Sports Law Ledger - Monday 2 March 2020
Good morning sports law fans. Here's a rundown of the latest news, updates, and alerts in our wonderful wide world of sports law:
AUSTRALIA
Integrity - National Sports Tribunal CEO Appointed
Sports lawyer and administrator, John Boutlbee, has been announced as the inaugural CEO of the National Sports Tribunal (NST). The NST will commence operations on 19 March 2020.
Read report here: https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/new-national-sports-tribunal-boss-promises-to-woo-codes-to-independent-body-20200301-p545so.html
Concussion - First Australian Rules player diagnosed with CTE
Graham 'Polly' Farmer is the first Australian Rules player diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). In response, The Australian Football League (AFL) said it had already "further strengthened" the concussion management guidelines for the 2020 AFL and AFLW seasons.
Read report here: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-27/australian-rules-great-graham-polly-farmer-diagnosed-with-cte/12005508
Contracts - Supercars driver parts ways with team
James Courtney has announced a sudden departure from Team Sydney after just a single Supercars event. The 2010 Supercars champion dropped a bombshell statement last Sunday morning declaring he’s decided to depart the team "effective immediately".
Read report here: https://www.supercars.com/news/championship/courtney-splits-with-team-sydney/
Ethics - Sports Rorts Investigation
The Senate Select Committee on Administration of Sports Grants has received submissions and conducted all hearings into the 'Sports Rorts' allegations and will now consider the matter and make a finding, issuing a report on 24 June 2020.
See the Committee's page: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Administration_of_Sports_Grants/AdminSportsGrants
Media Rights - Rugby Broadcast Deal
The Rugby Australia Executive team and media rights consultants are said to be keen to deliver a new media rights deal before ether RA AGM in late March.
Commercial - NBL Expansion
That National Basketball League (NBL) is set to return to Tasmania for the 2021-22 season following a landmark agreement between the Tasmanian Government and the NBL.
NBL Owner and Executive Chairman Larry Kestelman and Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein announced last Friday that the league’s 10th team would be based in Tasmania.
Read report here: https://nbl.com.au/news/tasmania-secures-10th-nbl-team
INTERNATIONAL
Doping - Sun Yang suspended 8 years by CAS
Chinese swimmer Sun Yang has been found guilty of a doping offense by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and sanctioned with an 8-year period of ineligibility. The CAS has upheld the appeal by the World Anti-Doping Agency against Yang and Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA), swimming’s ISF.
Read CAS' media release here: https://www.tas-cas.org/fileadmin/user_upload/CAS_Media_Release_6148_decision.pdf
Member Protection - Simone Biles blasts USA Gymnastics’ settlement proposal
The proposal would release U.S. Olympic officials, former USA Gymnastics president Steve Penny, former coaches Martha and Bela Karolyi and others from liability. Moreover, it includes no provision for disclosing who at USA Gymnastics was aware of and hid Nassar’s abuse — details that survivors have demanded from the outset.
Read more here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2020/02/29/simone-biles-aly-raisman-blast-usa-gymnastics-settlement-proposal/
Doping - Anti-Doping chiefs target marathon runners
Anti-doping officials are engaged in a new front in the war on cheats as they tackle “rampant, unchecked” drug-taking among professional marathon runners, claiming up to 80% of elite athletes are not tested.
Read report here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/athletics/2020/02/27/exclusive-anti-doping-chiefs-target-marathon-runners-new-war/
Commercial - IOC Athletes' Commission to consult on Rule 40
The IOC Athletes’ Commission will conduct a comprehensive consultation on the Rule 40 framework, which some athletes consider unjustly restricts their individual economic opportunities and rights, to understand athletes’ practical experiences of using the new athlete advertising Key Principles framework for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and collect feedback, so that we can make recommendations for the future.
Read more here: https://www.olympic.org/athlete365/voice/ioc-ac-consult-rule-40/
Events - Corona Virus to have impact on live sports events
Major events already impacted or threatened by the spread of the Corona Virus are:
World Indoor Athletics Championships
Many thanks to Prof. Jack Anderson for continually bringing important sports law topics, from near and far, and brilliant insights and analysis to our attention.