Prince Harry has had a dramatic fall from his polo pony during a charity match in South Africa.

The prince pulled up his pony but was thrown forward head-first to the ground and broke his fall with his hands.
Play was stopped as Harry was left on his knees before he got up apparently unhurt and swapped mounts.
He captained a team in the event near Cape Town, in aid of his Sentebale charity which supports underprivileged young people in Lesotho.
As the match came to an end, he tumbled to the ground again this time falling between two other players.
Harry is an accomplished polo player like his father the Prince of Wales, and grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh, and regularly plays in competitive and charity matches.
The first charity polo match for Sentebale was held in in 2010, and more than Â£3m has been raised from events in the UK, US, Brazil, Barbados and Abu Dhabi.
Writing a joint message in the official match programme with Sentebale co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, Harry said the support from the event's backers was "vital".
"The success of our previous five polo events has helped Sentebale make a real difference to the lives of vulnerable children in Lesotho," he said.
"The situation in Lesotho remains critical and every day children continue to lose their parents to the HIV/Aids epidemic.
"Sentebale works to protect and support these children providing them with basic necessities we take for granted: food, shelter, care and access to education."
Harry's Sentebale team was beaten 8-7 by opponents Royal Salute at the Val de Vie Estate, with the prince scoring one of the goals.


Plans to close a newborn baby unit have been rejected by a health scrutiny committee representing councils.

The downgrading of neonatal services at North Tees Hospital in Stockton had been recommended by NHS England.
Babies would have been sent to neonatal intensive care units in Middlesbrough, Sunderland or Newcastle instead.
The North East Joint Health Scrutiny Committee chairman said he was "totally unconvinced" by the case for a special care-only service at North Tees.
Ray Martin Wells, who is also a Hartlepool councillor, said the committee made it clear any potential changes were going to be looked at "extremely carefully".
As part of a review of services for babies in the region a Royal College of Paediatrics report recommended concentrating resources in larger regional centres, saying they offered the best care from specialist staff.
Mr Martin Wells said the evidence was "less than convincing".
Health bosses have confirmed there would be "no major downgrading" of neonatal services at North Tees, Hartlepool Council said.
Shaun and Kirsty Lowther, whose premature twins were cared for at North Tees, helped co-ordinate a petition against the plans, signed by more than 6,000 people.
Mrs Lowther said it would be "absolutely diabolical" if the neonatal unit closed.
"In our circumstances, if we'd had to travel with Ava and Noah, my twins, to James Cook [hospital] they wouldn't have survived the journey.
"So, to us, it's a matter of life and death."
It has been agreed the provision of services will be looked at as part of a wider review and consultation in autumn next year.


"I wanted to show that football is football and not a battlefield."

These are the words of judge Karin Jung, who gave two 1860 Munich fans the choice to buy Bayern merchandise for a fan they attacked - or spend 15 months in jail.
The defendants, who refused to name a third person involved when they ripped the jacket, shirt and straw hat off the Bayern fan last year, opted for the pride-swallowing trip to the rival club store.
"I thought about what would be really painful to them, and doing something like this really bothers this type of people," Jung - who got the victim's consent for the quirky sentence - told Bild newspaper.
This was no cheap shopping trip though as according to their lawyer, the accused parted with around £350 each in compensation as well as handing over a Bayern hat, scarf and jersey in court.


A man who spent 17 years behind bars wrongfully convicted of attempted rape has received an apology from a body set up to examine miscarriages of justice.

Victor Nealon, 53, was convicted of attacking a woman outside a nightclub in Redditch in 1996.
He asked the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) to examine his case but was turned down twice.  His conviction was quashed last year.
The commission has now said it should have investigated more thoroughly.
File on 4
Commission chairman Richard Foster said: "I regret the fact in this particular case we missed something and I apologise to all concerned for the fact we did so."
Mr Nealon, who had always denied attempted rape, was arrested after a woman was sexually assaulted on her way home from a nightclub in Redditch.
The postman was convicted after a trial at Hereford Crown Court and given a life term.
Mr Nealon said he wanted the CCRC to get more information about the forensic evidence presented in the prosecution's case.
He said the CCRC requested the information from West Mercia Police but failed to ask more questions when the force said a file of evidence had been lost.
"I depended on people in that position to research paperwork and they didn't do it," Mr Nealon said.
Mr Nealon's defence team eventually discovered an unknown person's DNA on clothing that had not been disclosed by West Mercia Police. His conviction was finally quashed in 2013.
He said: "I could have been out at least ten to 12 years ago but, on account of the CCRC and their failure to research a paper trail, I remained in prison."
West Mercia Police said it was studying the Court of Appeal's full judgement which would form part of the ongoing review of the case.
Find out more about this story on File on 4 on Tuesday 20 May at 20:00 BST on BBC Radio 4.


Singer Kate Bush has requested fans do not take any photographs or record footage using mobile devices at her upcoming series of live concerts.

The 56-year-old star said on her website: "I very much want to have contact with you as an audience, not with iPhones, iPads or cameras."
The musician added it would mean "a great deal to me" but admitted that it was "a lot to ask".
Bush's 22-date run of performances in London begins on 26 August.
Tickets for the Before The Dawn gigs at the Hammersmith Apollo sold out within 15 minutes of going on sale in March.
The songwriter, whose hits include Wuthering Heights and Running Up That Hill, last toured in 1979.
She played her most recent concert at the same west London venue.
Bush added on her Fish People website that preparations for the new shows are "going very well indeed".
"We're all very excited about the upcoming shows and are working very hard in preparation," added Bush.
In making her request for fans to desist from filming, Bush said: "We have purposefully chosen an intimate theatre setting rather than a large venue or stadium.
"It would mean a great deal to me if you would please refrain from taking photos or filming during the shows."
"I know it's a lot to ask but it would allow us to all share in the experience together," she added.
While it is common practice for concert-goers to take photos and film footage of the action, other stars have also spoken out against it.
The Who's Roger Daltrey said he it found it "weird" that some music fans spend more time using their phones than watching the actual concert.
"Looking at life through a screen and not being in the moment totally - if you're doing that, you're 50% there, right?"
Performance artist Marina Abramovic banned mobiles at her recent Serpentine Gallery show so visitors would concentrate on her work.


Gloucester reached their second European Challenge Cup final in three seasons as they held on to win an absorbing semi-final at La Rochelle.

Fly-half Billy Burns was the Premiership side's hero, scoring all 16 of their points before they resisted a battling comeback from the French team.
Burns intercepted and ran the length of the field for the opening try after an even first half had finished 6-6.
The hosts hit back through Damien Lagrange but his try was unconverted.
The Cherry and Whites will face either Stade Francais or local rivals Bath - who meet in Paris on Sunday - in the final in Edinburgh on Friday, 12 May.
Defeat for La Rochelle was the French Top 14 leaders' first at home this season.
Gloucester, the 2014-15 winners, were never behind in the match, taking a six-point lead early on through Burns' boot before the hosts hit back to level before the break, and then defended resolutely in the closing stages.
Scotland captain Greig Laidlaw made his return from injury from the replacements bench for the Cherry and Whites, having not featured since picking up an ankle injury during the Six Nations.
Gloucester director of rugby David Humphreys:
"The effort the players put in out there was unbelievable. We showed character and spirit against an unbelievably good team.
"I'm delighted for everyone at the club. So much of what we planned to do came off, particularly in the first 30 minutes, and we hung in there as the game went on.
"To defend the way we did against an unbelievably physical team was really pleasing and I'm thrilled to get back to another European final."
La Rochelle: Murimurivalu; Lacroix, Jordaan, Aguillon, Rattez; James, Januarie; Pelo, Maurouard, Atonio (capt), Nailiko, Tanguy, Sazy, Veivuke, Gourdon.
Replacements: Seneca, Corbel, Boughanmi, Cedaro, Lagrange, Retiere, Bales, Rawaca.
Gloucester: Marshall; May, Trinder, Atkinson, Halaifonua; Burns, Heinz (capt); Hohneck, Hibbard, Afoa, Savage, Thrush, Moriarty, Rowan, Morgan.
Replacements: Matu'u, McAllister, Thomas, Galarza, Ludlow, Laidlaw, Twelvetrees, Sharples.
For the latest rugby union news follow @bbcrugbyunion on Twitter.


After years of false starts, are we on the brink of a breakthrough in improving relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan, with the Taliban and al-Qaeda on both sides of the border suffering an array of defeats and deaths?

