Russian Tennis Federation president Shamil Tarpischev has been forced to publicly apologise for his slur against the Williams sisters, Serena and Venus.

Shamil Tarpischev, president of the Russian Tennis Federation, has been sharply criticised for his comments on a TV chat show where he referred to Grand Slam winning sisters Venus and Serena Williams as the “the Williams brothers”.

FEW sportsmen are tougher than jump jockeys. And David Casey proved the point emphatically when scoring on Boulavogue in the Ballybin Hurdle at Fairyhouse yesterday.