By Pesha Magid, Hadeel Al Sayegh and Federico Maccioni RIYADH/DUBAI (Reuters) -Saudi Arabia has scaled back lofty ambitions for its NEOM gigaproject to prioritize completing elements essential to hosting global sporting events over the next decade as rising costs weigh,

The authoritarian country is spending billions on international athletics, from Formula 1 to combat sports, to boost its bottom line and image.

Neom's board of directors announced on Tuesday the appointment of Aiman Al-Mudaifer as acting CEO of the company following the unexpected departure of Nadhmi Al-Nasr, who was put in charge of the project in 2018. The region, as envisioned by Saudi Crown ...