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ABSENT REDKNAPP UPSETS THE DINERS
(Daily Mail Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)PREMIERSHIP manager Harry Redknapp's turbulent season continued this week with allegations that he let down a major charity function by pulling out of his guest speaker engagement at the last minute.
Redknapp claimed he had no choice but to put his struggling Portsmouth club first and scout today's opponents West Ham in midweek rather than go to the London dinner.
Having been booked months ago, Redknapp was due to be the main speaking attraction for more than 500 guests at the Marriott Grosvenor Square hotel on Wednesday night to raise money for heart diagnosis charity CRY.
But on Monday morning, the organisers were told by Redknapp's First Artists agent Phil Smith that he could not attend because he and chairman Milan Mandaric were going to watch West Ham's FA Cup replay against Bolton.
Worried organisers even offered to pick Redknapp up from Upton Park after the match so guests could still hear him speak even if he didn't make the meal in time. But they were told that was not possible either.
It further annoyed ticket holders that Redknapp had still found time to join his Pompey players on a day out at the Cheltenham Festival on Tuesday.
Former England rugby international Martin Bayfield replaced Redknapp, who said: 'It was unfortunate to call off at late notice, but I had no choice.
Portsmouth have to come first and it's a crucial match for us. What would our fans think if they discovered I was speaking at a dinner rather than watching our opponents.'
A SURREAL moment at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne for the corporate guests at the Steve Ovett-Sebastian Coe breakfast, who had just watched a rerun of the legendary athletes take on a young Steve Cram in the 1500m in Moscow in 1980. As they stepped outside the restaurant venue, there was the real Steve Cram, now a BBC athletics presenter, on a training run along the River Yarra. Cram had received a late invitation to the breakfast reunion but chose not to go.
WITH a weightlifting drugs scandal update becoming daily news in Melbourne, how long can Lottery distributors Sport England continue to justify the GBP1.1m in funding that the tarnished 'sport' has been granted since 1994.
Sport England finance chief Hamish McInnes said: 'We're aware of weightlifting's problems but don't want to deprive clean athletes from competing in their chosen sport.' THE BBC may have a whopping 250 personnel in Melbourne for their intensive coverage of the Games, but that is nothing compared to U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (pictured), who had an entourage of around 80 with her yesterday just for a flying visit to the boxing.
THE Beeb's programming of Games boxing could have extra relevance, with Sky Sports on the brink of pulling out of the domestic fight game. Since leading promoter Frank Warren switched to ITV, Sky have struggled to put on British-based shows, having to call off numerous programmes. The Amateur Boxing Association, meanwhile, want to see how their fighters perform in Melbourne before agreeing funding through to the 2008 Bejiing Olympics.
Caborn unlucky again RICHARD CABORN, the Minister for Sport, has again missed out on watching an England rugby union final Down Under.
Having famously returned from Sydney for a Commons vote before England overcame the host country to win the Rugby World Cup in 2003, Caborn left Melbourne yesterday because of work commitments just as England were taking on New Zealand in the Rugby Sevens final.
At least Caborn took some solace from having watched England beat Australia the previous night in the group stage.
c.sale@dailymail.co.uk
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