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PANORAMA: Major league players possible at LA28; Liu and Chock & Bates win at ISU Grand Prix in China; U.S. women rebound vs. Portugal, 3-1

By
Rich Perelman
-
Americans Madison Chock and Evan Bates on their way to an Ice Dance gold at the ISU World Figure Skating Championships in 2023 (Photo: ISU)

★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Games 2028: Los Angeles ● Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred talked with reporters at the World Series about the possibility of Major League players at the 2028 Olympic Games:

“I am positive about it. I think that the owners have kind of crossed the line in terms of, we’d like to do it if we can possibly make it work. There are logistical issues that still need to be worked on.”

He added, “We have made a lot of progress with LA2028 in terms of the calendar. Right now we’re in discussions with the players’ association about that set of issues. … The logistics of L.A. as evidenced by how long we’ve been talking about it are difficult. The chances that we’re playing in Brisbane [2032] – difficult, right? Even way more difficult than being in L.A.”

● Olympic Games: Future ● Agence France Presse reported that “A strong majority in the German city of Munich voted in favour of a bid to host the Summer Olympics in 2036, 2040 or 2044 in a referendum on Sunday.

“Early results showed around 62 percent of voters in the Bavarian capital voted in favour.”

Turnout was at least 39% of eligible voters, which is a record for a referendum in city history. Munich hosted the technically-advanced, but infamous 1972 Olympic Games, when Palestinian terrorists murdered 11 members of the Israeli delegation in the worst security incident in Olympic history. A prior referendum in 2013 rejected a bid for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. But there is enthusiasm for the future.

Three other regions – Hamburg, Berlin and Rhine-Ruhr – are also bidding and may hold their own referenda in 2026. The decision on a bid region and the Games to bid for will be decided in late 2026.

● Anti-Doping ● The French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) and the French National Olympic Committee (CNOSF) released a joint statement in response to French sprinter Mouhamadou Fall signing up for the doping-allowed Enhanced Games next May.

Fall, 33, has run 10.04 in 2021; he has already been hit twice for doping for positives in 2022 and 2023; he is currently serving a ban through 11 July 2026. The AFLD-CNOSF statement included:

“The promoters of this competition want to encourage athletes to break records by authorizing the use of doping. This initiative constitutes a negation of the spirit of sportsmanship and a serious threat to the health of participants, in addition to the harmful image it conveys of sporting performance.

“While the 20th century was marked by the fear of state doping, the 21st century could see the emergence of a new form of institutionalized doping, at the instigation of certain unscrupulous private promoters ready to sacrifice sporting integrity and health issues to organize an artificial spectacle. Faced with this danger, the MSJVA [Sports Ministry], the CNOSF, and the AFLD wish to reiterate that doping has nothing to do with sport. It constitutes a serious violation of sporting ethics and the fundamental values of integrity, respect, and responsibility.”

The AFLD promises special scrutiny of any French athlete who signs up to compete in the Enhanced Games.

● Athletics ● The London Marathon announced a record £87.3 million (about $116.18 million U.S.) raised for charity from the 27 April race, surpassing the £73.5 million raised in 2024.

The total since the race began in 1981 is now over £1.4 billion. Endurance.biz reported:

“Enthuse, the official online fundraising partner for the TCS London Marathon, saw another record-breaking year on its platform. In total, more than £35.8 million was raised by participants on Enthuse with an average donation of £46.75 and an average fundraiser page value of £2,809.”

● Boxing ● World Boxing confirmed candidates for its 23 November elections in Rome (ITA), with two-time Middleweight World Champion Gennadiy Golovkin (KAZ) and Greek federation chief Mariolis Charilaos facing off for the federation presidency.

There are no U.S. candidates for Vice President or the Board of Directors. One of the board candidates is Indonesia’s Raja Sapta Okohari, head of the country’s National Olympic Committee, who supported the denial of visas to Israel for the 2025 FIG World Artistic Championships.

● Skiing ● U.S. Ski & Snowboard celebrated its 59th Gold Medal Gala in New York on Friday, raising a record $3.2 million in support of the many teams sponsored by the federation. More than 500 people attended the event, including 20 athletes as the 2025-26 gets ready to start.

≡ RESULTS ≡

● Alpine Skiing ● The FIS World Cup season opened as usual with the Giant Slalom in Soelden (AUT), with the home crowd thrilled on Saturday as Austrian Julia Schieb won her first World Cup gold at age 27!

Starting eighth, she roared into the lead at 1:07.80 for the first run, taking over from American Paula Moltzan, with Moltzan second best at 1:09.08. Schieb was only 13th on the second run, but still won with a total time of 2:16.51, with Moltzan holding on for second at 2:17.09. Swiss star Lara Gut-Behrami, a prior winner in Soelden, moved from fifth to third on the second run at 2:17.62.

American star Mikaela Shiffrin also made a second-run move, from sixth to fourth at 2:17.93. Fellow U.S. skier Nina O’Brien finished sixth (2:18.26) and five Americans placed in the top 13.

Sunday’s men’s race showed that four-time World Cup winner Marco Odermatt (SUI), now 28, has no intention of slowing down. He won his 46th career World Cup gold, leading after the first run and then holding on for a 1:56.03 to 1:56.27 win over Marco Schwarz (AUT). Norway’s Atle Lie McGrath was third (1:56.30); River Radamus was the only American finalist, in 21st.

● Athletics ● Defending champions Yomif Kejelcha (ETH) and Agnes Ngetich (KEN) retained their titles at the Valencia Half Marathon in Spain, with Kejelcha moving to no. 2 on the year list at 58:02, winning by 37 seconds.

Ngetich took the world lead, winning in 1:03:08, way ahead of Fotyen Tesfay (ETH: 1:05:11), the no. 3 performance ever and her second-fastest ever, behind her 1:03:04 win in 2024.

● Badminton ● At the BWF World Tour French Open in Cesson-Sevigne (FRA), four-time Worlds medalist Anders Antonen (DEN) managed to overcome home favorite Christo Popov (FRA) in the men’s Singles final, 21-12, 21-19, while Olympic champion Se Young An (KOR) dominated the women’s final – 21-13, 21-7 over second-seed Zhi Yi Wang (CHN).

South Korea won in men’s Doubles, Japan took the women’s Doubles and China won in Mixed Doubles.

● Beach Volleyball ● At the Beach Pro Tour Elite 16 in Cape Town (RSA), the top-seeded Swedish pair of Jacob Holting Nilsson and Elmer Andersson (SWE) got their second tournament win of the season, defeating Tim Berger and Timo Hammarberg (AUT) in the final by 21-15, 21-18.

Hendrik Mol and Mathias Bernsten (NOR) won the bronze over Remi Bassereau and Calvin Aye (FRA), 21-18, 14-21, 15-8.

Third-seeded Svenja Muller and Cinja Tillmann (GER) won the women’s title, 21-17, 25-23 over 17th-seeds Katja Stam and Raisa Schoon (NED) for their first title and third medal of the season.

Fellow Germans Sandra Ittlinger and Anna-Lena Grune won the bronze over Tina Graudina and Anastasija Samoilova (LAT), 17-21, 21-15, 15-9.

● Curling ● The men’s final at the Pan Continental Championships in Virginia, Minnesota was a match of Olympic champions, as 2014 Sochi victor Brad Jacobs (CAN) faced American John Shuster, skip of the 2018 PyeongChang gold medal winners. The U.S. had a 2-1 lead after the fifth, but Jacobs got two in the sixth, two in the ninth and two in the 10th for a 7-3 win.

The bronze went to Tsuyoshi Yamaguichi (JPN), whose team edged Xiaoming Xu (CHN), 6-5.

In the women’s tournament final, Canada’s three-time World Champion Rachel Homan faced 2025 Worlds bronzer Rui Wang (CHN); this post will be updated when the match is complete.

Korea’s Eun-ji Gim’s squad won the bronze, 11-8, over the U.S. team, skipped by Tabitha Peterson, with three points in the extra end!

● Figure Skating ● The U.S. picked up not just two wins, but two 1-2 finished at the International Skating Union Cup of China Grand Prix in Chongqing!

World Champion Alysia Liu of the U.S. led the women’s Singles after the Short Program over Rinka Watanabe (JPN), but in the Free Skate, it was 2025 Grand Prix Final winner Amber Glenn who took over. She won the Free Skate at 141.74, with Liu second at 137.46, and Glenn won the event with 214.78 points. Liu was second at 212.07 and Watanabe third with 198.63.

In Ice Dance, three-time World Champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates dominated the event, winning the Rhythm Dance (84.44) and Free Dance (123.81) to total 208.25. But fellow Americans Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik, fourth at two of the last U.S. championships, won their first Grand Prix medals, were second in both sections and second overall at 202.27.

Defending champion Shun Sato (JPN) won both the men’s Short Program and Free Skate and totaled 278.12 and won decisively, with Italian Daniel Grassl (269.43) and Kazak Mikhail Shaidorov (263.67) were 2-3. Americans Tomoki Hiwatashi (245.71) and Jacob Sanchez (221.21) went 4-7.

In Pairs, two-time World Junior champions Anastasiia Metelkina and Luka Berulava (GEO) swept both segments and won with 217.24 points, over two-time Worlds medalists Italians Sara Conti and Niccolo Macli (209.88). Olympic champions Wenjing Sui and Cong Han (CHN) finished third (202.92). Americans Katie McBeath and Daniil Parkman finished seventh (181.70).

Next, the series moves to North America and the Skate Canada Internationale in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan next week.

● Football ● Sunday’s match with the U.S. women facing Portugal again in East Hartford, Connecticut took on a lot more significance after 23rd-ranked Portugal’s 2-1 win on Thursday. The Portuguese came in having an 0-6-2 record in their prior eight matches, but were more than a match for the Americans in Chester, Pennsylvania. It was only the third loss for an Emma Hayes (GBR)-coached U.S. team, now 21-3-2, after five straight wins.

Hayes changed eight of the 11 starters and the U.S. scored in the first minute again – just as in the prior game – at the 47-second mark as forward Olivia Moultrie slammed a shot off a loose ball in the middle of the box after trying a centering pass. But what next?

The Portuguese responded right away as defender Beatriz Fonseca got free on the right side and sent an arcing cross into the box that was headed in by Jessica Silva in the 5th for the 1-1 tie.

The U.S. replied with more pressure and a near-miss from defender Avery Patterson. In the 10th, midfielder Lily Yohannes sent a ball into the box that was corralled by forward Jaedyn Shaw, who back-flicked to Moultrie, who sent another diagonal shot that rolled off the far post and into the net for a 2-1 lead. That’s the way the half ended, with Portugal at 52% of possession, but the U.S. more aggressive at five shots to two.

The U.S. continued the pressure in the second half and controlled the match, but couldn’t get close to a goal. Finally, in the 82nd, striker Ally Sentnor sent a corner kick into the box, where it was met by sub midfielder Sam Coffey, running left to right across the box and sending a spinning, right-footed shot into the Portugal goal for the 3-1 final.

Possession turned around and the U.S. finished with 51.5% and a 10-4 shots advantage. The U.S. women will finish this international window against New Zealand on Wednesday (29th) in Kansas City.

Group play concluded at the FIFA women’s U-17 World Cup in Morocco, with Italy, defending champ North Korea, , the U.S., Canada and Spain rolling through their groups with 3-0 records.

The U.S. team, in group C, hammered Ecuador, 3-0, then cruised past China, 5-2, and clubbed Norway by 5-0. The Americans will face the Netherlands (1-2) in the round-of-16 playoffs on the 28th, and if advanced, the winner of the Spain-France match in the quarters.

● Squash ● Egyptian stars Mostafa Asal and Hania El Hammany took the titles at the U.S. Open Championships in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

World Champion Asal, the 2021 champion won his round-of-32, round-of-16, quarterfinals, semifinals and final by 3-0 scores, sailing past fellow Egyptian Youssef Obrahim, 11-5, 11-5, 11-4 in the semis and then 11-9, 11-3 and 11-3 in the final over second-seed Paul Coll (NZL), the 2023 winner.

Worlds silver medalist El Hammamy – second twice before in this tournament – won all five of her matches in straight sets – 15 in all – beating Olivia Weaver of the U.S. in the semis, 11-7, 11-6 and 11-9. In the all-Egyptian final, El Hammamy won a tough battle with Amina Orfi, 11-9, 12-10 and 12-10.

● Speed Skating ● Six-time World Champion Jordan Stolz was busy at the U.S. national championships (with some invited foreign guests) in Kearns, Utah, winning the men’s 1,000 m on Friday in 1:07.00 over Cooper McLeod (1:07.13 lifetime best) and the 1,500 m on Saturday in 1:43.37, with Casey McDermott-Mostowy (1:44.69) and Casey Dawson (1:44.84) and McLeod (1:44.88).

But McLeod won Friday’s first 500 m in 34.44 with Stolz second in 34.74, and then Zach Stoppelmoor won Saturday’s 500 m in 34.39, to 34.44. McLeod was third in 34.49.

Dawson won the 5,000 m in 6:11.44 (by more than six seconds) and took the 10,000 m in 12:46.57, winning by more than 53 seconds.

Olympic 500 m champion Erin Jackson stormed to two wins in her specialty, taking Friday’s race in 37.76 over four-time World Championships gold medalist Brittany Bowe (38.20), and then on Saturday over Bowe again, 37.31 to 38.05, with 2019 World Champion Vanessa Herzog (AUT) third (38.25).

Bowe came back to take the 1,000 m over Jackson on Friday, 1:14.69 to 1:15.41, with Greta Myers third (1:16.41), and Bowe won the 1,500 m on Saturday over Myers, 1:53.33 to 1:55.13.

Myers won the 3,000 m in 4:05.71; Swiss Nadja Wenger took the women’s 5,000 m in 7:30.32.

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CYCLING: Netherlands wins nine golds, as Lavreysen dominates sprints (again) and van de Wouw gets three wins at UCI World Track Championships

By
Rich Perelman
-

★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★

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≡ UCI WORLD TRACK CHAMPS ≡

Dutch star Harrie Lavreysen continued his sensational riding at the UCI Track World Championships that concluded in Santiago (CHI), adding a new title to his championship list.

After having won the men’s Keirin and Team Sprint earlier, he branched out a bit and won the 1,000 m Time Trial, finishing ahead of teammate Jeffrey Hoogland, 57.978 to 58.163, with Joseph Truman (GBR: 59.268) in third.

In the Sprint on Sunday, Lavreysen faced 2024 Paris Olympic silver winner Matt Richardson, then of Australia but now riding for Britain. Nevertheless, Lavreysen won his seventh Worlds Sprint gold, 2-0, and now has World or Olympic golds in 2019-20-21-22-23-24-25 and won twice in 2021 and 2024 with Olympic and World titles. That’s nine wins in a row. Wow!

In the non-Olympic Individual Pursuit, Britain’s Josh Charlton moved up from silver in 2024 to win in 2025, defeating Rasmus Pedersen (DEN), 4:04.122 to 4:07.496 in the final. American Anders Johnson won the bronze for his first Worlds medal. Britain got another gold in the non-Olympic Points Race from Joshua Tarling, who edged American Peter Moore, 56-48. It was the first World Track Champs medal for both.

Spain’s Albert Torres, now 35, won the Omnium for his second career Worlds gold, 11 years after he won the Madison in 2014! Torres scored 133 points to outlast Kazushige Kuboki (JPN: 131) and Lindsay De Vylder (BEL: 131). Ashlin Barry was the top American, in 16th.

The Elimination Race went to Italian veteran Elia Viviani, 36, ahead of Campbell Stewart (NZL) and Yoeri Havik (NED). It’s Viviani’s third Worlds gold in the event, after wins in 2021 and 2022.

Belgium’s De Vylder and Fabio van den Bossche won the Madison with 81 points to 73 for Mark Stewart and Tarling (GBR) and 71 for Denmark. The U.S. (Moore and Graeme Frislie) was ninth with 29.

Dutch sprinter Hetty van de Wouw was the women’s star. Having already helped the Netherlands won the women’s Team Sprint, she then took the Sprint final over Japan’s Mina Sato by 2-0, moving up from second in 2024. Van we Wouw added a third gold – like Lavreysen – in the 1,000 m Time Trial, setting a world record of 1:03.652 in the qualifying and another – 1:03.121 – in the final, winning by more than a second and a half!

In Sunday’s Keirin, van de Wouw had to settle for winning the 7-12 final, as Japan’s Sato won the gold over Emma Finucane (GBR: +0.049).

The Dutch distance star Lorena Wiebes had already defended her Scratch Race title, but added the Omnium for her third career Worlds gold, scoring 136 points and winning three of the four events. Marion Borras (FRA) was second at 127 and Amalie Didericksen (DEN: 120) got her second medal of the meet in third. Megan Jastrab of the U.S. was 15th.

Britain scored golds in the Individual Pursuit, with defending champ Anna Morris defeating teammate Josie Knight in the final, with American star Chloe Dygert taking third for her 10th career Worlds medal. In the Madison final, star Katie Archibald teamed with Madelaine Leech to win over France’s Borras and Victoire Berteau, 30-24. For Archibald, it was her 17th career Worlds medal (7-7-3).

In the Points Race, Mexico’s Yareli Acevedo got her first career Worlds medal with a 63-58 win over Morris and Bryony Botha (NZL: 56).

The overall medal standings showed Britain with 14 medals (4-8-2) and the Dutch with nine golds and 13 total (9-2-2). No other country had more than five; the U.S. finished with three (0-1-2).

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SWIMMING: World Aquatics World Cup ends in Toronto with WR orgy; Douglass’ stunning 100 m Free world record (49.93) is first ever under 50!

By
Rich Perelman
-
American swim star Kate Douglass (Photo: Team USA).

★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★

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≡ TORONTO WORLD CUP ≡

The final installment of the three-meet World Aquatics World Cup series – in 25 m, short-course pools – was in Toronto (CAN) with a sensational eight world (short course) records set over the three days:

Thursday:
● Men/200 m Backstroke: 1:45.12, Hubert Kos (HUN)
● Men/100 m Butterfly: 47.68, Josh Liendo (CAN)

Friday:
● Women/200 m Freestyle: 1:49.36, Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS)

Saturday:
● Men/100 m Backstroke: 48.16, Hubert Kos (HUN)
● Men/200 m Breaststroke: 1:59.52, Caspar Corbeau (NED)
● Women/100 m Freestyle: 49.93, Kate Douglass (USA)
● Women/800 m Freestyle: 7:54.00, Lani Pallister (AUS)
● Women/200 m Backstroke: 1:57.33, Kaylee McKeown (AUS)

Douglass erased the women’s 100 m Free world mark by the legendary Cate Campbell (AUS) at the Westmont stop, then became the first woman ever under 50 seconds with a 49.93 masterpiece, beating second-place O’Callaghan by almost second (50.82)!

Still just 23, Douglass has said she isn’t sure about continuing to 2028, but wanted to see what she could really do in this World Cup series. Remember, her individual Olympic medals have come in the 200 m Breast and 200 m Medley and her Worlds medals in the same strokes, save for a 2024 Worlds silver in the 50 m Free. Does she think she’s a sprinter now?

Meanwhile, O’Callaghan got her second world record in two meets in the 200 m Free, taking 0.41 from her Westmont record of 1:49.77. It also earned her a Triple Crown in the event.

Australian teammate Pallister won the 800 m Free Triple Crown and demolished the 2022 world record by American Katie Ledecky of 7:57.42, winning by a Ledecky-like 15.69 seconds!

The best rivalry in the World Cup was the Backstroke war between Olympic champ McKeown and American Regan Smith, also a former World Champion. On Saturday, McKeown took another win in a world mark of 1:57.33, pushed all the way by Smith, who touched in 1:57.86, also under McKeown’s Westmont mark of 1:57.87.

Kos, the Olympic 200 m Back gold medalist, got world records on Thursday and Saturday and won the triple-triple with Triple Crowns in the 50-100-200 m events. His Saturday 100 m Back record took American Coleman Stewart of the U.S. (48.33 in 2021) out of the record book.

Dutch Breaststroke star Corbeau, who swam at Texas, won the Paris 2024 200 m Breast bronze, and became the first ever under two minutes at 1:59.52, crushing Russian Kirill Prigoda’s mark of 2:00.16 from 2018.

Those were the boldest headlines, but there were also 26 “Triple Crown” possibilities going into Toronto, for swimmers trying to sweep all three meets in the same event. There were 23 Triple Crown winners out of the 26 in all, each of whom got a $10,000 bonus; 14 triples came on the final two days of the meet:

Friday:
● Men/50 m Back: Hubert Kos (HUN: 22.67)
● Men/200 m Fly: Ilya Kharun (CAN: 1:49.71)
● Men/200 m Medley: Shaine Casas (USA: 1:49.79)

● Women/200 m Free: Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS: 1:49.36 WR)
● Women/100 m Breast: Kate Douglass (USA: 1:02.93)
● Women/50 m Fly: Gretchen Walsh (USA: 23.91)

Saturday:
● Men/200 m Free: Luke Hobson (USA: 1:39.94)
● Men/100 m Back: Hubert Kos (HUN: 48.16 WR)
● Men/200 m Breast: Caspar Corbeau (NED: 1:59.52 WR)
● Men/50 m Fly: Ilya Kharun (CAN: 21.80)

● Women/100 m Free: Kate Douglass (USA: 49.93 WR)
● Women/200 m Back: Kaylee McKeown (AUS: 1:57.33 WR)
● Women/100 m Fly: Gretchen Walsh (USA: 53.10)
● Women/200 m Medley: Alex Walsh (USA: 2:04.01)

On Friday, six Triple Crowns were clinched, but two were broken up. U.S. sprint star Jack Alexy lost in the final of the men’s 100 m Free to Josh Liendo (CAN), 45.30 to 45.55, and Australian Backstroke machine McKeown edged American star Smith in the women’s 100 m Back, 54.49 to 54.57. For McKeown, it’s a lifetime (short course) best; she remains the no. 2 performance (behind Smith) all-time and this was the no. 5 performance ever. Smith’s was no. 8.

On Saturday, all nine Crown-eligibles won their events. Casas, who won the 200 m Medley Triple Crown, swept all three men’s Medleys (100-200-400 m) in Toronto. Corbeau swept the Breaststroke events, taking the 100 on Thursday, the 50 on Friday and the world record in the 200 on Saturday.

The Walsh sisters earned Triple Crowns in three events between them!

Beyond the rewriting of the record book, there was big money on the line for the top-scoring swimmers in the series. With her historic world record in the 100 Free, U.S. star Douglass overtook teammate Gretchen Walsh, 177.5 to 177.3, earning $100,000 to $70,000 for Walsh. McKeown was third overall (173.3), earning $30,000, then teammate Pallister (171.0: $15,000).

World-record setter Kos won the men’s title with 175.8 points, followed by Casas (171.2), then Corbeau (171.0) and Kharun (169.2).

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GYMNASTICS: Analysis reveals good U.S. showing at Artistic Worlds, with most men’s golds since 2003, as Whittenburg, Malone win Rings and Horizontal Bar

By
Rich Perelman
-
American star Brody Malone, two-time World Horizontal Bar gold medalist (Photo: USA Gymnastics).

★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★

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≡ WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS ≡

This was the year the U.S. was going to have a hard time at the World Artistic Championships, unfortunately held in Jakarta (INA), which made headlines that will continue for years after the Indonesian government refused to allow Israel to compete.

For the American teams – men and women – only Brody Malone returned from the bronze-medal-winning Paris team. None of the U.S. women returned at all from the superstar 2024 team that won seven medals, including the team gold.

So? Instead of a flop, the U.S. ended up with five medals (2-2-1), the same as three of the prior four post-Olympic Worlds, when the Team events are not held:

● 2021: 5 (1-1-3)
● 2017: 5 (1-3-1)
● 2013: 12 (3-6-3)
● 2009: 5 (2-1-2)
● 2005: 9 (4-4-1)

The American women’s squad suffered the loss of U.S. All-Around champion (and Paris alternate) Hezly Rivera to injury as well as emerging star Claire Pease, 16, who was the U.S. runner-up on Vault in her first senior nationals in 2025 and won a FIG World Cup on Beam.

So it was the men who picked up the slack, producing two golds and a bronze, while the women earned one silver and one bronze.

The men’s wins came from veteran Donnell Whittenburg on Rings and Malone on the Horizontal Bar. It’s the first time for two American men’s golds in the same Worlds since Paul Hamm won the All-Around and tied for the Floor Exercise title since 2003, when the meet was held in Anaheim, California! Before that, you’re back to 1979 and three golds for Kurt Thomas (Floor and Horizontal Bar) and Bart Conner (Parallel Bars). Details:

● Whittenburg, 31, was in his sixth Worlds, with his prior best on Rings of eighth in 2022. But he was a four-time U.S. champion, although only third in 2025. But he dominated in Jakarta, with the highest difficulty score of 6.000 and the third-best execution score of 8.700 to total 14.700, well ahead of Turkey’s 2022 World Champion Adem Asil (14.566) and China’s 2022 World Champion Xingyu Lan (14.500).

Whittenburg broke all kinds of records for age, passing Thomas as the oldest U.S. men to win a Worlds golds; Thomas was 23 in 1979. Moreover, he’s the oldest American Worlds medalist ever, well past Paul O’Neill (1994 Rings silver), who was 28.

It’s Whittenburg’s third career Worlds medal, after a Team bronze in 2014 and an individual bronze on Vault in 2015.

● Malone, 25, was less of a surprise, having won the Horizontal Bar gold at the 2022 Worlds and was the lone Paris Olympian returning. The key to his win was again having the highest difficulty (6.400) and he tied for the best score in execution (8.533) and totaled 14.933. He beat All-Around champ Daiki Hashimoto (JPN: 14.733) and Britain’s Joe Fraser (14.700), the 2019 Worlds Parallel Bars gold medalist.

For Malone, it’s his third career Worlds medal, also including a 2021 bronze on the Horizontal Bar.

In the other men’s events, China took two wins, with Yanming Hong scoring 14.600 on Pommel Horse to edge Mamikon Khachatryan (ARM: also 14.600) on better execution, with Patrick Hoopes of the U.S. winning bronze at 14.566), his first Worlds medal. Jingyuan Zou, China’s two-time Olympic champ on Parallel Bars, won his fourth Worlds gold in the event at 15.300, ahead of Japan’s Tomoharu Tsunogai (14.500). Whittenburg placed fifth at 14.233.

Carlos Yulo (PHI) was dazzling in Paris with Olympic wins on Floor and Vault and he was back for both in Jakarta. He won the Vault (also in 2021) at 14.866, ahead of Artur Davtyan (ARM: 14.833), but Britain’s Jake Jarman, the 2023 Vault World Champion led a U.K. 1-2, scoring 14.866 to 14.666 for teammate Luke Whitehouse. Yulo picked up the bronze at 14.533, with Kam Nelson of the U.S. fourth at 14.133.

The American ended with five finalists in the six events and three medals, despite losing Asher Hong, the U.S. men’s 2025 All-Around-Floor-Rings-Vault champion, to injury.

The U.S. women started well with a silver for Leanne Wong in the All-Around, repeating her 2021 Worlds silver. There were American finalists in all four apparatus finals, who earned one medal.

That was from Joscelyn Roberson on Vault, who scored an average of 13.983, behind All-Around winner Angelina Melnikova (RUS “neutral”) and Lia Monica Fontaine (CAN: 14.033). Algeria’s Olympic Uneven Bars winner Kaylia Nemour won her first Worlds gold, scoring 15.566, way ahead of Melnikova (14.500) and Fanyuwei Yang (CHN: 14.500). American Skye Blakely was fourth at 14.333.

On Beam, Qingying Zhang (CHN), the A-A bronzer, took the Beam at 15.166 ahead of Nemour (14.330) and Japan’s Akio Sugihara (14.166). Dulcy Caylor of the U.S. – age 17, in her first Worlds – placed eighth at 11.800. Sugihara won on Floor, scoring 13.833 to edge Britain’s Ruby Evans (13.666) and Abigail Martin (13.466). Caylor, in her third final of the meet, was sixth at 12.966.

The two medals for the American women was the worst since 2001 (0-0-2 then), but there were also three-medal performances in 2002 and 2021.

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SWIMMING: Toronto World Cup finale starts with world records by Hungary’s Hubert Kos and Canadian Josh Liendo!

By
Rich Perelman
-
Olympic and World Champion Hubert Kos (HUN) (Photo: Aniko Kovacs for World Aquatics).

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≡ SWIMMING WORLD CUP ≡

The third and final World Aquatics World Cup in Toronto (CAN) got off to a hot start on Thursday evening, with two world records:

● Men/200 m Backstroke: Hungary’s Olympic champion, Hubert Kos, came in having won the first two legs of the series and finished with the “Triple Crown” and a world record of 1:45.12. That bettered the 1:45.63 by Australian star Mitch Larkin in 2015 and Kos won by more than two seconds over Italian star Thomas Ceccon (1:47.49), who set a national record and is now no. 9 all-time.

● Men/100 m Butterfly: Swiss Noe Ponti, the 2024 World Short-Course champ, came in trying for a Triple Crown in Toronto, but Canadian Josh Liendo – the Paris 2024 silver man – got to the touch first in a world record time of 47.68. That improved on Ponti’s 47.71 from 2024; he finished third in 48.48 with Ilya Kharun (CAN: 48.35) in second.

Ponti was the only “Triple Crown” that didn’t happen on Thursday as the other seven were completed (eight of nine in all):

● Men/100 m Medley: Shaine Casas (USA: 50.28)

● Women/50 m Free: Kasia Wasick (POL: 23.21)
● Women/400 m Free: Lani Pallister (AUS: 3:51.87)
● Women/50 m Back: Kaylee McKeown (AUS: 25.35)
● Women/200 m Breast: Kate Douglass (USA: 2:13.45)
● Women/200 m Fly: Regan Smith (USA: 2:00.34)
● Women/100 m Medley: Gretchen Walsh (USA: 55.99)

Each of the Triple Crown winners received a $10,000 bonus; Liendo got a $2,500 bonus for being a “Crown buster,” Both world-record setters earned $10,000 bonuses. McKeown touched ahead of U.S. star Walsh in the 50 m Back, 25.35 to 25.40.

The other event winners included Liendo, who got a second victory in the men’s 50 m Free, beating American sprint star Jack Alexy, 20.31 to 20.70. Caspar Corbeau (NED: 55.55) won the men’s 100 m Breast over Olympic star Adam Peaty (GBR: 56.59), and the men’s 400 m Free was a U.S. 1-2 for Carson Foster (3:36.52) and Kieran Smith (3:37.28).

The World Cup continues on Friday and Saturday; the U.S. broadcast is on NBC’s Peacock streaming service.

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PANORAMA: No Russians or Belarusians at Winter Paralympics; alpine World Cup opener has Shiffrin looking for win 102; Coughlin leaves USA Swim Board

By
Rich Perelman
-
U.S. gymnastics star Leanne Wong earned her second Worlds All-Around silver at the 2025 World Championships (Photo: USA Gymnastics).

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Games ● The International Olympic Committee updated its prior report on venues used at the Olympic and Winter Games, reporting that 86% of the 982 permanent “venues that have hosted medal events, opening and closing ceremonies, and Olympic villages across 53 editions of the Games, from Athens 1896 to Beijing 2022″ are still in use today.

The 33 sites from the Tokyo 2020 Games and 16 from the Beijing 2022 Winter Games have continued in operation.

● Winter Paralympic Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● Although the International Paralympic Committee agreed to reinstate the Russian and Belarusian Paralympic Committee, it turns out that none of their athletes will compete in the Milan Cortina Paralympic Games:

“[T]he IPC has received confirmation from each of the four international federations with sports on the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games programme – the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), International Biathlon Union (IBU), World Curling and World Para Ice Hockey – that, in practice, no athletes from the two nations are likely to qualify for March’s Games.”

The International Biathlon Union, International Ski & Snowboard Federation (FIS) and World Curling have all barred Russia and Belarus from their competitions. While the International Ice Hockey Federation allows Russia and Belarus to participate per the IPC decision in September, it is too late for either to qualify a team for Milan Cortina.

● U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee ● The USOPC named Koby Langley as its new Chief Operating Officer, to “serve as a key executive partner to the CEO, providing operational leadership and oversight across strategic planning, finance, information technology, procurement, and facilities management.” He will start on 10 November.

Langley’s career has been closely tied to the U.S. military and to serving veterans, including as litigation counsel for the U.S. Army, as a Senior Adviser in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, as Director of Veteran, Wounded Warrior, and Military Family Engagement in The White House in 2014-15. He is currently with the American Red Cross, currently as a Division Vice President for the northeastern U.S.

