22/07/2012 BBC Weekend News

Britain celebrates its first ever winner of the Tour de France. We'll

be looking at where it all started and ask how his victory compares

with other great sporting achievements.

Also tonight: Video emerges of the Colorado suspect filmed six years

before the shooting spree which left 12 people dead.

Ernie Els wins the Open and it was Good evening. Bradley Wiggins has

made sporting history by becoming the first British cyclist to win

the Tour de France. The result was confirmed in the final sprint race

along the Champs-Elysees this afternoon, which was watched by

thousands of spectators. Our sports correspondent Tim Franks reports

from Paris, on an extraordinary day for British sport.

The start of the world's longest victory lap. There was still 80

miles for Bradley Wiggins to ride today on his freshly sprayed yellow

bike but the tradition on the tour is for the leader on the final day

to remain unchallenged. It's a day, this being France for bon amie and

strange customs involving livestock. And while today's course may have

been flat, the the sense of expectation was big new. After

three weeks, 2000 miles, 22 mountain passes, the end was in

sight and the prospect of a unique achievement for Britain.

There are moments in sport, perhaps just a few each century, when a

nation asks where were you when? This is one of them, certainly for

these fans. Bradley Wiggins is doing what no Briton has done

before. First, though, the sight of a Briton doing what's become

astonishingly familiar. Mark Cavendish may be the best road

sprinter the world has seen. With his team-mate leading the peloton

he swung out for his fourth consecutive win of the most

glamorous tour stage of them all. Britain, for so long not a road

cycling nation, is flexing its leg muscles. This sort of thing happens

to other people and you never imagine it happens to you. So, it's

incredible. It's not the sort of thing you soak in at the time, what

a wonderful occasion. I bet you look back in years and think that

was special. And there's more. After waiting more than 100 years

for a man on the podium, Britain now has two. Standing on the left,

Bradley Wiggins team-mate, Chris Froome who came in second in the

Tour. It's the start, and I think we have been working very hard, ten

years now, and on a personal level I am as hungry and ambitious as

ever and have a lot to give to the sport. Hopefully this is the start

of a period where we can dominate. In a few days we turn to the hunt

for Olympic golds, but this summer it may be yellow by gleams the

brightest. As we've heard, the Tour de France

is considered the world's greatest and most gruelling cycle race. Our

sports editor David Bond looks at how today's victory compares with

other major sporting achievements. It's one of the most demanding

contests in modern sport. 4,000 gruelling kilometres over three

weeks of racing. In more than a century, no British man has tasted

the ecstasy of victory in the Tour de France. Until today. Until

Bradley Wiggins. Bradley Wiggins has scaled one of the great heights

of British sporting achievement. To be the first person in 109 years,

to win the Tour de France is an immense feat of physical and mental

ability and aptitude and the whole country wants to say well done.

Brilliant. The perfect backdrop and start for the Olympics. Even as a

young boy, growing up in north London, Wiggins dreamt of cycling

glory. He watched the Tour as a teenager, and as a keen student of

the sport he is well aware of what his triumph means.

But it was on the less exposed terrain of the Velodrome that the

32-year-old made his name, winning two Olympic gold medals in Beijing

in 2008, to add to his first in Athens four years earlier.

Having dominated track cycling for the past two two Games, Wiggins and

British cycling spent the last three trying to replicate that

success in the professional world of road racing. It was a bold

ambition. But one that has been delivered, well ahead of schedule.

It's the biggest thing in the sport of cycling for Great Britain, ever.

