Former Formula 1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone "dismissed speculation that he might set up a rival series" and said that he would "never want to undermine the existing championship." Breaking a "long silence," Ecclestone said that he "wished to clear up rumours that spread after he was replaced at the helm by American Chase Carey on Monday." He said, "I have built the championship over the last near 50 years, which is something I am proud of, and the last thing I want is to see it damaged" (REUTERS, 1/27).
Almost two out of every three players in Premiership rugby "may go a whole season without being tested for performance-enhancing drugs, latest figures show, but the sport’s leaders insist the professional game is clean." There were 241 tests in the Premiership last year on about 700 players, "plus others carried out by international bodies." It is a "similar level of testing to that in English football’s Premier League." There were "no positive findings from those tests." There were four positive tests of players at amateur and semi-professional clubs (LONDON TIMES, 1/27).
Australian authorities have stopped alleged corrupt betting by a transnational criminal syndicate at the Australian Open after intercepting two Estonian men carrying an "unusual amount of electronic devices." The two men, aged 37 and 38, "were detained at Melbourne Airport on Jan. 17," the Australian Border Force said in a statement Sunday. The two "made admissions the electronic devices were to be used for courtside betting." Australian Border Force Regional Commander James Watson said, "This was a sophisticated and well-prepared attempt by these individuals" (XINHUA, 1/29).
South Africa cricket head coach Russell Domingo will have to reapply for his job "if he wants to stay in charge of the team" after its summer tour of England. Domingo has been in the role since May '13 and "his contract ends in August." Cricket South Africa said that it is "resolved to begin a recruitment process" as it looks to appoint a head coach "through to the 2019 World Cup" (BBC, 1/28).
Pakistan has "done a significant amount of work on security," a visiting Int'l Cricket Council official said. But Giles Clarke, who heads the ICC’s Pakistan task team, did not say "whether he would recommend major teams tour Pakistan" for the first time since the deadly '09 attack on the Sri Lanka team in Lahore. Clarke: "There’s a considerable amount of perception that needs to be changed, and there’s a considerable amount of information that needs to be shared." On a two-day trip, Clarke "met with government officials in Lahore, including a 35-minute meeting with Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and other police officials from the province of Punjab" (AP, 1/30).