● Alpine Skiing ● The FIS World Cup season opens, as usual, with the Soelden Giant Slalom in Austria this weekend, with American star Mikaela Shiffrin looking for her 102nd World Cup win and her third win on the famed Rettenbach glacier after victories in 2014 and 2021.

Of her 101 total wins, 22 are in the Giant Slalom and she has won 43 World Cup medals in the event.

She told reporters this week that she plans to limit her World Cup entries leading into the Olympic Winter Games mostly to the Giant Slalom and Slalom. She will not race any Downhills and will enter the Super-G on 14 December in St. Moritz (SUI) as a trial to see if she will do any more.

“I’m feeling skeptical that I’m going to be able to expect to balance it all. … I’ve been to Games where I skied six events. I skied all of the events and it was a wonderful experience; wouldn’t do it again. It was exhausting for multiple years after the fact.”

Injured Italian star Federica Brignone and Norway’s Alexander Steen Olsen won the Soelden races last year; Lara Gut-Behrami (SUI) won in 2023, but the men’s race was canceled due to bad weather.

World Cup races are broadcast in the U.S. by NBC on its Peacock streaming service.

● Cycling ● At the 2025 UCI World Track Championships in Santiago (CHI), Dutch superstar Harrie Lavreysen followed up on his Paris 2024 Olympic win in the Keirin with his fourth career Worlds gold.

The Worlds winner in 2020-21-22, he won with a 9.901 final lap and a 0.107-second edge on Leigh Hoffman (AUS) and 0.187 on Dutch teammate Jeffrey Hoogland. Hoffman won his fifth career Worlds medal, but his first individual medal, while Hoogland claimed his 22nd (!) career Worlds medal and third in the Keirin (silvers in 2021 and 2022).

The men’s 40-lap Scratch race was a victory for German Moritz Augenstein, ahead of Yanne Dorenbos (NED) and Iuri Peitao (POR). Grant Koontz of the U.S. was seventh, leading with three laps to go and then involved in the mass finish.

Two-time defending World Champion Denmark won a third straight men’s Team Pursuit gold with a win over Australia in the final, 3:43.915 to 3:47.256. New Zealand won the bronze, 3:48.877 to 3:49.799 over the U.S. squad of Ashlin Barry, Koontz, Graeme Frislie and Anders Johnson. It’s the best U.S. finish since a bronze in 1995.

In the women’s Elimination Race – twice re-started for crashes – Ireland’s Lara Gillespie was the winner, ahead of British star Katie Archibald (her 15th career Worlds medal!) and Helene Hesters (BEL); Megan Jastrab was the top American, in 10th. It’s Gillespie’s second career Worlds medal after a Points bronze in 2024.

The women’s Team Pursuit was won by last year’s bronze winner Italy, who defeated Germany in the final by 4:09.569 to 4:09.951. Defending champ Britain won the bronze, 4:12.380 to 4:18.675 for Belgium.

● Football ● The U.S. women faced Portugal in the first of a two-game friendly series in Chester, Pennsylvania and got the lead after 33 seconds, as star forward Rose Lavelle took hold of a pass into the middle of the box from striker Catarina Macario and smashed it into the net for a 1-0 lead.

Portugal found its footing and started creating chances and got the equalizer in the 41st, as a perfect corner from midfielder Kika Nazareth found defender Diana Gomes for a header that flew into the U.S. net. Portugal had 58% possession in the half and a 4-3 edge on shots. 

The U.S. turned up the pressure in the second half and had a 13-3 advantage on shots, but could not score. A Portugal corner turned into a shot from midfielder Fatima Pinto that was blocked, but Pinto then found the net with a right-footed shot that made it 2-1 and that was the final. Portugal had 51% possession and the American 16-7 shots edge went for naught.

The re-match will be Sunday (26th) in East Hartford, Connecticut.

● Gymnastics ● They say lightning never strikes twice in the same spot, but it did on Thursday in Jakarta (INA) at the FIG World Artistic Championships in the women’s All-Around.

Russian “neutral” Angelina Melnikova, the 2021 women’s All-Around winner, won again with American Leanne Wong – second in 2021 – winning the silver again. Even with a fall on Beam, Melnikova totaled 55.066 points, with Wong at 54.966. Qingying Zhang (CHN) took the bronze at 54.633; American Dulcy Caylor fell on the Uneven Bars and scored 51.532 for 13th.

There was controversy, of course; The Associated Press reported:

“Melnikova, who struggled on floor exercise during qualifying, appeared to have both of her heels land out of bounds during her first tumbling pass, a major deduction. She recovered to put together a clean and dynamic routine and her score included just a one-tenth deduction for stepping out, indicating judges believed only one foot landed out of bounds.

“Had the judges ruled that both of her feet stepped onto the colored carpet that serves as the border, she would have been docked three-tenths of a point, which would have put Wong in first.”

Wong won on Vault (14.466) and was seventh in the Uneven Bars, third on Beam and sixth on Floor. Algeria’s Olympic Bars champ Kaylia Nemour won that event (15.166), Zhang scored best on Beam (14.833) and Aiko Sugihara (JPN: 13.666).

Hezly Rivera, the 2025 U.S. A-A champion, had to skip the Worlds due to injury. Wong won her fifth career Worlds medal (2-2-1).

● Swimming ● In a surprise, USA Swimming announced that 12-time Olympic medal winner Natalie Coughlin, 43, the federation Board Chair since the beginning of October, will step down as of 5 November.

Coughlin had been on the USA Swimming Board since 2016, elected as Board Vice Chair in November 2023 and elevated to Chair this month, replacing Chris Brearton. Now she’s leaving; she said in the announcement:

“I have complete confidence in Kevin Ring’s vision for the future of USA Swimming and Greg Meehan’s leadership of the National Team, and I believe this is the right moment in time for me to step aside. While I will continue to volunteer and support the swimming community, I am excited to focus on my family and being a swim mom to my two young kids.”

Beyond swimming and family, Coughlin is also a partner in Gaderian Wines in St. Helena, California. The announcement noted:

“USA Swimming’s Athlete Advisory Council will appoint an athlete to fulfill the remainder of Coughlin’s term and the Board of Directors will elect a new Board Chair in the coming weeks.”

The Aquatics Integrity Unit banned American Master swimmer Hannah Caldas for five years “from 18 October 2025 to 18 October 2030, due to violations of the World Aquatics Integrity Code, the Policy on Eligibility for the Men’s and Women’s Competition Categories and the Operational Requirements to the Policy.”

New York Aquatics issued a statement on Caldas’ behalf that included:

“During the investigation, World Aquatics required Ms. Caldas to undergo a genetic or chromosomal test – at her own expense – to ‘prove’ compliance with the organization’s ‘chromosomal sex’ requirement under its Gender Policy to take part in the older-adult recreational World Aquatics Masters competition. This test was required even after Ms. Caldas provided World Aquatics with her birth certificate identifying her as female.

“‘Chromosomal tests are invasive and expensive procedures,’ Ms. Caldas said. ‘My insurance refuses to cover such a test because it is not medically necessary. No U.S. state requires genetic tests for recreational sports events like these. Not even U.S. Masters Swimming, the national governing body for recreational adult swimming in the U.S., demands this for any of its events.’”

A story in Britain’s Daily Mail identified Caldas, 47, as transgender, but the AIU and New York Aquatics statements did not mention it.

● Taekwondo ● At the World Taekwondo General Assembly in Wuxi (CHN), Korean Dr. Chungwon Choue was elected to a sixth and final term as President, through 2029. Running unopposed, he received 143 of 149 possible votes (five against, one abstention). He has served as the head of the federation since 2004.

There were two Americans elected to the World Taekwondo Council: Inseon Kim and Richard Jay Warwick. Reunion and Saint Pierre & Miquelon were approved as Associate Members of the federation, raising the total membership to 215. The 2025 World Championships will begun on Friday, with a record 991 athletes from 179 federations registered to compete.

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ATHLETICS: Women’s marathon world-record holder Chepngetich admits to “unintentional” doping, gets three-year suspension anyway

By
Rich Perelman
-
Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich, the new women’s world-record holder at 2:09:56 in Chicago, on 13 October 2024! (Photo: Bank of America Chicago Marathon)

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≡ CHEPNGETICH SUSPENDED ≡

“Women’s marathon world record-holder, Ruth Chepng’etich, has been banned for three years by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), after admitting to Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) regarding the presence and use of Hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ).”

That’s from the Thursday announcement by the Athletics Integrity Unit, which explained in detail the circumstances:

● “The 31-year-old Kenyan, a former World marathon champion and a three-time winner of the Chicago Marathon, accepted the charges and sanction following a positive test for the banned diuretic from a sample on 14 March this year and a subsequent AIU investigation into the circumstances.”

● “Whilst diuretics are known to be abused by athletes to mask the presence in urine of other Prohibited Substances, HCTZ has also been identified as a potential contaminant in pharmaceutical products. It has been ascribed by WADA a minimum reporting limit of 20ng/ml, below which a positive test should not be reported. An estimated concentration of 3800ng/mL of HCTZ was found in the positive urine sample of Chepng’etich.”

● “[O]n 11 July 2025, Chepng’etich was confronted with evidence acquired from her mobile telephone indicating a reasonable suspicion that her positive test may have been intentional. She was also informed that all the supplements and medications that had been taken for analysis had been reported by a WADA-accredited laboratory as negative for HCTZ. Chepngetich maintained her position at this second interview that she could not explain the positive test and that she had never doped.”

● “On 31 July 2025, Chepng’etich changed her previous explanation. She wrote to the AIU to state that she now recalled that she had taken ill two days before the positive test and she had taken her housemaid’s medication as treatment, without taking any steps to verify if it contained a prohibited substance. She stated that she had forgotten to disclose this incident to the AIU investigators. She sent a photo of the medication blister pack which clearly marked the medication as being ‘Hydrochlorothiazide’.”

The AIU stated that it found “her new explanation to be hardly credible,” and not only imposed the standard two-year ban for HCTZ, but:

“To the contrary, the ADR treats the type of recklessness described by Chepng’etich in taking her housemaid’s medication as being indirect intent, for which an increased four-year sanction applies.”

Because Chepngetich accepted the penalty within 20 days of notification, she received a one-year reduction in the ban.

That means she is banned for three years from 19 April 2025 and would be technically eligible for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, which begins on 14 July. Her results are nullified from 14 March 2025; her last race was on 9 March, second place at the Lisbon Half.

Her world record of 2:09:56 at the Chicago Marathon from 2024 continues in force and her wins at the 2019 World Championships and her nine wins in 15 career marathons are unaffected.

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GYMNASTICS: Indonesian IOC member accepts country’s ban on hosting events for barring Israel; FIG said it had no choice but to continue

By
Rich Perelman
-
Indonesian Gymnastics Federation President Ita Yuliati, FIG President Morinari Watanabe (JPN) and Secretary General Nicolas Buompane (SUI) (l-r) at the pre-World Championships news conference on 18 October 2025 in Jakarta (Image: GymCastic podcast video screen shot).

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≡ INDONESIA BANS ISRAEL ≡

Following the 10 October announcement by the Indonesian government that it would not issue entry visas for the Israeli team to compete at the 2025 FIG World Artistic Championships in Jakarta, The Times of Israel reported:

“Raja Sapta Oktohari, head of the national Olympic committee, said Indonesia was ready to accept any consequences for blocking the Israeli athletes from competing.

“‘We will review the consequences after the event,’ he said.”

That sentiment was confirmed by Erick Thohir, the Indonesian Minister of Youth and Sports who is also a member of the International Olympic Committee since 2019. He wrote on X on Thursday:

“We at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, as representatives of the Indonesian Government, adhere to the principle of maintaining security, public order, and public interest in every international event organized. This step is in accordance with the provisions of applicable laws and regulations. This principle is also based on the 1945 Constitution, which respects security and public order, as well as the obligation of the Indonesian Government to uphold world order.

“On that basis, Indonesia has taken steps to avoid the arrival of the Israeli delegation at the Gymnastics World Championships. We understand that this decision carries consequences, wherein as long as Indonesia cannot accept the presence of Israel, the IOC has decided that Indonesia cannot host world championships, Olympic events, Youth Olympic Games, and other activities under the Olympic umbrella.

“The Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Government remain committed to preparing a blueprint for national sports development, including strengthening 17 flagship sports and building a national team training center. Indonesia will continue to play an active role in various sports events at the Southeast Asian, Asian, and global levels, so that Indonesian sports can serve as an ambassador and a reflection of the nation’s strength in the eyes of the world.”

Translation: Oktohari was right; Indonesia is not concerned with the consequences of refusing Israeli participation at the World Championships.

From the point of view of the Indonesian organizers and the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique, the issue is not Israel’s right to compete but concerns over public rioting over Israel’s participation.

FIG Secretary General Nicolas Buompane (SUI) was clear about this. Asked at the pre-Championships news conference last Saturday (18th) why this possibility was not taken into account beforehand, since Indonesia had stridently refused Israeli participation as recently as the 2023 ANOC World Beach Games (the event was canceled) and the 2023 FIFA men’s U-20 World Cup (event moved to Argentina). Buompane stunningly answered:

“When it comes to it, it was previsible not that much in our sense.

“Okay, we know that there is no relationship if I may say so between both countries. But at the same time when the bid has been allocated to Indonesia, we receive a confirmation from the government and this is part of the bidding process mentioning that all participants will be granted with a visa and it was the case until the 9th of October.

“Everybody got their visa and suddenly because of these threats [for riots] and all this they had to change their mind for security reason.”

He was then asked about the FIG regulations, which require all qualified athletes to be able to enter, specifically Articles 26.3 and 26.4:

● “The organisation of events is entrusted, with advance notice, to Member Federations which fully guarantee that the Statutes and Regulations of the FIG will be observed together with the terms of the contract which they are obliged to enter into with the FIG. The preparation and conduct of the competitive programme is under the control of the FIG.”

● “Entry visas must be granted to the gymnasts/athletes and to the officials of all Member Federations. In the event that this requirement is not fulfilled, the allocation of the event would be cancelled with immediate effect by the Executive Committee.”

Buompane answered:

“Well, indeed, but as I said, we are focusing on this specific article. We would have loved to be able to respect it. But then you have other articles which speak also about security – force majeure – impossibility to cancel or to relocate at such a short notice.

“So that has to be taken into consideration. So what should we do? If we just take into account the article you just mentioned, we should tell them, you know, guys go home. Go home. So is that the answer to such a question? You know, we have been talking about this with our politician, with many stakeholders. I will not mention all of them because the list would be too long, but at the end of the day, the only way was just to go for it.

“So violation in a way, but we have a defense on that too, because once again you cannot just extract one article which is the one everybody’s pointing out at in this moment in time. There are others that will help us to defend ourselves because once again it’s not our decision, and we would love – contrary to that decision – to have everybody here on site, but again not possible as of today.”

The IOC made its unhappiness clear on its Wednesday statement, ending any discussions about Indonesian hosting future Olympic-related events and asking International Federations to do the same.

Both Indonesia and the FIG will get their chance to try their arguments out on the IOC in a forthcoming meeting in Lausanne, requested by the IOC on Wednesday.

Observed: So now we have the positions of Indonesia and the FIG that the championships are much more important than having Israel compete, due to possible rioting.

The IOC is not likely to be impressed, and beyond its stated request “that the International Federations include guarantees on access to the respective country for all athletes in their hosting agreements for any Olympic qualification competition around the world,” it can ensure compliance by the IFs.

How? By requiring adherence to this principle as a precondition to receiving a share of the IOC’s television rights fees from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games and beyond. With more than half of the International Federations essentially dependent on IOC television money for survival, this audit requirement will instantly insert a new question into every bid for every IF event (and urgent requests for an answer to all existing event hosts):

“Please list any countries with which your national government does not have diplomatic relations.”

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SWIMMING: More world records on tap for World Cup finale in Toronto? There are 23 “triple crowns” on the line and the $100,000 series titles!

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ WORLD CUP III ≡

The return of the World Aquatics World Cup to the U.S. for the first time since 2022 and beyond that since 2006, has been a rousing success, with a continuing attack on the short-course (25 m) world-record lists in the first two meets, in Carmel, Indiana (program cover shown above) and Westmont, Illinois.

The finale of the three-meet series starts Thursday in Toronto (CAN), with world records set or tied in five women’s events so far:

● Women/100 m Free: 50.19, Kate Douglass (USA)
● Women/200 m Free: 1:49.77, Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS)
● Women/100 m Back: 54.02 (=), Regan Smith (USA)
● Women/200 m Back: 1:57.87, Kaylee McKeown (AUS)
● Women/50 m Fly: 23.72, Gretchen Walsh (USA)

But the focus going into Toronto is on 15 swimmers who have a chance to win one or more events at all three stops, in essence a “Triple Crown” (this list compiled by SwimSwam.com):

Men: 7 swimmers and 11 events
● Jack Alexy (USA): 100 Free
● Shaine Casas (USA): 100 Medley, 200 Medley
● Caspar Corbeau (NED): 200 Breast
● Luke Hobson (USA): 200 Free
● Ilya Kharun (CAN): 50 Fly, 200 Fly
● Hubert Kos (HUN): 50 Back, 100 Back, 200 Back
● Noe Ponti (SUI): 100 Fly

Women: 8 swimmers and 15 events
● Kate Douglass (USA): 100 Free, 100 Breast, 200 Breast
● Kaylee McKeown (AUS): 50 Back, 200 Back
● Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS): 200 Free
● Lani Pallister (AUS): 400 Free, 800/1500 Free
● Regan Smith (USA): 100 Back, 200 Fly
● Alex Walsh (USA): 200 Medley
● Gretchen Walsh (USA): 50 Fly, 100 Fly, 100 Medley
● Kasia Wasick (POL): 50 Free

Any swimmer who wins an event at all three meets wins $10,000. A new wrinkle this year is a $2,500 bonus to swimmers who become “crown busters” and break up a sweep.

World Aquatics is paying prize money from each meet for the top-scoring swimmers, men and women, earning from $12,000 down to $4,000. Swimmers also pile up points for the overall World Cup title, with much better pay of $100,000-70,000-30,000-15,000-14,000-12,000-11,000-10,000 for the top eight.

The chase for the overall title is tight:

Men:
● 1. 116.4 points: Hubert Kos (HUN)
● 2. 113.1 points: Ilya Kharun (CAN)
● 3. 112.3 points: Shaine Casas (USA)
● 4. 112.1 points: Caspar Corbeau (NED)
● 5. 107.7 points: Noe Ponti (SUI)

Women:
● 1. 118.1 points: Gretchen Walsh (USA)
● 2. 118.0 points: Kate Douglass (USA)
● 3. 114.4 points: Regan Smith (USA)
● 4. 113.7 points: Kaylee McKeown (AUS)
● 5. 113.5 points: Lani Pallister (AUS)

The meet can be followed on the Omega timing site, and will be shown in the U.S. on NBC’s Peacock streaming service.

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PANORAMA: IBSF weighing next move on Russian eligibility; Russia to sue FIS to compete; official posters unveiled for Milan Cortina 2026

By
Rich Perelman
-
The Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic and Paralympic posters, by Italian designers Olimpia Zagnoli (l) and Carolina Altavilla (r) (Photos: International Olympic Committee).

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Games 2028: Los Angeles ● The continuing battle between business and labor in Los Angeles escalated again on Wednesday as the City Clerk approved the start of a petition drive to collect signatures for an initiative that would repeal the City’s business tax.

This specific tax brings in $805 million annually to the City of Los Angeles’ General Fund and a repeal would throw the City into another financial crisis, further complicating local government. To get the initiative on the June 2026 ballot, promoters must collect 139,497 valid signatures from local voters within 120 days of the official filing date (still to come).

This has nothing to do with the LA28 organizing committee, but could substantially impact the City’s preparations for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games if passed next year.

● Olympic Games 2032: Brisbane ● The Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority (GIICA), set up to manage the government-led venue preparations for the 2032 Olympic Games has approved the Fitzroy River as a suitable site for rowing and flatwater canoeing for the 2032 Games.

The venue had been criticized as unsuitable due to crocodiles in some areas and the impact of currents, but has been used for national rowing training for many years. Queensland Senator Matt Canavan told reporters that the state’s feasibility study was positive:

“Effectively now we have a green light for rowing in 2032. All the data is in – there is no longer any barrier to having the rowing here.”

The site has still not been approved by the International Canoe Federation or World Rowing, but it has passed the first test.

● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● The official posters for the 2026 Milan Cortina Games were unveiled on Wednesday in Milan by artists Olimpia Zagnoli and Carolina Altavilla.

Zagnoli’s design – “Visione Olympica” – shows, in her words, “an eclectic character wearing the Olympic Rings as if they were glasses. In the background are snow-capped mountains. The idea is to emphasize the personality of those participating in the Olympics – both the athletes and those watching – who bring their own vibe to the event.”

Altavilla’s poster, untitled, “is to be able to visualise inclusion in sports, fostering the Paralympic spirit and generating a positive impact globally. The poster symbolizes the support among participants and the importance of being mindful of creating safe spaces for the development of others, highlighting the athletes’ determination, both in and out of competition.”

Both are now on sale and will ship in early November.

● Alpine Skiing ● Italy’s Marta Bassino, a two-time Olympian, two-time World Champion and the 2023 Super-G winner, suffered “a lateral fracture of the tibial plateau in her left leg” in a training crash in Val Senales (ITA). Now 29, she is due to be operated on and her recovery in time for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games is doubtful.

Fellow Italian Federica Brignone, a star in the Downhill, Super-G and Giant Slalom, tore up her left leg in a crash at the Italian championships in April and has not returned to skiing yet.

● Athletics ● USA Track & Field re-arranged its relay coaching program for 2025 and it paid dividends at the World Athletics Championships with four wins in five events, the only loss in the men’s 4×400 m by 0.07 to Botswana.

Wallace Spearmon, himself a Worlds gold medalist on the U.S. men’s 4×100 m at the 2007 Worlds, told The Associated Press that a different approach was taken:

“We sent out depth charts so people knew exactly where they would run. We made sure athletes weren’t competing for a spot in the final. We said, ‘This is the order, this is your job, you handle your job and if you don’t like your job, then don’t get on the plane.’”

Spearmon explained that the relay orders were set well before the meet. But that did not mean they stayed consistent. The U.S. changed three of its four men’s 4×100 team members from the heats to the final, all four for the men’s 4×400 final, one for the women’s 4×100 m, all four for the women’s 4×400 and none for the Mixed 4×400. But it worked.

● Bobsled & Skeleton ● While the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation’s independent appeals tribunal ordered the federation to follow the International Olympic Committee’s regulations regarding Russian and Belarusian “neutrals” competing in Olympic qualifying events, the federation told the Russian news agency TASS on Wednesday:

“The IBSF Executive Committee discussed the organization’s appeals tribunal’s decision and the IOC’s compliance with the tribunal’s criteria. Further steps will be developed in the coming days.”

The federation could appeal the decision of its tribunal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

● Cycling ● The 122nd edition of the UCI World Track Championships opened in Santiago (CHI) on Wednesday, with Dutch star and defending champion Lorena Wiebes taking the opening event, the women’s 40-lap (10 km) Scratch Race over 2018 Worlds bronzer Amalie Dideriksen (DEN) and Prudence Fowler (NZL). Bethany Ingram was the American finisher, in ninth.

The Dutch scored again in the women’s Team Sprint, moving up from second in 2024 and defeating Olympic and World Champion Great Britain in the final, 45.743 to 46.003. It’s the first-ever Netherlands win in this event at the World Championships. Australia won the bronze over Poland, 46.773 to 48.033.

The Netherlands completed their first-day sweep with an expected win in the men’s Team Sprint with the familiar trio of Jeffrey Hoogland, Harrie Lavreysen and Roy van den Berg winning in 41.691 over Great Britain (42.060). Australia took another bronze, over France, 42.611 to 42.861.

For the Dutch trio, this continues their amazing run of golds in the Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 Olympic Games, and the World Championships in 2019-20-21–23-24-25 with a second in 2022. Lavreysen was also on the 2018 Worlds winning team and won a silver in 2017. Hoogland won silver at the Worlds in 2016 and 2017 as well. Amazing!

● Figure Skating ● Canada’s 42-year-old 2024 Pairs World Champion Deanna Stellato-Dudek said after her second-place finish at the Grand Prix of France last week with 33-year-old partner Maxime Deschamps:

“I’ve had that idea for a long time. Last year the ISU just allowed backflips and Adam Siao Him Fa [FRA] has done it and Ilia Malinin [USA] is on it but none of the women have done it. I wanted to show that the girls play the backflip game just as good as the boys. It is important to me.”

Yep! An ISU feature explained:

“She backflips from her partner’s chest. No pairs team has done that kind of assisted backflip before in international competition. Backflips became legal in ISU events in the 2024/25 season again following a rule change after being banned for decades.”

Stellato-Dudek was the perfect candidate for the trick, thanks to her years of gymnastics training before she took to the ice. The flip is now part of their programs going forward.

● Football ● FIFA announced a five-year collaboration agreement with the Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI) federations of trade unions for “joint inspections, training, and reporting to promote decent and safe working conditions for all workers involved in the construction and renovation of stadiums and other infrastructure linked to FIFA tournaments” through 2030.

The BWI was involved with FIFA in the construction effort leading to the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, and human rights activists have been critical of FIFA’s award of the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia, concerned over construction worker abuse, pay and living conditions.

● Gymnastics ● At the FIG Artistic World Championships in Jakarta (INA), Wednesday was the men’s All-Around day, with Japan’s Daiki Hashimoto winning his third straight Worlds gold, scoring 85.131 to edge 2021 World Champion Boheng Zhang (CHN: 84.333) and Swiss Noe Seifert (82.831), who won his first Worlds medal at age 26.

Hashimoto had the highest scores on Floor (14.000), Vault (14.466) and Horizontal Bar (14.700). Zhang took the Rings at 14.600 and Seifert was best on Pommel Horse (14.000). Russian “neutral” Daniel Marinov scored best on Parallel Bars (14.700). The U.S. had no finalists as Asher Hong was injured and did not compete in the qualifying.

● Rowing ● The addition of the Beach Sprint to the Olympic program for 2028 has raised interest in this new discipline. World Rowing announced that a record 55 federations have entered the 2025 Beach Sprint Worlds in Antalya (TUR) from 6-9 November.

A total of 342 athletes have been registered for the 10 boat classes. The men’s and women Solo have 40 and 33 entries, respectively – both Olympic events – with 33 for the Mixed Double Sculls.

● Skiing ● Norwegian media reported the vote in the FIS Council on the question of returning Russian and Belarusian athletes to qualifying events for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games was 10 in favor and 12 against.

The expected appeals from the Russian side will be coming, per Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev:

“The FIS has made a negative decision regarding the admission of Russian athletes to international competitions. We consider such actions completely unacceptable and have nothing in common with the principles and values enshrined in the Olympic Charter.

“The Ministry of Sport and the Russian Olympic Committee, in collaboration with our ski federations, will prepare appeals against the FIS Council’s decision.

“Russia’s position has been strengthened by a recent precedent – the court ruling in bobsled – which recognized the discriminatory nature of the suspensions. The appeal will be filed as soon as possible.”

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PARIS 2024: World Anti-Doping Agency observers report on Paris 2024 praises doping control effort, urges more effective coordination in future

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ INDEP. OBSERVERS REPORT ≡

The World Anti-Doping Agency published its 80-page Independent Observers Report for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which saw 4,154 of the 11,408 athletes (36.4%) at the Games tested.

Of these 530 were tested more than once, and across all tests, there were 12 positives reported. Four resulted in bans of 2-4 years, six cases were dismissed for lack of evidence or a Therapeutic Use Exemption in place, one resulted only in a disqualification and one case is still pending.

The six-member observation team made 71 recommendations to strengthen the effectiveness of the doping control program and the coordination of the program on-site. The continuously-repeated problems of a one-time event with staffing, communications, training and coordination with other functions – such as access control, sports and press operations – were present in Paris. Typically:

● “During the Paris Games the [observer] Team observed frequent issues with the location and efficiency of notification zones within venues. This was sometimes caused by sport specific protocols being observed that hindered athlete flows and effective notification of athletes.”

● “The [observer] Team note that key staff in Paris 2024 were hired (in our view) later in the process and despite their dedication and determination the anti-doping program experienced too many logistical issues. These logistical issues make the jobs of sample collection personnel significantly more difficult. At worst, they can jeopardize the careers of athletes if the processes can not be completed properly.”

● “It is perhaps inevitable that to deliver an anti-doping program of the size of the Paris Games, local organizing committees must recruit and rely on a large volunteer workforce to act as ‘chaperones’ during doping control missions.

“Despite often valiant attempts, the [observer] Team is of the view that there were too many issues regarding insufficient numbers of chaperones or those that were appointed who were unsuitable for the role. Specifically, too few numbers of total chaperones were available, there were issues caused by volunteers not turning up for shifts or an incorrect gender mix of chaperones being sent to venues. Issues of limited accreditation hindered a fast response and ability to re-task chaperones between different competition venues.”

In general, the observers were quite impressed by the professionalism of the International Testing Agency staff and of the laboratory work done for the Paris Games.

The report paid special tributes to the Doping Control Officers (DCOs) who directed the on-site program efforts, and, of course, the athletes:

“No sample collection is rarely the same and the success of the entire program hinges on the work of the DCOs. The DCOs were a group of international experts in their field. They perform under pressure and are the real heroes of the anti-doping program. We understand that it is difficult to have WADA IO Team members watching your every move during sample collection sessions. We were honoured to have worked so closely with all of you.

“Your professionalism, attention to detail and dedication to delivering the largest part of the anti-doping program needs special mention. These team members work incredibly long hours, often have to wait for transport to get back to their hotels at all hours of the evening/morning, deal with every kind of logistical issue imaginable, and are generally tired, thirsty and hungry. Continually through the Paris Games we witnessed your professionalism and dedication. You all did such a great job in protecting the integrity of the sample collection processes. Thank you all for doing an outstanding job, for your sense of humour and your incredible dedication and hard work.

“Lastly, but certainly not least, are the group of people who are the reason that we do what we do: the athletes of the Paris Games. We witnessed elation and heartbreak in equal measure. Despite the annoyance of having to interrupt your training, plans or post-event celebrations to sit in a [Doping Control Station] waiting room, you treated the anti-doping staff and [observer] Team members with grace and generosity. We thank you for your part in protecting the integrity of sport and ensuring the anti-doping program could be delivered.”

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GYMNASTICS: IOC Executive Board ends Indonesian Olympic bid talks; tells Indonesian Olympic committee and FIG to come to Lausanne over Israel visa rejections

By
Rich Perelman
-
Olympic House in Lausanne, Switzerland, home of the International Olympic Committee

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≡ THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK ≡

Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and on 28 February 2022, the International Olympic Committee Executive Board recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes not be allowed to participate in international competitions.

The Indonesian announced on 10 October that it would not issue entry visas for the Israeli team to compete at the FIG World Artistic Championships in Jakarta, which began on 19 October. Appeals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport by the Israel Gymnastics Federation were unsuccessful and the IOC said in an unhappy statement on 17 October that it had intervened, but to no avail.

While the IOC’s statement said it would take up the matter at its December Executive Board meeting last Friday, that was determined not to be good enough. On Wednesday (22nd), the IOC issued a stern statement underscoring its anger at the situation. It included:

“In order to avoid similar situations in the future, the IOC EB decided the following:

“● To end any form of dialogue with the NOC of Indonesia about hosting future editions of the Olympic Games, Youth Olympic Games, Olympic events or conferences until such time as the Indonesian government provides the IOC with adequate guarantees that it will allow access to the country for all participants, regardless of nationality, to attend.

“● To recommend to all International Federations not to host any international sports events or meetings in Indonesia until such time as the Indonesian government provides adequate guarantees to the International Federations that it will allow access to the country for all participants, regardless of nationality, to attend.

“● To adapt the Qualification Principles for the Olympic Games, requesting that the International Federations include guarantees on access to the respective country for all athletes in their hosting agreements for any Olympic qualification competition around the world.

“● To request the NOC of Indonesia and the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) to come to the IOC headquarters in Lausanne to discuss the situation that occurred ahead of the 53rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships.”

This places more power behind the IOC’s position that “all eligible athletes, teams and sports officials must be able to take part in international sports competitions and events without any form of discrimination by the host country, in accordance with the Olympic Charter and the fundamental principles of non-discrimination, autonomy and political neutrality that govern the Olympic Movement.”

Indonesia has been talking about hosting more events, possibly the 2036 Olympic Games and were clear that hosting the FIG Worlds was a stepping stone to more such events. As for the impact of the government decision to refuse entry to the Israel delegation – which has been Indonesia’s policy since at least 1962 – the Times of Israel reported comments on the day of the announcement of the cancellation of visas:

“Raja Sapta Oktohari, head of the national Olympic committee, said Indonesia was ready to accept any consequences for blocking the Israeli athletes from competing.

