CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- A judge sent an influential youth basketball coach to prison effectively for the rest of his life Thursday, saying he secretly collected sexual images of 440 boys and molested more than a dozen over a 20-year period.

U.S. District Judge C.J. Williams sentenced former Iowa Barnstormers coach Greg Stephen to 180 years in federal prison, the maximum penalty he faced on sexual exploitation and pornography charges. Williams called Stephen's crimes horrendous, saying he abused his position of trust to prey upon boys who saw him as their ticket to college basketball.

"The harm the defendant caused to the children is incalculable and profound,'' Williams said from the bench in federal court in Cedar Rapids. He said Stephen's conduct was "of such an extreme nature'' that it warranted an effective life term.

The sentence, handed down after a daylong hearing, capped one of Iowa's largest and most stunning sexual abuse prosecutions involving youth sports.

Stephen, 43, had worked with Iowa's most promising youth players as a co-director and coach of the Barnstormers, which was sponsored by Adidas and competed nationally. Almost all of the high school seniors he worked with earned college athletic scholarships, including to play at universities such as Iowa, Northern Iowa and Wisconsin.

Stephen secretly amassed a digital collection of thousands of sexual videos and photos of his players and their friends. The majority of the victims were coerced by online personas in which Stephen pretended to be a teenage girl and enticed them to provide videos and photos of themselves masturbating; these were relationships that went on for years. Others were surreptitiously recorded by devices that Stephen placed in bathrooms in hotels and his home or disrobed by Stephen and photographed while they slept.

On at least 15 occasions between 1999 and 2018, Stephen touched boys, often as he shared a hotel bed with them during trips to tournaments and professional basketball games, according to Thursday's testimony.

One of the boys later told police he kept quiet for years because he believed Stephen was his link to college basketball coaches for whom he dreamed of one day playing, Division of Criminal Investigation agent Ryan Kedley testified.

"He decided to swallow that experience and not tell anyone,'' Kedley said.

Federal prosecutors and the mothers of two victims had urged Williams to impose a life sentence on Stephen, who helped manage his family's auto dealership in Monticello, Iowa.

"He believed you held the keys to the basketball kingdom,'' said the mother of one boy, who was tricked by Stephen into providing images of himself masturbating. "My son trusted you and you destroyed that. ... How dare you use basketball for your selfish, despicable, disgusting, self-seeking motivation.''

Stephen's defense had asked Williams for leniency, seeking a sentence of no more than 20 years in prison followed by intensive supervision on release. His lawyers and experts argued that his conduct was primarily as a voyeur, not a hands-on molester, and that he was at a low risk to reoffend now that he has been caught. Stephen's father, Roger, said his son had helped him run the dealership after his brother was killed in a traffic accident seven years ago.

"He is not a threat to society,'' he said.

Stephen apologized to his former players and their parents, saying, "I am disgusted. The things I have done are repulsive and wrong.'' He said his greatest regret was that his accomplishments as a coach were now tarnished.

Williams rebuked Stephen for that comment, saying his biggest regret should be the harm he caused the boys and their parents.

Stephen came under investigation after his former brother-in-law found one of the recording devices while performing remodeling work at Stephen's home in Monticello last year and gave it to police. Eventually, investigators found a hard drive that contained more than 400 file folders, each with the name of a different boy, that contained thousands of images collected over more than a decade. A trove of additional pornographic material was stored in a file that was waiting to be organized, Kedley said.

Stephen, who has been jailed since his arrest last year, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of child sexual exploitation and production of child pornography charges. He is expected to appeal his conviction and sentence, in part by arguing that the seizure of the recording device by his former brother-in-law violated his privacy rights.

California attorney Mark Haushalter said he has been retained for that appeal.

"We believe there is merit based on the unusual and extremely unorthodox behavior of law enforcement in this case,'' he said.

Olympic sixth-placer clocks 13:18.16 and Amy-Eloise Neale 15:21.58 for 5000m to achieve Doha qualification marks, while Yomif Kejelcha runs Tokyo standard

Andrew Butchart continued his return to top form after injury by running a World Championships qualifying time at the Payton Jordan Invitational in California on Thursday.