For years the Pakistani military has been accused by the Afghans, the Americans and Nato of playing a double game - helping the Nato-US coalition in Afghanistan on the one hand, but at the same time allowing al-Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban to seek refuge and garner logistical support in Pakistan.
Even the killing of Osama Bin Laden by US special forces in Abbottabad, a military garrison town in Pakistan, did not push the military into changing its tune, which was always one of denial that it supported the Afghan Taliban. Many leaders of the Afghan Taliban have lived in Pakistan since 2001.
These accusations dogged Pakistan's new army chief General Raheel Sharif when he visited Washington for 10 days last month - particularly that in the past six months of a military offensive in North Waziristan the Pakistan army had failed to capture or kill a single prominent militant leader.
But now those assumptions may be changing and the complex three-way relationship between the US, Afghanistan and Pakistan could be on the cusp of undergoing a dramatic improvement.
For the first time in nearly 10 years the Pakistan army has killed a high-level leader of al-Qaeda. Adnan el Shukrijumah, a naturalised American citizen, was killed during a raid by Pakistani forces at a compound in the South Waziristan tribal agency close to the Afghan border on 6 December. He was accused of involvement in planning several failed attacks in the US and Britain nearly a decade ago and had been hiding in the tribal belt along the border ever since.
The following day, reports said a US drone had killed Umer Farooq, another top al-Qaeda leader in the North Waziristan tribal agency. A Pakistani national, he was allegedly al-Qaeda's operational commander in charge of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Suddenly both Pakistan and the US appear to be collaborating to root out al-Qaeda in a manner not seen since 2002-2004 when the Pakistan army killed or captured many al-Qaeda operatives.
The US has begun obliging Pakistan too. For the first time the US is targeting Pakistani Taliban insurgents who had earlier taken refuge in Afghanistan from where they carried out strikes into Pakistan.
According to senior Afghan sources, they were clandestinely being supported by the government of former Afghan President Hamid Karzai in a tit-for-tat revenge game for Pakistan's support for the Afghan Taliban.
The US has now begun targeting those Pakistani Taliban for the first time and significantly the Afghan authorities are not objecting. A US drone strike on 7 December killed nine suspected Pakistani Taliban in Afghanistan's Kunar province. The dead included a senior Pakistani Taliban commander, police said
An earlier US drone strike had tried to target Mullah Fazlullah, the current head of the Pakistani Taliban, who is also thought to be living in Kunar province. Pakistan has been asking the US and the Afghans to carry out such attacks for more than a year, but only now - after gaining Pakistani co-operation on other fronts - is Washington obliging Islamabad.
Clearly, Washington is pleased the way the Pakistan army is reacting. Pakistan has been further rewarded by the US. On 7 December the US military confirmed that it had handed over three Pakistani Taliban, including Latif Mehsud to the Pakistani authorities. Latif Mehsud had been the second-in-command of the Pakistani Taliban under its previous leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone strike last year.
Latif Mehsud was seized by US forces in October 2013 in eastern Afghanistan as he tried to broker deals between the Afghan authorities and the Pakistani Taliban living on Afghan territory. The Pakistani authorities view him as a danger to the country and have been insisting on his prompt return. His sudden repatriation - again with no objections from Kabul - is a signal of improved relations.
So far, there is a change of direction and much greater co-operation on the ground in military terms between the US, Pakistan and Afghanistan. But will this bring about a real change in political attitudes?
The Afghan government will now be waiting to see how the Pakistani military obliges Kabul. The Afghans will also be looking to see if the Pakistanis use their clout to try to rein in Taliban attacks in Kabul. The most important thing Islamabad can do is to allow Afghan negotiators to meet the Afghan Taliban leaders who are living in Pakistan.
That could be the most significant move of all and start the long process of ending the war in Afghanistan.


The identity of a replica painting which was hung at Dulwich Picture Gallery as part of a "spot-the-fake" challenge has been revealed.

Since February, Jean-Honore Fragonard's 18th Century work Young Woman has been replaced by a $120 (Â£70) counterfeit, produced in China.
The public was asked whether it could identify the fake amongst the permanent collection of 270 Old Master paintings.
Nearly 3,000 visitors cast a vote, but only 10% guessed correctly.
The original will be put back in its frame on Tuesday and hung beside the replica, allowing people to compare the stylistic and material differences between the two.
Conceptual artist Doug Fishbone came up with the idea, selecting the original work and commissioning the copy from one of China's numerous exporters of handmade oil paintings.
The painting was made by the Meishing Oil Painting Manufacture Company, where 150 artists, many of them art students, make copies of Old Masters - including Picasso, Matisse, Van Gogh and Monet - to order for clients across the world.
According to its website, the company "can reproduce various kinds of famous oil paintings in the world in enormous quantities such as impressionist, modern painting, scenery, seascape, still life, animal, pop art, abstract, classical, group paintings, reproduction oil painting, commerce oil painting, custom portrait oil painting and so on".
Strictly speaking, the works are not fakes, since the studio is careful to change the size slightly from the originals.
Dulwich Picture Gallery was the first purpose-built public art gallery in England when it opened its doors in the south London suburb in 1811.
Chief curator Dr Xavier Bray said attendance had quadrupled during the last two months.
"Never before have I seen so many people actively looking at each painting," he said.
"Now Fragonard's portrait of a young woman has returned to the gallery walls and hangs alongside its modern companion. The visual exercise of comparing and contrasting will demonstrate how exciting it is to engage with an original work of art, but also marvel at the skill of a modern copyist working 5,000 miles away."
Speaking at the launch of the project, Fishbone said his experiment would raise questions about the nature and importance of an original work versus a replica.
"In the West, we see replicas as very problematic, as 'fakes' perhaps, whereas in China the notion of copying cultural artefacts is seen totally differently," he said.
Having seen the project through, he called visitors' responses "intriguing and eye-opening".
"I'm no conspiracy theorist, but if it leaves viewers with a healthy suspicion that what is presented to them may not be what it seems, and that our experiences can be manipulated in ways we are unaware of or cannot detect, it will have done something quite interesting."


An asylum seeker charged by Austrian authorities with 20 murders in Syria has had his case adjourned until the end of March.

The 27-year-old man, who was arrested in western Austria in June, faces the charge of "murder in the context of terrorism".
He is accused of shooting unarmed or wounded soldiers following a battle in Homs, Syria.
His lawyers have said that he was severely traumatised at the time.
The man - who has not been named - denies the charges. According to Der Standard, he is a stateless Palestinian who grew up in a refugee camp in Homs.
Austrian media said the suspect told others at a refugee shelter that he had shot dead government soldiers when he was fighting with an Islamist rebel group called the Farouq Brigade, linked to the Free Syrian Army.
According to reports, the suspect was placed under investigation when officials were alerted to his account of events in Syria last year.
Austria is unable to extradite the man to face charges in Syria because of the ongoing civil war.
The decision to try him in the country for his alleged crimes committed elsewhere is thought to be a first in Austria.
Killing injured soldiers is prohibited under the Geneva Convention.
Officials have said the actions that he has allegedly described qualified as terrorism and could be prosecuted under international counter-terrorism agreements.


With clashes between South Sudan and Sudan threatening to spiral into all-out conflict, state TV networks in both countries are pulling out the stops to rally support for their respective causes.

Martial music accompanies footage of soldiers, and statements by military commanders reinforce the military mobilization under way on both sides of the border.
Meanwhile, online activists within Sudan are using social media to question the official line.
State-run Sudan TV is re-running programmes made during the north-south civil war, including a 1990s repeat, "In The Fields of Sacrifice". The programmes urge "jihad" against "the enemy" - namely, South Sudan's ruling party.
The TV carries videos promoting the Popular Defence Forces (PDF) militia, a mainstay of the Sudanese military. The footage features PDF "martyrs" and archive footage of battles from the long-running civil war.
Other footage, broadcast under the title "The Youth Who Answer The Call To Arms", urges young men to join up. It features key figures from the ruling National Congress Party (NCP), including the defence minister and Khartoum State governor, who are shown dressed in military fatigues, extolling the virtues of jihad.
Unlike its counterpart in South Sudan, Khartoum's official TV is not showing contemporary footage from Heglig. Instead, it relies on archive video from other battlegrounds. The TV repeatedly insists that Sudanese forces are about to "liberate" the area.
South Sudan TV is showing footage of parades and recordings of commanders addressing soldiers. In one video, a commander addresses his soldiers in Arabic and blames the NCP and President Bashir for lying to their people and dragging the countries to the brink of war.
The commander urges his fighters to "liberate Khartoum from the NCP" and talks of sending President Bashir and his tribe "back to the Arabian peninsula".
Echoing the jihad calls from Sudanese commanders, the SPLA officer advocates "a Christian holy war" against the "mondokoro" (slang for Arab Sudanese), and promises to hand over President Bashir and other Sudanese officials to the International Criminal Court.
The network has been showing footage of prisoners of war, said to have been captured in Heglig. The parading of the PoWs before the cameras has been condemned by Khartoum.
Within Sudan, pro-government and anti-war camps are engaged in an online battle which has spilled over onto social media platforms.
Pro-military outlets include the
          "Electronic Army for the Defence of Sudan" Facebook page
, which has been reporting developments on the ground in Heglig.
The Electronic Army - which appears to have close links to the Sudanese security apparatus - carries reports from "reporters" said to be embedded with the army.
Its Facebook page carries a montage of a fighter jet - a symbol of Sudan's aerial superiority. There are images of corpses, purportedly those of South Sudanese soldiers killed in Heglig.
The anti-war camp, meanwhile, is using social media to question the official and military narrative.
Facebook group
          Tadaeiat
 carries clips that ridicule the NCP, including a video that shows President Bashir dancing and singing following a speech in which he vowed to fight South Sudan.
Khartoum appears to be fighting back. Since the occupation of Heglig, pages on several popular sites including
          Al-Rakoba
 and
           Sudaneseonline
 have been rendered inaccessible.
BBC Monitoring
 selects and translates news from radio, television, press, news agencies and the internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. It is based in Caversham, UK, and has several bureaux abroad.


Tiger Woods missed the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open, as England's Justin Rose maintained a one-shot lead.

The 14-time major champion, playing in his first full PGA Tour event for almost 18 months, carded a level-par second round of 72, but missed the cut by four shots after his first-round 76.
World number one Jason Day and US Open champion Dustin Johnson also missed the cut at Torrey Pines in San Diego.
Overnight leader Rose carded a one-under 71 to put him on eight under.
Canada's Adam Hadwin and USA's Brandt Snedeker are tied in second on seven under, while US PGA champion Jimmy Walker missed the cut as he finished on three over.
Woods is playing in just his second tournament since 15 months out with a back injury.
"It's frustrating not being able to have a chance to win the tournament," said the 41-year-old, who won his last major, the US Open, at the same course in 2008.
"Overall today was a lot better than yesterday. I hit it better, I putted well again. I hit a lot of beautiful putts that didn't go in, but I hit it much better today, which was nice."
Scotland's Martin Laird and England's Paul Casey are both on two under, while Ireland's Shane Lowry is on level par.


Six people have now been killed fighting vast forest fires in central Chile, officials have said.

