforehand – they will have to become accustomed to it.Hussain refused to use the circumstances as an excuse “It’s full of chaos here, the chaos theory,” he said “It must make great viewing. There isn’t a dull moment but it does make it a bit harder when you’re out in the middle.”As for the tear gas, Marcus Trescothick, who was batting during its initial advent, said it was very uncomfortable and he felt like choking. “It was a bit scary because you just didn’t know what was happening at first.

But it only lasted two or three minutes,” he said.England could probably have done with winning the toss. Their practice has lately been to win the right to bat second. However, considering the goings-on outside, the game began in relative quiet.Marcus Trescothick gave the new ball a good thump and Alec Stewart looked more at home than of late before tear gas stopped play for the first time in the ninth over – England losing two wickets in quick succession after the resumption.Stewart edged a drive and Hussain was then given out lbw to Wasim Akram. It was an appalling decision – the ball might have been hitting Hussain’s stumps but it pitched some five or six inches outside leg stump which renders an appeal null and void. Hussain merely shook his head – later, commendably and essentially, refusing to comment.If that made England’s task difficult, Saqlain made it impossible.