John Grant said that a small group of people have been trying to undermine him.GETTY IMAGES
Rugby League Int'l Federation Chair John Grant confirmed he will walk away from int'l rugby league in November but not before delivering a parting shot at the "small group of people" he said were "spreading misinformation designed to undermine him" and his quest to modernize the global game. Grant will step down from his role later this year as part of an overhaul of the governance of the RLIF board. He made it clear he had no plans to continue beyond November and "made no attempt to hide his disdain for those who worked behind the scenes to make life difficult in recent days" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 7/31).
South African cricketer Dale Steyn believes this year’s Australian ball-tampering scandal could be viewed as a "cry for help" because the balance between bat and ball in cricket has become "so skewed in favour of the batsmen." Steyn did not condone the actions of the Cape Town trio but said that the incident "exposed the need for cricket to change to prevent the loss of the art of reverse swing bowling" (REUTERS, 7/30).
National Rugby League CEO Todd Greenberg and Australian Rugby League Commission Chair Peter Beattie are "preparing to be grilled on any number of topics plaguing the game in an uncensored fan forum" in Sydney on Saturday (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 7/30).
Athletics execs were told to "investigate how widespread the abuse and harassment of competitors is." The IAAF Council approved a position statement on protecting athletes as part of an ongoing athlete welfare campaign. It comes after more than 500 teenage athletes were surveyed at the World U20 Championships in July (BBC 7/30).
