‘Sportswashing’ fears dog Ruiz-Joshua fight in Saudi Arabia

STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — In one part of Riyadh, two of the world's most high-profile boxers squared off at a weigh-in outside a 5-star hotel ahead of the first heavyweight title fight to take place in the Middle East. Across town, American rappers Akon and Chris Brown were about to headline a concert at a UNESCO heritage site. Saudi Arabia is undergoing fairly radical social change in some ways under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, but critics say the country is using big sports and entertainment events to divert attention from its questionable human-rights record. The kingdom's government-backed General Sports Authority has a different view, saying the push to portray a new image of modernization and to boost tourism is "a journey of transformat