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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Olympic Games ● International Olympic Committee President Kirsty Coventry, who turns 42 on Tuesday (16th), told Japan’s Kyodo News Service that future adjustments to how the Olympic Games are televised will be needed to find future audiences:
“I think that the way in which we have our broadcasting rights and the way that they’re delivered, there is a lot of value in how we are doing it, because, you know, the Games are for everyone, and that’s a value and a principle that we would like to try to keep.
“We want to be open to new platforms and work with new platforms, but I believe there is a strength in how we have traditionally done certain things. It’s now just finding a balance on how we’re going to navigate that and not go just one way or the other.
“There’s not as many younger people watching linear TV, right? They’re all on TikTok and Instagram and short bursts of information are what they’re attracted to. We have to allow for ourselves to look into how we can communicate with the youth of today’s world.”
● Anti-Doping ● The International Testing Agency continues to report sanctions on now-retired Russian athletes who were found to be doping during the state-sponsored project from 2011-15, from data collected from the infamous then-Moscow Laboratory of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency in 2019.
On Monday, Bilyal Makhov – the London 2012 Olympic men’s Freestyle 120 kg gold medalist, and a three-time World Champion – was found to be doping in 2015. Now 37, he was also found to be doping by RUSADA in 2020, so no ineligibility was added.
Last Friday (12th), Abdusalam Gadisov, the 2014 World Freestyle 97 kg champ, was found to have tested positive for trenbolone in May 2015. Now 36, he was sanctioned for four years for a different violation from an August 2015 test, thus, no ineligibility was added.
● Athletics ● Swedish vault superstar Mondo Duplantis’ 14th career world record, at 6.30 m (20-8) in Tokyo earned him not only the $70,000 first prize, but another $100,000 as a record bonus, supported by World Athletics sponsor TDK.
World records in women’s events will be paid by World Athletics; if a Mixed 4×400 m record had been set, TDK and World Athletics would have split the bonus payments!
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Said an ecstatic Duplantis afterwards:
“I am so happy, I cannot explain it. For the past two weeks I really enjoyed being in Tokyo. I have been enjoying everything so much. I feel the only way to leave Japan was to set the world record. That was my mentality.
“I don’t know what is next for me at this moment, I don’t care. I will just enjoy this right now. I was feeling really good the whole day. I knew I had the record in me. If I have the right runway, I know that everything is possible. I am glad it all worked out.
“As soon as I take off, from transition from the ground through the air, I know if the jump is going to be valid. I know if I’ve transferred enough energy or it’s not really going to work out. The run says it all, everything is about speed. As long as I have that right, I know it will work out for me.
“I am proud of myself for winning the World Championships when it mattered most, setting the world record is a bonus. I guess there is not a limit for me. Maybe I am the one to find out what the limit in pole vault really is. Today was a pretty much a dream competition. I was not alone at a lot of heights. Emmanouil [Karalis/GRE] was pushing me a lot. I have never jumped at 6.20 m [20-4] and had another guy with me. That’s quite special. I got juices from it.
“I am very proud of him for performing, not only today but throughout the season. He is pushing me and making me a better jumper. He got the best out of me too. Looking at 6.40 meters [21-0], that’s a new barrier in pole vaulting. That’s a new chapter.”
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One of the best stories of the World Championships so far is women’s marathon bronze winner Julia Paternain, 25, who explained:
“I have three passports and a green card. I was born in Mexico, my entire family is Uruguayan, and I grew up in England since I was two years old. I’ve already run for Great Britain, in the U-23 European Championships, and now I’m running for Uruguay.”
She competed for Penn State as a frosh, then for Arkansas in 2021-22-23, finishing second in the SEC women’s 10,000 m in 2023. She’s still living in Fayetteville, now as a Worlds bronze medalist.
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The endless swirl of litigation around Italian walker Alex Schwazer, now 40, continues. The 2008 Olympic 50 km walk champion was banned for 3 1/2 years for doping – which he admitted – in 2012. He tested positive for testosterone in 2016 and was banned by the Italian anti-doping agency until July 2024.
Media reports cast doubts that the 2016 positive test, but the ban to 2024 was upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in January 2017. Schwazer’s appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal was dismissed.
Now Schwazer has appealed to the European Court of Human Rights, claiming that the Swiss Federal Tribunal did not properly review the Court of Arbitration for Sport decision and the ECHR has opened an inquiry.
● Basketball ● USA Basketball announced 2016 Olympic gold medalist Elena Delle Donne as the first Managing Director of its women’s 3×3 program through 2028.
