Sportshour

A look back at some of our favourite stories from 2022Photo: A view of SoFi Stadium as workers prepare for Super Bowl LVI on February 01, 2022 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

We preview the World Cup final between Argentina and France in the company of two football journalists. Argentina's Seba Ongarelli and Sara Menai for France. Plus we hear about some of the more than 130 players taking part in the World Cup but whom represent countries they were not born in. Dr Gijs van Campenhout from the University of Utrecht has been writing about the subject of migrant footballers for many years. So is this a new phenomenon?Photo: Pyrotechnics explode around a giant Fifa World Cup trophy prior to the semi final match between France and Morocco. Credit: Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

We’re in the small Spanish town of Coria del Río where 700 residents have the surname "Japón", which translates to "Japan". So where better to watch the crucial Group E match between Japan and Spain!?Photo: Fans gather at a bar in Coria del Río to watch the World Cup Group E match between Japan and Spain Credit: Stefano Montali

Nicole Kozlova plays for the Ukrainian Women's national team - earlier this year, whilst the team were still celebrating winning the Turkish Cup, back in her native country, everything had changed and the world had been turned upside down. Suddenly, there was war in Ukraine. Kozlova plays her domestic football in Denmark, whose men's national team have spoken out about some of the issues around the World Cup being hosted in Qatar. Nicole tells whether there is an appetite in Denmark for the World Cup and her hopes for the future.Ever since Leeds Rhino's Rugby League player Rob Burrow was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2019, former England and Leeds captain Kevin Sinfield has dedicated his time and energy in raising money for MND charities. He’s just completed his toughest challenge yet... seven ultra marathons in just seven days. That's 482km from Edinburgh to Manchester, via, Newcastle, York, Leeds and Bradford. Kevin was also running for former Scotland rugby player Doddie Weir and former Bradford

On this week’s Sportshour with Katie Smith, we take you live to downtown Doha as we get the latest on the ground ahead of the start of the Fifa World Cup in Qatar from Sportsworld’s Delyth Lloyd. Fans have travelled from all around the world for the marquee event of the football calendar and we speak to a couple of Welsh fans who have taken a very unusual route. Former Cardiff City footballer Scott Young and Nick Smith attempted to travel the 5,000 mile distance to the tournament solely by electric car, which they named Morris, in time for Wales’ first match against the USA. After covering 18 countries, they fell at the final hurdle of Saudi Arabia, who refused to let them through in a right-hand drive car, forcing them to fly the final leg from Jordan to Qatar. Former Australia captain turned broadcaster and human rights advocate Craig Foster stops by to tell us why he’s decided to donate all of his broadcast fees for the World Cup to the families of deceased migrant workers in Qatar, as well as LGBT & w

Six years after a performance at an agricultural show in Zimbabwe in 2016, a Pakistani comedian’s impersonation of the fictional character Mr Bean hit the headlines. Just as Zimbabwe were about to take on Pakistan in the T20 World Cup, one Zimbabwean Twitter user predicted revenge for his country over Pakistan for sending a fake Mr Bean.He was correct. Zimbabwe won a thrilling match by one run, prompting tweets from the President of Zimbabwe and Prime Minister of Pakistan, both referencing the impersonator. We tracked down the man at the heart of it, comedian Asif Muhammad. The only problem? As Caroline Barker attempted to find out the full story, he stayed in full character as Mr Bean.We also speak to an Afghan refugee basketballer who has just been given resettlement in the United States of America after nine months of living in Eastern Europe. The woman, who wished to be known as 'Maryam' in order to protect her identity, along with 18 other female refugees will begin their new lives in America next month.

