Mark Ledsom
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/ 30 April 2008

Pistorius to hear Games fate soon

South African double amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius should know within three weeks if he can compete at the Beijing Olympics, an official for the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said on Wednesday. ”We have been asked to deliver a decision as soon as possible,” CAS secretary general Mathieu Reeb said on the last day of Pistorius’s two-day hearing.

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/ 29 October 2007

Fifa end World Cup rotation policy

Fifa’s executive committee has voted unanimously to end its policy of rotating the hosting of World Cups through its six continental confederations. Executive committee vice-president Chung Mong-joon told reporters on Monday that the rotation policy had been dropped with effect from the 2018 World Cup.

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/ 29 October 2007

Fifa to decide on Cup rotation policy

Fifa’s executive committee is expected to drop its controversial Soccer World Cup rotation policy when it meets at the organisation’s headquarters in Zurich on Monday. World soccer’s governing body decided in 2000 that it would rotate its most prestigious tournament around its six continental confederations.

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/ 13 April 2007

Kenya facing new Fifa sanctions

Kenya’s football federation is once again facing the threat of suspension by world governing body Fifa over renewed allegations of political interference by the country’s government. Kenya was banned from all international competitions last October for breaching international agreements and for protracted problems in its troubled federation.

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/ 7 December 2006

Fifa confident about 2010 preparations

Fifa president Sepp Blatter said he was confident that South Africa would be ready to stage the World Cup in 2010 despite concerns over delays in the building of new stadiums. ”We need to bring a little bit of fire [to the organisers],” Blatter told a news conference following a two-day meeting of Fifa’s executive committee.

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/ 20 July 2006

Zidane, Materazzi punished for headbutt debacle

Former France captain Zinedine Zidane and Italy defender Marco Materazzi were both fined and banned by Fifa on Thursday after the headbutting incident that marred the World Cup final on July 9. Zidane, who has retired as a player, was fined  014 and handed a three-match ban by Fifa’s five-man disciplinary committee following his red card for headbutting Materazzi.

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/ 19 July 2006

Zidane to face Fifa over World Cup headbutt

Former France captain Zinedine Zidane will appear before Fifa’s disciplinary committee in Zurich on Thursday to give his account of the incident in which he headbutted an opponent in the World Cup final. The 34 year old was sent off in the closing stages of the final match of his illustrious career after butting his head into the chest of Italian defender Marco Materazzi.