League Notes: U.N. Panel Urges Russia To Fight Racism In Sports

A United Nations human rights panel called on the Russian Federation on Monday to "step up prosecutions of racist attacks by ultra-nationalists and neo-Nazis and of hate speech by politicians." The U.N. Committee against Racial Discrimination (CERD) said that Russian authorities must intensify measures to "vigorously combat racist behavior in sports, particularly in football, and ensure that sports regulatory bodies investigate manifestations of racism, xenophobia and intolerance." Russia pledged to "crack down on racism and fan violence as it faces increased scrutiny" before hosting the 2018 World Cup (REUTERS, 8/28).

The Int'l Cricket Council will "discuss relaxing its rules around on field swearing" in the wake of England cricketer Ben Stokes being punished for "shouting an obscenity at himself" during the second Test against the West Indies. The ICC has been criticized "by a string of former players for awarding Stokes one demerit point after he swore in frustration" (London TELEGRAPH, 8/28).