Great Britain started their pre-qualifying campaign for 2029 EuroBasket with a convincing 110-75 win over Switzerland in Fribourg.

Boston Celtics centre Amari Williams and Barcelona forward Tosan Evbuomwan both made their debuts for Great Britain’s senior side in the victory to put GB top of Group E.

Evbuomwan, who spent three years in the NBA, making 50 appearances prior to his move to Barcelona earlier this summer, contributed 21points in 25 minutes.

His added NBA quality alongside Williams, who has just finished his first season with the Celtics, allowed GB to claim an impressive win.

Williams posted eight points and seven rebounds in 19 minutes, while Josh Uduje top scored with 24 points for the visitors.

Marc Steutel’s side were comfortable from the off in their first competitive match since missing out on qualifying for the 2027 Fiba World Cup.

Great Britain won each of the four quarters, taking the opening two by six points each.

Ranked 45th in the world with their opponents 16 places below them, Great Britain cemented their dominance after half-time to lead 79-51 at the end of the third quarter.

With one eye on Sunday’s match against Slovakia in Newcastle, Evbuomwan and Williams were among those afforded some rest time in the fourth quarter.

Their remaining two fixtures are a home match against Switzerland on November 29, before travelling to Slovakia on February 25, 2027.

The winner of each pre-qualifying group will reach full qualifying, taking place in 2028 and 2029. Should Great Britain finish not finish top, they will enter a third round of pre-qualifying in 2027.

Tadej Pogacar recovered from a brief off-road excursion to outsprint Enric Mas and claim his third victory at this year’s Vuelta a Espana, but he was made to fight all the way to the line by the Spaniard on stage six.

After attacking on the final climb and rapidly establishing a handsome lead it looked as though the defending world champion would romp away to a trademark solo victory.

But, as the rest of the main contenders struggled in his slipstream, Movistar’s Mas reeled him in and overtook him on the final metres of the climb to claim maximum points in the king of the mountain’s classification.

The home rider then initially led down the final descent, at one point gesturing to Pogacar to take it cautiously.

But the six-time Grand Tour winner, who is chasing the Vuelta crown to complete the set with victory in all three of the sport’s biggest stage races, having already won five Tours de France and a Giro d’Italia, did not heed the warning.

He skipped past Mas on the inside at a corner and soon put distance between them, only to overcook it on the next corner and go into the small rocks at the side of the Tarmac.

His excellent bike-handling skills enabled him to scrub off enough speed to prevent a serious crash and he was soon on his way again, but he was content to follow Mas down the rest of the descent before the pair worked together to put time into the chasers, with Pogacar’s superior sprint securing him yet another stage win in his already glittering career.

The result means the 27-year-old’s lead in the general classification now stands at three minutes and 34 seconds, with Mas climbing to second overall.

Meanwhile, Welsh rider Josh Tarling, whose brother Finlay died two weeks ago at the age of 19 after a collision with a vehicle in the Tour of Portugal, abandoned the race with about 120km remaining.

“Josh Tarling’s brave La Vuelta has come to an end and he’s decided to stop. We couldn’t be prouder,” said his team Netcompany Ineos on social media.

Tarling produced a strong performance in the opening stage, coming third behind Pogacar and Ethan Hayter in an individual time trial.