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Abuse saga sparks storm, forces legendary national elite coach, Camelia Voinea, to the sidelines as probe intensifies

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Upon preliminary investigation into serious claims of physical and psychological abuse, the Romanian Gymnastics Federation this week temporarily suspended the legendary national elite coach for more than three decades. The Executive Committee of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation formally announced the immediate full suspension of Camelia Voinea from any activity carried out under the federation's umbrella, as the Disciplinary Commission concluded that the multiple allegations of mistreatment levelled against her are so serious that they go beyond the sporting sphere and require a criminal investigation by the competent state authorities. In response, the body has frozen its own internal sporting proceedings and handed the case entirely to Romania's ordinary justice system. The inquiry gathered momentum after public statements made by elite gymnast Denisa Golgotă, followed by accounts from other national-team athletes, including Mara Ceplinschi and Anamaria Mihaescu...
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Tickets for Games of the Future 2026 go on sale as Astana prepares to welcome the world

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Despite still having more than two months to go, the world's premier phygital contest is launching the ticketing process. With a more affordable Early Bird option, packages are available starting at $8.50 (€7.3), as well as flexible Standard Day Passes. The Games of the Future 2026 are heading to Kazakhstan's capital this summer, and tickets have officially been on sale since Wednesday. The first release is now available for fans eager to lock in a place at what is widely being billed as one of the most anticipated modern sporting events of the season in Astana. Drawing over 800 attendees from more than 50 different nations, including many of the world's leading esports and hybrid teams and athletes, GOTF 2026 will turn the Central Asian metropolis into a worldwide platform for the sport of tomorrow from 29 July to 9 August. Across 12 days of elite esports and hybrid competition, teams from around the world will battle for a multi-million-dollar prize pool, alon...
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Trump pushes SCORE Act to rein in NIL 'chaos'

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The US president is threatening to withhold federal funding from universities that refuse new eligibility rules, in a bid to rein in spending on football and basketball and preserve support for Olympic sports. Donald Trump has once again accelerated a debate that has spilled far beyond university campuses, now echoing through courtrooms, state legislatures, and the corridors of Washington: who truly governs collegiate sport, and by what rules. On Wednesday, he renewed his call for Congress to intervene and pass federal legislation capable of 'bringing order' to the system, convinced that the current model has degenerated into an unregulated expanse. At the heart of his concern lie the loosely governed payments tied to Name, Image and Likeness, alongside the increasingly fluid transfer freedoms afforded to student-athletes. His warning, framed in near-patriotic terms, was that the US "will no longer have a decent Olympic team" unless new regulations are imp...
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Former Spanish Olympian, Mirambell, targets IBSF presidency

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The four-time Olympian from Spain confirmed his candidacy for the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation’s top seat this week with elections due 11 June in Salzburg in which he expects to succeed Ivo Ferriani after 16 years at the helm. Already considered a national pioneer in the discipline, Ander Mirambell is preparing for another major step in a career shaped by perseverance, growth and the development of a sport that was virtually non-existent in Spain before he took to the sliding track. The 43-year-old announced his candidacy for next month's vote during the organisation's Congress in Austria and the news was first reported by local newspaper MARCA, which also confirmed that the Spaniard will contest the position against Latvia's Martins Dambergs, current vice president for legal affairs at the IBSF; Germany's Heike Groesswang, secretary general of the organisation; and Jamaica's Nelson Christian Stokes, a four-time Olympic bobsleigh athle...
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Degtyarev cites "Putin's orders" on Russian reinstatement

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Global sports is not complete without the participation of athletes from the IOC-banned country and ally Belarus, the sports minister and ROC president asserted Tuesday while welcoming the return of national symbols across global federations. Speaking at a high-profile meeting of Russia's State Council Commission on Physical Culture and Sports, Mikhail Degtyarev contextualized the expanding sequence of international governing bodies recently dismantling their restrictive participation policies. The International Olympic Committee originally sanctioned both countries in 2022, afer Russia invaded neighbouring Ukraine, where war is ongoing, with Belarus' backing, and their athletes were forced to participate as neutrals in the Paris 2024 Summer Games and Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games. World Gymnastics became the first federation to readmit Russia this week, a decision that came barely a month after the IOC advised international federations to readmit Belarus. Howeve...
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Gasol underlines IOC "neutral, not apolitical"