Interior Minister Mario Fernandez said two police officers were found in the Maule River, adding to the deaths of four firefighters.
A giant Boeing 747 super tanker plane has been loaned from the US to battle the forest fires, Chile's worst in decades.
A state of emergency has been declared south of the capital, Santiago.
Chile's National Forestry Corporation said multiple blazes had affected 238,000 hectares (588,000 acres) and were increasing.
On Wednesday, a firefighter died after getting stuck while trying to help a family escape from their home near the city of Constitucion.
Three others have died and three were injured over the past week. More than 4,000 people have been evacuated from their homes.
The plane can carry 22-times more water and fire-retardants than more common single-engine air tankers.
The cost is being met by the Walton Family Foundation, created by Walmart founders Sam and Helen Walton.
Chilean President Michelle Bachelet also asked for help from French counterpart Francois Hollande, who was visiting Chile.
The authorities also requested planes and helicopters from the US, Canada and Mexico and neighbouring Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Peru.
The blazes spread quickly in the dry and particularly hot summer that many South American countries are experiencing.
They have struck mainly in sparsely populated rural areas in the central regions of O'Higgins and El Maule.


Scotland head coach Gordon Strachan believes he made an error of judgement in accepting Saturday's friendly against Euro 2016 hosts France.

His side, who failed to qualify for the finals, which kick-off on Friday, were beaten 3-0 in Metz.
"I'm going to hold my hands up and admit I made a huge mistake in taking the team to France," said Strachan.
"All it did was give us a taste of what is about to come before having to walk away from it."
Strachan made the remarks in the first of a series of columns he is writing during the tournament in France for the Daily Record newspaper.
"I'm now struggling to work out what I was thinking when I took that game on," he said.
"I've got to take responsibility for that because I hoped our players would enjoy it.
"But, when faced with the reality of it, they just realised there's a huge event about to begin and we're not welcome at it.
"We saw the excitement of the people over there, the security - the whole enormous scale of the thing - and it made us feel even more miserable about ourselves.
"So that maybe wasn't the cleverest thing to do."
Prior to last week's 1-0 defeat by Italy, four days before facing the French, striker Steven Naismith had admitted that "it's not great to be the warm-up act" for other countries participating at the finals.
Strachan is now echoing that feeling and admits he is not relishing his scouting mission to watch World Cup qualification opponents England and Slovakia.
"I'll be in Bordeaux tomorrow to see Wales against Slovakia and I know I'll get betting all kinds of stick from the Welsh fans," he said.
"That's why I've already looked out my disguise. If anyone sees a Japanese navy admiral walking to the stadium, get out of his way and give the man a bit of peace.
"The truth is, the closer the kick-off gets, the more difficult it is for me to watch any of it.
"I'll nip in and watch the games and then nip out again because I am not going to enjoy any part of it."
It is the second major finals that Scotland will miss under Strachan.
He took charge in January 2013, after the departure of Craig Levein midway through the last World Cup qualification campaign, and his side finished fourth in their qualification group for Euro 2016.
"It won't feel anything like the last World Cup in Brazil, for example," he admitted.
"I went there as Scotland manager, too, but that was a campaign we knew we were never going to turn around.
"For that reason, it wasn't so painful to miss out. It was inevitable.
"But this time around? No, this time I can hardly stomach it."


Russia could be developing plans to sever key internet communications during future wars, according to a report in the New York Times.

The article reports that various military sources are concerned about a spike in Russian naval activity near the locations of undersea cables.
Such cables are vital to the internet's daily running and constantly ferry huge amounts of data between continents.
There are many thousands of miles of them, snaking under the world's oceans.
But could Russian submarines really be investigating ways of cutting these crucial cords?
Russia watchers have long been aware of the threat, says Keir Giles, associate fellow of the Russia and Eurasia Programme at think tank Chatham House.
However, he added that cutting the US off from the web would probably be impossible because of the number of connections going in and out of the country.
"I very much doubt that anyone would think of cutting off the US," he comments. "It is only going to work in locations where the internet geography is going to create a vulnerability in communications."
But, Mr Giles adds that there are parts of the world where such action might be considered viable.
Ukrainian telecoms providers reported disruptions to a key internet exchange point and cable connections during Russian military activity in the Crimean peninsula in 2014.
The incident is mentioned in a Chatham House report on Russian information war tactics which is being published later this year.
"They can interfere with internet infrastructure in order to gain [complete] control of [the information available in] specific regions," says Mr Giles, who adds that while much information about current naval activity in this vein is highly classified, the tactic does seem plausible.
"It does make sense given the intense programme of submarine building, including some very specialised vessels," he says. "It wouldn't be surprising that they would want to do this."
Some states are known to have developed capabilities to tap cables in undersea locations, and the US is reported to have done this in the 1970s.
What's more, documents leaked by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden allege that intelligence agencies like GCHQ and the NSA can intercept data communications at listening sites such as Bude in Cornwall, where a major transatlantic cable comes ashore in the UK.
Severing cables entirely, however, would be a somewhat different tactic.
The internet was designed to be a "resilient" network - one which does not rely on the operation of all connection points to remain functional.
This means that while shutting down certain links or connections might be disruptive to some, there are often ways in which traffic can be routed through other cables and still reach the intended destination.
That said, there are plenty of points at which the internet would be more vulnerable to an act of cable severing than others.
Fibre optic cables traversing entire oceans, for example, carry disproportionately large swathes of the world's internet traffic. Some of the heightened Russian naval activity is said to have been detected in these deep sea locations.
Accidents in which fishing equipment, anchors or even earthquakes cause disruptions to cabling are relatively frequent occurrences.
Most are quickly repaired without internet users ever being aware of a problem.
In 2008, a series of cable disruptions were detected in the Middle East which were subsequently attributed to clumsily dropped anchors in the Mediterranean and seas off the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
A few years later however, in 2013, Egypt arrested three divers who were found cutting through a major internet cable servicing parts of Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
Some kind of cable-cutting equipment, perhaps attached to a submarine, could in theory work, according to Jeremy Hartley, owner of subsea cabling consultancy ETA.
He adds, though, that nearer to shore, cables are often buried and protected by extra layers of casing.
"The protection they have is they're generally buried to about a metre and that's intended to protect them against anchors and fishing which would of course make it not straightforward to damage by a submarine but not impossible either," he says.
Burying the cables further off shore at deeper depths to protect them from cutting attacks would be possible, he adds, but it would also be expensive.
Mr Hartley did comment that the threat of terrorist or military action against such infrastructure was "certainly considered" by network providers, but that most protections would likely be done via routing traffic through other means.
"At the moment my perception has always been that military or terrorist action is a lower level threat - it's more likely cables would be damaged by anchoring," he comments. "So, that's how the protections are designed."
The physical presence of military personnel or assets at places where cables are vulnerable might be considered as a suitable protection during times of conflict, suggests Mr Giles.
But whatever measures are developed, it's clear that the internet is worth safeguarding.
"Internet infrastructure needs the same kind of protection at times of crises as other strategically important infrastructure," Mr Giles added.


Romelu Lukaku is "a big part of Everton's future" as they try to sign him up on a new contract, manager Ronald Koeman says.

The club hope the striker, 23, will sign a long-term deal making him the highest-paid player in their history.
Lukaku's agent Mino Raiola, who has a strong relationship with Everton chairman Bill Kenwright, met club shareholder Farhad Moshiri on Monday.
"If a new deal is done that is good news," said Koeman.
Lukaku's contract, signed when he joined from Chelsea for a club-record £28m, is worth about £75,000 and it is believed the new deal would see him earn around £100,000 a week.
Optimism at Goodison Park is growing that the Belgium forward, who is under contract until 2019, is close to agreeing an improved deal.
Last summer, Everton boss Koeman told Lukaku, who has scored nine goals in 15 Premier League games this season, that he would not be allowed to leave despite interest from Juventus and former club Chelsea.
Previously, Koeman has suggested the Belgium striker will have to move on to fulfil his potential.
Koeman said on Thursday: "It is a big deal and that is what the club is showing, to keep their best players and do everything to keep them in the club, because that is the future.
"Of course you don't know in football what can happen in one year - but at least there is an understanding that the boy likes to stay and he is a big part of Everton's future.
"Even when they sign new contracts but don't say they will stay until the end of the contract, it is football and business.
"We know we need to battle for players and we have competition of United, City and Chelsea, so it is difficult."


Mention the name Cath Kidston and more often than not the mind will drift to the floral prints the brand is famous for.

Long a staple in the UK where there are now 70 stores, the designs have been growing in popularity around the world.
There are more than 130 stores outside of the UK, in diverse locations from Spain to China and Thailand.
Last month the brand announced the first stores in India will open for business this Autumn.
And next on the list is Latin America. The firm has hired Michael Engelhaupt from Under Armour International, the American sports clothing and accessories company, to drive the expansion forward.
Mr Engelhaupt was head of franchise international and has previously worked for sports brand Adidas.
The company says strong online orders sparked the move into Latin America.
"Over time we expect to expand across the region but initially we will be focused on Mexico and Chile because of the inward interest in Cath Kidston coming from those two markets," says chief executive Kenny Wilson.
"Michael will be talking to potential franchise partners and, as we have done in other markets, we are looking to do a combination of standalone stores and concessions.
"We did research as we do before deciding to go into any new market and this said that there was a market in Latin America and interest for fun, cheerful, British products like Cath Kidston. We are very confident in the consumer appeal in Latin America for our products," he adds.
Cath Kidston has seen notable overseas growth. Its 2015 full year results showed overall group sales increased by 2.4% to Â£118.5m, but international retail sales surged by 20.2% hitting Â£55.3m.
The company is expanding rapidly. Four new stores opened in the UK last year, one in China and 40 franchise stores, including its first Middle East stores.
Franchising has proven a successful tool, particularly so in Japan where double digit sales growth over several years led the company to decide in July 2015 to purchase the Japanese Cath Kidston franchise business of 27 shops back from TSI Holdings subsidiary Sanei International.
The agreement brought the stores under the control of the wholly owned subsidiary, Cath Kidston Japan.
"Japan is our biggest international market and a key part of our strategy to globalise the brand," said Mr Wilson at the time.
The brand's continued success comes in spite of the departure of founder Cath Kidston in November 2014, who retains an 11% stake.
Ms Kidston has credited her country childhood - she grew up in Hampshire - as the inspiration for her English heritage-inspired brand.
She has however admitted that the floral and polka dot patterns are not to everyone's taste, telling Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in 2011: "People either love it and want a little bit of it very much, or want to stab us."
Katrina Rattu, an analyst at Verdict Retail expects the company to continue to flourish.
"Its product offering translates well into diverse markets owing to its strong visual brand identity. Their expansion is based in emerging markets with a growing middle class with a higher disposable income. They are increasingly looking to buy into aspirational brands such as Cath Kidston with strong British values."


