it's been confirmed that meghan markle's father will not be attending — the bride—to—be has pleaded for him to be given space to focus on his health. meanwhile, hundreds of people lined the streets in the sunshine to see the rehearsal of the carriage procession through windsor. in other news, the government says it could still ban combustible cladding, despite a review after the grenfell tower fire suggesting an outright ban is not needed. a woman is found guilty of throwing acid over herformer partner as he slept — he later died in a euthanasia clinic. and the maximum stake on fixed odds betting terminals is to be slashed to just £2 — the gambling industry claims it will cost thousands of jobs. in a moment, it will be time for sportsday, but first, a look at what else is coming up this evening on bbc news. on beyond 100 days, at 7 o'clock, we'll be live in windsor, as preparations get under way for saturday's royal wedding. at quarter to nine, on meet the author, we'll be hearing from the author david hewson about

his new book, juliet and romeo. and at10.1i0pm, we'll look at tomorrow's front pages with nicola bartlett from the mirror and martin bentham from the london evening standard. that's all ahead on bbc news. now on bbc news, it's time for sportsday. hello, i'm olly foster, these are our sportsday headlines tonight. southgate defends his world cup 23 — inexperienced, yes, but the best in their positions. we think they are the best players available, we think they can be very exciting now and we think they can be even more exciting in the future. welfare is still a worry among elite athletes, with a third saying they have witnessed or experienced unacceptable behaviour in training.

and we catch up with laura muir, as she's given a special honour, ahead of next year's european indoor athletics in glasgow. hello, and welcome to sportsday. good evening, last night we poured over gareth southgate's england 23. today, we heard from the manager, as he defended his squad selection for the world cup, and he also justified the tough calls he had to make in leaving players out. joe hart still has an international future, he says, but there are three better keepers ahead of him at the moment. he's in no hurry to pick his captain. and what about that lack of experience, the youthful make up of the squad? it's clear that russia will be no country for old men, and southgate makes no excuses for that.

maybe it is brave to take players without a number of caps but we have to give these guys belief. what we've tried to do over the last few months is look at younger players, be brave enough to play them, and as i say, we're picking them not because they're young, but they're the best in their positions. we know they're not the finished article. we know that we don't have the number of caps or experience that the germans have, the brazilians have, the spanish have, but that's where we are at the moment as a country. we pick from 33% of the league. it's quite a unique situation for us as an england squad. but i think there's an excitement about the route we're going. i think we are starting to make a connection back with the fans. we are we building confidence back in

the team, but that is a bit of a process , the team, but that is a bit of a process, and we've got to make sure that we continue to improve and focus on our performances over the next, you know, six to eight weeks. something else that southgate said today really stood out. he's got four manchester city players in the 23, and he was quick to highlight the impact that pep guardiola has made on the english game, and notjust since he's been coaching in the premier league. who coaches our youngest players? it's dads, it's parents who run juniorfootball teams. it's dads, it's parents who run junior football teams. so the it's dads, it's parents who run juniorfootball teams. so the impact of seeing that team, five, seven yea rs of seeing that team, five, seven years ago, was enormous on dads, on football people. so when i watch kids football now, when they can get on the pitchers, when it is not flooded and frozen, i see them playing out from the back, i see them encouraged. i don't see coaches

on the side with their hands in their heads, saying get it out there. i think that has been an impact of his team, with shabby and iniesta and those types. southgate on pep guardiola's impact on the english game, and, this evening, manchester city have announced that he's signed a contract extension, to see him through to 2021. let's get a bit more now on the world cup squad, and southgate's picks, with the telegraph's chief football correspondent, jason burt. evening, jason, you were there at wembley today, when southgate explained his thinking, and how he put this squad together. he conceded that it might be seen as brave. do you go along with that? yes, i do. yes, ido. i yes, i do. ithink yes, i do. i think he has been brave and quite brutal, as welcome in the way he has culled quite a lot of the players. he has only taken five players. he has only taken five players to russia who went to brazil. it has been quite a big turnaround in the squad. but i think

the reason why he is able to do it and get away with it, he has a very clear plan and a very clear vision of the way he wants england to play, and the direction in which they are heading, so there is logic and all those decisions, which makes them easier to understand. today's announcement i thought was the most assured squad announcement i have ever been to, and i have been covering england for 12 years, and that includes sagna an ericsson, fabio parolo and roy hodgson. i thought i saw a man today very co mforta ble thought i saw a man today very comfortable in the role he has got, didn't appear at all fazed by it, no panic decisions, no u—turns and away we have seen previous england managers, and and frantically explained every reason behind every decision he has made. yes, nothing caught him out, he said there were only five survivors from the last world cup, only 11 survivors from just two years ago at the euros. do you sense the start of something new here, with all these young players? i do. here, with all these young players? ido.i here, with all these young players? i do. i think there is a danger of too much churn. the apparent

