Six-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez has received some good news as he continues to recover from injuries that sidelined him last season.

Marquez, 14 weeks after surgery for an infected pseudoarthrosis of the right humerus, recently met with his team of doctors led by Dr. Samuel Antuña and Dr. Ignacio Roger de Oña.

During that meeting, his doctors clinically and radiographically verified satisfactory progression of bone consolidation.

As a result, Marquez has been cleared to intensify his strength and mobility recovery program with the goal of gradually returning to racing.

Marquez was initially injured during the opening round of the 2020 MotoGP season, breaking his humerus in his right arm during a crash. He missed the rest of the MotoGP season as a result and has undergone multiple surgeries to repair the injury.

It was March 11, 2020, and the Winnipeg Jets were holding their morning skate before a game at the Edmonton Oilers. Coach Paul Maurice had just stepped onto the ice when his captain, Blake Wheeler, skated over with a concerned expression.

"You think they're going to shut us down tonight?" asked Wheeler.

"No," Maurice responded, his mind squarely on the night's opponent. "I think the Oilers are going to play Connor McDavid against ya."

"No, I mean, are they going to shut down the game tonight?" Wheeler said. "You know, because of the COVID?"

Maurice wasn't clued into the news at that point. He hadn't seen the cases rising in North America after the coronavirus pandemic swept through Europe. He hadn't heard about the cities in the U.S. that were shutting down mass gatherings of people, and in the process shutting down local sporting events. The idea that the 2019-20 NHL season could be interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic one month before the Stanley Cup playoffs was far from his mind. At least it was until the first intermission that night.

The Jets had played a solid first period. Maurice was walking off the bench to the dressing room when he was stopped in his tracks, as he was informed that the entire NBA had been shut down because of a positive test for a Utah Jazz player.

Word soon spread through the Winnipeg and Edmonton dressing rooms. "Our players knew, and their players knew," Maurice said. "And the game of hockey just disappeared after that. It was a disaster for the rest of the night. Their minds quickly went to [the shutdown]."

The Jets flew to Calgary after the game to prepare for a matchup with the Flames. "It never crossed my mind that I wouldn't be coaching that weekend. I thought it was going to be a two- or three-day thing. They'd give us a new plan, and away we go," Maurice recalled.

"And now we're coming up on a year."

The NHL paused its season on March 12, 2020. It was a decision weeks in the making, pushed into action when other pro sports began to shutter their operations. The next year would see the NHL take dramatic measures to continue playing games, including "bubble" cities with empty arenas, regular-season and playoff realignment and an incalculable amount of testing for COVID-19. But it all started there, on March 12, when hockey hit the pause button. We spoke with league and NHLPA executives, general managers and players about what they remembered about the pause and what the benefit of hindsight has shown them.

"It's almost hard to believe we've been at this for a year and we're still not done," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman told ESPN. "In some respects, the year has gone in the blink of an eye. In other respects, it has seemed like it's been forever."

Barcelona are battling with a number of Europe's biggest clubs to sign Rapid Vienna midfielder Yusuf Demir, various sources have confirmed to ESPN.

Manchester United, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund and also tracking Demir, who won't turn 18 until June and has a contract in Vienna until 2022.

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Demir made his first-team debut for Rapid at the end of 2019 and, despite his age, he has already become a regular in Dietmar Kuhbauer's side, making 23 appearances in all competitions this season.

The creative midfielder can also play further forward and has scored six goals in the current campaign, propelling him into the Austria under-21 set-up.

Sources told ESPN that scouts from the world's biggest teams have earmarked him as one of the brightest young players in Europe and expect a bidding war to break out at the end of the season.

Not only will Demir turn 18 in the summer, allowing him to relocate without having to depend on his parents moving with him, but he will also be moving into the final year of his deal in Austria.

Barca are well-positioned to win the race for Demir's signature, though, if they do decide to make a move for the youngster thanks to the groundwork they have laid down in recent months.

