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Spring has already started to make an appearance on the island of Cyprus. Villages on the island have been celebrating the annual almond crop with traditional events. One took place in the village of Limnatis, near Limassol on the 28th of February, where visitors could taste a range of products made from almonds and also join in with the dancing.

The Cyprus Women's Cup is an annual football tournament that attracts teams from all over the world. This year the competition ran between 24th February and 3rd March and saw eight women's teams taking part. These included England, Canada, Switzerland and South Africa. The games were played in locations in and around Larnaka and Nicosia. In 2008 the competition was won by Canada and but last year Canada were beaten by England in the final. The English women were obviously on form as they went on to reach the final of the UEFA European Championship in Finland later in the year, losing to Germany 2-6.

The Sunshine Cup is a series of mountain bike races which were held on Cyprus over three consecutive weekends starting on the 21st of February. Due to the fine weather on Cyprus at that time of year, the competition attracts serious racers from all over Europe. The first race was held in dry, sunny conditions near the town of Oroklini, near Lenios beach to the east of Larnaca. Riders represented 25 nations this year, including several women's teams. Over the following weekends, the Sunshine Cup held races in the Macheras Forest and Amathous.

Finally, runners got their chance to enjoy the warm welcome and dito weather of Cyprus at the end of February when the 4th International Marathon was held in Limassol. Several races were held on the 28th of February with the main marathon route using an elongated loop along the seafront of Limassol. The organisers were expecting a record turnout this year, and if you happened to be in Limassol at the time it would have made a great day out.