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≡ THE 5-RING CIRCUS ≡
1. Promising improvements at the L.A. Grand Prix at UCLA
2. FIFA sidelines Palestinian proposal vs. Israel before it starts
3. World leads by Simbine, Holloway, Davis-Woodhall at Atlanta City Games
4. Foundation Board supports WADA on China swimming case
5. IPC chief Parsons says “you will be dazzled” in Paris
● The Los Angeles market is a tough one for sports, but there was noticeable improvement in the operation of the USATF L.A. Grand Prix last Saturday and the Distance Classic on Friday night. Attendance in 2023 was about 4,500, but between 5,500-6,000 showed up on Saturday this year.
● The FIFA Council, led by President Gianni Infantino, removed the question of a vote on the Palestinian proposals to suspend the Israel Football Association from the FIFA Congress two days prior to the Congress itself – in the FIFA Council meeting – removing the possibility of a vote even before the Palestinian representative asked for a floor vote.
● The Atlanta City Games saw three world outdoor leaders from Akani Simbine (RSA: 100 m), Grant Holloway (USA: 110 m hurdles) and Tara Davis-Woodhall (USA). Noah Lyles won the men’s 150 m, equaling Tyson’s Gay’s American Record. More than 170,000 views of the event were made on two YouTube channels.
● The WADA Foundation Board supported the organization’s handling of the 2021 doping positives of 23 Chinese swimmers, but the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency continued its criticism.
● International Paralympic Committee head Andrew Parsons said the Paralympic Games are shaping up well, and that ticket sales are in line with the great success of London in 2012.
● World Championships: Judo (six nations win first six weights at 2024 Worlds) ●
● Panorama: Paris 2024 (2: Russian volunteers for Paris continue to be stonewalled by the French Interior Ministry; Russian news media must also refrain from wearing any national symbols) = USOPC (FIGS to outfit medical staff) = Athletics (2: Vetter gets world lead in Gotzis heptathlon; Kwemoi sanctioned for six years by the AIU) = Boxing (India’s Hooda hit with sanctions, out of Paris) = Fencing (USA Fencing partners with 2-4-1 Care to introduce fencing to kids) ●
LANE ONE:
Promising improvements at the L.A. Grand Prix at UCLA
There was a time when a major track & field meet at UCLA’s Drake Stadium drew more than 10,000 spectators, but not recently. But the improved presentation and operation of USA Track & Field’s L.A. Grand Prix was a sign that such things might be possible again in the future.
Los Angeles natives nod to each other about the power of stars to attract attention and there was no doubt that the expected presence of Olympic women’s 400 m hurdles champion Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone – promised last year, but injured and did not run – was a significant factor in the success of the 2024 meet.
She received – by far – the loudest cheers on Saturday and the crowd was hushed for the unusual start right in front of them, as the prevailing wind indicates the 200 m should be run onto the backstraight. Once out of the blocks and into the lead on the straight, the crowd roared its approval as she beat an excellent field in a lifetime best of 22.07 (into a 0.3 m/s headwind!).
Where the first edition of this meet in 2023 had multiple operational gaffes, Saturday’s meet was better, much better:
● For those who purchased premium seating – hardly identified in 2023 – the two sections were clearly marked.
● A long-suggested VIP-type program at trackside – along the start – was implemented with a tent, catering and also access to the premium seating in the stands if desired. The price was $175 early and $250 late, but the area was busy and lively, and the Drake Stadium layout lends itself to expanding this concept.
● Interest in the premium seating, in two sections near the finish line, was modest. Tickets were $75 early vs. $135 late, but this seating area was only about 40% full.
● Sales in the general admission area – $30 early and $40 late – were good and most of the better sections, near the finish line, were fairly full.
● The single concession stand at Drake Stadium was initially overwhelmed – as always – but was easier to access later and beer and wine was available in a separate area and a Jersey Mike’s sub station – $15 turkey subs – was also available.
USATF did not get any help from local media, as the Los Angeles Times did not cover the meet. But even with tickets going on sale just 12 days prior, people figured it out anyway and where last year the announced Saturday attendance was 7,249 and about 4,500 people actually showed up, there were legitimately between 5,500 and 6,000 on Saturday, a significant improvement.
