British sport pays tribute to Queen as action resumes

LONDON: British sport paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II on Saturday as action resumed after Friday’s shutdown following the monarch’s death.

Football authorities, along with cricket, golf and rugby, all postponed their scheduled events on Friday.

But, although the Premier League and all other football in England has been canceled this weekend in a show of respect to the Queen, the rest of the sports world is returning to the field.

In the PGA Championship at Wentworth, a two-minute period of silence was impeccably observed with DP World Tour Chief Executive Keith Pelley joining staff, players and caddies on the putting green in front of the first tee.

Spectators were also able to watch on big screens as King Charles III was formally proclaimed as monarch at the Accession Council.

At the Oval, England and South Africa cricketers joined staff and spectators to honor the Queen ahead of the start of play in the third Test.

The two sides, wearing black armbands, lined up on the outfield to observe a minute’s silence.

There were also tributes ahead of the rugby Super League Play-Off Eliminator between Huddersfield and Salford.

Players, officials and supporters observed a minute’s silence and sang the national anthem before kick-off.

English football chiefs have been criticized for postponing all matches, with the decision labelled a “missed opportunity” to pay tribute to the nation’s longest-serving monarch.

Football chiefs were told by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on Friday that there was no obligation to cancel or postpone sporting fixtures during the national mourning period.

But the Premier League felt it was the right move to honor the Queen for her “extraordinary life and contribution to the nation.”

The second tier Championship, as well as Leagues One and Two, followed the Premier League in postponing this weekend’s matches.

It was not just professional football as all amateur Saturday and Sunday leagues across the UK, including youth football, were called off.