More than 30 countries, including the United States, Britain and France, on Monday pledged their support for banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in international sporting events, a British government statement said. The move increases the pressure on the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which is desperate to avoid the 2024 Paris Olympics being torn asunder by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Monday'sstatement follows recent proposals from the IOC which suggest a pathway is being explored to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to return
LEUVEN: Belgium's second-string used the opportunity of a rare start to impress coach Roberto Martinez as they thumped Belarus 8-0 in their World Cup qualifier on Tuesday. With Martinez warning players were under scrutiny for places in the Euro 2020 squad, Michy Batshuayi, Hans Vanaken (2), Leandro Trossard (2), Jeremy Doku, Denis Praet and Christian Benteke all scored as the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Dries Mertens were given the night off. It lifted Belgium to seven points from three