Welcome to The Sports Examiner SPEED READ, a 100 mph (44.7 m/s) review of what happened this past week in Olympic sport:
LANE ONE
Wednesday: The International Swimming League filed two suits against FINA, the international governing body of the sport, one in its own name and one as a class-action with three athletes as plaintiffs. FINA hasn’t said much, but did some talking with its reply to both suits, slamming ISL’s case as moot and detailing legal reasons why both suits make no valid case for relief, or even that a U.S. court should host an argument between two European organizations!
Friday: The new heads of the United States Olympic Committee – Board chair Susanne Lyons and chief executive Sarah Hirshland – briefed reporters on Thursday’s Board meeting. The issues of athlete safety, athlete representation, Congressional inquiries and USA Gymnastics were all discussed, and in detail that was shared.
THE BIG PICTURE
Tuesday: The USOC is putting more pressure on its National Governing Bodies for good governance, sending notices to USA Boxing and USA Diving that they need some reforms and quickly.
Friday: Thailand self-imposes penalties for eight doping weightlifting violations and will not compete in the 2019 Worlds or 2020 Olympic Games, but will still host the 2019 World Championships in September!
GLOBETROTTING by Phil Hersh
Monday: In the aftermath of suicide by former Pairs national champion John Coughlin, the U.S. Center for SafeSport noted in a statement that figure skating in the U.S. ha an “unchecked” culture of abuse and must change.
ATHLETICS
Wednesday: British distance star Laura Muir was the headliner of the European Indoor Championships in Glasgow, plus the IAAF unveiled its new World Rankings system, Jamaican distance star Kemoy Campbell is released from the hospital and American distance runner Luke Puskedra retires.
FOOTBALL
Tuesday: Tobin Heath’s first-half goal was enough for the U.S. to claim a 1-0 victory over Brazil in the final game of the SheBelieves Cup in Tampa. England won the tournament, beating Japan, 3-0, in the opener.
SWIMMING
Thursday: Tyr Pro Swim Series in Des Moines opens with two wins for sprint ace Michael Andrew and four world-leading marks!
Friday: More Michael Andrew magic, with two medals in four minutes (!) and second wins for Kathleen Baker and Hali Flickinger.
TABLE TENNIS
Monday: At the U.S. Pan American Games Trials, 16-year-old Nikhil Kumar and veteran Lily Zhang won their divisions to clinch their tickets to Lima later this year.
TAEKWONDO
Monday: Turkey shone brightest at the U.S. Open Championships in Las Vegas, taking five victories.
PREVIEWS
● Alpine Skiing: Marcel Hirscher tries to wrap up the World Cup season title in Slovenia
● Badminton: Top players entered in $1 million All-England Open in Birmingham.
● Beach Volleyball: FIVB World Tour is in Sydney for the three-star Australian Open
● Biathlon: The IBU World Championships get underway in Oestersund
● Diving: China looking for another World Series sweep in Beijing
● Fencing: Four no. 1s in action in Epee Grand Prix and Sabre World Cups
● Freestyle & Snowboard: Seasonal titles on the line at U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth!
● Judo: World Tour stops in Africa for Marrakesh Grand Prix
● Nordic Skiing: Famed Holmenkollen Ski Fest on this weekend in Oslo
● Rugby: Amazing U.S. men try to stay in first place in Sevens Series Vancouver
● Short Track: Korean supremacy at stake in World Champs in Bulgaria
● Speed Skating: Can Brittany Bowe win two titles at the World Cup Final in Utah?
● Triathlon: ITU World Series opens – as usual – in Abu Dhabi
UPCOMING
Highlights of the coming week, with previews in the coming days on TheSportsExaminer.com:
● Alpine Skiing: The World Cup Final is in Andorra, and still some unfinished business for the amazing Mikaela Shiffrin.
● Basketball: The draw for the 2019 FIBA World Cup will take place on Saturday.
● Wrestling: Can the U.S. men take the Freestyle World Cup, being held in Russia?
And a look at the future of international federations, as seen by the federations themselves, in Lane One on Monday.
