let's kick off with football as russian clubs produce their best start to the knockout stage in five years with rubin angie anson eight all winning the first leg of their last thirty two ties in the europa league and constant input up of reveals one factor that could help them all. with the russian premier league midway through its winter break the spanish. hosted a four day training camp and then an international friendly which saw the russian national team eased past iceland to neil and fabio capello as man one to learn at the resort m g and being trained on the neighboring peaches and also went on to produce victories in the european campaign to go skating side came from behind to beat hanno were three one at the luzhniki stadium and rubin currently seventh in the domestic league play the second half with ten men but still clinched an impressive to nil win at holders atlantic in madrid is in need opted to train in turkey before their clash with liverpool but it was still

a clean sweep as the st petersburg team trying to kneel on home turf. i think this was a very professional match by two strong sides in the first half then the created several good chances to take the lead and during the second we finally produced two good goals and deservedly won the game the answer to this success could lie in the sun this subzero russian winter means an eight week mid-season break is unavoidable but with european ties ongoing as well as imminent world cup qualifiers it's essential to maintain match fitness with warm weather training camps and it seems some of the russian co-ops have found one venue for success with seven top flight clubs choosing their excellent facilities in my day give to the best teams in the world the best place to train. with the best grass and the only thing that seems coming from the ski it's try to be the most professional that you're going to be if you want but i guess they will come back because. likes professional services we really

know we really have the know how. to make teams at home the seaside resort off monomania is well known by golf lovers whether it's numerous fine courses along the cost of the assault however there are also many football beaches and while russia is covered with snow many football teams hold their training camps here and you can see why. the climates rarely drops lower than fifteen degrees in winter though there are countless green beaches available which help not only in keeping up the fitness levels but also to offset the type of injuries incurred in colder climates however they are keep of these large groans in such when weather doesn't come cheap they only way to get the best teams in the world is hard they would quality you know field grass. every beach demands a lot of attention a lot tougher money up just by being expansive the provision of such facilities

ultimately benefits not only the local owners but also the football clubs and with the need energy winning and would be in florida at the in-form champions own spanish ground the prospect of a good run in europe might help ensure that these part of the cost of those salt becomes a little bit of russia once again next year constantine bought out of r.t. . and let's stay in the mediterranean as we move on to the best of the rest of the week sport. on monday a day off the watching wesley snyder make his debut for gala tasso former chelsea striker didier drogba underwent a medical ahead of also joining the turkish champions and as two days later the thirty four year old came off the bench on his debut to swiftly head home the open up the istanbul side two one win at ikea.

that on tuesday getting into the swing of it was the healthy thing to do as a record crowd of five thousand toys twelve hula hoops to music in bangkok just over five hundred enthusiastic failed to keep it going but the remaining number was enough to set a new world best off to spinning that hoops seven minutes on end. then on wednesday five people were killed and nine others injured as a plane crashed on landing during a domestic flight carrying football fans to watch ukrainian slide shakhtar donetsk post brucia dortmund in the champions league a minute's silence was observed in memory of the day before kickoff the game finished to all with the return leg of the last sixteen tie being held in germany next month. and on thursday there were some shocking news from south africa off the six time paralympic sprint champion oscar pistorius was arrested after his model girlfriend

was shot dead at their home me apart or a twenty six year old was later charged with murder but vehemently denied the charge and wept openly court the double amputee is the only disabled athlete so far to have competed at the olympics in london last summer. while on friday serena williams cried tears of joy after the american tennis star guaranteed her return to the world number one. sports with a three six six three seven five victory is a check pay tribute to that in the quarterfinals of the cats are open for thirty wallace arena is the oldest woman ever to top the w.t. a standings the fifteen time grand slam winner went on to lose in the final to the player she'd leapfrog toria bizarre into. that on saturday tour de france runner up chris froome proved he's in the right

form to go one better this year after the team sky rider prevailed at the tour of oman for the first stage race victory of his career the twenty seven year old briton edged out former tour champions alberto contador and could evans the race also mark the comeback of russian t.v. to show he won their appeal over their license to compete this season. and on sunday mild weather couldn't spoil perhaps toughest test so far as the upcoming olympic venue hosted world cup events on the freestyle snowboarding in bob's place circuits with less than a year to go before the games austrian our sons are heavily out to make a lot more only of italy claims their maiden wins in snowboard cross while chinese skiers dominated the ariel's event and russian examples of course defended his overall title in the four one bobsled. now to the ice and after five months of the