The post-meet concert program from 2023 was happily ditched, although DJ Trey Money was busy on both Friday night and Saturday with non-stop selections that covered 70 years. The coordination between what he was doing in one rim-of-the-stadium booth and the public address – in another booth – was not always in line, but much better on Saturday than Friday night.
And Friday night in 2024 was a lot better than Friday night in 2023.
First off, the Drake Stadium lighting is only concentrated on the football (soccer) field, added in the 1999 renovation of the facility, and the post-sundown events in 2023 were run in the dark. On Friday, a half-dozen temporary light banks were up and the runners could see where they were going, and the spectators could see them.
Very few spectators came early on Friday to see the women’s hammer and the good idea of having two-time World Champion Sam Kendricks interview the women’s vaulters ended up confused and uninformative, with no coordination of the stadium public address, DJ Trey Money and Kendricks.
But those who did come knew what they wanted to see: the men’s and women’s 5,000s in the evening and the attendance swelled to about 1,500 when those races went off, with considerable excitement to see a 12:51.60 win by Tokyo 10,000 m champ Selemon Barega of Ethiopia, and an impressive 14:34.12 lifetime best from World Indoor 3,000 m champ Elle St. Pierre of the U.S.
The L.A. market is a difficult one, but stars matter and there continues to be – as it has been for a century – strong interest in track & field in Los Angeles, a good sign for the LA28 organizers looking at four years down the road.
2.
FIFA sidelines Palestinian proposal vs. Israel before it starts
Almost 55 minutes during the middle of Friday’s 74th FIFA Congress in Bangkok (THA) was spent with presentations and discussion on the Palestinian Football Authority’s proposals to suspend the Israel Football Association.
But the decision had already been taken.
It’s a lesson from FIFA and its President, Gianni Infantino (SUI) into defusing a red-hot issue, brought by the PFA in the midst of Israel’s response to the murderous 7 October 2023 attack by Hamas.
First up was Palestinian Football Association head Jibril Rajoub, who spoke in English for nine minutes. He catalogued a series of wrongs it attributes to the Israel Football Association, only obliquely referred to the brutal Hamas attack on Israel and concentrated on the suffering in Gaza.
He said:
“Regarding the proposal under discussion, [we] request a vote in today’s Congress which without any further delay as follows: to temporarily suspend the IFA as a member of FIFA with immediate effect, with the consequences that its membership rights under the FIFA statutes cannot be [continued] until the until the statutory objectives are respected.
“And to ban the IFA and its direct and indirect from any football-related activities falling under the competence of FIFA with immediate effect until when the statutory objectives of FIFA are respected.
“Three, to respect the territorial integrity of the PFA and to stop with immediate effect any footballing activity of the IFA and its direct and indirect members which is carried out in violation of article 71, paragraph 2 of the FIFA statutes, in the territory of the PFA, and to refer the overall matter to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee for adjudication and for imposing appropriate sanctions on the IFA, and its direct or indirect members.”
Next up was Israel Football Association head Shino Moshe Zuares, who also spoke for about nine minutes, but began with the atrocities of 7 October, when “Instead of celebrating a holiday, we find ourselves fighting for our lives, against inhuman terrorists who raped, abused and murdered more than 1,400 civilians and took over 300 hostages.
“Instead of enjoying 500 football matches in our different leagues in that weekend, we find ourselves sitting in shelters, worried about the fate of our brothers and sisters.”
Zuares spoke directly to the PFA proposals:
“Once again, we are facing a cynical, political and hostile attempt by the Palestinian association to harm Israeli football. Make no mistake, the IFA never violated rules set by FIFA or UEFA, and we will never do so in the future.
“We are not ones who allow using sports infrastructures for military and hostile action. The proposal submitted by Palestinian FA has absolutely nothing to do with the IFA’s activities.
“Unfortunately, I am standing here today on behalf of the IFA, answering once again the hostile and blatant proposal brought before you by Mr. Rajoub, a proposal that is based on motives and ambitions that have nothing to do with the spirit of sports, of the FIFA value of separating sports and politics.
“I am holding myself back and will not speak about the true motives, out of respect for this institution. I am doing it out of full confidence … that things can be better, for the game, for those who play it, in Israel, in the Palestinian authority, all over the world.”
