Seamus O’Connor will be Ireland’s flag bearer tomorrow morning as the coldest Winter Olympics in decades gets underway with the opening ceremony in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach has his expressed confidence over the financial implications of hosting the 2022 Winter Games after formally declaring the three candidate cities in Lausanne on Monday.

IOC President Thomas Bach expressed full confidence yesterday that Russian authorities will deliver a “safe and secure” Winter Olympics in Sochi despite the two deadly suicide bombings in southern Russia that heightened concerns about the terrorist threat to the Games.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has ruled out a boycott of the Sochi Winter Olympics, claiming that anti-gay prejudice will be better tackled by attending the showpiece event.

Stephen Fry has urged British Prime Minister David Cameron to support moves to strip Russia of the 2014 Winter Olympics over concerns about anti-gay laws passed in the country.

THE PERFECT PLACE TO CHILL OUT

The Tour de France goes uphill today with Thomas Voeckler predicting further trouble in his bid to retain the race leader's yellow jersey.

Edvald Boasson Hagen today won his and Team Sky’s second stage of the 2011 Tour de France with a solo triumph in Italy.

Team Sky principal Dave Brailsford’s ambition was vindicated today as Geraint Thomas set up a first Tour de France stage win for the British squad and Norwegian prodigy Edvald Boasson Hagen.

TOPFLIGHT have announced sponsorship of a Ski Weather Forecast which will be presented by Martin King live on TV3 each Wednesday and Thursday at 7.58pm until the end of the ski season in March.

FORMER Irish rugby legend Trevor Brennan has launched a new travel company, Trevor Brennan Rugby Tours.

Sebastien Loeb has a 15-second lead going into the final day of Rally Norway after pulling away from Finnish rival Mikko Hirvonen during today’s seven stages.

NORWAY continues to be a big success story with Topflight clients — with big increases in business each year since working in partnership with SAS Airlines and using direct flights to Oslo from Dublin.

World champion Sebastien Loeb handed the title-race lead to rival Marcus Gronholm as the Citroen driver crashed twice during the second day of Rally Norway.

A former Olympic champion accused of abducting her own child must remain temporarily in the custody of US marshals, a judge said today.

Lawyers for former Canadian biathlon champion Myriam Bedard said today their client has not done anything wrong and was prepared to co-operate with authorities on child abduction charges she faces relating to her daughter.

JUST in case people missed the news, Budget Travel has decided to use an on-line queuing system until December 31.

IT’S all go for Topflight, one of the largest wholly-owned Irish tour operators.

TEN years ago Tonya Harding found herself the unlikely cover girl of Time magazine. She was not a complete unknown but her newly-won status as US National Figure Skating champion hardly warranted the attention she was getting, even in the build-up to the following month’s Winter Olympics in Lillehammer.