Even a serious training accident hasn’t dented Bryan Keane’s passion for triathlons.

Equestrian: "It’s a bit cold for Florida, but it’s all relative, I suppose," joked Conor Swail yesterday.

Gone are the days when these A internationals were mere consolation prizes for those who missed out on Test caps. Tonight’s clash of Irish Wolfhounds and English Saxons at Musgrave Park represents a full-blown RBS 6 Nations audition, writes Simon Lewis.

The journey is supposed to end at Twickenham in the World Cup Final on October 31, but it begins in earnest at Musgrave Park.

Ireland’s provinces remain every bit as capable of seeing off the biggest and best English and French clubs the European game has to offer, according to Sean O’Brien who is desperate for another crack at reigning champions Toulon.

IT’S 20 years since this column sat down to complete the Leaving Cert – for a second, excruciating time – but it is probably some sort of twisted pseudo-tribute to that daunting time in all our lives that scraps of the information we had to learn by rote occasionally jostle their way back to the forefront of the mind when least expected, writes Brendan O’Brien.

If you would like to learn how to make butter, yoghurt, labne, paneer and lots of simple cheeses, check out the Ballymaloe Cookery School website www.cookingisfun.ie for the next dates.

The Foodie Forum incorporating the Gastronomy West Symposium (Tuesday, February 3) at GMIT, in Galway, may be just three years old but already comports itself with a swagger befitting its rapidly-growing status as one of the country’s premier food events.

Maro Itoje will sit his biggest rugby exam yet with England Saxons on Friday night, but only if he meets his university coursework deadline first.

France head coach Philippe Saint-Andre believes he and English counterpart Stuart Lancaster have a much tougher job than their rival RBS 6 Nations bosses and cited Ireland’s centrally contracted players as his primary evidence.

Ireland will join the top tier of one day cricket after gaining approval from the International Cricket Council yesterday.

Dubai’s Majlis Course holds happy memories for 25-year-old Rory McIlroy and the Irishman is hoping to add to them this weekend.

Stephanie Roche said that she is "a little bit raw" and "disappointed" at not winning Fifa’s Puskas award at the Ballon D’Or ceremony in Zurich, but expressed thanks to "everybody from around the world" that voted, "particularly those back in Ireland".

As Stephanie Roche first took her seat in the Kongresshaus in Zurich, she suddenly found herself alongside the 2013 world player of the year — and the man who would claim the Ballon D’Or again last night — but she wasn’t interested in Cristiano Ronaldo’s hopes of lifting it again.

Poland’s most famous goalkeeper, Jan Tomaszewski believes Wojciech Szczesny should leave Arsenal for a loan spell rather than play second fiddle to David Ospina, who replaced him for Sunday’s win over Stoke City.

No sooner was Cristiano Ronaldo crowned the world’s best player for the second straight year than he declared his desire to go down in history as one of the greatest players of all time.

Bernard Brogan says county footballers are choosing different career paths because of the demands placed on them by their commitments.

John Gosden registered his first winner for Godolphin as Tempus Temporis booked his ticket for Good Friday by winning the Betsi Golden Mile Conditions Stakes as racing took place at Chelmsford City for the first time yesterday.

Former international referee Alain Rolland feels technology in rugby has gone too far.

This evening’s 2014 Ballon D’Or ceremony in Zurich brings an end to a long build-up period to the award which seems to have started almost as soon as Cristiano Ronaldo won the 2013 prize last January, writes Dermot Corrigan.