Sports World: Referees get final decision on handball

Referees get final decision on handball

LONDON • The International Football Association Board has clarified its new handball rules following a series of controversial decisions since their introduction last year. Football's rule-making body on Monday said that the final judgment remains with the referee.

Following changes to the law last year, handball can be awarded in cases where the player's arm has made the body "unnaturally bigger" or if it is raised above the shoulder, whether it was intentional or not.

The idea was to make the law clearer but many in the game believe it has had the opposite effect.

REUTERS

2021 Diamond League season starts in May

PARIS • The Diamond League yesterday released its provisional calendar for next season, which will consist of 14 athletics meets beginning in Rabat in May and ending in Zurich in September.

Doha will stage a meet on May 28 after which Rome will host the first European event of the season on June4. Meetings in Stockholm, Monaco and London are scheduled for the first two weeks of July before the rearranged Tokyo Olympics. The calendar is provisional and is subject to changes depending on the global health situation.

REUTERS

Bucks tipping off behind closed doors

LOS ANGELES • The Milwaukee Bucks will start the 2020-21 National Basketball Association (NBA) season without fans in attendance at the Fiserv Forum due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the team announced on Monday.

The Bucks said in their statement that the decision will stand "until further notice in accordance with state and local guidelines". The NBA season is slated to start on Dec 22.

REUTERS

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on November 25, 2020, with the headline Sports World: Referees get final decision on handball. Subscribe