Two other speakers demanded an immediate vote, but they were wasting their time.
Infantino, an excellent public speaker in multiple languages, has plenty of detractors as well as supporters. But he was completely prepared and explained, calmly, the issues presented to FIFA by the PFA proposals:
“The first one is that whilst the United Nations struggles in decades with the question of whether Palestine is a country or not a country, when it comes to FIFA, Palestine is a full member of FIFA like any of the other 210 members of FIFA, with exactly the same rights, and exactly the same obligations, like any other country.
“Now, like everyone else, I was extremely shocked by what happened on the 7th of October in Israel. And like anyone else, I was extremely, extremely shocked , and am extremely shocked, by what is happening now in Gaza. I pray. I pray for the mother who list their children. I pray for the children who lost their parents. I pray for all those people who suffer the unimaginable. I pray for all of them.
“And I want like all of you, just one thing – just one thing – peace. Peace. (Applause)
“What can we do? We are a football organization, and football is here to unite, not to divide. Sometimes it’s easier to divide , as I said before, but we are here to unite and I do not want to divide. I do not want to divide this Congress. I do not want to divide FIFA. I do not want to divide our 211 member countries and I have a responsibility, as President of FIFA. I have to apply the statutes of FIFA and its regulations.
“Whatever my personal conviction on this and other terrible matters around the world.
“So, first of all, during the Council meeting of the 15th of May 2024 – two days ago – all the Council members unanimously agreed to condemn the acts of violence that have taken, and are currently taken place, and decided to send a strong message of solidarity for the victims that are suffering.
“The FIFA Council also reiterated that football should not, and should never, become hostage of politics and always remain a factor for peace, a source of hope, a force of good, uniting people rather than divide them.
“Secondly, it is important to underline that the three requests that came from the proposal of the Palestine Football Association to this 74th FIFA Congress – all three of these proposals – they fall under the competence of the FIFA Council, and need therefore, to be treated by this body.
“Now due to the obvious sensitivity of these matters, FIFA will mandate as of now, independent legal expertise to analyze and assess the three requests made by the Palestinian Football Association and ensure – and ensure – that the statutes and regulations of FIFA are applied in the correct way.
“In order to ensure a fair and due process, of course, this legal assessment will have to allow for input, and claims, of both member associations. The results of this analysis and the recommendations which will follow from this analysis will subsequently be forwarded to the FIFA Council.
“But, due to the urgency of the situation, because we all know, all understand how urgent it is, an extraordinary FIFA Council will be convened and take place before the 20th of July of this year. So in the next two months, to review the results of the legal assessment and to take the decisions that are appropriate.
“I trust that you, the Congress, can support to proceed in this way. Thank you very much. (Applause)
“In conclusion, let’s send to the world from this stage and this Congress a call, a strong call, for peace. Thank you very much.”
Observed: FIFA and Infantino took the PFA proposal and its impacts seriously and were thoroughly prepared. The PFA’s Rajoub acknowledged that he had brought similar proposals against Israel for the past 10 years, and this was more of the same.
With the constant references by Rajoub to FIFA’s rules and international law in support of his proposals, Infantino deflated the entire issue by saying that the FIFA’s rules required that the Council deal with this and not the Congress.
No doubt that the Palestinians already had significant Asian and African associations lined up for a vote, but there was no possibility of a decision already two days prior to the Congress. The Council has 37 members vs. 211 associations in the Congress and is geographically diverse, with Europe having the most members with nine, plus Infantino.
The reports will be written and the Council will decide what to do in July, but Infantino and the FIFA management retained firm control of the situation that could have been ugly.
3.
World leads by Simbine, Holloway, Davis-Woodhall at Atlanta City Games
Among all the great meets on last weekend, the lowest profile was the Atlanta City Games street meet in Piedmont Park, concentrating on sprinting with three world-leading outdoor marks:
● Men/100 m: 9.90, Akani Simbine (RSA)
● Men/110 m hurdles: 13.07, Grant Holloway (USA)
● Women/Long Jump: 7.17 m (23-6 1/4), Tara Davis-Woodhall (USA)
The men’s 100 m field was of high quality, but Simbine, the 2018 Commonwealth Games champ, stormed to victory in 9.90 into a small headwind of 0.4 m/s, ahead of Kenyan Ferdinand Omanyala (10.00) and prior co-world leader Kendal Williams of the U.S. (10.05).
