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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Fair Play ● Tuesday the 19th of May marked the second anniversary of “World Fair Play Day” as adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in July 2024.
To expand its expertise, the International Fair Play Committee invited Olympians Emma Terho (FIN: ice hockey) and Paul Tergat (KEN: athletics) to the IFPC Council; both are members of the International Olympic Committee.
Further, Fair Play Committee President Sunil Sabharwal (USA) announced the formation of the Fair Play Academic Circle (F-PAC), “to analyze contemporary ethical challenges and serve as a dedicated research and educational resource for the international sporting community.”
Said Sabharwal:
“Fair play is the vital heartbeat of sport, and its promotion is more critical than ever as the sporting ecosystem navigates complex challenges from the grassroots to the institutional level.
“On this World Fair Play Day, we reflect on a year of immense growth and activation, from the Olympic Museum to the peaks of Milano Cortina. But our work is just beginning. Today, we are scaling our capabilities, by welcoming two legendary Olympians to our Council and launching a dedicated philosophical engine, CIFP is building its position as a vital center of knowledge and champion for sporting ethics.”
● Athletics ● The once-a-year ATHLOS women’s-only meet is expanding to two meets in 2026, with the first reported to be held in London on 18 September – following the 11-13 September World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest (HUN) – and then again in New York on 2 October.
The ATHLOS site reported the 2026 program to include seven events, with six athletes per event and $151,000 prize money per event. No mention of team scoring, talked about last year, has been mentioned concerning the 2026 meets thus far.
● Cycling ● At the 109th Giro d’Italia, Tuesday’s 42 km Individual Time Trial from Viareggio to Massa was won by two-time World Champion Filippo Ganna (ITA) in 45:53.87, followed by Thymen Arensman (NED: +1:53.34). Race leader Eulalio Afonso (POR) was 41st and challenger Jonas Vingegaard (DEN) was 13th, closing the gap to 27 seconds, with Arensman third at 1:57 back.
On Wednesday, Ecuador’s Jhonatan Narvaez won his third stage of this race, a hilly, 195 km route with multiple climbs, finishing in Chiavari, in 4:33:43 in a final sprint against Spain’s Enric Mas. Italian veteran Diego Ulissi won a three-way race for third, 11 seconds back.
Mas attacked with about 18 km left with Narvaez following and then winning the final sprint.
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Given the early dates for the 2028 Olympic Games from 14-30 July, the Tour de France announced the earliest dates since 1966 for its 2028 edition, beginning on 24 June and finishing on 16 July. Olympic road cycling events will start on 19 July in Los Angeles for the Individual Time Trials and then the men’s road race on the 23rd (Sunday).
The 2028 Tour will start in Reims and end, as usual, in Paris.
● Fencing ● USA Fencing has presented its proposed budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year, with a slight increase to $17.586 million in revenue, $16,674 million in primary expenses and some other, small items which will show a final projected surplus of $299,167, up from 2024-25.
The federation’s board will review the budget at its 30 May meeting, but the federation annually posts the proposed plan ahead of the meeting annually to allow for member input. USA Fencing has shown an annual surplus in three of the last six fiscal years.
● Flag Football ● “Flag football took a big step Tuesday, receiving a formal recommendation to become an NCAA championship sport. Its first championship is projected to occur in spring 2028.”
That came from the NCAA Committee on Access, Opportunity and Impact, which oversees emerging sports for women, and “voted at its spring meeting to recommend Divisions I, II and III sponsor legislation to add a National Collegiate Flag Football Championship.”
Of course, this is a process and each NCAA Division has to agree to accept the sport, with a vote due in January 2027. The rules require that “[a]ll three divisions must approve the legislation to establish a championship.”
● Gymnastics ● USA Gymnastics scored a significant event award on Monday, as World Gymnastics awarded the 2031 World Gymnaestrada to the U.S., for the first time that the event has been held outside of Europe.
The event has drawn more than 20,000 participants from 50 countries and is performative, not competitive. It was first held in 1953 in Amsterdam (NED) and is held quadrennially. Per the announcement:
“From July 7-13, 2031, eight of Las Vegas’ most prestigious venues, including MGM Grand Garden Arena, T-Mobile Arena, Mandalay Bay Beach, Mystère Theatre, Michael Jackson ONE Theatre, Fremont Street, Westgate Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Convention Center, will see gymnastics performed by people of all ages and abilities from around the world. Emphasizing group performances – some with hundreds of participants – the non-competitive event celebrates the sport and physical movement.”
Las Vegas was selected over Helsinki (FIN) and Antwerp (BEL), and will be a fascinating test of the economics of a participant-based event vs. a spectator event, which can inform other cities and other sports. The city is, of course, no stranger to mass events, including in Olympic sports, where the largest annual archery tournament in the world – the Vegas Shoot – is held annually, with more than 5,000 shooters.
● Volleyball ● The 40th class to be inducted into the International Volleyball Hall of Fame will include five players and a coach among nine total honorees, with officials ceremonies to be held at the Hall of Fame in Holyoke, Massachusetts, on Saturday, 17 October 2026.
Among the players to be honored as U.S. Olympic beach gold winner April Ross, as well as two-time Olympic indoor gold medalist Fabi Alvim (BRA) and Brazilian Olympic beach champion Alison Cerutti. Former FIVB President Ary Graca (BRA) will also be honored.
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