It's quite a big statement to make and even saying it now I am

checking back and thinking no, that's truly true - ever. A great

British ride Irwins the tour de-- rider wins the Tour de France and I

never thought I would see the day. Is it the pinnacle of British sport,

though? Steve Redgrave's five gold medals took sporting achievement to

a new level. Away from the Games Ian both am's 981 Ashes heroics

ensured his place in the greats. There are more contenders but it's

the unique and history historic nature which has guaranteed

Wiggins's right to be among And David is outside the Olympic

Velodrome now. Them. What a fantastic boost and great mood for

us all to go into the Olympics with in a few days' time, David. That's

right. As David Cameron was saying in that report, it provides the

perfect backdrop to the start of the Olympic week and for British

cycling it's a huge lift. They'll be hoping to win many, many more

gold medals in the Velodrome you can see over the next two weeks or

so. Sir Chris Hoy, Victoria pentlen to, all certain to feature there,

and also back in the road races with Bradley Wiggins going for gold

in the time trial and Mark Cavendish possibly winning

Britain's first gold to get the Games off to a flying start next

Saturday. It's part of this extraordinary transformation of

British cycling over the last decade or so. Wiggins' victory is

also going to be a huge boost for organisers who have had to

withstand a rocky ten days to two weeks with all the talk of problems

with security and venues and the difficulties perhaps over the

transport network in London and the rhetoric today from the chairman of

LOCOG was very much look, stop this whingeing, let's embrace this

extraordinary sporting spectacle which is about to unfold here. I

think Wiggins has given them the fairytale storyline to really

kickstart the Games and put some of those concerns to one side.

Thank you. President Obama has arrived in Colorado to meet the

families of people killed and injured when a gunman went on the

rampage at a cinema on Friday. 12 people died and more than 50 were

injured in the town of Aurora. The flat rented by the man believed to

have carried out the attack has now been cleared of booby-traps.

Alistair Leithead is in Aurora now. Well, President Obama will only be

here for a couple of hours, but he will be visiting a local hospital

to meet survivors, those injured by the shooting in the cinema behind

me. He will also be meeting family members, community leaders ahead of

a big vigil planned here for later this evening.

We will rise from this... The dead and the injured were

remembered at Sunday Church services across this city. Everyone

has felt this tragedy, wondering what would drive a young man to

take so many lives. This is the suspect. James Holmes.

Video footage has emerged of him at a science camp six years ago.

mentor, who works... He was 18, confidently addressing the audience.

He said he wanted to make scientific recoveryy -- discoveries.

At his flat today, the police were continuing to collect evidence of

the weapons and ammunition he bought and the chemicals he used to

make a booby-trap bomb in his apartment T took police two days to

get into his flat. The home-made explosives were

removed safely and taken out into the desert to be destroyed.

The 12 people who were killed have now all been named by the coroner.

The eldest was 51, the youngest just six years old. She had gone to

the cinema with her mum, who is still critically ill. Her great-

aunt is devastated. She just wanted to have to have fun. She was what

you would want your six-year-old to be. Those who survivored are still

haunted by what happened in cinema 9. I beat you, I made it. You

didn't take my life. You didn't take my friend's life either. But I

pray and I feel so sorry for the other families.

A makeshift has appeared over the road from the cinema, a a cross for

each of the dead, for people to write messages, leave flowers and

pay their last respects. In the last hour we have heard

James homes was refused membership of a local gun range because of his

behaviour and the bizarre message he left on an answermachine. He

will be appearing in court for The First time on Monday morning

charged with multiple counts of first degree murder.

A seven-year-old boy has died from head injuries following an accident

at an open air museum in County Durham. Police say there was an

incident at the Beamish Museum involving a steam-powered traction

engine and trailer. The engine's driver is being

treated for shock. The Chinese capital Beijing has

been hit by its heaviest rains for more than 60 years. At least 35

people have been killed and thousands have been moved out of

their homes. The torrential downpour flooded roads, and brought

down trees and power lines. Syrian government troops have

launched a major offensive to regain control of parts of the

capital, Damascus. Activists say three areas of the city are being

attacked by tanks and heavy weapons. In the second city, Aleppo, rebel

fighters are reported to have gained control of several areas.

Jim Muir has been monitoring the situation from Beirut.

The Damascus skyline, wreathed in smoke from heavy bombardments. This

district in the west of the city is one of several where regime forces

are battling to drive the rebels out.

They succeeded in the north-east of the capital at the cost of huge

destruction. These troops are believed to be from the much feared

Fourth Giggs, -- Division, commanded by the President's

brother. Mr Assad was receiving his army Chief of Staff and giving him

his orders. Presumably they were to restore control in the capital, and

the second City, Aleppo, at all costs.

