Desperation to prove himself in front of his fans drove Lin Dan to his Olympic badminton gold medal at Beijing, but in London the Chinese just hopes to act as a statesman for the game he loves.
Chelsea's remarkable turnaround since Roberto Di Matteo took over as interim coach has taken them to the brink of a cup double after they beat a disappointing Liverpool side 2-1 with goals from Ramires and Didier Drogba on Saturday.
India's ace shuttler Saina Nehwal cruised into the knock-out stage of the women's singles competition at the London Olympics after notching a comfortable victory over Belgium's Lianne Tan in a group stage match on Monday. Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa stunned world No 10 Yu Chin Chien and Wen Hsing Cheng of Chinese Taipei 25-23, 16-21, 21-18.
Indian shuttler Parupalli Kashyap started his Olympic campaign in style, getting the better of Belgium's Yuhan Tan in straight games in a Group D match in London on Saturday. The 25-year-old Hyderabadi took just 38 minutes to see off Tan 21-14, 21-12 at the Wembley Arena.
India's badminton campaign at the London Olympics was off to a disappointing start as the mixed doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and V Diju went down in straight games to Indonesia's Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir in their opening group match in London on Saturday.
Liverpool striker Andy Carroll headed an 87th minute winner to secure a 2-1 victory over Merseyside rivals Everton in an error-strewn FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium on Saturday.
Hull City edged towards Premier League safety while Wigan Athletic, will play in the third tier of English football.
Chelsea have almost unwittingly stumbled on a winning formation centred on Brazilian midfielder Ramires that could galvanise their fortunes in the second half of the season.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
The north London outfit were brushed aside by a dominant City side in last Sunday's League Cup final with Pep Guardiola's team converting all three of their shots on target to win 3-0 while Arsenal failed to convert either of their chances.
Any sliver of a doubt over whether Cristiano Ronaldo would lead Portugal into the Euro 2016 was erased on Tuesday when he was named in their 23-man squad for the finals.
Wayne Rooney became England's all-time record scorer when he smashed home his 50th international goal from the penalty spot as England beat Switzerland 2-0 in their Euro 2016 Group E qualifier at Wembley on Tuesday.
England claimed a memorable and unlikely 1-0 win over World champions Spain thanks to a headed goal from Frank Lampard and some resolute defending during the closing stages of a hugely entertaining friendly at Wembley Stadium on Saturday.
Late goals from Eden Hazard and Nemanja Matric sealed a 4-2 victory for Chelsea over London rivals Tottenham Hotspur in a rip-roaring FA Cup semi-final at Wembley on Saturday.
If a picture is worth a thousand words then the sight of Chelsea's Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and John Terry standing side by side to lift the FA Cup on Saturday neatly encapsulated the story of a season in which the old guard have confounded their critics to revitalise the club.
Spain and hat-trick hero Pedro turned on the style in a 4-0 World Cup qualifying win in Belarus amid a television blackout while Germany had Irish viewers turning off in droves as they romped to a 6-1 away win on Friday.
Hosts Britain, taking part in their first Olympic soccer event since 1960, will kick off the bid for gold against Senegal at Manchester United's Old Trafford on July 26.
Craig Bellamy scored the decisive goal against his former club as Liverpool reached the League Cup final on Wednesday by beating Manchester City 3-2 on aggregate, prompting manager Kenny Dalglish to go all teary-eyed.
Images from the FA semi-final played between Chelsea and Tottenham played at Wembley on Sunday.
Argentina got their World Cup qualifying campaign off to the perfect start on Thursday when Lionel Messi's early penalty gave them a 1-0 win over Ecuador in a lacklustre match in Buenos Aires.
A round-up of Saturday's Euro 2020 qualifying matches.
The midfield machine behind Spain's first World Cup success ticked back into the same relentless rhythm to deliver Barcelona's fourth European Cup triumph at a spellbound Wembley Stadium on Saturday.
For the eight Spain internationals in Barcelona's probable starting 11 for Saturday's Champions League final, victory over Manchester United at Wembley would put a gilt edge on an already spectacularly successful year.
The 31-year-old leaves as England's top goalscorer with 53 goals and most-capped outfield player with 119 appearances.
A stoppage-time winner from Arjen Robben ended Netherlands' three-match run without a win as they beat England 3-2 in a largely low-key friendly with a dramatic twist in the tail at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday.
Manchester United midfielder Tom Cleverley was called up to the England squad on Monday for the midweek friendly with Netherlands after a sparkling performance in the Community Shield.
Manchester United fought back from 2-0 down and struck deep into stoppage time to beat Manchester City 3-2 in a dramatic Community Shield at Wembley on Sunday.
News of all that transpired on and off the football field.
Second tier Cardiff City beat 10-man Championship rivals Crystal Palace 3-1 on penalties on Tuesday to secure a dream League Cup final date at Wembley with Manchester City or Liverpool.
Manchester City's former France midfielder Patrick Vieira formally announced his long-expected retirement as a player at the age of 35 on Thursday and was appointed as the club's Football Development Executive.
Harry Kane toppled Alan Shearer's 22-year-old record for the most Premier League goals in a calendar year by scoring a double for Tottenham Hotspur against Southampton, on Tuesday, also overtaking Lionel Messi as the top scorer in Europe.
The heroes of newly crowned European champions, Barcelona, paraded in an open-top, double-decker bus through cheering, packed streets and arrived to a roar of welcome at the Camp Nou stadium on Sunday.
Barcelona, inspired by the peerless Lionel Messi, delivered a soccer masterclass to overwhelm Manchester United 3-1 in the Champions League final and lift the European Cup for the fourth time on Saturday.
Nemanja Vidic fears Champions League heartbreak for Manchester United if they become obsessed with shackling Lionel Messi in Saturday's final against Barcelona at Wembley.
All the ingredients are in place for a classic Champions League final at Wembley on Saturday when millions of fans around the world will settle down to dine on what should be a rare footballing feast.
A lunch with Queen Elizabeth II, an address to the Indian diaspora at the iconic Wembley Stadium and a "warm" interaction with his British counterpart is part of the hectic schedule of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's maiden visit to the United Kingdom next month.
Premier League quartet Sunderland, Norwich City, Queens Park Rangers and Swansea City were bundled out of the League Cup in the second round on Tuesday.
An own goal by Daniel Majstorovic helped England end a 43-year wait for a win over Sweden with a 1-0 triumph over their fellow Euro 2012 finalists in a friendly at Wembley on Tuesday.
Saina Nehwal's quarter-final jinx at the World Badminton Championships continued, as the ace Indian shuttler suffered a straight-games defeat to world No 3 Wang Xin and bowed out of the women's singles at Wembley Arena, London, on Friday. Jwala Gutta and Ashiwni Ponnappa, however, scripted history, becoming India's first-ever women's doubles pair to make it to the semi-finals of a World Championships.
England showed they know how to work hard and defend when beating Spain on Saturday and now their fans will want to see progress at the other end of the pitch in Tuesday's Wembley friendly against Sweden.
