MOSCOW: A group of Russian track and field athletes want to beat dopers with science and show that their country can win clean.
Formed in the shadow of Russia's doping scandals, the Rocket Science Project is hoping to encourage whistleblowers and create an independent training camp with a strict no-drugs policy.
The group says ignorance and greed have driven Russian athletes to use drugs for years as a short cut to success, justifying it with the belief everyone else does it too.
"It's stupid to deny that we have big problems with doping in our country. As a consequence of that, sports technology, science and knowledge are probably 20 years behind the modern world level," says Evgeny Pishchalov, the slightly built distance runner-turned-coach who leads the project. "If our system doesn't restructure, we're at risk of ending up without any Olympic medals in the coming years. We've been left with no choice — change or die."
Rocket Science has already launched a hotline for doping whistleblowers, and is working to set up the training camp. Members will have to pay a $25,000 fine if they ever test positive.
The group wants to stay independent of Russian institutions and sports officials accused of overseeing widespread doping. Sergei Litvinov, a top hammer thrower, says Rocket Science will accept limited cooperation but "as soon as we feel any kind of pressure, we'd rather shut it all down."
Russia's ban from international track and field in 2015 for widespread drug use sparked anger from Russian athletes who felt the sanction was not fair.
As denials dominated social media debates among Russian athletes and coaches, a minority argued for reforms and a doping crackdown, and said Russia should not be proud of drug cheats' medals. That sowed the seeds for the Rocket Science Project, though convincing more Russian athletes to follow their lead is hard.
"We've got the mentality that all the others (in other countries) are gulping down banned substance and we do it a little less, so we're the good ones," says Vasily Permitin, a runner who's part of the project. "And if you believe everyone is taking it, reporting on them is seen as bad."
Russian history breeds hostility toward whistleblowers like Vitaly Stepanov and Yulia Stepanova, the husband-and-wife team whose testimony of mass drug use sparked the first inquiries into Russian doping in 2014.
Memories of Soviet-era repression mean informers are rarely welcome in Russia, but Rocket Science's supporters argue that if doping violators are called out by other Russians, it'll show the culture is changing. Using an anonymous service on a Russian social network, they've asked users to submit footage of coaches and athletes who continue working despite their bans, a persistent problem in Russia.
As well as catching cheats, they want to show that Russia's doping culture is changing. That's a key condition for Russia to be reinstated by track's world governing body, the IAAF.
The longer Russia's ban goes on, the harder it is for athletes to make a living without competing in lucrative competitions abroad.
"I know people who, as the situation has carried on and continued, they can't feed their families," marathon runner Stepan Kiselyov says. "They're forced to quit and go to work. There are quite a lot of athletes like that."
Rocket Science's athletes know little of state involvement in doping, a charge vehemently denied by the government. Instead they describe a system with cut-throat rivalries, every reason to dope and little interest in stopping cheats.
Yaroslav Rybakov, a former European high jump champion, says he felt uncomfortable as a clean athlete on the national team. He believes Russian officials deliberately avoided testing team members who used drugs, instead testing him repeatedly.
"They just told me: 'You've been picked once again,'" said Rybakov, who now plans to coach for Rocket Science. The competition was fiercest at the national championships, where a good finish guarantees state grants for the next year. "The stakes were very high," Rybakov said. "It was perhaps even harder or just as hard to win the Russian nationals while clean than the main competitions that season, like the world championships or Olympics."
Drug use starts in childhood for some athletes — even Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko has acknowledged coaches in Russia's vast network of sports schools often encourage youngsters to dope. Cash prizes at regional youth competitions incentivize doping, argues Permitin, adding that young talents often develop a "disgust for sport."
Rocket Science's athletes want to fund training with sponsorships, rather than government money. Most top Russian athletes have contracts with the regional governments and federations that often mean they aren't allowed to choose which competitions to enter. They can also make it hard to leave a coach whose methods are unsuitable — or illegal.
Rocket Science remains far from its dream of an independent, clean Russian athletics base. They've found a site in the provincial city of Yoshkar-Ola, but must recruit more coaches and raise funds. They hope companies will rush to be linked with fresh faces in the tainted world of Russian track.
Instead of doping, chief Rocket Science coach Pishchalov plans to help athletes with sophisticated data analysis, movie-style motion capture technology and even electrical stimulation of the brain. The Russian Olympic Committee already has an "innovation center" packed with modern training and analysis equipment, but he says it's underused because many coaches lack the right knowledge.
Rocket Science has moral support from top Russian track officials keen to show Russia's drug culture is changing, but its members say they will resist any attempts to manipulate their work.
For hammer thrower Litninov, reforms are overdue. If they help him compete at a fifth career world championships later this year, so much the better.
"The situation was probably terrible for ages, but now a lot of people are recognizing it," he says. "We need to get together and change it."
Russian athletes fight back against doping, state control
Russian athletes fight back against doping, state control
Former runner-up Ons Jabeur retires from Wimbledon first-round match

