Sean Bowen returns to racing on Thursday, convinced he can still become the first Welsh rider to win the jump jockeys championship for 70 years. Bowen is back in the saddle at Huntingdon, having finally overcome a knee injury he suffered on Boxing Day.

Wales’ former middleweight world title challenger Liam Williams is keen to make up for lost time in London on Saturday night. The Clydach Vale fighter faces rising star Hamzah Sheeraz at the Copper Box Arena, with the clock ticking.

The Football Association of Wales is expected to hold its nose and vote in favour of a rule change which would allow UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin to serve a further term in 2027. National associations, including the FAW and English FA, will be asked to amend a raft of UEFA statutes at Thursday’s Congress in Paris.

Cameron Winnett reckons Alex Mann is like a big brother and he may need that sibling solidarity when the pair play for Wales against England this weekend. Winnett and Mann were junior school pupils when Wales last beat the old enemy in a Six Nations game at Twickenham.

Wales’ Olympic medalist Sarah Jones says she will carry the backing of a nation when she represents Great Britain at the Paris Olympics this summer. Jones emphasised the link between the elite end of the sport and the support she was given at grass roots level when she helped launch an initiative to grow the game, held by Hockey Wales. The bronze medal winner with GB at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics helped deliver an interactive session to around 100 schoolchildren in Cardiff.

Warren Gatland insists Wales can go to Twickenham with confidence after he included fit-again George North in a drastically altered Wales team to face England on Saturday. The Wales coach has pulled a familiar play against the old enemy by naming his team 24 hours earlier than stated. North, who missed the defeat to England with a shoulder injury, has been recalled in place of Owen Watkin in the centre as one of seven changes to the team that lost 27-26 to Scotland.

Two stalwarts of women’s golf in Wales have passed away, with their contributions being recognised by Wales Golf.

Neil Warnock has wasted little time before ruffling feathers in Scotland after questioning the attitude of Rangers’ ball boys. The former Cardiff City manager queried the ball boys’ tactics after his first game as Aberdeen boss ended with a tense 2-1 defeat by Rangers which took the hosts level on points with Premiership leaders Celtic.

Hannah Mills believes she will sail past another milestone when she leads the British team in the inaugural Puig Women’s America’s Cup in October in Barcelona. The Welsh Olympic legend – the most-decorated female sailor in Olympic history – will captain the British boat and be reunited with Saskia Clark eight years after they won a gold medal together in the 470 class in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Freddie Steward has called on England to win back the support of Twickenham as they launch a new era with Saturday’s Guinness Six Nations clash against Wales. In their most recent home fixture, Steve Borthwick’s side were booed by fans after falling 30-22 to Fiji in the build-up to the 2023 World Cup – the first time they had ever lost to the Islanders.

Coach Alex King believes Wales need to have a “no fear” approach when they face England at Twickenham on Saturday. Wales last toppled their fierce rivals in a Six Nations game on English soil 12 years ago.

Barry John, who died at the age of 79 this week, played with Gareth Edwards for Cardiff, the Barbarians, Wales and the British & Irish Lions. They won Triple Crowns, a Grand Slam and a Lions test series together on the field, and were lifelong friends off it.

Sabrina Fortune has designs on making 2024 a year to remember inside and outside the shot put circle. One of the world’s best F20 throwers, Fortune has her sights on success at the World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe this May and the Paris Paralympics in August.

The hope must be that Wales get better the longer this Six Nations goes on, after they and Scotland delivered another titanic classic at the Principality Stadium last Saturday that ultimately ended in a home defeat. It was a compelling 80 minutes of Test match rugby.

Record goalscorer Helen Ward has joined the coaching staff of Wales’ women’s team. Former Newport manager James Rowberry has also been appointed to interim boss Jon Grey’s coaching staff for this month’s friendly with Republic of Ireland, following the shock departure of Gemma Grainger.

Zoe Backstedt insisted she loved powering through the mud as she became a cyclo-cross world champion for the second time. The teenage Welsh star was crowned the Under-23 world champion after a dominant solo performance on the final day of the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Tabor, Czech Republic.

Former Swansea City striker Morgan Whittaker insists he doesn’t need the ancient Roman piazzas when he’s got the precincts of Plymouth. At least not yet. The Pilgrims striker plundered his 17th goal of the season – the only goal of the game at the home of his former club – to underline why Lazio made an £8m bid for the Championship’s top scorer three days before deadline day.

Aaron Wainwright wants to ensure Warren Gatland doesn’t suffer another first-half nightmare at Twickenham this weekend. Wales head coach Gatland described the first 40 minutes of Wales’ 27-26 defeat to Scotland in the opening round of the Six Nations as the worst of his 30-year coaching career. Then things only got worse.

Hector Pardoe proved himself to be an Olympic gold medal contender this summer with a sensational bronze medal at the World Aquatics Championships. The Welsh star – Britain’s leading marathon swimmer – finished third in the 10km marathon swim on Qatar to clinch his place at the Paris Olympics later this year.

Tributes, praise and gratitude have been offered from across the rugby world after the one and only ‘King’ of rugby, Barry John, passed away. He was 79.