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Showing posts from July 31, 2016

Rio 2016: Russian team will not face blanket ban from Olympics after doping scandal, IOC says

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From Hitler to superpower boycotts, the Olympics has had to deal with several threats over the 120 years of its modern incarnation The International Olympic Committee will not impose a blanket ban on Russia for next month's Rio Olympics over the nation's doping record but will leave decisions on individual athletes' participation with their sports federations, it said. The IOC's announcement follows the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) call for a Rio ban in response to the independent McLaren report that found evidence of widespread state-sponsored doping by Russian athletes at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi . The world governing body's ruling 15-member executive board met on Sunday via teleconference and decided that responsibility for ruling on the eligibility of Russians remains with the international federations. "We have set the bar to the limit," IOC president Thomas Bach said after the meeting, defending the action agai

Rio 2016: With just days to go, Brazil still not ready for the Olympics

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Less than a week to go, still working on a Golf Course After seven years, almost $US12 billion, a litany of problems and with just a few days to go, Rio is still not ready to hold the biggest games on Earth. The weekend collapse of the main access ramp at Marina da Gloria, the Olympic sailing venue, was symbolic. There is a slump in mood and expectations ahead of Friday's opening ceremony. Previous Olympiads have faced budget blowouts, delays and mistakes, so Rio is not alone.  But this one might just win the gold medal. International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach said every Olympics faced challenges, and has reassured the world that Rio will be ready. But serious questions are again being asked about construction quality and safety. "There is a tendency in Brazil to leave a lot for the last minute, to improvise and 'just' get things done,'' Professor Ricardo Teixeira, a marketing specialist, said. Jose Cabral Gomes is one Bra