Craig Breen remained in control today at Rally De Espana to hold his lead in the Super 2000 category of the World Rally Championship and put him one day away from winning a second successive world rally title.

US president Barack Obama and his challenger Mitt Romney are storming into the last day of their long presidential contest, mounting a final thrust before Election Day and engaging in the toughest battleground state – Ohio.

If Rory McIlroy was not feeling the burden of expectation that comes with being the world number one heading into a Ryder Cup, he might well be now.

Just before 9.30pm today, the eight fastest men in the world will be gathered in a small room deep in the bowels of the Olympic Stadium, attempting to destroy each other.

The runnin’ and hoppin’ and leppin’ — and, if you’re Irish, the punchin’ too — will doubtless hog the headlines in London for the next couple of weeks (with the old dopin’ likely to get a bit of a showing too) but, with 26 sports on offer at the Olympic Games, the unfamiliar, the esoteric and the borderline weird will also get their place in the sun and rain.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced a $40 billion (€29.9bn) drive to improve the health of women and children, which he said would save millions of lives around the world.

TIGER WOODS did his talking in the interview room on Monday. Now it’s time to make the clubs sing.

Britain's newest turf racecourse, Ffos Las, continues in the spotlight after being handed 28 fixtures in 2010.

Tiger Woods can offer Padraig Harrington the benefit of his experience in dealing with the “eternity” between major championships when the pair tee off together in the Arnold Palmer Invitational tomorrow.

John McCain will set out his aims for the US presidency as he accepts the Republican Party’s nomination tonight.

China isn’t the only country to fake a musical performance during an Olympic opening ceremony - it turns out that Australia knows a thing about miming music, too.

Host nation hero Liu Xiang’s dreams of Olympic glory ended when he was forced to pull out of his 110m hurdles heat.

Former US Presidential rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton plan to campaign together on Friday in the small New Hampshire town of Unity, their first joint appearance meant to ease tensions over the closely fought Democratic primary.

Famous Name is likely to sidestep the French 2000 Guineas at the weekend and head instead for the Boylesports-sponsored Irish version at the Curragh.

JUPITER Pluvius, Aidan O’Brien’s leading candidate for the Stan James 2000 Guineas, pleased the Ballydoyle handler when working yesterday morning.

Jupiter Pluvius, Aidan O’Brien’s leading candidate for the Stan James 2000 Guineas, pleased the Ballydoyle handler when working this morning.

Americans in the south and west will get their first chance to have a say on who will be their next President today as the race to the White House is as wide open as ever.

PAUL HESSION is set to rejoin the top 200m runners in the world at the Van Damme Memorial Golden League Meeting in Brussels on September 14.

World number one Lorena Ochoa had still to have a bogey after 28 holes of the Ricoh Women’s British Open at St Andrews – but she still had not shaken off a star-studded chasing pack.

Annika Sorenstam set the early clubhouse target in the second round of the Ricoh Women’s British Open at St Andrews today.

ANNIKA SORENSTAM is being helped by none other than Tiger Woods as she tries to capture the first professional women’s event ever staged at the Home of Golf.

Annika Sorenstam is being helped by none other than Tiger Woods as she tries to capture the first professional women’s event ever staged at the Home of Golf.

Athletics Ireland have today announced Max Jones as its new director of athletics.

FORGET Brendan Behan’s and Dublin’s ballad about the Auld Triangle and the banks of the Royal Canal.

South Korean prosecutors indicted a Korean American and four others today for allegedly spying for North Korea in what officials dubbed the biggest spy case since the beginning of reconciliation between the two Koreas.

China today criticised the United States for using secret CIA-run prisons and tough interrogation tactics in its fight against terrorism.

Movie star Susan Sarandon is terrified US society is mirroring George Orwell's chilling book 1984 - because individual rights are being trampled on.

Inmates at a Jordanian prison released the last three of about half a dozen police officers they had taken hostage and ended a riot that broke out over the fate of two convicted al-Qaida killers.

Phil Mickelson grabbed a closing birdie to win the US PGA championship, his second major, today and said: “This has been an absolutely amazing week.”

A high-level delegation from North Korea arrived in Seoul today for talks with the rival South in an atmosphere of optimism after North Korean leader Kim Jong-il pledged to seek reconciliation and hinted at a return soon to nuclear disarmament negotiations.

Tom Peacock

Tiger Woods leads a star-studded line-up of the world’s top players who have confirmed their participation in the JP McManus Invitational Pro-Am at Adare Manor Hotel and Golf Resort next July.

Tiger Woods has been saying that he’s “close” to firing on all cylinders. Perhaps this time he really is.

THE American Presidential Election campaign was poised to be a cliffhanger late last night, as a record turnout of voters across American confirmed passions evoked by one of the most divisive elections in US election history.

AT 6am yesterday, a good hour before dawn, George W Bush was already up and about.

IT’S like a vast, frenetic game of Monopoly in its closing stages.

EARLY voting for the US presidential election began in Florida yesterday as activists urged people to opt for early ballots to avoid a repeat of the 2000 election fiasco, but computer problems and queues soon emerged.

RAPPER P Diddy is trying to drum up support for John Kerry with a “Vote or Die” clothing line.

More must be done to encourage people to start up their own businesses, the final major event of Ireland’s EU Presidency was told today.

Punters are putting their faith in Godolphin for the Epsom Classics following the Guineas meeting at Newmarket at the weekend.

Vijay Singh claims anybody wanting to win the Masters this week needs “the whole package” – and he believes he has it.