Chris Froome’s charge for further Tour de France honours and the crowning of the “champion golfer for the year” will be among the major attractions on the small screen this weekend.
Sport’s most gruelling event, the Tour de France, comes to an end on Sunday, with Froome enjoying a slight lead. This event is often settled before the finish, but this time there is still plenty of cycling to be done before the lap of honour around the Champs-Elysees in Paris on Sunday (SS5, 4.35pm).
It’s difficult to see Froome, even with a small lead, slipping up at this stage, but you just never know.
Across the channel at Royal Birkdale, the next chapter in the world’s oldest national golf tournament will unfold as the game’s elite chase the gold medal and a much coveted title.
The Open Championship may be a bit pompous for some, but there can be no denying the drama it brings. It is unlikely to match the spectacular shoot-out of last year between Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson, but there should still be a thrilling finish on Sunday (SS6, 10am).
The business end of Super Rugby will get underway this weekend, with three South African teams involved.
Having avoided the daunting prospect of playing the Crusaders in New Zealand, the Sharks still face a serious challenge at the Lions’ Ellis Park fortress (SS1, 2pm). The Lions won last week in Durban and it’s going to take a massive effort for the visitors to overturn that result.
The Stormers are also at home, but face a formidable team in former champions the Chiefs (SS1, 4.30pm). New Zealand sides are effective at home or away and a passage to the semifinals is no formality for the Western Cape franchise.
The Currie Cup kicks off this weekend and the fact that it runs concurrently with Super Rugby and international games shows just how diluted the famous competition has become.
Nonetheless, the players and coaches, at least, will be fired up to win the trophy and delivering the first shots will be the Free State Cheetahs against the Sharks on Friday (SS1, 6.30pm).
A match which will grab attention is the feature game in the Craven Week in Johannesburg on Saturday (SS10, 3.15pm). The teams for this clash must still be decided.
