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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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