“‘We will review the consequences after the event,’ he said.”

The rejection of the Israeli gymnasts is a political issue for Indonesia, which is a Muslim-majority country which has strongly backed the establishment of a Palestinian state. With six Israeli gymnasts registered to compete at the FIG Worlds – the Indonesian Gymnastics Federation had requested visas for them, but later “withdrew” the request – anti-Israel agitation increased in Indonesia and there were safety concerns.

Two IOC members were involved: Indonesian member Erick Thohir, who is also the country’s Minister of Youth and Sport and publicly supported the visa shutout, and FIG President Morinari Watanabe, whose federation meekly accepted the Indonesian government decision.

Watanabe is also a member of the IOC’s three-person review committee overseeing the “neutrality” status of Russian and Belarusian athletes who are otherwise qualified to compete at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in northern Italy.

Their status is unchanged for now.

Observed: To its credit, the IOC – and new President Kirsty Coventry (ZIM) – recognize the significant threat the Indonesian government’s action presents to the Olympic Movement.

Further to its credit, it did not wait until December to do something about it. It has started the sanctions ball rolling and there will be more sanctions to come.

If the IOC is going to enforce anything, it has to enforce its stance on political neutrality, not just with Indonesia, but importantly – as it stated today – with the International Federations, who award these championship events.

In 2023, Indonesia refused to allow Israel to compete at the FIFA men’s U-20 World Cup and FIFA pulled the event and transferred it in a matter of a few weeks to Argentina (giving Indonesia the men’s U-17 World Cup a few months later, where Israel was not playing). FIG did nothing, even with a former IOC Presidential candidate as its leader.

That’s not good enough and the IOC knows it. More importantly, the IOC wants others to know it as well.

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PANORAMA: U.S. Ski & Snowboard offers ultra-lux “Crest Club,” partners with U.S. Army; Spain’s La Liga cancels controversial league match in Miami

By
Rich Perelman
-
The U.S. Army is now a sponsor of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Federation, honoring the 10th Mountain Division (Image: U.S. Ski & Snowboard).

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Games 2028: Los Angeles ● The Los Angeles Times reported that the Starbucks Workers United union sent a 22-page complaint to the International Olympic Committee, accusing Starbucks of treating its workers – specifically about union relations – in ways which “conflict with the Olympic Games’ code of ethics.” The story noted:

“Starbucks spokesperson Jaci Anderson said in response to a request for comment Monday that ‘allegations by Workers United have all previously been debunked and are without merit.’”

Starbucks joined the LA28 domestic sponsorship program as a Founding Partner in September and is not a sponsor of the International Olympic Committee.

● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● The well-received “Mind Zone” for athlete relaxation that debuted at Paris 2024 will return for the 2026 Winter Games:

“Each of the six Olympic Villages at Milano Cortina 2026 will host its own dedicated area, offering activities such as mindfulness and visualisation through virtual reality, guided breathing exercises and art therapy sessions. The spaces, with the exception of Bormio, will be staffed by qualified IOC and International Federation safeguarding officers, trained in mental health first aid, who will be on hand for confidential conversations and further guidance if needed.”

The space will be branded for the IOC’s Athlete365 project and sponsored by Powerade.

● Olympic Winter Games 2030: French Alps ● The 2030 organizing committee board published its first end-to-end budget for the Games, showing €2.1 billion in total expenses (~$2.44 billion U.S.), with matching revenue.

Funding will come from the International Olympic Committee (30%), from the organizing committee from sponsorships, tickets and hospitality sales (44%) and from government support (26%).

● Deaflympics 2025: Tokyo ● Deaflympics activist and former participant Howie Gorrell notes that entries for the 2025 Dealympics in Tokyo (JPN) from 15-26 November include four Olympians:

● Nina Cutro-Kelly (USA: judo) from Tokyo 2020.
● Diksha Dagar (IND: golf) from Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024.
● Terence Parkin (RSA: swimming) from Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004.
● Aleksey Shemarov (BLR: wrestling), from London 2012, competing as a “neutral.”

About 3,000 athletes from up to 80 countries and territories will compete in 21 sports.

● Basketball ● Amazing piece of history sold by RR Auction on 8 October in an autographs and artifacts sales, a December 1895 questionnaire filled out by Dr. James Naismith for the Handbook of Canadian Biography, in which answered the query on his “Record in journalism, science or art” as the “Originator of Basket Ball, author of rules &c.”

The single-page document sold for $17,840, including the buyer’s premium. Naismith invented the game at the Springfield, Massachusetts YMCA in 1891; he was later the basketball coach at Kansas from 1898-1907 and the track coach there from 1900-06. He passed away in 1939, but saw his game included in the Olympic Games as a medal sport for the first time in 1936, after being a demonstration event in 1904 and 1924.

● Football ● Facing pressure from players and fans, Spain’s La Liga canceled the controversial move of the 20 December match between Barcelona and Villareal to Miami, Florida. According to the league statement:

“LALIGA announces that, following conversations with the promoter of the Official LALIGA Match in Miami, the decision has been made to cancel the organization of the event due to the uncertainty that has arisen in Spain over the past few weeks.

“LALIGA deeply regrets that this project, which represented a historic and unparalleled opportunity for the international expansion of Spanish soccer, will not be able to move forward. Holding an official match outside our borders would have been a decisive step in the global growth of the competition, strengthening the international presence of clubs, the positioning of players, and the visibility of Spanish soccer in a strategic market such as the United States.”

Relevent Sports, the match promoter, told the Spanish league that the event needed to be postponed.

At the FIFA women’s U-17 World Cup in Morocco, the U.S. went to 2-0 and clinched a spot in the round-of-16 playoffs with a 5-2 win over China. The Americans trailed, 1-0, but had a 3-1 lead by half and Lauren Malsom and Nyanya Touray both scored twice.

● Gymnastics ● Women’s qualifying finished on Tuesday at the FIG Artistic World Championships, with Russia’s 2021 World All-Around champion Angelina Melnikova – competing as a “neutral” – compiling the highest score at 54.566.

Japan’s Aiko Sugihara qualified second (54.099) and Algeria’s Kaylia Nemour, the Olympic Uneven Bars gold medalist, third at 53.865. American Dulcy Caylor, 17, was fifth at 52.675 and advanced to the final, as did Leanne Wong, the 2021 Worlds silver winner, in ninth at 51.865. In the apparatus qualifying:

● Vault: Melnikova led at 14.499, with China’s Yelen Deng second (14.250); Jocelyn Roberson of the U.S. advanced in eighth place at 13.599. Wong was a non-qualifying 22nd at 13.066.

● Uneven Bars: Nemour, as expected, led at 15.533, way ahead of Fanyuwei Yang (14.566) and Melnikov (14.500). Skye Blakely of the U.S. advanced in seventh (14.166); Wong is the second reverse (11th) at 13.900.

● Beam: China’s Qingyang Zhang led all qualifiers at 14.366, trailed by Flavia Saravia (BRA: 13.833) and Romania’s Sabrina Maneca-Voinea (13.833). Caylor qualified in sixth (13.333) and Blakely was ninth (first reserve), scoring 13.200.

● Floor: Maneca-Voinea, embroiled in the fight over the Olympic Floor bronze in Paris with Jordan Chiles of the U.S. and Romanian teammate Ana Barbosu, led at 13.666 with Rina Kishi (JPN: 13.566) second and Ruby Evans (GBR: 13.566) third. Caylor qualified eighth at 13.266; Wong was a non-qualifying 13th (13.066).

The men’s All-Around comes Wednesday with the women’s A-A on Thursday.

● Skiing ● “The package includes curated VIP experiences that bring you closer than ever to the sport. With unique access to the team and the mountains, including skiing with legends, private luxury après-ski opportunities, five-star accommodations, custom U.S. Ski & Snowboard apparel and exclusive first track resort ski and snowboard experiences, the new hospitality program is your opportunity to experience the speed, culture and emotion from the inside.

“U.S. Ski & Snowboard has long run donor-focused, high-end hospitality programs around World Championships and Olympic Winter Games. The addition of The Crest Club offers the most dedicated sports fans, partners and donors the opportunity to experience the exclusive insider-only program at additional destinations and surround themselves within the action of the Stifel U.S. Ski Team and international athletes.”

That’s the build-up for the new “Crest Club,” launched as a “offers a five-star, white-glove experience that only the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team can provide,” in conjunction with Horizon Sports & Experiences.

Three events are offered for 2025-26: the women’s FIS Alpine World Cup races at St. Moritz (SUI) from 10-14 December; men’s FIS Alpine World Cup races at Kitzbuehel (AUT) from 20-25 January 2026 and the FIS Freestyle World Cup in Moguls, Dual Moguls and Aerials in Deer Valley, Utah from 18-26 January 2026.

Prices? You need to inquire directly.

U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced Tuesday that “the U.S. Army as the official armed forces partner of U.S. Ski & Snowboard, honoring the 10th Mountain Division,” famed for its World War II exploits in Italy.

According to the statement, USSS “athletes will don an Army/10th Mountain Division patch on team outerwear. In addition, the U.S. Army/10th Mountain Division will invest in the U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s athlete influencer program to highlight the division’s foundation in alpine history and have a presence at the Stifel Copper Cup presented by United, an Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Nov. 27-30 and the Stifel Lake Placid Finals, a COOP FIS Cross Country World Cup, March 20-22.”

● Tennis ● At its online Annual General Meeting last Thursday, the International Tennis Federation voted to change its name to World Tennis starting on 1 January 2026. According to the announcement, “the name change is designed to better reflect the organisation’s role as the sport’s global governing body and guardian, as well as the essential role it plays alongside its member nations to grow and develop tennis worldwide.”

The federation began as the International Lawn Tennis Federation in Paris in 1913, and changed to the International Tennis Federation in 1977.

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LANE ONE: Is the just-announced “USATF Tour” for 2026 the wrong solution to fix a real problem?

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ THE NEW “USATF TOUR” ≡

The stated purpose of the Monday-announced 2026 “USATF Tour” is to “bring together World Athletics-labeled meets as well as those seeking World Athletics labels with a goal of enhancing sponsorship opportunities, improving athlete development and delivering a consistent experience for fans and viewers.”

According to the announcement:

“In 2025, 19 World Athletics Continental Tour meets, two Grand Slam events, and one Diamond League meet competed for attention within a 15-week period in the United States. This disorganized approach creates unnecessary competition for athlete participation as well as for ticket sales, broadcast windows and viewership. As the national federation, it is the responsibility of USATF to facilitate collaboration to streamline this landscape by establishing a strategic national calendar, shared marketing and media support, and consistent competitive standards.”

Really? Let’s see.

A check of the World Athletics Continental Tour calendar for 2025 – still up – showed that during the 15-week period of 23 March to 12 July this year, there were 16 Continental Tour meets in the U.S. Of these, 10 were Silver (S) level, four were Bronze (B) and two were Challenger events:

● 29 Mar.: The TEN in San Juan Capistrano (S)

● 05 Apr.: Miramar Invitational in Miramar (S)
● 11-14 Apr.: Oklahoma Throws Series in Ramona (B)
● 23-26 Apr.: Drake Relays in Des Moines (S)
● 24-26 Apr.: Penn Relays in Philadelphia (S)

● 03 May: Save the 10,000 in Walnut (S)
● 17 May: Atlanta City Games in Atlanta (S)
● 24 May: Track Fest in Los Angeles (S)
● 24 May: USATF Throws Festival in Tucson (S)
● 30-31 May: Music City Track Carnival near Chattanooga (Challenger)

● 05 Jun.: Festival of Miles in St. Louis (Challenger)
● 14-15 Jun.: Portland Track Festival in Portland (B)
● 26-28 Jun.: Iron Wood Track Festival in Rathdrum (B)

● 11 Jul.: L.A. Throws Cup in Wilmington (B)
● 11-13 Jul.: Ed Murphey Classic in Memphis (S)
● 12 Jul.: Sunset Tour in Los Angeles (S)

There were also two Grand Slam Track meets in this period in the U.S., in Miramar and Philadelphia, and the Diamond League Prefontaine Classic, on 5 July.

The interesting aspect of the 16 Continental Tour meets is not their distribution over time, as suggested by the USATF statement, but their nature, created to cater to specific aspects of the sport:

● 4 deal only with throwing events
● 3 deal only with distance races
● 2 deal only with the rarely-run 10,000 m
● 2 are heavily sprint-focused events

That’s 11 of the 16, meets that were developed to support athletes and events who are often forgotten in larger, more commercial meets; just five were more of a traditional “track meet” and two of those were the relay extravaganzas at Drake and Penn.

For 2026, USA Track & Field has already calendered the return of two of its own meets to the Continental Tour Gold level:

● 06 June: New York Grand Prix
● 14 June: Los Angeles Grand Prix

So whatever the calendar arrangement is going to be for a USATF Tour, it’s going to be built around those dates, reserved to USATF.

In the 1970s, the misery of the European calendar – no Diamond League in those days – led to the creation of the “European Calendar Congress,” where the placement of meets was negotiated among the meet promoters, who also worked together on events, athlete invitations (payments) and cross-promotion.

In the U.S., USATF is not going to have much influence on the two schedule foundations of the sport:

● NCAA conference meets, regionals and championships
● Relay meets, notably Florida, Texas, Mt. SAC, Drake and Penn

Those meets will take their traditional places on the calendar and are anchored by high school and college participation, not the professionals. Wouldn’t it be better to get the relevant folks into a room to figure out the best way to highlight – program – the sport on a 52-weeks-a-year basis?

The “USATF Tour” announcement was issued on 20 October and meets have until 31 October – Halloween – to apply via a short questionnaire. It remains to be seen if it the concept will be a trick or (hopefully) a treat.

Rich Perelman
Editor

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ATHLETICS: Confirmed Diamond League schedule for 2026 shows 15 meets, 13 countries … on five different days of the week

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ DIAMOND LEAGUE 2026 ≡

World Athletics published the confirmed schedule for the 17th season of the Diamond League in 2026, with roughly the same continuity as in 2025:

● 08 May (Fri.): Doha (QAT)
● 16 May (Sat.): Shanghai (CHN)
● 23 May (Sat.): Xiamen (CHN)
● 31 May (Sun.): Rabat (MAR)

● 04 June (Thu.): Rome (ITA)
● 07 June (Sun.): Stockholm (SWE)
● 10 June (Wed.): Oslo (NOR)
● 26 June (Fri.): Paris (FRA)

● 04 July (Sat.): Eugene (USA)
● 10 July (Fri.): Monaco (MON)
● 18 July (Sat.): London (GBR)

● 21 Aug. (Fri.): Lausanne (SUI)
● 23 Aug. (Sun.): Silesia (POL)
● 27 Aug. (Thu.): Zurich (SUI)

● 04-05 Sep. (Fri.-Sat.): Final in Brussels (BEL)

There are 15 meets in all (16 meet days), held across four months time, in 13 countries – China and Switzerland have two each – and on five different days of the week:

● 3 on Sunday: Rabat, Stockholm, Silesia
● Monday: none
● Tuesday: none
● 1 on Wednesday: Oslo
● 2 on Thursday: Rome, Zurich
● 5 on Friday: Doha, Paris, Monaco, Lausanne, Brussels I
● 5 on Saturday: Shanghai, Xiamen, Eugene, London, Brussels II

This is a continuing weakness of the Diamond League schedule, as fans – unlike those in other sports – cannot count on seeing a meet on a predictable, consistent schedule, instead of the usual arrangement reminiscent of the 1969 comedy, “If It’s Tuesday, It Must Be Belgium.”

There is also the annual dead period, previously because of the Olympic Games or World Championships plopped into the middle of the summer. No such meets this time, but from mid-July to mid-August there are lots of other things:

● 22 Jul.-02: Commonwealth Games in Glasgow (GBR)
● 25-26 Jul.: National Championships window II
● 05-09 Aug. World Athletics U-20 Champs in Eugene (USA)
● 10-16 Aug.: European Championships in Birmingham (GBR)

The Diamond League finale at the Van Damme Memorial in Brussels from 4-5 September leads directly into the first World Athletics Ultimate Championships, in Budapest (HUN) from 11-13 September.

This is the sport’s best showcase, but retains its limited impact due to its haphazard scheduling as track & field remains tied to its history instead of a focused future.

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MILAN CORTINA 2026: FIS Council votes not to allow Russian or Belarusian “neutrals” to qualify for 2026 Winter Games

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ RUSSIA AND BELARUS ≡

The announcement from the International Ski & Snowboard Federation on Tuesday was short and to the point:

“The FIS Council convened this Tuesday and voted not to facilitate the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus as Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN) in FIS qualification events for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Games.

“The International Olympic Committee’s AIN regime has been set out as a possible pathway for athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in the Olympic Games, with each International Federation remaining responsible for the decision on whether to allow these athletes to take part in its existing qualification system.”

The Russian news agency TASS reported that while there was some idea that Russian and Belarusian athletes might be admitted on some level:

“According to a TASS source, representatives of several European countries, including Norway and Sweden, persuaded FIS members to vote against allowing Russian athletes to participate. They also threatened to boycott the Games. Yuri Borodavko, head coach of the Russian national cross-country skiing team, also pointed to the influence of the Scandinavian lobby.

“’The decision was 90% expected. The powerful Scandinavian lobby issued an ultimatum stating that they would boycott the Olympic Games if Russians participated. Other countries joined them,’ Borodavko said.”

Dmitry Svishchev, Deputy Chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on Physical Culture and Sports, told TASS:

“The decision was expected; the chances were slim. The group gathered there harbored Russophobic sentiments that had been there for a long time and haven’t gone away. We still have the opportunity to defend our rights, including in court.”

The Court of Arbitration for Sport would be the forum for any appeal.

Tove Djerhaug, the Norwegian Ski Federation President, said in a statement:

“We are pleased and satisfied that the majority of the international ski community continues to support the exclusion of athletes from Russia and Belarus. Our federation has made its position clear from the very beginning of the escalation of the situation in Ukraine, and today’s decision is a victory for everyone who distances themselves from Russia’s actions.”

FIS was the only remaining federation which had not declared a policy on allowing “neutrals” from Russian and Belarus to compete in qualifying events for 2026:

● The International Skating Union and the International Ski Mountaineering Federation are allowing limited “neutral” entries from Russia and Belarus to be able to compete in Milan Cortina 2026 qualifiers.

● The International Biathlon Union, International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation, World Curling, International Ice Hockey Federation, and Federation Internationale de Luge have all decided not to allow Russian or Belarusian athletes to compete in qualifying events.

For the IBSF, its independent Appeal Tribunal issued a decision on Sunday that modified the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes, limited it to athletes “who do not satisfy the IOC’s Individual Neutral Athletes (INA) rules for Milano Cortina 2026,” for which regulations were issued last September.

At the same time, a request for Russian and Belarusian athletes to be able to compete in IBSF events immediately was dismissed. The IBSF is considering whether to appeal the holding to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, or how to comply with the order modifying its current stance.

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PANORAMA: Ledecka drops Downhill, will try for third PGS gold in 2026 Games; Lewis thinks little of Enhanced Games; new “USATF Tour”

By
Rich Perelman
-
U.S. Soccer formally announced its 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup bid, with Costa Rica, Jamaica and Mexico as partners (U.S. Soccer image).

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● Christophe Dubi (SUI), the International Olympic Committee’s Executive Director for the Olympic Games, told Agence France Presse that the success of the wide-spread venue plan for 2026 is crucial to future Games as well:

“The opening ceremony in four locations allows all the athletes, perhaps for the first time, to come to the ceremony. And then, every evening, there will be a form of Champions Park in Milan, Bormio, Val di Fiemme … with the impression, wherever you are, that it is the celebration of the Milan-Cortina Games.

“For all those who will experience the event, such as journalists or spectators, it will be necessary to realize that the planning is essential and that we do not go from Milan to Cortina by fast train. It will be the same for 2030, and for 2038 if the Games are organized in Switzerland.

“The success of the Milan Games is fundamental for us, because it determines an operational system that we will replicate, a little differently, for the 2030 French Alps edition and then on a roughly equivalent project, Switzerland 2038. The sign that we are giving is that we are using what already exists, that it is right to go where we know how to do it and where we are equipped.”

Czech ski and snow star Ester Ledecka, the two-time Olympic champion in the Snowboard Parallel Giant Slalom and the 2018 Olympic gold medalist in the women’s Alpine Super-G, said Monday that as the Snowboard PGS and Alpine Downhill are being held on the same day at the 2026 Winter Games, she will try for a third Snowboard gold.

Ledecka, the Czech National Olympic Committee and the International Ski & Snowboard Federation (FIS) lobbied for a schedule change that would allow her to do both events, but to no avail. They will continue as scheduled, on 8 February, about 200 miles apart. 

“I cried a bit few times about it, but we did the best we could. I understand that it’s not easy to coordinate the program but I believed that it could be done. I’m the only athlete who has qualified for the event in two sports for the third time, so I was hoping that they would take that into account.”

In 2025, Ledecka won her second Worlds gold in the Snowboard PGS and a bronze in the Alpine Worlds Downhill.

● Enhanced Games ● Olympic icon Carl Lewis told Reuters last week during an appearance in India that as far as the Enhanced Games is concerned, “I don’t think it’s going to be successful.”

He added that “I don’t think many athletes will compete” and “I don’t think any records will be broken because I don’t think the event is going to happen because I don’t think the money will be there because I don’t think people would support it.”

Two-time World Short-Course Swimming Championships 50 m Backstroke bronze medalist Shane Ryan (IRL), now 31, has agreed to participate in the 2026 Enhanced Games. The Italian daily Il Fatto Quotidiano reported Ryan’s comments about the decision:

“You know what? For once I thought about myself. Let me earn some money. …

“I don’t make money from people’s opinions. They don’t help me build my future. With that money, I’ll be able to pay off my car payment and, if possible, even part of it for a house in Philadelphia. I have to be very, very careful with money because life is getting much more expensive.”

He is the eighth swimmer announced for the May 2026 event.

● Athletics ● The 10 nominees for the World Athletics Field Athlete of the Year have been announced:

Men:
● Mondo Duplantis (SWE) ~ World Vault Champion
● Mattia Furlani (ITA) ~ World Long Jump Champion
● Ethan Katzberg (CAN) ~ World Hammer Champion
● Hamish Kerr (NZL) ~ World High Jump Champion
● Pedro Pichardo (POR) ~ World Triple Jump Champion

Women:
● Valarie Allman (USA) ~ World Discus Champion
● Tara Davis-Woodhall (USA) World Long Jump Champion
● Anna Hall (USA) ~ World Heptathlon Champion
● Nicola Olyslagers (AUS) ~ World High Jump Champion
● Cam Rogers (CAN) ~ World Hammer Champion

Fan voting to identify the finalists is open on the federation’s Facebook, Instagram and X channels through 26 October. The winner will be announced at the World Athletics Awards on 30 November.

USA Track & Field announced a 2026 “USATF Tour” program, designed to smooth out the U.S. meet schedule, if meets will apply right away:

“In 2025, 19 World Athletics Continental Tour meets, two Grand Slam events, and one Diamond League meet competed for attention within a 15-week period in the United States. This disorganized approach creates unnecessary competition for athlete participation as well as for ticket sales, broadcast windows and viewership. As the national federation, it is the responsibility of USATF to facilitate collaboration to streamline this landscape by establishing a strategic national calendar, shared marketing and media support, and consistent competitive standards.”

The federation statement sees the Tour concept as “a transformative opportunity to elevate professional track and field competition through the standardization of best practices, coordination schedules and with financial, marketing and logistical support from the federation.”

All of the meets in the program would receive World Athletics Continental Tour status and USATF assistance described as “drug testing, officials, broadcast coordination, medical support, and branding assets valued at $15,000–$50,000 per event.”

Meets must apply quickly, with the deadline coming on Friday, 31 October! The 19-question application is straightforward and easy to compete in a few minutes. The program schedule is to be announced on 5 December 2025 at the USATF Annual Meeting.

● Beach Volleyball ● The U.S. went 1-2 at the FIVB women’s U-21 World Championships in Puebla (MEX), with Sally Perez and Avery Jackson defeating Zoey Henson and Sarah Wood in a hotly-contested final, 25-23, 21-16. What was even more remarkable is that this was the first tournament for Perez and Jackson as partners.

Latvians Gustavs Auzins and Kristians Fokerots won the men’s title, 21-19, 21-19 over Poland’s Szymon Beta and Artem Besarab. It’s the seconds Worlds gold for Auzins and Fokerots as they won the U-19 Worlds in 2022!

● Bobsled & Skeleton ● The Appeals Tribunal for the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (IBSF) ordered a change in the federation’s ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes:

“The Tribunal decided it shall be enforceable only to the extent that it prohibits athletes from competing who do not satisfy the IOC’s Individual Neutral Athletes (INA) rules for Milano Cortina 2026. Furthermore, the IBSF Appeals Tribunal denied the request by the Bobsleigh Federation of Russia for an immediate entry of its athletes into any IBSF competitions.”

The text of the decision was not published. The IBSF Board will meet Tuesday to consider the decision and whether to appeal it further.

Interesting new partnership for USA Bobsled & Skeleton, announcing Monday:

“Edward Jones financial advisors in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Upstate and Western New York, and parts of Pennsylvania will work closely with the team to provide career guidance, mentorship, financial literacy education, and job opportunities for athletes transitioning out of bobsled and skeleton, helping set them up for long-term professional success as they move on from elite-level sports competitions.”

USA Bobsled & Skeleton has J.P. Davies, an Edward Jones Principal, as a member of its board. The agreement is potentially an important one for athletes, usually more focused on training than tracking investments.

● Boxing ● World Boxing published its first World Rankings, including all 20 weight classes, with World Championships leaders Uzbekistan (12 in the top 5) and Kazakhstan (11) the top countries. Turkey (8), Brazil (7) and China (6) are next. The rankings are based on points earned at the Worlds, World Cup and 2024 Olympic Games.

The U.S. has three boxers in the top 10s, with silver winner Yoseline Perez fourth in the women’s 54 kg class. Naomi Graham stands eighth at 75 kg, and Malachi Georges is eighth in the men’s 90 kg class.

● Football ● U.S. Soccer announced its formal bid for the 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup – already fixed as the only bid to be considered – in partnership with Mexico, Jamaica and Costa Rica. According to the statement:

“The official bid book and related documentation will be submitted to FIFA in November 2025. The global governing body is expected to officially announce its decision at next year’s FIFA Congress on April 30 in Vancouver.”

FIFA said in April that the U.S. bid – with partners – was the only one received for 2031. The U.S. has previously hosted the tournament in 1999 and 2003.

Players in Spain’s La Liga staged a silent protest before several matches against the league plan to play a Barcelona v. Villareal match in Miami on 20 December. While not shown on television, the players stayed still for 15 seconds; the action was arranged by the player union. Fan groups in Spain have also complained bitterly about the movement of games from their communities.

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GYMNASTICS: Israel NOC chief calls for Indonesia not to host events in the future after refusing Israeli entries for FIG World Champs

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ FIG WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS ≡

The furor over the refusal of the government of Indonesia to allow Israeli athletes into the country for the 53rd FIG World Artistic Championships in Jakarta is slowing as the competitions have begun.

But after the International Olympic Committee issued an unhappy statement on Friday, the GymCastic podcast quoted Israel Olympic Committee Chair, Olympic judo medalist and International Olympic Committee member Yael Arad in a Facebook post about what comes next:

● “The cancellation of the visas by the Indonesian government and the conduct of the International Gymnastics Federation are a disgrace. Over the past week, sports leaders from around the world – including senior IOC officials and President [Kirsty] Coventry [ZIM] herself – have worked to reverse this decision, understanding clearly that the actions taken are in complete violation of Olympic values, the FIG statutes, and the Olympic Charter, which prohibits political involvement in sport.

“The conduct of FIG President Morinari Watanabe [JPN] is the most disappointing of all.”

● “The main appeal will continue to be examined by [the Court of Arbitration for Sport], and it holds symbolic importance for the entire world of sport. I trust that CAS will see the full picture.

“Indonesia is not worthy of hosting sporting events, and we will act on all levels to ensure that this remains the case. My heart is with the athletes, but we will always act, in every possible way, to ensure that such situations are not repeated in the future.”

Arad as an IOC member has unique standing to challenge fellow IOC members Watanabe (JPN) and Erick Thohir (INA), who as the Indonesian Youth and Sports Minister, publicly supported the government’s decision to refuse entry to the Israeli team, which had already been registered as competitors.

Arad’s reference to the Court of Arbitration for Sport concerns a filing requesting that “CAS orders FIG to take the necessary measures that guarantee Israeli participation in the championships, or in the alternative, to move or to cancel the championships.”

According to the Court’s summary:

“The requests for urgent provisional measures were considered by the Deputy President of the CAS Appeals Arbitration Division. Both requests have been rejected. … The second appeal is still ongoing.”

But it will not be settled until after the competition concludes.

The FIG World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta actually started on Sunday, with the men’s qualifying round completed on Monday:

● Two-time World Champion and Tokyo 2020 Olympic champ Daiki Hashimoto (JPN) led the All-Around qualifying at 83.065, followed by Noe Seifert (SUI: 82.499) and Boheng Zhang (CHN: 82.331). The lone U.S. entry, national A-A champ Asher Hong, did not compete due to an injury.

● Floor: Britain’s Olympic bronze medalist Jake Jarman led the qualifying at 14.700 ahead of Paris champ Carlos Yulo (PHI: 14.566) and American Kam Nelson (14.300). Israel’s Olympic silver medalist, Artem Dolgopyat (the defending champion) was, of course, unable to compete.

● Pommel Horse: Olympic silver medalist Nariman Kurbanov (KAZ) led qualifying at 14.700, ahead of Yanming Hong (CHN: 14.600) and American Patrick Hoopes (14.566). Brandon Dang of the U.S. was a non-qualifying 21st at 13.900.

● Rings: China’s Xingyu Lan scored 14.766 to lead the qualifying, with American Donnell Whittenburg – in his sixth Worlds – second at 14.700. China’s Zhang was third at 14.600; Brody Malone of the U.S. was a non-qualifying 14th at 13.766.

● Vault: Olympic champ Yulo led after qualifying at 14.750 (average of two vaults), followed by Paris silver winner Artur Davtyan (ARM: 14.566) and Ukraine’s Nazar Chepurnyi (14.316). For the U.S., Nelson was a non-qualifying 17th (13.666)

● Parallel Bars: China’s Olympic champ Jingyuan Zou led the field at 15.466, with Japan’s Paris bronzer Shinnosuke Oka (14.533) and Tomoharu Tsunogai (14.500) at 2-3, with Whittenburg qualifying sixth at 14.300. Malone was a non-qualifying 22nd at 13.633.

● Horizontal Bar: Tsunogai led qualifying at 14.800, ahead of Joe Fraser (GBR: 14.533) and defending champ Hashimoto (JPN: 14.400). Malone qualified in sixth for the U.S. (14.166); Whittenburg placed 48th (12.533).

The men’s All-Around final comes on Wednesday.

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SKATING: ISU unveils “world record” ring for speed skating and short track stars, both senior and junior; the start of a trend?

By
Rich Perelman
-
The ISU World Record and Junior World Record rings designed by Thomas Lyte (Photos: ISU).

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≡ WORLD RECORD RINGS ≡

Rings have been a symbol of achievement in sports for more than a century. Perhaps the first was for the 1922 New York Giants baseball team, who defeated the New York Yankees in the World Series.

In the U.S., rings are routinely presented to Olympic team members by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee. But the International Skating Union has taken the award in a different direction.

The ISU Council announced on 3 October that new awards would be provided to  individual speed skaters and Short Track record setters:

Speed Skating/Senior level:
● $5,000 for an individual world record
● $15,000 ($5,000 each) for Team Pursuit or Team Sprint world records
● $10,000 ($5,000 each) for Mixed Relay world records
● World Record ring to the record setters

Short Track/Senior level:
● $5,000 for an individual world record
● $20,000 ($5,000 each) for relay world record teams
● World Record ring to the record setters

Junior world records would receive a world-record ring, but no bonuses.

The announcement further noted that “This commitment is a core part of ISU Vision 2030 to improve athletes’ visibility and support, which was highlighted by ISU President Jae Youl Kim [KOR] during the ISU 2024 Congress.

“President Kim further reaffirmed his commitment to significantly increasing prize money across all ISU sports and competitions. Backed by the ISU Council, a comprehensive proposal will be presented to the ISU Congress in June 2026 for approval. If adopted, the enhanced prize money structure will take effect from the following season.”