The club's scouting department has compiled an extensive report on Demir, which will be handed over to the new president, Joan Laporta, who will decide what steps to take next. The price of the deal could range from anywhere between €5 million and €15m.

The Catalan club have outsourced a number of the game's most impressive young players recently, with Pedri, Ronald Araujo and Francisco Trincao already making their mark on the first team.

As they continue to plan for the future, with a number of academy players also getting minutes under Ronald Koeman, they believe Demir would be another smart addition.

Sources at the club told ESPN there is also interest in Demir from United, City, Bayern and Dortmund but believe they have the advantage because of the player's long-standing admiration for Lionel Messi.

The left-footer has been likened to the Argentina forward and the chance to follow in his footsteps -- and possibly play alongside him if he doesn't leave when his contract expires in June -- by playing at Camp Nou is a massive draw.

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr benched rookie center James Wiseman for the first half of Thursday's 130-104 loss to the LA Clippers after Wiseman missed the first two COVID-19 tests he was scheduled for during the All-Star break.

The missed tests caused Wiseman, 19, to miss Wednesday's practice in Los Angeles.

"I'm not going to go into detail, but this is all part of development as a young player," Kerr said during a videoconference with reporters after the game. "You got to take care of your business. Everything matters. This was just a reaction to him missing the test and not being able to practice last night. That hurt us. And so that was the reason he did not play in the first half. I'm not going to go into any more detail than that because that's private team business, but that was the reason."

Kerr on Wednesday acknowledged being disappointed that Wiseman had missed the early tests, but he said Wiseman was cleared to play before Thursday's game following some uncertainty about his status.

For his part, Wiseman took responsibility for the missed tests and said he had spoken to veterans Stephen Curry and Draymond Green about the episode.

"I make mistakes," Wiseman said. "I'm human and I completely forgot about the first two days of COVID testing. I tested the last two days. ... I made a huge mistake, but I most definitely will not do that again because I just got to make sure that I just be disciplined in terms of that. ... I made sure that I apologized to Coach and told him that I'm not going to do that again and make sure that I pay attention to little stuff like that, just get that done."

Wiseman, the No. 2 overall pick in last year's draft, has repeatedly been praised by Kerr and his Warriors teammates for how he has gone about his business and consistently tried to get better, but Wiseman's season has been full of ups and downs. He missed most of training camp because of COVID-19 protocols and missed close to a month after injuring his wrist. His play has been sporadic as he has tried to get a feel for the NBA game.

Kerr said he is hopeful that Wiseman will learn from his latest setback.

"You have to prove it in this league," Kerr said. "If you want to be Steph or Draymond, then you got to do what those guys did. And guess what? Both those guys were benched their rookie year. Both those guys had to fight. So even the superstar players have to earn their way in this league. So that's part of the deal for everybody. So that's pretty simple."

Kerr pushed back on the notion that Wiseman, who admitted after last Thursday's first-half finale in Phoenix that the up-and-down nature of his rookie campaign has been "hard" on him, might fall deeper into self-doubt after getting benched Thursday.

"I don't agree with that," Kerr said. "He's a 19-year-old, unbelievably gifted player in his rookie year. He's really playing well. Played three college games. If you want to go back and look at the history of this league and guys like Kobe [Bryant] or Anthony Davis, or I don't know, pick any one of a number of rookies who became great players, it's a struggle. There's very few rookies who in the history of this league who just came out ready to play, especially in the modern era where guys don't go to school and don't spend a few years preparing for the NBA.

"So James is doing great, are you kidding me? All he's enduring is the normal ups and downs of what a 19-year-old, young player goes through in the NBA. He's playing against men now, but you look at some of the things he's done, you look at the way he responded tonight in the fourth quarter and the things he's capable of, and the kind of person he is, I have no doubt James is going to be a great, great player."

Kerr said he was pleased that when Wiseman eventually got into Thursday's game in the fourth quarter, he responded well by scoring 14 points and grabbing seven rebounds in 12 minutes.

"He was great," Kerr said. "He responded exactly as I hoped he would. He looked like he was a little angry out there and he really competed and he played with good energy and that bodes well. So he'll be back out there next game."