Finishing third in 13:18.16 in his first 5000m race since breaking his foot in February 2018, the Olympic sixth-placer was well inside the standard of 13:22.50 for the championships in Doha later this year.

13:18 first one back ? thanks for all the kind messages !!! 2019 summer is coming fast ??? #BionicButchy

— Andrew Butchart (@andybutchart91) May 3, 2019

The Payton Jordan meeting was held on the opening day of the qualification window for most events at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Racing for the first time since breaking the world indoor mile record in Boston in March, Ethiopia’s world indoor champion Yomif Kejelcha achieved the Tokyo 5000m mark with his winning time of 13:10.72.

Placing 21st, Butchart’s fellow Scot Chris O’Hare clocked 13:48.66.

More on the Tokyo qualifying standards and dual qualification system can be found here

European 5000m champion Sifan Hassan enjoyed a winning 10,000m debut as she clocked 31:18.12 ahead of her fellow Dutch athlete Susan Krumins with 31:23.81 as both were inside the Olympic and world qualifying times.

Britain’s Alice Wright ran a 19-second PB of 31:56.52 in 12th and was just six seconds off the Worlds qualifier, while Eilish McColgan dropped out with four laps to go after leading in the early stages, as she raced just her second-ever track 10,000m.

Britain’s Amy-Eloise Neale was another to achieve a Doha standard as she clocked a 15:21.58 5000m PB for third in race won by USA’s Jenny Simpson in 15:21.12.

GB’s Marc Scott also went faster than ever before as he ran an 11-second 10,000m PB of 27:56.19 to finish second behind USA’s Ben True with 27:52.39.

Outdoor season has begun! 11 second PB and World #2 (2019) over the 10k tonight at Payton Jordan in 27:56. Mistakes were made but better now than later. Good, but not good enough. Appreciate the messages from you all.
Back to work!??

— Marc Scott (@_MarcScott) May 3, 2019

Results can be found here.

Jamie Murray says he is "honoured" the ATP Challenger event in Glasgow will be renamed the Murray Trophy as a tribute to his family's contribution to tennis.

Brothers Jamie and Andy helped Great Britain win the Davis Cup for the first time in 79 years in 2015, and have won nine Grand Slam titles between them.

Their mother Judy is a coach and former GB Fed Cup captain.

In January, two-time Wimbledon champion Andy, 31, criticised British tennis' failure to build on his success.

Jamie - the first British player to rank as world number one in the open era - has worked closely with the Lawn Tennis Association to develop the event.

"I'm excited to be working with the LTA and Glasgow Life on this event and honoured to have it named in recognition of my family's achievements in the sport," said six-time Grand Slam doubles champion Jamie, 33.

"I really hope we can use the Murray Trophy - Glasgow to increase awareness of tennis and create opportunities for more boys and girls to play, both in Scotland and Britain as a whole."

The Murray Trophy will take place at Scotstoun Sports Campus from 16-22 September.

Both Scottish teams continue impressive runs at Edgbaston
By JULIE O’HARE

The second day’s play of the 2019 European Team Championships at Edgbaston Priory Club in Birmingham saw all the Division One teams playing their third and final pool matches, with the outcomes determining the line-up of tomorrow’s semi-finals.

While Women’s and Men’s top seeds England and France confirmed their places in the last fours, it was Scotland who stole the show with wins to back up yesterday’s upsets to also book both teams into the semi-finals. They’ll be joined by third seeds Spain (men) and Belgium (women).

The day opened with England’s men taking on Spain. In the opening match Iker Pajares took the game to Declan James, who fought back from losing the opening game and took the third and fourth on extra points. England took the next three matches more comfortably to record their third win and top Pool B at Spain’s expense.

In Pool A, Scotland, who had upset Germany then snatched a dramatic draw with top seeds France last night, despatched Hungary 4-0 to confirm their place in the semis. Meanwhile France fell behind to the Germans as Simon Roesner fought back from a game down to win. Baptiste Masotti, as he did last night against the Scots, let a two game lead slip but this time recovered to take the fifth and put France back on track as they eased through the final two matches to top the group on games countback ahead of Scotland.