The ring itself was specially designed for the ISU by Thomas Lyte in London (GBR) – founded in 2007 and heavily involved in sports trophy designs – and described as:

“It is a gold-plated ring, featuring a stylised slit through the band, symbolising the blade of an ice skate carving through the ice. The design celebrates speed, precision, and the legacy of the ISU.

“There is one design, available with two different engravings: ‘World Record’ and ‘Junior World Record.’ Each ring is engraved on the inside with the athlete’s name, distance, time, venue, and date corresponding to their achievement.”

This is a fancy upgrade by the ISU, and it will be interesting to see how rings are presented in the future, or if they are simply mailed (with prize money) after the obligatory doping control is carried out.

Skating is in the vanguard with this concept; will it be adopted by others in timed sports, such as athletics and swimming?

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SWIMMING: World records from Australia’s O’Callaghan, McKeown and U.S.’s Smith and Douglass at World Cup II in Westmont!

By
Rich Perelman
-
U.S. breaststroke Olympic and World Champion Kate Douglass (Photo: World Aquatics).

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≡ WESTMONT WORLD CUP ≡

The blazing swimming continued at the short-course World Aquatics World Cup II in Westmont, Illinois, with world and American records going down for the second meet in a row. The most intense action was in the women’s Backstrokes:

● On Friday, five-time Olympic gold medalist Kaylee McKeown (AUS) edged American sprint star Gretchen Walsh in the 50 m Back final, 25.63 to 25.65, with Paris 2024 200 m Free winner Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS) getting third in 25.72.

● On Saturday, American Regan Smith, the two-time World long-course Backstroke gold medalist, took over at halfway and scored a win over McKeown and equaled her own 2024 world record of 54.02! McKeown was just behind in 54.04.

● Sunday’s 200 m Back final was eagerly anticipated and McKeown was ready, leading from the start and winning in 1:57.87, eclipsing Smith’s 1:58.04 world mark from 2024. Smith made her work for it, finishing second in 1:57.91 – no. 2 all-time – and setting an American Record and gaining on the last two laps.

That was not all that Smith was up to, however. On Friday, she won the women’s 200 m Butterfly in 2:00.20, an American Record, bettering her 2:00.28 at the Carmel World Cup the week prior. Smith remains the no. 3 performer all-time, with the nos. 3-4 performances.

O’Callaghan was also busy, and crushed the 200 m Freestyle world record on Saturday, touching in 1:49.77 – the first woman under 1:50 – and reducing the 1:50.31 mark by Siobhan Haughey (HKG) from 2021. Australian teammate Lani Pallister, a five-time World Short-Course gold medalist, was a distant second in 1:52.06.

As great as McKeown was, American Kate Douglass – the Paris 2024 200 m Breaststroke winner – was even better. Consider:

● She won the 100 and 200 m Breaststroke events easily in 1:03.14, and 2:14.57, with 2022 Worlds 200 m Medley World Champion Alex Walsh of the U.S. way back in the 200 Breast race in 2:18.54.

● Douglass finished second to sprint superstar Gretchen Walsh in the 100 m Medley, 55.77 to 56.42.

● On Sunday, she finished off her meet with a sensational world record in the 100 m Freestyle, timing 50.19 and taking down the eight-year-old mark of 50.25 by the legendary Cate Campbell (AUS) from 2017! O’Callaghan was second, but not close in 51.44. Amazing.

That’s three world records set or tied and McKeown and Smith will be at each other again next week. But there was more:

● What about Gretchen Walsh? Beyond the second in the 50 Back to McKeown, she won the 50 m Butterfly in 23.90, the no. 2 performance in history, and the 100 m Fly in 53.72, the no. 5 performance ever.

Just for good measure, she also won the 100 m Medley in 55.77, ahead of Douglass (56.42).

● Pallister dominated the 400 m Free, winning in 3:42.52, by more than 15 seconds. She then blasted the no. 2 time in history in the women’s 1,500 m Free, winning in 15:13.83, behind only Katie Ledecky’s 2022 world record of 15:08.24. She won by almost 17 seconds.

Alex Walsh, Gretchen’s older sister, won the 200 m Medley in 2:04.44 and Poland’s Kasia Wasick won the 50 m Free for the second meet in a row, this time in 23.30, ahead of Alex Perkins (AUS: 23.45) and O’Callaghan (23.81).

What about the men? Sorry, no world records, but some impressive performances:

● Hungarian star Hubert Kos, the Olympic 200 m Backstroke winner, swept the Backstroke events for the second straight meet. He won the 50 in 22.91 ahead of Poland’s Kacper Stokowski (22.92), and won the 100 in 48.78, ahead of Italy’s Olympic 100 m Back champion Thomas Ceccon (49.60). Kos then won the 200 over Ceccon, 1:47.51 to 1:48.76.

● American Shaine Casas, the 2024 Worlds Short-Course 200 m Medley champion, swept the Medleys, taking the 100 in 50.45 over Swiss star Noe Ponti (50.76) and Kos (50.99). Casas won the 200 in 1:50.08 over Finlay Knox (CAN: 1:52.12) and the 400 in 3:57.41, beating Olympic bronzer Carson Foster of the U.S. (3:58.18).

● Dutch breaststroker Caspar Corbeau won the 50 in 25.52 over Ivan Shymanovich (BLR: 25.63), lost to Shymanovich in the 100, 56.41 to 56.43, then took the 200 decisively in 2:01.68.

● Canadian sprinter Ilya Kharun won the 50 m Free in 20.72 and the 50 m Butterfly in 21.69, with Ponti second in 21.80. Ponti, the three-time gold winner at the 2024 World Short-Course champs, won the 100 Fly, 48.,47 to 49.00, but Kharun grabbed the 200 m Fly over Ponti, 1:48.46 to 1:49.32.

In the 100 m Free, American Record setter Jack Alexy won in 45.84 over teammate Chris Guiliano (46.11) and Olympic 200 m Free bronzer Luke Hobson of the U.S. took that event in 1:40.62, over Guiliano (1:41.34).

Fantastic! There’s one more: the 2025 World Cup series will conclude next week in Toronto (CAN).

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PANORAMA: Brignone not sure about skiing at Olympics; Malinin dominates in skating Grand Prix opener; Hauser, Tertsch win World Triathlon titles

By
Rich Perelman
-
World Champion Brady Ellison of the U.S.

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Alpine Skiing ● Italian star Federica Brignone, 35, a two-time World Champion, three-time Olympic medalist and 37-time World Cup winner, told reporters during an Italian team media day that she does not know if she will be able to in time for a fifth Winter Olympic Games in February after her left leg injuries during a bad Giant Slalom crash at the Italian championships in April.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to get back to exactly how I was before,” Brignone said Saturday. “In fact I’m sure I won’t. …

“I don’t know when I’ll be back on the slopes, certainly not November. Honestly, until I put my skis back on I don’t know if I’ll be able to ski at the Olympics … and we have a really strong team so if one of them deserves the place more than me, they deserve it more than me.

“Obviously I’m confident, otherwise I wouldn’t be doing everything that I’m doing, I wouldn’t be working really hard like I’m doing now.

“It’s not these Olympics that will change my life, change my career. I’ve done what I’ve done and in fact I achieved much more than I could have ever dreamed of. It would be something more, it would be a beautiful dream.

“It’s fantastic to have the Olympics at home, obviously something that I that I would have liked to do because otherwise I would have already stopped. But I also need this positive energy to heal to return to normal life, because with such an injury it’s not a given.”

● Basketball ● The Associated Press reported that forward Nneka Ogwumike, a two-time World Championships gold medalist with the U.S., had been turned down for a third time in an appeal to play for Nigeria, where her parents were born.

Ogwumike, now 35, had filed change-of-affiliation applications to play for Nigeria at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in 2021, but was denied as she had played for the U.S. during the lead-up quadrennial. Her ties to the U.S. team were apparently a significant factor in the continuing denials by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).

She wanted to play for Nigeria for the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup and the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. USA Basketball approved the change, but Ogwumike said her prior time with the American teams was the issue:

“My involvement with USA is for them, their strongest point, but it doesn’t necessarily make the sense that it does to the individual that’s being penalized for it. You guys are going to continue using this excuse over and over again. I’m not about to beat a dead horse. I gave it an honest try so I feel fine about it.”

≡ RESULTS ≡

● Archery ● In windy and sometimes rainy conditions at the World Archery World Cup Final in Nanjing (CHN), American Brady Ellison, 36, showed he’s still among the finest archers in the world with a 6-2 win over Brazil’s two-time Worlds silver winner Marcus D’Almeida.

For Ellison, it’s his sixth career World Cup Final title, to go along with five Olympic medals and seven Worlds medals. He said afterwards:

“I didn’t have any expectations coming in. I just wanted to stick to my game plan and keep the timing I had today, and it was good enough. I felt like I actually shot very well today, and my semi-final match against Mete [Gazoz/TUR] was one of the best I’ve had in years.”

“I hit the 10s when I needed 10s to tie or win sets. For the most part, I did that all day and when you’re tying a set every end and never really losing ground, it sets you up in good positions. I’ve really felt good this back half of the year.”

Korea’s Tokyo 2020 women’s gold medalist San An won the women’s title for the second time, but with considerable drama as what appeared to be a 6-4 win in the final over Hsin-tzu Hsu (TPE), but was changed to 5-5 and a shoot-out. An won that, 8-7, for the title. American Casey Kaufhold finished fourth.

Turkey’s Emircan Haney won the men’s Compound final, 149-148, over Mathias Fullerton (DEN), and in the all-Mexican women’s Compound final, Mariana Bernal defeated World Champion Andrea Becerra in a shoot-off as her first arrow was judged closest to the center after a 147-all tie in the regulation match.

● Athletics ● Kenya’s Geoffrey Toroitich moved to no. 4 on the 2025 world list with a lifetime best 2:03:30 win at the Amsterdam Marathon on Sunday, in just his second race ever at the distance.

Seven were in the lead pack at 30 km, but it took until 39 km for Toroitich to break away from Ethiopia’s Getaneh Molla and take firm control. Molla was caught and then passed in the final meters by Tsegaye Getachew (ETH) for second, 2:04:18 to 2:04:19.

Toroitich ran 2:05:46 for second at Tokyo in March and now ranks no. 27 all-time!

The women’s race was also speedy, with Aynalem Desta (ETH) rolling to a 2:17:37, outrunning countrywoman Bertukan Welde (2:17:56) after 40 km. Fellow Ethiopian Mekides Shimeles got third at 2:19:56. Desta is now no. 22 all-time.

● Badminton ● Indonesia’s sixth-seed Jonatan Christie scored an upset win in the men’s Singles at the BWF World Tour Denmark Open in Odense, defeating World Champion and top-seeded Yu Qi Shi (CHN) by 13-21, 21-15, 21-15, for his ninth career World Tour gold in 17 finals.

The women’s final saw Olympic champ Se Young An (KOR) out-last second-seed Zhi Yi Wang (CHN), 21-5, 24-22. The two have now met seven times in World Tour finals with An now sporting a 6-1 record.

Japan won the men’s Doubles, Korea went 1-2 in the women’s Doubles and China was 1-2 in the Mixed Doubles.

● Curling ● At the Grand Slam of Curling Tour Challenge in Nisku (CAN), Canadian star Rachel Homan’s perfect season continues. The three-time World Champion won the women’s Masters to open the GSC season and continued with a decisive 8-2 win over no. 2 seed and four-time World Champion Swiss Silvana Tirinzoni’s rink in the final.

The men’s final had Canada’s Masters winner, Matt Dunstone, going for two in a row, against two-time World Champion – and defending champ – Bruce Mouat (SCO). Mouat’s rink was up 2-0 after the first end and 4-1 after four and cruised to a 5-2 win.

● Cycling ● The finale of the 2025 UCI World Tour was the six-stage Tour of Guangxi in China, with France’s 21-year-old Paul Magnier winning five of the six races. But that wasn’t good enough to win. Not even close.

After winning the fourth of four stages, he had a 26-second lead on the field, but Britain’s Paul Double, 29, won the uphill-finishing fifth stage, with Mahnier in 68th, 4:49 behind. So even with a final-day win by Magnier in a mass-finish sprint, Double ended up winning in 22:37:12 overall, 15 seconds up on France’s Victor Lafay. Magnier, with five stage wins, was 51st overall (+4:11).

The women’s season finale, the Women’s World Cup Tour of Guangxi (CHN) was won by Britain’s Anna Henderson in a sprint finish against Caroline Andersson (SWE), with both timed in 2:49:34 for the 108.5 km, mostly flat course in and around Nanning.

At the UCI BMX Freestyle World Cup in Shanghai (CHN), a tight battle in the men’s Park final ended up in favor of American Justin Dowell over Japan’s Rimu Nakamura, 92.80 to 91.50.

Six-time World Champion Hannah Roberts of the U.S. completed the American sweep, winning the women’s final at 92.40 over Kim Lea Mueller (GER: 87.60) and Noemi Molnar (HUN: 86.40).

The BMX Freestyle-Flatland titles went to Yu Shoji (JPN: 91.00) for the men and 15-year-old Chiaki Todaka (JPN: 82.67) for the women.

● Figure Skating ● The ISU Grand Prix opener, the Grand Prix de France in Angers, confirmed that two-time World Champion Ilia Malinin of the U.S. is going to be hard to stop at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

He dominated the Short Program of the men’s Singles, piling up a 105.22 to 95.67 lead on Nika Edadze (GEO), including a Quad Lutz and Triple Toe Loop combo. In the Free Skate, he piled up 215.78 points, including a Quad Flip, Quad Lutz, another Quad Lutz, Quad Toe Loop and Quad Salchow! He totaled 321.00 points, ahead of Adam Siao Him Fa (FRA: 280.95); Americans Andrew Torgashev (233.36) and Maxim Naumov (226.74) finished sixth and ninth.

Malinin’s total is the no. 6 score ever (and his no. 2); only fellow American Nathan Chen and Japanese star Yuzuru Hanyu have ever scored more.

Japan swept the women’s Singles, with 2023 World Junior bronzer Ami Nakai, 17, upsetting three-time World Champion Kaori Sakamoto, 227.08 to 224.23, with Rion Sumiyoshi third at 216.06. American Isabeau Levito, the 2024 Worlds runner-up, was fourth at 212.71 and teammate Elyce Lin-Gracey was seventh (172.07).

Japan scored again in Pairs, with two-time World Champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara winning in a rout, scoring 219.15 to 197.66 for Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps (CAN) and 192.76 for Maria Pavlova and Alexei Sviatchenko. Americans Katie McBeath and Daniil Parkman were fourth (178.08) and Audrey Shin and Balazs Nagy were fifth (173.30).

In Ice Dance, Beijing 2022 Olympic champ Guillaume Cizeron (FRA) won with his new partner, Laurence Fournier Beaudry, formerly from Canada. They were third in the Rhythm Dance but won the Free Dance by more than seven points to win at 211.02, passing Britain’s Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson (210.24). Americans Eva Pate and Logan Bye (178.68) and Emily Bratti and Ian Somerville (172.80) finished 7-8.

Next up is the Cup of China in Chongqing next week.

● Football ● The final of the FIFA men’s U-20 World Cup in Santiago, Chile pitted six-time winner Argentina – which last won in 2007 – against first-time finalist Morocco. This time it was Morocco’s turn to celebrate, with a 2-0 win off goals in the 12th and 29th minutes from Mohamed Zabiri.

Colombia won the third-place match over France, 1-0, its second bronze in this tournament, previously in 2003.

Group play is continuing at the Women’s U-17 World Cup in Morocco, with the U.S. winning its first match in Group C by 3-0 over Ecuador. Next up, on Tuesday, will be China, a 5-0 winner over Norway in its first match.

● Judo ● At the IJF World Tour Guadalajara Grand Prix in Mexico, the U.S. got a rare win as Maria Laborde took the women’s 48 kg title over Eva Perez (ESP). It’s Laborde’s second Grand Prix medal, after a bronze in the Upper Austria Grand Prix in March.

Azerbaijan won the first four men’s weights with 2024 European runner-up Balaby Aghayev (60 kg), Ruslan Pashayev (66 kg), Paris Olympic champ Hidayat Haydarov (73 kg) and 2023 World Junior Champion Vusal Galandarzade (81 kg).

On Sunday, they added the 100 kg title by Zelym Kotsoiev and the +110 kg gold from Ushangi Kokauri, for six wins in the seven classes!

Japan won two women’s golds, from 2025 World Champion Haruka Kaju at 63 kg and worlds bronzer Kurena Ikeda at 78 kg. Israel’s Olympic runner-up Raz Hershko won her second straight Grand Prix title in a week at +78 kg.

● Shooting ● In the Trap finals at the ISSF World Shotgun Championships in Athens (GRE), the men’s Rio de Janeiro gold medalist Josip Glasnovic (CRO), now 42, won his first World Championships gold, 44-39, over Andres Garcia (ESP), the 2021 World Junior Champion. American Will Hinton was sixth (16).

Glasnovic then led the Croatian men’s team to a second gold in the Team final, defeating the U.S. trio of Hinton, Derrick Mein and Walton Eller, 368-361, in the final.

Mar Molne Magrina (ESP) won the women’s Trap gold, her first Worlds medal, 46-42, over Italian Olympic runner-up Silvana Stanco. The Team final ended the same way, as Spain defeated Italy, 355-346. The U.S. (Rachel Tozier, Ava-Elizabeth Downs, Carey Garrison) was seventh at 334.

Italy won the Mixed Team gold. 45-40 over San Marino. The U.S., with Downs and Eller, won the bronze, 39-37, over Egypt.

With four golds in the Skeet events, the U.S. ended up leading the medal table with six total (4-1-1), ahead of Italy (4: 1-3-0).

● Short Track ● Four-time World Champion William Dandjinou of Canada was the star of the ISU World Tour no. 2 in Montreal (CAN), sweeping the men’s individual events!

He started with the 500 m in 41.126 over China’s 2022 Olympic champ (for Hungary) Shaoang Liu (41.225). Dandjinou then took the 1,500 m 2:13.217, ahead of Shogo Miyata (JPN: 2:13.406) and Canadian teammate Steven Dubois (2:13.575).

On Sunday, Dandjinou finished his sweep with the 1,000 m in 1:25.417, with four-time Worlds gold medalist Dubois at 1:25.465 and 2022 Olympic 1,500 winner Dae-heon Hwang (KOR: 1:25.587) in third.

Canada also won the men’s 5,000 m relay in 6:57.743, with the U.S. in fourth at 6:59.774.

The World Cup opener in Montreal saw Canadian Courtney Sauralt dominate the women’s racing and she started with a win on Saturday in the 1,000 m in 1:27.896, over two-time Olympic 1,500 m winner Min-jeong Choi (KOR: 1:28.165) and World 500 m champ Xandra Velzeboer (NED: 1:28.325). American Corinne Stoddard was fourth.

On Sunday, World Champion Velzeboer took the 500 m 42.258, with Sarault second (42.326), and Americans Kristen Santos-Griswold (42.429) and Stoddard (42.473) in third and fourth. Choi came back to take the 1,500 m in 2:17.399, over Stoddard (2:17.516) and Santos-Griswold (2:17.669) with Sauralt in fourth (2:17.707).

Canada won the women’s 3,000 m relay in 4:07.341 and the mixed team relay in 2:37.599 over South Korea (2:38.004).

● Table Tennis ● Hugo Calderano, Brazil’s 2025 Worlds runner-up, won his sixth Pan American Championships gold in Rock Hill, South Carolina, overwhelming American star Kanak Jha, 4-1.

Brazil also claimed a finalist in the women’s Singles, with Bruna Takahashi falling to Adriana Diaz (PUR), by 4-0.

Brazil won the men’s Doubles, Guatemala won the women’s Doubles and Calderano and Takahashi took the Mixed Doubles final, 3-2, over the U.S. pair of Jessica Reyes Lai and Jishan Liang.

Puerto Rico defeated the U.S. (Reyes Lai, Sally Moyland, Lily Zhang) in the women’s team final by 3-1. Argentina won the men’s team title over the U.S. (Jha, Liang, Sid Naresh), 3-2. 

● Triathlon ● Australia’s Matt Hauser has been the top men’s performer all season and on Sunday, he dominated the World Triathlon Championship Series Finals in Wollongong (AUS).

Already the winner of three Championship Series races this season, Hauser was first out of the water, ranked no. 6 on the bike and was third-fastest in the 10 km to win by 33 seconds in 1:42:42. Spain’s David Cantero Del Campo was second in 1:43:15 and Alessio Crociani (ITA: 1:43:22) finished third.

Morgan Pearson was the top American, in 12th (1:44:23). In the seasonal rankings, Hauser scored 4,250.00 points to win, with Miguel Hidalgo (BRA: 3,769.95) second and Vasco Vilaca (POR: 3,690.12) in third.

The women’s final was also a runaway, this time for German Lisa Tertsch, who had four top-three finishes in the Championship Series coming in, including a win in Abu Dhabi (UAE). At the final, she led out of the swim, was eighth overall on bike and sixth-fastest on the run and that added up to a 1:56:50 finish and her second Championship Series win.

Bianca Seregni (ITA) was a clear second in 1:57:04, then France’s Emma Lombardi (1:57:16) and Leonie Periault (1:57:21). Taylor Spivey was once again the top American, in seventh (1:57:47).

Tertsch, fourth coming into the final, won the seasonal rankings at 3,886.26, ahead of Periault (3,577.04) and Britain’s Beth Potter (3,313.18). Spivey finished fourth overall, scoring 3,125.85. France’s Olympic champ Cassandre Beaugrand, who was in position to win the overall title, dropped off during the run and did not finish, dropping to seventh in the seasonal standings.

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LOS ANGELES 2028: L.A. Mayor Bass marks 1,000 days to go with “Games for All” vision focused on the city, but with help for the Games

By
Rich Perelman
-
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed Executive Directive no. 17 at a Venice Beach Ceremony on 17 October 2025 (Photo: Office of the Mayor of Los Angeles).

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≡ L.A.’s “GAMES FOR ALL” VISION ≡

“The “Games for All” will deliver a vision measured not only in medals and memories of iconic moments, but also in thriving neighborhoods, restored civic engagement and unity, and a Los Angeles that works better for all.

“Already, Angelenos are stepping up to transform neighborhoods into hubs of resilience and cultural expression where civic infrastructure, culture, and play come together to build thriving communities block by block. Together, the City of Los Angeles will ensure the 2028 ‘Games for All’ creates a more connected, more resilient, and more inclusive future.”

With the countdown to the opening of the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad reaching 1,000 days to go on Friday, 17 October, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass signed Executive Directive no. 16 at a ceremony at Venice Beach, an eight-page order which instructed the City’s departments to work together to ensure that the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games are allowed to be held without unnecessary delays from the City bureaucracy.

The preamble to the actual directives repeated the political ambitions of Bass and the City Council for an “An Inclusive City For All,” “A Thriving City For All,” “A Vibrant City For All,” summarized in a flashy, 28-page “Games For All” Vision document.

The directive itself was more concrete, with some important instructions for City departments:

● “The Office of Major Events shall coordinate all City departments and engage external stakeholders to ensure the City’s preparedness for the 2028 Games and other major events, to create positive economic impacts for the City and its residents, and to advance other crucial priorities to ensure that all Angelenos benefit from these coming opportunities.”

The office was formally “confirmed” in the Directive and is headed by former City Council President Paul Krekorian. It has been in operation since 5 December 2024.

● Three working groups were established to coordinate Games planning, including (1) Operations (city services, utilities, public safety), (2) City Games Mobility (planning, cultural affairs, disability, public works, recreation and parks, transportation, water and power), and (3) Development Services (business and economic development in coordination with planning, building and safety, public works, transportation, water and power and others).

● “I hereby direct all applicable City departments to conduct and conclude all of the City’s initial building permitting reviews required for 2028 Games projects, and to complete all appropriate reviews for such projects within 45 days following the submission of a complete application.”

This is part of a streamlined permit process related to the 2028 Games, especially for temporary installations required at the competition and support sites.

● And the Directive goes further, asking the Building & Safety department, in coordination with others, to “report back within 30 days on a Self-Certification Pilot Program for 2028 Games Critical Projects. This self-certification procedure, conducted by a licensed architect or engineer, shall aim to ensure that projects essential for the 2028 Games are permitted and constructed efficiently while maintaining the highest standards of safety and compliance.”

That could help LA28 considerably, but could raise questions from critics over a lack of review over safety issues, especially as time gets tight. Zoning and Historic-Cultural reviews and the Special Event permit process are also directed to be prioritized for Games-related projects.

● An important opportunity for the City was finally grasped by the Directive:

“Within 90 days, the Departments of Recreation and Parks, Cultural Affairs, and General Services, the Bureau of Engineering, and the City Administrative Officer shall work with the Office of Major Events and Mayor’s Office of International Affairs to complete an inventory of City-owned facilities that can be made available for use by external stakeholders up to three months ahead of the 2028 Games and one month after the end of the 2028 Games.

“These spaces may include iconic and historic locations, theaters, and City-owned parking lots or open space not associated with a park that could hold temporary structures. The inventory shall include information that would be helpful for firms or agencies, such as whether the facility is appropriate to rent, including but not limited to square footage, floorplans, disabled access compliance, and amenities. Where available, departments should provide high-quality photos of the facilities.”

The potential clients for such rentals are obvious: International Federations, National Olympic Committee, sponsors and others related to the Games (or who want to be related at the time of the Games). The City is late on this, but is now awake.

Observed: The instructions from Bass are long overdue, but here they are and following on the City Council process which included public input on streamlined permitting, are helpful to the LA28 cause.

During the City’s brutal budget process in the spring, in which a $1 billion gap had to be closed with help from the City’s many labor unions, it was stated by Mayor’s Office representatives that there was no comprehensive City plan for the 2028 Games.

There still isn’t and the “Games For All” Vision document is more hope than plan. But this Directive now places the City bureaucracy at the center of its preparations for 2028 and with increasing speed in planning from the expanding LA28 organizing committee, the framework for success is beginning to be built.

For the success of the Games, the coordination with LA28 is paramount and will be decisive. The more the City is helpful and cooperative, the more the pressure shifts to LA28 to offer concrete plans which can be implemented with City assistance on permits and services. That’s good.

For the City, finally there is the direction to look at City assets which can be rented or otherwise used for Games support. This has to expand to the L.A. Unified School District, with 1,543 schools and centers and endless possibilities for usage for teams, projects, fan festivals and the like, especially at its 86 senior high schools.

The wheels are beginning to turn. The political goals about inclusivity, vibrancy and a thriving city are up to the City itself and not about the Games. But perhaps by emphasizing saying “yes” instead of “no” – related only to the 2028 Games for a start – the City of Los Angeles can find a future way forward. It has before.

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GYMNASTICS: IOC issues statement on Indonesia’s rejection of Israel, says it tried to “facilitate a solution”

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ IOC RESPONDS TO INDONESIA ≡

The International Olympic Committee issued a detailed statement Friday on the refusal of the Indonesian government to allow Israeli athletes into the country to compete at the FIG World Artistic Championships in Jakarta.

The bottom line: the IOC made inquiries and nothing changed. The core of the statement included:

“It was with great concern that the IOC learnt that the Indonesian government has denied the Israeli gymnastics team, including athletes and officials, visas to enter the country for the upcoming 53rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships. The championships are due to begin on 19 October 2025 and are to be held in Jakarta.

“The IOC’s principled position is very clear: all eligible athletes, teams and sports officials must be able to participate in international sports competitions and events without any form of discrimination from the host country, in accordance with the Olympic Charter and the fundamental principles of non-discrimination, autonomy and political neutrality that govern the Olympic Movement.

“It is therefore the direct responsibility of the host country, the organiser and the sports organisations directly concerned to make sure that this principle is fully respected and that all necessary assurances are provided by the relevant authorities of the host country in advance. This position has been reiterated by the IOC on numerous occasions over the years.

“As the IOC EB said in its statement in September: ‘The IOC is concerned by […] the restriction of access to host countries for athletes, and the boycotting and cancellation of competitions due to political tensions. These actions deprive athletes of their right to compete peacefully and prevent the Olympic Movement from showing the power of sport.’

“Since the IOC became aware of the situation concerning the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, it has, on all levels, been in touch with the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), the IOC Member in the country, the National Olympic Committee and the government of Indonesia to help facilitate a solution. Unfortunately, no resolution has been found.

“The IOC very much regrets the situation, especially after the remarkable step towards a peace agreement at the Peace Summit in Egypt, as witnessed by the President of Indonesia. The IOC EB will discuss the specific situation of Indonesia – for all stakeholders involved – at its next meeting. Sport must remain a safe space for athletes to fulfil their dreams; and athletes must not be held responsible for political decisions.”

It should be noted that the Indonesian IOC member is Erick Thohir, also the Indonesian Youth and Sports Minister, who came out in favor of the government’s refusal to allow Israel to compete. Further, the FIG President – Japan’s Morinari Watanabe – is also an IOC member.

Both failed to uphold the IOC’s stated principles in this situation.

The next Executive Board meeting is in December; the pressure is now on the IOC and new President Kirsty Coventry (ZIM) to react to a problem not of their making, but now a serious challenge to the concept of athlete access to competitions in line with the “political neutrality” of sport.

The Times of Israel reported on a 10 October news conference with Indonesian Olympic Committee president Raja Sapta Oktohar and Indonesian Gymnastics Federation president Ita Yuliati, writing:

“Raja Sapta Oktohari, head of the national Olympic committee, said Indonesia was ready to accept any consequences for blocking the Israeli athletes from competing.

“‘We will review the consequences after the event,’ he said.”

The Web site for the World Championships, reported Yuliati’s comments, trashing the FIG as well as Israel:

“This is an official FIG championship, and our role is to serve as the Local Organizing Committee. All decisions related to competition rules, registration, and participating countries are under the sole authority of FIG,” and

“FIG understands Indonesia’s position. This understanding is significant, as our federation consistently upholds national laws and prioritizes the safety of all athletes and delegations participating in the championship. Therefore, it is confirmed that Israel will not appear in this event.”

Oktohari said that safety was the predominant issue:

“The decision was made after careful consideration. There are greater interests at stake – namely ensuring that the world championship proceeds safely, orderly, and successfully for everyone involved.”

He added that he sees Indonesia’s organization of the gymnastics Worlds as the first of more major events in the country:

“The success of the World Gymnastics Championships will be an important stepping stone and will draw global attention to Indonesia’s ability to host international sports events in the future.”

That is not Israel’s view and likely not the IOC’s view, either.

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PANORAMA: NHL concerned over Milan 2026 arena delays; Brisbane ‘32 chief Liveris concerned over Oz labor shortage; Russia wins case at CAS

By
Rich Perelman
-
The 2025 New York City Marathon finisher medal, showing the course elevation along the edge! (Photo: NYC Marathon on Instagram).

★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman expressed concerns Wednesday over the progress of the PalaItalia Santa Giulia Arena in Milan, the featured venue for ice hockey:

“We’ve had a concern for the last two years on the progress of the rink – both rinks – but mainly the main one.

“It’s the [International Olympic Committee’s] responsibility. We’re invited guests, but they know of our concerns and we’re expecting that they’re going to make good on all the promises to have a facility that is, from a competitive standpoint, first-class.”

In terms of possible back-up plans, Bettman said:

“You’d better talk to the IOC. It’s not our issue.

“If we have concerns, we’ll express them. We are constrained in what we can and can’t do, request and demand, and if it reaches a certain point, we’ll have to deal with it. But I’m not speculating, and we’ve been constantly assured by the IOC and the IIHF that it will be OK.

“Obviously, the players’ association will share our concerns if there are any that are necessary.”

The Associated Press reported that delays in construction mean that no test event will likely be held at the new arena prior to the Games.

● Olympic Games 2032: Brisbane ● Brisbane 2032 organizing committee head Andrew Liveris said at a local business forum on Thursday that he sometimes worries about the long road ahead.

“I’m having moments that keep me up at night,” and added some specifics:

“We need accommodation, we need hotels. We need human capital like there’s no tomorrow. Skilled labor is a country issue … how do we solve our labor shortage?”

But, as is his nature, he was also optimistic:

“I would be very energized if I was a small business in this state and this community. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be part of something that puts your product on display.

“You will be part of an Olympic city, an Olympic state. So I think it’s a massive opportunity.”

He acknowledged the cost of the Games, including billions in national and state government funding for 17 new and refurbished venues, including an Olympic stadium in Victoria Park, being contested by activist and First Nations groups. He noted:

“I’m very committed, maybe [because] I grew up in Darwin amongst Indigenous people, went to school with them. I think that there’s a unique opportunity to elevate in an equitable way how First Nations people live in our country.

