Andy has been writing about the governance of sport for over 15 years. Prior to working on the Sports Integrity Initiative, he was the editor of World Sports Law Report for eight years. He has also worked for the Press Association and has written for numerous trade magazines. He has also created, chaired and spoken at numerous conferences on the business of sport, and produced the Sports Law Show for iSportConnect TV.
All posts by Andy Brown
Although the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Framework Guidelines on Gender Identity advocate inclusion and harm prevention, sport remains unclear about how it should categorise transgender athletes, speakers at a Sports Resolutions webinar outlined yesterday. The idea of including fully transitioned male to female athletes in the female category was...
• Nesta Carter has been sanctioned with a four year ban due to an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV) involving clomiphene, his lawyer has confirmed. It is understood that the Jamaican sprinter avoided a longer ban for a second doping offence because his previous ADRV occurred from a 2016 retest...
Sport and data companies must take action to close an ‘integrity vacuum’ that facilitates the fixing of football friendlies, concludes a Report (PDF below) detailing the results of a three year study funded by the European Commission’s Erasmus+ programme and led by the University of Nicosia Research Foundation. It...
Eight athletes from seven countries, competing in seven sports, were involved in anti-doping proceedings that came to light this week. Two athletes from different countries and different sports returned adverse analytical findings (AAFs – or ‘positive tests’) for remarkably similar substances, however due to a new provision of the...
A three year ban issued to an Australian Rugby League star has illustrated the difficulty with a new provision of the World Anti-Doping Code, which allows anti-doping organisations (ADOs) to offer a one year reduction to athletes that ‘accept’ an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) within 20 days of being...
Eleven athletes from ten countries, competing in seven sports, were involved in anti-doping proceedings that came to light this week. Four of the ten cases involved bans implemented for anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs), whilst the other seven cases involved provisional suspensions for adverse analytical findings (AAFs – or ‘positive...
Competing as an Authorised Neutral Athlete (ANA), Maria Lasitskene (Мария Ласицкене) won High Jump Gold at the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics in August this year. However up until 18 March, when the World Athletics Council reinstated the ANA process, she didn’t know if she would be able to compete...
• Michael Randall, who plays for Peel Thunder, has returned an adverse analytical finding (AAF – or ‘positive test’) for phentermine, the West Australian Football Commission (WAFC) has announced. Phentermine is a stimulant often present in weight loss drugs, and is prohibited in competition only. • Stefano Lanzi, who...
The Governance Reforms scheduled to be approved during the second day of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Foundation Board meeting today have been criticised by the World Players Association (WPA), Global Athlete, the Athletics Association, Athleten Deutschland, and the International Swimmers Alliance. WADA’s proposed Reforms faced criticism from the...
An investigation by The Guardian and a new Report issued by Amnesty International suggests that despite reforms introduced by the State of Qatar, workers employed in delivering the 2022 FIFA World Cup are still being exploited. The Guardian stayed at seven of the hotels listed on FIFA’s hospitality internet...
Slovenia’s javelin record holder Martina Ratej has dropped an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against a a two year ban, in a complicated case involving clostebol. A sample taken at the London 2012 Olympics was originally reported as negative by the London 2012 Anti-Doping Laboratory....
A tennis player has been sanctioned with a 20 month ban for an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV), and four others have been provisionally suspended due to adverse analytical findings (AAFs – or ‘positive tests’) for prohibited substances. Two Russians returned AAFs at tournaments in Almaty, Kazakhstan; and two under...
Sixteen athletes from eight countries, competing in two closely connected sports, were involved in anti-doping proceedings this week. The major news was the International Testing Agency’s (ITA) Decision to charge 13 weightlifters with anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs), after retests of samples they gave at the Antalya 2012 European Weightlifting...
The World Tennis Association (WTA) has called for a full investigation, after tennis star Peng Shuai (彭帅) accused former Vice President of China Zhang Gaoli (张高丽) of coercing her to have sex with him three years ago. The WTA also told CNN that it would be prepared to pull...
Yesterday, the World Athletics Congress approved the continuation of the Russian Athletics Federation’s (RusAF) suspension, following a recommendation made by its Russia Taskforce. It made a recommendation not to reinstate Russia until it has completed its Reinstatement Plan (click here to download), which was accepted by the World Athletics...
