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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
● Olympic Winter Games 2026: Milan Cortina ● With heavy clouds forecast for Wednesday’s Olympic Flame lighting ceremony in Olympia, Greece, a rehearsal flame was lit from the sun’s rays on Monday and will be the flame actually used in the ceremony.
The Hellenic Olympic Committee noted in a Tuesday post:
“The Olympic Flame Lighting Ceremony will take place on Wednesday, 26 November 2025 at 11:30 at the Archaeological Museum, with the Olympic Flame having been lit during Monday’s rehearsal.”
The Tuesday rehearsal was also indoors at the Museum due to continuing rainfall; British sports historian Philip Barker noted on X:
“The last time an Olympic Flame Ceremony took place in the Museum of Olympic Games of Antiquity in Dec 1967 for Grenoble Winter Olympics.”
The Hellenic Olympic Committee announced that Greek Olympic rowing bronze medalist Petros Gaidatzis will be the first torchbearer on Wednesday.
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An expedited process has been adopted for an online hearing on the complaint by the Russian Ski Association against the International Ski & Snowboard Federation (FIS) for 1 December 2025, at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The Russians are trying to force FIS to allow Russian (and presumably, Belarusian) athletes to be able to compete, at least as neutrals, in qualifying events for Milan Cortina 2026. The CAS announcement noted:
“After the hearing, the Panel will deliberate. This is an expedited procedure with an operative decision (without grounds) expected on or prior to 10 December 2025.”
FIS has maintained a ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes since 2022.
● Anti-Doping ● A report on October’s Play The Game conference in Tampere (FIN) included comments from former Finnish youth and sport minister Sandra Bergqvist, also a member of the World Anti-Doping Agency Foundation Board, gave ger view of the continuing conflict between WADA and the U.S.:
“I think we need to start over to build up the good work that WADA has been doing for many, many years. Unfortunately, the situation right now is quite infected, so I think we need some new people who can start working all over again.
“WADA needs new leadership. That is the only solution to preserve all the good work WADA has done. I think it is more important now than ever that we are focusing on all the good things that WADA has been doing.”
U.S. Anti-Doping Agency head Travis Tygart, WADA’s fiercest critic over the January 2021 Chinese mass-positives incident and subsequent no-sanctions finding, said he has reached out to WADA President Witold Banka (POL) and Director General Olivier Niggli (SUI) for discussions in June 2024, but they refused. He said he tried to meet with them at the WADA meetings in Saudi Arabia in December:
“Banka and Niggli would not meet. I then sent another letter in June of this year, incredibly respectful and diplomatic, asking once again to sit down and speak with them. They refused to do so.”
He said he has “given up hope” of meeting, but welcomes a third part to bring them together and resolve their issues.
● Athletics ● Prep 400 m star Quincy Wilson – who ran a high school record 44.10 in 2025 – announced he will attend the University of Maryland, and will be coached by two-time Olympic 4×400 m gold medalist Andrew Valmon.
Wilson attends The Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland and decided to stay home instead of heading to South Carolina, Texas A&M, UCLA or USC. Valmon was a U.S. assistant coach for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where Wilson won a relay gold himself, running in the preliminary round.
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American men’s Steeplechase record holder Evan Jager announced his retirement at age 36 on Monday, having won the Rio 2016 Olympic silver and 2017 World Championships bronze, as well as seven national championships, from 2012-18.
He lowered the American Record to 8:06.81 in 2012 – his first year in the Steeple – then to 8:04.71 in 2014 and 8:00.45 in Paris in 2015, tripping over the final barrier when it appeared that he would win (he ended up second) and break eight minutes! He ranks no. 16 all-time now.
Jager was dogged by injuries later in his career, but made it to the World Championships again in 2022, finishing sixth and he was fourth at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials, just missing a third Olympic team.