regular hockey season the top sixteen clubs in the k h l have made it through to the playoffs which of course the tips the teams with the best chances of lifting that it daryn cup. the fifth season has been a strange one the time germy n.h.l. lockout where north american based players flooded the rosters and the time after the lockout ended of stars returning across the atlantic the clubs affected most were in the western conference before the new year deny moscow look to good bed to defend their guarin cup title but since alexander ovechkin and nicklas backstrom return to washington well it's an iraq side haven't looked the same says come on sco also lost part of that sort of ski get bay looks set to go far in the playoffs having the best defensive record in the cage shell always crucial in the postseason when i was on the rug one of the league's top goalscorers. however this could finally be the year of scar some petersburg they now mysie

a couple children by the maternal cinco but still have an excellent mix of all things defense and had a seven game winning streak snapped just before the postseason also look out for live prague the league debutantes may not have a lot of our friends but they're certainly hearts having not lost in regular time in their last six teams from the east have won three out of the four guarin cup since the cage i was set up and it's easy to see them adding a fourth. middle of money to go all school want to perform teams during the lockout but since they're been deprived of you getting malkin sagan charnock likely allman faded badly and i've only just snapped a five game losing streak game attack in they have a player who scores for fun watching up seventy six points in forty eight games of unguarded just paid for the eastern conference title they have a very powerful often and apart from winners so you can see in one hit hard post

walkouts however aren't in the greatest of form so good ag balls won a third title they won the eastern conference america is truly well balance both and often zone defense as well as having a deep and experienced roster and a sure to go far. to be worth keeping an eye out for trying to have some of the league's best young talent but they are very inconsistent however all the speculation aside once the playoffs begin this week we'll have a much better idea who will be in contention to let the garden cup become a pro. bowl for dharti moscow. now as couples around the world celebrated since valentine's day statistics claim a fifth of all romances start in the workplace and it seems sport is the exception where the craft looks at the pros for whom a doubles match. on february fourteenth people around the world celebrated the

international day of love st valentine's day and while some of us still are looking for that special someone let's take a look at some famous sporting couples that did find true love during their careers and some star crossed lovers certainly gave it a try. one of the most high profile couples is that of tennis star maria kirilenko and ice hockey player alexander. they met at the twenty eleven u.s. open and after a few flights back and forth between washington d.c. where the it's going flies is trade with the washington capitals and moscow where world number fourteen kirilenko is based the n.h.l. star let the world know about their affection for each other tweeting that she was his queen the two are now engaged and it seems the budding romance has even helped of the chicken with internet reports saying he's more settled and focused than ever before. another young and dynamic

couple was tennis star maria sharapova and slovenian basketball player alexander out of we actually after dating since two thousand and nine alexander proposed to maria at their one year anniversary however their omens didn't stand the test of time with maria breaking off the engagement at the end of twenty twelve was the consolation for alexander that maria still hoped to be friends. but perhaps the inspiration to all couples is the ultimate tennis match of andre agassi and steffi graf despite their larger than life persona as an careers steffi has won twenty two grand slams and andre has claimed eight the two have managed to forge a lasting bond since they got together in one thousand nine hundred nine after both triumphed at the french open and danced together at the winner's ball in two thousand and one. they tied the knot and have since had two children and are still

going strong after twelve years of marriage. while another couple is keeping the world waiting for an official engagement announcement world's top goal for rory mcilroy and world number ten tennis player carolyn wozniak skeete have been dating for eighteen months since meeting at a boxing match between david haye and of letting you keep score and they continue to make their love for each other known to the outside world with sweet nothings via twitter and supporting each other at various sporting events the media is abuzz with the possible engagement yet the pair refused to make any official comments yet . and one of the most popular sport in couples in russia is that a figure skater who didn't see on the top man in the alexei's a four time singles world champion and such are not a two time world champion the jewel have been together since two thousand and six

and have a daughter and while they've been engaged since late two thousand and eight they too have yet to tie the knot but this long term on ice romance certainly seems a case of true love michael christian. well as overbought one but we'll be back after the short break don't go away. all those north korean scabs are added again another nuclear test in north korea has made all the headlights trust me nuclear missiles are something worth being concerned over but haven't we heard this song and dance before all the way back in two thousand to the north koreans according to the b.b.c. rule that they have a secret weapons program and turned their young beyond nuclear reactor back on since then every once while a missile flies people see the war. coming and silence then another test of some

