In just a few weeks, all eyes will turn to Birmingham as the city hosts the Commonwealth Games.
Thousands of talented athletes will take to pools, tracks and courts in the hope of securing a medal for their country.
It’s an event that means a lot to Manchester, which hosted the Commonwealth Games back in 2002.
Those games saw venues including the Etihad Stadium, the Manchester Aquatics Centre, and the rest of Sportcity built here, and our city was cemented as a truly global city.
Bolton’s Jason Kenny
But then of course, we’ve always had a bit of a reputation for sporting greatness, and they don’t come much greater than Jason and Laura Kenny.
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Between them, the cycling greats have won 12 gold medals, and are Britain’s most successful male and female Olympians.
Jason and Laura were knighted and made a dame respectively earlier this year for their services to cycling, meeting Prince William side-by-side.
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Laura said of the honour: “What a truly wonderful day. When you step onto the track you know you are there to win a medal, but you don’t ever think about huge honours like this.
Jason and Laura Kenny receiving their knighthood and damehood.
“So when you are recognised it’s incredible and humbling. To be able to once again do it together makes it all the more special.”
Jason has now officially retired from cycling and has now taken on the role of men’s podium sprint coach with British Cycling.
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He said of his retirement: “It wasn’t an easy decision.
“I genuinely wanted to carry on to Paris, but I creak quite a lot these days and I always knew I wanted to go into coaching off the back of it, and this opportunity came along.”
Both Jason and Laura, who live in Cheshire, have committed time to mentoring other young athletes coming up in the cycling world.
Most recently, Laura has made her way even further into the hearts of the nation by talking openly and trying to break down the stigma surrounding miscarriage and baby loss.
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Tragically, she suffered a miscarriage while commentating at the track champions league last November, followed by an ectopic pregnancy just months later.
In those dark days, Laura said she turned to cycling as her ‘safety blanket’, adding: “I’ve always known I was tough, but sometimes life pushes you to an unbearable limit.
“If it wasn’t for Jason and Albie [their son] getting me through the day to day I’d have been broken.”
Speaking of her Instagram post, she later told OK! magazine: “The response I got was overwhelming – my Instagram went mental and I had thousands of messages from women and men who came to me saying they’d suffered in silence too.
“Six or seven athletes also came forward, which was comforting for me as I felt like less of a failure.
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“We shouldn’t be ashamed or scared when the number is one in five. That’s a massive number – yet we felt so alone.”
The Commonwealth Games will take place between 28 July and 8 August. Laura Kenny is competing for Team England.
If you’ve been affected by this story, contact Tommy’s, a miscarriage, premature birth and stillbirth charity, at [email protected] or call 0800 0147 800.
About Manc of the Month
We all know that Manchester is home to some special people, some born here and others drawn here, and after a bumpy two years that effectively amounted to one big lockdown, it’s these special people that have inspired and led us through the tough times – so we decided to start a series that shines a light on those who should be celebrated.
Following on from our ‘The Mancs of the Year’ feature towards the end of 2020, Manc of the Month officially kicked off in July 2021, with Marcus Rashford MBE, Manchester’s mural king Akse P-19, the local chef feeding the region’s vulnerable families Mary-Ellen McTague, and Manchester’s groundbreaking new Council leader Bev Craig among previous honourees.
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Manchester United named Premier League’s ‘most valuable’ club in Forbes’ 2023 ranking
Emily Sergeant
Manchester United has been named the most valuable club in the Premier League for 2023, according to an annual ranking by Forbes.
Every year, the business magazine is known for publishing a list of clubs within each sport that are considered to be of the most value, and ranks them from highest to lowest based off how much they’re worth – and, as you can imagine, the top 10 is usually made up of some of the most famous and well-known global franchises.
When it comes to football in 2023 though, according to Forbes, the “soccer pitch is filled with more green than ever”.
The world’s top 20 most valuable football teams have an average value of $2.89 billion in 2023, which is 14% higher than the year previous.
The soccer pitch is filled with more green than ever. Check out the methodology behind this year's list of the World's Most Valuable Soccer Teams: https://t.co/flo7x6Drx3pic.twitter.com/LXyc6UNBA5
With a current value of $6 billion, Manchester United has taken the number two spot on the global 2023 rankings, just behind Spanish superclub Real Madrid at $6.07 billion – making the Red Devils the most valuable club in the Premier League.
The rest of the top five is made up of Catalan giants Barcelona in third place with a value of $5.51 billion, fellow North West club Liverpool at number four with a value $5.29 billion, and rounded out by cross-town rivals Manchester City.
