Formula One F1 - British Grand Prix - Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone, Britain - July 18, 2021 Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton celebrates after winning the race. (Photo: Reuters)   

Lewis Hamilton won his home British Grand Prix for a record eighth time on Sunday (July 18) after battling back from a 10-second penalty imposed for a first-lap collision that halted the race and left Red Bull rival Max Verstappen in hospital.

It was also the worst possible result for Verstappen, who had started on pole position with a 33-point lead but failed to complete a lap after suffering the biggest accident of his career when he crashed out at Copse corner. Hamilton went down the inside, Verstappen moved across and they tangled wheels - the Red Bull's rear right touching the front left of the Mercedes.

* Tadej Pogacar became the youngest rider to win back-to-back Tour de France titles on Sunday after some vintage racing drew comparisons with cycling's greatest. The 22-year-old Slovenian, who won the Tour on his debut last year, hammered his rivals in the Alps with a long-range attack on stage eight, beating Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard by a massive five minutes 20 seconds as Ecuador's Richard Carapaz took third place, 7:03 off the pace as his Ineos Grenadiers team failed to spark once again after last year's failure.

* Toyota's Kalle Rovanpera became the youngest ever winner of a world rally championship event on Sunday with victory in Estonia. The 20-year-old Finn, whose father Harri was also a WRC race winner, beat Hyundai's Irish driver Craig Breen by 59.9 seconds with Belgian Thierry Neuville finishing third for Hyundai.

* Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini of Italy has pulled out of the Tokyo Olympics due to a thigh injury, the 25-year-old said on Sunday. The world number eight had his left thigh bandaged during his defeat by top-ranked Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the final of the grasscourt Grand Slam earlier this month.

* Six British track and field athletes and two staff members have been forced to isolate after being identified as close contacts to an individual who tested positive for COVID-19 on their flight to Japan.

* Russian gymnast Artur Dalaloyan will not be competing in the vault and floor exercise at the Tokyo Games because of a lingering injury, the team's coach told RIA news agency on Sunday.

* American Collin Morikawa won the British Open by two shots after shooting a final-round 66 at Royal St George’s on Sunday. American Jordan Spieth finished second on 13 under par, two clear of Spain’s Jon Rahm and South African Louis Oosthuizen.

* The Olympic refugee team will start arriving in Tokyo later on Sunday, the International Olympic Committee said, ending speculation about their participation after one team official had tested positive for COVID-19 in a training camp in Qatar. The 26 of the total 29 refugee athletes that form the team had been in a training camp in Qatar and had to delay their departure for Tokyo earlier this week following the positive case.

* AC Milan have signed Senegal left back Fode Ballo-Toure from Ligue 1 side AS Monaco on a four-year contract, both clubs announced on Sunday. Ballo-Toure started his career at Paris St Germain before moving to Lille in 2017, where he made his Ligue 1 debut and played 47 times in 18 months.

* Australia's Kevin Muscat will take over as the new head coach of Japanese side Yokohama F Marinos, replacing compatriot Ange Postecoglou following his departure to join Scottish side Celtic last month.

* Tokyo Olympics organisers on Sunday reported the first COVID-19 cases among competitors residing in the athletes' village. Two athletes from the same country and competing in the same sport staying in the village in the Harumi waterfront district tested positive for the virus, organisers said.

* American Coco Gauff will not compete in the Tokyo Olympics after testing positive for COVID-19, the 17-year-old said on Sunday. Gauff was set to become the youngest Olympic tennis player since 2000 but instead joins a number of the world’s top players who have already pulled out of the Tokyo Games, including Rafa Nadal, Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Simona Halep, Dominic Thiem, Stan Wawrinka and Nick Kyrgios.

Reuters