King's & Rio 2016
King's comment
Should a woman's testosterone level matter in sports? Dr Silvia Camporesi, Social Science, Health & Medicine, comments for CNN, 12 August 2016
"Elite athletes have all kinds of genetic or biological traits that make them what they are ... that we as normal people don't have. I don't think hyperandrogenism should be singled out." Read more on CNN online.
Dina Asher-Smith at Rio 2016
King’s History undergraduate student Dina Asher-Smith, who will be competing in Rio 2016 Olympics, has been mentioned in a number of media outlets including the Evening Standard (1), (2), BBC World Service, Mirror, Sun, Spectator, BBC Newsbeat and Telegraph.
Why Caster Semenya and Dutee Chand deserve to compete (and win) at Rio 2016 Dr Silvia Camporesi, Social Science, Health & Medicine, writes for The Conversation UK, 09 August 2016
"Sport is political. Sport reflects our society. We see this all the time, with the doping scandal and the inability of the IOC to punish the state that had been sponsoring doping. This decision about hyperandrogenism is about women in sports and women outside sports. Semenya’s case would never have happened if she had not run so damn fast." Read more on The Conversation pages.
Letters to the editor: Games are a great opportunity for Rio Professor Anthony Pereira, Director, King's Brazil Institute, writes for the Evening Standard, 04 August 2016
"It should not be forgotten that Brazil has a vibrant culture and has tremendous regional variation. Its people are generous and welcoming and Rio, where almost all of the sporting events will take place, is a striking combination of natural beauty and urban grit — a place of joy and hope as well as disappointment."
Get ready for the coming wave of technologically enhanced athletes Dr Silvia Camporesi, Social Science, Health & Medicine, comments for the Guardian, 03 August 2016
"It is plausible to think that in 50 years, or maybe less, the ‘natural’ able-bodied athletes will just appear anachronistic. As our concept of what is ‘natural’ depends on what we are used to, and evolves with our society and culture, so does our concept of ‘purity’ of sport." Read more on the Guardian pages.
With controversy surrounding the Rio Games, was it a mistake to hold the Olympics in an emerging market? Professor Anthony Pereira, Director, King's Brazil Institute, writes for City A.M., 02 August 2016
"To argue that it was a mistake to hold the Games in Brazil because it is an emerging market is patronising and creates a double standard."
Brazil shoots for Olympian heights at a time of political lows Professor Anthony Pereira, Director, King's Brazil Institute, writes for The Conversation UK, 01 August 2016
"Brazil is preparing for the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanã Stadium. The three-hour ceremony will present Brazil to hundreds of millions of viewers around the world, using music and dance to show how a mix of people contributed to the country’s rich and syncretic culture. It promises to be a remarkable spectacle, as do the games themselves – but the whole thing seems doomed to be overshadowed by the most protracted and bitter political conflict in Brazil’s recent history." Read more on The Conversation pages and Newsweek, where the article was republished.
A flickering flame: Is the Olympic ideal dead? Dr Silvia Camporesi, Social Science, Health & Medicine, comments for BBC World Service, 29 July 2016
"I think sport reflects our society…we are going to see increasingly the kind of cases of refugees or of athletes who don’t want to compete under the banner of their own countries." Listen again.
Anti-doping & King's Drug Control Centre Professor David Cowan, Director, King's Drug Control Centre (DCC), comments for a number of outlets over the period of the Olympics to discuss anti-doping tests and the DCC, including Sky, CNN, NBC, ITV, Globo, BBC, BBC Radio 4, BBC Horizon, Daily Mail, Telegraph, amongst others.
The battle for Rio: will the samba city’s murderous crime problem threaten the Olympics? Dr Vinicius Mariano de Carvalho, lecturer at the King's Brazil Institute, commented for i News on drug issues in Rio, 16 May 2016
"It’s a very cheap drug, it’s a very harsh and hard drug and dependence on crack easily moves into physical violence and addicts robbing people to buy drugs. People will see that in the streets." Read more on the i pages. Dr Mariano also commented for the Daily Mail on the favelas in Rio.