Thursday 3 January 2013

The year ahead (July-December)

The second of these two posts covers the huge number of major sporting events in the second half of 2013. July alone sees the culmination world's toughest cycle race, the final of Wimbledon and the beginning of the first of two Ashes series this year.

Bradley Wiggins will be spending the majority of July trying to defend his yellow jersey in the Tour de France but many observers believe the this year's course is too mountainous for the Olympic time-trial champion. Many believe Britain's best chance of victory in the forthcoming edition lies with Chris Froome, the man who marshalled Wiggins through the mountains last year so magnificently. There is strong evidence to prove Froome is a talented climber, but with the return of distinguished climber Andy Schleck and all-rounder Alberto Contador after a drugs ban to the Tour this year, the Brit will have a struggle on his hands to keep the maillot jaune in the UK. Given it will also be the 100th staging of cycling's most famous race, don't discount a Frenchman from putting in a good performance, with the young Pierre Rolland or the ageing Thomas Voeckler representing the best chance.

The men's Wimbledon final takes place on July 7 and British tennis fans will be hoping Andy Murray can go one step better than his runner-up finish last year. In my post yesterday, I stated my belief the Scot would win the Australian Open at the start of the year but the form both Murray and other top players are in throughout the season will affect my choice of winner hugely, and as such I don't want to state a player to win now for fear of ridicule later.

The Ashes begins at Trent Bridge on July 10 with England looking for three-in-a-row over the Aussies. It will be a tough series for both sides but I think the hosts will nick the series 2-1 with perhaps a supreme performance from Joe Root throughout the series. This is the first of two Ashes series this year, and performances in this series are likely to impact on the winner of the series Down Under, which start in November. If England dominate, Australia may likely crumble at home. However, if the Baggy Greens put in a good performance, be it in victory or defeat, I reckon they will win the Ashes at home.

Moving on to August, the World Athletics Championships take place in Moscow. Olympic heroes Jess Ennis and Mo Farah will be under pressure to repeat their golden moments from 2012 in the Russian capital, but they are not the only medal hopes for Great Britain. Look out for Katarina Johnson-Thompson who will compete in the heptathlon alongside Ennis. Johnson-Thompson finished in an admirable 15th place at London 2012 aged just 19. She has a bright future ahead of her and if she is in the right form, she could well challenge for a place on the podium. Robbie Grabarz won bronze in the high jump at the Olympics and can use the confidence gained from that performance to secure a higher finish on the podium. Discuss thrower Lawrence Okoye has been hailed as the future by incumbent Olympic and World champion Robert Harting, and the 21-year-old Brit will be looking to trouble the German for supremacy come August.

September sees the final of the US Open which Andy Murray will hope to retain, but my focus will move on to October which sees the Rugby League World Cup come to these shores. Arguably there are only three teams that could conceivably win the tournament: England, Australia and New Zealand. At the last World Cup, New Zealand won their first title and will put up a strong fight to keep a hold of the trophy. 2008 runners-up Australia will be looking to regain the title and add to their current haul of 9 titles, which is the record. England will also be determined to put on a good show in front of their home support after flattering to deceive at the previous tournament. The Aussies are the odds-on favourites to win and I have to say I agree with the bookies.

Whatever the case, whilst there are no Olympics this year there is still enough sport to quench the thirst built up after London 2012 in the year ahead. Happy 2013!

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