The UK is among the worst countries in the EU for protecting its wildlife habitats, says an official report.

Britain, Belgium and Denmark report around 70% of habitats are in unfavourable or bad condition.
Holland registered just 4% of its habitats in good condition; environmentalists say the figures are unacceptable.
The report by the European Environment Agency and the European Commission is based on data from member states.
It says EU laws designed to protect wildlife and habitats appear to be working - but only in a patchy way.
The document, State of Nature 2015, comes after the European President Jean-Claude Juncker has launched a review into the fitness of the wildlife and birds directives.
Business groups have warned that "green tape" is hindering Europe's attempt to boost the economy and create jobs. Mr Juncker says he wants better regulations - but wildlife groups fear that means looser regulation.
Today's report shows only a minority of species in favourable conservation status in most member states.
Habitats are in a worse condition than specific species. The report says agriculture is the biggest threat to biodiversity, with grasslands suffering worst of all as farming continues to intensify. The draining of wetlands is a continuing problem, too.
Over-fishing is damaging Europe's seas, and the marine environment has a particular concentration of threatened species. Changes to rivers are threatening fresh water habitats and species.
The report contains positive elements. It notes that the EU's Natura 2000 wildlife sites seem to be protecting all species which live in them.
Many of the most heavily-protected birds on Annex 1 of the Birds Directive are recovering, though not yet secure from the threat of extinction. Wintering birds - mostly waterbirds - are on the increase. But many of the species on Annex II (which may be hunted) are decreasing.
The areas with the best quality habitats are the Alps and the Black Sea. The Atlantic has the worst quality habitats. Italy has the highest percentage of habitats which are already unfavourable but getting worse (40%).
In most countries, between 3% and 20% of unfavourable species assessments are improving - but the UK, Denmark, Poland, Belgium and Holland are striving to catch up, with more than 20% improving.
Hans Bruyninckx, EEA executive director, said: The results are mixed but clear. When implemented well, conservation measures work and improve the status of habitats and species. Such improvements remain limited and patchy. Europe's diversity is still being eroded overall - and the pressures continue."
Follow Roger on Twitter.


Former Premier League footballer Clarke Carlisle has been banned from driving for three years after he admitted drinking and driving.

The 35-year-old's Mercedes was stopped by police after it almost hit a lorry in north London on 20 December.
Carlisle admitted failing to provide a sample to police and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence.
He was also ordered to carry out 150 hours' unpaid work at Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court.
District judge Susan Williams also ordered him to pay Â£145 in costs and charges.
She said that, although Carlisle had made a "positive contribution" to others through football, she had to sentence him for the risk his "erratic" driving had created.
"If you are not in control of your vehicle in a road in central London you represent a danger to people," she said.
At a hearing in March, the court heard Carlisle's Mercedes had been spotted "swerving" and "almost mounting the pavement" in Pentonville Road.
After his arrest, the court heard, he refused to give a breath sample and demanded to speak to his solicitor.
Lisa Judge, defending, said he allowed the matter to "escalate out of all control" and "unfortunately" believed he had the right to see a lawyer, instead of being breathalysed.
Carlisle has revealed he attempted to take his own life two days afterwards, when he was hit by a lorry on the A64 near York.
Miss Judge described the arrest as having happened while he was "in an extremely dark place in terms of his own life".
Carlisle is now so sorry about what happened that the court-ordered medical report on him "utterly oozes remorse", Miss Judge said.
The court was told Carlisle had been involved in "excess drinking offences" in 1999 and 2011.
He played for teams including Burnley, Queens Park Rangers, Leeds United and Northampton Town and was also the chairman of the Professional Footballers' Association.


The UK is to contribute to a sophisticated new radar system in the Arctic to study "space weather".

This phenomenon describes the effects on Earth's wider environment as it is constantly bombarded by particles and magnetic energy from the Sun.
The impacts can damage satellites and even disrupt electricity grids.
The radar, to be built across Norway, Sweden and Finland by the European Incoherent Scatter Association (EISCAT), should come online in 2021.
The international organisation already operates radar facilities in the far north, but the new technology is regarded as a big step forward in capability.
"This is the next generation," said Dr Andrew Kavanagh, a EISCAT member scientist working with the British Antarctic Survey (BAS).
"The system will look like a flat field of antennas, much like some of the big radio astronomy telescopes such as LOFAR and SKA. We will be able to do a lot more with this new system - looking at large parts of the sky simultaneously. A 3D view of the sky."
Britain is paying £4-6m of the £63m total cost. The participation will give the nation's researchers working in the field of solar-terrestrial physics access to the radar data when it becomes available.
The Sun perpetually billows clouds of magnetic energy and plasma (a gas of electrically charged particles) in all directions. But often great eruptions of this emission are directed straight at Earth.
When these interact with our planet's own magnetic field and atmosphere, they set off all manner of disturbances.
The Aurora Borealis is one such consequence, as particles are accelerated downwards to collide with air molecules to produce colourful curtains of light in high-latitude skies.
But there are more concerning interactions that can lead to upsets in spacecraft electronics, drop-outs in radio communications, and surges in power networks on the ground.
There is even some evidence that the magnetic disturbance from solar storms can confuse the "biological compass" whales use to navigate the oceans resulting in their stranding.
The concerns have led the UK government to put space weather on the National Risk Register.
A London Economics analysis earlier this year found that losing access to the GPS satellite-navigation service for a period of five days would cost the British economy more than £5bn.
The new radar system will be set up at Skibotn in Norway, near Kiruna in Sweden, and near Kaaresuvanto in Finland.
Skibotn will have a transmitter and receiver array, while the two other locations will have receiver arrays.
The technology will enable scientists to probe in detail the ionosphere - the region of the Earth's upper-atmosphere that ranges from about 70km to 1,000km in altitude.
It will sample the electron concentration and temperature, and the ion temperature and velocity at various heights along the radar beam direction.
Dr Kavanagh explained: "We will have digital beam-forming and steering, which means in practice that we can generate multiple beams looking in multiple directions, so that we can cover a volume of the sky rather just look at what we like to call a pencil beam."
Some of the interactions can stimulate currents that then heat the high atmosphere. This is a particular interest for some UK scientists.
The heating can alter the density of air molecules at altitudes where low-orbiting satellites move. This perturbs their trajectory ever so slightly. And by the same token, it also changes the path of redundant hardware, or "space junk", speeding up or slowing down the time it takes for this material to fall back to Earth.
Prof Duncan Wingham is chief executive of the Natural Environment Research Council (Nerc), which holds the UK membership of EISCAT.
He said: "EISCAT_3D will give us a 3D picture of interactions between space weather and our upper atmosphere with a detail we've not seen before, giving us answers to questions researchers have about the impacts of space weather on the upper atmosphere.
"We need this information to reduce the risks posed by space weather on our communications systems, satellites and power grids, which we all rely on."
The British Antarctic Survey does much of its space weather research at the other end of the globe, at its polar bases Rothera and Halley.
The latter was recently evacuated because of developing cracks in the ice platform on which it sits. This meant Halley's space weather instruments had to be turned off, breaking their data contribution to the forecasting models produced by scientists.
Dr Kavanagh said BAS hoped to get this equipment back up and running soon, adding that there was a plan for the future which would allow instruments to be operated remotely should Halley have to shut down again.
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


A £500m city deal plan for Swansea Bay will bring huge benefits to Carmarthenshire, say leading local politicians.

The bid would bring ultrafast broadband to the region, benefiting businesses in the technology and creative industries.
Carmarthenshire council leader Emlyn Dole said if successful it will "provide the jobs and regeneration that is our priority for the county".
The bid must go before Chancellor George Osborne for approval.
In Carmarthenshire the city deal would also support a £100m Wellness and Life Science Village in Llanelli;  S4C's new home at Yr Egin in Carmarthen; and the Cross Hands East strategic employment site.
The bid has been analysed by Cardiff University and it is estimated the economic potential could see 33,000 jobs created over 20 years - worth £3.3bn in output.


Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick has extended his contract at Old Trafford until June 2015, with the option of a further year.

The England midfielder, 32, is currently recovering from an Achilles injury he aggravated in the 1-0 Premier League win over Arsenal on 10 November.
But Carrick has impressed manager David Moyes in his 10 league appearances this season.
"He is an exceptional man and a true professional," Moyes said.
United debut: 23 Aug 2006 at Charlton
Appearances: 334
Goals: 21
Trivia: Since joining Manchester United seven years ago, Carrick has only lost out in a league title race by one point [to Chelsea in 2009-2010] and goal difference [to Manchester City in 2011-2012]
Carrick has helped United win five Premier League titles, one Champions League, one League Cup and one Fifa Club World Cup since Sir Alex Ferguson signed him from Tottenham in July 2006.
"The club has gone through a few changes and working under David Moyes has been fantastic," said the former West Ham United player.
"I have won many trophies in my years playing here and I am looking forward to achieving more in the future."
Carrick was ruled out for six weeks with an Achilles tendon injury earlier this month.
He has made 334 appearances in seven years at United but Carrick has been limited to just 31 England appearances.
Moyes, who took over from Ferguson in May, said: "England have had some top midfielders over the years and Michael fits into that category as well.
"He's been a great player for Manchester United and I think he is recognised by people throughout the country.
"They know what he can offer. I would be surprised if he wasn't part of the England squad that went to the World Cup."


Ballymena actor Liam Neeson has been honoured at the Irish Film and Television Awards (IFTAs).