“The Olympics and Paralympics should not back away from that.”

● Athletics ● A fun new element has been added to the finisher medals for the 2025 New York City Marathon, where a representation of the course elevation has been incorporated into the side of the award.

The overall design of the medal has not changed from 2024, but the edge clearly shows the changes in the 26.2-mile route. It’s a unique innovation for an iconic – and difficult – course.

● Cycling ● The UCI Women’s World Tour Tour of Chongming Island in China finished with a Dutch 1-2 as Anne Knijnenburg finished 55th, 64th and then third in Thursday’s final stage to emerge as the winner. Countrywoman Sofie van Rooijen, the stage two winner and leader going into the final stage, was second, 8:02:16 to 8:02:17.

All three stages were flat and unlike the first two, which had mass finishes that gave the same time to most of the field, a breakaway group of nine riders in the 111.4 km third stage crossed 15 seconds ahead of the peloton. With her third-place finish and the four-second time bonus, that gave Knijnenburg the overall title.

● Table Tennis ● The Russian news agency TASS reported on a Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling – so far unpublished – stating that a 2022 European Table Tennis Union ban on Russian and Belarusian players in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine was discriminatory.

Specifically, the decision was described as holding that less-restrictive options were available, such as neutral-athlete status. A ban on national symbols was allowed as an action to reduce public tension.

A statement from the Russian SILA Lawyers firm included:

“This was the first ruling of its kind in which the tribunal sided with Russian athletes. However, CAS emphasized that its conclusions apply only within the context of table tennis and do not automatically extend to other sports, such as football.

“Nevertheless, we believe that the principles of non-discrimination are cross-disciplinary, and the conclusions of this decision could serve as a starting point for reconsidering the policies on Russian athletes’ participation in international competitions.”

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FOOTBALL: FIFA says a million 2026 tickets sold; Wu dismisses threat of relocation of World Cup games by Trump; security worries on drones

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 ≡

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu brushed off comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that 2026 FIFA World Cup games could be moved from Gillette Stadium in Foxborough if Trump felt the area was not safe.

Speaking on the “Java with Jimmy” podcast, she explained:

“Much of it is locked down by contract so that no single person, even if they live in the White House currently, can undo it.

“We’re in a world where for drama, for control, for pushing the boundaries, for just ongoing threats that are issued to individuals and communities who refuse to back down and comply or be obedient to a hateful agenda.

“We are going to continue to be who we are and that means, unfortunately, we are going to continue to be in the conversation in a way that is targeting Boston’s values. …

“In this case, there is no ability to take away the World Cup games. There’s no real threat when it comes to saying cities are so unsafe they can’t host the games.”

FIFA announced that more than one million tickets have been sold in the first purchase window for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the U.S.

Purchasers have come from 212 countries and territories; the top 10 by number of tickets bought:

● 1. United States
● 2. Canada
● 3. Mexico
● 4. England
● 5. Germany
● 6. Brazil
● 7. Spain
● 8. Colombia
● 9. Argentina
● 10. France

The statement noted:

“Fans, including those who were unsuccessful in the presale phase, can look forward to the next ticket sales window, which will begin later this month. Specifically, on Monday, 27 October, the entry period will open for the Early Ticket Draw, in which single-match tickets to all 104 games, along with venue- and team-specific tickets, will be released.”

About seven million tickets are expected to be available in all.

The assignment of which countries will play where and when won’t be finalized until the Final Draw, on 5 December in Washington, D.C.

Andrew Giuliani, the head of the White House Task Force on the 2026 FIFA World Cup, said this week that a major campaign against unauthorized drones is part of the planning effort, using part of a $500 million grant to the Department of Homeland Security to mount an anti-drone program. He explained to Politico:

“Everybody from the governors to different commissioners of the police in these different cities to the stadium chief security officer say that this is something that they need in order to protect the [World Cup] sites.”

The protective program includes detection, jamming and interception and disabling drones, but with legal impediments for Federal agencies to allow local and state security forces to do so. A bill in Congress to allow this has stalled.

At the FIFA men’s U-20 World Cup in Chile, Morocco won a thriller from France and Argentina edged Colombia to move to the championship final on Sunday.

Morocco and France moved to penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie after extra time and it took a sixth round to decide the 5-4 outcome, as Naim Byar converted his try and France’s Djylian N’Guessian could not score.

Argentina scored in the 72nd minute on a Mateo Silvetti goal to beat Colombia, 1-0, to advance to try and win its seventh U-20 World Cup title, the most of any country.

Morocco is the first African finalist since Ghana won the title in 2009. It’s Morocco’s first final; it was fourth in 2005.

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MILAN CORTINA 2026: Opening ceremonies plan spreads athletes across four locations, to emphasize “harmony”

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ MILAN CORTINA 2026 ≡

“Milano Cortina 2026 will be the first edition of the Olympic Winter Games with a polycentric model, meaning the Games will be spread across multiple cities. The Opening Ceremony will also reflect this vision: thanks to an innovative and inclusive project, all athletes will be able to participate in a shared experience in harmony between Milan, Cortina, Valtellina and Val di Fiemme.”

The 2026 Olympic Winter Games will be spread across northern Italy and Thursday’s announcement of the logistics of the Games opening on 6 February 2026 emphasized that unique aspect:

● In Milan, the historic San Siro stadium will include the traditional athlete parade in front of an expected 60,000 spectators.

● In Cortina, a parallel ceremony will be held, with athletes from biathlon, bobsled, curling, luge, skeleton and skiing.

● In Livigno in the Valtellina Cluster, skiing, snowboarding and ski mountaineering athletes can participate.

● In Val di Fiemme, athletes from the Nordic skiing events in cross country, Nordic Combined and ski jumping are located.

It was noted that each of the participating nations can have two flagbearers, who can appear at different sites. Host Italy will have four flagbearers. 

The multiple focus points concept also extends to the Olympic Flame, for which cauldrons will be established:

● Andrea Varnier, the Milan Cortina 2026 organizing committee chief executive, noted:

“For the first time, the name of our Games includes two cities, which means we have to hold the most significant moments twice: the flag-raising ceremony and the lighting of the Olympic cauldron will take place in two locations, and we have to manage this visibility.”

● Maria Laura Iascone, Olympic and Paralympic Ceremonies Director, explained:

“We are revealing the two places that will become iconic, where we will ignite the two Olympic cauldrons and raise the excitement: in Milan, at the Arco della Pace, you will all see this wonder and, in the same way, in Cortina, you will be able to admire it in Piazza Dibona, in the centre of Cortina.”

The announcement characterized the idea of the Winter Games opening this way:

“For the organisers, the Opening Ceremony is their moment to stand tall, to let il Tricolore fly proudly on the world stage, and to offer a love letter to Italy and to sport in all its beauty.”

Veteran Italian producer Marco Balich, the creative lead for the ceremonies, underscored the importance of the theme of “harmony,” originally from the ancient Greek:

“It means ‘bringing together’ in musical terms, different elements. Because there are two cities, Milan and Cortina, city and mountain, the harmony between man and nature, between cultures, people and different ways of thinking … it is very meaningful.”

The Winter Games will open on 6 February and close on 22 February in an equally unique concept, at the Arena di Verona, a Roman amphitheater from the first century.

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PANORAMA: Timing of new Milan arena for 2026 Games on thin ice; India to get 2030 Commonwealth Games; FIFA backs Trump on safety?

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Winter Games 2030 ● The under-construction PalaItalia Santa Giulia arena in Milan is behind schedule and may not have any formal test competitions prior to the 2026 Winter Games.

Milan Cortina 2026 chief executive, Andrea Varnier told The Associated Press, “It’s going to be very close to the start of the Games, the timeline is very tight. But we knew that.”

The facility, slated to hold 16,000 fans, is being privately financed and built.

● Commonwealth Games 2030 ● The Commonwealth Sport Executive Board recommended Ahmedabad, India as the preferred site for the centennial 2030 Commonwealth Games.

The board selected Ahmedabad over Abuja (NGR), and the recommendation “will now be put forward to the full Commonwealth Sport membership, with the final decision taking place at the Commonwealth Sport General Assembly in Glasgow on 26 November 2025.”

This is a key step for India, which wants to host the 2036 Olympic Games, for which the selection could come at any time the International Olympic Committee will choose. As the 2030 Commonwealth Games will be too close to 2036, it will not be possible for the IOC to see the 2030 Commonwealth Games take place, so India’s chances may be better for 2040.

Moreover, the 2030 Commonwealth Games will be an opportunity for India to erase the memory of the poorly-organized 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, battered by corruption and mis-management.

Commonwealth Sport is also not letting go of future possibilities:

“[G]iven the impressive and ambitious submission from Nigeria, the Commonwealth Sport Executive Board has agreed to develop a strategy for supporting and accelerating Nigeria’s hosting ambitions for future Games, including consideration for 2034. This decision supports Commonwealth Sport’s strategic commitment to secure the future Games pipeline and to host a Games in Africa.”

● Los Angeles & California ● The Play Equity Fund, the Los Angeles-based activist organization dedicated to making sports more widely accessible to youth, celebrated the signing into law of AB 749, the “Youth Sports For All Act” on Monday, 13 October.

According to the legislative summary:

“This bill, the Youth Sports for All Act, would require the State Public Health Officer to establish and convene the Blue Ribbon Commission on the Development of a California Department of Youth Sports or an Equivalent Centralized Entity to conduct a comprehensive study on the need for and feasibility of creating a centralized entity charged with supporting and regulating youth sports, as provided, on or before July 1, 2026, or 6 months after implementation commences as described below, whichever is later.

“The bill would require the commission to submit the study to the Legislature and the Governor on or before January 1, 2028, or 2 years after implementation commences, whichever is later. The bill would make implementation of its provisions contingent upon an appropriation by the Legislature or upon the State Department of Public Health obtaining sufficient funds from federal, nonprofit, or private sources.”

The goal is to examine the opportunities for wider youth sports participation in California vs. the disparate and uneven programming now offered.

● Canoe-Kayak ● The International Canoe Federation is following the lead of Union Cycliste Internationale in cycling and announced a future all-disciplines world championship event, to be called the World Paddle Games, including

“the Olympic formats of Canoe Sprint, Canoe Slalom, and Kayak Cross, as well as Paracanoe, Canoe Marathon, Wildwater Canoeing, Ocean Racing, Canoe Polo, Canoe Freestyle, Dragon Boat, and Stand Up Paddling (SUP).”

National federations are being asked to bid, with no target first year set. The event will be a challenge, requiring “flatwater, whitewater, and ocean arenas within an hour’s radius.”

The UCI had a significant success with its first Cycling World Championships in Glasgow (GBR) in 2023, with 13 disciplines in the 11-day program; it will be held again in 2027 in France.

● Fencing ● Following up on the 2024 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium in 2024, the USA Fencing National Championships at Milwaukee’s Baird Center was named as the “Best Amateur Sports Event” at the 2025 Sports Travel Awards. Per USA Fencing:

“Over 10 days in Milwaukee, more than 6,000 athletes competed as the event welcomed about 11,000 attendees and generated an estimated $10.7 million in economic impact for the city — all inside the Baird Center’s newly expanded North Building, where Summer Nationals was the first event in the northern expansion wing.

“Staged June 28–July 7, the event brought together youth, collegiate-bound, senior and veteran fencers for a festival of competition under one roof, with free admission that invites new fans to discover the sport.”

● Football ● The Italian news agency ANSA reported FIFA’s reply to comments from U.S. President Donald Trump that he would ask to have 2026 World Cup matches moved if safety issues arose:

“We hope that each of the 16 cities designated for the tournament will be ready to successfully host and meet all the necessary requirements.

“Security is the top priority at all FIFA events worldwide, but it is obviously the responsibility of governments, who decide what is in the best interest of public safety.”

Hmmm. Interesting. Very interesting. Very, very interesting.

Christen Press, a dynamic forward on two U.S. FIFA Women’s World Cup-winning teams in 2015 and 2019, announced her retirement, as of the end of the NWSL season.

“It’s hard to find the words to say goodbye to a sport that has defined my life for over three decades. Football has given me everything, and I will miss being on the pitch so very much. Thank you to my family, friends, teammates, coaches, and community for this beautiful ride.”

Now 36, she scored 64 goals and had 43 assists in 155 national-team appearances and played with clubs in England, Sweden and the U.S., currently with Angel City FC in Los Angeles.

● Wrestling ● U.S. wrestler Robby Smith, who finished fifth at the 2015 World Championships Greco-Roman 130 kg class, has been upgraded to the bronze medal due to a doping disqualification of Russian Bilyal Makhov.

Makhov, the 2012 Olympic winner, was third, but Smith moved up as Makhov’s wins have been erased, and now has a World Championships medal. A 2016 Olympian, Smith serves on the USA Wrestling Board of Directors and continues in the sport as a youth coach.

Russian wrestler Irina Ologonova, a three-time Worlds women’s silver medalist, received an 18-month suspension confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on behalf of the International Testing Agency for doping violations in November 2014.

The positive was unearthed from data obtained in 2019 from the Moscow Laboratory of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency during the time of the state-sponsored doping program from 2011-15. The ban for Ologonova, now 35, is from 24 April 2024 to 15 October 2025; her results were annulled from 8 November 2014 to 8 July 2015, which does not affect the silver medals she won at the 2014-15-16 World Championships in the women’s 55 kg class.

She last competed in 2024.

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SWIMMING: Australian distance superstar Titmus suddenly retires from competitive swimming at 25; said her perspective changed in the Paris lead-up

By
Rich Perelman
-
Australian swim icon Ariarne Titmus in her retirement interview on Instagram.

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≡ TITMUS RETIRES ≡

Writing on Instagram, Australian distance superstar and four-time Olympic gold medalist Ariarne Titmus announced Wednesday (U.S. time) that she was retiring. The post:

“Dear seven year old Ariarne,

“Today you retire from competitive swimming. 18 years you spent in the pool competing. 10 of those representing your country. You went to two Olympic Games and ever better, you won!!!

“The dreams you had.. they all came true. The friends you’ve made.. they’re for life. You achieved more than you ever thought you were capable of and you should be so proud.

“Along the journey you’ve met some incredible people who have helped all the way. Your coaches (one very special one in particular), your support staff, team mates, competitors, sponsors, friends, family and fans. Make sure you thank them.

“You do pack up and move away from your home at 14, what a tough decision it was to leave. Mum and Dad saw the glimmer in your eye and sacrificed everything to move. Without them, alongside Mia- you wouldn’t be here today.

“You’ve just turned 25 and the time feels right to step away from swimming. The pursuit was unrelenting and you gave it every skerrick [every tiny bit] of yourself. You walk away knowing every stone was turned, no regrets. You’re fulfilled, content and happy.

“What’s ahead for you is exciting. New goals, more time with the people you love most and the chance to wholeheartedly put yourself, not your sport first.

“Make sure you enjoy every moment, big or small. Trust me, time flies.”

She said in a companion video interview that “I always intended to return. I never thought that Paris would be my last Olympic Games. Knowing now what I know, I wish I had’ve maybe enjoyed that last race a little bit more.

“But I guess having this 12 months away, I really had the chance to explore what life is like without swimming and that was always my intention, but I think a turning point for me, or a time when a switch was flicked, in the lead-up to the Paris Games, I went through some health challenges which, quite frankly, really rocked me, mentally. It probably was the first time where I considered some things outside of swimming.”

Titmus noted that she had to be all in to beat American rival Katie Ledecky, in Tokyo and in Paris in the 400 m Freestyle.

“Beyond swimming, I’ve always had goals on my personal life, but swimming’s always been most important, up until this point, and I’ve just realized that those goals and what I want in my future is now more important to me. But more than anything, I’m excited for what’s next.”

She paid tribute to Ledecky, saying that without racing her, she wouldn’t have been the athlete she became. Titmus called her decision, “a tough one, a really tough one, but one that I’m really happy with.”

She finishes with four Olympic golds, in the Tokyo 2020 200-400 m Freestyles and the Paris 400 m Free and 4×200 m Free Relay. She won eight Olympic medals in all (4-3-1) and nine World Championships medals, including the 400 m Free in 2019 and 2023.

Titmus set world records in the 400 m Free (3:56.40 in 2022 and 3:55.38 in 2023) and the 200 m Free (1:52.23) in 2024. The 200 m mark still stands.

This is a shocker, no doubt, but Titmus has left an indelible mark on the sport, as Ledecky continues and newcomers such as Summer McIntosh (CAN) are moving up as the stars from Paris and for 2028 in Los Angeles.

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LANE ONE: FIG offers pathetic, weak, unconvincing comment on CAS decisions on Israel’s exclusion from Jakarta Worlds

By
Rich Perelman
-
FIG President Morinari Watanabe (Photo: Watanabe IOC Presidential candidate statement).

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≡ ISRAEL OUT, FIG DOES NOTHING ≡

The Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG), the governing body of worldwide gymnastics, posted a pathetically weak comment after the Court of Arbitration for Sport refused any action on the Israel Gymnastics Federation appeal of FIG’s acquiescence of the Indonesian government’s refusal to issue entry visas to Israeli athletes for the FIG World Artistic Championships that start Sunday:

“The FIG has consistently emphasised that it has no authority over the issuance of entry visas in Indonesia. The decision of the Indonesian national authorities to deny visas to Israeli individuals lies entirely outside the FIG’s competence and control.

“The FIG takes this opportunity to underline that, as an international sports federation governing the sport of gymnastics worldwide, it is politically neutral and acts strictly within the framework of its Statutes and Regulations, as well as in accordance with the principles of neutrality and non-discrimination that underpin the Olympic Movement.

“The FIG deeply regrets this unfortunate situation and the impact it has on the affected athletes. It reaffirms its unwavering commitment to ensuring that all FIG competitions remain open to all eligible gymnasts in accordance with its rules and regulations, irrespective of their nationality or personal attributes.”

What a joke, especially the last paragraph and its “unwavering commitment to ensuring that all FIG competitions remain open to all eligible gymnasts …”

It is worth comparing the current situation, in which the government of Indonesia enforced its anti-Israel policy by not allowing the six-member Israeli team – plus three coaches – to compete in Jakarta, after the athletes had been duly registered for the championships, with the high-profile conflicts of the last three years:

● Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022 and on 28 February 2022, the International Olympic Committee Executive Board recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes not be allowed to participate in international competitions:

“The IOC EB took protective measures immediately at the time, with a heavy heart and expressing the dilemma it faced. It was against the mission of the Olympic Games that the IOC had to recommend not to invite athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport because of government interference as governments were starting to decide who can take part in which competition.

“Some of the governments threatened to withdraw funding if athletes would participate in a certain competition. And this the IOC could not allow, because this is against every principle of the international sports system, which must be based on sport and not on political decisions about who can participate.”

● Hamas, the governing body of Gaza, invaded Israel on 7 October 2023, killing 1,195 and taking 251 hostages, with those living finally released back to Israel this week and Hamas saying that some of the deceased hostage bodies cannot be found.

Since then, the IOC has taken no action and the Israel Olympic Committee has not asked for the quarantining of the Palestinian Olympic Committee, recognized by the IOC in 1995. The FIG took no action against the Palestinian Gymnastics Federation.

But now Israel – the victim of the 7 October attack – is targeted again by Indonesia, a Muslim-majority country which has – with occasional exceptions – refused to allow Israel to compete on its soil, excluding the country from the Asian Games held in Jakarta in 1962. And twice in 2023, canceling the ANOC World Beach Games with 32 days to go and FIFA removing the men’s U-20 World Cup, in which Israel later won a bronze medal in the re-located tournament in Argentina.

Article 2.2 of the FIG Statutes states, obviously only for show:

“The FIG does not advocate, support or practice any form of discrimination on any grounds such as race, skin colour, ethnic, gender, sexual orientation, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, disability, physical attributes, athletic ability or any other reason; the Federation does not permit any violation of human rights amongst its members. FIG respects and follows the UN universal declaration of human rights and the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in all its affairs.”

As noted in my comment of 12 October, FIG – even at this late date – has options:

● “FIG could turn the Indonesian ban around, and since they will not allow Israel to compete, then Indonesian athletes will not be allowed to compete in Jakarta. …

● “FIG can suspend the Indonesian federation for its violation of FIG’s own rules as well as the Olympic Charter; a four-year ban would keep Indonesian gymnasts out of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

● “FIG has awarded the 2026 Artistic Worlds to Rotterdam (NED) and 2027 to Chengdu in China. Why not award the 2029 Artistic Worlds right now to Israel – probably Tel Aviv – with Indonesia to pay all costs for the event. If it can’t stomach paying the Israel Gymnastics Federation directly, it can pay FIG and FIG will forward the money to the Israelis.”

FIG has indicated that it will do nothing. 

(By the way, just as with athlete prize money. Despite being a tier-one recipient of IOC television rights funds at $39 million-plus from Paris 2024, FIG pays no prize money at its World Championships. Astonishing but true.)

Will anything be done to it? Or to IOC members Morinari Watanabe (JPN), the FIG President, or Erick Thohir, the Indonesia Youth and Sports Minister, who supported – of course – his government’s Israel ban, in contravention of the FIG rules and the Olympic Charter.

As is the usual case in international sport, the ball is in the court of the International Olympic Committee and new President Kirsty Coventry (ZIM).

The IOC told the Russian news agency TASS it was gathering information about what happened. Its Executive Board does not meet until December; it met in emergency session after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

But Coventry and her IOC are now on the clock to act on a blatant violation of the “athletes are not responsible for their government’s actions” mantra insisted on by immediate past president Thomas Bach (GER).

If the IOC does not act – against FIG, against Indonesia and against Watanabe and Thohir – it opens wide the door that Bach fought hard to keep closed: that host countries of any event will – close to the start – simply refuse entry to athletes of countries they don’t like.

Don’t be stupid enough to think this has not been noticed in Washington, D.C.

Bach said, prophetically, at the 2023 International Federation Forum in Lausanne:

“The autonomy of sport – your autonomy as an International Sports Federation – is under threat. The actions of these divisive political forces would effectively mean that they take over your role as International Federations.

“Some want to decide which athletes can compete in which competitions. Others want to decide where your competitions can take place. Still others want to organise their own political sports events. Especially the latter would mean a government takeover of international sport.

“If they succeed with this, your role and the role of the Olympic Movement would become obsolete.”

Watanabe, Thohir, Coventry and all others were warned. What now?

Rich Perelman
Editor

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SPOTLIGHT: U.S. Para sprinters Jaydin Blackwell and Ryan Medrano continue to push each other to new heights

By
Gregg Voss
-
U.S. teammates Ryan Medrano and Jaydin Blackwell at the 2025 World Para Track & Field Championships (Photo: Marcus Hartmann/USATF).

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The American duo finished first and second in the T38 100 m at the World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi

By Gregg Voss
Red Line Editorial

It would be understandable if Jaydin Blackwell and Ryan Medrano had a major rivalry with each another.

After all, the two U.S. sprinters regularly race against each other in the T38 classification at major track-and-field meets.

This year’s World Para Athletics Championships – held 27 September to 5 October in New Delhi (IND) – was no different. Blackwell broke his own world record in the 400 m in 48.00 and won gold in the 100 m in 10.70 (wind: -0.4 m/s), which set a championships record.

Medrano walked away with a silver medal in the 100, finishing in 10.90 seconds. He also took fourth in the 400 (50.09) and finished fifth in the T38 long jump (6.40 m/21-0) at worlds.

The constant battles between the two sprinters with cerebral palsy only pushes them both to get better.

“Like always, we both push ourselves to be the best competitors we can be, and we push each other to a higher level and go beyond our limits,” Blackwell, 21, said of Medrano, 28. “He’s as a fun guy to be around and fun person to run against.”

The feeling is mutual for Medrano.

“Jaydin and I have a very wholesome rivalry,” Medrano said. “We push each other to be better. We’ve been roommates previously. He’s the fastest in the world. You want to have people around you to make you better. It doesn’t happen with just me. As the field of T38s get faster, I have to get faster.

“Jaydin is someone I consider a friend.”

The friends both began competing internationally in 2023, and they have each appeared in three world championships already. Ever since Blackwell emerged on the Para track scene, he’s dominated the T38 class by winning gold in the 100 and 400 at the past three world championships. That consistency carried into Paris last summer during his Paralympic debut, as the Oak Park, Michigan, native took home gold in both events as well.

Medrano has been right behind Blackwell at many of those races. He won his first worlds medal last year in Kobe, Japan, taking silver in the 400. The Savannah, Georgia, native then won silver in both the 100 and 400 at the Paralympics last summer.

Their career timelines have matched up almost exactly, and they’ve each been able to win significant hardware already. When it comes to their preparation before a race, though, the similarities end.

“I just put my headphones on and get all my preparations in,” Blackwell said, “do my general warmups, and when it’s time, I just focus and don’t talk to anybody. Just lock in and focus.”

Keeping to himself before races may stem from Blackwell training alone in Michigan when he’s not competing.

(Photo by Marcus Hartmann/USATF).

“He’s focused and he doesn’t complain,” Fred George, Blackwell’s coach, said. “He trains by himself, and he adapts well to the knowledge you pass on to him.”

Meanwhile, Medrano engages with other competitors before the starting gun.

“I was talking with the volunteers, asking questions. Even the guy from Colombia was doing a song and dance, and I was loose myself,” Medrano said. “I’m very empathetic. I do a good job of connecting with another human. Instead of closing myself off, my coach was like, ‘Be yourself, dude, and trust in the process.'”

Medrano is only a few years into long-jump competition and is fifth in the world. He’s currently working on his takeoff, and his goal is always to take his time and try to enjoy it.

“I approach it with speed,” he said. “It is different than the 100 and 400. In long jump you have up to six attempts to get on the runway and get the crowd into it. It’s definitely a learned event.”

As for Blackwell, he’s clear on how he keeps himself motivated when he’s the odds-on favorite to win every race: family, friends and coaches like George.

“(They) help me out along the way,” he said. “They give me the strength to keep going. I want to push past my own limits every time, at practice or at a competition.”

Both Blackwell and Medrano have specific goals about what they want to accomplish going forward.

“My goals are to just keep doing what I’ve been doing since the start, keep breaking the world records and championship records,” Blackwell said. “If I don’t one time, then I have to go back to the drawing board.”

George said track-wise, Blackwell’s future is so bright he’ll have to wear shades. Maybe not during competitions, but you get the point.

Medrano, whose coach is Californian Kris Mack, said his approach is as physical as it is mental when it comes to his goals.

“I’m twice the size of everybody else, so my goal is to slim down and focus on the races I want to compete in,” he said, “working on things to complement when I get back into the season. I don’t want to be one of those athletes who didn’t train in the offseason. Being consistent and working on my knowledge of the sport.”

(Photo: Marcus Hartmann/USOPC).

When it comes to their counsel to other athletes, both Para and able-bodied, Blackwell and Medrano’s advice is similar.

“Number one, don’t let other people tell you what you can and cannot do,” Blackwell said. “The only thing that sets you back is your mindset. And number two, just because something is hard doesn’t mean you should ignore it.”

In terms of the latter part of that advice, Blackwell can prove that he follows it himself. Despite being the world-record holder in the event, Blackwell hates the 400, calling it “one of the most gruesome events in track and field.” But that doesn’t stop him from continuing to set records at that distance.

Medrano said the bigger picture is more than just training.

“You have to build a community of people that will help keep you accountable,” he said. “Motivation isn’t always there, so you have to hold yourself accountable in training, sleep and recovery. Create that environment for yourself. Find that coach.”

Gregg Voss is a journalist based in the Chicago suburbs who has been writing sports for newspapers and magazines for more than 20 years. He is a freelance contributor to Team USA on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.

For more, please visit the USOPC Paralympic Educational Hub.

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PANORAMA: Track “athletes of the year” nominees named; IOC inquiring about Israel’s gymnastics ban; 20-year SecGen Dielen leaves World Archery

By
Rich Perelman
-
A world title for American 400 m hurdler Rai Benjamin (Photo: Dan Vernon for World Athletics).

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● International Olympic Committee ● The IOC replied Monday to an inquiry about the Indonesian government’s refusal to grant entry visas to the Israeli team for the FIG World Artistic Championships saying only:

“We are aware of various allegations regarding the Israeli national artistic gymnastics team’s participation in the upcoming World Championships in Indonesia. We are working to better understand the situation with all stakeholders.”

The IOC announced a renewed cooperation agreement with the World Olympians Association, a worldwide alumni group, which will be aimed at “maximising the impact of joint initiatives and resources to ensure that Olympians continue to be empowered to serve as role models and ambassadors of the Olympic Movement.”

This is significant as a change in attitude for the IOC from the Thomas Bach Era, when the IOC tried to absorb the WOA, but was rejected by the WOA in 2023.

WOA President Joel Bouzou (FRA) said, “We have achieved much over the last three Olympic cycles, including the creation of the OLY post-nominal letters and our grants and scholarship programmes, and we look forward to working hand in hand with the IOC to deliver even more services and opportunities for Olympians.”

● Archery ● World Archery announced that Tom Dielen (BEL), the federation’s Secretary General from 2005, was replaced on 10 October by 1992 Olympic men’s Team gold medalist Juan Carlos Holgado (ESP) as the Executive Director, new position.

He will serve as Acting Secretary General until that position is hired. Dielen lost to new World Archery President Greg Easton (USA) in the early September elections during the World Archery Congress. He said in a statement:

“I have had the privilege of working for a total of 26 years as a professional and several years as a volunteer at World Archery. The journey started in Lausanne with a meeting with Jim Easton in the Lausanne Palace in February 1996. He hired me, a few months later, in June 1996.

“I had the pleasure of working very well with Jim for six years and professionalised the office after moving the headquarters from Milan to Lausanne. In 2002, I left World Archery for three years and three months to move to WADA [World Anti-Doping Agency], but kept a volunteer role in the constitution and rules committee.

“When Prof Dr Ugur Erdener [TUR] wanted to become president, we sat together and jointly developed the 10-point presidential programme. Key elements of that were the mediatisation of our sport as well as implementing the World Cup, a project I finalised just before leaving to WADA in 2002. For me, it was essential that this project, which was not implemented during my absence (since there was no title sponsor nor financing for it), was implemented as soon as the elections confirmed Prof Dr Erdener as president and me as secretary general.

“The cancelled season due to the COVID pandemic will have caused me to miss the 20th edition next year. The World Cup has moved archery from a danger zone, nearly being kicked out of the Olympic Games at the session in Singapore in 2005, to a sport that is seen as a reference.”

● Athletics ● World Athletics posted the five nominees for Track Athlete of the Year for men and women, with fan voting available on the federation’s social channels:

Men:
● Rai Benjamin (USA) ~ 400 m hurdles World Champion
● Jimmy Gressier (FRA) ~ 10,000 m World Champion
● Noah Lyles (USA) ~ 200 m World Champion, 100 bronze
● Cordell Tinch (USA) ~ 110 m hurdles World Champion
● Emmanuel Wanyonyi (KEN) ~ 800 m World Champion

Women:
● Femke Bol (NED) ~ 400 m hurdles World Champion
● Beatrice Chebet (KEN) ~ 5,000-10,000 m World Champion
● Melissa Jefferson-Wooden (USA) ~ 100-200 m World Champion
● Faith Kipyegon (KEN) ~ 1,500 m World Champion, 5,000 m silver
● Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA) ~ 400 m World Champion

Voting closes on 19 October with two finalists to be selected for each award.

Kenyan distance runner Diana Chepkorir, 23, a 29:56 10 km road runner – no. 20 all-time – was banned for four years from 15 September 2025 based on irregularities in her Athlete Biological Profile. An expert panel noted of her test data, “the sequence of samples 2, 4, 5 and 6 displays an “ON” followed by an “OFF” phase pathognomonic for situations where the red cell mass is artificially increased and the body subsequently downregulates its own red cell production.”

● Football ● The U.S. men’s national team finished its latest international-play window against 2016 World Cup qualifier Australia in Commerce City, Colorado on Tuesday.

The game started with the U.S. in charge of the ball, but it was Australian defender Jordan Bos who scored in the 19th on a failed clearance and then an opportunistic left-footed shot from the center of the box to the right corner. But the Americans got even in the 33rd as striker Haji Wright took a lead pass in the box from midfielder Cristian Roldan and ahead of the defense, finished with a right-footed tap to the top of the left corner of the net.

In the half, the U.S. had 70% of possession and a 6-1 lead on shots, but only the one goal.

After an early Australian rush, Roldan surprised the Socceroos; off re-start, he sent a long pass from midfield to Wright streaking, on the right side, one-on-one toward the Aussie goal. He got control, faked to the right, went left and sent a curling, left-footed rocket to the far left side of the net for a 2-1 U.S. lead in the 51st.

