Foul!

Press statement by Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA) GENEVA - The extremely grave and recurrent incidences of racism, discrimination and abuse in sports, most recently highlighted by the ongoing reports of racism in English cricket, as well as of abuse and harassment complaints in several other global sports, including hockey, gymnastics, football, skating and swimming, have compelled the   Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA)   to go on public record to express its deep concerns regarding the existing state of governance in sports.   It appears that, to date, risk management and public relations are being prioritised over real reforms to effectively prevent and eradicate such practices from the industry.   The  deep-rooted insidious culture of discrimination - as exemplified by the recent case facing Yorkshire County Cricket Club - is entirely unacceptable.  The fact that incidences are still being reported, covering a prolonged period of time, is far from surprising anyone, as

Piala Malaysia memasuki perlawanan separuh akhir. Malam ini, Terengganu akan menentang Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) dalam aksi separuh akhir pertama manakala Kuala Lumpur City FC akan lawan Melaka United dalam separuh akhir kedua. Perlawanan Terengganu dengan JDT kata orang putih "expected" lah. Suka atau sebaliknya, JDT pasukan terbaik di Malaysia. Terengganu pula lawan yang kuat. Kalau Terengganu mampu beraksi dengan cemerlang, peluang untuk membolosi gawang JDT cerah. Tetapi pasukan yang benar-benar menyinar tahun ini adalah Kuala Lumpur City. Anak didik Bojan Hodak telah melakar sejarah kerana ini kali pertama pasukan ibu kota masuk ke separuh akhir Piala Malaysia selepas 29 tahun.  Dan jika Kuala Lumpur City mampu masuk ke final, ini akan mengimbau kembali memori 80an di mana skuad ibu kota antara pasukan yang gah di negara. Jadi apa yang menarik tentang Piala Malaysia kali ini? Skuad Kuala Lumpur City FC, lah! Buat peminat Kuala Lumpur City, jangan lupa untuk beli buku

MySukan TV akan memberi tumpuan kepada sukan-sukan kurang popular, sekali gus meningkatkan peluang menjana pendapatan melalui pengiklanan dan penajaan. Those were the words of the Youth and Sports Ministry Datuk Seri Ahmad Faizal Azumu regarding his ministry's latest initiative. As reported by Utusan , MySukan TV was set up to promote sports especially at the grassroots. This is indeed good news for the grassroots have lost out on coverage especially by the media. This platform will provide them the much needed acknowledgment. But since it's a ministry-led initiative, several questions come to mind: i. how much has been allocated and spent on this new initiative? ii. what is the monetisation plan? The ministry can't be forking out money forever. And with tax payers' money being used, it's best that the ministry inform the public of its expenditure on this project. This reminds me of the ministry's involvement with Malaysian Today. I leave you with what former M

The New Straits Times has started a sports podcast. Called 'Timesport: On the Beat', the first show was hosted by NST sports journalist Fabian Peter. Former national tennis player Adam Jaya was the guest on the show. Fabian and Adam spoke about psychology and sports. To listen to the first episode of the podcast, click  https://www.audioplus.audio/nst-podcast/

The process of sacking Datuk SM Muthu as president of the Selangor Athletics Association (SAA) at its Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) recently was not properly done, said Sports Commissioner Ibrahim Mohd Yusof. Ibrahim said that based on the association's constitution, suspending or dismissing members who hold positions in it cannot be done through an EGM. "If we look back at its constitution, dismissal or suspension of members who hold office should be recommended by the disciplinary committee after their investigation is done. "The findings then must be submitted to the members of the main committee because they have the power to decide the appropriate action that needs to be taken in resolving the issue," he said when contacted by Bernama. Read the full article here. In short, Muthu is still president of SSA. 

It has to be the much anticipated press statement of the year. And one would expect that such a statement be given to members of the Press via official means. Instead, only a handful of journos were given the statement issued by the Youth and Sports Ministry today regarding the findings of the investigation committee that looked into the events that led to Paralympian Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli losing his gold medal at the Tokyo Paralympics on Aug 31, 2021. It seems like certain quarters are eager to downplay the episode - yes an episode that saw a massive outcry with some resorting to cyberbullying tactics in the name of bringing honour to the nation. Bah! The findings of the probe on the issue is only the beginning. As I tweeted earlier:   Re Ziyad losing gold medal at Tokyo @Paralympics - Report by @KBSMalaysia investigating committee must be made public. - Will officials, keyboard warriors now make public apology after massive outcry during incident? - This matter isn't over. He