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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● American skiing star Lindsey Vonn posted a clear answer on Instagram on Tuesday to the question of whether she will race in the Olympic Downhill in Cortina:
“Well… I completely tore my ACL last Friday. I also sustained a bone bruise (which is a common injury when you tear your ACL), plus meniscal tears but it’s unclear how much of that was there previously and what was new from the crash.
“This was obviously incredibly hard news to receive one week before the Olympics. I really appreciate everyone giving me time and space to process what happened and find a way forward.
“After extensive consultations with doctors, intense therapy, physical tests as well as skiing today, I have determined I am capable of competing in the Olympic Downhill on Sunday. Of course I will still need to do one training run, as is required to race on Sunday, but… I am confident in my body’s ability to perform. Despite my injuries my knee is stable, I do not have swelling and my muscles are firing and reacting as they should. I will obviously be continuing to evaluate with my medical team on a daily basis to make sure we are making smart decisions but I have every intention of competing on Sunday.
“I know what my chances in these Olympics were before this crash, and even though my chances aren’t the same now, there is still a chance. And as long as I have a chance, I will not lose hope. I will not give up! It’s not over yet!”
Vonn won the Olympic women’s Downhill at the Vancouver 2010 Games, and also owns bronze medals from the 2010 Super-G and the 2018 Olympic Downhill. The Cortina Downhill is on 8 February; she did not say whether she will race the Super-G, which is on 12 February.
For Sunday, however, if she is feeling good, she will be dangerous.
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Five-time U.S. Skeleton Olympian Katie Uhlaender lost her appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to intervene due to Canadian manipulation of the final North American Cup race in Lake Placid, New York on 11 January that cost her ranking points and a place in the Winter Games.
She followed up on X, posting “I’m disappointed that nothing is being done again. I am currently exploring my options. But I’m fighting for the right thing, as this action hurt a whole field of athletes. Not just me” and “So no one has jurisdiction? Who does?”
The answer to the last question is the International Olympic Committee, which owns and the Games and can do what it wants. But the IOC has already said the issue is up to the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF), which has already turned Uhlaender down.
Time is running out.
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The U.S. Olympic flagbearers for Friday’s opening will be speed skating gold medalist Erin Jackson and bobsled driver Frank Del Duca, selected by a vote of U.S. athletes conducted by the Team USA Athletes’ Commission.
Jackson won the Beijing 2022 Olympic women’s 500 m gold and is back to defend that title and contest the 1,000 m. Del Duca is part of the U.S. Army’s World Class Athlete Program (WCAP) and a sergeant in the U.S. Army, stationed in Lake Placid, New York.
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The Milan Cortina 2026 organizers said Tuesday that 1.2 million tickets out of a total of 1.4 million available, have been sold so far.
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The International Testing Agency reported that 92% of the athletes at the Milan Cortina Winter Games have been tested at least once, with 7,100 tests made on 2,916 athletes with 90% of the tests in the six months prior to the Games.
Of the total athlete population, 63% were tested according to recommendations identifying the athlete as an individual who should be tested in advance of the Games, emphasizing the intelligence aspect of ITA’s pre-Games program.
● Olympic Games 2024: Paris ● World Gymnastics issued a statement following the Swiss Federal Tribunal’s instruction to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to consider all available evidence in the appeal of American gymnast Jordan Chiles regarding the Olympic women’s Floor Exercise bronze medal. It included:
“World Gymnastics was not aware of the existence of this specific additional evidence during the original proceedings. It had nevertheless already recommended that the proceedings should not be rushed, in order to ensure that the decision could be taken on the basis of a complete evidentiary record. World Gymnastics welcomes the fact that the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) will now be able to reassess the case on a more complete evidentiary basis, in the interest of reaching a materially correct decision for all athletes concerned.
“With regard to the identified lack of a reliable in-competition mechanism to verify compliance with the inquiry time limit (one minute at the time), World Gymnastics notes that the Paris 2024 competition was the first time such an issue had arisen in respect to this specific aspect of the inquiry procedure.
“Drawing the lessons from this unfortunate experience, World Gymnastics has since implemented an improved inquiry process. The new system provides clear, real-time traceability for officials and stakeholders. It is designed to prevent a recurrence of the difficulties encountered at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.”
● Olympic Games 2028: Los Angeles ● The Los Angeles City Council approved, by 13-1 vote, an ordinance to exempt temporary 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games-related projects from planning and zoning requirements of the City’s Zoning Code in preparation for the Games.
This is in parallel to what was done to assist the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee for the 1984 Games, giving the LA28 organizing committee a faster path to approval of temporary works related to the execution of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The new ordinance does not eliminate building and safety approvals, but the lengthy planning and zoning reviews.
Council member amendments centered on the installation of digital signage in residential areas, with a proposal to have the City share in “net new revenue” from digital ad boards installed under the ordinance.
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The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Agency finally got some 2028 Games funding from the Federal government.
A $94.3 million grant, plus $9.1 million out of a $100 million fund for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, were included in the H.R. 7148 Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, which was signed into law by U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
The $94.3 million is far short of the originally-requested $3.2 billion, but are the first Federal funds delivered specifically for the 2028 Games. The money will be used for Games Enhanced Transit System, including advance service planning, initial leasing costs for land, design for temporary bus facilities and station experience enhancements, plus engineering on other elements of the 2028 transit system.
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Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn said Tuesday, “I think Casey Wasserman needs to step down.” as the Chair of the LA28 organizing committee.
“Having him represent us on the world stage distracts focus from our athletes and the enormous effort needed to prepare for 2028.”