The president of Ireland, Michael D Higgins, presented the Hollywood star with the Outstanding Contribution to Cinema award.
Neeson received tributes from famed directors Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg at the event on Saturday.
His 30-year career includes high-profile roles in films such as Schindler's List and Michael Collins.
In 1976, Neeson joined the Lyric Players' Theatre in Belfast, where he spent two years with the company, playing roles in productions including Henry VI Part One and Brian Friel's Philadelphia Here I Come.
His next move was to Dublin's Abbey Theatre where he was spotted performing in Of Mice and Men by movie director John Boorman, who would hand him his first major film role in Excalibur.
In 1980 he joined Field Day, the touring Irish company set up by the actor Stephen Rea and the playwright Brian Friel.
He moved to London where he began picking up television work and minor film roles, notably alongside Jeremy Irons and Robert De Niro in The Mission, where "I only had a few lines, but I had a good death".
A role in the hit US television show Miami Vice convinced Neeson to take a chance on a Hollywood career, and in 1986 he moved to the US where he landed a leading role in Suspect, playing a homeless deaf-mute opposite Cher.
Neeson told RTÃ‰ he was "very honoured" to receive the award.
"Because it's from my peer groups, it's very humbling," he said. "A little bit embarrassing, but I'll get over it."
He also called on the Irish Film Board to be given more funding.
"We have to nurture this talent," he said. "It doesn't happen by accident."
Rock star and humanitarian Bob Geldolf was a guest presenter at the awards ceremony, joining Game of Thrones star Natalie Dormer, Moone Boy writer Chris O'Dowd, and Threesome actress Amy Huberman.
Londonderry actress Roma Downey, best known for her role in hit TV series Touched by an Angel, was also honoured during the ceremony.
The actress and producer received the Irish Diaspora Award.
The big winner of the night was drama Room, which picked up seven awards including Best Film and Best Director for Lenny Abrahamson.
The event was hosted by actress and comedian Deirdre O'Kane.


Lizzie Deignan broke away from the field to win the women's Tour de Yorkshire in her home county.

The Otley-born former road race world champion attacked with 14km of the 122.5km route to go, shaking off Britain's Dani King and Olympic road race champion Anna van der Breggen.
Deignan, 28, finished in Harrogate in three hours nine minutes 36 seconds.
In stage two of the men's race, sprinter Nacer Bouhanni claimed victory from Caleb Ewan.
It was the second consecutive day that Orica-Scott's Ewan was runner-up but that was enough to earn him the race leader's blue jersey.
Deignan, her Dutch Boels-Dolman team-mate Van der Breggen and Cylance Pro Cycling's King were part of an eight-strong group that broke away from the field with about 60km remaining after climbing the brutal Cote de Lofthouse.
The three riders then moved ahead as the route flattened out before Deignan made her move to record her first win since marrying Team Sky racer Philip Deignan in September 2016.
"It rates pretty high up there. To finish how I did, solo, with the crowds on the finish line is surreal and special all at the same time," she told BBC Sport.
"I didn't soak it up until I had about 100m to go," added Deignan, who finished 55 seconds ahead of American Coryn Rivera.
Women's Tour de Yorkshire result:
1. Lizzie Deignan (GB/Boels Dolman) 3hrs 09mins 36secs
2. Coryn Rivera (US/Team Sunweb) +55secs
3. Giorgia Bronzini (ITA/Wiggle High 5) Same time
4. Amy Pieters (NED/Boels Dolman)
5. Hannah Barnes (GB/Canyon SRAM Racing)
Frenchman Bouhanni, riding for Cofidis, prevailed after an untidy sprint to the finish of the 122.5km stage from Tadcaster, caused by a flurry of late attacks.
The stage win leaves him two seconds behind Ewan, with Friday's stage winner, Dutchman Dylan Groenewegen third overall on the same time.
"It was hard and steep at the finish - it seems like all the roads are hilly in Yorkshire," Bouhanni, 26, said.
"Yesterday I watched the finish of the 2014 Tour de France stage here and that allowed me to better understand today's sprint.
"There were so many people on the road it felt like the Tour de France."
Men's Tour de Yorkshire, stage two result:
1. Nacer Bouhanni (Fra/Cofidis) 2hrs 45mins 51secs
2. Caleb Ewan (Aus/Orica-Scott) Same time
3. Jonathan Hivert (Fra/Direct Energie)
4. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned/LottoNL-Jumbo)
5. Chris Lawless (GB/Great Britain)
Men's Tour de Yorkshire, overall classification:
1. Caleb Ewan (Aus/Orica-Scott) 6hrs 55mins 17secs
2. Nacer Bouhanni (Fra/Cofidis) +2secs
3. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned/LottoNL-Jumbo) Same time
4. Chris Opie (GB/Bike Channel Canyon) +8secs
5. Jonathan Hivert (Fra/Direct Energie) Same time


Pakistan bowler Mohammad Amir agrees with England captain Alastair Cook that match-fixers should be banned for life.

Amir was suspended for five years and served three months in prison after being found guilty of spot-fixing during the 2010 Lord's Test.
The 24-year-old will return to the same ground next month as part of the Pakistan team for the first of a four-Test summer tour of England.
"I fully back that fixers should be banned for life," he said.
"If fixing is still happening, then it's really alarming."
Left-arm fast bowler Amir said he felt "seriously lucky" to be able to resume his Test career.
"I was all excited for Test cricket because that is where my career was held back and I still can't believe that this is happening," he said.
Amir and new-ball partner Mohammad Asif were found to have bowled deliberate no-balls for money.
The duo, and then Test captain Salman Butt, were found guilty of corruption by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in February 2011, and sent to prison in November of the same year following a criminal trial at Southwark Crown Court.
Cook said he had "no problem" facing Amir as he has "served his time".
He added: "In my opinion - because it's become a bit more prevalent - the ICC should come out and say that if you are caught match-fixing you are banned for life."


Northampton Saints will not play any "regular season" matches at Stadium:MK next season, says the Premiership club's chairman-elect John White.

Saints have used the stadium in Europe and domestically in recent years, and will play their Premiership game against Saracens on April 16 there.
But White, who will replace Tony Hewitt in the summer, says this will be the last "for the foreseeable future".
He added that the club would "never say never" about moving future games.
Stadium:MK is the home of League One football club MK Dons and was one of the venues for the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
It was used by Saints in European competition because Franklin's Gardens did not meet regulations that demand knockout games are played in grounds with a minimum attendance of 15,000.
They also used the stadium for a European Cup group game against Munster in 2012, which attracted a crowd of over 22,000.
But White said: "Franklin's Gardens is our home, and we've seen over the years how important it is to have a full stadium and a vibrant atmosphere to give the players the environment in which to thrive."
"We have a unique stadium that is the envy of all of the other Premiership clubs and many in Europe, too, and we have to capitalise on this in the future and retain home advantage."


The Archdeacon of Buckingham, the Venerable Karen Gorham, is to be the new Bishop of Sherborne.

She will be the eighth female bishop to be announced by the Church of England.
The Bishop of Sherborne works in the Diocese of Salisbury and mainly has responsibility for parishes in Dorset.
Archdeacon Gorham said it had been "a real privilege" to serve the church in Buckinghamshire and work in the Diocese of Oxford. The Right Reverend Graham Kings left the post in July.
She said: "I now look forward to getting to know the people and places of Dorset, an area I have loved since childhood holidays."
The Bishop of Salisbury, the Right Reverend Nicholas Holtam, said Archdeacon Gorham "emerged as the right person for this post from a company of excellent men and women considered equally".
She will be consecrated as a bishop on 24 February at Westminster Abbey.
Women Bishops in the Church of England


An All-Ireland bid to stage the 2023 Rugby World Cup will be officially unveiled in Armagh on Friday.

Officials from the Irish Rugby Football Union will join representatives from the Northern Ireland Executive and Irish Government to outline their plans to jointly host the tournament.
Both administrations have been engaged in a preliminary assessment exercise over the last 10 months.
The aim was to weigh up the feasibility of submitting an official bid.
In February, former Irish international Hugo MacNeill was asked to chair the cross-border working group examining the issue of hosting the sport's showpiece event.
As well as the traditional rugby stadiums such as the Aviva in Dublin, the Kingspan at Ravenhill in Belfast and Thomond Park in Limerick, a 2023 World Cup in Ireland would also hope to utilise a number of impressive Gaelic football venues, including the 82,300 capacity Croke Park in Dublin.
The Irish rugby team played their home matches in Croke Park between 2007 and 2010 while the Aviva Stadium was being built on the site of the old Lansdowne Road.
Next year's Rugby World Cup will be hosted by England, with Japan hosting the event in 2019.
Cross border bids to hold sporting events are not unheard of in Ireland and earlier this year cycling's Giro d'Italia held stages on both sides of the border.
In May, current Irish coach Joe Schmidt said an all-Ireland Rugby World Cup could replicate the success of his native New Zealand in its staging of the 2011 tournament.
"You have got the same population and the same kind of energy around sporting occasions and I think you have got the stadia," he said.


A man arrested in connection with the murder of another man who was shot in the back on New Year's Day faces no further action, police have said.

The body of Jess Smith, 36, of Common Road, Potton, Bedfordshire, was found in a car at First Drove in Burwell, Cambridgeshire.
No further action will be taken against a 57-year-old man from Burwell.
Mark Mosley, 42, of First Drove, Burwell, has already been charged with murder. Four others have been rebailed.
Mosley has also been charged with the attempted murder of another man.
Post-mortem tests showed Mr Smith died from a gunshot wound to the back. Another man was treated in hospital for facial injuries.
Two men aged 19 and 20, and a woman, 38, arrested in connection with Mr Smith's murder have been rebailed until 24 February.
A 27-year-old man has been rebailed until 25 February.


South Africa's world number 38 Lee-Anne Pace has become the first female golfer to withdraw from this summer's Olympics, citing fears over the Zika virus.

