Replacements for Russia’s name and flag are in place for a handball world championship in Egypt, but the national anthem still needs a backup.
The International Handball Federation (IHF) announced that it has set conditions under which a Russian team can participate in next month’s tournament, conforming to the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s ruling in a landmark doping case.
The court ruled that Russia would not be allowed to use its name, flag and anthem at the next two Olympics or at any world championships for the next two years.
Photo: AFP
At the IHF men’s world championship scheduled to start on Jan. 13, Russia can compete under the name Russian Handball Federation Team, with the acronym RHF replacing the normal International Olympic Committee (IOC) country code.
An unresolved issue is what to use as a replacement for the anthem.
“The IOC is liaising with the Russian Olympic Committee to find a consistent approach,” the IHF said on Friday. “In case no consistent approach is found until the beginning of the 2021 men’s world championship, the IHF anthem will be played.”
The flag would be the logo of the Russian Handball Federation “without text,” it said.
For clothing and uniforms, “any national symbol, flag or abbreviation must be replaced by the logo of the Handball Federation of Russia without text,” it said.
“Alternatively, they may be removed or covered neutrally. The use of the term ‘Russia’ should be avoided, as otherwise the term ‘Neutral Athlete’ must be affixed to each piece of clothing/uniform in the same size and manner as the term ‘Russia,’” it added.
The IHF said it has worked with the IOC and the Russian Olympic Committee “to ensure that all requirements regarding” the court’s decision is met. The conditions were shared with the Russian Handball Federation on Friday.
The Russian team is scheduled to play in Group H with Belarus, Slovenia and South Korea. Russia won gold at the 1993 and 1997 world championships, and finished 14th at the most recent championship last year.
In the ruling announced on Dec. 17, the court halved the four-year ban proposed last year by the World Anti-Doping Agency in a landmark case that accused Russia of state-ordered tampering of a testing laboratory database in Moscow.
Shaquille O’Neal is staying with TNT Sports on a new contract worth more than US$15 million per year, Front Office Sports reported on Friday. The news means the cast of Inside the NBA is staying together even as TNT is set to license out the show to ESPN starting next season. TNT was the odd network out in the NBA’s recent TV rights negotiations, as NBC and Amazon joined previous rightsholder ESPN in inking deals for basketball games. That left TNT without a need for pregame and postgame NBA shows. In a trade with ESPN, TNT is licensing Inside the NBA to the
Juventus on Sunday stopped Inter from replacing SSC Napoli at the top of Serie A by beating their fierce rivals 1-0 and moving into the UEFA Champions League positions. Francisco Conceicao made sure that Napoli would stay two points ahead of reigning champions Inter by classily tucking home the winning goal 16 minutes before the end of an entertaining contest in Turin. Portugal attacker Conceicao netted his fourth goal of the season in all competitions after brilliant work from Randal Kolo Muani to give Juve a third straight league win. Juve are in fourth place on 46 points, ahead on goal-difference from SS
Eugenie Bouchard already has her own signature pickleball paddle. She is No. 17 in the pickleball rankings and constantly appears on the main court at events because she is always a big draw. However, just to be absolutely clear, she is not retired from tennis. The 2014 Wimbledon finalist still practices on the tennis court, still competes at tennis events and still has a Women’s Tennis Association ranking (No. 1,288). The Canadian standout just has a new sport that has caught her attention. Bouchard is one of several familiar tennis names — like Jack Sock and Donald Young — crossing over to
Stephen Curry and Jayson Tatum on Sunday combined for 27 points as Shaquille O’Neal’s “Team Shaq” cruised to victory in the new-look NBA All-Star game in San Francisco. Curry, playing on his home court at Golden State’s Chase Center, reeled off a string of trademark three-pointers to help his star-studded lineup coast to a 41-25 victory over Charles Barkley’s “Team Chuck.” Boston Celtics star Tatum finished with 15 points after delivering a dominant performance in a starting lineup that also included Kevin Durant, Damian Lillard and James Harden. Team Shaq’s preparations for the game had been dealt a blow shortly before tip-off when