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Tariq Panja
World Anti-Doping Agency Director-General Olivier Niggli speaks during the agency's symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland, in March.
OLYMPICS
Dec 4, 2024
Anti-doping agency froze out investigators who warned about China
The decision by WADA’s leaders to keep its own investigators in the dark raises new questions about WADA's response to possible doping by Chinese athletes.
Workers building a railway in front of Lusail Stadium in Doha in 2018
SOCCER
Nov 30, 2024
FIFA should pay workers injured building Qatar World Cup, internal report says
The report offered no specific dollar amount of compensation.
Dr. Rahul Gupta, director of the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy, in Philadelphia last year. World Anti-Doping Agency officials, furious at U.S. investigations into the handling of positive tests, have sought to exclude Gupta from its board meetings.
OLYMPICS
Sep 11, 2024
White House is drawn into dispute over Chinese doping
WADA has informed the White House that its officials were seeking to bar its representative from any deliberations about positive tests by Chinese athletes.
The International Boxing Association holds a news conference in Paris on Monday, with the association's president, Umar Kremlev, appearing on a video feed from Moscow.
OLYMPICS
Aug 6, 2024
A chaotic news conference offers little clarity on an Olympic boxing dispute
The International Boxing Association’s Russian president delivered wild accusations, personal attacks and used questionable language when detailing the two women's cases.
Algeria's Imane Khelif (left) punches Italy's Angela Carini in the women's 66-kg last 16 bout at the Paris Olympics on Thursday.
OLYMPICS / Boxing
Aug 2, 2024
Italian boxer quits bout, sparking furor over gender at Olympics
The issue has become the latest flashpoint in the politically charged debate over gender and fair play in sports.
World Anti-Doping Agency President Witold Banka holds a news conference in Paris on July 25. WADA and the entire global anti-doping system have been under intensifying scrutiny in recent months.
OLYMPICS
Jul 31, 2024
Anti-doping agency acknowledges concern over use of tainted food as excuse
The global anti-doping regulator disclosed Tuesday that it is investigating why athletes in China and other countries who are testing positive for banned drugs are escaping discipline through claims that they have unwittingly ingested the performance-enhancing substances through food.
Wang Shun of China races to gold in the final of the men's 200-meter individual medley at the Tokyo Olympics in July 2021.
OLYMPICS / Swimming
Jun 15, 2024
Doping regulator knew of previous positive tests by Chinese swimmers
Three Chinese swimmers who failed drug tests before the 2021 Olympics had tested positive for a powerful steroid several years earlier.
Zhang Yufei was among the 23 Chinese swimmer who tested positive for a banned substance months before the Tokyo Olympics.
OLYMPICS
May 16, 2024
World Anti-Doping Agency combating trust issues ahead of Paris Olympics
WADA is facing a allegations it helped cover up the positive tests of elite Chinese swimmers before the Tokyo Olympics.
Chinese swimmer Zhang Yufei poses with her gold medal after winning the women's 200-meter butterfly during the Tokyo Games.
OLYMPICS
Apr 22, 2024
Chinese doping case sends swimming world into uproar and exposes bitter rifts
The disclosure of an incident that had been a secret for more than three years has drawn strong reactions from athletes, coaches and others.
China's Olympic gold-medal winning 4 x 200 meter freestyle relay team celebrates on the podium at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre on July 29, 2021.  Zhang Yufei (third from left) is among 23 top Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned substance in the lead up to the Games.
OLYMPICS
Apr 20, 2024
Top Chinese swimmers tested positive for banned drug, then won Olympic gold
The episode sharply divided the anti-doping world, where China’s record has long been a flashpoint.
English and Italian footballers observe a minute of silence for the victims of a deadly shooting in Brussels and of the devastating events in Israel and Palestine, at Wembley Stadium in London on Oct. 17.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 24, 2023
Qatar-owned network altered broadcasts to avoid war references
Instead of tributes and moments of silence at recent games, beIN broadcasts aired extended studio discussions that hewed solely toward soccer.
Japan Times
SOCCER / Women's World Cup
Jun 30, 2023
FIFA may allow players to wear rainbow armbands at Women’s World Cup
FIFA is planning to send a letter outlining its armband rules for the 32 teams that will participate in the tournament.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jun 22, 2023
Lionel Messi, Saudi Arabia and a deal that paid off for both sides
Messi's deal offers an inside glimpse of the oil-rich kingdom’s use of its wealth to enlist marquee athletes in its effort to burnish its global image.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Mar 30, 2023
China’s soccer experiment was a flop. Now it may be over.
The expensive recruits have gone. Top teams have disappeared with alarming regularity. The national team shows little sign of improvement.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Feb 1, 2023
Barcelona goes to court to keep a star player on its roster
With the Spanish league unequivocal in its refusal to bend regulations to allow Barcelona to register any more players, the club’s board took its plea to the local court.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Dec 30, 2022
Legendary Pele was Brazil’s ambassador to the world
Former Brazil star Pele was a man who moved in the company of celebrities and presidents and a player who could pause a civil war and then shake hands with a queen.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Dec 19, 2022
Qatar got the World Cup it wanted
Qatar was perhaps among the most ill-suited hosts for a tournament of the scale of the World Cup, but it had a plentiful supply of money to propel its dream forward.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Dec 11, 2022
Morocco stuns Portugal in a historic victory for Arabs and Africa
While Morocco celebrates its victory and ponders the next step of its magical journey, the result almost certainly means the end of an era for Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Nov 20, 2022
On eve of World Cup, FIFA chief says: ‘Don’t criticize Qatar; criticize me'
In an extraordinary hourlong soliloquy delivered one day before the opening game, Gianni Infantino railed against critics of the tournament's first Arab host.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 22, 2022
Rainbow armbands are new flash point for FIFA and Qatar World Cup
Qatari officials have long said that all fans are welcome at the tournament, but security officials there also have warned supporters not to travel with the rainbow flag.

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