At the age of 13, just as his love for skateboarding was flourishing, Dan Mancina was diagnosed with a condition that would eventually leave him blind. Over twenty years later, he supports his family by skateboarding as a full-time job, with the long-term goal of getting it into the Paralympics. He joins Sportshour’s Caroline Barker to tell her about the highs and lows of the last decade.Having never climbed a mountain in her life, Nadhira Alharthy was suddenly inspired to ascend Mount Everest. She succeeded and became the first woman from Oman to complete the feat. Nadhira shares her experience and talks about her role in changing attitudes towards women doing endurance sports in Oman.We’re also joined by Manchester City and Australia forward Mary Fowler, who at the age of 19 is preparing for her first World Cup next year. She says she’s settled in well to Manchester despite the notoriously poor weather and is attempting clay sculpture in her free time.Sporting Witness takes a trip to meet Championship Manag

As a professional goalkeeper for Al-Karamah, one of Syria's biggest clubs, Fahd Saleh had won numerous trophies but then war came to Syria and his house, his life, all he'd known until that point, was destroyed. Fahd decided to move to England to rebuild his life and cling on to his footballing dream, he even went to a job centre and told them how he wanted to work for a football club. Hear his story of how he became Mansfield Town’s Goalkeeping Coach and working with Nigel Clough.Barbara Hernandez is known as the Ice Mermaid. The swimmer from Chile is currently attempting to swim the seven seas... That's 127 miles through - the North Channel, the Cook Strait, the Moloka’i Channel, the English Channel, the Catalina Channel, the Tsugaru Strait and the Strait of Gibraltar. Barbara is number one in the world at ice swimming - the first Latin American swimmer to take the crown. She tells us, she is hoping to inspire more women from South America to take up sport and to follow their dreams.Since former Premier Le

Greece made their Rugby League World Cup debut this week following years of turmoil in the sport, which saw the team effectively banned from playing matches in their home country. Journalist and Greece team manager Terry Liberopoulos describes his emotions as the side ran out to face France and explains how they managed to fool the authorities and escape the attentions of the Police in order to play Malta in 2018 on their way to qualifying for the tournament.Adebayo Akinfenwa is swapping the football pitch for the wrestling ring. The forty year old was a cult figure as a footballer and used the catch phrase “Beast Mode”. He’s taking that into the ring with him, with plans for a “Beast Barge”, which is a wrestling move based on a shoulder barge in football.The Women’s Indian Open golf is underway and providing many opportunities for golfers from the country. However, it hasn’t always been that way as Simi Mehra explains to the BBC’s Giles Goford. Mehra was India’s first female professional golfer and she reca

What's does the future look like for women in motorsport after the W Series ended its season early because of financial difficultiesRace winner Jamie Chadwick, second placed Nerea Marti of Spain and (L) and third placed Alice Powell celebrate on the podium during race 2 of W Series at Miami International Autodrome May 2022 (Credit: Clive Mason - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)

From playing barefoot, surviving being poisoned and growing up in a country that discouraged women’s sports. Proscovia Peace, captain of the Uganda Netball team, tells us the crucial role netball played in saving her life.PHOTO: Proscovia Peace of Uganda (L) and Ngwira Loreen of Malawi (R) compete in the Netball match between Uganda and Malawi on day three of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games (Credit: Phil Walter/Getty Images)

We hear from Roger Federer on what he plans to do after his retirement from tennisPhoto: Roger Federer celebrates victory with the trophy after the men's singles final match against Andy Roddick July 5, 2009 (CREDIT: Paul Gilham/Getty Images)

We look ahead to the start of the new Women's Super League season and what impact England's Euros success might have on the growth of domestic women's footballPhoto: Chelsea lift the Barclays FA Women's Super League Trophy (Credit: Henry Browne/Getty Images)

We look back at the sporting life of Queen Elizabeth IIImage: Queen Elizabeth II (wearing her Cartier diamond Palm Leaf Brooch, which belonged to Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother) attends day 5 of Royal Ascot 2021. (Credit: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

