Tokyo 2020-21: The Troubled Games of the XXXll Olympiad

On March 25, the Olympic Torch Relay set out from Fukushima with its “sacred flame” on a grand national circuit, visiting all 47 of the country’s prefectures and arriving at the Tokyo Games venue for the opening ceremony on 23 July. But will this scenario really play out? Even as the countdown to the Olympic opening ceremony proceeds, in the shadow of the 3.11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster and the Covid pandemic there are reports that cancelation might be imminent | Gavan McCormack*

Olympic rings displayed on a floating barge at Odaiba Marine Park in Tokyo | Tomoko Ueta

The Forgotten San Francisco Warrior

Investigating the overlooked legacy of Denise Long, the first woman drafted to the NBA | Alan Chazaro

Illustration: Vinh Truong for The Bold Italic

‘Diversity’ NBA-style

Lloyd Pierce was fired as head coach of the Atlanta Hawks on Monday. He was one of seven Black N.B.A. coaches | Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

The diversity of the N.B.A.’s big-picture landscape remained largely unchanged after coaching moves in Minnesota and Atlanta in late February. Of the league’s top 60 positions, only 16 are held by nonwhite coaches and heads of front offices.

France v Scotland Six Nations clash off after 16 virus cases

(AFP) – France’s Six Nations match against Scotland was postponed on Thursday after another Les Bleus player tested positive for coronavirus ahead of the fixture, taking the tally of confirmed cases among the French squad to 16.

Tournament organisers said that a new date for the match, which was due to take place at the Stade de France on Sunday February 27th, would be announced “in due course” after having previously announced on Wednesday that it would go ahead.

“The Six Nations testing oversight group met today to review the situation in the French camp. They unanimously recommended the postponement of the France v Scotland match,” the Six Nations said.

Sighting. Covid-19 and sport

The rapid spread of the new Corona virus around the world has stopped many sporting events. A number of speed races, tennis tournaments and other competitions have been postponed, some soccer leagues have been suspended, and matches have been held in some countries without an audience. The Olympic Games scheduled in Japan next summer are also threatened, as is the European Football Championship 2020, due to the outbreak of the virus. Great losses have affected global sport, and it is likely to increase in light of the inability to control the spread of the virus in various countries of the world, especially in the Asian and European continents.

Nevertheless, powerful sports cartels especially in the United States and Europe continue to stage competitions, ever increasing the number of spectators in the venues, putting both them and the athletes at risk. American college football of the NCAA organization is the most criminal example, where Covid has spiralled through the ranks of the young players.

Canada’s speed skaters under-promised and over-delivered

(January 22) – A delayed and condensed long-track season opened today in the Netherlands, where skaters are bubbled for two World Cup meets and the Feb. 11-14 world championships.

The Tokyo Olympics are still on (for now)

How 80 per cent of people in Japan feel, according to a recent poll | Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images

By Jesse Campigotto

(January 22) – The Tokyo Olympics are still on (for now) There’s a lot of talk right now about the Tokyo Olympics possibly being cancelled. If you’re confused about what exactly happened and what it means, here it is:

Cristiano Ronaldo best footballer of the XXI century in GSA

The Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo has been chosen as the best footballer of the 21st century so far at the Globe Soccer Awards held last Sunday in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Among the finalists for that award were Lionel Messi, Mohamed Salah and Ronaldinho. On the other hand, the “Team of the Century” award went to Real Madrid, while Josep Guardiola of Spain received the trophy as “Coach of the Century.”

The gala also presented awards in those categories to the best exponents of 2020. Polish striker Robert Lewandowski of Bayern Munich was chosen as the Player of the Year.

Reigning UEFA Champions League champion German Hans-Dieter Flick took home the trophy for the best manager of the year, while that club was voted the best team of 2020.

The Spanish Gerard Piqué and Iker Casillas were also awarded at the Globe Soccer Awards 2020. The FC Barcelona defender and the exporter for the Spanish team and Real Madrid were recognized for their successful sports careers.

(RT)

FIFA suspends 2021 U-20 and U-17 World Cups

Lausanne, Switzerland, Dec 24 (Prensa Latina) – The International Association Football Federation (FIFA) announced today the suspension of the 2021 editions of the U-20 and U-17 World Cups due to the global impact caused by the Covid 19 pandemic.

Given the cancellation of both events, FIFA named Indonesia and Peru, hosts of those tournaments next year, organizers of the 2023 versions.

According to the top football organization in the world, the organization of international competitions is a challenge given the travel restrictions due to the pandemic.

For this reason, FIFA maintained and still maintains contacts with the interested parties, including the member federations and the host confederations of those events scheduled for 2021.

‘In the framework of these consultations, it has become clear that the world situation has not normalized enough to be able to solve the challenges posed by the organization of both competitions, including the viability of the qualifying tournaments,’ said FIFA in a statement. .

In addition, the organization expressed its gratitude to the host federations, as well as the Indonesian and Peruvian authorities for their commitment to the competitions and for the preparations carried out to date.

According to FIFA, it hopes to maintain close collaboration with the two host nations to make the tournaments a success.

Northern Ice. A shame on Canada

(December 27, updated December 29) – Canada routed Germany 16-2 in the “world” juniors hockey championship on December 26. The German team was missing six players including its top to goaltenders – one third of its roster – due to the covid pandemic. It had also played the night before, while Canada was playing its first game. Nevertheless, the game was not cancelled or postponed by the International Hockey Federation, being scheduled for the TSN Cable TV sports network [1] at primetime (6 p.m.) Saturday night.