comparison from two years ago is a good one because you don't want to bring players in and it's them quite quickly, but what is happening here, a pathway, an fa buzzword, players coming through the age groups and finding a way into the senior squad. that is why the four like ruben loftus—cheek lifestream the important england, and he has been named checked by southgate a number of times, and made it into the england squad, as we want to see this progression. you look at the england under age groups winning world cups at various times last year, and even this evening, the under 17 team year, and even this evening, the underi7 team in year, and even this evening, the under 17 team in the semifinal of the european championships. not so long ago those under 18 teams were getting nowhere near the latter stages of tournaments. this is how it started with spain and germany, they started to do well in the younger age groups and then progressed to the senior age groups, and that is what the fa are trying to do. southgate is the best man to do that for them because he has been involved throughout that setup. since the golden generation seemed

to sort of constantly underperform, the last couple of major tournaments, england just seem to have tempered expectations. the trouble is when they underperform, failing to get out of the group in brazil, losing against iceland two yea rs brazil, losing against iceland two years ago at the euros, that is when you get this disaffection with the fans. the problem with tempering expectation, you then lower the bar. the problem for england is that people have become disillusioned. a few years ago, a quarterfinal was seen as some failure. now we would probably bite people's hands off for a quarterfinal in russia, we would see that as a massive progression over the last couple of tournaments, but unfortunately that is where england are at. they are not regarded as a major nation. they are ranked 13th in the world by fifa, and probably rightly so, so that is the last 16, so anything beyond the last 16 is progression and a successful stop england have got to get themselves back on contract, which means getting to the latter stages of tournaments. it may take

some time, but i do sense more of a fresh excitement around the squad. even the announcement yesterday and some of the reactions to some of the names, the younger players like trent alexander—arnold coming in. and you've got liverpool in the champions league final, a couple of players involved, could have been more if there were not injuries. we have city with audio, four players from there, so we have players who are succeeding in the champions league and the highest level with the best coaches, so there is an opportunity hopefully to progress further in russia. if it doesn't happen, hope everyone holds their nerve, sticks with southgate and hopefully we will carry on with this plan. thank you very much. you will hear lots more of jason plan. thank you very much. you will hear lots more ofjason on plan. thank you very much. you will hear lots more of jason on five live sports night from 7pm. well, we might be able gaugejust how bright the future of english football is when the under 17s take on the netherlands in the european championship semi—finals they kick off in the next 20 minutes in chester. england are the reigning world champions — already

through to the final are italy, who beat belgium, 2—1, earlier. and there's also a huge game taking place in scotland this evening, when livingston host partick thistle in the first leg of their scottish premiership play—off. we'll have news of that result in tonight's late sportsday at 10.30pm. some big football news in italy, gianluigi buffon is leaving juventus after 17 years at the club. but he hasn't announced his retirement. the 2006 italian world cup winner was going to bow out this summer after the world cup, but italy didn't qualify. he now says he's had some interesting offers, on and off the pitch, and will decide which path his career takes next week. what he has confirmed is that his time atjuve is up, after this weekend. translation: saturday will be my last match withjuventus, and i

believe this is the best way to conclude this amazing adventure. to finish with a victory would be the perfect way to say goodbye. my fear was to come to the end of my time with juventus, and was to come to the end of my time withjuventus, and for my engine to have broken down, but i can tell you that this is not the case, and i'm proud that up to the age of a0 that this is not the case, and i'm proud that up to the age of 401 have proud that up to the age of 40 i have been able to put in performances worthy of this great club. gigi buffon, who also apologised, today, for that verbal assault on the english referee, michael oliver, in their champions league defeat to real madrid. uefa have charged him, and he admitted that he went over the top. he said that oliver had a heart like a rubbish bin, whatever that means. no rubbish coming up on sports day. still to come on sportsday, an inspiring story from the women's superleague. if someone takes football from me, it's like a person takes a toy from a kid. and — allaboard —

the world's strongest men are flexing their muscles on the south coast. almost a third of elite british olympic and paralympic athletes say they have experienced or witnessed "unacceptable behaviour" during training, but only a quarter actually reported it. that's one of the findings of the culture health check report that was commissioned by uk sport, after a series of welfare and bullying scandals. nick hope has the details. record—breaking middle falls at the london, rio and pyeongchang games proved that british sport has never been stronger, but at what cost? over the past 18 months, some of the nation's most successful sports, including cycling and gymnastics, have become embroiled in welfare scandals. and now a uk sport survey

has revealed that almost a third of british athletes have either experienced all witnessed unacceptable behaviour in their olympic or paralympic programmes. quite simply, what this survey has done is identified something that can be better in this high—performance system, and we've got people out there in every sport who really want to be better, and will concentrate now on the action plan, dressed that, and enable that to be easierfor plan, dressed that, and enable that to be easier for athletes to be of to be easier for athletes to be of to get that feedback. as part of the ground—breaking uk sport culture health check, almost a third of athletes felt they could not report their concerns without fear of negative consequences, and only a quarter had reported it to their national governing body. yet 91% of athletes and staff survey said they we re athletes and staff survey said they were proud to be part of their programmes. uk sport recognise support must improve, and they are quadruple in investment in the british athletes commission to £1 million. i don't think the bac has been effectively resourced in the past. i don't we have had enough