sort shock horror and then silence again with crew just uses this is a bargaining tool to get what they want and what or how wacky the north korean state may seem they understand that launching one or two missiles against united states means they probably won't even hit their target and in return their entire country will turn into ash instantly this situation really isn't cause for concern until something big changes like the us not being in a position to support south korea japan or some other dramatic event that changes the game like china giving up their support for the north korean side but for now the cycle just keep going on and on and about two years the same headlines will be back with the same fear will be back a lather rinse repeat but that's just my opinion. today. these are the images. from the

canada. day. celebrations on the move without the traditional face to food surprising meetings and new adventures stories of love found and love lost our russians teach foreigners to celebrate biggest holiday of the year. by train. them may be miracles. welcome back to the sports show where we return to ice hockey last saturday to sky commemorating what would have been the sixty fifth birthday of late forward for larry hallam of who was tragically killed at the age of thirty three comes out in but out of reports on the dramatic life of the man whose stellar career inspired

hockey fans worldwide. probably the brightest star of soviet ice hockey played a harlem of died in a car accident thought it one years ago and last saturday people flock to that says guy arena to commemorate sixty five years since the legendary forward was born a special exhibition was opened dedicated to carl lama who played four hundred thirty eight matches for the army man it was a night full of big names as former greats played in a match named in his orange and yellow car alarm of who wasn't there everything you round there reno reminded people of fame. it's impossible to name his best character trait probably that he was just a good person it was always a great pleasure to deal with him he had no small value although he was a superstar along with was often be known up out on the ice but he never complained

harlem was for there was russian while his mother was from the basque region who came over as a refugee from the spanish civil war in the one nine hundred thirty s. named after solve it by a lot of who was the first man to fly from moscow to vancouver via the north pole harlem of his destiny was also to become a hero in childhood he was diagnosed with a heart problem and sportswear his trick to it but his father still took him to training school for. the powerhouse of russian ice hockey the explosive young forward florist and his flamboyant skating style and great stickhandling soon made him a role model for every kid in the country and you have all the boys worship team and i was no exception everybody wanted to skate like him or shoot like him but best of all was he's at a view to the game he loved it and you could see. that says god trio by rhys mikhail of my dear peter off and harlem of became known worldwide after the famous

ussa side versus. canada super serious in one thousand nine hundred seventy two where the soviet forward proved himself to be one of the brightest delancey of his generation the three players then led the all conquering red machine to two consecutive olympic gold medals in that year and in one thousand seven to six however soon after that second triumph the famed number seventeen was involved in a car accident he suffered serious injuries but managed to pull through get back on the ice and even clinched his eight world title but in one thousand eighty one harlem of was another car accident on the same highway this time the course skidded off the slippery road and harlem of his wife and her cousin all died he was only thirty three. it's a very important that the younger generation know exactly who made this kasich a great club who helped the army men put so much silverware into that show the

cabinet every sportsman only has a short time in which to prove if he's worth being remembered and had a lot of was a player who be remembered for many years to come. along as dramatic life story has always been wealthy off the film and this spring the movie will come out three decades after his tragic death immortalizing initial who wasn't just one of the best of his own era he was simply ahead of his time constant in but out of party. like you know if you want anything from a former russian greats to occur one thirty year old amateur that has won everything in women's high jump it isn't ready to hang up her spikes just yet as twenty thirteen promises to be a big year for the reigning world and then the champion which is on court feet has more. two thousand and twelve was a fantastic year for unachieved should have she managed to add yet another medal to a trophy cabinets after winning gold at the london olympics the thirty year old

took time out from the sport three years ago to give birth to a baby daughter for nico is now two and a half and a mother continues to go from strength to strength that's the stuff that was something i think. i knew was the right time to have it be so i would start to look at life from a different angle that when you help you do this about the time i took away from the sport and it really helped me. has achieved a lot during her career and the russian is hungry for more success and on a chair of as a very distinguished career she's won pretty much everything there is to win the world of women's high jumping however there's one prize but lies in wait this summer which might even go some way to equaling her olympic triumph in london in two thousand and twelve. that's because four walled off less exchange in ships are taking place in moscow this summer and she should have a can't wait for them to get on the way which i really grateful for that such a big event will be taking place in moscow it will also be thirtieth anniversary of