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The basketball icon and newly-appointed chair of the International Olympic Committee's Athletes' Commission addressed Milano Cortina's Ukrainian tribute helmet controversy and gender eligibility among other topics during a recent Forbes interview.   Pau Gasol needs no introduction in the world of sports. He rarely fails to make a name for himself, at least when basketball comes up in conversation. And if there's one thing that sets him apart, it's that he's navigated his career exceptionally well since retiring from his home team, FC Barcelona, in the post-pandemic era of 2021.  A legend on the court, he has begun to cement a promising career off it as well: on 3 August 2021, he was elected to the International Olympic Committee's Athletes' Commission and was named its president this February, the first Spaniard to lead one of the key bodies of the Olympic Movement since its creation in 1981 under the leadership of the late Juan Antonio Samar...
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RPC cites "unfriendly countries" and prepares for Asia transition

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At the 'Development of International Sports Cooperation' conference in Moscow from 20-23 May, Pavel Rozhkov, head of the Russian Paralympic Committee, announced that the organisation is considering joining the Asian Paralympic family. Rozhkov spoke about diplomatic relations with the International Paralympic Committee and other Paralympic committees during the conference and mentioned the importance of the fact that 40 countries had arrived at the conference, stating that the fact that they "were not afraid and joined us speaks volumes". During his speech, Rozhkov also spoke about the RPC's return to the International Paralympic Committee. In September 2025, the IPC General Assembly in Seoul voted not to maintain the suspension, which had been imposed on Russian sport following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. While the IPC restored the Russian body's rights within the Paralympic movement, Rozhkov claims that certain countries are attempting to exc...
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Russia opens Paralympic routes towards LA28

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Several international federations that run official competitions in team disciplines are allowing the Eurasian giant's sides to compete abroad, Russian Paralympic Committee President Pavel Rozhkov said on Wednesday during a forum held in Moscow. Rozhkov linked that opening to the attempt to rebuild Russia's international presence in Paralympic sport, especially in team disciplines, where participation depends not only on individual authorisations but also on national teams being able to enter official competitions and qualifying pathways. In remarks reported by the TASS news agency during a round table at the 'National Health - Prosperity of Russia' forum, Rozhkov said that process had already begun, although still under limited conditions. "The progress is underway. The federations that supervise [Paralympic] team competitions have begun to allow our teams to participate in their official international competitions. Without a flag, without an anthem, b...
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Opposition blocks AWF's push for governance changes

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The organisation's Ordinary Congress was held during the Asian Weightlifting Championships in Gandhinagar, chaired by President Mohammed Yousef Al Mana and Secretary General Mohammed Al Harbi, with VP and IWF leader Mohammed Jalood also attending. One of the key items on the Asian Weightlifting Federation's agenda in India was the adoption of the new Constitution, as the previous one expired in 2024. The proposed draft constitution included several controversial articles, such as the removal of age limits for the president, general secretary and executive board members, and provisions for financial transparency and compliance with International Weightlifting Federation laws. Some members suggested postponing the adoption of the Constitution and first seeking the IWF's approval of the proposed amendments. According to the AWF's report, the proposed amendments were first discussed at an Executive Board meeting earlier that day. However, the constitution was no...
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Games of the Future 2025 secures pair of major global accolades

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Last year's Games of the Future in Abu Dhabi, the UAE's first large-scale hybrid, phygital mega-event, has recently collected two significant international industry awards, further strengthening the capital city's growing reputation. The event received Gold Awards in the categories of Hybrid Event and Esports Event, recognising both its bold fusion of physical sport with immersive digital competition and the scale and quality of its top-tier gaming tournaments, featuring titles such as Dota 2, Counter-Strike 2, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Fortnite. These awards highlight the success and international reach of Games of the Future Abu Dhabi 2025, which brought phygital sport to the Middle East on an unprecedented scale. Staged across the majestic ADNEC Centre in Abu Dhabi, the event featured 11 high-energy disciplines spanning esports, traditional sport, robotics, drone racing and virtual reality, supported by a forward-leaning broadcast model built for both in-...
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