specialists on the ground, helping and supporting athletes. and i think we all know that, generally, the climate within sports has some work to do. uk sport freely admit that there have been failings in the past, but in this new era of high performance sport, they are aiming to improve conditions and support for athletes, not only whilst they are competing, but also by preparing them for life after sport, once they retire. they have launched the athlete futures road show which will tour the country and introduce athletes to industry leaders. tour the country and introduce athletes to industry leadersm tour the country and introduce athletes to industry leaders. it is phenomenal for us come we get to speak to potential employees, and you kind of learn how you can translate what you have learned in sport into the wider world. by providing these opportunities and increasing support, uk sport hope that athletes can continue to create moments like this, and carry on succeeding, even when the sport stops. nick pope, bbc news. double world indoor medallist laura muir says next year's

european indoor championships in glasgow will be one of the highlights of her career. she's an ambassador for the event, next march. and after controversial rule—changes, relating to testosterone levels in female competitiors, she says she'll happily race any of her rivals cleared to compete. kheredine idessane reports. on her marks for the european indoors, an event close to her heart, and for which she is now an official ambassador. it was such a big moment in my career. it was my first international level at senior —— international medal at senior level. i have great memories of this. to have an opportunity to compete in front of a home crowd, it is just compete in front of a home crowd, it isjust one compete in front of a home crowd, it is just one you never want to miss. so excited to be out there, hopefully lots of friends and family in the audience. athletics hasjust introduced new rules to limit testosterone levels in athletes,

affecting a rival of laura muir.m isa affecting a rival of laura muir.m is a very difficult situation, i do think there is a right or wrong answer. we all have to race and get on with it, if people are on the start line, that's fine, i will race against them. she will also be racing as a full—time athlete, her vet studies over finally, nowjust the nervous results next week's results. let's catch up on a few of the other headlines today. britain's kyle edmund is out of the rome masters, but put up a battle against the world number three, alexander zverev. this mistake sealed it, zverev the winner by two sets to love... but the crowd gave both players a standing ovation. edmund had saved seven match points in the deciding tie—break. zverev will play david goffin in the quarter—finals. but there was bad news for the top british woman, johanna konta. she's been knocked out of the italian open on her 27th birthday by french open champion jelena ostapenko,

who came from a set down to seal the victory. rainy conditions at the giro d'italia saw irish rider sam bennett sprint clear, to win stage 12. britain's simon yates is still in the leaders pinkjersey 47 seconds clear with nine stages to go 47 seconds clear with nine stages to go. british highjumper robbie grabarz, who won a bronze medal at the london 2012 olympics, has retired. grabarz, who is 30, and a former european champion, says he doesn't enjoy competition anymore. the women's super league season comes to a close this weekend. chelsea are already the champions, and also the cup winners, but it has also been a remarkable season for ann—katrin berger. the birmingham city keeper was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in november, butjust last month the german made it into the wsl team of the year. my my first thought was, why me? because ie to healthy, i am not a

drinker at all. i play football, because ie to healthy, i am not a drinkerat all. i play football, —— i eat healthy. a few years ago, my dad passed away, and i wasjust, like, no, i have to be strong for my family. my my first question, and my dying? after this, he said, my first question, and my dying? afterthis, he said, no, that's, like, it's 90% you actually get rid of it, and i was, like, ok, iam not as 10%. it was even harderfor me of it, and i was, like, ok, iam not as 10%. it was even harder for me to tell my mum that i was diagnosed with cancer than actually when the doctor told me. my mum is my best friend, my mother, my everything, actually. if someone takes football from me,

it's like a person takes a toy from a kid. i love football, for me everything is, my whole life was all about football. three days after the operation, these days were really hard, and then the isolation as well, because it actually felt like you are in prison. it is actually messing with your mind, i think, because everyone is treating you different. i want to come back as soon as possible, because i saw that my team needs me. i pushed myself really ha rd, my team needs me. i pushed myself really hard, because ijust want to play football, because i want my toy back. i felt great, play football, because i want my toy back. ifelt great, i was play football, because i want my toy back. i felt great, i was like, play football, because i want my toy back. ifelt great, i was like, i think i was really, really proud of myself stop that is the first time i would say in my whole life i was proud of myself. i actually had a

conversation with mark, and i was like, please let me train, please let me play this game. i'm ready, i know i'm ready. in the team huddle, she was like i have worked so hard to get back to this point, let's go and beat them. however saying that, mate is quite emotional, i remember someone coming away, and saying, i'm going to cry. just before the game, but we had a great performance against reading. just before the game, but we had a great performance against readinglj was great performance against reading.” was really happy, and i was really honoured, because starting from zero, and then coming back, and then all the players roared for me, that was a huge order. the most important message for everybody was just, like, be strong, be clear in