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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman expressed concerns Wednesday over the progress of the PalaItalia Santa Giulia Arena in Milan, the featured venue for ice hockey:
“We’ve had a concern for the last two years on the progress of the rink – both rinks – but mainly the main one.
“It’s the [International Olympic Committee’s] responsibility. We’re invited guests, but they know of our concerns and we’re expecting that they’re going to make good on all the promises to have a facility that is, from a competitive standpoint, first-class.”
In terms of possible back-up plans, Bettman said:
“You’d better talk to the IOC. It’s not our issue.
“If we have concerns, we’ll express them. We are constrained in what we can and can’t do, request and demand, and if it reaches a certain point, we’ll have to deal with it. But I’m not speculating, and we’ve been constantly assured by the IOC and the IIHF that it will be OK.
“Obviously, the players’ association will share our concerns if there are any that are necessary.”
The Associated Press reported that delays in construction mean that no test event will likely be held at the new arena prior to the Games.
● Olympic Games 2032: Brisbane ● Brisbane 2032 organizing committee head Andrew Liveris said at a local business forum on Thursday that he sometimes worries about the long road ahead.
“I’m having moments that keep me up at night,” and added some specifics:
“We need accommodation, we need hotels. We need human capital like there’s no tomorrow. Skilled labor is a country issue … how do we solve our labor shortage?”
But, as is his nature, he was also optimistic:
“I would be very energized if I was a small business in this state and this community. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be part of something that puts your product on display.
“You will be part of an Olympic city, an Olympic state. So I think it’s a massive opportunity.”
He acknowledged the cost of the Games, including billions in national and state government funding for 17 new and refurbished venues, including an Olympic stadium in Victoria Park, being contested by activist and First Nations groups. He noted:
“I’m very committed, maybe [because] I grew up in Darwin amongst Indigenous people, went to school with them. I think that there’s a unique opportunity to elevate in an equitable way how First Nations people live in our country.
“The Olympics and Paralympics should not back away from that.”
● Athletics ● A fun new element has been added to the finisher medals for the 2025 New York City Marathon, where a representation of the course elevation has been incorporated into the side of the award.
The overall design of the medal has not changed from 2024, but the edge clearly shows the changes in the 26.2-mile route. It’s a unique innovation for an iconic – and difficult – course.
● Cycling ● The UCI Women’s World Tour Tour of Chongming Island in China finished with a Dutch 1-2 as Anne Knijnenburg finished 55th, 64th and then third in Thursday’s final stage to emerge as the winner. Countrywoman Sofie van Rooijen, the stage two winner and leader going into the final stage, was second, 8:02:16 to 8:02:17.
All three stages were flat and unlike the first two, which had mass finishes that gave the same time to most of the field, a breakaway group of nine riders in the 111.4 km third stage crossed 15 seconds ahead of the peloton. With her third-place finish and the four-second time bonus, that gave Knijnenburg the overall title.
● Table Tennis ● The Russian news agency TASS reported on a Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling – so far unpublished – stating that a 2022 European Table Tennis Union ban on Russian and Belarusian players in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine was discriminatory.
Specifically, the decision was described as holding that less-restrictive options were available, such as neutral-athlete status. A ban on national symbols was allowed as an action to reduce public tension.
A statement from the Russian SILA Lawyers firm included:
“This was the first ruling of its kind in which the tribunal sided with Russian athletes. However, CAS emphasized that its conclusions apply only within the context of table tennis and do not automatically extend to other sports, such as football.
“Nevertheless, we believe that the principles of non-discrimination are cross-disciplinary, and the conclusions of this decision could serve as a starting point for reconsidering the policies on Russian athletes’ participation in international competitions.”
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