Holloway, the three-time Worlds winner in the 110 hurdles, had only run the race in one meet this season, but blasted out of the blocks as usual and ran away, winning in 13.07 (-0.7), ahead of Robert Dunning of the U.S. (13.40). He’s ready for anything.
The headliner coming into the meet was triple World Champion Noah Lyles, running the odd 150 m, and winning convincingly in 14.41 to 14.66 for Britain’s Zharnel Hughes, the Worlds 100 m bronze medalist (wind +0.3). Lyles was not far behind the all-time best of 14.35 by Jamaican icon Usain Bolt from 2009 and his time equaled Tyson Gay for the best time by an American in 2010 during a 200 m race. Both are now no. 2 all-time.
In the 200 m straightaway race, Jamaica’s Oblique Seville had to hold off a late charge from Jereem Richards (TTO) to win in 19.96 (to 20.04, wind -1.1).
Italy’s Mattia Furlani came over from the continent to win the long jump at 8.06 m (26-5 1/2), but the bigger news was the women’s LJ, as World Indoor Champion Tara Davis-Woodhall, who got her fourth 7 m-plus meet this season at 7.17 m (23-6 1/4) in the fifth round, the best in the world outdoors in 2024. Fellow American Quanera Hayes was second with a season’s best 6.89 m (22-7 1/4), but no one except Davis-Woodhall has jumped 7 m in 2024.
Aleia Hobbs, the 2022 Worlds sixth-placer, equaled her season’s best in the 100 m at 10.88 (+0.5), and stayed no. 2 in the world for 2024. She was clear of Tamara Clark (10.98) and Mikiah Brisco (11.00).
Candace Hill barely beat Favour Ofili (NGR) in the women’s 150, with both timed in 16.30, with Hill equaling the American best in the event by Tori Bowie back in 2017. Lynna Irby-Jackson won the 200 m on the straight in 22.67 into a 2.2 m/s headwind!
Tokyo Olympic silver winner Keni Harrison made her seasonal debut in the 100 m hurdles, winning in 12.67 into a 2.2 m/s headwind over world-record holder Tobi Amusan (NGR: 12.73).
Observed: This is a fun meet and with adidas as sponsor, brings in many of the adidas-contracted athletes world wide. But on a weekend with a Diamond League meet in Morocco and Continental Tour Gold meets at UCLA and in Tokyo, this edition of the Atlanta City Games was much less visible because it was only shown on YouTube.
A Monday look at sites for the video showed 57,078 views on adidas’ YouTube channel and 112,999 on Lyles’ channel for a quite-respectable total of 170,077. The viewership for NBC’s L.A. Grand Prix show will be available in a couple of days.
4.
Foundation Board supports WADA on China swimming case
On Friday, the 42-member World Anti-Doping Agency Foundation Board was briefed on the Chinese swimming matter, during which 23 athletes were found to test positive for Trimetazidine, but were not sanctioned. WADA’s statement on the meeting included:
“At all stages, WADA has maintained that according to all the available evidence, this was not a case of doping but of no-fault contamination, and that WADA acted according to applicable processes and rules making no attempt to cover up the case in any way. As a response to calls, WADA has now referred the matter to an independent prosecutor, Mr. Eric Cottier [SUI], who will conduct a review with the intention of issuing a report by the end of June.”
WADA provided additional information, not seen publicly before, about the testing of these high-profile Chinese swimmers:
“As it relates to testing of the 23 Chinese athletes at the center of this story, Board members were informed that the athletes had undergone significant testing in the past few years. In fact, WADA is able to confirm that the 23 athletes provided approximately 1,700 doping control samples between 2018 and 2022, with certain athletes having been tested dozens of times per year, whether by swimming’s International Federation (now known as World Aquatics) or the Chinese Anti-Doping Agency. Indeed, in the almost four months from 1 April 2021 until the start of the Tokyo Olympic Games in July 2021, close to 300 samples were collected from the 23 athletes, which equates on average to several samples per month, per athlete.”
The Cottier inquiry is continuing and the Foundation Board was supportive. Questions remained unanswered as to why the inquiry took months, and if (and why) the Chinese Anti-Doping Agency report was in fact developed by the China’s Ministry of Public Security, as alleged in the German ARD documentary, “The China Files.”
