Naming and shaming! This cross-post from the investigative platform Josimar examines Infantino's FIFA empire: media manipulation, obstruction of journalistic work and widespread propaganda. As documented in this newsletter, these mechanisms apply to the Olympic world and, at its core, to the IOC.
An open letter addressed to IOC President Kirsty Coventry and the leadership of the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime has been signed by 2,981 people from at least 94 countries. Never before has a community within an Olympic IF mounted resistance and a demand for accountability of this scale.
Investigative unit THE INSIDER exposes another shocking detail, yet not fully surprising: Russia’s Olympic doping and political hit squads are run by the same FSB unit. Discover how operatives manipulate sports while deploying nerve agents against Kremlin targets like Alexei Navalny.
Off the record, fencers and officials complain; publicly, they claim resistance is "too risky". Two YouTubers exposing the sport's existential crisis challenge this culture of cowardly indifference. Marius Dobel-Ober issues a rallying cry: there is no neutral ground when dealing with autocrats.
Change in IOC’s administration is set to begin with a SharePoint site and joint morning coffee catchups: unsettled staff can ask any questions they like, says the IOC President. During a video meeting attended by almost 600 employees, Coventry warned against negativity, rumours and silo thinking.
EXCLUSIVE: Why did the Greek Emmanuel Katsiadakis unexpectedly resign as interim president of the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (FIE) in April 2025? Read the answer here: because he refused to send a letter to US President Trump asking for the sanctions against Alisher Usmanov to be lifted.
Why the Algerian is allowed to lead ANOCA and remain an IOC member despite his history of scandals and allegations of corruption has been an unresolved question for many years. What does Berraf have on IOC leaders? Now, allegations of sexual harassment are being made again in the ANOCA sphere.
What is the status of the Olympic Truce right now? Does anyone remember it? IOC Napoleon Thomas Bach once wanted to unite divided Korea at the Winter Games and dreamed of winning the Nobel Peace Prize. His chosen successor, Kirsty Coventry, remains silent in these days of war, of course.
The IOC has survived the 2026 Winter Games but faces enormous challenges: Trump, LA 2028, the search for TOP sponsors, the hospitality disasters, the toxic climate in the administration, program reform, and the abolition of the Olympic Channel. Doubts about president Kirsty Coventry are growing.
What I outlined in Thursday's newsletter has been confirmed by CAS' Ad Hoc Division: Denis Oswald made the decision on Wednesday on behalf of the IOC Disciplinary Commission. The IBSF jury was instructed to act in accordance with IOC guidelines. The next day, the IOC pulled off its deception again.
The disqualification of Ukrainian Vladyslav Heraskevych becomes the biggest political issue of the 2026 Winter Olympics – with unforeseen consequences for the IOC and its president, Kirsty Coventry, who are attempting to rectify the situation with propaganda measures. Details on the opaque process.
IOC employees describe a culture of fear not only in the offices in Lausanne. The situation in Madrid, where a quarter of the IOC workforce is based, is also described as toxic in some departments. The incidents and the way in which management deals with them reveal a worrying Olympic pattern.
EXCLUSIVE: Following internal investigations, IOC director Marie Sallois has been relieved of her duties, but strangely enough, she is now coordinating president Coventry's ‘Fit for the Future’ project. Who is protecting her? Employees report similar problems in other IOC directorates.
The Pentathlon Union managed to delay the arbitration process indefinitely, the appeal lodged by Sharif El Erian was now dismissed. The Egyptian had a majority of 51:50 in the second round of voting at the 2024 congress in Riyadh, but the highly controversial American Robert Stull became president.
At the FIE congress in Manama on Saturday, a Mexican fencing federation (FME) is to be expelled and replaced by another so-called Mexican federation (ADNEM). Everything has been prepared well in advance. This is no small matter – the trail leads to Uzbekistan in the Russian hemisphere.
Once again, the International Olympic Committee passed some resolution on good governance without really acting in accordance with these propagated standards.
