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• Encouraging victories for Jamaican hurdlers McLeod and Anderson in Savona

  Jamaican sprint hurdlers Omar McLeod and Britany Anderson delivered strong performances at the 13th Savona International Meeting in Savona, Italy on Wednesday.

  The 30-year-old McLeod, the 2016 Rio Olympics champion in the 110m hurdles, marked an encouraging start to his season with a thrilling victory. The 2017 world champion clocked a winning time of 13.37 seconds in his first competitive race in the event since April 2023 at the LSU Invitational in the United States. Despite facing challenges with rhythm and hitting hurdles during the race, he held off Great Britain's Joshua Zeller (13.42) and Spain's Enrique Llopis (13.43) to secure the victory.

  

  Anderson, meanwhile, the 2022 World Championship silver medalist in the 100m hurdles, continued her impressive form by winning her event with a season-best time of 12.88 seconds. Anderson engaged in a tight battle with Ireland's Zarah Lavin (12.92) and Italy's Eliza Maria Di Lazzaro (12.99), ultimately crossing the line first to claim victory.

  Anderson's performance marked a significant improvement from her previous outing, where she clocked 13.23 seconds for victory at the X Athletic Elite Meeting in Milan earlier in April.

  With the national championships in Jamaica approaching in just six weeks, the success of both McLeod and Anderson signals promising prospects as they aim to excel and secure coveted spots in Jamaica's Olympic team for the upcoming Games in Paris.

   

• Italy forward Zaniolo to miss Euro 2024 due to foot injury

  Italy forward Nicolo Zaniolo will miss Euro 2024 after suffering a foot injury during Aston Villa's Premier League draw with Liverpool on Monday.

  Zaniolo – who joined Unai Emery's side on a season-long loan from Galatasaray last August – came on as a second-half substitute as they fought back from 3-1 down to clinch a 3-3 draw at Villa Park.

  That result moved Villa closer to securing Champions League qualification, which was confirmed when Tottenham lost 2-0 at home to Manchester City on Tuesday.

  Zaniolo only lasted 14 minutes following his 65th-minute introduction before being withdrawn himself, though, and scans have shown he sustained a microfracture to his foot.

  The 24-year-old has now confirmed he will be unable to feature in Italy's title defence at the Euros, with their Group B campaign set to begin against Albania on June 15.  

  In a post to his Instagram account, Zaniolo wrote: "Thank you for your support in these hours, to you Villans and to the many Italian and Turkish fans. I can't wait to get back on the field stronger than before!

  "Unfortunately, I will have to give up my dream of representing my country in a major competition. But that day will come, I'm sure, and it will be beautiful! Come on Azzurri!"

  Zaniolo also missed Italy's triumphant run at the delayed Euro 2020 three years ago as he was recovering from a ruptured cruciate ligament.

• Jamaica's champion Traves Smikle primed for Diamond League debut after impressive JAI victory

  Jamaican discus thrower Traves Smikle is riding high on confidence after a convincing win at the Jamaica Athletics Invitational and is now setting his sights on the upcoming Diamond League meeting in Rabat, Morocco, where he will face a formidable field of world-class competitors.

  Smikle, who departs the island on Wednesday for the prestigious Diamond League event on Sunday, expressed both excitement and determination about his first appearance in the series. "Encountering a discus field like the one in Rabat for my first Diamond League meet is pretty exciting and crazy at the same time," said Smikle, who has had five wins on the trot this season. "Not many of the big names are missing and I just need to go out there and compete. It’s a game of distance and these guys are good quality throwers, so I just need to hold my own and compete."

  His recent performance at the Jamaica Athletics Invitational demonstrated Smikle's capabilities, as he threw an impressive 66.89m to secure victory over his compatriot Fedrick Dacres. Reflecting on this achievement, Smikle emphasized the importance of consistency and translating his current form to European competitions.

  "Before coming into this competition, I felt a little tired during the training sessions in the days before," Smikle noted following his win on Saturday. "Coming out today and having another 66m throw is pretty respectable. I am working on my consistency; what I need to do now is when I go to Europe, I translate this sort of performance and better to be competitive among the field."

  Looking ahead to his aspirations for the Olympics in Paris this summer, Smikle is focused on pushing his limits and achieving greater distances. "I want to get 68, 69, 70m in a stadium," he explained. "That is what I am working on."

  When asked about the steps needed to reach these targets, Smikle highlighted the importance of dedication, patience, and consistency in training. "It’s going to take more work, patience, and greater consistency," emphasized Smikle, who, so far this season, has won with throws of 67.57m, 67.83m, 65.96m, 66.03m and 66.89m. "If you can build up your level of consistency, then at some point your upper limit must get higher."