However, WADA’s Founding President Dick Pound (CAN) was clear that he disapproves of the continuing, shrill protests of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency:
“I am deeply disappointed and disgusted by the deliberate lies and distortions coming from the United States Anti-Doping Agency, including that WADA has swept doping cases in China under the rug. That accusation, bereft of any truth, has but a single purpose: to deliberately damage the reputation of WADA and to lessen the worldwide trust that has been built up since WADA was created a quarter of a century ago to head up the international fight against doping in sport. What is missing in USADA’s conduct is a willingness to work for solutions; [it’s] just endless and biased criticism.”
Unimpressed, USADA head Travis Tygart shot back:
“As predicted, WADA is much better at circling the wagons than they are at actually being transparent. The fact is that WADA leaders violated their own rules by, at a minimum, not finding any violations or publicizing the cases. This is self-evident, no matter how many times or how angrily WADA denies it and replays its scripted efforts to convince the world everything is okay.”
5.
IPC chief Parsons says “you will be dazzled” in Paris
“Things you will not imagine possible – these athletes, they make it possible. You will be surprised, you will be excited, you will be dazzled. At the same time, you know that all the exciting events help change the world. It has a higher purpose. This combination is the future of sports.
“By watching the Paralympic Games, you will be electrified by the performances of the athletes, but also, something will change in you for the better. Whether you like it or not, whenever you’re exposed to Paralympic sport for the very first time, something changes in your heart.”
That’s International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons (BRA), looking forward to the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris. Asked about the legacy, he underscored the place of the Paralympics beyond the field of play:
“This is an important question because the Paralympic Games are the only event with a global impact that puts persons with disabilities on centre stage. We have a big opportunity here – we have an incredible platform to advance the social agenda, the human rights agenda of persons with disabilities. ….
“We believe that compared to other marginalised groups or other minority groups, persons with disabilities are being left behind. On the global level, you see many people talking about gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and so on, but not about disability to the same level.
“So, right before this incredible event that will shape the way governments see the future of mankind, it is important to have this platform of the Paralympic Games to say, ‘We are here, and we are important.’ It’s not about representing the 4,400 athletes on the field of play, but providing a platform for the 1.2 billion persons with disabilities.
“This is what I want Paris 2024 to be: an incredible and exciting sports event that people will want to watch. At the same time, it will make the Paralympic Movement relevant to the point that people understand that we are a Movement that helps change the world.”
Parsons noted that ticket sales are also moving ahead:
“There is a lot of excitement in Paris and in France. I think the ticket sales reflect that – we are very, very close to where we were in London 2012.
“We know that many tickets will be bought in the final weeks and months. I think we have a very good foundation of awareness and interest, and now is the moment to focus on ticket sales. We have some good numbers, and we have some sports – wheelchair fencing, Para triathlon and shooting Para sport – that have already sold out.”
The 2024 Paralympics run from 28 August to 8 September.
≡ WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS ≡
● Judo ● The 2024 World Judo Championships are underway in Abu Dhabi (UAE), with the first six weights going to winners from six different nations.
In the men’s lighter weights, Georgia’s Giorgi Sardalashvili moved up from bronze in the men’s 60 kg in 2023, defeating Yung Wei Yang (TPE) in the final, while Japan scored gold and silver at 66 kg by Ryoma Tanaka and Takeshi Takeoka. Two-time Worlds bronze winner Hedayat Heydarov (AZE) finally moved up to gold at 73 kg, defeating Tatsuki Ishihara in the final.
Mongolia’s Baasankhuu Bavuudorj won her first Worlds medal with a gold at 48 kg, beating Assunta Scutto in the final. Two-time Olympic medalist Odette Giuffrida (ITA) won her first Worlds gold at 52 kg, with a win over Diyora Keldiyorova in the championship match, and Korea’s Mimi Huh – 21 – won the 57 kg class for her first Worlds medal by defeating defending champ Christa Deguchi (CAN)!
Competition continues through the 23rd.
≡ PANORAMA ≡
● Olympic Games 2024: Paris ● Russian volunteers for the Paris 2024 Games continue to get the cold shoulder from the French Interior Ministry, which will not even consider issuance of visas for the purposes of assisting at the Olympic and/or Paralympic Games.
