★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★
★ To get the daily Sports Examiner Recap by e-mail: sign up here! ★
≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● The International Olympic Committee named the flagbearers for Friday’s opening ceremonies in Milan and Cortina, with eight in Milan and two in Cortina:
Milan:
● Tadatoshi Akiba (JPN): Mayor of Hiroshima from 1999-2011
● Rebeca Andrade (BRA), two-time Olympic gymnastics champion
● Maryam Bukar Hassan (NGR), 2025 U.N. Global Advocate for Peace
● Nicolò Govoni (ITA), Nobel Peace Prize nominee in 2020, 2023
● Filippo Grandi (ITA), U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees from 2016-2025
● Eliud Kipchoge (KEN), two-time Olympic marathon champion
● Cindy Ngamba (Refugee Team), first Refugee Olympic gold winner
● Pita Taufatofua (TON), first Tongan Olympian at Olympic & Winter Games
Cortina:
● Franco Nones (ITA), 1968 Olympic cross country skiing champion
● Martina Valcepina (ITA), three-time Olympic Short Track medalist
The opening will actually take place in four locations, with athletes marching in Milan, Cortina, Bormio and Livigno.
¶
Ukrainian Skeleton racer Vladislav Geraskevich told a Ukrainian media outlet that “The IOC contacted us regarding the Olympic Games, asking us not to stage any protests at the Games.
“Let’s just say they contacted the Ukrainian side about possible protests.”
¶
Canadian Pairs star Deanna Stellato-Dudek, 42, one half of the 2024 World Champion team with Maxime Deschamps, suffered a injury during training and will be held out of the figure skating Team Event in Milan.
Her status remains questionable for the Pairs competition during the Games, where she and Deschamps are strong medal contenders.
¶
Local furor over the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency in Italy, including protests drummed up by left-wing parties over the weekend, led to a change in name for the hospitality facility set up in Milan by the U.S. Figure Skating Association, US Speedskating and USA Hockey.
What had been called the “Ice House” has been changed to the “Winter House” to avoid any confusion or unwanted attention. These U.S. federations set up their own venue for the 2026 Games since the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee is not staging its own site.
● Olympic Games 2028: Los Angeles ● A change in the management of the LA28 cultural program, with veteran organizer Dwayne Jones named – but not publicly announced – last November as the Senior Vice President, Cultural Olympiad and Stakeholder Events.
Jones has been with LA28 for its entire life, joining the LA2024 bid in 2016 as a Strategic Event Consultant after a very successful stint with the Special Olympic World Games Los Angeles 2015, where he was the Vice President, Special Events, Celebrity Engagement and Entertainment.
Enthusiastic, endlessly engaged and high energy, Jones eventually became the head of the LA 2024/2028 Director, Special Events and moved over to the organizing committee. He was Senior Director for Experiential Engagement and Protocol, then Vice President, Events and Engagement and now the senior staff person for the Cultural Olympiad, while still wearing his special-events hat.
Nora Halpern continues as the LA28 Executive Director of the Cultural Olympiad, now reporting to Jones.
● International Olympic Committee ● One of IOC President Kirsty Coventry’s fans from her actions during her first year in office is Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) President Rob Stull of the U.S., also a first-term leader of his federation.
Speaking to reporters during an online session last week, Stull explained:
“One of the wonderful things about Kirsty Coventry and her Presidency is she’s very open. From my experience – very limited experience – but my experience is that she takes the podium and she doesn’t have a predisposition, she doesn’t have an answer in her head before she asks the question.
“She really wants your opinion, whoever you are, whatever stakeholder you are. She’s really trying hard to get the answers from the opinions of all these various Olympic stakeholders, because the Olympic Movement – the Games – are the biggest social movement on the planet, and I think she’s doing a wonderful job, in terms of gathering information and being very, very careful with the direction she going, based on gathering information from all possible sources.
“My hat’s off to her, I think she’s doing a great job.”
Stull’s relationship with the IOC is crucial as his federation continually fights to maintain its spot on the Olympic program, now incorporating obstacle racing and even the International Federation for obstacle into the UIPM, with an approval vote coming in March.
● Athletics ● The Associated Press reported a statement from World Athletics, repeating its stance that Grand Slam Track must pay off debts of more than $40 million for its 2025 season before thinking about more meets in the future:
“It is unconscionable that efforts would be made for Grand Slam Track to restart in 2026 without the settlement of outstanding financial obligations to athletes, vendors and service providers.
“It is paramount that athletes who competed in good faith and vendors and service providers are treated fairly and paid.”
World Athletics itself is owed $25,000 for a “data feed license agreement.”
¶
Ethiopian runners dominated the annual Dubai Marathon, with 2024 African Games men’s 10,000 m champion Nifret Melak making his marathon debut with a 2:04:00 win, now no. 42 in the all-time list and fastest in 2026.
