The International Olympic Committee said on Monday it "acknowledged" the decision taken by the International Paralympic Committee to lift a partial suspension of Russia and Belarus.

The IOC said the reason for the sharp increase in women's soccer teams was the rapidly growing popularity of women's team sports, especially in the United States, and that change in the competition format reflected that rapid growth.

Zimbabwean Kirsty Coventry became the first woman and African to be elected president of the International Olympic Committee on Thursday, saying it was an "extraordinary moment".

Seven heavyweight candidates are vying to become the most powerful person in sport, a post 71-year-old Bach has held for 12 years.

North Korean Olympians have not received Samsung smartphones, unlike athletes from other countries, the IOC told AFP on Thursday, hours after Seoul suggested that providing them the phones could violate UN sanctions against the nuclear-armed North.

"We are talking about women's boxing. We have two boxers who were born as women, raised as women, who have passports as women and who have competed for many years as women and this is a clear definition of a woman," Thomas Bach told a press conference.

The introduction of new sports and more urban and visually spectacular venues are necessary to attract younger audiences to secure the Olympic Games' survival, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Tuesday.

The head of the Palestine Olympic Committee criticised "double standards" from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Thursday over its decision to allow Israel to compete at the Paris Games.

The scenario raises questions about the selection process and effectiveness of the scholarship programme in improving athletes' performance on the global stage.

Afghanistan's Taliban government does not recognise the three female athletes who will represent the country at the Paris Olympic Games this month, a spokesman for their sports department said.

Russia launched a furious tirade at the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday, arguing the IOC's restrictions on Russian athletes and its criticism of the Moscow-organised Friendship Games amounted to "neo-Nazism".

The international tender for shallow and deep sea oil and gas exploration sparks some questions regarding its potential success in attracting offshore oil and gas exploration

A "saddened and disappointed" Manny Pacquiao conceded Monday his Olympic boxing dream was over after the ring great was denied a berth at this year's Paris games.

After two years of intense lobbying, cricket finally got the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) seal of approval to be part of the 2028 Los Angeles Games having last featured in the world's biggest sporting extravaganza in 1900.

IOC president Thomas Bach said the body's Executive Board had recommended to international federations and international sports event organisers that "athletes with a Russian or a Belarusian passport must compete only as Individual Neutral Athletes"

In an effort to get cricket into the major international sporting events, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has recommended six-team T20 competitions for both men and women to the Los Angeles Olympic Games organising committee (LA28).

American athlete Jim Thorpe is to be given sole credit for his 1912 gold medals, more than a century after he was stripped of them, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Friday.

The International Olympic Committee names Paris and Los Angeles as hosts for the 2024 and 2028 Olympics.

US swimming legend Michael Phelps has spoken of his frustration at the possibility rivals were using drugs at last year's Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has rejected a call by the Kuwaiti government to temporarily lift a 14-month sports ban while the Gulf State amends a controversial law.