British tennis player Tara Moore has been banned for four years for a doping offence, despite being cleared by an independent tribunal 18 months ago.

An appeal by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has been upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).

The four-year ban starts immediately, but will be reduced by the 19 months Moore was provisionally suspended when the case first came to light.

The 32-year-old was Britain’s top ranked women’s doubles player when she was provisionally banned in May 2022 having tested positive for nandrolone and boldenone at a tournament in the Colombian capital Bogota the previous month.

But in December 2023 an independent tribunal ruled contaminated meat was the source of the positive test, and that Moore “bore no fault or negligence”.

The British player said she had suffered “19 months of lost time and emotional distress”, and that her reputation had been damaged as a result of the case.

She returned to the tour in April 2024 and has played mostly on the ITF World Tour since.

Earnings for doubles players are meagre, although Moore did make it into the main draw for Wimbledon and the US Open last year, as well as for the Australian Open this January.

The battle for regional supremacy begins today as West Africa’s table tennis powerhouses converge at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall, Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos, for the 2025 ITTF Africa West Regional Championships.

This prestigious tournament, serving as a qualifier for the 2025 African Championships set to take place later this year in Kigali, Rwanda, will see Nigeria—the host nation—compete against top teams from across the region in both team and singles events over the next four days.

Historically, Nigeria has dominated the region, but recent years have seen rising challenges from nations like Togo and the Ivory Coast. The competition promises to be fierce, especially after Togo’s dramatic 3-2 upset over Nigeria’s star-studded men’s team at the 2024 edition in Lomé.

Nigeria’s men’s squad boasts a strong lineup, including Matthew Kuti, Taiwo Mati, Muiz Adegoke, Abdulbasit Abdulfatai, and Matthew Fabunmi. Togo counters with their experienced, US-based star Kokou Fanny, supported by promising talents Atarou Assou and Kossi Akakpo.

Ivory Coast will be led by Oba Oba Kizito, the maiden regional champion, who returns from his base in Paris with hopes of finally clinching gold after four near misses in previous editions.

In the women’s category, Nigeria is expected to maintain its dominance despite the absence of reigning singles champion Hope Udoaka. Veteran Ajoke Ojomu will captain the team, guiding rising stars Aishat Rabiu and Aziza Sezuo in their quest to retain the title.

The four-day tournament will end on Saturday, July 19, with the singles finals, while team champions will be crowned on Thursday, July 17.

Nigeria’s Junior D’Tigress will face Hungary today in the round of 16 of the 2025 FIBA U-19 Womens’ World Cup in Brno, Czechia after they lost their final round-robinn game 79-61 to Portugal on Tuesday

The coach Juliana Akhere-led side were looking to finish the group phase on a strong note, having suffered a chastening 113-42 defeat in their previous fixture with Canada.

The West Africans had begun their debut campaign at the U-19 Women’s World Cup with a credible 93-88 victory over China on the opening day of competition, but losses to Canada and now Portugal mean that the team finished the round-robin phase in third position in Group B.

The 2024 FIBA U-18 Women’s AfroBasket runners-up were guilty of turning the ball over needlessly, failing to defend properly, not putting away their shots from the three-point line and missing several of their free throws. 

The Portuguese won three out of four quarters, with only the third quarter ending all square 18-18. Total attempted field goals by Portugal stood at 71 compared to just 57 by Nigeria, while the Iberian nation made 28 of their field goals as against the 18 made by the West Africans.

Tipping the scales in favour of Portugal was their assists tally, which stood at 22, while making 54 rebounds, 14 steals and seven blocks. On the other hand, Nigeria registered 40 rebounds, 13 assists, 10 steals and a solitary block.

Former Kentucky player and TCU bound Clara Silva made the difference for Portugal as she put up a stellar double-double effort of 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Leonor Peixinho (16), Marta Rodrigues (14) and Maria Andorinho (11) all registered double-figure point hauls.

As for Nigeria, MFM Queens star Idubamo Beggi scored a team-high 17 points and added six assists. Toby Nweke was also impressive on the day, as she recorded 16 points while Stanford University student Nora Ezike and Abigail Isaac could only manage nine and six points respectively.

All 16 countries currently competing in the FIBA U-19 Women’s World Cup in Brno, Czechia have advanced into the next round following the conclusion of the group phase. Nigeria’s Junior D’Tigress will now face Hungary in the round of 16, with the winner proceeding into the quarter-finals while the loser will be involved in the classification rounds for places 9-16.

The Hungarians finished second in Group A having won two games and lost one behind the United States of America, who won all their group fixtures. Israel came in third spot after managing just one win and two defeats while whipping girls Korea Republic occupy the foot of the table, having failed to win a single game at the tournament thus far.