Maria Sharapova, the Russian five-time Grand Slam champion who became one of the highest paid sportswomen in the world, announced her retirement at the age of 32 on Wednesday. The former world number has played only two matches this year, losing in the first round of the Australian Open, with her ranking sliding to 373.
Long jumper Darya Klishina, the only Russian athlete cleared to compete in this summer's Olympic Games in Rio, says she does not feel a traitor.
Following badminton World No 1 Lee Chong Wei's provisional ban, Rediff.com brings you ten top sports persons who gave in to drugs - one of the mighty perils that has affected modern sporting culture.
'My role model was Sachin Tendulkar as a kid. I feel very proud that I have been able to follow his footsteps and become a UNICEF ambassador like him. I want for every child, regardless of their background, gender, caste etc to be able to access schools that are safe and supportive so that they can learn and thrive'
The crackdown on athletes caught up in recent doping scandals is a step in the right direction for the sport, Allyson Felix says, but the American sprinter is still worried it will not be a level playing field at next month's Rio Olympics.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will retest frozen samples from previous Games after an improved testing method led to hundreds of positive cases that went undetected, according to a German television channel.
Disgraced retired cyclist Lance Armstrong's Sydney 2000 Olympic medal is back with the International Olympic Committee.
Documents relating to Farah, and published on the fancybear.net website, showed that the distance runner had no active Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs) at the time of the Olympics. TUEs allow athletes to take banned substances for verified medical needs and there is no suggestion any of those named have broken any rules
Widening its net, the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has, for the first time ever, collected samples from close to 20 tennis players competing at the National Tennis Championships at DLTA Complex, in New Delhi.
European Athletics president Svein Arne Hansen does not expect Russia to return to international competition in time for next year's Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Russian Olympic medallist Alexander Krushelnitsky has denied taking a banned substance in a suspected doping case that has rocked the Pyeongchang Winter Games and could imperil Russia's efforts to regain its full Olympic status.
Athletes from one sport should not be punished for the sins of those from another, the IOC president said on Wednesday, cooling speculation that Russia could be banned from the Olympics altogether for systematic doping.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Dr Robin Chakraverty, former chief medical officer at UK Athletics, told British legislators he injected Farah with 13.5 millilitres (ml) of L-carnitine prior to his London Marathon debut but had "forgotten" to record it in the necessary forms.
Maharashtra quarter-miler Aishwarya Mishra is giving a torrid time to authorities as she has "disappeared" after winning a gold in the Federation Cup National Championships, last month.
Australia has backed a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) recommendation that Russia be banned from international athletics, including the 2016 Olympics, after a report alleged systemic state-backed cheating.
Star India wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt will have to wait to know whether his bronze medal from the 2012 London Olympics is upgraded to silver till the time his sample is cleared by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Reports emerged that the grappler's bronze would be upgraded to silver after second-place finisher of the London Games -- late Besik Kudukhov of Russia -- was stripped off his medal for failing a dope test.
World athletics' governing body has suppressed a 2011 survey that reveals that up to a third of the world's top competitors admitted using banned performance-enhancing techniques, Britain's Sunday Times and German broadcaster ARD/WDR reported.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was felt on the national sports budget as the central government on Monday allocated Rs 2596.14 crore for the financial year 2021-22 -- a reduction of Rs 230.78 crore when compared to the amount earmarked initially for the previous year.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
The sports ministry, on Thursday, received a hike of Rs 258.2 crore in the union budget for 2018-19, presented by finance minister Arun Jaitley in the Parliament in New Delhi.
While handing down a four-year ban on Narsingh Yadav, the Court of Arbitration for Sports has ruled that the wrestler failed to produce any 'real evidence' regarding the sabotage theory he had advanced and the balance of probabilities was that he orally took the banned substance intentionally in tablet form on more than one occasion.
Jamaica's twice Olympic 200 metres champion Veronica Campbell-Brown was suspended by her national federation on Tuesday following a positive test for a banned diuretic at a meeting last month.
American sprinter Tyson Gay's former coach has been suspended for eight years for doping violations, the US Anti-Doping Agency said on Wednesday.
With speculation rife that Rio Olympics silver medallist Venus Williams was allegedly allowed to use prohibited substance under Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs) clause, Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza on Friday rubbished reports suggesting that she has demanded the All India Tennis Association (AITA) to raise the matter with the appropriate authorities.
Russia has named a track and field team for the Rio Olympics which includes gold medallists Yelena Isinbayeva and Ivan Ukhov among 68 athletes who are hoping an IAAF ban on them competing will be lifted by sport's highest court later this month.
Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt is not keen to collect the upgraded silver medal from 2012 London Olympics on humanitarian grounds given that the original second place finisher's positive dope test came after his death.
The Chinese swimmer is competing at the world championships under the shadow of a WADA appeal against governing body FINA's decision to clear the 27-year-old of wrongdoing during the random drug test last September.
Kidambi Srikanth, the centre of attention in the Rio Olympics on Wednesday, can take heart from Hyderabad city mate P V Sindhu for his men's singles quarter-final clash against Chinese badminton icon Lin Dan.
Beslan Mudranov won Russia's first gold medal at the Rio Games in judo and fired a warning shot that his country had plenty more to prove.
Despite not having enough evidence to prove the allegations of a sabotage, Narsingh Yadav put up a brave face sounding hopeful that the NADA panel will give a proper verdict on his doping scandal.
Russian tennis player Svetlana Kuznetsova blamed politics for the decision to ban her country's track and field athletes from the Rio Olympics and said it was unfair to group them all together as doping cheats.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Sports Minister Vijay Goel has hinted that Narsingh Yadav's prospects of participating in the Rio Olympics is virtually over, but said the wrestler will be given a fair chance to defend himself.
A lengthy ban for doping would be devastating for five-times grand slam champion Maria Sharapova but she would survive it, Nick Bollettieri, the man who discovered her, said on Tuesday.
What we must know about the substance the Russian tennis ace was taking before it was banned this year.
Tainted by a doping offence a year ago, Indian footballer Rana Gharami has now become a hero in his home town, by lending a helping hand to those struggling to survive the coronavirus pandemic. The 29-year-old former Odisha FC defender hails from Garalgacha in West Bengal's Hooghly district.
Swiss food giant Nestle will end its partnership with the International Association of Athletics Federations because of scandal surrounding the sport.
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