TODAY: July 24

1883: Matthew Webb, the first man to swim the English Channel, died aged 35 while attempting pg to swim the rapids above Niagara Falls. 1926: The first greyhound meeting m with a mechanical hare took place at Belle Vue, Manchester. 2 2000: Portugal midfielder Luis Figo, star of Euro 2000, became the world’s most expensive footballer when he joined Real Madrid for £37million from Barcelona. 2005: Australia won the first Ashes Test at Lord’s by 239 runs. England recovered to win a memorable series 2-1. 2010: Former world snooker champion Alex Higgins (above) died at the age of 61.