Like Damascus, Aleppo, newspaper the north, had been relatively

untouched by trouble until last week.

Now Government forces are battling to dislodge rebels from several

quarters they've taken over. In a straight fight, the lightly armed

opposition fighters are little match for the regime's massive

firepower, but they believe they're on the path of victory.

TRANSLATION: The free Syrian Army has succeeded

in liberating most of the areas of the suburbs and the way is open to

liberate the city of Aleppo and from there to liberate the rest of

Syrian soil with God's will. Certainly the regime is not having

it all its own way as fighting rages in many parts of the country.

Refugees are spilling over the nearby border into Turkey, joining

thousands already there. None of them knows when it will be safe to

go home and who will be in charge when they do.

The Olympic torch has been making its way across London on day 65 of

the relay. The flame reached new heights as it was held aloft on the

London Eye by Amelia Hempleman- Adams, who last year became the

youngest person to ski to the South Pole.

Sport now, and for a full round-up of all the day's action, here's

Katherine Downes at the BBC Sport Centre.

Good evening. There was late drama at golf's Open Championship at

Royal Lytham. Ernie Els won by just one shot. Australia's Adam Scott

seemed to be cruising to victory but bogeyed the last four holes, so

it was Els who lifted the Claret Jug, for the second time in his

career. Andy Swiss reports. Even by sports outlandish standards, it was

a day which almost defied belief. A tale of one man's victory, and

another man's meltdown. Adam Scott had begun the day four shots clear

and in tricky conditions seemed to Graeme McDowell's into the

undergrowth. While Els was going nicely it seemed little more than a

sideshow. Scott still led by four. The open as gooth good as his, then

one of golf's most spectacular implosions. Bogey followed bogey,

while ahead of him ems cranked up the pressure. Could it really

happen? It could. After three consecutive bogies Scott began his

final hole tied and his composure gone to pot. He scrambled gamely,

but he was left with this, to force a play-off. And so in 40 minutes of

madness, Scott had lost the seemingly unlosable and from Els,

even in his moment of triumph there a great play e a great friend of

mine. We have had great battles in the past. I feel very fortunate and

you are going to win many of these. You have too much talent. Rarely

has the Open delivered a more dramatic climax, for the fans here,

but above all for Ernie Els, what a day to remember. England will face

a difficult day at the crease tomorrow, as they look to avoid

defeat on the final day of the first test against South Africa.

They failed to take a single wicket today, as the the tourist amassed

637 runs, helped by a record breaking innings from Hashim Amla.

The batsmen were trailing by 150 runs at the close of play. Who

wouldn't want to be outside on a Sunday morning like this? England's

cricketers for a start. They had spent more than a day in the field

chasing after South Africans. Hashim Amla was creating most of

the work. Every milestone he passed another millstone round England's

neck. He moved beyond 200, alongside Jacques Kallis who was

also seen scoring in three figures. Amla became the first man to go to

300 for South Africa, his innings at types art as well as history.

And appreciated by all at the Oval. The tourists tired of record

breaking and turned their attention to winning the match. More than

2250 ahead they put England in, by then a wicket hadn't fallen in a

day. Alastair Cook lasted little more than a over. Jonathan Trott

wasn't far behind. Nor was Kevin Pietersen. And Andrew Strauss's

dismissal summed it up. Perhaps those long hours in the field have

sapped England's fight. There was a third victory of the season for

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso at the German Grand Prix, the Spaniard who

tops the drive's Championship led from pole position to the checkers

flag -- chequered flag. Jensen Button was moved up to second after

Sebastian Vettel was demoted for leaving the track to overtake him.

Lewis Hamilton retired nine laps from the finish. That is all the

sport for now. What a weekend. Back to you Jane. And finally tonight,

the stage and screen actor Simon Ward has died, following a long

illness. He was 70. His agent said his wife and three daughters were

at his side. He became an international star in 1972 after