In the men’s team sprint, Jason Kenny missed the first of his three chances to move clear of Sir Chris Hoy’s Olympic gold medal tally as Great Britain took silver, although he did equal Sir Bradley Wiggins’ tally as Britain’s most decorated Olympian.
His wife Laura also had to settle for silver in the women’s team pursuit.
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Meanwhile, the International Olympic Committee is facing intensifying pressure to suspend Belarus over its treatment of a sprinter who fears going home after criticising the national team.
Krystsina Tsimanouskaya was thrown out of the team for her remarks and sought the protection of Japanese police so she could avoid being forced on a flight home.
It comes as a Belarusian activist who ran a group in Ukraine helping Belarusians fleeing persecution was found dead in the Ukrainian capital.
Earlier, the Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya came to Downing Street to press for support as Boris Johnson condemned Alexander Lukashenko’s regime’s severe human rights violations.
Sunak told to ‘check the manifesto’ on return to office
Rishi Sunak has been told to “check the manifesto” after he urged young people to get back to the office. During an interview, the Chancellor said being present was “valuable” if workers want to progress in their career, highlighting his own mentors who he has remained in contact with. But Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, hit out at his comments, saying people should be allowed to “make their own minds up about what works for them so that work fits around our lives instead of dictating our lives”. It comes as Facebook has told its staff to start wearing masks in offices even if they are fully vaccinated amid concerns about resurgent Covid cases. Meanwhile, Nicola Sturgeon has announced that most of Scotland’s remaining Covid restrictions are set to end on Monday.
Free climber jailed for scaling Shard climbs new tower
A climber who was jailed for scaling the Shard with no ropes has made it to the top of a 36-storey London tower undetected by the building’s security. George King spent six months in a young offenders’ institution after climbing the 310-metre London skyscraper, which is the UK’s tallest building, in 2019. The 21-year-old from Oxford has now scaled a 36-storey residential block in Stratford, east London, using nothing but his bare hands. See pictures of him shimmying up pillars on the Stratosphere Tower, before balancing on a perilously narrow beam at the top.
Also in the news: Today’s other headlines
Afghan city under siege | Al Qaeda militants are flocking to join the Taliban front lines as the insurgents make gains across the country, the Afghan general leading the defence of Helmand’s capital has claimed. Read why Gen Sami Sadat warned a victory for the Taliban would have a “devastating effect on global security” as residents of Lashkar Gah were urged to evacuate their homes amid heavy fighting in Helmand’s capital.
Around the world: Wuhan to test entire population
Coronavirus has returned to Wuhan – the city where initial infections emerged in late 2019 – as three cases of the highly transmissible delta variant were confirmed today by Chinese authorities. Officials are now rushing to test the city’s 12 million residents in efforts to contain the virus – again. After a botched response at the start of the pandemic, read how local authorities appear to be taking no chances this time around.
Tuesday big-read
