Which of them will start favourite may be impossible to call until moments before the off.The main event at Epsom will be over in less than three minutes, but there will still be plenty of other attractions to keep people amused. The funfair will be there as always ­ with Peter Walwyn no doubt taking his traditional ride on the Waltzer ­ while there will also be live performances by Emma Bunton and Atomic Kitten (which is possibly not what the 12th Earl of Derby envisaged when he gave the race its name back in the 1780s, but should at least keep the kids happy).On the course, one of the main supporting acts will be the Dash Rated Handicap, which offers a £100,000 bonus to the winner if it can break Indigenous’s course (and world) record for five furlongs, set in 1960.The fact that the hand-timed mark of 53.60 seconds has remained the target for so long demonstrates how difficult it will be to surpass, but with fast ground expected, and such trailblazers as Repertory to lead the charge downhill, the bonus’s underwriters may, for once, be feeling a little nervous.. Jonathan Edwards believes the absence of the top Cuban jumpers at the IAAF Permit Meeting in Milan tonight will not detract from the excitement of the event. Jonathan Edwards believes the absence of the top Cuban jumpers at the IAAF Permit Meeting in Milan tonight will not detract from the excitement of the event.
The British triple-jumper expects tough opposition from Italy’s Fabrizio Donato and Paolo Camossi, who can also count on feverish home support.

Last year’s meeting saw Donato triumph in an Italian record 17.60 metres before fading badly and not even qualifying for the Olympic final, whereas Camossi reached the final but finished eighth.But in this spring’s world indoor championships, Camossi produced a personal best 17.32m for a surprise win. Edwards is therefore expecting a stiff challenge, even with the confidence gained from a 17.53m leap in windy Bangor at the weekend. The Olympic gold medallist and world record-holder said: “The top Cubans might be missing but I am under no illusions, I will get a tough time.”I didn’t jump in Milan last year but by all accounts it was a fabulous meeting with first Camossi and then Donato smashing the long-standing Italian record. I hadn’t really heard of Donato until then and he did fade later in the summer.”But Camossi had a good year and at the world indoors got in the big one that mattered to beat me.

Yes, I think with the crowd behind them and their own fierce rivalry they’ll be highly motivated.”Edwards will also be keeping a close eye on British rivals Larry Achike and Phillips Idowu, who finished fifth and sixth respectively in the Olympic final during a year in which his likely successors as British No 1 emerged into true world-class performers.Idowu currently leads the world rankings while Achike made his best start to any year when clearing 16.96m in February. There will be an added incentive for all three Britons with the side for the European Cup final later this month, being announced next Tuesday.And Achike, the winner at Gateshead last June, and Idowu have no intention of allowing their more illustrious countryman automatic selection “That’s the way it should be,” claimed Edwards. “I’m sure the selectors will pick the best man for the job, the one who can claim maximum points ­ and with my record that seems likely to be me. But I wouldn’t expect to be guaranteed the place.”Katharine Merry and Kelly Holmes, the Olympic 400m and 800m bronze medallists, also get down to the real business of racing in preparation for August’s World championships in Edmonton.

Merry showed she was in form last Saturday with a 51.5 second relay leg and she should cope comfortably with the opposition on offer.Chris Rawlinson, who made his 400m breakthrough on the international scene at last year’s event with victory over world champion Fabrizio Mori, and 1500m runners Allen Graffin and Michael Openshaw also participate.. When a young boxer of 20, with just four international bouts on his record meets a Cuban former world champion and veteran of 210 fights, the outcome is generally easy to predict and unpleasant to watch but last night the scenario so nearly had an alternative ending. When a young boxer of 20, with just four international bouts on his record meets a Cuban former world champion and veteran of 210 fights, the outcome is generally easy to predict and unpleasant to watch but last night the scenario so nearly had an alternative ending.
Matthew Thirlwall, from the Fisher club in south London, conceded over 150 bouts in experience to Damian Austin but chased the unusually cautious Cuban in each of the four rounds at the World Amateur Championships in Belfast. This meant that Thirlwall was exposed to accurate counter punches and when it was over he lost 13-6.

“He was just too clever and was never in one place long enough,” admitted Thirlwall. “Each time I set my feet and tried to work away at his body he was gone. I didn’t want to start rushing in but I had to in the end.” Before the fight several members of the high-profile Cuban media made inquires about Thirlwall and by the time the first round started a large delegation of Cuban officials had gathered at ringside. Their noise compensated for the shouts of encouragement from a group of travelling fans cheering him on.Austin, 27, was trailing after one round but as he backed effortlessly from rope to rope it was clear that 10 years of international experience, including a world junior title in 1992 and the senior version the following year, is the most important element in the amateur sport. Thirlwall won the first and drew the last on the computer scoring system but in the third, which started with him trailing by just one point, he was repeatedly caught as he tried to overcome the Cuban’s skill by pressing forward. It was a risk, it never worked and when round three ended he was down by seven points and the fight was lost.Elsewhere in the two rings on day three of the championship, England’s Steven Bell fought without conviction and was stopped at the end of the third round when Turkey’s triple European featherweight champion, Ramazan Paliani proved so overwhelming that amateur boxing’s so-called ‘mercy’ rule ended the fight.