- Bulgarian Tomova took a tight opening set on a tiebreak and was 2-0 ahead in the second when Jabeur retired
LONDON: Twice Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur’s tournament lasted only one hour and 25 minutes as the Tunisian retired in her first-round match against Viktoriya Tomova on Monday.
Bulgarian Tomova took a tight opening set on a tiebreak and was 2-0 ahead in the second when Jabeur, who reached the final in 2022 and 2023, decided she could not continue.
The 30-year-old former world number two had looked uncomfortable in fiercely hot conditions on Court 14 and needed a long medical timeout in the first set.
Jabeur, who has slipped outside the world’s top 50, suffers from asthma and experienced breathing difficulties at this year’s Australian Open.
“I wasn’t expecting not to feel good,” Jabeur said. “I have been practicing pretty well the last few days but I guess these things happen.
“I’m pretty sad, it really doesn’t really help with my confidence and what I keep pushing myself to do even though it was a very tough season for me. I hope I can feel better and see what is going to happen.”
Temperatures at Wimbledon were expected to reach 34 degrees Celsius on the opening day of the championships and the All England Club has implemented its warm weather policy.
Pakistan name Azhar Mahmood as latest red-ball head coach

- Azhar Mahmood becomes fourth man to be appointed to the post in last 18 months
- Pakistan will host South Africa in their first series of latest WTC cycle in October
KARACHI: Pakistan on Monday named former all-rounder Azhar Mahmood interim head coach of the Test side, the fourth man to take the post in the last 18 months.
The 50-year-old will remain in the position until January, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said.
As a pace bowling all-rounder Mahmood played 143 one-day internationals and 21 Tests for Pakistan, and has been serving as assistant coach since last year.
“The PCB announces Mahmood as the acting red-ball head coach of the Pakistan men’s team,” said a PCB press release.
Mahmood replaces Aaqib Javed, who was interim head coach for the Test series in South Africa in December-January and at home against the West Indies.
Javed left after Pakistan lost all four Tests and finished ninth and last in the third cycle of the World Test Championship.
Javed took over from former Australia pacer Jason Gillespie, who quit six months into his stint in December 2024 after differences with the PCB.
Before Gillespie, former Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez was team director and oversaw a 3-0 Test defeat in Australia.
Monday’s appointment is part of a series of changes the PCB has taken to improve the performances of the national team after a poor two years.
Last month, New Zealand’s Mike Hesson took over as white-ball head coach for two years.
Pakistan will host South Africa in their first series of the latest WTC cycle in October this year and then Sri Lanka in December-January.
Baniyas emerge victorious in round 4 of Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship

- Final day of action in Abu Dhabi concluded with Al-Jazira Jiu-Jitsu Club finishing second and Al-Ain Jiu-Jitsu Club taking third
ABU DHABI: The fourth round of the Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship concluded on Sunday at Mubadala Arena in Zayed Sports City with Baniyas Club taking first place.
The final day of action had competitions in the kids and under-12 divisions (Gi category), with final overall standings confirming Al-Jazira Jiu-Jitsu Club in second and Al-Ain Jiu-Jitsu Club taking third.
Mohamed Humaid Hamad Dalmouj Aldhaheri, board member of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, said the championship “reflects the wise leadership’s vision of empowering individuals.”
“The involvement of younger age groups demonstrates the success of our long-term development plans, providing a safe, competitive, and professional environment that nurtures talent and builds a solid foundation for future national champions,” he added.
“The leadership’s continued support, including the directive of His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed to double the prize pool, inspires the entire jiu-jitsu community,” he said.
“This sport promotes physical fitness, mental resilience, and values like discipline and respect — key pillars for a strong society and a sustainable, world-leading nation.”
Hamad Nasseeb Al-Ahbabi, father of young athlete Matar Al-Ahbabi, said: “Anyone who’s seen my son’s progress in jiu-jitsu understands how much this sport can transform young lives. This championship is about more than medals.
“It’s about building character, values, and confidence. The generous prize initiative from His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed is a clear sign of how much the leadership cares about motivating and supporting the nation’s youth.”
The next round is in August, as jiu-jitsu strengthens its position as one of the UAE’s leading sports.
Caitlin Clark and Napheesa Collier chosen as captains of WNBA All-Star Game by fan vote