She was a 10-year star in the WNBA and a two-time Most Valuable Player selection.
● Bobsled & Skeleton ● At the IBSF Push Championships in Cortina d’Ampezzo, home favorite Italy won three of the six titles, with Mattia Variola and Mario Lambrughi taking the two-man bob title in 9.75 and Patrick Baumgartner’s sled winning the four-man in 9.64.
Austria’s Katrin Beierl swept the women’s bob titles, winning the Monobob in 10.98 and teaming with Christiana Williams for the two-woman win in 10.33.
Swiss Livio Summermatter took the men’s Skeleton win in 9.48, and Italy’s Alessia Gatti won the women’s Skeleton in 10.16.
● Figure Skating ● The ISU Challenger Series Lombardia Trophy event in Bergamo (ITA) is a popular stop prior to the ISU Grand Prix circuit and the U.S. was well represented for the competitions ending Sunday.
World Champion Ilia Malinin was a convincing winner in the men’s Singles, scoring 306.65 to 285.91 for Japan’s 2022 Olympic runner-up, Yuma Kagiyama. Japan’s Rion Sumiyoshi, 22, won the women’s title, scoring 209.59, with Americans Sarah Everhardt third (199.91) and 2025 World Champion Alysia Liu fourth (197.84).
Two-time Worlds bronze winners Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii (ITA) won Pairs at 215.63 and Americans Eva Pate and Logan Bye took the Ice Dance gold, scoring 186.96.
● Short Track ● Three-time Worlds medalist Corinne Stoddard dominated the skating at the U.S. Championships in Kearns, Utah, winning the women’s overall classification and sweeping the six A-division finals.
Stoddard won both of the A-division finals in the 500 m, 1,000 m and 1,500 m distances and piled up a perfect 60,000 point total, ahead of Julie Letai (40,515) and Kamryn Lute (38.748). Stoddard also set an American Record in the 1,000 m at 1:26.460 in the second race semifinal.
The men’s title went to Brandon Kim, with 54,225 points, with Andrew Heo second (45,887) and Clayton DeClemente third (35,601). Kim won the second 500 m final and the first finals in the 1,000 m and 1,500 m. Heo took the first 500 m A-final, DeClemente won the second 1,500 m final and Marcus Howard took the second 1,000 m A-final.
Kim also claimed an American Record in the 500 m, at 39.83.
● Skiing ● The International Ski & Snowboard Federation (FIS) announced an agreement with Ski Austria (OSV) to combine media rights for its events beginning in 2027-28 with the centralized FIS program. Austria had been one of the holdouts hardest to convince about the program and is agreed through the 2033-34 season.
FIS President Johan Eliasch (GBR) said, “Today’s agreement concludes the centralization of the international media and broadcast rights, and is an important step forward for the future of our sport.
“By bringing international media and broadcast rights together under one framework, we can deliver a more consistent and innovative product – one designed for the digital age. This will drive greater visibility, attract more investment, and create new opportunities for our athletes, our disciplines, and our sport.”
● Volleyball ● At the men’s World Volleyball Championship in the Philippines, half of the eight groups have completed two rounds of matches, with top-seeded Poland, the Netherlands, the U.S., Bulgaria, Turkey and Canada all qualified for the playoffs.
The third-seeded American men have beaten Colombia by 3-0 and Portugal by 3-0 and will play Cuba on the 17th. The top 16 teams (of 32) will advance to the knock-out rounds, with matches starting on 20 September.
● Wrestling ● The U.S. scored a second gold at the UWW World Championships in Zagreb (CRO), with Trent Hidlay winning at 92 kg in a wild, 13-10 final against Russian “neutral” Amanula Gadzhimagomedov. Hidlay had won his first four bouts by 11-1, 10-0, 6-1 and 15-4, but had his hands full, down 10-2 before a major comeback.
He cut the deficit to 10-5 before the end of the first period, then collected three takedowns in the second for the victory, his first Worlds medal.
Levi Haines lost a tight, 3-2 decision in the gold-medal bout at 79 kg with Greece’s Georgios Kougioumtsidis. The U.S. has another shot at a class win with Kyle Snyder qualifying for the 97 kg final.
At 57 kg, North Korea’s Chong-soong Han won a 12-9 final over Bekzat Almaz Uulu (KGZ) and Japan’s Kota Takahashi took the 74 kg class with an 8-2 win over Cherman Valiev (ALB).
The women’s Freestyle matches will begin on Tuesday.
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