The Warriors believe Wiseman's best days remain ahead of him. Despite being disappointed about the rookie's forgetfulness around the tests, Curry believes that Wiseman will be better after his mistake.

"I'm sure he wasn't happy about it," Curry said. "Eventually, hopefully this will not be something that lingers in terms of a storyline or a narrative around him. It's just he is a rookie, a No. 2 pick, so anything that [comes from] a disciplinarian point of view or whatever the case is, is going to be a talking point. But he came in in the fourth quarter and played well, played aggressive. I'm sure his minutes will be different on Sunday, and hopefully he plays well."

With Thursday's loss, the Warriors have dropped four straight games for the first time this season. Turner Sports cameras caught Curry appearing to yell at and motivate his teammates during the third quarter, an uncharacteristic move for Curry, given how calm he usually seems to be on the floor.

It also underscored the team's frustrations during the losing streak.

"It's always about what's happening in the moment," Curry said. "That's just basketball. Trying to bring competitive spirit and leadership, all different type of ways, but we had an opportunity to set the tone for the second half of the season tonight and obviously didn't do it. And we got to do something about that going into the next game."

In a spring training game last weekend, Trevor Bauer pitched the first inning with one eye closed. That he did it against the Padres, the Dodgers' new archrival in the National League West, suggests it was perhaps a bit of gamesmanship, although Bauer attempted a different explanation after the game. "I like making myself uncomfortable and throwing different stuff my way and trying to find a solution for it," he said. "That's how you improve. Find a way to make yourself uncomfortable, then get comfortable with it and do it again."

Of course, in true Bauer fashion, he also deadpanned that "I figured if they can't score off of me with one eye open, it's going to be difficult to score off me with two eyes open."

One thing we do know is that all eyes will be on Bauer heading into 2021. Coming off his Cy Young season with Cincinnati, Bauer signed a complicated three-year contract with the Dodgers that will pay him at least $38 million in 2021 and up to $47 million in 2022 if he opts out after that season. When you're the reigning Cy Young winner, joining the reigning World Series champions, and now one of the highest-paid players in the sport with an active -- and at times controversial -- presence on social media, you better deliver the goods. You can argue that no player in 2021 has more pressure to perform than Bauer.

He's not the only Cy Young contender to change teams this offseason, however. Four days after Christmas, the Padres officially acquired 2020 Cy Young runner-up Yu Darvish from the Cubs and 2018 American League Cy Young winner Blake Snell from the Rays in one of the most impressive single-day hauls in MLB history, sending expectations soaring in San Diego. Pressure on those two to perform is thus acute as well.

Lee Grantham won the Doi Inthanon 50km in 2017 but wants to see if he can run faster when he has no competitors around him to race

Four years ago British runner Lee Grantham won the Doi Inthanon Ultra Mountain Marathon over 50km in 3:55:18. Now, on Monday (March 15), he will attempt to beat his time in a solo time trial.

The course goes up the highest mountain in Thailand and the event is so tough that when Grantham won in 2017 there were 250 runners who started and only 150 finishers.

At one point with about 7km to go the gradient steepens to 13-14% for several kilometres. The 38-year-old from Manchester excels on such courses, though. He is a former winner of the Subida Pico Veleta in Granada, Spain, which Grantham says is a very similar course and distance to the Doi Inthanon event.

In the absence of many real races, Grantham has found ways to challenge himself during the pandemic. He splits his year between living in Spain and Thailand and over Christmas recently he used his time quarantining in a Thai hotel by running 3hr 37min for 50km on Boxing Day on a treadmill set at 5% gradient – a festive feat that he streamed to his followers.

On his Doi Inthanon time trial, the 38-year-old says: “I want to find out what the difference is between doing a real race to a virtual solo attempt. Does the competitive element of a real race make you run much faster? This will be the perfect way to find out.”

In the Tour de France a big time trial is often described as the ‘race of truth’ and in Thailand on Monday the Briton will be running his own race of truth.