- Clark received 1,293,526 votes from fans, while Collier had about 100,000 fewer
- Collier leads the league in scoring at a career-best 24.5 points and is fourth in rebounding at 8.4 per game
NEW YORK: Caitlin Clark and Napheesa Collier will captain the WNBA All-Star Game next month, the league announced Sunday.
Clark received 1,293,526 votes from fans, while Collier had about 100,000 fewer.
“It’s cool that fans get to be a part of it and have a little impact on the game,” Clark said. “It’s going to be special to do it here in this city. ... Trying to make it the best All-Star that the WNBA has ever had. It’s certainly a cool honor.”
The Indiana Fever star, who is sidelined with a groin strain, is averaging 18.2 points and a career-high 8.9 assists. She also led the fan voting last season, her rookie year, but the All-Star format was the US Olympic team playing against a select group of WNBA stars so no captains were chosen. She learned she was captain in a phone call from WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
Collier leads the league in scoring at a career-best 24.5 points and is fourth in rebounding at 8.4 per game. Her daughter surprised her wearing a shirt saying “Mama you’re a All-Star,” as she scooted into the locker room with former Lynx great Sylvia Fowles right behind her to let Collier know the news.
“It’s really cool,” Collier said to reporters before warming up for a game Sunday night “I went from never being a starter to captain.”
This will be her fifth All-Star appearance.
Before squaring off in Indianapolis on July 19, Clark and the Fever will face Collier and the Lynx on Tuesday in the Commissioner’s Cup final.
The 10 starters were selected from across the WNBA without regard to conference affiliation. Current players and a media panel joined fans in selecting the All-Star starters. Fans voting accounted for 50 percent, while the players vote and the media choices each account for 25 percent.
The pair will draft their fellow starters from a group that will be revealed on Monday. After the starters are announced, the league’s head coaches will choose the 13 reserves by voting for three guards, five frontcourt players and four from either position. Coaches can’t vote for players from their own teams. The 12 reserves will be revealed next Sunday.
“Obviously I’m going to try and get my teammates on my team, that’s the goal,” Clark said. “Once they come out with whoever has made it and whoever hasn’t, I’ll get to pick and choose. I don’t know how it works.”
The two All-Star captains will then draft their respective rosters by selecting first from the remaining eight players in the pool of starters and then from the pool of 12 reserves.
Clark and Collier also led the initial fan voting, with Indiana’s Aliyah Boston in third. Boston finished second last season behind Clark in the fan vote.
Hall of Fame horse trainer D. Wayne Lukas, a winner of 15 Triple Crown races, dies at 89

- His family said Sunday that Lukas died Saturday night at his Louisville, Kentucky, home
- Lukas won 15 Triple Crown races, including the Kentucky Derby four times. Only good friend Bob Baffert has more Triple Crown victories, and Lukas owns a record-tying 20 in the Breeders’ Cup World Championships
NEW YORK: D. Wayne Lukas, the Hall of Famer who became one of the most accomplished trainers in the history of horse racing and a face of the sport for decades, has died. He was 89.
His family said Sunday that Lukas died Saturday night at his Louisville, Kentucky, home. Lukas had been hospitalized with a severe MRSA blood infection that caused significant damage to his heart and digestive system and worsened pre-existing chronic conditions.
“Wayne devoted his life not only to horses but to the industry — developing generations of horsemen and horsewomen and growing the game by inviting unsuspecting fans into the winner’s circle,” his family said in a statement. “Whether he was boasting about a maiden 2-year-old as the next Kentucky Derby winner or offering quiet words of advice before a big race, Wayne brought heart, grace, and grit to every corner of the sport. His final days were spent at home in Kentucky, where he chose peace, family, and faith.”
Lukas won 15 Triple Crown races, including the Kentucky Derby four times. Only good friend Bob Baffert has more Triple Crown victories, and Lukas owns a record-tying 20 in the Breeders’ Cup World Championships.
“The whole secret of this game, I think, is being able to read the horse: Read what he needs, what he doesn’t need, what he can’t do, what he can do,” Lukas said in May before his 34th and final Preakness Stakes. “That’s the whole key. Everybody’s got the blacksmith, everybody’s got to the same bed available, the feed man. We all can hire a good jockey. We all can hire a pretty good exercise rider if we’ve got the means, so what the hell is the difference? The horse is the difference and what we do with him in reading him.”
Lukas was affectionately known around the barns and the racetrack as “Coach” because he coached high school basketball before his professional career with horses began. Even with months to go before his 90th birthday, he would get up on his pony in the early morning hours and go out to the track himself, rather than letting his assistants do the day-to-day work.
Born Darnell Wayne Lukas on Sept. 2, 1935, in Wisconsin as the second of three children, he rose to prominence in the sport with quarter horses in races that are effectively sprints. He moved into thoroughbreds in the late 1970s and won his first Preakness with Codex in 1980.
Lukas has 4,967 documented victories in thoroughbred racing, with his horses earning more than $310 million from more than 30,600 starts.
“Today we lost one of the great champions of Churchill Downs and one of the most significant figures in Thoroughbred racing over the last 50 years,” Churchill Downs Inc. CEO Bill Carstanjen said. “We will miss his humor, his wisdom and his unmatched capacity to thrill the fans with the performances of his horses on our sport’s biggest days.”
Achieving something of a career renaissance over the past decade, one he credits to finding the right owners willing to spend money on horses, Lukas won the Preakness last year with Seize the Grey. Asked what motivates him to keep doing his job well into his late 80s, he gave a pep talk fit for a locker room before a big game.
“If you have a passion, you eliminate all the excuses,” Lukas said. “That’s how it works. You get up early. You go without a meal. You drive. You go without sleep — as long as you got the passion. Don’t let that sofa pull you down. It’s a little easy when that alarm goes off to say, ‘Oh my God, I don’t know if I really want to do this today.’ Erase that. The most important decision you’ll ever make in your life is your attitude decision. Make it early, and make the right one.”