U.S. substitute forward Diego Luna had a fabulous chance on a charge on the net in the 79th that was amazingly saved by Australian keeper Mathew Ryan. U.S. keeper Matt Freese saved a 90th-minute challenge from sub striker Nestory Irankunda, who danced through most of the defense, and that was enough for the win. The U.S. finished with 64% possession and a 10-9 shots edge.

In an up-and-down 2025, the 16th-ranked U.S. has rebounded from losses to 14th-ranked Mexico (July) and no. 23 South Korea (September) with wins against no. 19 Japan (2-0), a tie with no. 24 Ecuador (1-1) and now a win vs. no. 25 Australia. A key measure will come in November against South American sides no. 37 Paraguay and no. 15 Uruguay.

Israel completed its latest UEFA 2026 World Cup qualifiers with two losses on the road in Oslo against group leader Norway (5-0 on 11 October) and 3-0 against Italy in Udine on Tuesday. Both games were marked by protests against Israel’s retaliation in Gaza against the 7 October invasion and massacre by Hamas.

There was a mostly-orderly protest of about 1,000 people against Israel in Oslo, with a heavy police presence and some protesting fans inside the nearly-full Ullevaal Stadion.

There were as many as 10,000 protesters in Udine according to The Associated Press and a heavy police presence. Skirmishes with protesters ended once the match began, but after about 50 people charged the police and were repelled with water cannons and tear gas. Less than 10,000 tickets were sold for the match; some booing of the Israeli anthem was covered by cheers from others.

● Gymnastics ● It was announced Monday that Russian star Alexander Dityatin, who won eight Olympic medals at a single Games at Moscow in 1980, has died at age 68.

He won four golds at the 1979 FIG World Championships, then won the Team gold, All-Around and Rings in Moscow in 1980, with silvers in the Pommel Horse, Vault, Parallel Bars and Horizontal Bar and a Floor Exercise bronze. Only U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps, with eighth medals in 2004 (6-0-2) and 2008 (8-0-0) has also won eight in a single Games.

U.S. gymnastics icon Simone Biles told a forum last week in Buenos Aires (ARG):

“Everyone likes to talk about L.A. and what that road looks like for me. So currently, I am taking some time off from the gym because I think it’s really important that your physical health matches your mental health.

“That’s why you saw so much of my success in Paris, because the mental and the physical were right on par. They were right on track with each other, so I think that’s really, really important.

“I’m not sure what 2028 looks like, but I will be there in some capacity. I just don’t know right now if it’s on the floor or in the stands. But I definitely want to go and be a part of that movement.”

● Judo ● A compact field of 248 judoka from 48 countries contested the IJF World Tour Lima Grand Prix in Peru.

Brazil took four wins, with Olympic medalist Daniel Cargnin taking the men’s 73 kg class, Rafael Macedo winning at 90 kg, Giovani Ferreira at 100 kg and Jessica Pereira in the women’s 52 kg division.

Israel won two golds, with Izhak Ashpiz in the men’s 60 kg and women’s Olympic runner-up Raz Hershko at +78 kg. Rio and Tokyo Olympic champ Lukas Krpalek (CZE) won the men’s +100 kg for his 10th career Grand Prix and Grand Slam gold. Tokyo Olympic 57 kg bronzer Jessica Klimkait (CAN) took the women’s 63 kg class.

The U.S. won a silver in the men’s 81 kg final by Johan Silot for its lone medal.

● Speed Skating & Short Track ● The International Skating Union announced Tuesday a new bonus program for world records in both disciplines, of $5,000 for individual events, and $5,000 per team member for speed skating team events (3 athletes) or the mixed relay (2 athletes). Same $5,000 prize for Short Track and $20,000 for team events with four skaters.

The record setters will also get a “world record” ring!

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LOS ANGELES 2028: Trump says 2026 World Cup matches could be moved from Boston, and – if “not safe” – the Olympic Games from Los Angeles!

By
Rich Perelman
-
U.S. President Donald Trump during a White House news briefing (YouTube screen shot).

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≡ TRUMP ON 2026 & 2028 ≡

U.S. President Donald Trump, speaking with the press during a meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei, talked once again about moving FIFA World Cup 2026 matches if needed.

Asked about his continuing feud with Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and the seven World Cup matches to be held in Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium, Trump said:

“We could take them away. I love the people of Boston. I know the games are sold out, but your mayor is not good. …

“If somebody [referring to Wu] is doing a bad job and I think there’s unsafe conditions, I would call Gianni [Infantino/SUI] the head of FIFA – who’s phenomenal – and I would say let’s move it to another location.

“And he would do that. He wouldn’t love to do it, but he’d do it, very easily he’d do it. And this is the right time to do it.

“If I thought Boston was doing something that was going to be, cause safety conditions for the World Cup [to be bad] … I could say the same thing for the Olympics because we have events that are in different locations for the Olympics. It’s based in L.A.

“If I thought L.A. was not going to be prepared properly, I would move it to another location, if I had to. For that one, I’d probably have to get a different kind of a permission, but we would do that.”

That’s a reference to the International Olympic Committee, which has a contract with the City of Los Angeles to hold the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which the first Trump Administration helped to bring to the U.S. and signed guarantees on multiple access and security issues.

Trump pivoted from Boston to talking about the California Governor:

“Gavin Newsom, he’s got to get his act together because had we not gone in at the beginning of my term, had we not gone in with a very strong, powerful force, they would have lost L.A.”

Trump ordered in 2,000 National Guard troops on 7 June, to protect Federal facilities from demonstrators against immigration raids by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) service, and added 900 Marines a couple of days later. The protests finished on 15 June.

Trump came back to the World Cup in Boston issue, finishing with, “Boston better clean up their act, that’s all I can say.”

Gillette Stadium has five group-stage matches assigned as well as a round-of-32 and a quarterfinal match. Trump raised the issue of moving matches in a media briefing on 25 September, but did not single out a specific location:

“It will be safe for the World Cup. If I think it isn’t safe, we’ll move it into a different city, absolutely. … It’s actually a very fair question. If I think it’s not safe, we’re going to move it out of that city.”

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LOS ANGELES: Even without the 2028 Olympic Games, L.A. sports generate $12.1 billion in economic impact, up 95.2% in six years!

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ L.A. SPORTS ECONOMY SOARS ≡

In 2018, a comprehensive study of the economic impact of sports in the Los Angeles area by the L.A. Economic Development Corporation showed $6.2 billion in total economic impact, supporting 39,100 jobs and generating about $327 million in state and local tax revenues.

Then came the pandemic. And then came another boom.

At the L.A. Sports Innovation Conference held Monday at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California and organized by the Los Angeles Sports Council, the LAEDC presented its latest findings, showing a startling rise since the Covid-19 shutdown in 2020:

In 2021:
● $7.0 billion total economic impact
● 39,690 jobs (direct and indirect)
● $363.6 million local and state tax revenue

In 2024:
● $12.1 billion total economic impact
● 92,970 jobs (direct and indirect)
● $725.9 million local and state tax revenue

These are astonishing numbers, growing over six years by 95.2% in total and adding 53,280 direct and indirect jobs. What happened?

The biggest economic driver in the region are its fans. The report noted and offered a stunning chart demonstrating the rabid interest in sports in the area:

“Between 2023 and 2024, attendance at professional sporting events in Los Angeles increased by an average of 1.0 percent across all major teams. Football continues to anchor the region’s sports scene, with the Rams averaging 73,194 fans per game and the Chargers 69,967, both essentially filling SoFi Stadium to capacity, with the Rams again exceeding its official seating limit.

“Soccer also demonstrated strong support, with Los Angeles Football Club averaging 22,121 per game, the Galaxy increasing to more than 26,000, and Angel City FC averaging just over 19,300, reflecting the sport’s broad appeal in Southern California.

“Baseball followed closely, with the Dodgers drawing 48,657 fans per game at Dodger Stadium, the highest in Major League Baseball, and the Angels attracting 31,822 at Angel Stadium.

“Basketball and hockey teams also maintained steady support, with the Lakers averaging 18,723, the Kings 17,196, and the Ducks 15,806. The Sparks recorded the most dramatic year-over-year increase, rising from 6,554 to 11,045 per game, while the Clippers posted the sharpest decline, down 12.6 percent, reflecting the transition to the newly opened Intuit Dome, which offers a smaller seating capacity than their previous home at Crypto.com Arena.”

The accompanying chart showed that of the 12 largest pro teams in the area, eight have average attendance at 90% or better of their listed capacities, with three more over 80% and one at 71%:

Moreover, spending on concessions, parking and merchandise is not included in the total.

These large-scale pro teams account for $10.2 billion of the $12.1 billion impact total or 84.3%, with collegiate sports – primarily UCLA and USC – accounting for most of the rest at $1.87 billion. USC was listed with $242.4 million in athletics revenue for 2024 and UCLA with $170.9 million; others ranged from $39.7 million down to $22.1 million.

Annual events also generated significant, if smaller impacts such as the PGA Genesis Invitational golf tournament, Long Beach Grand Prix auto race, the Rose Bowl, U.S. Surfing Open, Los Angeles Marathon and others, and one-time events such as the Rugby Sevens World Championships.

The LAEDC measured the impact of sporting events taking place in the area and not those in the planning stages, such as for the 2026 FIFA World Cup or the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in the Los Angeles area.

LAEDC chief executive Stephen Cheung told the conference the numbers aren’t just good, they open the door to much more:

“This is really a call to action. I think for economic developers – I get excited about the data – it’s not so much about the data, but about the narrative and the story. We don’t tell that story enough; other folks are telling the story for us.

“So we basically have to let folks know that we’re one of the top two sports-entertainment sector [locations] in the entire world, and because of that, we need to take our rightful place on the national and international stage, owning the development of that and turning this into business opportunities and job opportunities for our communities as well.

“So, this is a way of asking all of you to start getting the data, creating your own narrative and your story, so when our international partners are coming, so they can call you and we have a lot of these amazing stories about new technology, new companies, new work, new sports teams are coming through, so we can showcase to the rest of the world how great L.A. is.”

He noted that the New York-New Jersey area is top-ranked, but he pointed out that takes in activities across two states. Cheung sees L.A. as no. 1 and said the data “momentum positions Los Angeles as the global capital of sports and innovation.”

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GYMNASTICS: Israeli appeals to compete in 2025 World Gymnastics Champs rebuffed by Court of Arbitration, as door to chaos opens

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ ISRAEL OUT OF FIG WORLDS ≡

“On 10 October 2025, the Indonesian government issued a statement that Israeli athletes due to participate in the competition were not granted visas. The IGF subsequently filed two appeals to CAS with requests for urgent provisional measures.

“The first appeal, filed on 10 October 2025, is against the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) requesting the annulment of the FIG statement issued the same day, ‘taking note’ of the Indonesia’s decision not to issue visas to the Israeli delegation.

“The second appeal, filed on 13 October 2025, is joint with six Israeli athletes who qualified for the championships (Artem Dolgophyat, Eyal Indig, Ron Payatov, Lihie Raz, Yali Shoshani and Roni Shamay) and is also against the FIG. This appeal requests that CAS orders FIG to take the necessary measures that guarantee Israeli participation in the championships, or in the alternative, to move or to cancel the championships.”

That’s the Court of Arbitration for Sport summary of the appeal lodged by the Israel Gymnastics Federation with CAS issuing a notice on Tuesday that it rejected requests for “urgent provisional measures”:

“The IGF argued in their appeal that the FIG Statutes require the FIG Executive Committee to pass a decision in case entry visas are not granted to all participating delegations. They also argued that the absence of a decision constitutes a denial of justice, thus creating a situation of discrimination against a member association.

“The FIG emphasized that it has no prerogatives in the issuance of entry visas in Indonesia and that the fact that Indonesian authorities have refused to grant visas to Israeli individuals falls entirely outside the competence of the FIG. …

“Both requests have been rejected. The first appeal will be terminated due to a lack of jurisdiction. The second appeal is still ongoing.”

The Israeli Gymnastics Federation has accepted the reality and posted two messages on Instagram:

● “CAS ruled – the Israeli delegation will not go to the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.

“We have just received with great disappointment the CAS ruling regarding the departure of the Israeli delegation to the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Indonesia, according to which the delegation will not be allowed to go to the championship.

“We are so disappointed for the gymnasts, male and female, and professional teams, but not only. We are deeply concerned by the recent decisions that could negatively affect the future of all our delegations and the future of sport in general.

“We continue the fight, hoping to achieve justice, but unfortunately we will no longer be going to this World Championships.”

● “Today we were informed that our team will not go to the World Championships. This is hard, painful, unfair news. But it is precisely in these moments that our true strengths are revealed.

“We see you and you, the hard work, the faith, the big heart. The coaches who fought until the end, and the gymnasts who continued to dream, even when the path became impossible.

“Today we will no longer participate in the World Championships, but we stand tall, united, proud.

“We will grow out of this crisis, we will come back stronger, and we will continue to fight so that in the future our flag will fly exactly where it deserves.

“Artem, Eyal, Ron, Lihi, Yahli, Roni, and the coaches: Sergey, Mia and Roni – we are very proud of you. We believe in you. With you every step of the way.”

So the event will go on, beginning on Friday and ending Sunday. But the impact will go longer.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport summary, although unofficial, underlines the limitations of the forum. This is an arbitration mechanism designed to resolve issues between multinational sports organizations, not governments.

As the CAS summary stated, the Israel Gymnastics Federation asked for the “annulment” of the FIG acceptance of the Indonesian government’s decision not to issue visas to its delegation. The CAS “reply” is important:

“The first appeal will be terminated due to a lack of jurisdiction.”

CAS has no power over governments, or to make an International Federation challenge a government over a governmental decision not to issue visas.

So, taking this further, there is no recourse for a sports body – such as the International Olympic Committee – to coerce a host country to issue entry visas to any delegation it does not like, regardless of any contractual guarantees it may have made in the process of being named as host.

This is a bad precedent for gymnastics, for the IOC and for every International Federation. FIG has options, but will clearly not exercise any of them.

The only question is when this will next be seen and where. IOC President Thomas Bach (GER) worked tirelessly on this issue during his two terms, especially concerning Russian athletes in the aftermath of the doping scandal and then also Belarusian athletes after the invasion of Ukraine. He largely won that fight, with a small number of Russian and Belarusian “neutrals” allowed to compete in Paris.

So far, the IOC under new President Kirsty Coventry (ZIM) has not been heard from.

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PANORAMA: Canadian NOC asks C$104 million gov’t funding; Pogacar dominates Il Lombardia again; Hancock & Simonton take skeet Worlds!

By
Rich Perelman
-
Canadian Olympic Committee chief David Shoemaker and Olympic sprint star Andre De Grasse on CBC’s “Power & Politics” (CBC screen shot).

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Games 2032: Brisbane ● The newest twist from Australia is a push to “re-brand” South East Queensland – which includes the City of Brisbane – as simply, “Brisbane.”

The area now includes Ipswich, Logan, Somerset, Scenic Rim, Moreton Bay, Redland, Noosa, Toowoomba, the Lockyer Valley, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Brisbane, but promoters say the change would help uplift the entire area. Brisbane 2032 organizing committee chief Andrew Liveris is on board:

“Global and national accolades continue to roll in and our focus must be to support and seize our collective success, together. When we promote one another, we win as one.”

Not everyone is on board with this, with polls indicating resistance.

● International Fair Play Committee ● The CIFP honored three exceptional acts of sportsmanship and fair play at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne (SUI) on Sunday, from the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris:

Norway’s Sander Skotheim was a prime contender in the decathlon, but no-heighted in the vault. Rather than retire, he stayed in to help teammate Markus Rooth to the gold medal, including pacing him in the final event, the 1,500 m.

At the beach volleyball women’s final between Brazil’s Ana Patricia Ramos and Duda Lisboa and Canadians Brandie Wilkerson and Melissa Humana-Paredes, the competition and the crowd got heated with in the third set as Brazil’s lead shrank to 11-8. After an exchange of words between the sides at the net, the referee tried to calm the situation and venue DJ Tony Ramos (ESP) inserted John Lennon’s “Imagine” in the site and reduced the tension. The Brazilians went on to a 15-10 win for the gold medal.

The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) was recognized for lending a boat to Belarus “neutral” rower Yauheni Zalaty for the men’s Single Sculls, as Zalaty’s equipment did not arrive in time in Paris. He eventually won the silver medal behind German star Oliver Zeidler in the Olympic final!

Said CIFP President Sunil Sabharwal (USA), “These moments from Paris 2024 showcase that fair play is not just an ideal, but a tangible, powerful force in sport.

“Whether through an act of sacrifice, a musical moment of peace, or simply extending a helping hand to a competitor, these honorees prove that character is the highest medal a person can win.”

● Canada ● Speaking on a CBC Power & Politics interview alongside seven-time Olympic medalist Andre De Grasse, Canadian Olympic Committee chief executive David Shoemaker said that under-funding of the country’s national sports organizations has reached a tipping point.

Program host David Cochrane noted that the Future of Sport in Canada Commission projected a shortfall of C$329 million (C$1 = $0.71 U.S.) over the next five years to the 62 NSOs, with Shoemaker explaining that the crisis has come:

“The long and short of is we can’t make it work. Eventually the pressure will become too much to bear and the sports system will collapse as a result of it. So we’re trying to let it be known that now is an important opportunity to invest in sport. …

“With the financial pressure that the national sports organizations are facing, they are making decisions to cut back on programming, to cut back on training. Not just for Olympians, but it’s making it more and more inaccessible for young people to get into grass roots sports in Canada, and that’s not the vision we have for sport in this country.”

He said that the “federal government hasn’t increased its core funding commitment to sport in 20 years; not since 2005 has there been an increase,” and is asking for C$104 million in added funds.

Shoemaker noted that while sport is a “nation-building tool all unto itself,” the Canadian women’s rugby World Cup team that won the silver medal last month had to crowd-fund its travel expenses, as did surprise women’s World Road cycling champion Madgeleine Vallieres.

“We want to be competitive with G-7 countries,” explained Shoemaker, saying countries like Britain, Germany and France out-spend Canada, 10:1, in sports.

De Grasse reflected on his own career, with many highs but also lows due to injury and said that without more help, “there won’t be as much people in sports, to be honest. The funding goes down, a lot of people can’t provide, they can’t do the sports, they have to find other avenues to go away from sports.”

● Athletics ● Dutch star Femke Bol announced that she is moving to the 800 m, after winning two Worlds golds in the women’s 400 m hurdles, two Olympic bronzes and an amazing 400/400 m hurdles double at the 2022 European Championships, plus more than a dozen relay medals. She ranks no. 2 all-time in the 400 m hurdles at 50.95 last year. She wrote on Instagram:

“The next chapter: 800m

“I’m really excited to share the next chapter of my career It’s a big change, it’s uncertain and challenging, but I’m ready to put in the work, surrounded by an amazing team and enjoy this new journey.”

Given her 400 m speed (49.17 indoor world record, 49.44 outdoors), she will be closely watched as a contender for worldwide honors. She is not to be underestimated.

● Rowing ● “USRowing is proud to announce that its most prestigious recognition, formerly known as the Medal of Honor, will be renamed the Anita DeFrantz Medal of Honor beginning with the 2025 awards. This change celebrates one of rowing’s most influential athletes and leaders, ensuring her legacy will continue to inspire future generations.

“The Anita DeFrantz Medal of Honor will be presented annually to an individual who, like DeFrantz, embodies integrity, leadership, and a lifelong dedication to advancing rowing.”

DeFrantz won an Olympic women’s Eight bronze at Montreal 1976 and made the American team for Moscow 1980, only to be sidelined by the American boycott. She sued the U.S. Olympic Committee unsuccessfully, but amplified the athlete voice to demand a larger say in how they were treated and what they could do.

US Rowing announced a major fundraising success with the largest gift ever bestowed on the federation: $6.5 million from Cameron and Tyler Winkelvoss, the co-founders of crypto-currency exchange and custodian Gemini. Per the federation:

“In recognition of this historic donation, USRowing will rename its senior, para, and beach sprint teams the ‘Gemini.com U.S. National Team,’ reflecting the commitment of the Winklevoss brothers to the future of American rowing. In addition, The Caspersen Boat House — USRowing’s National Team Training Center in West Windsor, N.J. — will be expanded and the new facility will be named the ‘Winklevoss Training Center.’”

● Swimming ● Lars Jorgensen, a 1988 U.S. Olympic distance Freestyler at the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games and the coach at Kentucky from 2014-2023, was deemed “permanently ineligible” by the U.S. Center for SafeSport on 9 October. The database entry:

“(Subject to appeal / not yet final); Intimate Relationship – involving a Power Imbalance; Physical Misconduct; Retaliation; Sexual Harassment; Sexual Misconduct”

He was suspended in 2019 and 2023 for short periods, then in April 2024, a still-active suit was filed against him, the Kentucky athletic department and the university, alleging sexual harassment.

≡ RESULTS ≡

● Badminton ● At the BWF Arctic Open in Vantaa (FIN), 2022 Worlds bronze winner and second-seed Tien Chen Chou (TPE) scored a mild upset over top-seeded Kunlavut Vitidsarn (THA), 21-11, 13-21, 21-19, while top-seeded Akane Yamaguchi (JPN) swept past Busanan Ongbamrungphan (THA), 21-19, 21-16.

England won the men’s Doubles, Malaysia took the women’s Doubles and China went 1-2 in the Mixed Doubles.

● Beach Volleyball ● The Beach Pro Tour Elite 16 tour was in Newport Beach, California for the first top-tier tournament in the U.S. since October 2018, in Las Vegas.

The all-American women’s final had top-seeded Kristen Nuss and Taryn Brasher against 10th-seeded Julia Donlin and Lexy Denaburg, playing for their first medal of the season. Nuss and Brasher collected their third win of 2025 with a 21-15, 21-14, sweep.

Olympic champs Ana Patricia Ramos and Duda Lisboa (BRA) won the bronze medal with a 21-11, 21-12 win over Americans Therese Cannon and Megan Kraft (USA).

The men’s final had Tokyo Olympic bronze medalists Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan (QAT), the top seeds, winning over Evandro Oliveira and Arthur Lanci (BRA), 21-16, 30-28 for their third Elite victory in 2025. Chile’s Marco Grimalt and Esteban Grimalt won the third-place match from Trevor Crabb and Taylor Crabb (USA), 21-16, 21-18.

A follow-on 4×4 Newport Beach Invitational tournament for men and women Sunday had a separate $250,000 prize purse.

● Cycling ● Slovenian superstar Tadej Pogacar blew past American Quinn Simmons on the final climb – the Passo di Ganda – and rode away over the final 34 km to win the 119th Il Lombardia on Saturday by 1:48, his fifth straight win in the event!

Pogacar covered the 241 km route in 5:45:53, with Belgian star Remco Evenepoel second (+1:48), then Michael Storer (AUS: +3:14) and then Simmons (+3:39).

In addition to his Tour de France, World Road Championships and European Road Championships wins, Pogacar won his third “Monument” race this year – the ancient events that go back before World War I – having taken the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Liege-Bastogne-Liege and finishing third at Milan-Sanremo and second at Paris-Roubaix.

Pogacar equaled the great Eddy Merckx (BEL) in winning three Monuments in a single year; he did it four times, in 1969-71-72-65. Pogacar now has 10 Monument wins (at age 27), ranking third all-time. Merckx, of course, is the leader, at 19.

At the UCI Mountain Bike World Series in Mont Sainte-Anne (CAN), Rio 2016 Olympic champ Jenny Rissveds (SWE) put on another dominant display, winning both the Cross Country Olympic and Short-Track races for the third time in a row!

She won Sunday’s Cross Country race in 1:20:35, three-and-a-half minutes ahead of Samara Maxwell (AUS: 1:24:05) with 2021 World Champion Evie Richards third in 1:24:42. Kelsey Urban was the top American, in seventh (1:26:13).

Rissveds won the women’s Short Track in 21:40, rolling away from Richards (21:58) for her fourth XCC win in a row. But Richards won the season, at 1,770 points, with Rissveds at 1,660.

Maxwell, the 2023 U-23 XCO World Champion, took the XCO seasonal title with 2,341 points over Rissveds (2,250).

France’s Luca Martin won the men’s Short Track race in 21:04, beating Charlie Aldridge (GBR: 21:05) and Adrien Boichis (FRA: 21:05). American Christopher Blevins, who won the first five races of the season and later a sixth, won the season title with 1,911 points to 1,380 for Martin and 1,267 for Aldridge.

That set up Sunday’s XCO race, where Aldridge rode away on the seventh and final lap to win at 1:21:41, over Martin Vidaurre (CHI: 1:21:52) and Mathis Azzaro (FRA: 1:22:01). But Blevins had a big seasonal lead and won the 2025 circuit gold with 1,996 points to 1,695 for Vidaurre.

Canada’s Jackson Goldstone thrilled the home fans with his fifth win of the season in the men’s Downhill in 3:30.096, ahead of American Luca Shaw (3:32.340) and Andreas Kolb (AUT: 3:32.341). Goldstone won the seasonal series title with 1,946 points, to 1,768 for five-time World Champion Loic Bruni (FRA) and 1,366 for Shaw.

Four-time Worlds medal winner Marine Cabirou (FRA: 4:01.617) got the women’s win, with Nina Hoffmann (GER: 4:02.333) second and French teammate Myriam Nicole third (4:03.913). Austria’s Valentina Hoell, the four-time World Champion, won the seasonal crown at 2,139 points, with Gracey Hemstreet (CAN: 1,727) second.

● Football ● The U.S. men dominated much of the play vs. Ecuador on a Saturday in Austin, Texas, but came away with a 1-1 tie on striker Falogin Balogun’s finish of a cross from forward Malik Tillman in the 71st minute.

Ecuador striker Enner Valencia gave Ecuador the lead in the 24th on a dribble drive through the U.S. defense, beating American keeper Matt Freese from just inside the six-yard box. The U.S. controlled possession at 66% and had an 11-8 edge on shots, but managed only the one score.

In the quarterfinals of the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile, Colombia eliminated Spain, 3-2, on Saturday in the upper bracket and Argentina blanked Mexico, 2-0.

On Sunday, the U.S. men had 76% of possession and a 5-2 edge on shots in the first half against Morocco, but trailed 1-0 in the first half until forward Cole Campbell converted a stoppage-time penalty against defender Nolan Norris in the box, at 45+6! But the second half had a U.S. own goal by Joshua Wynder in the 66th and then Gessime Yassine scored in the 87th for a 3-1 win. The Americans ended with 73% possession and a 13-7 shots advantage, but it did not help.

France edged Norway, 2-1, in the last quarterfinal. The semifinals will be played on Wednesday (15th) with the final on the 19th (Sunday).

● Sailing ● Spain scored two wins at the combined 49er-49erFX-Nacra 17 World Championships in Cagliari (ITA), with Olympic 49er gold medalists Diego Botin and Florian Trittel taking three wins and scoring 83 net points to win, just ahead of Bart Lambriex van Aanholt and Floris van der Werken (NED: 89.0), the 2021 and 2022 World Champions. Denmark’s Jonas Warrer and Mathias Lehm Sletten finished third at 109.0.

The 49erFX class was much closed, with Paula Barcelo and Maria Cantero (ESP) winning the last-day medal race to win the class, 91.0 to 92.0 from Paris runner-up Vilma Bobeck and new partner Ebba Berntsson (SWE). The Spaniards won their last three races to claim the title.

The Nacra 17 was just as exciting, with 2020 and 2021 World Champions John Gimson and Anna Burnet (GBR) chasing Italy’s Gianluigi Ugolini and Maria Giubilei, who had four wins in their first 10 races. But by winning their last three races, Gimson and Burnet tied the Italians at 39.0 net points and took the gold by virtue of winning the medal race. Willemijn Offerman and Scipio Houtman (NED) were a very close third at 41.0.

● Short Track ● Canadian skaters dominated the 2025 ISU World Championships and picked up again at the ISU World Tour season opener in Montreal (CAN). Three-time Worlds medalist Courtney Sauralt was the women’s star, winning the 1,000 m in 1:28.185 over 2024 Worlds runner-up Gil-li Kim (KOR: 1:28.250), with American Corinne Stoddard third in 1:28.279.

Sauralt doubled back in the 1,500 m, winning in 2:22.156 to 2:22.217 for Kim and 2:22.256 for Stoddard.

World 500 m champ Xandra Velzeboer (NED) took that race in 42.972, beating Canada’s Kim Boutin, the 2024 World Champion (43.087) with Stoddard claiming a third bronze in 43.142. South Korea won the 3,000 m relay in 4:07.318 over the Dutch (4:07.350).

William Dandjinou, Canada’s 2025 1,500 m World Champion, won the men’s 500 m at 40.350 with 2023 World 500 m champ Petro Sighel (ITA) second in 40.414. Sighel won the 1,000 m in 1:30.407 to 1:30.488 for Korea’s 17-year-old Jung-un Rim, then Rim took the 1,500 m in 2:16.141, ahead of teammate Dae-heon Wang, the 2022 Olympic champion. The Koreans won the 5,00 m relay in 6:50.781.

China won the mixed 2,000 m relay in 2:38.528.

● Shooting ● The U.S. went wild at the ISSF World Shotgun Championships in Athens (GRE), taking all four gold medals across the Skeet finals! Wow!

In the men’s final, Vincent Hancock, the four-time Olympic gold medalist, took his fifth Worlds gold – 2005-09-15-18-25 – with a near-perfect 59, missing only his 44th shot! That was well clear of Daniel Korcak (CZE), at 55 for the silver.

Hancock had previously led the American men – also Christian Elliott and Conner Prince – to a gold in the Team final, 365-363 over Italy, with Greece third (361).

Sam Simonton, previously the 2022 Worlds bronze winner, won the women’s Worlds gold, shooting 57/60 in the final, hitting her final 36 targets to edge Gabriela Rodriguez (MEX: 54).

Simonton, six-time Olympic medalist Kim Rhode and 2017 World Champion Dania Jo Vizzi teamed up for the women’s Team gold, scoring 358 to win from Cyprus (349) and Slovakia (348). Four for four!

● Swimming ● The Paris Olympic bronze medalists won the men’s and women’s 10 km racing in rainy conditions at the World Aquatics Open Water World Cup in Golfo Aranci (ITA), with the home crowd happy to see Ginerva Taddeucci (ITA) out-touching Klaudia Tarasiewicz (POL) and Lea Boy (GER), by 1:58:56.5 to 1:58:57.2 and 1:59:00.6. Mariah Denigan was the top American, in 12th.

Taddeucci won her first World Cup gold and also took the seasonal series with 2,600 points to 2,250 for Spain’s Angela Martinez.

Paris bronzer David Betlehem (HUN) got his first career World Cup win in 1:53:28.2, with a clear win over 2024 Worlds 5 km champion Logan Fontaine (FRA: 1:53:31.6) and Dario Verani (ITA: 1:53:42.4).

Fontaine led a French 1-2 in the final seasonal standings, at 2,350 points to 2,120 for eight-time Worlds medalist Marc-Antoine Olivier and Italy’s Verani in third (2,050).

France, anchored by Fontaine, won the mixed 4×1,500 m relay in 1:07:54.0, trailed by Italy (1:07:54.2) and Hungary (1:07:54.9). The U.S. (Denigan, Ivan Puskovitch, Brooke Travis and Dylan Gravley) was fifth in 1:08:02.0.

In the 3 km Knock-Out Sprints (1,500-1,000-500 m races in three rounds), Betlehem won again in 6:00.5, ahead of Olivier (6:04.0) and Fontaine (6:05.7). Olympic women’s champion Moesha Johnson (AUS: 6:24.1) won the women’s sprints, beating Boy (6:26.5) and Caroline Laure Jouisse (FRA: 6:30.7).

● Weightlifting ● The IWF World Championships concluded in Forde (NOR), with North Korea topping the medal table with nine, including five wins, all in the first five women’s weight classes.

Tokyo Olympic 109 kg champion Akbar Djuraev (UZB) won the new 110 kg class with a combined world record of 428 kg, ahead of Iran’s Alireza Nassiri (415 kg). Kolbi Ferguson was the top American 396 kg, in seventh.

The +110 kg class, also new, was won by Varazdat Lalayan (ARM), the Paris Olympic +102 kg silver winner, who won the Snatch and Clean & Jerk on the way to a 461 kg total. Gor Minasyan, who won a Rio 2016 Olympic silver at +105 kg, won a Paris Olympic bronze for Bahrain at +102 kg and was second here at 447 kg.