Several leading male players, including Jason Day and Rory McIlroy, have already announced they will not be playing in Rio.
Pace, 35, said she had been weighing up whether to compete over recent months.
"My health and my future family's health must come first," she said.
"I was very much looking forward to the opportunity but I have decided that due to the health concerns surrounding the Zika virus, I will not be participating."
Zika is mosquito-borne and has been linked to defects in newborn babies, prompting those looking to start a family to take extra precautions.
Olympic chiefs and the World Health Organization have advised athletes and visitors to Rio that the risk of catching Zika is low.
But McIlroy, who has defended his decision, and Day have joined other high-profile players, including Ireland's Shane Lowry, Australia's Marc Leishman, Fiji's Vijay Singh, South Africa's Branden Grace and Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell, in withdrawing.
Golf is making its Olympic return in 2016 following a 112-year absence.


The Church of Ireland Primate has defended a decision by senior bishops in the Anglican church to restrict the US Episcopal branch for allowing same-sex marriage.

The move means it will be suspended from participating in the life and work of the Anglican communion.
Archbishop Dr Richard Clarke was at the meeting when the decision was taken.
Speaking on Radio Ulster's Sunday Sequence, he said the news had been exploited for political reasons.
"People do need to read (the statement) very carefully rather than the headlines that have been put on it," he said.
"Those who wanted to push - as they're entitled to do - an agenda about gay marriage, wanted to say say 'look the Americans have been sanctioned, they're being humiliated'," he said.
"The reality is they haven't.
"The first decision the primates made was we wanted to stay together, we wanted to walk together, while leaving enough breathing space, or faith space, so that hopefully we can grow together."
He added that he was "always open to changing (his) mind" on the issue of same sex marriage.
"My own view is that I believe in equality absolutely and completely and I don't believe that God is homophobic," he said.
"It's a difficult one to call. I would hope that we'll work at ways in which we might find some form of pastoral accommodation that would be true to the scriptures and to our understanding that every human person is made in the image and likeness of God and is equally loved by him and must be equally loved by us."
Anglicans have been divided on the issue since the US Episcopal Church ordained an openly gay bishop in 2003.
Leaders said the church's stance was a "fundamental departure" from the faith of the majority in what is the world's third largest Christian denomination.
But Episcopal leaders said the three-year bar, which aims to prevent a formal schism, "will bring real pain".
The decision - made at a four-day meeting of 39 Anglican primates in Canterbury - means the church will be suspended from participating in the life and work of the Anglican communion, the BBC's religious correspondent Carol Wyatt said.
A statement from the primates at the meeting says that the church should "no longer represent us on ecumenical and interfaith bodies, should not be appointed or elected to an internal standing committee and that while participating in the internal bodies of the Anglican Communion, they will not take part in decision making on any issues pertaining to doctrine or polity".
More than 100 senior Anglicans had urged the Church of England to repent for "discriminating" against lesbian and gay Christians in an open letter.
However, the Anglican leaders in Canterbury said the Episcopal Church's approval of gay marriage was "a fundamental departure from the faith and teaching" of the majority of Anglicans.
The rift over the US Episcopal Church's stance on same-sex marriage and homosexuality dates back to the ordination of openly gay Canon Gene Robinson.
He was made a bishop of the Episcopal Church's New Hampshire diocese in 2003.


Olympic gold medallist Gil Roberts has been cleared of failing a drugs test, after it was found that he ingested a banned substance by kissing his girlfriend.

American Roberts, 28, who won 4x400m relay gold in Rio, tested positive for probenecid on 24 March.
He later told the US Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) he had contaminated the substance from his girlfriend.
An arbitrator found in his favour, ruling the athlete was "without fault."
Although he was cleared at the hearing on 20 June, the detail from the arbitration has only just been released by Usada.
Roberts, who had been provisionally suspended, has since competed in the 400m at last month's US track and field championships, in which he qualified for August's World Championships in London by finishing second in 44.22 seconds, behind Fred Kerley.
A few weeks prior to the drugs test, Roberts' girlfriend Alex Salazar had been taking medication for a sinus infection, which contained probenecid.
Salazar took the medicine on the day of Roberts' test and the pair kissed shortly after.
"Whenever they were together, they kissed frequently and passionately," said the report from the American Arbitration Association.
Roberts testified that he did not know Salazar was taking the medicine and he was unaware that kissing could lead to him ingesting any banned substance.


Former Castleford and Hull Kingston Rovers stand-off Roger Millward has died at the age of 68.

A Great Britain and England international, Millward made 406 appearances for Hull KR, scoring a club record 207 tries and kicking 607 goals.
He was awarded the MBE for his services to the sport in 1983 and inducted into the Rugby League Hall of Fame in 2000.
After his retirement from playing, he coached the Robins for 11 seasons, winning six trophies.
Hull KR chairman Neil Hudgell said: "This is an incredibly sad day for everybody associated with the club and for all rugby league supporters.
Media playback is not supported on this device
"There is no doubt Roger will go down in history as Hull KR's greatest ever player, coach and captain and an all-time legend of the game.
"At his peak, he was a player blessed with exceptional skills, outstanding leadership qualities and genuine bravery. He was also a true gentlemen of the game who remained very close to the club in his later years.
"As a child growing up and supporting Rovers, Roger was my hero and he remained that right up until today as he has dealt with his many health problems in later years with courage, humility and good humour.
"The club is in mourning and our very deepest sympathies go out to Carol, his family and his friends as well as our president Colin Hutton who shared so many years of great success at the club with Roger during the 70s and 80s"
Millward joined Hull KR from hometown club Castleford in 1966 and remained at the Robins until 1980, with his last appearance coming as captain in the 1980 Challenge Cup final win over rivals Hull FC - his fifth trophy as club skipper.
He would go on to have a short spell with Australian side Cronulla Sharks.
After 25 years as player and coach with Hull KR, Millward had a short spell as coach of Halifax in 1991-92.


Two children were unlawfully killed by their pregnant mother who then took her own life, a coroner has recorded.

Philip Stevens, five, and two-year-old Izaak were suffocated by their mother Melanie, 37, before she hanged herself, the inquest in Caernarfon heard.
Their bodies were found at home in Trawsfynydd, Gwynedd, in December last year after relatives contacted police.
The inquest was told the mother-of-five's other children were safe at the home of a relative.
North west Wales coroner Dewi Pritchard Jones recorded a verdict of suicide for Ms Stevens and unlawful killing for Philip and Izaak.
He said that Ms Stevens had left letters, which he declined to read out at the inquest, which he described as "goodbye-type letters" which indicated she had had enough of life.
PC Adrian Wyn Owen told the inquest that concerns were raised that Ms Stevens' car was parked outside her home, but relatives were unable to make contact.
After initially visiting the house on the afternoon of 19 December, PC Owen returned again that evening with PC Raymond Williams and they took the decision to force entry.
The downstairs of the property was tidy and decked out in Christmas decorations with presents laid out under the tree, the inquest heard.
PC Williams, who knew Ms Stevens and the boys, went upstairs where he discovered their bodies.
There were two handwritten notes nearby.
The coroner said: "They are clearly where she is saying goodbye to somebody and she is saying that she has had enough of life."
PC Williams said his first concern was the welfare of the older children.
"I was aware of the three other children and we searched the other rooms but they were not in the house," he said.
"I decided to call a close relative of Melanie, without letting them know at that stage what had happened, to ascertain the other children were safe, and they were."
The officers said there was no evidence that any other people had been involved in the incident.
The inquest heard that Ms Stevens was six months pregnant, although she had undergone a sterilisation procedure.
Nicholas Smith, Izaak's father, read from a prepared statement after the hearing in which he paid tribute to both boys.
"Izaak and Pip were full of beautiful innocence and happiness and everybody that knew them just loved them. They were wonderful boys," he said.
"They were just like any other boys, excitable, messy, funny, inquisitive. They were taking on the world like children do.
"Everybody who knew them has their own story to tell about what they were like.
"I first met Pip when he was a few weeks old, almost six years ago, he grew up calling me daddy and I treated him like one of my own children.
"Izaak was so special to me and I cherish every moment that we were together. He was my future. We were father and son and the hopes that I held for us are now gone and there is no plan B."
Mr Smith said their mother's actions had taken "some of the innocence and beauty out of this world and left it a different place".
"For a long time there were qualities about Melanie that I loved - she was funny, creative, passionate and caring, and she was beautiful," he said.
"But there was fault somewhere that led her to believe the solution to her problems was to kill Izaak and Pip and then commit suicide, taking her life and the tiny life inside her."


When Chinese entrepreneurs Deng Feng and Michael Yu took a BMW out for a test drive together, they managed to get into an accident and completely destroy the car.