the first ever world championships and they will get fantastic that my relatives and friends who don't always get the chance to watch me can play we'll be able to handle it with i decided to start my season late this year so i will be in the best possible shape just two more just there and so that children of our hails from a sporting family a father was a former high jumper and unexplained but most high jumpers take part in a number of events when they are young however the thirty year old concentrated on her chosen discipline from a very early age and a coach for the last ten years of guineas a goal says anna is an exceptional athlete but. i was born with great talent but also with a great work ethic talent is only five or ten percent of the overall result so she knows what should she dreamed of becoming an olympic champion when she was a young girl she's come back from some very tough injuries because she is so mentally tough despite having a daughter and being thirty years of age she has no plans to stop competing yet

she's been in some of the best form of her career since giving birth to a daughter need well i'm a does know their limits yeah those numbers matured and i know i need to do not to be needed in order to continue competing i want to know how much further i can go i have cleared two seven and it's just another three centimeters to break the world record but those are massive three centimeters but if i go to the two thousand and sixteen olympics i'll be going to compete and not as a tourist but a step because the dean of a is widely regarded as the best female high jumper of all time and of all kerry and just like she should have gave birth just months before winning a world championship title just cause to be never who currently holds behind jump ward recalled. but it should sure if i can clear to change it will be the russian who will take the china. greatest ever high jump on. me. now moving on from deeds to words as

a limp big boss trying to calm the critics after russia's traditional stronghold of wrestling was put on the list of sports subject to be scrapped after the rio games in twenty sixteen. over the case of the not going to be the first thing you're going to. do for you. first of all there's the about to see the. games in the immigrant. communities you treat. them to be true but it's. never say you're going to be this we're going to we're the going to be. in contrast praise was heaped on the psyche box lay center in sochi after the black sea resort hosted the final world cup event of the season where latvia's martins do pools won the men's skeleton for the fourth straight year and marion taze of germany triumphed in the women's event. the venue's fantastic

you know it's it's only like no other you know there's undercover area to warm up they've been testing you know going to have any problems like snow on the track it's fully covered it's called good access for the coaches and people support stuff you're going to be watching and filming it's really really good so as the test events continue in sochi the organizers are also keen to make russia's made an olympics tasteful literally they've recruited a top italian chef to help ensure twenty fourteen has a sweet legacy as michael craft tank a fan that. sweets candy chocolate. treats you wouldn't usually associate with sport but that hasn't stopped the sochi twenty fourteen organizers from creating a limited edition range of chocolates for the upcoming games and listing the culling area expertise of shift roberto bruno and with the systems of skating stars irina slutskaya and oksana dom nina plus georgian singer deanna would sky

a special workshop was set up to help decide the flavors of these exclusive chocolates. and although all agreed there wasn't really any room for chocolate in an athlete's diet slutskaya then did reveal a little secret bush took a truckload of these doesn't help for weaning but i do see giving a nod it will give the great emotion because it's also low beams that are filled course and. i think the hard work will help and we know that by choking will be just for the good mood good mood for the fans for fanfare everyone are going to be better at school competing you know what i love in my secret i'm always chuckles over the coach domino on the other hand

admitted she only allowed herself such pleasures are all her sporting commitments have been completed you know many of which the poor are usually a chocolate afterwards when i perform and i'm a didn't eat lots and lots of chocolate once and now if successful a finish skating my partner and i indulge ourselves so for me it was always something for after after a rigorous selection process for combinations of flavors were chosen mandarins and c berries cranberries and honey. walnuts and grapes and almonds and strawberries and the ladies didn't hesitate to dive in and be the first to sample the unique tastes inspired by russia's first ever winter olympics at the interior yesterday of the night i think it's a really interesting idea something quite different and i think it's great that they've decided to release their own such a chocolate so to speak so after chef bruno is mouthwatering concoctions have received the sums up all that now remains is to come up with

a suitable name for the special selection but of course i also tend to try to make my own batch of signature chocolates and while i think they are a winner i don't think they'll be considered for the official saucy chocolates but you can try the winning batches when they go on sale this may mark or take a hearty moscow. and that's all from the sports show bison. we are facing a lot of problems. because no one thought to drink no good school. mates. what's not enough will be the law in the local needs you might want to community

l.n.g. most will be used to. give general dunford a match up artist i was fired about i must fight. i'll fight. fight right.

hold it. hold it. liz. goodspeed. you. wish. me luck good. luck and in the. mind of a

little. you know sometimes you see a story and it seems so for lang you think you understand it and then he glimpse something else and you hear or see some other part of it and realize that everything is ok you don't know i'm tom harpur welcome to the big picture.

maybe. the.