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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Olympic Games 2032: Brisbane ● “Believe. Belong. Become. Brisbane 2032”
That is the “vision” for the 2032 Olympic Games, announced Wednesday after a long consultation with more than 6,000 in Australia, including about 3,000 from the State of Queensland, where the Games will take place. The “core beliefs” encapsulated in the vision:
“● Believe – belief in the power of sport and the Australian spirit, which together unlock limitless potential, grit and heart to go further than ever imagined.
“● Belong – a vision in which everyone is welcome at the Games, with every person celebrated, creating a playing field that is fair and fun.
“● Become – a moment of opportunity for Brisbane, Queensland and Australia, harnessing the magic of the Games to become stronger and move into an exciting new era.”
The Brisbane 2032 Games are scheduled from 23 July to 8 August 2032, with the Paralympic Games from 24 August to 5 September.
● Olympic Winter Games: French Alps 2030 ● The International Olympic Committee Coordination Commission for the 2030 Winter Games got a good look this week at the existing sites that will be the backbone of the Games, this time in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
The commission visited the well-known venues at Val-d’Isere (alpine skiing), La Plagne (bob-luge-skeleton), Courchevel (alpine skiing-ski jumping), La Clusaz (cross country skiing) and Le Grand-Bornand (biathlon), with commission head Pierre-Olivier Beckers (BEL) explaining:
“Here in the French Alps we are talking about an exemplary project, relying extensively on existing infrastructure. This responsible approach fully aligns with the ambitions, realities and challenges of the host territories. It demonstrates the collective will to design great Games that are sustainable, financially responsible and respectful of their environment.”
● Anti-Doping ● The Associated Press reported on the use of peptides – strings of amino acids that are the components of proteins and can help regulate body processes – as widely-available substances that are fairly easy to acquire and hard to detect:
“Though some peptides — insulin and the newly popular weight-loss dynamo GLP-1 are among the best examples — are time-tested, perfectly legal (with a prescription) and effective, other substances in the category are not legally marketable, either as supplements or prescription or over-the-counter drugs.”
The World Anti-Doping Agency is well aware of the issue and has been working through national and regional anti-doping organizations to stay ahead where possible. But it is a growing challenge.
● Aquatics ● World Aquatics said that it paid prize money of $10.13 million in 2015, with almost half going to swimmers:
● $4.38 million: Swimming
● $1.99 million: Diving
● $1.53 million: Water Polo
● $1.01 million: Artistic Swimming
● $916,000: Open Water Swimming
● $214,000: High Diving
Of the $10.13 million total, $6,000,300 was paid as prize money at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore.
● Athletics ● Britain’s The Guardian reported that the World Athletics experiment with a “take-off zone” for the long jump has been ended.
Sean Ingle reported that the idea met with “widespread hostility from athletes” and was closed, with federation chief executive Jon Ridgeon (GBR) explaining:
“The reality is the athletes do not want to embrace it. So we’re not going to do it. You ultimately don’t go to war with your most important group of people.
“Even though I would argue we identified a problem, and found a viable solution, if the athletes don’t want it, fine, we drop it. But I don’t regret looking at that. I think that’s our job as the governing body.”
● Football ● Announcing a tie-in with the 2026 FIFA World Cup, “the LEGO Group will unveil a special product portfolio celebrating football’s biggest stage – with the first product announced, the iconic FIFA World Cup Official Trophy, in collaboration with FIFA.
“Launching in March 2026, this first-ever, official 1:1 detailed replica of world football’s ultimate prize allows fans to bring home a golden piece of the tournament’s magic and display their passion for football ahead of next summer’s biggest global sporting event. The impressive trophy, made of 2,842 LEGO pieces, includes a hidden scene which can be opened via a pullable slip in the upper globe section.”
The trophy kit – measuring 14 1/2 inches tall – will retail for $199.99.
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Reversing its announced boycott of Friday’s FIFA World Cup 2026 Final Draw in Washington, D.C., Iran said it would attend with coach Amir Ghalenoei and head of international relations Omid Jamali.
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UEFA announced that its Women’s Euro 2029 championship tournament will be held in Germany, in eight cities, chosen over Poland and a joint bid from Denmark and Sweden.
This will be the 15th edition and the third time for Germany as host: first as West Germany in 1989 and then in 2001. In both tournaments, the Germans were the winners!
● Handball ● The Belarusian Handball Federation said that the International Handball Federation will bring Russia and Belarus back into international competitions in 2026. IHF President Hassan Moustafa (EGY) was quoted:
“As the IHF plans to reintegrate the Russian and Belarusian national teams into IHF events starting in 2026, we highly appreciate your patience and cooperation as we work through the final stages of this reintegration.”
Russian and Belarusian teams have been kept out of international competitions per the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee since the Ukraine invasion began in 2022.
● Mixed Martial Arts ● The Federation of International Mixed Martial Arts (FIMMA) held its founding meeting in Athens (GRE) on Wednesday (3rd) with “[r]epresentatives from close to 50 countries and regions worldwide” assembling “to endorse a clear, united path forward for the sport and to support FIMMA’s ambition of securing MMA’s place at the Olympic Games.”
The new federation is being driven by Singapore-based development billionaire Gordon Tang, the head of the Asian Mixed Martial Arts Association, who worked to place the sport on the program of the 2026 Asian Games. According to the announcement, advances are being made for inclusion on regional Games in Africa, the Caribbean and Europe.
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The already-established International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF), founded in 2012, is understandably unsupportive of the formation of another MMA federation, now the third with the Global Association of Mixed Martial Arts (GAMMA), founded in 2017 in Italy.
In an interview with FrancsJeux.com, IMMAF Board member Bertrand Assoumou (FRA) commented:
“You can’t just show up and say you’re creating an international federation and that you’ll be at the Olympics. There are steps, protocols. I have the impression they’re reinventing the sport: MMA is practiced in a closed arena, which was actually one of our battles when we campaigned for the legalization of MMA in France. It’s not done on a mat or in a boxing ring, but in a cage or a closed ring because it’s a striking and grappling sport. …
“I’m not saying they don’t have the right to exist, but to become an international federation, there’s a process before reaching the Olympic Games. It’s possible that some people have connections with others. MMA doesn’t belong to anyone. However, the fact that federations keep being created isn’t very reassuring; there’s no stability. Some people were with us, then with GAMMA, and now with FIMMA. …
“Ideally, everyone would come together, but that’s not possible. It’s politics; there are always people who want to create their own thing. Someone who truly wants to develop the sport should go where they have the best chance of realizing its potential. That’s not FIMMA, nor GAMMA, it’s IMMAF. If we want to move forward, we need stability. If you believe in a structure, you try to develop it while ignoring ego battles.”
● Shooting ● The U.S. has two finalists for the International Shooting Sport Federation’s athlete of the year in women’s Shotgun in Sam Simonton and Dania Jo Vizzi.
Simonton won the World Championship gold in Skeet, while Vizzi, the 2017 World Champion, won three World Cup medals during the shotgun season. The winners will be announced on Friday.
● Wrestling ● USA Wrestling’s “Living the Dream Medal Fund” awarded $270,000 to eight American wrestlers who won UWW Worlds medals in 2025, including $50,000 prizes to champions Helen Maroulis, Zahid Valencia, Trent Hidlay and Kyle Snyder, $25,000 to silver medalist Levi Haines and $15,000 to bronze winners, Real Woods, Kennedy Blades and Kylie Welker.
The fund is supported by 21 Stewards and since its formation in 2009, has awarded a total of $6.08 million in direct-to-athlete prizes.
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