“We knew the pool stages would be tough without our top players, so we were ready for that,” said French manager Renan Lavigne. “We made it harder for ourselves with yesterday’s draw with Scotland but I’m proud of how the boys came back in today’s match to finish top of the group.”

The semi-final line-up is : 14.00 [1] France v [3] Spain, 17.00 [2] England v [5] Scotland

England’s women won their third straight Pool A match, beating the Netherlands three-nil, although Sarah-Jane Perry was taken to four games by Milou van der Heijden in the top string.

Second place would be taken by the winner of Wales and Scotland, and after the first two matches were shared a tense decider ensued. It was Scotland’s Georgia Adderley who prevailed, coming from a game down to beat Stacey Gooding for a second successive Scottish seeding upset and a semi-final spot.

“I feel privileged to be able to lead this team out for the semi-finals tomorrow,” said Scotland’s number one and captain Lisa Aitken, “they all inspire me in different ways. “It’s a pity I couldn’t win the second match so it went to a decider, but the team did great.

“We’re all ecstatic at the moment but we need to just try to hold it in so we can perform tomorrow.”

Second seeds France, who have met – and lost to – England in the last five women’s finals – also won for a third time, but Belgium came so close to creating a massive upset.

Tinne Gilis – who won the decider in their first two matches – put Belgium ahead, and then elder sister Nele took world #4 Camille Serme to the brink of defeat. Nele had game balls in the first, won the second then had game balls in the third before Camille took that 15-13 before taking the fourth. Melissa Alves wrapped up the match for the French.

The semi-final line-up is: 10.00 [1] England v [3] Belgium, 12.00 [2] France v [8] Scotland

With Scotland creating double upsets on Day 2, the last word goes to Scottish National Coach Paul Bell:

“This is what we’re aspiring to do, challenging at the major events and this is the first step. We’ve come with two young teams and for them both to reach the semis is a tremendous achievement. Hopefully we’re setting our stall out for the future.”

More information, results and photos are available here:

Official website (featuring draws, results, photos and more): www.edgbastonpriory.com/etc2019
Twitter: https://twitter.com/2019ETC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/etc2019
Daily updates via www.thesquashsite.com
Streaming: Watch the action via SquashTV: Facebook and SQUASHTV from 1-4 May

Pictures courtesy of  Edgbaston Priory Club 

Martyn Williams struggles to remember the exact details of his ill-fated role in professional rugby union's first ever shootout.

He has two Grand Slams, 100 Wales caps and three tours with the British and Irish Lions to his name, and yet he still gets asked about his miss which cost Cardiff Blues their Heineken Cup semi-final against Leicester.

It is now 10 years since that agonising defeat, and the particulars are a little hazy, so Williams has been delving back into the archives.

"I've watched it back a few times and laughed about it," Williams tells the BBC Scrum V Podcast.

"It was so surreal at the time, I don't really have a good memory."

On Sunday, 3 May 2009, under a baking sun at what is now Principality Stadium, Cardiff Blues and Leicester Tigers played out an epic 26-26 draw in a Heineken Cup semi-final which entered extra time.

Neither side had much left in the tank and, drained after fighting back from a 14-point deficit, some Blues players were oblivious to the impending shootout.

"Nobody knew what was happening because we hadn't spoken about it," says Williams.

"We'd spoken about extra time, but not what happens after. [Referee] Alain Rolland told us we'd have to pick our five kickers."

'Dupuy was having a fag'

Leicester seemed a little more prepared for this eventuality.

Their French scrum-half Julien Dupuy had kicked two conversion and four penalties before he was replaced in the 74th minute of normal time.

But with just two minutes left of extra time and the prospect of a shootout looming, he was allowed to return to the field as a blood replacement for centre Dan Hipkiss, who would not have been among their first choices to take a kick.

"Julien Dupuy, and this is God's honest's truth, was sat in the changing room, typical French, in his shorts having a fag and they had to go and get him back on," says Williams.

The Tigers reintroduced Dupuy just in time for the shootout, where he would take his side's first kick.

As footballers had been doing for decades before, both sets of players gathered near the halfway line for the shootout, unprecedented scenes in rugby union.

