Sporty highlights for 2019 – another bumper year to look forward to
After a year in which England won Commonwealth korfball gold, the men of England reached the semi-finals of the World Cup, Lizzy Yarnold took a second Winter Olympics gold and Dina Asher-Smith claimed several medals on his way to – currently – the fastest woman in the world, 2019 has a lot to make.
But next year promises to be a bumper year to match the last one.
England and Wales organize the Cricket World Cup, the Women & # 39; s World Cup takes place in France, the Netball World Cup is in Liverpool, cycling Road World Championships in Yorkshire, the World Athletics Championships are held in Qatar and Japan are hosting the Rugby World Cup – just to name a few notable events.
So who is ready for a successful year? Experts from BBC Sport give their opinion.
As a favorite for the tournament, Eoin Morgan hopes to be the first English captain to lift the 50-over World Cup
Cricket – Jonathan Agnew, cricket correspondent
English cricket to embrace the most exciting and important summer in his history. At every level this is the opportunity for the authorities to sell the game to a new audience.
First it is the World Cup, which starts on 30 May and never before has the English team started as a favorite for the tournament. Combined with home advantage, this team of Captain Eoin Morgan gives the best possible chance to win the 50-over World Cup for the first time. The demolition of Australia last year and its continued success in Sri Lanka confirmed the view that England is best placed to lift the trophy.
How the coach, Trevor Bayliss, will tackle the pressure yet to be seen, because immediately after the World Cup has ended, the Ashes will start on August 1st. Australia has been startled by the scrap paper scandal that overwhelmed the country – and it will be fascinating to see if Steve Smith and David Warner will return. If they do, their reception in Edgbaston should not be missed for the first test.
England's women will want to avenge their defeat to Australia in the World Twenty20 final by regaining the Ashes. The format is the usual mix of one-day matches and a solitary test, which I still believe that in some cases it would work well in the men's competition.
Geraint Thomas and Chris Froome both want to add a new yellow jersey to their collection
CYCLING – Chris Boardman, cycling summariser
Before the road season really starts, we have the World Championships Track in Poland to go out look at the end of February. As the Olympic Games come closer and offer qualifying points, sparring between countries is becoming more and more serious. Expect fast times and savage competition in Pruszkow.
After the third place in 2018, the 33-year-old Chris Froome will undoubtedly be on his way to a fifth victory of the Tour de France in 2019. His defeat in this year's race to the team-mate Geraint Thomas probably gives him even more focus and ambition to do this in July.
Team Sky, which recently announced 2019, will be their last cycling year, will look forward to style and with two proven tour winners on their selection they have the most enviable of all problems, that last winner to return to go. This year they have taken the step and just let the legs of the riders decide and there is no reason to assume that they will not do the same in 2019. It certainly adds an extra wealth to the story of both the race itself and its structure.
Once the battle in France is over, all eyes are watching the Road World Championships in September, which is an extra special event for the British riders in 2019. Record many are pretty much guaranteed in Yorkshire, but the rugged terrain makes it hard to identify on whose shoulders the hope of the country should rest.
The difficult finish circuit around Harrogate makes it difficult for Mark Cavendish to make his sprint. If he succeeded, it would be the culmination of his illustrious career. There is less doubt in the women's event. Far from being a hindrance, the site will actively promote former world champion and Yorkshire woman Lizzie Deignan.
Who will raise the Webb Ellis Cup in Japan on November 2?
RUGBY UNION – Chris Jones, correspondent of the rugby union
2019 is all about the World Championship in Japan, which starts at the end of September. Although New Zealand has the chance to redeem their legacy as one of the biggest sports teams of all time by winning a third tournament in a row, their aura of invincibility has been eroded lately – with Ireland after a 2018 dream as real contenders established.
Elsewhere, South Africa is reviving again, Wales will be ruthlessly competitive, while England can not be discounted. All this means that the World Cup – which is being held in Asia for the first time – is expected faster than ever before.
Previously, the Six Nations will be a valuable marker for the progress of each team, as Joe Schmidt and Warren Gatland offered to give a new title at the beginning of their final year, respectively responsible for Ireland and Wales. to add to their superb resumes.
It is also all a change in the ladies' game, in which the RFU takes a big step towards professionalism by contracting England's XV-a-side players on a permanent basis. On the field, the round two clash between England and France in Doncaster catches the eye in the Six Nations, although the opportunity fails to equal the record public in Grenoble last year. While certain trade unions do what they can, the women's game will struggle to continue without a collective vision of the governing bodies.
Will we see a Tyson Fury against Deontay Wilder rematch in 2019?
BOXING – Mike Costello, boxing correspondent
Tyson Fury's rise of the canvas against Deontay Wilder in December helped spark the interest for the heavyweight division outside the British coasts. Anthony Joshua has attracted huge crowds over the last two years and now a triple rivalry, promising to form the most exciting heavyweight scene for a quarter of a century, has been ignited.
If ego & # 39; s and TV priorities can be controlled, history beckons. Since the establishment of the WBO (World Boxing Organization) in 1988, no heavyweight has retained all four recognized versions of the world title. One of the undefeated trio could become the undisputed champion in 2019.
Canelo Alvarez had the first of 11 fights in his exclusive $ 365m deal with the American streaming service DAZN and the completion of the trilogy against Gennady Golovkin would score high on the list of the most wanted showdowns that have yet to come. Alvarez won the resit last September, after their tie a year earlier, and the shape of those two battles indicates that a third is probably close and controversial.