The women’s +86 kg class was a showcase for South Korean Hye-jeong Park, the 2023 Worlds +87 kg winner, who won both lifts and had a combined total of 283 kg. That was clear of Cuba’s Marifelix Sarria (275 kg), with American Mary Theisen-Lappen third at 269 kg, who was fourth in the Snatch but third in the Clean & Jerk and totaled 269 kg for the bronze. It’s her second Worlds medal, after a 2023 silver at +87 kg.

The U.S. ended with three medals (1-0-2) in the combined lifts table; only three countries won more.

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SWIMMING: World record for Gretchen Walsh, American records for Casas and Smith in Indiana at World Aquatics World Cup I

By
Rich Perelman
-
Unstoppable: American star Gretchen Walsh (Photo: USA Swimming).

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≡ WORLD CUP CARMEL ≡

Of course there was a world (short-course) record at the World Aquatics World Cup I in Carmel, Indiana, coming from the superstar of the 2024 World Short-Course Championships, American sprinter Gretchen Walsh.

She won three events, the 50 and 100 m Butterfly and 100 m Medley events, breaking her own world mark in the 50 m Fly, winning in 23.72, faster than her 23.94 last year and winning by almost a second over Alex Perkins (AUS: 24.64).

She did beat Perkins by more than a second in the 100 Fly, 53.69 to 54.93 and then swam the no, 3 performance in history to take the 100 m Medley in 55.91, ahead of teammate Kate Douglass.

That was Douglass’ only loss in four events, as she took home three individual wins, in the 100 m Free (50.83), 100 m Breaststroke (1:02.90) and 200 Breast – in which she is Olympic and World Champion – in 2:13.97, winning by almost four seconds!

Australia’s four-time Olympic Backstroke champion Kaylee McKeown renewed her rivalry with American star Regan Smith, the two-time World Champion, with Smith winning the 100 m Back, 54.92 to 55.05. That was Smith’s first win over McKeown since the 2019 World Championships 200 m Back final. But McKeown got to the touch first in the 200 Back in 1:58.86 with Smith second in 2:00.06. McKeown also won the 50 m Back over Freestyle teammate Mollie O’Callaghan, 25.42 to 25.80, in which Smith did not swim.

Smith was busy elsewhere, continuing her surge as a Fly star, taking the 200 m Fly in an American Record 2:00.28, moving to no. 3 on the all-time list! American Alex Shackell was second in 2:02.51. Smith won the Olympic silver in 2024 and Worlds silver in 2025 in this event.

Australian distance ace Lani Pallister won the 400 m Free in 3:54.38 and the 800 m Free in 8:02.02 to go with a second to Olympic 200 m Free champ O’Callaghan in the 200 Free.

American Alex Walsh – Gretchen’s older sister and the 2022 World 200 m Medley World Champion – won the 200 m Medley in 2:04.78 ahead of Britain’s Abbie Wood (2:05.14). Wood won the 400 m Medley in 4:27.15.

What about the men? There was an American Record there too, from Shaine Casas, the 200 m Medley Worlds runner-up in 2025, who won the 200 m Medley here in 1:49.43, smashing his own 1:49.51 mark from 2024 and beating French Olympic hero – and training partner – Leon Marchand (FRA: 1:49.73).

Casas stayed hot, winning the 100 m Medley, 50.86 to 51.13, over 2024 World (short course) champ Noe Ponti (SUI). Ponti won the 100 m Fly over Canadian Ilya Kharun, 48.53 to 49.82, but Kharun won the 50 m Fly over Ponti, 21.86 to 21.90 and also won the 200 m Fly in 1:50.65.

The men’s star was Hungary’s Paris 2024 200 m Backstroke winner Hubert Kos, who swept the Backstroke events. He won the 50 m Back in 22.65, the 100 m Back in 49.08 and beat Marchand and Casas in the 200 m Back, 1:46.84 to 1:47.68 and 1:49.81.

Carson Foster, the two-time Worlds runner-up in the 400 m Medley, won that event in 3:59.58 and also took the 400 m Free in 3:37.80, ahead of Australian star Sam Short (3:38.15), with Marchand third (3:38.25). Short won the 1,500 m Free in 14:30.00, with Foster second (14:41.33).

Caspar Corbeau (NED) doubled in the 100-200 m Breast events in 56.67 and 2:01.63, beating Marchand in the 200 (2:02.00). Corbeau was second to South Africa’s Chris Smith in the 50 m Breast, 25.75 to 25.78.

In the sprints, U.S. stars Chris Guiliano and Jack Alexy traded wins, with Guiliano taking the 50 m Free in 20.83 to 20.88 and Alexy winning the 100 m Free, 45.32 to 46.00. World 200 m Free champ Luke Hobson of the U.S. won the 200 m Free in 1:41.19 to 1:41.58 for Guiliano.

(Yes, you read right: Marchand won three silvers and a bronze. That was it, this time.)

The three-meet World Cup series – all short-course – continues at Westmont, Illinois from 17-19 October and finishes the week after in Toronto (CAN).

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LANE ONE: Did two IOC members just open the door to a potential 2028 Olympic shut-out of controversial countries?

By
Rich Perelman
-
From Michelangelo's immortal "The Last Judgment" (1535-41) in the Sistine Chapel in Rome.

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≡ ANALYSIS & OBSERVATIONS ≡

One of the core values promoted by former International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach (GER) was this line, from his 2022 address to the Association of National Olympic Committees:

“Athletes should never be the victims of policies of their own government.”

In October 2023, the IOC, referring to the situation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the context of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, stated:

“[I]t cannot be up to the governments to decide which athlete can take part in which competitions. This would be the end of international sport as we know it.”

Now, just two years later, two IOC members seem to have forgotten this concept entirely:

● Indonesia’s Erick Thohir, the national Youth and Sports Minister, who joined the IOC in 2019 and backed the government’s decision to refuse visas to the six-athlete Israeli delegation for the FIG World Artistic Championships that start in Jakarta on 19 October.

He wrote on Threads:

“1. We express our appreciation to NOC Indonesia, Indonesia Gymnastics Association (Persani), and Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) as the world gymnastics federation that has understood this situation and taken the necessary steps to ensure that the World Gymnastics Championships can be run safely and orderly.

“2. Never doubt the commitment of the Government and Mr. President in building Indonesian sports to be able to stand in line with the nations of the world.

“3. Indonesia has no diplomatic relations with Israel, we in Kemenpora as part of the Government remain firm on that principle.”

● Japan’s Morinari Watanabe, the President of the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique, an IOC member since 2018 and a candidate for the IOC Presidency last March. His federation, faced with the decision by the Indonesian government to refuse entry to Israeli athletes, issued a pathetic statement of capitulation on Friday:

“The FIG takes note of the Indonesian government’s decision not to issue visas to the Israeli delegation registered for the 53rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics, which will be held in Jakarta from 19-25 October, and recognises the challenges that the host country has faced in organising this event.

“The FIG hopes that an environment will be created as soon as possible where athletes around the world can enjoy sports safely and with peace of mind.”

Both folded under threats of protests from anti-Israel forces in Indonesia, who has no diplomatic relations with Israel and refused to have Israeli teams compete there at the 1962 Asian Games and right up through 2023, when Indonesia had the FIFA U-20 World Cup revoked by FIFA for not allowing Israel to compete, and then pulled out as host of the ANOC World Beach Games in July with 32 days to go – over Israeli participation – leading to the event’s cancellation.

Indonesian officials didn’t care then and they don’t care now. The Times of Israel reported:

“Raja Sapta Oktohari, head of the national Olympic committee, said Indonesia was ready to accept any consequences for blocking the Israeli athletes from competing.

“‘We will review the consequences after the event,’ he said.”

Israel, for its part, is filing an urgent appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport, with the Israel Gymnastics Federation calling the ban “both outrageous and deeply troubling for the integrity of international sport,” and “We intend to challenge this decision with every means available.”

And the FIG has multiple options to try and correct its meek acceptance of Indonesia’s ban:

● It could turn around and order Indonesia to host all registered federations – Israel entered six athletes – or the Championships will be withdrawn and held elsewhere, in mid-November.

You would be amazed how quickly (1) a substitute host could be found, and (2) with Indonesia required to pay for all costs related to the change. FIG has plenty of money to absorb the immediate funding requirements.

● It could turn Bach’s approach to the Russian attack on Ukraine inside out and demand that Indonesia allow Israel to compete under a neutral flag, even though Israel was the country that was invaded on 7 October 2023 by Hamas, the ruling body of Gaza. Israel would probably not accept this, but it would save some face for FIG.

● FIG could turn the Indonesian ban around, and since they will not allow Israel to compete, then Indonesian athletes will not be allowed to compete in Jakarta.

But that’s punishing athletes for a governmental action, right? Well, Thohir and Watanabe don’t appear to remember much about that.

● FIG can suspend the Indonesian federation for its violation of FIG’s own rules as well as the Olympic Charter; a four-year ban would keep Indonesian gymnasts out of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

● FIG has awarded the 2026 Artistic Worlds to Rotterdam (NED) and 2027 to Chengdu in China. Why not award the 2029 Artistic Worlds right now to Israel – probably Tel Aviv – with Indonesia to pay all costs for the event. If it can’t stomach paying the Israel Gymnastics Federation directly, it can pay FIG and FIG will forward the money to the Israelis.

Those are just some of the possibilities.

IOC President Kirsty Coventry (ZIM) now has new problems on her desk, starting with members Thohir and Watanabe, who have conveniently forgotten the IOC’s policy on athletes and government.

Further, there is the question of what to do about the National Olympic Committee of Indonesia, which backed the government’s Israel ban. Do they get off scot-free?

But the biggest problem is the Pandora’s Box that has been opened – once again – by Indonesia and FIG.

Thohir’s own, tone-deaf statement on Threads specifically noted, “Indonesia has no diplomatic relations with Israel, we in Kemenpora [Youth and Sports Ministry] as part of the Government remain firm on that principle.”

How stupid is that?

What Thohir has done is open the door once again to governments saying they won’t admit countries they don’t want for sporting events. This is exactly what Bach warned about and looking ahead to the 2028 Olympic Games, there are four countries/territories which the U.S. does not have diplomatic relations with:

● Bhutan
● Iran (severed 1980)
● North Korea (severed 2018)
● U.N.-recognized territory of Palestine

Bhutan is a unique situation, with few formalized diplomatic ties by its own preference, but works with the U.S. through the Indian embassy. But is it now the right of the U.S. to follow the Indonesian lead and say it will not welcome Olympic athletes from Iran (40 athletes at Paris 2024), North Korea (16) or Palestine (8)?

The U.S. currently has suspended relations with Venezuela and does not formally recognize governmental entities in Afghanistan and Syria. And if the U.S. decided not to allow such countries to compete in Los Angeles, as Indonesia has done to Israel, a key U.S. ally?

That would be a horror for Coventry and the IOC would no doubt trigger serious discussions of boycotts by other countries sympathetic to those who might be refused entry.

So now, what Thohir, 55, and Watanabe, 66, have started could snowball into a much more dangerous situation for the IOC, for Indonesia, for gymnastics and for the Olympic Movement.

So now, what does Coventry and her IOC Executive Board, which meets next on 9-10 December in Lausanne, do about (1) gymnastics, (2) Indonesia, (3) Thohir and (4) Watanabe? Or how about right now, to try and diffuse the situation?

And it is not impossible that the Court of Arbitration for Sport could rule in Israel’s favor and tell the Indonesian National Olympic Committee and its gymnastics federation to allow Israel to compete.

If the Indonesian government refuses, then what?

There will then, no doubt, be a lot more “neutral” athletes in 2028. By the way, Indonesia sent 29 to Paris and won three medals. Will any be in Los Angeles in three years?

Rich Perelman
Editor

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ATHLETICS: Uganda’s Kiplimo rolls to easy Chicago Marathon win, Mantz shatters American Record, Feysa gets world-leading women’s title

By
Rich Perelman
-
An American Record for Conner Mantz at the Chicago Marathon? Yes! (Photo: Bank of America Chicago Marathon/Kevin Morris).

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≡ CHICAGO MARATHON ≡

There were multiple storylines at the 47th Chicago Marathon on Sunday, including whether Conner Mantz would get the American Record.

But Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, still just 24 and already an Olympic and Worlds bronze medalist at 10,000 m and the 2023 World Half Marathon champ, showed he will be a force in the marathon for years to come.

He ran his first marathon at London in April, finishing second in 2:03:37, moving into 29th place on the all-time list.

In Chicago, he was much better.

By the halfway (21.1 km) mark, he was in the lead group of five in a blazing 1:00:16 – world-record pace – with defending champion John Korir (KEN) in the lead. By 25 km, it was Korir, Kiplimo and 2022 London winner Amos Kipruto (KEN) alone in front and then Kiplimo took off.

By the 30 km split, he had a 12-second lead on Korir and 28 seconds on Kipruto and it was over. Korir dropped out shortly afterwards and Kipruto ran to the finish unchallenged – except by the hard pace – in 2:02:23, the no. 2 performance of the year and making him no. 7 on the all-time list. Very, very impressive; his second half was 1:02:07.

Behind him was Kipruto in second at 2:03:54, then Kenya’s Alex Masai, ninth last year (2:08:51) but now third in a lifetime best of 2:04:37!

In fourth was Mantz, who had been running with Masai since the 30 km mark. Looking to break the American Record of 2:05:38 by Khalid Khannouchi in 2002 in London, he crushed it, finishing in 2:04:43. That’s also better than the 2:04:58 “all-conditions best” by Ryan Hall in 2011 at the record-ineligible Boston Marathon.

New American citizen (as of 2 September) Wesley Kiptoo was 14th in 2:09:02, followed by Ryan Ford (2:09:37) and Galen Rupp (2:09:41), now 39, with his best time since 2023 and his eighth career sub-2:10 marathon.

But there was more drama, as the women were still on the course.

Paris Olympian Magdalena Shauri (TAN) and Ethiopia’s Hawi Feysa, third in Tokyo this year had built a six-second lead by the 10 km mark and were seven seconds up on Megertu Alemu (ETH) as they passed the half in a quick 1:07:30. Feysa finally shook free by 30 km, with a five-second lead and built her advantage steadily.

Shauri dropped back and by 35 km, Alemu was second, but 15 seconds behind. Feysa took off and had a 1:22 lead by 40 km and flew home in a world-leading 2:14:56, a lifetime best by more than two minutes!

That moves her to no. 5 all-time and she’s only 26. It was her second win in five career marathons.

Alemu and Shauri held second and third to the line, in 2:17:18 and 2:18:03 (lifetime best).

The U.S. had three in the top 10, with Natosha Rogers sixth in 2:23:28 (lifetime best), then Dakotah Popehn (2:24:21 lifetime best) and Gabriella Rooker ninth (2:26:32).

Prize money for the top five was $100,000-75,000-50,000-30,000-25,000, with bonuses for the top Americans of $15,000-12,000-10,000-7,000-5,000.

The marathon season continues as there’s one more World Marathon Major race on the calendar, the New York City Marathon on 2 November; plus the ultra-fast Valencia Marathon in Spain on 7 December.

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ATHLETICS: Brown’s sprint double highlights the Athlos NYC 2025 meet as Davis-Woodhall equals world long jump lead

By
Rich Perelman
-
U.S. sprinter Brittany Brown was a double winner at Athlos 2025! (Image: Athlos NYC).

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≡ ATHLOS NYC ≡

The second Athlos NYC meet came three weeks after the World Athletics Championships concluded in Tokyo, but there were stars – women only – who came to perform as well as to party at Icahn Stadium in New York.

At the top of the list was Brittany Brown, the 2024 Olympic 200 m bronze winner, who was only sixth at the USATF Nationals 200 m, but she won the 100 m in 10.99 (wind: +1.4 m/s) over fellow American Jacious Sears (11.01) and USATF runner-up Kayla White (11.22).

Now fully warmed up on a cool night, she blasted the turn from lane seven in the 200 and steamrolled the field with a lifetime best by 0.01 in 21.99 (+1.9)! That was well ahead of fellow American Anavia Battle (22.21) – fourth at the 2025 Worlds – and Cote d’Ivoire star Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith (22.65).

In the meantime, the long jump was underway, after Olympic and World Champion Tara Davis-Woodhall led the qualifying on Thursday night in Times Square at 6.81 m (22-4 1/4). In the final on Friday, she took the lead in the first round at 6.65 m (21-10), then extended to 6.82 m (22-4 1/2) in round two and blew up in round three, equaling her world-leading mark for 2025 at 7.13 m (23-4 3/4)!

That was well ahead of Olympic bronzer Jasmine Moore (6.64 m/21-9 1/2) and Jazmin Sawyers (GBR: 6.22 m/20-5).

The women’s 400 m was a win for Olympic champ Marileidy Paulino in 50.07, running away from Paris runner-up Salwa Eid Naser (BRN: 50.94) and Norway’s Henriette Jaeger (51.24). Olympic champ Keely Hodgkinson (GBR), relatively fresh after dealing with injuries most of the season, won in a speedy 1:56.53 in only her fourth meet of the season! She won from the front and ran away from teammate (and Worlds silver winner) Georgia Hunter Bell (1:58.33) and Shafiqua Maloney (VIN: 1:58.57).

Kenyan superstar Faith Kipyegon won the women’s mile as expected in 4:17.78, waiting patiently and finally taking over at 1,100 m and rolling home ahead of Ethiopian rival Gudaf Tsegay (4:19.75) and American champion Nikki Hiltz (4:32.51).

U.S. stars Masai Russell (Olympic champ), Grace Stark (Worlds bronze) and Olympic finalist Alaysha Johnson went 1-2-3 in the 100 m hurdles in wind-aided times of 12.52-12.60-12.66 (+2.3 m/s).

The meet was seen as more of a celebration of women’s track than any kind of championship, but paid well at $60,000-25,000-10,000-8,000-5,000-2,500!

Founder Alex Ohanian is promising a track & field “league” starting in 2026, but without any actual details as yet.

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PAN AMERICAN GAMES 2031: Asuncion wins close vote over Rio and Nitroi to host 2031 Pan American Games

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ PAN AMERICAN GAMES ≡

A determined push to be a regional power in sports has paid off for Asuncion, Paraguay, selected this morning as the host of the 2031 Pan American Games. Per Panam Sports:

“OFFICIAL! ASUNCIÓN WILL BE THE HOST OF THE XXI PAN AMERICAN GAMES 2031.

“Paraguay makes history by hosting the continental event for the first time.

“Its project includes the Pan American Village, an Athletics Stadium and a new Arena in the Olympic Park.

“Congratulations to all of Paraguay!

“The final vote: 28 votes for Asunción, 24 votes for Río-Niterói.”

Paraguyan President Santiago Peña has made sports a primary focus to raise Paraguay’s profile, both regionally and globally, with at least an opening “centennial” match (and perhaps more) at the FIFA World Cup 2030 and now the 2031 Pan American Games.

Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and Nitroi bid planned to use many of the facilities for the 2016 Olympic Games, and Rio hosted the 2007 Pan American Games, a critical event in its candidacy for 2016.

Asuncion actually did two better, taking on the II Junior Pan American Games this past summer, from 9-23 August, successfully hosting 3,975 athletes from the 41 Pan American nations, competing in 336 events in 28 sports. That followed the October 2022 hosting of the South American Games, with 4,476 athletes competing in 36 sports. So it has shown its ability concretely.

At last week’s evaluation visit to Asuncion, Paraguyan Olympic Committee President Camilo Perez, also a member of the International Olympic Committee, told the delegation:

“Paraguay can offer the entire continent responsible work, the work of a team that has been working together for many years. We can offer a lot of peace of mind and a lot of responsibility in budget management. We have a very realistic, well-defined budget, but one that will help us hold giant Games like the senior Pan American Games.”

It will be the first time for Paraguay to host the Pan Ams, but the fourth in a row for South America, with Lima (PER) the host in 2019 and 2027, then Santiago (CHI) in 2023 and now Asuncion in 2031.

(Image above courtesy Panam Sports.)

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GYMNASTICS: FIG shrugs, will do nothing to challenge Indonesia’s ban of Israel from World Championships

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ FIG WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS ≡

The Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG), the governing body for gymnastics, issued a short statement on Friday concerning Indonesia’s ban of Israel from the 53rd FIG World Artistic Championships:

“The FIG takes note of the Indonesian government’s decision not to issue visas to the Israeli delegation registered for the 53rd FIG Artistic Gymnastics, which will be held in Jakarta from 19-25 October, and recognises the challenges that the host country has faced in organising this event.

“The FIG hopes that an environment will be created as soon as possible where athletes around the world can enjoy sports safely and with peace of mind.”

Translation: As governmental and religious groups threatened protests (and more) if Israel competed, the FIG is more concerned with having a calm event than making sure all of its member federations can compete.

And the Indonesian government, whose own gymnastics federation actually asked for visas for the Israeli team – in normal course – backed the decision to keep Israel out fully.

The Indonesian Youth and Sports Minister Erick Thohir wrote in a Threads post:

“1. We express our appreciation to NOC Indonesia, Indonesia Gymnastics Association (Persani), and Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) as the world gymnastics federation that has understood this situation and taken the necessary steps to ensure that the World Gymnastics Championships can be run safely and orderly.

“2. Never doubt the commitment of the Government and Mr. President in building Indonesian sports to be able to stand in line with the nations of the world.

“3. Indonesia has no diplomatic relations with Israel, we in Kemenpora as part of the Government remain firm on that principle.”

The Times of Israel reported:

“Raja Sapta Oktohari, head of the national Olympic committee, said Indonesia was ready to accept any consequences for blocking the Israeli athletes from competing.

“‘We will review the consequences after the event,’ he said.”

From the FIG, it appears there will be none.

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LOS ANGELES 2028: L.A. City Cultural Affairs Dept. delivers own plan for 2028 Games, with funding options from $15-40 million

By
Rich Perelman
-
The Los Angeles City Hall, a 1928 Art Deco downtown icon (Photo: Tim Ahem via Wikipedia)

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≡ LOS ANGELES 2028 ≡

The required cultural program attached to the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles has not yet been announced by the LA28 organizing committee, which promises more details by the end of the year.

The City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, however, is not waiting, as General Manager Daniel Tarica delivered a 21-page plan on Tuesday to the City Council and Mayor Karen Bass.

Included was a three-tier “Cultural Program Framework,” with the Department (abbreviated internally as “DCA”) “committed to implementing a program that builds on the City’s Olympic and Paralympic Games planning by supporting creative-sector jobs, free community programming, and youth arts and education opportunities.”

Tarica’s report notes the space between the organizing committee’s program and what it is proposing:

● “The term ‘Cultural Olympiad’ is often used broadly as a catch-all phrase to describe the range of arts and cultural activities associated with the Olympic and Paralympic Games. However, it is also a formal term owned by the Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (LA28), referring specifically to the official series of cultural events and initiatives coordinated as part of the 2028 Games.”

● “Within this context, the City’s 2028 Cultural Program for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Cultural Program) represents a complementary but distinct framework led by the DCA to activate local artists, cultural organizations, and community partners citywide. The Cultural Program is designed to amplify Los Angeles’s diverse cultural ecosystem through inclusive, accessible, and sustained creative engagement before, during, and after the Games.”

● “DCA’s vision is clear: to showcase LA’s local artistry to a global audience; to exemplify the strength of diverse cultural experiences; and to broaden opportunities for the arts and cultural sector and access to the arts for residents and visitors alike.”

The Framework report specifies five broad actions arenas:

(1) Showcase local arts and culture
(2) Community engagement and inclusive access
(3) Build partnerships and cultural diplomacy
(4) Catalyze economic and creative sector growth
(5) Promote sustainability

In terms of funding and production:

“From 2026 to June 2028, the DCA will allocate at least $4 million in combined public and private grant funding to support Olympic and Paralympic-themed programming and community activations led by under-represented groups, artists, arts organizations, and cultural institutions.

“Planning, fundraising, and partnership cultivation will begin in 2026, followed by grant distribution and project production throughout 2027. Funded projects will be presented during the lead up to the 2028 Games, generating more than 250 additional paid opportunities for Los Angeles-based artists and cultural workers, and leaving a lasting economic impact on the City’s creative sector.”

The Cultural Affairs program is further complicated by the requirement from the City Council that activities take place in all 15 Council districts, further stretching resources. So:

“The Cultural Program will activate the City’s 15 City Council Districts and areas surrounding Games venues, utilizing existing infrastructure like DCA-managed and partner facilities.

“In collaboration with the Department of Recreation and Parks, Los Angeles Public Library, Department of Transportation/LA Metro, and other City departments, as well as arts and cultural organizations, DCA will program Cultural/Neighborhood Hubs and Community Celebrations, and work with Council Offices to identify community activation locations in each Council District with local partners.

“Additionally, the Cultural Program will activate the valuable resource of volunteers, integrating their support to enhance programming and community outreach efforts citywide. DCA will also collaborate with LA28 and LA County to ensure a consistent and cohesive ‘look and feel’ across all sites.”

Potential themes were also offered:

● “LA: Where Arts and the World Meet”
● “LA: From our Streets to the World”
● “LA: Where Arts Go Global”
● “The Art of the Game, The Heart of LA”
● “Celebrating the World in One City”
● “Viewing the World through the LA Lens”

Finally, the report unveiled three Framework levels, ranging in cost from $15 to $40 million:

Framework A: Base level ($15 million: 8 components):
● 15 Council District-specific cultural festivals
● Arts development fee projects
● Mural conservation and legacy enhancement
● Mural works: new-conservation-apprenticeships
● New community activation grant category
● Community arts celebrations and exhibitions
● Youth arts education and engagement
● Make Music LA

Framework B: Expanded level ($30 million) adds (7):
● New Olympic & Paralympic murals
● Community celebrations-activations-viewing parties
● Cultural/neighborhood hubs and activations
● Disability arts and Paralympic celebration
● LA-Brisbane cultural exchange
● Transit corridor cultural programming
● Games venue cultural activation

Framework C: Full level ($40 million) adds (3):
● Olympic-Paralympic arts festival (seven weeks)
● International artist exchange
● LA River cultural activation

Descriptions of each of these programming concepts was included, and while not called out as such, the Framework B community celebrations project opens the door to be the “fan festivals” the City Council members are asking for to allow residents and visitors without tickets to the Games to watch the competitions in their neighborhoods.

It is not yet clear to what extent LA28 will support such Council District fan gatherings and who will pay for what (and who can sponsor). This will be an area which will get close attention from the Council members, who may or may not want the Cultural Affairs Department to be involved.

The report also noted that the International Olympic Committee partnered with the City of Paris to commission a gift sculpture for the 2024 Games and that the Department would be happy work with the IOC on such a program for Los Angeles.

This first outline is a significant step forward for the City, but at least $11 million must be raised outside of the Cultural Affairs Department’s umbrella to deliver the lowest-level program concept, up to another $36 million to stage the highest-level program.

So, there is a lot to do, waiting to see what LA28 will and won’t do with its own cultural effort.

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PANORAMA: Shiffrin to focus on two events en route to Olympics; Spoelstra to coach U.S. men in ‘28? Italian swimming shoplifters get 90-day bans

By
Rich Perelman
-
American skiing superstar Mikaela Shiffrin (USA)

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● It was reported that Chris Grover, head of the U.S. cross country ski program, told the “Race Ready” podcast that if the International Ski & Snowboard Federation (FIS) allows Russian athletes to compete next year:

“If admitted, Russia’s Olympic quota will be two people – a man and a woman.”

This only concerns cross country and not the other five FIS disciplines on the Olympic program.

● Mediterranean Games 2026: Taranto ● A meeting between the Taranto 2026 organizers and the International Mediterranean Games Committee (CIJM) on Wednesday in Rome (ITA) was attended by the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) and Taranto City officials. In the end, the Italian side reiterated its guarantees that the event would take place and that a solution to the issues over contracted services would be found.

The 20th edition of the Mediterranean Games is scheduled for 21 August to 3 September in 2026.

● Alpine Skiing ● U.S. superstar Mikaela Shiffrin, the winningest World Cup skier ever, said in a media session hosted by Atomic, her ski sponsor, that she will concentrate on her two premier events, the Slalom and Giant Slalom, in the run-up to the 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

She ruled out any Downhill races, where she has suffered injuries, and may also skip Super-G racing until after the Milan Cortina Games. As for the future, she was asked about whether this might be her last Winter Games:

“I’m not really a numbers girl. I’m so uncertain. To be honest, I don’t know. You can say 50-50.”

● Athletics ● The Rome daily Il Fatto Quotidiano reported that the Italian track & field federation’s disciplinary tribunal has banned Giacomo Tortu – brother of sprint star Filippo Tortu – for three years for “espionage” against Tokyo 2020 Olympic men’s 100 m champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs.

Giacomo Tortu paid to try and have Jacobs’ phone and other devices hacked, to try and find information that would indicated that Jacobs was doping. The 36-month ban will prevent him from serving “in corporate roles, carrying out federal activities, or accessing training and competition facilities.”

● Basketball ● The Associated Press reported that long-time Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is in line to be named as the head coach for the U.S. teams at the 2027 FIBA World Cup and the 2028 Olympic Games.

Spoelstra served as an assistant coach with the Paris 2024 U.S. team that won the gold medal for the fifth straight Games.

● Bobsled & Skeleton ● Aaron Gulliver, a push athlete on the Great Britain Four-Man sled that won silver at the 2023 Worlds and bronze in 2025 – driven by Brad Hall – was banned for two years by the International Testing Agency for use of the prohibited substance ostarine.

His out-of-competition sample from 2 March 2025 turned up positive. Gulliver showed that the positive was not intentional and is suspended from 24 March 2025 to 24 March 2027, missing the Milan Cortina Winter Games.

The U.S. sled, driven by Frank del Duca, finished fourth at the 2025 Worlds Four-Man on 15 March 2025, and as Gulliver was disqualified from 2 March forward (the date of the positive test), the Americans could be advanced to the bronze medal.

● Cycling ● The amazing Tadej Pogacar (SLO), coming off of victories in the UCI World Road Championship, the European Road Championship, the Tour de France and six other races this season, is the favorite to win his fifth Il Lombardia in a row at Saturday’s 119th edition.

The route is a challenging 241 km from Como to Bergamo, with five major climbs and two minor ascents, including the 1,058 m Passo di Ganda just 40 km from the finish.

Pogacar is trying to win his third “Monument” race this year – the ancient events that go back before World War I – having taken the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Liege-Bastogne-Liege and finishing third at Milan-Sanremo and second at Paris-Roubaix.

His primary challenger is expected to be Belgian Remco Evenepoel once again, the Worlds and European runner-up and the three-time Worlds Time Trial gold medalist. They finished 1-2 last year.

Chinese track cyclist Junhong Lin, a four-time Worlds medal winner from 2010-16 was provisionally suspended by the International Testing Agency as a re-test of a January 2016 test showed the presence of anabolic steroids.

Now 34, Lin won Worlds silvers in the Team Sprint in 2010 and 2014, the women’s Sprint in 2016 (possibly now in danger) and a Sprint bronze in 2014.

● Football ● The Round-of-16 playoffs at the FIFA U-20 World Cup saw four traditional powers advance in the upper bracket, as Mexico defeated Chile, 4-1; Argentina sailed by Nigeria, 4-0; Spain edged Ukraine, 1-0, and Colombia beat South Africa 3-1. Mexico and Argentina, and Spain and Colombia will meet in quarterfinal matches on the 11th.

In the lower bracket, Norway edged Paraguay, 1-0, in extra time, as did France, with a 1-0 win over Japan. Their quarterfinal will be on the 12th.

The U.S. got a goal from midfielder Benjamin Cremaschi in the 15th to lead Italy, 1-0, at half, and then fellow midfielder Nico Tsakiris scored in the 79th for a 2-0 lead. Cremaschi also scored at 90+3 for the final score.

The Americans will play the winner of Morocco and South Korea in the quarters on the 12th, in Rancagua.

● Swimming ● The Italian swimming federation gave 90-day suspensions to swimmers Benedetta Pilato and Chiara Tarantino for shoplifting in Singapore airport shop after the World Aquatics Championships in August. The federation statement included:

“Considering the facts revealed during the investigation and the willingness of the athletes who pleaded guilty to cooperate, the prosecutor’s office has ordered their suspension from public and state activities for a period of 90 days.”

The two swimmers left Singapore for a vacation after the meet, and were caught shoplifting when they returned to the Singapore airport on the way back to Italy. Both will miss the European short-course Championships in Poland in December.

● Weightlifting ● At the IWF World Championships in Forde (NOR), the home team got a gold medal as women’s Olympic 81 kg champion Solfrid Koanda triumphed in the women’s 86 kg class. She was second in the Snatch, but won the Clean & Jerk and took the combined title with 272 kg, just ahead of Snatch winner Yudelina Mejia (DOM: 271 kg). Arveta McElderry of the U.S. was 11th at 235 kg.