As soon as they stepped out of the wreckage, Mr Yu told Mr Deng not to worry, as he would take care of it.
"So I know what kind of person he is. Through those kinds of intimate scenarios we can definitely know each other very well," says Mr Deng.
Mr Yu is chairman of the New Oriental Group, one of China's biggest educational service businesses, and Mr Deng is chair of Northern Light Venture Capital, a Chinese venture capital firm.
Both are members of the exclusive China Entrepreneur Club (CEC), a not-for-profit group of 46 of China's top entrepreneurs and business leaders.
Already good friends from their membership of the club, which includes trips to each other's workplaces, nights out and annual trips abroad together, their experience that day was a classic example of having so-called good "guanxi".
Roughly translated as "relationships" or "connections", it is a crucial part of life in China.
Having good "guanxi" - a wide network of mutually beneficial relationships developed outside the formal work setting, for instance at evening meals or over drinks - is often the secret to securing a business deal.
Mr Yu, who is on the board of the CEC, says it is because of this that the number of CEC members is limited. The small group size ensures people can really get to know one another, build close connections and ultimately help each other out.
"We have had a lot of occasions for example, when members are in trouble or got into difficulty the entire club is behind a person, or we divert a lot of time to help that particular member through a difficult time," says fellow CEC member Charles Chao, the chairman and chief executive of online media firm Sina Corporation.
The favours are reciprocal - if a person helps somebody out, he or she will expect to be repaid at some point.
To those in the West, where you can secure a deal through formal meetings even if you don't know someone, this "you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours" way of doing business can seem improper.
Yet views that it is a negative activity, often linked to corruption, are misplaced, says Mr Deng, who emphasises that guanxi is a "neutral" word.
He points out that the Chinese generally tend to be less private and socialise more with their colleagues than their Western counterparts, and doing deals this way is a natural extension of that.
While guanxi is obviously open to abuse, it is only corrupt if the activity performed as part of the relationship is illegal, for example, paying a bribe.
Leadership expert Steve Tappin says it's simply part of the "social fabric" in China. "It's very difficult to get things done without it," he adds.
In fact most business leaders say it's downright impossible.
"Right now in China, no matter how strong or how smart an entrepreneur is, as long as he does not belong to the business community, does not have a lot of friends who may help him, he's not gonna win for long," says Joe Baolin Zhou, chief executive of Bond Education Group, the largest private education service company in southern China.
This seems fundamentally unfair, surely if a product or service is good enough it should succeed on its own merits?
Yet guanxi's roots are tightly bound in history, with the notions of obligation and loyalty going back thousands of years.
The Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, when families and friends were encouraged to report on one another in a bid to enforce communism, meant that guanxi's importance increased as a way to rebuild trust, says Kent Deng, associate professor at the London School of Economics.
And he points out that when China first started to encourage development of a market economy there was no proper network or written contracts so doing business with a known network was initially the only way to ensure that they wouldn't be taken advantage of.
Yet slowly that way of doing business is changing as Chinese firms become more globally focused.
Eric Yang is co-founder and chief executive of online education platform TutorGroup.
He says he chose an internet-based business precisely because it offered a new way of doing things.
Longer term, he says, this type of company offers much greater growth prospects than the traditional way of doing business, as it offers the potential to reach a much greater audience, beyond personal connections.
"That's the beauty of the internet, you get contact with so many people but you don't need to know their name. But you can still sell the product to them, give the service to them," he says.
This feature is based on interviews by leadership expert Steve Tappin for the BBC's CEO Guru series, produced by Neil Koenig.


The rail minister has reaffirmed the government will not intervene in the ongoing industrial dispute between Southern Rail and the RMT union.

Paul Maynard MP said passengers would not thank the government for "costly intervention".
The dispute, which has led to a series of strikes throughout 2016, is centred on the role of guards on trains.
Earlier, the minister appeared in Parliament to answer a question on the dispute from Green MP Caroline Lucas.
However, speaking in Sevenoaks at the launch of a new smart card for passengers on the Southeastern network, Mr Maynard blamed the RMT for the strikes.
He said: "Of course I recognise the increasing frustration passengers are going to feel at this strike.
"The simplest thing the RMT can do is to call off the strike."
He added: "I recognise people are impatient for action, but when we take action it has to be the right action. Passengers won't thank us for costly intervention."
00:01 Tuesday 6 December to 23:59 Thursday 8 December (RMT)
00:01: Tuesday 13 December to 23:59 Wednesday 14 December (Aslef)
00:01 Friday 16 December to 23:59: Friday 16 December (Aslef)
00:01 Monday 19 December to 23:59 Tuesday 20 December (RMT)
00:01 Saturday 31 December to 23:59 Monday 2 January (RMT)
00:01 Monday 9 January to 23:59: Saturday 14 January (Aslef)
General Secretary of the RMT, Mick Cash, blamed the Transport Secretary, Chris Grayling, for the dispute.
"I meet with ministers on a regular basis and it is frankly absurd that Chris Grayling has refused point blank to meet with us while the Southern rail dispute, which he has the power to settle... rages on," he said.
"Running our railways by central government diktat is a recipe for disaster."
Last week the government announced a one-off compensation payment to season ticket holders.
The compensation scheme will begin in January.


What is it like being the mother of quadruplets?

Utah couple Ashley and Tyson Gardner had struggled to conceive for eight years, but they eventually had two sets of identical twin girls by IVF treatment.
A photo of Ashley holding the ultrasound scans had already attracted huge attention online so shortly after the girls' second birthday, she posted a video on YouTube, that went viral, to show what her everyday life is like.
The film, suitably called "Sums up motherhood in 34 seconds", shows Ashley having a brief break from the constant job of looking after her children by sneaking into in the pantry and treating herself to a stick of red liquorice.
"They don't ever go away. They want everything you have," she says in the video and to prove her point, after only a few seconds, one of her daughters peeks under the door and calls out to her!
The couple have a large social media following and their pages are littered with photos of smiling babies, but when they were told they were going to have four children at once, they did not know what to think.
"When we first found out we were having quadruplets, it was pure terror and pure joy at the same time," Ashley explained.
"The doctors said we only had a 40% chance of having one baby, so to have all four to come at once was a huge blessing and a huge miracle.
"The odds of both eggs splitting are literally one in a million.
"But I didn't know anyone who'd had quadruplets. I didn't know if it was physically possible for a woman, I knew nothing about it.
"I had vertigo and morning sickness for the first 16 weeks. I couldn't eat anything and I lost 20 pounds in my first trimester.
"My body hurt, my bones hurt and my hips would dislocate every time I rolled over."
In order to support the family, the couple run four businesses from home.
"We work when the girls are asleep - during their naptime and then after they go to bed, until one or two in the morning, every single night.
"It's really helpful we both work from home, because every other morning one of us takes the girls and the other gets to sleep in.
"Having quads was expensive in the first months.
"They were on a high-calorie formula that cost $25 (£20) a can and needed lots of nappies."
The couple's social media fans helped to ease the expense.
"My heart was truly touched by the amount of nappies and baby outfits that turned up by our door when they were born," she said.
"There really are amazing, kind, good people out there and I'm so grateful to those who follow our story and love these babies."
Ashley and Tyson regularly blog and vlog about their children's progress.
"When my pregnancy announcement went viral, so many people prayed for me and my babies. Now I feel it's my duty to show these people what they prayed for," she explained.
Ashley insists that she goes about her daily life "like anybody else, it just takes a bit longer".
"We do everything times four. We take them shopping with us and load them into the car several times a day.
"Just because there are four of them, we can't let that stop us living our lives. We don't just stay at home."
Ashley described the "special relationship" that the toddlers share.
"There are four of them and they work together to conspire against you, which is really funny. They're definitely tearing the house down.
"Each set of twins has their 'own language' and talk to each other.
"If one girl steals a toy from another one, her twin will steal it back for her. They protect one another."
At times, the quads can be overwhelming for Ashley and Tyson.
"We're first time parents and we're learning as we go like anyone else. There are definitely anxieties.
"Not many people have raised four toddlers at the same time so you're kind of on your own.
"I feel like we're doing a good job. Just the fact that there's four of them and they're all healthy and happy and growing and thriving is an amazing miracle to science and to God."


A 30-year-old man has appeared in court charged with making threats to kill a man who was murdered in west Belfast at the weekend.

Paul Edward Burns, of no fixed abode, is accused of threatening to kill Edward Gibson, and of disorderly behaviour, during an incident at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
Mr Gibson, 28, was shot in his stomach and thigh in an alleyway beside Divis Tower on Friday.
He died in hospital.


In our series of letters from African journalists, writer and novelist Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani considers South Africa's identity within Africa.

Over the past few weeks, some South Africans seem to have been in keen competition to displace Africa's militant Islamist groups Boko Haram and al-Shabab from international headlines and become the latest African murder sensation.
I would not be surprised if a new social media campaign soon starts making the rounds: "I am a South African, not a xenophobe."
Tough luck. It will probably take a while for the country to restore its image after last month's brutal onslaught against foreigners left at least seven people dead, about 5,000 homeless and the livelihoods of many more destroyed after foreign-owned shops were looted and torched.
I have often referred to South Africa as a genetically modified African country.  It is in Africa but not really quite like the rest of us.
Travelling to South Africa often feels like a visit to the West. If a vacation across the Atlantic was proving too much bother, you could always go there.
Staff at the country's international airports come across as simply doing their jobs rather than looking for a new way to make your life miserable.
The malls stock many of the world's favourite brand names.
You can describe the length of your road journeys in miles and kilometres rather than in hours and days because the highways are smooth and broad and brightly lit.
The climate gives your complexion a fresh glow that lets everyone back home in Nigeria know at first sight that you have just been away.
And South Africa is probably the only country in Africa that can boast a barrage of desperate migrants from Nigeria, similar to the UK and US.
Not long ago when my church announced that the choir would be travelling from Nigeria to participate in a music festival taking place in South Africa, the music department suddenly experienced an influx of never-seen-before members.
Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani:
"South Africa remained an inspiration to the rest of Africa. White people or no white people, it was an African country; it was an African star"
Violence should not overshadow SA migration debate
People would attend church for the first time on a Sunday and indicate by the next Sunday, to the music director's glee, that they were interested in joining the choir.
Typically, it can take weeks of prayer and persuading before a new member in church finally makes the decision to establish their commitment by joining a service department.
Soon enough, someone detected the scam.
Many of the aspiring minstrels were simply lured by the South African visa, which the church was to provide for the concert participants.
A visa to Angola or Kenya or Malawi would probably not have been as enticing.
Eventually, a background check led to a number of the newest choristers being barred from the trip and their air fares refunded.
Almost immediately, the opportunists disappeared from church.
These same people would probably also have disappeared into the nooks and crannies of the country, or into the basements of conniving relatives, soon after their arrival in South Africa.
Of course, there are the many Africans I have heard frequently voice the conviction that South Africa is so different from the rest of us simply because of the prevailing influence of the Caucasians in their midst.
Nevertheless, South Africa remained an inspiration to the rest of Africa. White people or no white people, it was an African country; it was an African star.
Now, the xenophobes are trying harder than usual to ruin it for us.
They seem to have said to themselves: "Let's prove to the world once and for all that we can be as African as any other African country.
"We can start conflict out of nothing. We can churn out disturbing headline after disturbing headline.
"We might be a land flowing with milk and honey but we can also make life miserable for anyone who sets foot here.  We can turn beauty to ashes."
As if the electricity outages that began towards the end of last year in South Africa were not proof enough.
From now on, visits to South Africa by foreign nationals may be marred by concern about when the next xenophobic violence might erupt, the same way some people say they are afraid to visit Nigeria because of Boko Haram - although all the attacks so far have mainly taken place in only one part of the country.
Congratulations, my South African brothers and sisters.
Your efforts have not been in vain; you are now definitely one of us. Welcome to Africa.


