{"id":292052,"date":"2023-10-02T21:31:41","date_gmt":"2023-10-02T21:31:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/?p=292052"},"modified":"2023-10-02T21:31:41","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T21:31:41","slug":"sports-agenda-schweinsteiger-and-ivanovic-are-fans-of-mcilroy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportslifetale.com\/golf\/sports-agenda-schweinsteiger-and-ivanovic-are-fans-of-mcilroy\/","title":{"rendered":"SPORTS AGENDA: Schweinsteiger and Ivanovic are fans of\u00a0McIlroy"},"content":{"rendered":"
No doubting who drew the celebrity following in the singles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
German football legend Bastian Schweinsteiger and his wife Ana Ivanovic could be seen following\u00a0Rory McIlroy\u2019s match, along with former One Direction singer Niall Horan, who is close friends with the world No 2.<\/p>\n
Former Bayern Munich and Manchester United star Schweinsteiger pulled all the attention from the galleries, with few realising who Ivanovic was \u2014 despite her being a former world No 1 tennis ace and Grand Slam winner!<\/p>\n
Bob MacIntyre is widely regarded as one of the sport\u2019s good guys and the generous Scot\u2019s actions here would certainly demonstrate that reputation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Rory McIlroy (above) drew the celebrity following in the singles at the Ryder Cup<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
German legend Bastian Schweinsteiger and wife Ana Ivanovic followed McIlroy\u2019s match<\/p>\n
MacIntyre rented a villa close to the course for 12 of his closest pals from home and scored tickets for them for each day, paying for all of it himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
MacIntyre will take centre stage at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship this week, along with\u00a0Europe team-mate Tommy Fleetwood.<\/p>\n
If the occupancy levels of the villas around the Marco Simone course are any gauge, it is safe to say the Ryder Cup did not capture the attention of everyone in this part of Rome.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite there being 50,000 spectators on the course, few came out on their balconies to take in one of the biggest sporting events on the planet \u2014 even though it was taking\u00a0place virtually in their back gardens.<\/p>\n
It has been a relatively successful tournament in terms of organisation and transport for punters, but there has been one area in which officials appear to have been caught short.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A common complaint has been the lack of toilets on the course at Marco Simone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With fans urged to rehydrate, and with a large number of water refill stations, queues at the precious portable toilets\u00a0have been lengthy.<\/p>\n
Despite attempts to diversify, it was interesting to note the ethnic make-up of the crowds in Italy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Non-white faces were few and far between, other than in corporate hospitality areas \u2014 where many of those serving champagne were from minority backgrounds.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Indeed, one punter observed there were more people of colour working in the plush suites than on the rest of the course over the\u00a0entirety of the week.<\/p>\n
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Rory McIlroy was involved in a furious bust-up in the car park at Marco Simone on Saturday<\/p>\n
Impeccable timing from Ryder Cup organisers on Saturday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just as Rory McIlroy was being held back and bundled into a motor as tempers frayed in the car park following hat-gate, staff sent out an email to all journalists warning them entitled \u2018Safety\u2019 and asking them to \u2018remain vigilant and report\u00a0anything that feels different\u2019.<\/p>\n
A curious situation at Bournemouth where new manager Andoni Iraola is currently working without an assistant.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Basque was appointed in June following the dismissal of Gary O\u2019Neil and expected to be joined by his number two from Rayo Vallecano, Inigo Perez.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, with the season now seven matches old and the club in the relegation\u00a0zone, the relevant work permit remains outstanding.<\/p>\n
Mark Nicholas starts his year as MCC president on Monday and already has some big ideas.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The former Hampshire man wants to examine the feasibility of an MCC team featuring in The Hundred.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018The members would have a team support and there is interest in us doing this from the ECB,\u2019 he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Mark Nicholas, pictured with Mick Jagger at Lord’s, begins his stint at MCC president<\/p>\n
\u2018I doubt MCC would link with Middlesex – it is easier to start a franchise from nothing. But other counties such as Essex might\u00a0want to be involved, too.\u2019<\/p>\n
Nicholas is also keen on increasing the number of women among the membership from the current figure of 3 per cent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018That is wrong,\u2019 he added. \u2018The club may need to create a different category – women can\u2019t jump the waiting list as that would be illegal. Maybe there could be an area set aside in the Compton and Edrich Stands for a\u00a0younger element in the membership.\u2019<\/p>\n