One by one, players from either side would have to take a place kick at goal, on the 22-metre line in front of the posts.

First up was the Blues' Ben Blair, who had been kicking brilliantly from far more difficult positions all afternoon and he duly stroked the ball over with minimal fuss.

For some reason, the TV cameras panned to Williams, who was not listed among the Blues' chosen five kickers. Was this a sign of things to come?

Former England fly-half Stuart Barnes, Sky's co-commentator that day, seemed to think so.

"This straight in front of the posts routine, you think it's going to exact a horrible toll on a non-kicker," he said.

"Pressure is a funny thing. I sense agony and heartbreak."

The specialists safely navigated their kicks: Blair, Nicky Robinson, Leigh Halfpenny and Ceri Sweeney for the Blues; Dupuy, Sam Vesty and Geordan Murphy for Leicester.

The first to blink was Tigers back Johne Murphy, pulling his effort wide and presenting Blues wing Tom James with a chance to win it.

"In training, he'd knock them over from 50 metres. Hell of a footballer," says Williams.

"I remember thinking this was in the bag. And then he missed and I thought 'What happens now?'"

James' miss meant the shootout was now in a sudden death situation. If one side scored and the other missed, the game was over.

It was down to the non-specialist kickers - the "least skilful backs like Richie Rees and Tom Shanklin" as Williams jokes - or the forwards, who would almost never take a shot at goal during a match.

Shanklin and Rees - only just - were successful, as were Leicester's Aaron Mauger and Craig Newby.

Now it was Williams' turn. The open-side flanker had never taken a place kick during his illustrious career but, as a relatively skilful forward, he was a willing participant.

'It wasn't nerves' - Williams

"I backed myself. I'd kicked for Pontypridd youth, believe it or not, I was okay at kicking," he says.

Barnes seemed to agree, saying in commentary: "This would be the cruellest thing if Martyn Williams was to miss it. A brilliant footballer, I say Martyn Williams gets it."

He did not. Williams hooked his effort wide, a horrible miss-kick.

"I can categorically say it wasn't nerves," the former Wales captain says.

"Everybody says it was nerves, but I didn't have time to think about it. It happened so quickly, I didn't grasp the enormity of the situation."

Once he had missed, it soon dawned on Williams, who covered his face with his hands.

'There was not pressure on me' - Crane

Up next for Leicester was a back-rower of their own, England number eight Jordan Crane.

"Martyn Williams - you wouldn't expect him to miss - so there was no pressure on me," Crane recalls.

"It was so surreal in the way that it finished, as a forward you'd never expect to be kicking at goal. You mess around in training, but you never practice for that.

"If you go on the training field on the 22 in front of the posts you think 'Easily, not a problem' but, that day, looking at the posts, they looked a lot smaller."

Crane kept his cool, bisected the posts and lifted his arms in celebration, albeit somewhat mutedly.

"It was such a good game and for it to come down to that, you felt sorry for Cardiff," Crane adds.

Leicester seemed almost embarrassed to win in such circumstances, and head coach Richard Cockerill made it his priority to console Williams.

"Cockerill was absolute class. He came over to me, as did Lewis Moody, Geordan Murphy," says Williams.

"I just remember Leicester being class about it. I take my hat off to them."

Twice champions of this competition, Leicester went on to lose to Leinster in the final, but the sense of regret seemed even stronger for a Blues side packed with Wales Grand Slam winners and Lions.

"My biggest regret as a player is not winning a Heineken Cup," Williams admits.

100% record

For Crane, meanwhile, his kick did not lead to further silverware, but it did secure his place in Leicester - and rugby union - folklore.

"It's a claim to fame, and people still talk about it," he says.

"It's a big part of my rugby career, but it's not up there as one of my lasting highlights.

"It was nothing about my rugby ability or Martyn Williams' ability. He had an unbelievable career and he won't be defined by that."

Crane left Leicester having won four Premiership titles, joining Bristol in 2016. There's just one thing left to ask: Has he taken any more kicks since that semi-final in 2009?

"No, not in a game," he laughs.

"I'm retiring from kicking with a 100% record!"