The success of Canelo will be crucial to the viability and credibility of DAZN, which just emerged when the HBO cable network left the boxing scene in the United States. Showtime, ESPN and Fox Sports have dedicated the sport so that more battles take place on more platforms than ever in the broadcast history. The effects of such competition will resonate globally, for better and for worse.
England has reached the semi-finals of their last two big tournaments
WOMEN FOOTBALL – Rachel Brown-Finnis, former keeper of England
European women's football has never been in a better place and by hosting the World Cup in France it will give the game a huge boost for the hosts and England and Scotland. France already has the best female team in Europe in Lyon, but the tournament offers a great opportunity for France to use the home advantage to win their first World Cup, as did the men's team in 1998.
Despite reigning champions United States are the favorites. Their preparation for big tournaments is a telling factor in which they are in principle six to nine months in the camp and it is a recipe that has led to a record of three victories. Based on that, American striker Alex Morgan is the player to watch. She says she is in the shape of her life after scoring 18 goals in 19 games in 2018.
I would like to let England succeed and it is their best chance to win their first World Cup in a long time. to win. But losing vice-captain Jordan Nobbs is a huge loss and there is no natural substitute for her. Scotland is represented by the strongest team ever and has a good chance to come out of the group.
With Great Britain aiming to send a team to the Olympic Games 2020 and England as host of the European Championship 2021, this world championship could lift women's football on these shores to a higher level.
Georgia Hall won her first big title with a victory of two shots at the Women & # 39; s British Open 2018
GOLF – Iain Carter, golf correspondent
The biggest question in golf is whether 2019 will be the year that Tiger Woods adds to his count of 14 major titles. His return to the top 20 in the world suggests that he is ready, especially at the Masters and The Open, where his experience distinguishes him from most rivals. But Woods must retain the strength and fitness that have been the foundation of his renaissance and his past problems in this respect mean that the remaining injury-free can never be taken for granted.
How Britain's Georgia Hall progresses after its groundbreaking big triumph at the Women's British Open will be fascinating to follow. I expect her to be a fixture on LPGA scoreboards and her temperament suggests she will become an important player for Europe if they try to disrupt the Solheim Cup. The September meeting at Gleneagles promises to be one of the real highlights of the year.
Back in the men's game, Rory McIlroy has to return to winning roads on the biggest stages, but he has to rediscover his mojo. Emerging British talents to watch out for are Matt Wallace and Tom Lewis together with Danny Willett, who now has the ability to relocate his world-class qualities.
Tracey Neville hopes for the first time England to lead the World Cup
NETBALL – Caroline Barker, netball commentator
2018 is gone, long live 2019, right? For netball, 2018 could not have been better: gold from Commonwealth Games and end of year contests abound. But they count for nothing, the World Cup Liverpool, home advantage and for the first time great expectations about the English roses.
Many will look at how the side of Tracey Neville with England deals with Australia, the numbering of the world and the wounded animal, but the bigger snuff of a threat comes from New Zealand and Jamaica. The Kiwis have a new coach, a change of heart with some players and they start tapping. They have some of the world's best in their ranks.
That is the same for Jamaica. They have players who can play with the best of them, like the former Loughborough defender Shamera Sterling, who has made a move to Australia to serve as a home ball as a result of her performances.
Marcel recognizes that the rest of the world have also increased their game: "If people do not show up, there must be changes."
The Quad series will measure how the world order is, with the top nations all starting England. Then all eyes and expectations go to Liverpool.
Can Mo Farah become two better and win the 201 London Marathon?
ATLETIEK – Steve Cram, athletics commentator
The prospect that Mo Farah will include Eliud Kipchoge in the April marathon in London is very interesting and there is also the possibility that Farah will return, probably at 10,000 meters, which he has not written off.
From a British perspective, we will watch Dina Asher-Smith after the time and medals at European Championships to see if she can go to the World Championships in Doha in September. Laura Muir, Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Lorraine Ugen are also part of a strong women's team and there are plenty of medal opportunities.
There will be more stars worldwide, with the American sprinter Noah Lyles impressive in 2018 and pole vault Armand Duplantis and Timur Morgunov both go six meters to Berlin. You always want the worlds of Worlds to do well and Qatar Mutaz Barshim in the high jump and Abderrahman Samba on 400m hurdles behind.
The biggest new star could be Sydney McLaughlin. The American 400m Hurdler will not be 20 in August 2019, but is a phenomenal athlete and could break the world record as a teenager.
Hannah Cockroft and Kare Adenegan continue their rivalry at the world championships in para-athletics
UNIVERSITARY SPORT – Elizabeth Hudson, writer of labor disability
With less than two years to go until the start of the Tokyo Paralympics, 2019 will be important for securing qualifying slots and putting down a marker in the construction of the Games.
The swimmers are facing a big test at the Para-swimming Worlds in Malaysia in July with many competitors from GB and further than being reclassified since Rio 2016 means new challenges for some big names.
The rivalry between the British Hannah Cockroft and Kare Adenegan will continue at the Para-Athletics World Championships in Dubai in November, where people like Jonnie Peacock, Sophie Kamlish, Georgie Hermitage and Kadeena Cox will find themselves in a quieter year. 2018 want to re-establish.
But away from the job, there will be criticism of the c rowd size in Dubai after the success of London 2017, where attendance lists were broken and the sport took a huge step forward.