The comment followed last week’s release of million of pages of documents from the U.S. Justice Department related to the Jeffrey Epstein case. Personal e-mail messages from 2003 between Wasserman and convicted child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell (GBR) were included in the release; Wasserman apologized in a statement for having had any contact with them.
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In a State of the City address on Monday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass mentioned the 2028 Olympic Games only in passing, but took a swipe at FIFA’s World Cup ticket pricing once again:
“As we prepare for the U.S. Women’s Open, the FIFA World Cup, and soon after, the greatest Olympic and Paralympic Games in history – we will continue to focus on the fundamentals. The things that shape how a city feels to the people who live here and the millions who will visit. …
“[I]n 2028, we welcome the world on an even grander scale — as we host the Olympics for the third time and the Paralympics for the first time in history. That is an extraordinary opportunity. And it is a serious responsibility.
“When the world looks at LA, they won’t just see venues. They will see our values, the diversity of our people, and all that our neighborhoods offer, including our restaurants and food trucks, our stores, and our cultural richness.”
As for this summer’s World Cup:
“Now let me be clear though: these moments will not belong only to those who can afford the seats. Have you seen how much they cost? Well they’re going to belong to all of us because that’s why I’m so excited to announce today that we will host more than 100 watch parties and events throughout every city council district, every city council district during the World Cup, and they will all be free, and they will all be open to the public.
“Because I want Los Angeles to know, when we say games for all, we mean for all of you, because everyone here should participate, and every neighborhood should benefit when these games come to our city.”
● Olympic Games 2032: Brisbane ● Reporting to the IOC Session, the Brisbane 2032 organizers reported that their first sponsor will be announced in the second quarter.
For 2028, an “Australia House” will be created , for the first time since the Sydney 2000 Games, but with no details announced as yet.
● Olympic Winter Games 2034: Utah ● A major boost to the Utah 2034 organizing committee of the 2034 Winter Games came Tuesday with the confirmation of whole-hearted support from the Utah-headquartered Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Introduced in an event at the Milan Foreign Press Association, the announcement included:
“During the event, Bishop Sean Douglas, Second Counselor in the Church’s Presiding Bishopric, read a statement outlining a broad commitment to support the success of the 2034 Games. These include a significant financial donation, access to Church-owned real estate known in Salt Lake City as Block 85 for use as an official Olympic venue, and the use of additional land for parking adjacent to proposed Olympic sites.
“Bishop Douglas also noted that members of the Church will be encouraged to serve as volunteers, consistent with the Church’s long-standing emphasis on service, hospitality and strengthening families.”
Block 85 in downtown Salt Lake City has been identified as the site for Freestyle and Snowboard Big Air events and a Medals Plaza.
● Athletics ● Another fast indoor 800 m at the Czech Indoor Gala in Ostrava, with Belgian star Eliott Crestan – the 2025 Worlds indoor silver medalist – winning in 1:43.83 over Poland’s Maciej Wyderka (1:44.07) and Mark English (IRL: 1:44.23) to move to no. 4 on the all-time indoor list.
Hungary’s Attila Molnar got a European indoor record of 45.01 in the men’s 400 m and no. 3 on the 2026 indoor world list, and Pole Jakub Szymanski won the 60 m hurdles in 7.48, equaling his season best and no. 2 world list spot. World Champion Mattia Furlani (ITA) won a duel with Olympic champ Miltiadis Tentoglou (GRE), 8.30 m (27-2 3/4) to 8.23 m (27-0). American Jordan Geist won the men’s shot at a world-leading 22.04 m (72-3 3/4).
Italy’s women’s sprint hope Zaynab Dosso moved up the equal-third on the 2026 World indoor list with her 7.09 win in the women’s 60 m and Dutch 400 m star Lieke Klaver took the world lead with a 51.00 victory.
Ethiopia’s Birke Haylom grabbed the world 1,500 m by winning in 4:00.62 over teammate Saron Berhe (4:01.23). Pole Pia Skrzyszowska got the world lead in the 60 m hurdles at 7.78 in her heat and then won the final in 7.80 for the no. 2 time this season, trailed by American Alaysha Johnson (7.88).
● Figure Skating ● The International Skating Union announced a partnership with Swiss-based Aiving for its digital “Jump Tracker,” a small device which wraps around a skate and offers real-time data online about a jump.
The goal is to advance training success and prevent injury. It is already in use by more than 200 skaters in 10+ countries; it will be offered for public sale later this year. What was not mentioned is that the use of such a device in judging is … inevitable.
● Skating ● The International Skating Union circulated a notice that national federations are required to report sanctions of all kinds – except doping, handed through a separate channel – to the ISU to ensure the sanctions are properly administered everywhere, to ensure safety:
“Any provisional suspensions, suspensions or other sanctions imposed at the national level are of critical interest to the ISU if the nature of the allegations have an international impact or could extend to areas outside of the jurisdiction of an ISU Member and into the wider jurisdiction of the ISU. In such cases, the ISU needs to be informed of such sanctions and to know the nature of the allegations in order to determine whether a reciprocal suspension (ISU Code of Ethics Article 7.6) or any other action is warranted.”
And this is a requirement, not a request:
“ISU Members are obliged to inform the ISU about non-[doping] suspensions or other sanctions of international level Skaters, Coaches, Athlete Support Personnel, Officials, and other relevant individuals, by their ISU Member, their national Safe Sport organization, their NOC [National Olympic Committee] or the criminal or civil courts in their country. Related publicly available decisions or reference documents should be provided.”
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