In the midst of several modifications recently made by the International Cycling Union (UCI) to the development of road cycling, alarms have been set on account of the use of a substance that serves to provide energy to cyclists and on other occasions has generated controversy .
28 September 2021, Naples, Italy: On the sidelines of season 3 of the International Swimming League, the recently announced ISA held its first post Olympics, in-person Board meeting. “With the Olympics now over, and most of the Board members in one city, it was the perfect opportunity to get together and build some momentum” said ISA founding Board member Brent Hayden.
The Oceania Cycling Confederation (OCC) is pleased to welcome the Solomon Islands as a new member nation, following the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) Congress in Leuven, Belgium, Friday 24 September 2021.
Bolton Wanderers Chief Executive Neil Hart has said that the club cutting ties with betting companies is the ‘right thing’ to do.
Bolton, who currently sit ninth in League One, have said it will remove all betting kiosks from with the University of Bolton Stadium and no longer accept gambling money. Hart said “Bolton want to win on the pitch, but alongside that is doing the right thing. We just felt, with the saturation of betting advertising around football, we didn't need to be part of that. We are not saying to supporters don't bet, but we aren't going to provide you with that opportunity within the stadium and it's something we believed in. The early indication is it’s been received very positively and our supporters are very much aligned with us.”
UEFA takes note of the letter sent today by the independent UEFA Appeals Body in which the disciplinary proceedings that had been opened against FC Barcelona, Juventus FC and Real Madrid CF for a potential violation of UEFA’s legal framework in connection with the so-called ‘Super League’ project have been declared null and void, without any prejudice, as if the proceedings had never been opened.
The NBA has denied Andrew Wiggins’ request for a religious exemption from the San Francisco mandatory requirement for all attendees at indoor gatherings to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
Analysis, opinions, facts and figures take centre stage in the in-depth technical reviews of last season’s four major European club football and futsal competitions.
FIFPRO’s division in the Americas has made organisational changes with a view to strengthening the representation of professional footballers across the region. The division is also taking another step towards becoming more diverse and inclusive after two women were elected to its regional board.
Welcome to LawInSport’s weekly News Roundup. This recap highlights this week’s news pieces from across the world of sport. For further updates, please visit our news section.
We hope you find this useful. If you have any related questions or feedback, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Meeting for an extraordinary session after the Congress of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) organised during the 2021 UCI Road World Championships in Flanders (Belgium), the newly elected Management Committee today carried out the election of the Federation’s Vice-Presidents for the next four years. In line with a modification to the UCI Constitution approved earlier in the day by its Congress, the UCI now counts at least one Vice-President of each gender, for a total of four Vice-Presidents (compared with three previously). The Vice-Presidents elected are:
STS, the leading betting operator in the regulated Polish market, has announced a new official data and trading partnership with Genius Sports (NYSE: GENI) to drive the expansion of its in-play offering.
The UEFA Executive Committee has doubled the total prize money that will be shared between teams who compete at the Women’s 2022 European Championships but the new figure is still only 4.3% of the money that is made available to teams competing in the men’s tournament.
As part of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA’s) ongoing governance review, on 19 October 2021, WADA’s Working Group on the Review of WADA Governance Reforms will be carrying out a second phase of stakeholder consultation via virtual or in-person meetings from Lausanne, Switzerland.
The delegates from the IIHF member national associations have arrived in St. Petersburg, Russia, for the 2021 IIHF Semi-Annual Congress that will be held over the next four days.
The delegates were warmly welcomed on Tuesday evening with a reception by the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Organizing Committee, held at the Russian Museum of Ethnography.
The International Olympic Committee transgender guidelines have been delayed until 2022 due to “very conflicting opinions.”
The guidelines are now expected to be published after the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing which would be three years later than originally planned. The IOC’s science and medical director Dr Richard Budgett said the guidance would “prioritise inclusion” and “avoid harm.”
INVESTIGATIONS
Belgium
Belgian police to investigate possible basketball fraud case
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Belgian basketball federation has asked the country’s federal police to investigate a possible fraud case related to the organization of 3x3 tournaments in the runup to the Tokyo Olympics.
Following discussions with the local Wallonia and Flanders federations, Basketball Belgium said in a statement on Tuesday that it contacted a police unit specialized in sports fraud to conduct a “thorough investigation.”