As acting president of the Ukrainian Athletics Federation Yevhen Pronin main task is to be a focal point, to ensure Ukrainian athletes have what they need to perform to their best ability on the world stage. In the past few months Yevhen has juggled his duty to Ukrainian athletics, including leading the team at the World Championships in Eugenie and in Munch last month at the European Championship and the war. Today he is on the front line of the war with Russia. Today he is operating deadly drones. Today is a totally different day in the life of Yevhen Pronin. He's has been telling Caroline Barker just how different his life is now and his hopes for the future. The World Para Athletics championships, should be taking place in Kobe, Japan. The city was due to host both the International Paralympic Committee (the IPC) championships and the IAAF World Championships. The IAAF reorganised their competition, taking place in Eugenie in July, but the IPC were unable to do so meaning para athletes were left without a

Cyclist Luis Angel Mate, who has already planted 100 trees, tells us why he will plant a tree for every kilometre he's in a breakaway group in this years Vuelta a España. The pledge will be matched by race organisers and his team Euskaltel - Euskadi. Mate has seen first hand the damage that wild fires can do after his home town was badly affected last year. It will be particularly poignant when he rides through the town on the 12th stage of this years race. He's been explaining his passion for the environment and how he believes "bikes will save the world".US golfer Morgan Hoffmann was diagnosed with a form of Muscular Dystrophy, a condition that causes his muscles to weaken, back in 2017. Since then he has been on a journey of self discovery that has seen him make a home in the mountains of Costa Rica. Hoffmann explains what he has discovered and how he has adapted his lifestyle and diet in an attempt to manage his condition. He now intends to open a retreat in order to help others. In the meantime the now 3

Copenhagen is hosting the latest round of Sail GP. The competition not only pits some of the best known sailors against each other on the water but also and uniquely offers its competing teams rewards for their actions taken off it. The idea is to make a competition out of being as environmentally friendly as possible, alongside thrilling action on the water. We hear from Hannah Mills, the most successful female sailor in Olympic history, who would be part of the British boat were she not 8 months pregnant! She tells us about the need for action on climate to save future generations.Plus, how much money can you make throwing frisbee? The answer might surprise you. Ahead of the World Team Disc Golf Championships in Croatia we speak to Robert "Nob" Rauch, president of the World Flying Disc Federation about the growth of the sport and his hopes of an Olympic future.And we are live in Saudi Arabia ahead of the big Heavyweight title fight, we're in Munich as the European Championships come to an end and we'll pop

We preview the new Serie A season as starts and hear a cautionary tale of the cost of chasing a footballing dream from former player Martin Bengtsson whose life has recently been turned into a film.We're in the English West Midlands where fresh off the back of hosting the Commonwealth Games, Coventry is the venue for the 54th International Children's Games. 1,500 athletes will compete in seven different sports and there's cultural events too. It's been held all over the world since the late 1960s and is endorsed by the International Olympic Committee. We hear from organisers and those taking part.Although the Commonwealth Games are over, you may have been inspired to get a bit more active... Maybe you've dug your running shoes out of the closet and you're thinking hard about using them in anger! Well prepare to gain that extra little inspiration you might need. Mara Yamauchi won Commonwealth gold and competed in the Olympics and now the marathon runner has a new book out "MARAthon Wisdom An Elite Athlete’s I

As Women’s T20 cricket is showcased in Birmingham for the very first time, we speak to the Australian coach Shelley Nitschke on whether the sport can be an integral part of the Games and even the Olympic movement in the future.Photo: Team Australia take to the field ahead of the Cricket T20 Preliminary Round Group A match between Team Australia and Team India on day one of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images).

We are live at the Commonwealth Games where Katie Smith is joined by former GB 1500m runner Hannah England. they'll be sampling the atmosphere on the streets of Birmingham as the marathon takes place. We’ll hear competing athletes from all over the world from Imranur Rahman, the fastest man in Bangladesh, to the volleyballers of Vanuatu. Plus we preview the final of the Women’s European football championships.Photo: Commonwealth Games branding, including Perry the games mascot, is seen on buildings in the city centre of Birmingham. (Credit: PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)