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Chinese long jump star Jianan Wang, the 2022 World Champion and three-time Olympian, tested positive on 1 November 2024 for Terbutaline, an asthma medication which is banned without a Therapeutic Use Exemption.
He was cleared by the Chinese Anti-Doping Agency for no-fault or negligence as its inquiry showed that the positive “was caused by passive inhalation of Terbutaline drug particles diffused into the air whilst the Athlete accompanied a family member undergoing a nebulisation treatment at a local hospital on 31 October and 1 November 2024.”
Once informed, the Athletics Integrity Unit undertook its own investigation, including the use of closed-circuit videotapes of Wang, 29, coming to the hospital to visit the family member, and other documentation and in a Tuesday statement, said it was satisfied with the procedures taken and will not file an appeal against the CHINADA decision.
● Figure Skating ● Russian star Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, 28, announced her retirement, concluding a career in which she was the 2015 World Champion and 2021 Worlds silver medalist, and a six-time winner on the ISU Grand Prix circuit. She said in an interview:
“I think for every skater, figure skating is a little life. Yes, there were some problems, some difficult situations, but there were so many good things in my career, so many happy moments, that I can now say with gratitude that I had a brilliant career, and I regret nothing. I am announcing the end of my athletic career, with no regrets.”
● Football ● On Monday, “the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) and FIFA have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to allocate up to USD 1 billion in concessional loans for the construction and rehabilitation of sports stadiums and essential surrounding infrastructure in developing countries around the world.”
The loans, at discounted interest rates, will “support national governments in designing, financing, and building modern multi-sport venues that meet international standards and serve as hubs for community life, education, and inclusion.”
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It was reported that FIFA President Gianni Infantino (SUI) was awarded Lebanese citizenship, announced by Lebanon President Joseph Aoun. Infantino’s wife, Lina Al-Ashqar, is Lebanese and Infantino was said to announce that “FIFA plans to build an international-level stadium in Beirut.”
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A class-action lawsuit concerning the chaotic Copa America final at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on 14 July 2024, was settled for $14 million by defendants CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, Best Security, and South Florida Stadium LLC, after some fans without tickets burst into the stadium and actual ticket-holders had to wait for 82 minutes. There were 27 arrests and 55 ejections, but some ticket holders could not get in for the Argentina vs. Colombia match.
Fans claiming damages have to make a filing and if unable to attend at all, can receive up to $2,000 plus up to $300 in travel expenses. Ticket holders who could not access their seats can get up to $100 for inconvenience.
● Ski Jumping ● At the mid-week FIS World Cup in Falun (SWE), three-time World Champion Stefan Kraft (AUT) got his 4th career World Cup gold with a 249.9-point triumph off the 95 m hill, winning the first jump and finishing third on the second. He became the all-time leader in World Cup points scored at 15,811.
Slovenia’s Anze Lanisek was second (247.7) and German Philipp Raimund was third at 244.9. The competitions continue through the weekend.
● Swimming ● Canadian star Penny Oleksiak was banned for two years for “whereabouts” failures between October 2024 and June 2025. Per the International Testing Agency:
“On 15 July 2025, she accepted a voluntary provisional suspension pending resolution of the matter. The athlete did not contest the ADRV and agreed with the consequences proposed by the ITA.”
Oleksiak, now 25, was the co-2016 Olympic women’s 100 m Freestyle gold medalist; her suspension runs from 15 July 2025 through 14 July 2027. Oleksiak’s last championship event appearance was at the 2024 World Aquatics Short-Course (25 m) Championships in Hungary.
● Weightlifting ● A unique Olympic-sport crossover promotion was mounted by the Bahrain Weightlifting Federation during the FIBA 3×3 World Tour Finals in Manama (BRN), with weightlifting demonstrations in the fan festival area and an exhibition, mixed-gender event incorporated into breaks of the 3×3 matches!
It’s an interesting concept for cooperation between International Federations and one which can be widely implemented as a part-entertainment, part-education for fans. Will there be more of these?
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