The federation said a disciplinary inquiry was being carried out by Basketball Flanders in addition to a criminal complaint.
De Standaard newspaper reported last month that fake 3x3 basketball tournaments were set up in Belgium from August to October 2019 in a bid to allow the Belgium team to collect the necessary points to be able to take part in qualifying for the Olympic Games.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) held an Executive Board (EB) meeting today, in the presence of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Beijing 2022 informed the EB of the principles that will help deliver safe and successful Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games as scheduled.
Kuala Lumpur: The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Medical Committee continued its commitment to expand the network of world-class medical centres in Asia by recognising The Kitchee – Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) Sports Medicine Clinic as the latest AFC Medical Centre / Clinic of Excellence at its fourth meeting held virtually today.
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is pleased to announce that Philippe Gilbert (BEL) and Ruth Winder (USA) have been elected to represent road cycling on the UCI Athletes’ Commission, in a vote organised during the 2021 UCI Road World Championships held in Flanders (Belgium) from 19 to 26 September.
In Episode 17 we chat to Jurgen Secember, Legal Advisor from NADO Flanders about collaboration and cooperation in the national landscape of anti-doping. Jurgen discusses the benefits, including information sharing and increased investigative capacity, that have been achieved by working formally and informally alongside other Belgian entities, public servants from the Judicial Police, the Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products, the Federal Agency for Food Chain Safety and the Customs.
Following its announcement yesterday on the so-called ‘Super League’ project and the respective compliance measures UEFA has taken, UEFA reaffirms its view that it has always acted in accordance with not only its Statutes and Regulations, but also with EU law, the European Convention on Human Rights and Swiss law in connection with this so-called ‘Super League’ project. UEFA remains confident in - and will continue to defend - its position in all the relevant jurisdictions.
The International Basketball Federation’s (FIBA) report on systemic sexual harassment and abuse within the Mali Basketball Federation (FMBB) vindicates the victims of abuse, survivors, whistleblowers, and activists who took enormous risks to bring this abuse to light, the Sport & Rights Alliance said today.
The Asian International Arbitration Centre (AIAC) is hosting a webinar, titled “The Standard of Proof in Anti-Doping Arbitration: Understanding Comfortable Satisfaction” in conjunction with the AIAC September Sports Month 2021.
Luc Tardif has been elected as new IIHF President succeeding René Fasel, who held the position for 27 years and didn’t stand for re-election. He won the presidential election in the fourth and last round against Franz Reindl.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced that following remedial work and re-assessment, the bowling action of South Africa off-spinner Raisibe Ntozakhe has been found to be legal, and she can resume bowling in international cricket.
In light of the range of predisposed decisions and communications made by FIFA recently in amending or planning future reform of the International Match Calendar (IMC), in direct and unilateral breach of certain legal obligations, ECA – as the voice of professional football clubs of Europe – feels compelled to issue the following.
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — The NHL found no evidence that San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane bet on NHL games or tried to throw games after investigating allegations made by his estranged wife.
£1,000 fine – breach of Rule (G)2.1 of the Rules of Racing in that on 17 July 2019 FIVE DIAMONDS ran in the 4Head Median Auction Maiden Fillies’ Stakes (Class 6) at Yarmouth finishing 1st. Following the race the Stewards ordered FIVE DIAMONDS to be post-race tested. On 7 August 2019 it was reported that the post-urine sample returned by FIVE DIAMONDS tested positive for HEPS.
Sport Resolutions, in association with Lewis Silkin, will be holding an event on considering and responding to Subject Access Requests (SARs) within the context of sport safeguarding cases on Thursday 14th October via Zoom Webinar.
Alexander Milner-Smith, Co-Head, and Sean Illing, Senior Associate, both of Lewis Silkin's Data & Privacy Group, will be delivering the webinar. The session will provide information on how to consider data sharing in the safeguarding case management context and how to manage cases effectively when dealing with a SAR.
Genius Sports Limited (NYSE: GENI) (“Genius Sports”) the official data, technology and commercial partner that powers the ecosystem connecting sports, betting and media, has won a new official data and trading partnership with Golden Nugget Online Gaming, Inc. (Nasdaq: GNOG).