The Sky Blues have a current value of $4.99 billion, according to Forbes.
Top 10 Most Valuable Football Clubs 2023
Real Madrid – $6.07bn
Manchester United – $6bn
Barcelona – $5.51bn
Liverpool – $5.29bn
Manchester City – $4.99bn
Bayern Munich – $4.86bn
Paris St-Germain – $4.21bn
Chelsea – $3.1bn
Tottenham Hotspur – $2.8bn
Arsenal – $2.26bn
Manchester United named Premier League’s ‘most valuable’ club in Forbes’ 2023 ranking / Credit: Manchester United (via Facebook)
Other Premier League teams featuring in Forbes’ top 30 list of the most valuable for 2023 include London clubs West Ham and Crystal Palace, the North East’s Newcastle United, Midlands-based Aston Villa, rival Liverpool club Everton, and the recently-relegated Leicester City.
Manchester United has been named as the second most valuable football team in the world, despite what Forbes has called the ongoing “sale saga with seemingly no end in sight”.
United fans will know that the club’s controversial current owners, The Glazer family – who have owned the club since 2005 – are apparently asking for a world-record price to buy the team, which would mean a higher figure than the $6.05 billion that the US-based NFL team, Washington Commanders, sold for this past April.
The club has a current value of $6 billion / Credit: Manchester United (via Facebook)
At the moment, it’s thought that only two bidders – Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar, and Sir Jim Radcliffe’s Ineos Group – submitted final bids to buy Manchester United before the club’s dealine on 28 April.
However, Finnish businessman Thomas Zilliacus notably tweeted that his bid for the club was still on the table.
So, long story short, who knows? It still all remains to be seen.
Featured Image – Ash Donelon & Manchester United (via Facebook)
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Rival Manchester fans urged to use different Wembley travel routes for FA Cup final
Emily Sergeant
Football fans from rival Manchester clubs heading to watch the FA Cup final this weekend are being urged to take different travel routes to each other.
In preparation for what is set to be a massive day for our city, where Manchester United and Manchester City face each other in an all-Manchester final of the Emirates FA Cup at Wembley Stadium this Saturday, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has now issued some urgent travel advice for fans.
With it being the first time the two Manchester clubs have battled it out for the trophy in the final in the 151-year-old football competition’s illustrious history, tens of thousands of fans are expected to make the journey down to the capital.
But with this influx of excitable rival fans, admittedly, comes a set of challenges.
This is why The FA and TfGM have decided to introduce some measures, and issue travel tips and guidance, in a bid to make sure everyone stays safe, while still soaking in all the atmosphere of the historic day at the same time.
Due to what TfGM has called “significant” coordinated strike action by rail unions RMT and Aslef on Saturday, all supporters heading to the FA Cup final are advised to avoid trains and “consider alternative travel arrangements” instead – making sure to allow “additional time for travel” and planning their journeys “ahead of time”.
Fans are also being asked to check the road network carefully, as it’s also highly likely that traditional routes to Wembley will be “busier than normal” as a result of rail strikes.
It's the first EVER all-Manchester FA Cup Final on Saturday [3 June – 3pm KO].
As fans make their way from Manchester to London on Saturday morning, we expect congestion on the region's roads & in the city.
— Transport for Greater Manchester 🚲🚶🏾♀️ (@OfficialTfGM) May 31, 2023
The FA has confirmed that it will be providing 60 coaches for both Manchester clubs to help supporters get to Wembley and return to Manchester once the game has finished, but aside from this, TfGM has suggested that “anyone without an official match ticket should not travel to the game”.
The two Manchester clubs have been advised to encourage fans to use separate travel routes to each other to avoid clashes, and a list of service stations for each team has now also been published – confirming all the rumours to be true.
Allocation of motorway service stations
Manchester City supporters
Lymm
Sandbach
Stafford
Norton Canes
Corley
Rugby
Watford Gap
Northampton
Newport Pagnell
Toddington
London Gateway
Manchester United supporters
Knutsford
Keele
Hilton
Warwick
Cherwell Valley
Oxford
Beaconsfield
Manchester United and Manchester City will battle it out for the FA Cup title this Saturday 3 June / The FA
When it comes to the travel routes supporters of each team are advised to take, TfGM is urging Manchester City fans to take the M62/M1 as the first port of call, or taking the M6/M1 or M6/M6 Toll/M1 as a back-up option.
Manchester United supporters are encouraged to take the M6/M42/M40.
On top of information on travel routes and service station allocations, TfGM has also shared tips for matchday parking, tube travel around London, and more.