Harrison is in no rush

BOXING: Audley Harrison aims to be back in the ring in six weeks but he has no intention of being rushed as he plots his route from Olympic gold to the heavyweight championship of the world. The clamour for Harrison to meet an opponent who can provide some sort of meaningful assessment of his ability to pick up the baton of British heavyweight boxing once world champion Lennox Lewis bows out will certainly continue to grow.

But Audley, restricted by injuries to just four fights in his first year as a pro after striking super-heavyweight gold at Sydney 2000, is setting his own agenda and, after sending the 7ft 1in, 20-stone Julius Long crashing spectacularly at Wembley Conference Centre on Saturday night, he insists there is no rush.

''I am taking my time and will be champion of the world by the age of 34 so I have more than three years to go. I'm not in any hurry, I'm a young 30.''

TENNIS: Juan Carlos Ferrero confirmed his return to form with victory over favourite and fellow Spaniard Carlos Moya - who beat British number one Tim Henman in the semi-finals - in the final of the Tennis Masters Monte Carlo. The clash between two of the sport's leading clay-court specialists lived up to its pre-match billing, yet it was Ferrero who clinched the vital points to inflict Moya's second defeat in 15 outings on the surface this year.

He finished a 7-5 6-3 6-4 winner in a game largely played from backcourt.

SNOOKER: Stuart Bingham spurned a golden chance to make only the fifth maximum 147 break in the televised stages of the Embassy World Championship. The world number 44 from Essex failed on the penultimate ball as he closed in on the prize of £147,000 for the coveted feat - a figure that would have nearly doubled his career earnings.

Bingham's opportunity came in frame five of his first-round match against Ken Doherty with the score level at 2-2.

Although he began to show signs of tension, Bingham kept position until leaving himself just a few inches short of perfection on the pink, which he played at pace to try and get on the black.

But the former world amateur champion rattled the pink in the jaws of the pocket and, to rub salt into the wound, cannoned into the black, which dropped in.

RUGBY UNION: England reached the semi finals of the Singapore Sevens tournament but were beaten by eventual winners New Zealand.

Joe Lydon's side left themselves a tricky route to the final after losing their final pool game to Argentina. And though England beat South Africa 15-7 in the quarter final, the All Blacks proved too great a hurdle in the last four.

BOWLS: Peter Ward steered his Atherley side home 21-13 against Mark Walton's local hopes Ryedale in the final to take the all England Mixed Fours bowls title at New Earswick, York. Ward and his Southampton club-mates Jean Arnaud, Ella Dibble and Steve Spreadbury were soon in command, charging 11-1 clear over the first seven ends.

Walton cut the gap to 15-8 with eight ends left, but Ward stayed firmly in the driving seat to score an emphatic win.

MOTOR SPORT: Matt Neal's Green Flag British Touring Car Championship lead lasted less than 24 hours as two disastrous races at Oulton Park saw the title race blown wide open.

The Egg Sport Vauxhall racer had sneaked into the lead of the championship with a brace of pole positions but saw his hopes of extending that lead dashed by two drive through penalties and a heavy shunt.