In May 2021, the FIFA Congress mandated the FIFA administration to conduct a study into the feasibility of a Men’s and Women’s World Cup every two years.
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed a ban and a substantial fine on the Hungarian Football Federation (MLSZ) in relation to the racist behaviour of numerous supporters during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ qualifying match between Hungary and England on 2 September 2021.
A hearing of the Independent Disciplinary Panel of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) to enquire as to whether Mr David Flood, a licensed trainer was in breach of (J)21 of the Rules of Racing in that he allegedly verbally abused a BHA official.
IOC President Thomas Bach has urged more sports bodies to join the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework and commit to meaningful climate action. He was speaking at the Sport Positive Summit, the annual gathering of Framework signatories, of which there are currently more than 270.
The Oceania Cycling Confederation (OCC) congratulates Mr David Lappartient on his re-election as President of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in Leuven, Belgium, Friday 24 September 2021.
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) confirms a total of 56 technological fraud controls were performed during the recent 2021 UCI Road World Championships in Flanders (Belgium). All returned negative results.
In this latest edition of ‘Spotlight’, which keeps stakeholders up to date on the activities being carried out by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) team and its partners, we look at the process of accreditation/approval and monitoring of anti-doping laboratories around the world, which is helping to harmonize the analysis of samples and ensure that the highest standards are maintained. Previous ‘Spotlight’ features are available on WADA’s website.
The Congress of the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation IBSF was held virtually on September 16 and 17, 2021, with the Executive Committee informing the participants with their reports and being available to answer questions from the delegates.
The Concacaf Disciplinary Committee has fully investigated the circumstances surrounding the integrity concerns raised by a video which circulated on social media following the Inter Moengo Tapoe vs CD Olimpia Concacaf League match.
UK Anti-Doping’s (UKAD) Clean Sport at the Front Line (CSFL) took place on 14 & 15 September 2021 online.
The event was tailored towards practitioners in sport and was free to attend. More than 100 delegates attended on each day of the virtual event.
This year’s CSFL2021 looked at the importance of clean sport education for athlete support personnel and coaches. The forum presented recent research studies into coach and athlete support personnel anti-doping knowledge. UKAD introduced their new Insight and Innovation Team, who will be leading the development of research into prevalence studies, drug detection, monitoring & evaluation and data analytics.
Rwandan broadcaster Victory TV ordered to cease the unlawful broadcast of UEFA Champions League and Premier League matches following decision taken by the Court of Appeal of Kigali
ESIC is delighted to welcome Promod Esports into membership, supporting ESIC’s mission towards a uniform standard for integrity in esports. As part of its membership, Promod Esports will integrate ESIC’s integrity codes and standards into its esports operations, encouraging fair play and sporting integrity across their platforms. Joining a long list of industry leaders in membership, Promod Esports reinforces their operational commitment to competitive integrity, youth protection, and commercial viability of the international esports industry.
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) has today confirmed that German tennis player Dario Drebenstedt has been banned from the sport for 12 months and fined $5000 after being found guilty of several breaches of Tennis Anti-Corruption Program (TACP) rules. The offenses all took place at a tournament in Egypt in 2021 and related to an attempt to buy a wild card and attempted corrupt approaches to other players.
Meeting on 21 and 22 September in Bruges (Belgium) during the 2021 UCI Road World Championships in Flanders, marking the event’s centenary, the Management Committee of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) made a number of important decisions, notably concerning cycling’s off-road disciplines.
The International Ice Hockey Federation grows to 82 member nations with the admission of Tunisia as associate member by the 2021 IIHF Semi-Annual Congress in St. Petersburg, Russia.
The International Cricket Council (ICC), on behalf of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), has charged former West Indies player Marlon Samuels with breaching four counts of the ECB Anti-Corruption Code for Participants of the T10 League (the ‘Code’).
In May 2021, the FIFA Congress mandated the FIFA administration to conduct a study into the feasibility of a Men’s and Women’s World Cup every two years.
In strengthening its commitment towards greater transparency and full disclosure of its fundamental activities and operations, FIFA has today published the second annual report (2020/2021) of the activities of its independent judicial bodies, the Disciplinary, Appeal and Ethics Committees.