Visitors will be asked to contribute towards the cost of maintaining paths on Snowdon for the first time.

The Snowdon Partnership is piloting the idea due to the increased damage caused by the 500,000 people who walk to the summit annually.
Snowdon Race founder Ken Jones welcomed the idea, as long as it was voluntary.
After a consultation, the partnership is trialling a scheme which asks businesses in the area to encourage customers to contribute.
Mr Jones told Radio Cymru's Manylu programme: "Thousands of people visit here and don't spend as much as people claim they do.
"But they're good people and I've asked many of them if they'd be willing to contribute a pound to help maintain the paths and they all say they would."
Although Snowdonia National Park manages the mountain, many different companies, agencies and individuals look after it.
They formed the Snowdon Partnership to look at how to maintain the mountain.
Helen Pye, senior warden for Snowdonia National Park, said: "If we can get people to understand the impact they have on the mountain and not just come here to use Snowdon but also want to protect the area, then I think we can succeed."
The 18-month pilot, which begins in June, involves 18 companies and people can donate by adding money to their bills, leaving it in envelopes in B&Bs or the companies can donate profits.
A total of 100 companies were asked to take part but 82 decided not to.
Money raised through this scheme will be used to conserve the Llanberis path as well as other routes.
Llanberis Lake Railway manager Emlyn Pritchard said the business would donate a percentage of profits from sales of local produce in the cafe, such as traditional Welsh teas and bara brith, which is about Â£500 a year.
Aneurin Jones, owner of the Dolbadarn Hotel in Llanberis, said: "I don't know why they can't put someone at the start of each route to ask for a pound or two in donation from everyone walking up.
"I don't think it's right for us to ask people who come here to stay to pay for damage done by people who are going to the top of Snowdon."
If the pilot is successful, the plan is to develop it for the whole of Snowdonia so various conservation projects can benefit.


A major UK-led Nato exercise that involved military personnel training in Scotland has been completed.

Joint Warrior is held twice a year - in spring and autumn.
The first of this year's two exercises involved warships operating from Faslane on the Clyde and aircraft from RAF Lossiemouth in Moray.
Countries taking part included Denmark, Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, the UK and the US.
Live firing was conducted using a military range at Cape Wrath in Sutherland during Joint Warrior.
This year's spring staging of the exercise also involved the Royal Navy's first large scale cyber war games.
Information Warrior 17  involved Artificial Intelligence (AI) and testing the protection of warships and submarines against cyber attacks.


Sprinter James Ellington has had surgery at a London hospital, a week after suffering career-threatening injuries in a motorbike crash in Spain.

Ellington, 31, and fellow sprinter Nigel Levine, 27, both sustained a suspected broken pelvis with Ellington also suffering a facial fracture and a broken leg in two places.
"Out of surgery, all went well," Ellington tweeted on Wednesday.
"Feel like I have done 200 rounds with Tyson and 50 marathons."
Both athletes were hit by a car on 17 January and will miss the 2017 season, which includes the World Championships in London in August.
A British Athletics statement read: "James Ellington and Nigel Levine have safely returned to the UK via air ambulance, following a road accident in Tenerife last week.
"Both athletes have been admitted to hospitals in London where they are receiving specialist medical treatment for their injuries, under the supervision of the British Athletics' medical team.
"Both James and Nigel have been overwhelmed by the support they have received since the accident last week."
The pair had been in Tenerife as part of a British Athletics group taking part in a warm-weather training camp when the accident happened.
Any pelvic injuries to sprinters are career-threatening and both athletes will need significant rehabilitation.
Ellington is a 100m and 200m specialist and a two-time Olympian who was part of the gold medal-winning 4x100m relay teams at the 2014 and 2016 European Championships.
Levine is a 400m runner who was born in Trinidad and raised in Northamptonshire.
He won a European outdoor relay gold in 2014 and an indoor relay gold in 2013.
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Thieves have made off with a "substantial four-figure sum" in a break-in at a caravan park.

The safe was taken overnight between Thursday and Friday from a portable office building at Lighthouse Leisure in Southerness.
Det Con Grant Drennan said they were carrying out door-to-door inquiries in the area.
He said they wanted to hear from anyone who had seen or heard anything suspicious in the area.
"It appears that those responsible might have taken some time to carry out this crime and we are also keen to hear about any suspicious activities on the days leading up to this theft," he added.


Hull FC secured a second convincing Super League win in succession, scoring seven tries in a stunning victory against Catalans Dragons in Perpignan.

Lee Radford's side crossed eight times as they thrashed Salford at home in their opening match of the season.
Fetuli Talanoa touched down twice in France, adding to scores from Sika Manu, Josh Bowden, Jack Logan, Jamie Shaul and captain Gareth Ellis.
Winger Pat Richards scored all 10 of Catalans' points in the first half.
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The Dragons have lost their first two games of the campaign and such a heavy home defeat early in the season will be a concern, with much of their success in recent years being based on a formidable home record.
Hull top the table ahead of Wigan, with both sides starting the campaign with two victories.
Former England international Ellis was making his first appearance for the Black and Whites since July after recovering from a serious Achilles injury.
Catalans Dragons: Gigot; Yaha, Inu, Duport, Richards; Carney, Myler; Anderson, Pelissier, Bousquet, Stewart, Horo, Baitieri.
Replacements: Taylor, Mounis, Bosc, Elima.
Hull FC: Shaul; Michaels, Logan, Tuimavave, Talanoa; Pryce, Sneyd; Taylor, Houghton, Watts, Minichiello, Manu, Thompson.
Replacements: Pritchard, Ellis, Bowden, Washbrook.
Referee: Robert Hicks


Traditional leaders in South Africa have expressed "disquiet" over chief Mandla Mandela's conversion to Islam.

The Congress of Traditional Leaders in South Africa (Contralesa) told the BBC that being Muslim could affect his ability to uphold Xhosa traditions.
Mandla Mandela, who converted to Islam late last year, got married in a Cape Town mosque last week.
He inherited his position as chief of Mvezo in the AbaThembu clan from his grandfather, Nelson Mandela.
Africa Live: BBC news updates
Profile: Mandla Zwelivelile Mandela
Mandela family tree
Contralesa's spokesperson Chief Mwelo Nonkonyane said Mr Mandela's new religious affiliation could present a conflict for his subjects.
"There is nothing wrong with a traditional leader following any faith he chooses but we are concerned about whether he will be able to continue performing his responsibilities as a chief," he said.
Traditional leaders are at times called upon to lead thanksgiving rituals for ancestors, which would include presenting slaughtered animals to them in prayer, says the BBC's Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg.
Such ritual offerings, which are a key part of traditional ceremonies, are not considered to be in line with the beliefs of many Muslims, our correspondent says.
Chief Mandela Mandela may find himself at a crossroads - forced to choose between his new bride and his loyal subjects.
Nelson Mandela's heir, who prides himself on being a man of tradition, may face some tough questions over his decision to convert to Islam.
The conversion has implications for him not because of the religion itself but because it creates uncertainty about the chief's loyalties.
And it seems the secrecy has caused concerns within the AbaThembu Royal family, who now question the chief's commitment to upholding time-honoured traditions.
In rural South Africa, away from many of the trappings of modern life, traditional leaders play a key role in their communities.
This could be in the form of ceremonies or day to day decisions on how to resolve conflicts. While this is the chief's fourth marriage, it is the first to pit him against tradition - the very core of who he is.
Mr Nonkonyane says the 42-year-old had already gone against traditional by assuming his wife's culture.
"According to African tradition, it is the woman that must become part of the family she is marrying into. When she accepted Mandla's proposal, the expectation was for her to adopt the ways of his people," he said.
He married Rabia Clarke, his fourth marriage, in a ceremony that was not attended by members of the royal family, leading to reports they were not happy with the union.
But Mr Mandela seems content with his decision.
"Although Rabia and I were raised in different cultural and religious traditions, our coming together reflects what we have in common: We are South Africans," he is quoted as saying at the ceremony.
Mr Mandela is also an MP with the governing African National Congress.


Bin lorries in Edinburgh have been fitted with special technology which alerts the driver when a cyclist is near the vehicle.

They have an illuminated sign that lights up to alert anyone travelling towards a lorry when it is turning left and a speaker announcing the manoeuvre.
After a trial on eight trucks, the city council has rolled out the 'Cyclear' technology, to a further 17 vehicles.
It is set to be installed in all future Large Goods Vehicles council vehicles.
Sensors on the side of the vehicle also detect when a cyclist travels alongside it, alerting the cyclist with an audible message, and sounding a warning buzzer to the driver.
Five cameras are installed on the new vehicles with screens in the cab giving drivers optimum views of their surroundings.
Lesley Hinds, Edinburgh city council's transport and environment convener, unveiled the new fleet earlier.
She said: "Cycle safety is of utmost importance to the council. To equip our vehicles with technology that minimises risk for all road users is a step we can't afford not to take.
"The council is determined to make Edinburgh's roads as safe as possible for all road users, including cyclists. A significant rise in cycling has occurred in the city, while the rate of collisions involving cyclists continues to fall.
"Edinburgh is bucking the trend with more people cycling, walking or using public transport to get to work than anywhere else in Scotland and these newly equipped vehicles are an important step in increasing safety and raising awareness."
A driver of one of the refuse collection vehicles said: "I really like the new system, the sensors trigger an alarm so I'm made immediately aware of the cyclists when they are not in my vision."