He adds: “It won’t go into the records books or on Power of 10 or anywhere. But the past year has been all about challenging ourselves.”

Grantham has been supported by Nike and has some friends supplying drinks en route and filming the action for social media. In the never-ending quest for improvement he’s also been receiving sports science advice from international runner Dan Nash.

As for the future, big 2021 ultra events like Comrades in South Africa have already been postponed but Grantham hopes to have a crack at the British 100km record at some stage. He is a former winner of the UK 100km title and currently sits No.6 on a UK all-time list headed by Steven Way, Simon Pride and Don Ritchie but he believes he can go quicker than his 6:42 PB.

Rugby YouTuber Squidge Rugby looks at the key changes Wales have made to transform their fortunes from unfancied also-rans to Six Nations Grand Slam candidates.

WATCH MORE: Highlights: Wales claim Triple Crown with convincing win over England

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Listen to live coverage of Italy v Wales on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra and follow live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. Kick-off is at 14:15 GMT.

Gloucester wing Louis Rees-Zammit admits he had sleepless nights after helping Wales win the Triple Crown against England.

"I was devastated last weekend that I didn't score late on," said the 20-year-old.

"I know as long as we get the win, that's all that matters, but I still couldn't sleep for two days afterwards.

"Every time I tried to fall asleep I would think about that ball, how it didn't bounce up for me or how I tried to kick it. I was absolutely devastated.

"I know those moments are going to come a lot in my career and I've just got to move onto the next job.

"Attack is what I enjoy the most. When I get the ball in my hands, trying to create something, trying to do something every time I get the ball is my goal."

Rees-Zammit was also involved in the controversial second Wales try when he appeared to lose possession only for Liam Williams to score.

When the try was awarded Rees-Zammit was caught on camera with a relieved expression.

"I didn't know if it was going to be a try or not and obviously the cameras caught me at an awkward time, but thankfully we scored," he added.

Rees-Zammit has emerged as the rising star of the tournament on and off the field after his try against Ireland and double against Scotland, with his exploits ensuring he has proved popular on social media.

"It all started from the Ireland game and it kind of blew up on TikTok," he said.

"I haven't been able to keep on top of everything. I just try to focus on my game and not focus on social media too much."

It is his first Grand Slam attempt, but he is not fazed about what the next week could bring.

"I'm quite a chilled out guy," he said.

"I'm not too confident or too shy or anything like that so they haven't really had that chat with me because they know I wouldn't go to that extent.

"We're all a really tight group. We all know what we can do and hopefully we'll do that this weekend."

Among those standing in the way in Rome on Saturday will be the Welsh-born Italian scrum-half Stephen Varney.

Rees-Zammit graduated via the Gloucester academy with Varney.

"It definitely helps knowing how he plays and he's a big part of Italy's team," said Rees-Zammit.

"It's a lot easier for me knowing how he plays and I'm looking forward to seeing him again. I love Steve, he's a brilliant lad and doing really well for club and country.

These experiences are a far cry from two years ago when the then teenager was in the Principality Stadium stands with his parents watching Wales win the 2019 Grand Slam.

"It has all come very fast and I'm loving it to be honest," said Rees-Zammit.

"Two years ago I would never have thought this would be the situation I'd be in, but I am, so I have to live in it and show everyone what I'm about and hopefully perform this weekend.

"I only live 10 minutes away from the Principality Stadium, so I've gone since I was a kid really with my parents. I couldn't tell you how many games, but loads. I've grown up supporting Wales and now, it's brilliant.

"I was at the England game (in 2019), in the top of the stands when Josh Adams scored in the corner celebrating, and the Ireland game too. They were two really good games to go to.

"It means a little bit more to beat England at home, but beating Ireland and winning the Grand Slam was definitely an amazing achievement for Welsh rugby."

Rees-Zammit will hope he is part of another Six Nations clean sweep in 2021.

Jamison Gibson-Park is retained at scrum-half for Ireland's Six Nations game against Scotland with fit-again Conor Murray named on the bench.

