David Rudisha is beaten by Nijel Amos in 800m final at Commonwealth Games as Hampden Park witnesses shock

Batswana upsets the odds at Hampden Park as Olympic champion David Rudisha has to settle for silver in 800 metres final

 

 Runaway success: Nijel Amos (left) took gold ahead of pre-race favourite David Rudisha

The head-on shot was bizarre. David Rudisha: tall, striding, the epitome of calm. Next to him Nijel Amos: arms swinging wildly, legs overreaching, muscles tensing.

That single image with 10 metres remaining appeared to reveal so much. In fact it was full of deceit. The king of middle-distance running was in trouble and Amos was about to pull off the biggest upset Hampden Park had seen this week.

This was not what the 50,000 spectators had expected to see. Rudisha is not just an Olympic champion or a world record holder. He is the greatest 800m runner in history.

The Kenyan’s victory at London 2012 was described as “the most extraordinary piece of running I have ever seen,” by double Olympic champion Lord Coe.

The Rudisha of Thursday night was not the same man. The 25-year-old has barely run since that race in London two years ago and the absence took its toll.

Neymar aiming to return to action with Barca on Aug 18

Brazilian soccer player and Barcelona forward Neymar waves as he wears a ''Yukata'', a casual summer Kimono, after receiving it as a souvenir from the organizer during a fan event in Tokyo July 31, 2014.

 Neymar's injured back is healing well and he is aiming to return to action in a friendly for his club Barcelona on Aug. 18, the Brazil forward said on Thursday.

Neymar fractured a bone in his back following a challenge from Colombia defender Juan Zuniga in Brazil's World Cup quarter-final and was ruled out for the rest of the tournament.

"I am recovering bit by bit from the injury and I will arrive in Barcelona at 100 percent," Neymar, who is due back at Barca on Aug. 5, told reporters at a promotional event in Japan.

China's Li ruled out of U.S. Open

Li Na of China hits a return to Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic during their women's singles tennis match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships, in London June 27, 2014.

China's world number two Li Na has been ruled out of next month's U.S. Open with a knee injury, she said on Thursday.

The 32-year-old Li, who won her second grand slam title at this year's Australian Open, was knocked out in the first round of the French Open and in the third round at Wimbledon.

"Since March, I have been struggling with my knee and it is just not where I need it to be in order to play at the highest level," Li said on Facebook.

Firestone a perfect place for Tiger to salvage season

Tiger Woods of the U.S. watches his tee shot on the fifth hole during the final round of the British Open Championship at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, northern England July 20, 2014.

Tiger Woods, still tournament rusty after spending much of this year recovering from back surgery, could not have picked a better venue as he strives to turn his season around at this week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.

Woods has won the elite World Golf Championships (WGC) crown a record eight times at the Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio and would dearly love to add a ninth in his bid to qualify for the PGA Tour's lucrative season-ending FedExCup playoffs.
The former world number one has just three events remaining to advance from his lowly 215th spot in the FedExCup points list and book his place among the top 125 who will tee off in the playoff opener, The Barclays tournament from Aug. 21-24.

Barcelona's Pique relishing return of 'angry' Suarez

 Spain's player Gerard Pique runs during a training session ahead of the 2014/15 season at Camp Nuo, July 31, 2014.

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique believes an "angry" Luis Suarez will be desperate to prove himself when he has served out a four-month ban for a biting incident at the World Cup.

Uruguay striker Suarez was given a nine-match international suspension and banned from all football-related activity for four months by FIFA after he bit Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup in Brazil last month.

Barca have since lured him from English Premier League side Liverpool and the 27-year-old could make his debut for the Catalan club in the La Liga "Clasico" against Real Madrid at the end of October.