Essex have been fined 100,000 pounds ($132,190) after admitting to a charge of racism at the county club which they failed to address between 2001 and 2010, England’s Cricket Regulator said on Wednesday.

Essex were charged in June after an investigation undertaken by the Cricket Regulator, a body responsible for monitoring compliance with the sport’s rules which operates independently from the rest of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

An independent Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) panel held a sanctions hearing and published its decision on Wednesday.

“Essex County Cricket Club has admitted a charge in breach of Directive 3.3, in relation to the systemic use of racist and/or discriminatory language and/or conduct during the period between 2001 and 2010 which Essex failed to address,” it said in a statement.

The CDC panel also cautioned and reprimanded Essex while 50,000 pounds of the fine was suspended for two years.

“There is deep regret for what occurred in the past but these events do not reflect the Essex Cricket of today,” Essex chair Anu Mohindru said.

“The club have accepted the sanctions and remains committed to tackling all forms of discrimination, and is fully aligned with the ECB’s goal of making cricket the country’s most inclusive team sport.

“We have made significant progress in achieving these aims in the communities we represent through our excellent outreach work, as well as building a workplace that values and respects every individual.”

Dave Lewis, the interim director of the Cricket Regulator, said the racism experienced at Essex was “abhorrent” while the evidence was “deeply disturbing.”

Lewis added that the sanctions had been decided following a “long and complex investigation” after the club had conducted its own investigation.

The people subjected to abuse had “shown real bravery in speaking out,” Lewis said, adding: ” I hope that this prosecution will help ensure that no one suffers again as they did and that racism of this kind is never normalized.

“The CDC panel took into account the fact that Essex had pleaded guilty to the charge and has already taken significant action to address these issues and become a more inclusive club.”

Last year, Yorkshire were fined 400,000 pounds and given a 48-point deduction in the County Championship by the CDC over their handling of racism allegations made by Azeem Rafiq.

The former England Under-19s captain, who is of Pakistani descent, told a British parliamentary committee in 2021 of ‘inhuman’ treatment at Yorkshire and said he had been a victim of institutional racism at the club.

($1 = 0.7565 pounds)

MILAN, Italy: Former Italy striker Salvatore “Toto” Schillaci, most famous for being top scorer at the 1990 World Cup, died on Wednesday at the age of 59.
Juventus were among Italy’s football clubs to pay tribute to Schillaci, who became an icon for his unexpected goalscoring exploits at his country’s home World Cup, simply saying “Ciao Toto” on social media with a picture of him in a Juve shirt.
Italian media report that Schillaci died at Palermo’s “Civico” hospital after suffering from bowel cancer.
The country’s football federation (FIGC) said that all matches played in Italy between now and the end of the coming weekend would have a “minute of reflection” before kick-off.
“His goal celebrations, in which his face became the symbol of a collective joy, will remain forever part of Italian football heritage,” FIGC chief Gabriele Gravina said in a statement.
Schillaci played for Juventus and Inter Milan after beginning his career in the early 1980s at Messina and had modest success in the club game.

His best club season came just before the 1990 World Cup, when he scored 21 times in all competitions as Juventus won the UEFA Cup and the Italian Cup.
But he went from hot club striker to national hero that summer by scoring six times as Italy reached the semifinals of Italia 90.
“At Juve we were lucky to be excited by him before he did the same to the whole of Italy during that incredible summer of 1990,” said Juventus.
“Goodbye, Toto. Thank you.”
Schillaci won the Golden Boot for being top scorer and won the Golden Ball as player of the tournament ahead of the likes of Lothar Matthaus and Diego Maradona, the former of whom won the tournament with the then West Germany.
Italy were knocked out on penalties by Argentina in the last four, as Napoli legend Maradona helped dump out the host nation in front of his own fans in Naples.
Schillaci, who was capped 16 times for his country, only scored one other goal for Italy in his career and four years after the 1990 World Cup left Inter for Jubilo Iwata in Japan, where he ended his career.