Athletics

World Athletics give Russia’s federation six months extra to submit reinstatement plan
Athletics

Russia’s suspended athletics federation (RusAF) has been granted a six-month extension to finalise its reinstatement plan before World Athletics decides on potential fresh sanctions or even expulsion, the sport’s global governing body said on Saturday. RusAF was suspended in 2015 after a report commissioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) found evidence of mass doping among track and field athletes. The World Athletics Council said it approved a recommendation from

'Temptation was too great': Grigorieva had the best seat in the house for Freeman's gold
Athletics

Tatiana Grigorieva is the Arthur Morris of the track, the Grant Hackett of athletics. Like those great athletes, her moment was overshadowed by the significance of history being made around her. Morris was batting with Bradman when he played his last innings. Bradman famously made a duck that day; Morris less famously made 196. Hackett was a generational champion whose timing was such that he coincided with the greatness of

Australia ganged up on Perec. She deserves an apology
Athletics

If the spirit of the Olympics counts for anything, and if Australia is as big-hearted as it imagines itself to be, one of the ceremonies of this 20th anniversary celebration of the Sydney Games should be an apology to Marie-Jose Perec. You remember her. She was the elegant French runner from Guadeloupe who had won the 400 metres at the previous two Olympic Games, beating our Cathy into second in

Lamine Diack: Former World Athletics president sentenced to prison in France over corruption
Athletics

Lamine Diack, the former president of athletics’ governing body, has been sentenced to at least two years in prison and fined €500,000 (£457,000) after being found guilty of corruption by the French courts. Diack has been convicted of accepting bribes from athletes suspected of doping to cover up test results and allow them to compete, including at the 2012 London Olympic Games and 2013 Moscow World Championships.   During his

'I refuse to let them drug me': Semenya loses final appeal in Switzerland
Athletics

Switzerland's top court has ruled against two-time Olympic champion Caster Semenya, dismissing her appeal of a 2019 ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport that upheld a rule established by the IAAF, track and field's governing body, affecting female runners who produce testosterone at levels higher than other women. The ruling likely ends Semenya's chance of defending her 2016 800m Olympic gold medal, as she has repeatedly said she

Christian Malcolm gets vote of confidence from British athletics' golden girls
Athletics

Christian Malcolm has won the support of Britain’s golden girls after bagging the top coaching job in athletics. World champions Dina Asher-Smith and Katarina Johnson-Thompson were amongst the first to welcome the appointment of British athletics’ first black head coach. “New era,” tweeted Asher-Smith, before Johnson-Thompson went further to explain why the 41-year-old former sprinter’s appointment is so important. Speaking in Brussels, where she competes in two events at today’s

Confirmed: Christian Malcolm wins race to be new British athletics head coach
Athletics

Christian Malcolm spoke of a “new start” for athletics in Britain after being appointed head coach of the Olympic programme. The Welsh-born former world and European sprint medalist believes there is a “new energy and drive” in British Athletics after a troubled time for the organisation under previous management. “Words can’t describe how excited I am to have the opportunity to take this role on and be part of a

Ex-Olympic sprinter fears for BLM momentum in wake of Williams' stop-and-search
Athletics

Former Olympic sprinter Chris Lambert fears the momentum created by the Black Lives Matter movement is in danger of stalling before meaningful change can be achieved. Lambert spoke out after Team GB athlete Bianca Williams was caught up in a stop-and-search by police which she claims had her fearing for her life. Williams, 26, was returning from training with her partner – also a professional athlete – and three-month old

Salwa Eid Naser: World 400m champion suspended after four ‘whereabouts failures’
Athletics

World 400 metres champion Salwa Eid Naser was provisionally suspended for registering four “whereabouts failures”, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Sunday. The Bahrain athlete, who won gold at the World Championships in Doha last year, pleaded her innocence despite being suspended by the AIU on Friday for failing to make herself available for anti-doping tests. In an Instagram video, Naser had said she had “only missed three drug

Greg Rutherford 'can't envisage' Olympics without fans amid Tokyo 2020 doubts
Athletics

Greg Rutherford says an Olympics staged behind closed doors would “lose its edge” and be nothing like as special. Tokyo 2020 boss Toshiro Muto admits there is talk of hosting the rescheduled Games without fans and Olympic chief Thomas Bach has not ruled it out. Rutherford has sympathy for the organisers and the challenge they face in bringing athletes from 205 countries together safely during a global pandemic. But whilst