Sean Ingle

After the flame has passed: is hosting an Olympic Games good for our wellbeing? | Sean Ingle

New research has shown there was a positive impact during London 2012 but the legacy effects appear to be short-lived

Does hosting an Olympics really improve our wellbeing? If so, by how much - and for how long? Are we really happier when Team GB win gold medals? And are the lofty claims of politicians that London 2012 would make us healthier born out by the facts?

While the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, was banging the drum for the capital hosting the Olympics in 2040 last week, academics at the LSE, Harvard and in Germany were answering these questions – and quietly busting a few myths about the legacy of 2012.

Elite athletes warned to avoid one-night stands over risk of failing drug tests

  • Athletes urged to take phone numbers from partners
  • ‘Watch who you kiss and have a relationship with’

Elite athletes have been warned against having one-night stands because of the risk they could be ­contaminated with banned drugs from engaging in casual sex.

The warning came as top lawyers and anti-doping experts debated ­contamination cases in sport before highlighting the hidden dangers for the Tinder generation.

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FA to ban transgender women from playing women’s football in England

  • Decision by FA comes after supreme court ruling
  • Ruling comes into force from 1 June

The Football Association has announced that it will ban transgender women from playing in women’s football from 1 June. It follows the ruling from the supreme court that the term “woman” in the Equality Act refers only to a biological woman.

The decision comes barely a month after the FA ruled that transgender women could continue to play in the women’s game as long as they kept their testosterone levels below 5 nmol/L for at least 12 months.