The Russian news agency TASS quoted an unnamed Paris 2024 volunteer from Russia, who had received an assignment from the organizing committee:
“In early May, we wrote a collective letter to French Interior Minister [Gerald Darmanin], which was delivered to the ministry by Russian volunteers living in this country.
“More than two weeks have passed and there has been no response. But we continue to hope that the ban on Russian volunteers will be lifted and we will be able to join like-minded people from other countries for the Paris Olympics. We’ve worked with these people more than one Games and have become a friendly family.”
They received a explanation on 29 April from the French government that “volunteers with Russian citizenship received the letters with the refusal of accreditation and participation in the volunteer program for security reasons.”
¶
Russian media will also be prohibited from displaying any national symbols at Paris 2024. TASS asked the International Olympic Committee about regulations on media, noting that via the IOC’s rules for athletes and teams, they “will be prohibited from displaying national symbols, including the national flag colors, the state emblem and the anthem.”
The IOC replied that “The same applies for media personnel, as for all spectators as specified in the document.”
● U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee ● The medical apparel brand FIGS will outfit the 250-plus members of the USOPC medical support team for not only the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, but through the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
The announcement specified support of the USOPC medical staff, but not LA28 medical staff or volunteers.
● Athletics ● A world-leading heptathlon performance of 6,642 for Tokyo Olympic runner-up Anouk Vetter (NED) headlines the annual Hypo Meeting in Gotzis (AUT), perhaps the premier multi-events meet in the world.
Vetter won the shot and the javelin and finished third in the long jump and finished more than 100 points in front of Annik Kaelin (SUI: 6,506) and American Michelle Atherley, who got a lifetime best of 6,465. Annie Kunz of the U.S. was seventh (6,209).
Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Damian Warner of Canada dominated the decathlon, scoring 8,678 to move to no. 3 on the 2024 world list. He won the 100 m and 110 m hurdles, was second in the discus and third in the long jump.
Sven Roosen (NED) got a lifetime best of 8,517 in second and Estonia’s Johannes Erm scored 8,462 in fourth.
¶
The Athletics Integrity Unit sanctioned Kenyan Tokyo Olympian and 2018 Commonwealth Games 10,000 m bronze medalist Rodgers Kwemoi for six years – beginning 8 August 2023 – for abnormalities in his Athlete Biological Passport. Further, his results from 18 July 2016 to 8 August 2023 are wiped out, removing his Commonwealth Games medal.
The expert panel found that “the profile bears several features of blood manipulation during the preparation for competition.” Kwemoi had bests of 26:55.36 from 2019 in the 10,000 m and 58:30 in the Half Marathon from 2022.
● Boxing ● Indian boxer Parveen Hooda, the 2022 Asian Games women’s 57 kg bronze medalist, was suspended for 22 months – ending 16 July 2025 – by the International Testing Agency for whereabouts failures.
She therefore loses her place at the Paris Olympic Games, to be filled by the International Olympic Committee under its qualifying process for the Olympic tournament.
● Fencing ● Addressing a major issue in the sport, USA Fencing is getting creative on how to attract new fencers:
“It doesn’t cost hundreds of dollars to get a young person interested in fencing. All you need is an empty space, a bag of modified pool noodles, and a group of kids who want to have fun and try something new.”
The federation announced last week that it has partnered with 2-4-1 Fencing, a project of the 2-4-1 CARE nonprofit. It debuted at the Project Play Summit 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland and is designed to offer an introduction to the sport “at roughly 2% of the traditional cost.”
How does it work?
● “The program uses modified pool noodles with a removable plastic handle, optional safety goggles, and simplified rules in games and activities that are tons of fun. But these activities deliver fun while also teaching skills in ways that will directly translate to Olympic-style fencing once the young person is ready to level up.”
● “Through a series of fencing games like Bodyguard, Swords vs. Spears and Time Tag, students have a blast while developing a lifelong love of fencing. Once they’re ready, students use the noodles like a foil, where the end of the noodle is used to score, and only touches on the torso count.”
Clever and interesting, it’s a creative initiative for a sport where the cost barrier to entry is quite high.
¶
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