The starting side for Sunday's match shows three changes from the Rome game.

Keith Earls replaces Jordan Larmour at wing with Cian Healy and Rob Herring in for Dave Kilcoyne and Ronan Kelleher in the front row.

James Lowe retains his wing berth as Ulster's fit-again Jacob Stockdale does not make the match day squad.

Murray's inclusion in the squad is the sole personnel change to Andy Farrell's 23 with his Munster team-mate Craig Casey, who made his debut from the bench in Rome, missing out.

Ireland will attempt to to build on their routine 48-10 win at Stadio Olimpico a fortnight ago after suffering back-to-back defeats to Wales and France at the start of the tournament.

New Zealand-born Gibson-Park, 29, will win his ninth cap by continuing his half-back partnership with captain and his Leinster team-mate Johnny Sexton.

Murray, 31, and Sexton have been regular half-back partners for both Ireland and the British and Irish Lions since playing their first internationals together in 2011.

Munster man Earls - Ireland's second highest try scorer with 33 - breaks the Leinster monopoly of the backs by replacing Larmour.

Loosehead prop Healy and hooker Herring are restored to accompany tighthead Tadhg Furlong at the front of the pack after Kilcoyne and the ball-carrying Kelleher were picked for the Rome contest.

Furlong made his first international appearance in over a year in Rome after a long period of injury and retains his role with Andrew Porter again having to be content with a bench role.

Ireland: Keenan; Earls, Ringrose, Henshaw, Lowe; Sexton, Gibson-Park; Healy, Herring, Furlong; Henderson, Ryan (capt); Beirne, Connors, Stander.

Replacements: Kelleher, Kilcoyne, Porter, Baird, Conan, Murray, Burns, Larmour.

World player of the year Emily Scarratt was "shocked" and "disappointed" when the World Cup was delayed to 2022.

Scarratt, who is preparing for England's Women's Six Nations title defence in April, had thought any postponement might come sooner.

"By now things are starting to move on with the vaccine programme here," the 31-year-old told BBC Sport.

"There is the light at the end of the tunnel, so we thought perhaps we would be OK, but it is what it is."

The Red Roses centre hopes one upside of the postponement will be to give England more time to bed in a new fly-half following Katy Daley-Mclean's retirement in December.

Scarratt remains close friends with the former England captain and says her departure has removed "a huge voice" from the back-line.

"She had to do what was right for her, obviously from a selfish point of view I was gutted, she's a fantastic player and she's helped make me look good for many years," said Scarratt.

"You look at some of the tens that are filling the void that Katy's left and none of them are particularly experienced because Katie's held that shirt for such a long time.

"It definitely does give them that extra year, extra game time, extra training time.

"It is good for people like Helena [Rowland] and Zoe [Harrison] to really step up, they've got to stand on their own two feet, so that extra year will be really invaluable for them."

Away from the rugby pitch, when her schedule allows, Scarratt has been working as a pundit on BT Sport, and sees broadcasting as an avenue she is keen to explore for her life after rugby.

"I think it's important you make the most of these opportunities," she said. "I'm very conscious that I won't be playing forever."

Her new venture is a YouTube show alongside South African presenter Elma Smit, with 2003 Rugby World Cup winner Mike Tindall also joining them for the first episode.

Scarratt blushes that the title, 'The Good, the Scaz and the Rugby', includes her nickname.

"I've got quite a bit of stick," she admitted. "It wasn't necessarily the one I would have picked but I understand the theory.

"It's just me, Elma and Mike chewing a bit of fat really, exploring the world of women's rugby and women's sport."

The majority of women's rugby tournaments and podcasts have struggled to secure regular sponsorship, including the upcoming Six Nations tournament - but that has not been the case for Scarratt and her co-presenters, who have attracted financial backing.

"I don't think I quite understood the magnitude of that until quite a few people have told me," she said.

"I've realised that other podcasts and people don't have sponsors, when you realise that it's kind of mad and yeah, I'm pretty grateful that they've come on board.

"I guess now I'm just hoping to go and do it justice."