“[…] On behalf of the Caribbean Association of the National Olympic Committee, I am delighted to share our full support to the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Cricket West Indies (CWI) campaign to include cricket in the Olympic Games sports programme for Los Angeles 2028. “We strongly believe the sport’s inclusion in the programme will have far-reaching …
Read More »Alan Hubbard: Finally, sport is up in arms over Russia’s war games
“[…] Anyone who knows me will understand that imposing sanctions on athletes because of the actions of the Government goes against the grain. I have railed against the practice of politicians targeting athletes and sport to make political points when other sectors continue about their business. “This is different as …
Read More »Fifa says Russia can compete as ‘Football Union of Russia’; Poland rejects ‘game of appearances’
Fifa has opted not to eject Russia from the Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign but will instead allow them to continue competing as Football Union of Russia (RFU). The decision was announced today by the Bureau of the Fifa Council, which is headed by Fifa president Gianni Infantino, as …
Read More »‘I chase bad men!’ How the late Andrew Jennings changed investigative sport journalism
One of my most vivid memories of Andrew Jennings came on our second meeting, after a media conference at the Trinidad Hilton in the build-up to the 2001 Fifa Under-17 World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago. It was an elegant event, attended by then Fifa president Sepp Blatter, with every …
Read More »TTOC’s must-read nameless magazine tells stark truths about Tokyo—and beyond
After the 2020 false start, T&T athletes sweated, cried and bled as they prepared to face the Olympic starters in 2021. While they did so, some of the country’s most accomplished and known sport journalists assembled their own Team TTO to come up with an interesting mix of nostalgia, analysis …
Read More »Why the Caribbean’s Olympic coverage differed between Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020
The following article was penned for the TTOC Tokyo 2020 Olympic Magazine, prior to the ongoing competition: With no spectators likely to be in the stands, for the athletes the Tokyo 2020 experience promises to be unique. For regional televiewers, says LASANA LIBURD, it will be, if not unique, certainly …
Read More »SVGOC: Whose head are they using for yardstick?! Olympic ban of ‘Soul Caps’ is discrimination
“[…] That Fina dares to state that the ‘Soul Cap’ does not follow ‘the natural form of the head’ must be seen for the discrimination that it really is. It exposes the organisation’s seemingly inherent bias. “[…] Our analysis suggests very strongly that the decision of Fina to ban the …
Read More »Thompson: Why ask ‘will the Tokyo Olympics go on’? Isn’t the question ‘should it’?
The debate is over. In an official communiqué in mid-June, G7 leaders reiterated: ‘our support for the holding of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 in a safe and secure manner as a symbol of global unity in overcoming Covid-19’. Already, IOC vice-president John Coates, responding to a question …
Read More »Dear Editor: How can New Zealand’s transgender weight lifter compete but not Semenya?
“[…] New Zealander weight lifter Laurel Hubbard, formerly Gavin, has been granted permission to compete as a female weightlifter. Laurel, formerly Gavin, is transgender who used to compete as a male but has satisfied the following criteria. “[…] The first opposition has come from ‘naturally-occurring females’. Quoting scientific research, they …
Read More »Brother Seb, sister Cas and the whys and wherefores of the CAS/IAAF castration—in black and white!
South Africa’s embattled Caster Semenya is black. And she’s a mighty middle-distance runner, having accumulated 30 victories on the trot in the 800m between 2007 and last Friday. The Court of Arbitration for Sport, the sports world highest jurisdiction, last week ruled against the two-time Olympic champion. If she wants …
Read More »Selection and Eligibility: Sport attorney offers best practice tips for NSOs
The Central American and Caribbean (CAC) games are over and congratulations are in order to the Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) Team, their coaches, and administrators for a job well done and special congrats to my client Cleopatra Borel Baptiste. This is why, and due to current happenings in our sporting governance, …
Read More »CAS dismisses Carter’s appeal; paves way for Jamaica’s 2008 Olympic gold to be handed to T&T
“[The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS)] cannot accept any of the arguments raised by [Nesta Carter] contending that the test results should be ignored or the case should otherwise be dismissed for certain alleged failures…” The following are excerpts from the CAS ruling today in the case of 32-year-old …
Read More »