Fired from his position as captain of the French Davis Cup team in September, ARNAUD CLÉMENT is “openly in conflict with the French Tennis Federation (FFT).” Clément still had one year left on his contract, and FFT President JEAN GACHASSIN proposed €400,000 ($437,280) “in compensation.” A source close to the situation said that Clément is claiming €1.5M ($1.6M) and is taking his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (L’ÉQUIPE, 2/28). ... Ukrainian biathlete ARTEM TYSHCHENKO has been confirmed as the biathlete who "failed a doping test for a substance only added to the banned list at the beginning of this year." He failed a test for meldonium, a hormone and metabolic modulator which was added to WADA's "list of banned substances this year, at an International Biathlon Union (IBU) Cup event in Arber, Germany last month" (INSIDE THE GAMES, 2/27).
EXPRESSED ANGER: Argentine first division side Racing Club player GUSTAVO BOU "expressed his anger" at club President VICTOR BLANCO "for not accepting his transfer to Chinese club, Beijing Guo'an." Bou said, "I am angry and sad as the president made a deal with me but did not honor it." Bou is the "principal striker for Racing Club, one of Argentina's big five." He said that Beijing Guo'an offered "the money that Racing wanted, 8 million US dollars. Then Blanco agreed to transfer but changed everything with a few hours left" (GLOBAL TIMES, 2/27).
BIOPIC: Former Liverpool player STEVEN GERRARD is "set to star in a movie about his illustrious Liverpool career, after striking a deal with an award-winning director." ASIF KAPADIA directed films on AMY WINEHOUSE and AYRTON SENNA, "and is now planning a documentary with the former England captain." The film will document Gerrard's 17-season Anfield stint, "which peaked with the 2005 Champions League triumph in Istanbul." Former England teammates DAVID BECKHAM and WAYNE ROONEY "will apparently star," as will former coaches KENNY DALGLISH and SVEN-GOARAN ERIKSSON (London DAILY MIRROR, 2/28).
