Russian weightlifter Oxana Slivenko, a gold medalist in the 2008 Beijing Olympics who also earned gold at the World and European Championships, is among 13 European weightlifters who are facing charges from the International Testing Agency over doping in the leadup to the 2012 London Olympics, according to a report by the Associated Press.
The cases that involve Slivenko date from the 2012 European Championships, and follow ITA re-testing of old samples. The case involves 13 weightlifters from eight different countries, 11 of whom won medals at the event. Eight of the weightlifters have already served bans for doping at some point in their careers, and most are now retired from weightlifting.
Slivenko won gold at the 2012 Championships before withdrawing from the London Olympics due to injury. She served a doping-related ban from 2018 to 2020, and the 34-year old from Chekhov is also accused of a separate doping issue stemming from data at a defunct drug-testing laboratory in Moscow.
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All weightlifters implicated in the case have been suspended until their respective cases are resolved. Although any who were found to have doped at the European Championships would subsequently be disqualified from the 2012 Olympics, their disqualifications would not affect their medals. Two weightlifters charged by the ITA include Cristina Iovu of Moldova and Razvan Martin of Romania, both of whom were already stripped of their medals for doping-related offenses.
The past year has seen a great increase in scrutiny over doping in weightlifting, as it was revealed in June of 2020 that an investigation revealed the International Weightlifting Federation to have engaged in “systematic governance failures and corruption at the highest level,” with doping cases being covered up and millions of dollars unaccounted for. The improprieties occurred under the watch of former IWF president Tamas Ajan, who stepped down in April of 2020.
The Texas Southern Tigers will take on the UTSA Roadrunners at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday at Alamodome. Texas Southern isn’t favored, but they just beat the odds in their last game, so don’t count them out.
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The Tigers kept a clean sheet against the Southern University Jaguars last week and took the matchup 24 to nothing. The squad ran away with 21 points in the first half and mostly just sat on those in the second to pick up the victory.
Meanwhile, it was all tied up 17-17 at halftime, but UTSA was not quite the Texas Longhorns’ equal in the second half when they met last week. The Roadrunners suffered a grim 41-20 defeat to the Longhorns. This contest was a close 17-17 at the break, but unfortunately for UTSA it sure didn’t stay that way. A silver lining for them was the play of RB Brenden Brady, who threw one touchdown in addition to punching in one rushing touchdown.
Texas Southern’s win lifted them to 1-2 while UTSA’s loss dropped them down to 1-2. We’ll find out if the Tigers can add another positive mark to their record or if UTSA can shake off the defeat and take the spring out of Texas Southern’s step.
Current Records: Notre Dame 1-2; North Carolina 3-0
What to Know
The North Carolina Tar Heels will be returning home after a two-game road trip. They will take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday at Kenan Memorial Stadium after a week off. UNC is expected to win — but not by much — so they will need to come into the game prepared for a fight.
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The Tar Heels beat the Georgia State Panthers 35-28 two weeks ago. Among those leading the charge for UNC was RB Omarion Hampton, who rushed for two TDs and 110 yards on 16 carries. Hampton put himself on the highlight reel with a 58-yard TD scramble in the third quarter.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame netted a 24-17 victory over the California Golden Bears last week. RB Audric Estime and RB Chris Tyree were among the main playmakers for Notre Dame as the former punched in one rushing touchdown and the latter snatched one receiving TD.
Notre Dame’s defense was a presence as well, as it embarrassed California’s offensive line to sack QB Jack Plummer six times for a total loss of 47 yards. It was a group effort with four guys contributing.
The wins brought the Tar Heels up to 3-0 and the Fighting Irish to 1-2. A pair of stats to keep an eye on: UNC enters the matchup with 310 passing yards per game on average, good for 21st best in the nation. But Notre Dame comes into the contest boasting the 34th fewest passing yards allowed per game in the nation at 184. These opposing strengths should make for an exciting matchup.
How To Watch
When: Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET
Where: Kenan Memorial Stadium — Chapel Hill, North Carolina
TV: ABC
Online streaming:fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
The San Diego State Aztecs may be playing at home Saturday, but the experts are forecasting a three-point defeat. They will take on the Toledo Rockets at 3:30 p.m. ET at Snapdragon Stadium. Both of these teams will be looking for a pick-me-up after considerable defeats in their previous games.
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The Aztecs were expected to have a tough go of it last week, and, well, they did. They found themselves the reluctant recipients of an unfortunate 35-7 punch to the gut against the Utah Utes. San Diego State was in a tough position by the half, with the score already sitting at 21 to nothing. One thing holding San Diego State back was the mediocre play of QB Kyle Crum, who did not have his best game: despite one touchdown, he threw one interception with a passing completion percentage of only 31.25%.
Meanwhile, it’s never fun to lose, and it’s even less fun to lose 77-21, which was the final score in Toledo’s tilt against the Ohio State Buckeyes last week. The Rockets were down 56-21 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from. Toledo’s loss came about despite a quality game from QB Dequan Finn, who passed for two TDs and 153 yards on 19 attempts in addition to rushing for one TD and 70 yards. Near the top of the highlight reel was Finn’s 50-yard TD bomb to WR Thomas Zsiros in the first quarter.
The losses put San Diego State at 1-2 and Toledo at a reciprocal 2-1. A couple offensive numbers to keep in mind before kickoff: San Diego State enters the game with 221 rushing yards per game on average, good for 22nd best in the nation. The Rockets have displayed some offensive firepower of their own as they rank 17th in the nation when it comes to rushing touchdowns, with nine on the season.
How To Watch
When: Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET
Where: Snapdragon Stadium — San Diego, California
TV: Fox Sports 1
Online streaming:fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