In the men’s 94 kg class, Paris Olympic 89 kg champion Karlos Nasar (BUL) won his third Worlds gold, winning the Clean & Jerk with a world record of 222 kg and taking the combined title at 395 kg. Iran’s Alireza Moeini won the Snatch with a world record 182 kg and finished second overall at 391 kg. It’s Nasar’s third Worlds gold at three different weights: 81 kg in 2021, 89 kg in 2024 and now at 94 kg.

The tournament will conclude on Saturday.

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GYMNASTICS: Indonesia to ban Israel from World Gymnastics Championships that starts on 19 October

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ GYMNASTICS WORLD CHAMPS ≡

Following a long-time practice of refusing to allow Israeli athletes to compete in Indonesia, a Muslim-majority country, government officials said they will not be allowed to compete at the 2025 World Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta, which will begin on 19 October:

● On Wednesday, Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung Wibowo said, “Regarding athletes from Israel, as the Governor of Jakarta, under current circumstances, I will not allow their presence.

“There’s no benefit in having Israeli gymnasts compete in Jakarta right now – it would only spark anger.”

● Indonesia’s senior minister of law, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, said Thursday, “The government will not grant visas to Israeli gymnasts who intend to attend the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Jakarta.”

The Associated Press reported, “Mahendra acknowledged that the Indonesian Gymnastics Federation had previously submitted a sponsorship letter for six Israeli athletes to obtain visas, but that ‘the federation has withdrawn the sponsorship letter.’”

As recently as July, the Israel Gymnastics Federation expected to be able to compete:

“We are in direct contact with the organizers and believe that extraneous considerations will not overshadow the sport.

“We expect the competition organizers to approve the entry of the delegation as well as the security requirements for the delegation’s safe participation in the championship.”

Indonesia’s history against Israel has been clear since 1962 and any assurances it has made about allowing any qualified athlete to participate have been meaningless since it refused visas to Israeli and Taiwanese athletes for the 1962 Asian Games. More recently:

● In March 2023, FIFA withdrew its men’s U-20 World Cup from Indonesia over its refusal to allow Israel to compete, and moved the tournament to Argentina in the same May-June timeframe. Israel won the bronze medal.

FIFA said it would consider sanctions on Indonesia, but handed the country its men’s U-17 World Cup two months later, held in November and December 2023.

● In April 2023, Indonesian officials again said they would not allow Israeli athletes to compete at the ANOC World Beach Games from 5-12 August. Under pressure from the Association of National Olympic Committees over their promise to host all athletes for the World Beach Games, the Indonesian government revoked funding for the event and on 4 July 2023, ANOC had to cancel it:

“It is with great surprise and extreme disappointment that ANOC has learnt that the Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI) has withdrawn from its commitment to host the ANOC World Beach Games and the ANOC General Assembly in August 2023.

“With the Games scheduled to take place in one month, the decision at such late notice prevents ANOC from being able to find an alternative host and so there is no option but to cancel this year’s edition of the Games in Bali in August as well as the ANOC General Assembly.”

No word from the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG), whose President, Morinari Watanabe (JPN) spoke about the record number of national federations – 86 including Israel – slated to compete in Jakarta:

“Such a record number of participants is a wonderful reward for gymnastics and the Local Organising Committee and a real testament to the unifying power of sports.”

That statement apparently has less meaning now. FIG has posted no statement on Israel’s exclusion as of the time this story was posted.

Israel won one medal at the 2023 Worlds, a men’s Floor Exercise gold by Artem Dolgopyat, also the Tokyo 2020 Floor gold medalist and Paris 2024 runner-up and who was ready to defend his title.

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PANORAMA: World records and repeat Worlds gold for U.S.’s Reeves; L.A. City Council OKs fast-track permitting for 2028; 72 FIFA World Cup sanctions!

By
Rich Perelman
-
Record-setting Olympic and World Champion lifter Olivia Reeves of the U.S. (Photo: IWF).

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≡ SPOTLIGHT ≡

● Weightlifting ● Lots of world records and more North Korean gold at the IWF World Weightlifting Championships in Forde (NOR), plus a sensational U.S. win on Wednesday.

In the women’s 69 kg class on Tuesday, North Korea scored its fifth win in a row, with Kuk-hyang Song winning both lifts and the combined title, with world records in the Snatch (120 kg), Clean & Jerk (150 kg) and the total (270 kg). All three marks had been set by American Olivia Reeves in Colombia in July. Colombian Julieth Rodriguez was a distant second at 241 kg combined.

On Wednesday, the women’s new 77 kg class debuted, with new records available for performances over the challenging minimums of 122, 154 and 274 kg combined.

The U.S.’s Reeves, the 71 kg gold medalist at Paris 2024, moved up in weight and dominated, not just taking her second Worlds gold – also in 2024 at 71 kg – but grabbing all three world records at 123 kg (Snatch), 155 kg (Clean & Jerk) and 278 kg combined.

Egypt’s Sara Ahmed was a distant second at 252 kg combined and Mattie Rogers of the U.S. was fourth overall (247 kg), but took third in the Clean & Jerk.

The world records continued in the men’s new 88 kg class, with Colombia’s Yeison Lopez, the Paris 2024 89 kg silver winner, getting a world record in the Snatch (177 kg) and the overall (387 kg) to win his first Worlds gold. North Korean Kwang-ryol Ro got the world mark in the Clean & Jerk (215 kg) and was second overall (377 kg). Brandon Victorian of the U.S. was 10th (340 kg).

The tournament continues through Saturday.

≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Games 2028: Los Angeles ● As expected, the Los Angeles City Council confirmed without comment on Tuesday the amended draft ordinance from its Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) committee:

“The draft ordinance provide a planning and zoning exemption for temporary projects and land uses that are sanctioned projects, cleared by the Mayor’s Office of Major Events, City Administrative Officer (CAO), and the Chief Legislative Analyst (CLA), in consultation with other governmental agencies and/or LA28, directly tied to the successful delivery of the Games.”

The intended temporary project definition includes:

● “Any supporting facilities, installations, uses, and/or activities that serve athletes, officials, spectators, visitors, and/or residents at approved competition venues or non-competition venues necessary to host Olympic and/or Paralympic events, including but not limited to, training facilities, security perimeters, broadcast and media centers, transit infrastructure, live sites and fan zones.”

● “An Olympic and/or Paralympic Project seeking planning and zoning exemption built or implemented solely for the Games and dismantled and/or removed after the conclusion of the Games and no later than February 27, 2029.”

Next up is the review of the ordinance itself, now to be drafted and returned for approval to the Los Angeles City Planning Commission and if approved, to the Council.

The ordinance plan is in parallel to an ordinance passed in 1984 to assist the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee in staging the Games of the XXIIIrd Olympiad that year.

Give the Dutch credit for getting organized early, as nearly 30 national sports federations sent staff to Mission Viejo to check on facilities to be used for their Olympic and Paralympic Games teams for pre-Games training in 2028. And:

“[T]he City and TeamNL officially signed a cooperative working agreement between both organizations for the next four years resulting in a significant investment in our City for the benefit of Mission Viejo hotels, restaurants, facilities, stores and other businesses.”

In terms of the visit itself, the tours included “the Marguerite Aquatics Complex and Tennis Pavilion, Saddleback College, Trabuco Hills High School, Mission Viejo High School, Santa Margarita Catholic High School, Lake Mission Viejo, Oso Creek Golf Course, the Storm MMA Training Center, Norman Murray Senior and Community Center plus numerous athletic fields and running trails throughout Mission Viejo.”

● Aquatics ● World Aquatics broke ground on its new headquarters in Budapest (HUN), which will include offices, a training center with pools and athlete housing.

Scheduled to be opened in mid-2028, the project is part of a larger development by Southblaze Ltd., that will include residential housing, a park and additional office buildings.

● Athletics ● Jamaican sprint star Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce formally announced her retirement in an Instagram post on Tuesday, writing in part:

“This sport has given me joy beyond measure. It has shaped me, disciplined me, and carried me to heights I could only dream of as a young girl in Waterhouse. …

“I know my race is not finished; it is simply a lane change. This new chapter is about passing on the lessons the sport has given me, using my voice to advocate for others, and helping the next generation shine even brighter.”

She also paid tribute to her home country’s passionate fans:

“To my fellow Jamaicans – thank you for your unyielding love, loyalty and pride that have propelled me year after year. It has been the greatest honor to carry our flag across the world. We may be small, but we are mighty, and I am humbled to have represented the strength of our nation on the global stage.”

Now 38, she retired as a five-time World 100 m champion, two-time Olympic women’s 100 m champion and the winner of eight Olympic medals (3-4-1) and 17 World Championships medals (10-6-1). Her 100 m best of 10.60 from 2021 ranks her no. 3 all-time.

Ugandan distance runner Belinda Chemutai (15:23.48 for 5,000 m in 2023) was hit with a second doping violation and another three-year sanction. She was initially banned from 11 April 2025 to 10 April 2028 for a positive test from 1 October 2023, for testosterone. On 28 February 2025, she gave an out-of-competition sample and that came back for testosterone as well, resulting in another three-year ban starting on 11 April 2028! In both cases, she earned a one-year reduction from the normal four-year suspension by admitting her drug use.

● Cricket ● As part of its response to its suspension by the International Cricket Council, USA Cricket filed last week for bankruptcy:

“USA Cricket, the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport, today announced it has voluntarily filed for financial reorganization under Chapter 11, Subchapter V of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. This aggressive, but necessary legal move is the best path forward to ensure the future of American cricket.”

In significant part, the filing reflects the 21 August 2025 termination of the federation’s 50-year contract with American Cricket Enterprises (ACE) from 2019, which was stated to be causing “financial strain and operational interference.” USA Cricket’s statement noted that ACE promised to deliver six (6) ICC grade stadiums by 2025, but has provided one so far.

In July, the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee reportedly asked all of USA Cricket’s independent directors to resign, or it will not open applications for USOPC recognition of a National Governing Body for cricket (for which the USOPC has none currently).

● Football ● Bad behavior was all over the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying matches in September, with the new FIFA disciplinary report listing 72 violations, with nine warnings and 63 fines from CHF 1,000 up to 80,000, the latter against the Football Association of Serbia for its 9 September loss (0-5) in Belgrade vs. England for:

“Discrimination and racist abuse, Failure to ensure that law and order are maintained in and around the stadiums and that matches are organised properly, Use of laser pointers or similar electronic devices, Use of gestures, words, objects or any other means to transmit a message that is not appropriate for a sports event, Causing a disturbance during national anthems, Lack of order or discipline observed in or around the stadium”

The Serbian federation also received a 20% reduction in fan attendance for its next match and a prevention plan for the future.

Penalized federations or countries whose players were sanctioned included (44): Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Bolivia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Cabo Verde, Costa Rica, Denmark, Djibouti, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, Greece, Haiti, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Kosovo, Libya, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malta, Montenegro, Nicaragua, Niger, Poland, Romania, San Marino, Scotland, Senegal, Serbia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Switzerland, Trinidad & Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, and Zambia.

Warnings were issued to Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, Cyprus, England, Equatorial Guinea, Latvia, Morocco and Portugal.

Volunteer interest for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. is high, with more than a million applications for the 65,000 volunteers expected to be needed next year. From the minimum age of 18, applications have been received from individuals as old as 92.

The volunteer application window will end on 10 October.

● Skating ● Although the International Skating Union has agreed to allow Russian and Belarusian “neutrals” to compete in qualifying events for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games, it is not ready to head to either country.

In response to reports that the Russian Skating Union wanted to apply to host ISU World Cup competitions in 2026, the ISU replied to the Russian news agency TASS:

“There will be no international competitions in Russia and Belarus until further notice.”

● Wrestling ● American referee Casey Goessi was honored as one of the top officials worldwide during the UWW World Championships in Zagreb (CRO), selected to receive a United World Wrestling “Golden Whistle Award.”

It was Goessi’s ninth Worlds, this time as a lead referee, concerned with jury review and quality control. The other winners were Zaza Jibladze (GEO) and Marius Cimpoeru (ROU). It’s the eighth time a U.S. official has been awarded a Golden Whistle.

Goessi started officiating at the national level in 1996 and as an international official in 2004.

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LOS ANGELES 2028: Google signs on with LA28 as top-tier Founding Partner for AI and Cloud with 2028 Games, USOPC and NBC

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ GOOGLE TIE-UP WITH LA28 ≡

The LA28 organizing committee scored a major addition to their sponsor ranks with technology giant Google signing on as a top-tier Founding Partner:

“Google joins LA28 as a Founding Partner, delivering consumer and enterprise solutions that will enhance the Games time experience for millions of fans, athletes and more than 70,000 volunteers and members of the workforce who will help welcome the world to Los Angeles.

“By integrating Google technologies across Google Search, Google Cloud and more – including advanced AI tools like Gemini – this partnership will seamlessly connect fans, staff and athletes to the LA28 Games.”

It was only a matter of time for an Olympic sponsorship featuring artificial intelligence was signed and LA28 is the first, along with another major technology category: cloud storage. The deal includes Google Cloud as be the Official Cloud Provider of the LA28 Games.

Further, Google will be involved with the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, “supporting Team USA with advanced tools” and with domestic rights-holding broadcaster NBC, “transforming how fans in the US discover information during NBCUniversal’s coverage.”

For the LA28 organizers, this is another key sponsorship piece and a significant strike in the technology sector:

● It’s the fifth top-level Founding Partner-level deal, with Comcast and Delta joining before the pandemic and Honda, Starbucks and now Google in 2025.

● The Google agreement shows LA28’s ability to attract highest-level support in the high-tech sector, after signing software giant Salesforce as a Founding Partner in 2021, only to see it withdraw in 2024 (at a parting cost of $124.93 million).

● LA28 previously signed networking equipment giant Cisco as an Official Partner (second-tier), in June of 2024, and Official Supporters from the tech sector in Autodesk, CDW and Snowflake.

The organizing committee has a $2.517 billion budget for domestic sponsorships for 2028 and has said it is confident that it can achieve the $2.0 billion level by the end of 2025. This will certainly help.

This sponsorship may well reverberate all the way to Washington, D.C.

On 10 September, the U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party sent a letter to U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about the Olympic role of the Chinese communications giant Alibaba Group, an IOC TOP sponsor:

“We write to express serious concern about the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) ongoing partnership with Alibaba Group and the implications of allowing a People’s Republic of China (PRC)-based cloud provider to support the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.”

The concerns were clearly stated:

● “[T]he presence of any PRC-controlled technology company in operational roles for LA 2028 creates an unacceptable risk. Alibaba’s provision of cloud infrastructure, e-commerce, ticketing, and broadcasting services in prior Olympics has already given the company substantial access to systems and personnel. This risk is heightened by the nature of the CCP’s influence over PRC-based companies and the increasing geopolitical tension surrounding critical technology platforms.”

● “Given the CCP’s clear strategic interest in exploiting foreign data systems, we believe that no PRC-controlled provider should be given any operational role unless the U.S. Government can verify the implementation of robust and demonstrable security controls – if such controls are even possible.”

Alibaba has been an IOC sponsor since 2017 and French authorities were extremely concerned about its role at Paris 2024 Games; an agreement on data handling and storage was ultimately reached. Alibaba hosts IOC Web sites, its e-commerce platform and other functions.

Will Google now take on the “Olympic Cloud” program for worldwide broadcasters, pioneered by Alibaba, for 2028?

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ATHLETICS: Semenya says she is not done in court and will continue her fight against World Athletics sex-test requirements

By
Rich Perelman
-
South Africa's Olympic and World women's 800 m Champion Caster Semenya.

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≡ SEMENYA vs. WORLD ATHLETICS ≡

South Africa’s two-time Olympic women’s 800 m champion Caster Semenya told the German DW news agency that her fight in the courts against World Athletics sex regulations is not over. Referring to comments by her attorney to The Associated Press last week:

“It’s not about stopping, it’s never the end. They didn’t understand what my legal team was saying. It’s not the end, it’s just the beginning of making sure that we fight the right cause. World Athletics is constantly changing its policies. With the new policies, we are forever fighting. We want to make sure that athletes are protected.

“[Court appeals are] not necessarily over. I’m still yet to decide if we still go on with the courts. I’m still waiting for my legal team to finalize everything.”

Semenya, as she has done consistently, blasted World Athletics:

“Regulations like this are not safe for the sport. It questions the quality of the leaders that we have now. That’s weak leadership because you can’t impose rules that you know are not in favor of some of the nationalities, where in their countries, those are illegal.

“If you’re going to regulate, you have to regulate fairly for everyone. That’s what we need to promote, rather than promoting mediocre. It’s got nothing to do with regulation, it’s about people imposing power over other people.”

After a partial win at the European Court of Human Rights, which called a more “rigorous” review of her case, her next step is a return to the Swiss Federal Tribunal.

Observed: Semenya has now positioned herself as a permanent activist, because her next appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal is not likely to win:

● The Court of Arbitration’s key holding in April 2019 was that she was – in fact – discriminated against by the then-in-place testing rules, but that such discrimination was justified by the greater good of fair play in the women’s category:

“[T]he majority of the Panel accepts that the IAAF has discharged its burden of establishing that regulations governing the ability of female athletes with 46 XY DSD to participate in certain events are necessary to maintain fair competition in female athletics by ensuring that female athletes who do not enjoy the significant performance advantage caused by exposure to levels of circulating testosterone in the adult male range do not have to compete against female athletes who do enjoy that performance advantage.”

● The European Court of Human Rights decision in Semenya’s favor acknowledged that the issues she raised were very carefully considered already:

“The Court’s task is therefore to verify whether the examination of the case by the Federal Supreme Court, within its competence to review the compatibility of the award with substantive public policy, fulfilled the requirement of particular rigour called for by the circumstances of the case and given the nature of the mandatory and exclusive sports arbitration which had led to the award. It will precede its assessment with details of the CAS’s examination and award, which the Swiss Federal Supreme Court was required to review.

“The Court would begin by pointing to the length of the CAS award (163 pages, of which 46 concerned the examination on the merits), and of the Federal Supreme Court’s judgment (70 pages, of which 38 were dedicated to legal reasoning). This appears to demonstrate the attention that both the CAS and the Federal Supreme Court accorded to the examination of the applicant’s
dispute.

“The Court also notes that the CAS took into account statements from around 30 medical, scientific and legal experts called by the parties, including around 15 by the applicant.”

But the Court was unhappy with the “limited review” of the Swiss Federal Tribunal of one aspect of the case.

● On another review of the case, the Swiss Federal Tribunal has several options beyond simply a lengthier discussion, which could include calling Semenya’s case moot, since the regulations under which she filed in 2018 have been changed multiple times.

Or, it could acknowledge the continuing scientific exploration of the question of women with differences in sex development (DSD) or transgender women participating in the women’s category and throw out the entire case and ask Semenya to start all over again, based on the current World Athletics requirements for a yes-or-no cheek swap or blood test for the SRY gene.

Or, if Semenya’s logic to “regulate fairly for everyone,” then the entire question of whether a separate category for women is even called for. Equestrian is a mixed-gender sport and certainly shooting or archery could be questioned as to whether there is a need for separate gender competitions.

Semenya says she will continue to pursue her goals. World Athletics will continue to pursue its views as well. This could go on for a long time.

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TSX SPECIAL: It’s here! Our updated, 850-event International Sports Calendar for 2025, 2026 and more now posted!

By
Rich Perelman
-

★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★

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≡ TSX CALENDAR ≡

The 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan Cortina is coming and the most comprehensive schedule anywhere of winter-sport World Cups and qualifiers is now available … all in one place! It’s all in the latest update to our TSX calendar – an exclusive 850-event listing – for 2025, into October 2026 and a few of the larger events beyond to 2034.

Our updated International Sports Calendar focuses on sports and events on the Olympic and Winter Games program for 2026 and 2028, plus a few other meetings and multi-sport events.

Please note: this listing will change! However, this edition is a good place to start for following many of the events coming up in the rest of a busy year ahead.

Two calendars are included in the single PDF download: an 18-page listing in chronological order and a 19-page listing by sport (and in date order within each sport).

It’s free! Get your download right now here!

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THIS WEEK: One more track meet coming in New York; Chicago Marathon on Sunday, swimming in Carmel and Pan Am Games 2031!

By
Rich Perelman
-
An American Record for Conner Mantz at the Chicago Marathon? Yes! (Photo: Bank of America Chicago Marathon/Kevin Morris).

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≡ LOTS OF U.S. ACTION ≡

Perhaps the most impactful event this week is not on the track or in the pool, but the selection of the host for the Pan American Games in 2031.

The choices are Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and nearby city Nitroi, and Paraguay’s Asuncion.

Both candidates have large-event experience, as Rio hosted the 2007 Pan Ams and 2016 Olympic Games, and Asuncion successfully held the Junior Pan American Games this past summer and has made a major push to use sports as a lever to raise its profile. This will be the fourth consecutive Pan Ams to be held in South America.

The decision comes on Friday, 10 October at 10:00 a.m. in Santiago (CHI) during the Panam Sports Extraordinary General Assembly, which will be shown on the Panam Sports site.

Then there are the competitions:

● Athletics: Athlos NYC ● This women-only program returns to New York, expanded by a day to introduce the long jump in Times Square on Thursday, headlined by World Champion Tara Davis-Woodhall, plus World Indoor winner Claire Bryant, Paris Olympic bronzer Jasmine Moore, three-time U.S champ Quanesha Burks and others.

The main meet is at Icahn Stadium on Friday (10th), with a six-event program in the women’s 100-200-400-800 m, mile and 100 m hurdles. The best event is the mile, with 1,500 m World Champion Faith Kipyegon (KEN) hunting her own world record of 4:07.64, challenged by Olympic silver winner and Worlds bronze winner Jess Hull (AUS) plus World Indoor 1,500 m winner Gudaf Tsegay (ETH), American champ Nikki Hiltz and more.

The 800 m has Olympic champ Keely Hodgkinson (GBR), Worlds silver winner Georgia Hunter-Bell (GBR), 2023 World Champion Mary Moraa (KEN) and 2019 World Champion Halimah Nakaayi (UGA), and others.

The 400 m is next best, with Olympic champ Marileidy Paulino (DOM), Worlds bronzer Salwa Eid Naser (BRN), Americans Alexis Holmes, the World Indoor runner-up, and Lynna Irby-Jackson. The 200 has Worlds runner-up Amy Hunt, Olympic bronze winner Brittany Brown of the U.S. and Worlds finalists Anavia Battle and McKenzie Long.

The 100 has Americans Kayla White and Jacious Sears and Worlds finalist Marie-Josee Ta Lou Smith (CIV), and the 100 m hurdles features Olympic champ Masai Russell, Worlds bronze winner Grace Stark of the U.S., sixth-placer Devynne Charlton (BAH) and U.S. stars Alaysha Johnson and Tonea Marshall.

The Friday meet is slated to be shown on ION Television starting at 7 p.m. Eastern, also on ESPN+ and on the Athlos social channels.

● Athletics: Chicago Marathon ● The annual Chicago Marathon, with its fast, flat (and record-eligible) course, is back on Sunday (12th), for its 47th edition, with a strong professional field (listed by lifetime best):

Men:
● 2:02:44 (2024) John Korir (KEN) ~ defending champion
● 2:02:55 (2024) Tim Kiplagat (KEN) ~ 2024 Tokyo runner-up
● 2:03:13 (2023) Amos Kipruto (KEN) ~ 2022 London winner
● 2:03:22 (2024) Cybrian Kotut (KEN) ~ 2024 Berlin runner-up
● 2:03:36 (2021) Bashir Abdi (BEL) ~ Paris Olympic silver, Tokyo bronze

● 2:03:37 (2025) Jacob Kiplimo (UGA) ~ London second in debut
● 2:04:01 (2025) Philemon Kiplimo (KEN) ~ Hamburg 2025 second
● 2:04:23 (2023) Geoffrey Kamworor (KEN) ~ 2017 & 2019 New York champ
● 2:04:39 (2024) Mohamed Esa (ETH) ~ 2024 Chicago runner-up
● 2:05:08 (2025) Conner Mantz (USA) ~ Paris Olympic 8th-placer

Mantz has said he wants to try for the American Record of 2:05:38 by Khalid Kannouchi in 2002 in London.

Women:
● 2:16:34 (2024) Megertu Alemu (ETH) ~ 2023 Chicago third
● 2:17:00 (2025) Hawi Feysa (ETH) ~ 2025 Tokyo third
● 2:18:27 (2025) Bedati Hirpa (ETH) ~ Dubai and Paris 2025 winner
● 2:19:17 (2025) Hailu Desse (ETH) ~ London 2025 fourth
● 2:20:22 (2022) Mary Ngugi-Cooper (KEN) ~ 2021 Boston second

The top American entry is Natosha Rogers, who ran 2:23:51 in 2025 at Nagoya (JPN).

The race will be televised only locally.

● Swimming ● The first of the three-meet World Aquatics World Cup series is back in the U.S. for the first time since 2022 and before than, in 2006. The three stages – all at 25 m (short course) – are in Carmel, Indiana (10-12 October), then Westmont, Illinois (17-19 October) and Toronto (CAN) from 23-25 October.

The meet in Carmel features a lot of stars from the Paris Games and the Singapore World Championships, including, but certainly not limited to:

Men:
● Thomas Ceccon (ITA) ~ 2024 Olympic 100 m Back champ
● Hubert Kos (HUN) ~ 2024 Olympic, 2025 World 200 m Back champ
● Josh Liendo (CAN) ~ Paris Olympic 100 m Fly silver medalist
● Leon Marchand (FRA) ~ Paris 4x and Singapore 2x gold medalist
● Noe Ponti (SUI) ~ 2025 Worlds 50-100 m Fly runner-up

Women:
● Kate Douglass (USA) ~ Olympic and World 200 m Breast champion
● Summer McIntosh (CAN) ~ Paris 3x and Singapore 4x champ
● Kaylee McKeown (AUS) ~ Paris and Singapore 100-200 m Back champ
● Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS) ~ Olympic and World 200 m Free champion
● Regan Smith (USA) ~ Paris 2x and Singapore 3x Backstroke silvers
● Gretchen Walsh (USA) ~ Singapore 50-100 m Fly champion

The total prize purse for the entire series is $1.2 million, plus bonuses for world (short course) records. The meet is to be shown on NBC’s Peacock streaming service.

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PANORAMA: IOC signs deal with Sonic the Hedgehog; U.S. State Dept. to staff up for World Cup ‘26 visa demand; almost no doping in football

By
Rich Perelman
-

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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡

● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● The head of the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) said Monday that Italy will have two flagbearers at the opening ceremonies at both Milan and in Cortina on Friday, 6 February 2026.

CONI chief Luciano Buonfiglio explained on RAI radio on Monday that there will be male and female flag bearers at each site. There will also be Olympic Flame cauldrons in both locations.

● Olympic Games: Future ● The German Sports Confederation (DOSB) approved the candidature files submitted by Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and the Rhine-Ruhr region to be considered as candidates for a future German Olympic bid:

“After completing the review – a total of more than 160 venues and 20 alternative sports venues were examined in the four concepts – the Olympic Bid Steering Group was able to determine that all four concepts met the minimum operational requirements. Subsequently, at its meeting last Friday, the DOSB Executive Board confirmed the steering group’s recommendation, resulting from the review, to allow all four applicants to proceed with the process. …

“Following the completion of the Stage 1 review, the four applicants now have until the end of May next year to further refine their concepts, both in terms of content and operational aspects, in consultation with the German Olympic Sports Federation (DOSB). The final decision on a German applicant will then be made at an extraordinary general meeting in the fall of next year.”

No determination yet has been made as to what Games the DOSB is aiming for; the next available Games is 2036.

● International Olympic Committee ● The IOC announced an agreement for merchandising with Japan-based SEGA Corporation for the use of Sonic the Hedgehog, “highlighting shared values such as friendship, excellence and respect.”

A full collection of merchandise will be offered in 2026.

● Enhanced Games ● Two weightlifters have signed up for the doping-friendly Enhanced Games next May in Las Vegas: Canadian Olympian Boady Santavy and American Wesley Kitts.

Santavy was a two-time Olympian in 2021 (fourth at 96 kg) and 2024 (did not finish at 89 kg); Kitts also competed at Tokyo 2020 (8th at 109 kg) and Paris 2024 (8th at 102 kg).

The event has now announced signings of six swimmers, two lifters and U.S. track & field sprinter Fred Kerley.

● Football ● “[G]iven that the relevant FIFA regulatory framework – currently under review – is not clear and detailed enough, the UEFA Executive Committee has reluctantly taken the decision to approve, on an exceptional basis, the two requests referred to it. UEFA will actively contribute to the ongoing work led by FIFA to ensure that future rules uphold the integrity of domestic competitions and the close bond between clubs, their supporters and local communities.”

Monday’s statement will allow FC Barcelona to play a La Liga match against Villareal in Miami on 20 December and for AC Milan to play a Serie A match vs. Como in Australia next February. U.S. promoter Relevent has been working to stage a Barcelona match in Miami since 2018.

The issue of league games played outside of home countries is a major issue in Europe. UEFA chief UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin (SLO) added:

“League matches should be played on home soil; anything else would disenfranchise loyal match-going fans and potentially introduce distortive elements in competitions. … While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent.”

At the FIFA Council meeting last Thursday, held in Zurich (SUI), President Gianni Infantino (SUI) spoke to the calls for the suspension of Israel for its response to the massacre by Hamas on 7 October 2023, as well as the continuing Russian invasion of Ukraine:

“At FIFA, we are committed to using the power of football to bring people together in a divided world. Our thoughts are with those who are suffering in the many conflicts that exist around the world today, and the most important message that football can convey right now is one of peace and unity.

“FIFA cannot solve geopolitical problems, but it can and must promote football around the world by harnessing its unifying, educational, cultural and humanitarian values.”

Translation: no suspension of Israel. Israel has World Cup 2026 qualifying matches coming up on 11 October in Oslo against group leader Norway and on 14 October in Udine against Italy, with protests expected at both.

FIFA released a report on doping controls in football from January 2024 through July 2025, with 1,942 tests carried out, 2,367 samples collected and most from in-competition tests (1,340) vs. out-of-competition (602), from players in 160 national federations.

Only two doping violations leading to sanctions were recorded; there was one atypical finding which was traced to contaminated meat consumed by the player.

The U.S. State Department said last week that it would “send hundreds of staff to designated countries” to help process visa applications for fans wishing to come to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Many of the countries that will qualify are part of the U.S. visa waiver program, which does not require a specific entry visa, but others – Iran as an example – will have fans allowed in only after a thorough background check. The State Department said it “is prepared to meet the demand while maintaining rigorous vetting requirements.”

● Rowing ● World Rowing is trying to find new ways to showcase the sport and announced a “playoff-style” Shanghai Sprints event, to debut in September 2026, with a commitment to hold it annually through 2030.

The event is to feature 88 athletes from eight national teams, competing in four boat classes in an elimination-format racing – one on one – over 500 m only. In a move toward professional racing, the Sprints will include prize money in addition to covered travel, accommodation and participation costs for all athletes.

● Volleyball ● You just never know. Craig Thompson shared on LinkedIn the always-inspiring, sometimes unexpected experience of winning a bid for a major event:

“Life can be very strange in wonderful ways…

“I am a lifelong volleyball player, and forty years ago my wife and I packed up and left California for Lausanne Switzerland so I could start my dream job as technical director of the International Volleyball Federation FIVB. My first assignment was to run the [1986] Women’s World Championship in the former Czechoslovakia.

“Several months ago I decided to lead a Bid (without much hope) to Host the Women’s World Championship in the USA and Canada on behalf of USA Volleyball.

“Yesterday [30 September] in Manila Philippines, the FIVB President Fabio Azevedo awarded us the right to host the event in 2027! Big thanks to USAV CEO John Speraw for taking this chance with me. Dreams can come true – twice it seems!”

As Thompson well knows, now comes the hard part. 

● Weightlifting ● In the men’s 79 kg class of the 2025 IWF World Championships in Forde (NOR), Indonesia’s 2024 Olympic 73 kg gold medalist Rizki Juniansyah finally got a Worlds victory, lifting a combined 361 kg to win.

He was only third after the Snatch, but scored a world-record Clean & Jerk of 204 kg to total 361 kg, following his second-place finishes at the 2022 and 2024 Worlds. North Korea’s Chong-song Ri, the 2024 Worlds winner at 81 kg, won the Snatch (163 kg), but could not match Juniansyah’s record C&J and finished second at 360 kg.

Americans Caden Cahoy (353 kg) and Ryan Grimsland (342 kg) finished fifth and eighth.

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