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Military To Join Armed Police At Major Sporting Events In U.K.

The presence of soldiers in addition to armed police will "ensure unprecedented levels of security as the sporting calendar hits its peak" in London "over the coming weeks," according to Matt Majendie of the London EVENING STANDARD. A quarter of a million spectators are expected at Wembley Stadium this weekend for Saturday's FA Cup Final and two promotion playoff finals, while a further 150,000 will "go through the turnstiles at Twickenham" for the Premiership Rugby final and England's fixture against the Barbarians. In the wake of Monday's terror attack in Manchester and the raising of the U.K.'s security alert level to critical, "armed military personnel and police firearms officers will be in attendance at major sporting events." The Metropolitan Police said that it was "in constant dialogue with sporting bosses across the capital," which is set to host The Derby the weekend after next, the 2017 Int'l Cricket Council Champions Trophy, which gets under way at The Oval on June 1, and the Women's Cricket World Cup, starting on June 24. The Met is expected to make a further statement on security measures but there is "no suggestion any major sporting event in London will be cancelled or postponed at this stage" (EVENING STANDARD, 5/24).

STOCKHOLM SECURITY: SKY NEWS reported ManU and Dutch side Ajax held a minute's silence before the Europa League final in honor of the Manchester attack victims. Both teams wore black armbands "as a mark of respect." Security was "tight ahead of the match in Sweden, with fans facing two rings of checks to get into the Friends Arena in Stockholm." Supporters had to show their tickets at the first checkpoint to gain access to the concourse surrounding the stadium and then "faced pat-downs and bag searches at a second checkpoint" (SKY NEWS, 5/24).

ESPECIALLY VULNERABLE: In London, Rumsby & Hoult reported families attending sporting events were on Tuesday warned they were "especially vulnerable to the kind of terrorist atrocity" that struck Manchester as security was ramped up at venues. The All England Lawn Tennis Club, which conducted an "unprecedented security operation" at last year's Wimbledon Championships, vowed to take "any appropriate measures" to ensure the safety of this summer's event and Surrey Police confirmed armed officers would patrol next month's Derby at Epsom. Friday's Great City Games in Manchester will "go ahead" and a decision on Sunday's Great Manchester Run is expected on Wednesday. David Videcette, a former counter-terror detective who helped lead the police response to the London 7/7 attacks, said that there was an "extremely high risk" of a sporting event being "similarly targeted." Videcette: "You've only got to go to any stadium or any sporting event and look at the way that people spill out onto the streets and the way they disperse and move about after the event's finished." Chris Eaton, an ex-federal agent with the Australian Federal Police who later became head of security at FIFA, added, "Undoubtedly, they're looking for the logjam; they're looking for the bottleneck where people are exiting from any venue" (TELEGRAPH, 5/23).

EVENTS CANCELED: Rumsby also reported Chelsea scrapped its Premier League -- and possible double-winning -- victory parade on Wednesday. FA Cup final opponent Arsenal also confirmed it would not stage a parade if it won Saturday's match and even canceled a screening of the game at the Emirates Stadium. Supporters attending the fixture were still "waiting to hear whether the army would be on duty at Wembley alongside an expected armed police presence" following the raising of the U.K.'s terror threat level to "critical." That saw Operation Temperer put into effect for the first time, "allowing up to 5,100 soldiers to be deployed in key locations in major cities to support the police." Arsenal said, "We have reluctantly made the decision to cancel the screening of the Emirates FA Cup final." Both teams will wear black armbands on Saturday. Minute's silences were announced for the cup final and two playoff finals at Wembley (TELEGRAPH, 5/24).

PAYING RESPECTS: The BBC reported Chelsea said that players will make a donation to a fund supporting victims of the attack. The opening ceremony for the Europa League final was "considerably reduced as a mark of respect for the victims." England and South Africa "stood shoulder to shoulder for a minute's silence" before the first match of the one-day cricket series at Headingley. Both teams wore black armbands as they took the field in Leeds, with all 15 members of the England squad lining up on the pitch "alongside the tourists and umpires for a sombrely observed silence." Formula 1 is expected to observe a silence before this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix. F1's teams, the majority of which are based in Great Britain, "also agreed to have #Manchester on their cars" (BBC, 5/24).

HUGE OPERATION: In London, Paul Hirst reported armed police were stationed outside of the Friends Arena on Wednesday for the Europa League final as "part of one of Sweden's biggest-ever security operations." Swedish FA Head of Security Martin Fredman said, "The police operation is huge, it's one of the biggest in Sweden. There will be a lot more cops nearby the stadium and they will have special weapons, automatic weapons. Every police officer has a pistol but this time some of them will have automatic weapons" (LONDON TIMES, 5/24). The BBC reported police said that "it is right" for the Europa League final "to go ahead," but postponing the game was discussed. Greater Manchester Police Chief Superintendent John O'Hare said, "Very quickly a decision was taken the game would go on." O'Hare anticipated a "poignant" occasion in Stockholm. Asked if postponing the match had been considered, O'Hare said, "That would have been discussed, but the whole rhetoric that has got to come out is terrorism can't win. We can't stop doing the things we enjoy and nourish our lives" (BBC, 5/24).

GAMES CONTINUE: In Auckland, David Leggat reported New Zealand police and security personnel "received strong endorsement ahead of the Lions tour." But security consultant Intelligent Risks CEO Neil Fergus, who has "worked in New Zealand on various security work involving major events," insisted the "key point in keeping the tour safe was learning from past events." On the same day New Zealand PM Bill English was "stressing there was no indication of a heightened threat on the Lions tour in the wake of the Manchester atrocity," Fergus insisted it was "important to keep the level of vigilance high" (NEW ZEALAND HERALD, 5/24). DAWN's Abdul Ghaffar reported the Pakistan Cricket Board "is in talks" with the ICC to "increase security for the national team," currently in Birmingham to prepare for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy. A PCB official said, "We are in touch with the ICC to increase Pakistan team's security after the Manchester blast" (DAWN, 5/24).

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