He finished way in front of runner-ups Yasin Haji (ETH: 2:05:52) and Rwanda’s John Hakizimana (2:06:04 national record).
Ethiopian women finished 1-13, with Anchinalu Dessie Genaneh winning in a lifetime best and world-leading 2:18:31 in her third career marathon, all of which are wins. Muliye Dekebo (2:18:43 lifetime best) and Fantu Worku (2:19:08) were 2-3.
¶
Two breakthrough performances on Friday and Saturday at the John Thomas Terrier Classic at Boston University on Friday and Saturday, starting with Britain’s Isabelle Boffey, 25, storming to the lead on the final lap over U.S. outdoor 800 m champ Roisin Willis to take almost two seconds off her lifetime best and win in a world-leading 1:57.43 to 1:57.97. Boffey’s best had been 1:59.30 outdoors coming in; she’s now no. 8 all-time indoors!
Willis got an American Record, crushing Ajee’ Wilson’s 1:58.29 from the 2020 Millrose Games.
On Saturday, New Zealand’s Sam Ruthe – born on 12 April 2009, so he’s 16! – won the men’s mile in a world-leading 3:48.88! Figuring in Sunday’s Millrose results, he’s now no. 12 all-time indoors with a world U-18 best and took almost five seconds off his best of 3:53.83 outdoors on 24 January at home in Wanganui! Belgian Pieter Sisk was second in 3:50.31.
● Boxing ● World Boxing hired former long-time World Archery Secretary General Tom Dielen (BEL) as its new Secretary General, beginning this month.
He served World Archery from 2005-25 and ran for the federation presidency, but was unsuccessful and then left the organization. He brings a wealth of knowledge of the Olympic Movement, especially in major event operations and extensive contacts that can aid the new boxing organization.
● Cycling ● The Management Committee of the Union Cycliste Internationale announced a series of important changes from its 29-30 January meeting in Belgium, starting with the development of a review of the “economic model” of road cycling, the economic engine of the sport:
“To this end, the UCI will consult the concerned parties in the coming days, inviting them to put forward their vision for the future. This consultation will be addressed to all cycling families (the CPA, AIGCP and AIOCC), as well as to all individual stakeholders, asking them to share their expectations and proposals regarding the evolution of the current organisational model (calendar, race formats, internationalisation, broadcasting, economic model, sustainability, solidarity within the sporting pyramid, etc.).
“Following feedback from stakeholders, the UCI will hold discussions with these actors and with all partners necessary for the success of this project. Only together and united, under the authority of the UCI, can a more appealing model for all stakeholders be developed.”
Significant safety changes may also be coming:
“[T]he UCI has decided to launch a call for expressions of interest concerning the development of airbags for cyclists, with the aim of protecting them in the event of a crash. This initiative primarily targets manufacturers or laboratories working on such airbags, in order to define with them a framework and standards to be adopted to enable the development and use of airbags in cycling, as well as cycling textile equipment manufacturers, in order to explore the integration of airbag solutions into clothing, and to discuss and propose solutions for enhanced protection of cycling clothing.”
Airbags? Wow.
● Football ● FIFA President Gianni Infantino (SUI) told Britain’s Sky News that national bans don’t work:
“Should we consider lifting sanctions on Russian teams? We definitely must do so. At least at the youth level. Because this ban has achieved nothing; it has only generated more frustration and hatred.”
It was also reported that Infantino believes that FIFA needs to create a statutory provision that it should never again ban any country from playing football because of the actions of its political leaders.
¶
FIFA World Cup fan sites in the Los Angeles area were announced last week, with the “FIFA Fan Festival” at the historic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum from 11-15 June, but without further details.
The Los Angeles World Cup 26 Fan Zones were also announced with nine sites running from one to four days between 18-21 June for the Original Farmers Market in Los Angeles with the final ones at the Pomona Fairplex and West Harbor in San Pedro on 18-19 July. No details on the programming were provided.
● Taekwondo ● The World Taekwondo Council, meeting in the UAE, ignored the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee and the Olympic Summit and granted full re-integration to all Russian and Belarusian athletes:
“Following the IOC’s decision to allow Russian and Belarusian youth athletes to participate in the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games under their national flags, the Council decided on January 31 to permit Russian and Belarusian junior and senior athletes to compete under their respective national flags. Existing restrictions remain unchanged, however, meaning international sports events may not be organized in Russia, and accreditation will not be issued to government officials from Russia and Belarus.”
¶
★ Receive our exclusive, weekday TSX Recap by e-mail by clicking here.
★ Sign up a friend to receive the TSX Recap by clicking here.
★ Please consider a donation here to keep this site going.
For our updated, 45-sport, 910-event International Sports Calendar for 2026 and beyond, by date and by sport, click here!
