Olympics
Notebook: Rogge backs security plan

By Seattle Times news services

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive Most read articles Most e-mailed articles

ATHENS, Greece — International Olympic Committee officials have "full confidence" in Greece's record $1.5 billion plan for safeguarding the Athens Games against terrorism, IOC president Jacques Rogge said yesterday.

"These efforts are justified as, going beyond the Games, what is at stake is protecting society, democracy, civilization and freedom," Rogge said at the opening ceremony of the 116th IOC general assembly.

Rogge said security has been the IOC's top priority since the 1972 Munich Games, where 11 Israeli athletes and coaches died after Palestinian militants raided the Olympic village.

"I pay tribute once again to the victims of that tragedy whom we shall never forget," he said.

Rogge urged all members of the Olympic movement to "cooperate fully and follow totally" the Greek government's security instructions.

"I call upon them not to engage in parallel activities, which are not coordinated or approved," he said. "Security requires a unified command structure."

Rogge was apparently referring to the sensitive issue of arming overseas security agents. Greek authorities fear foreign guards could react inappropriately in an unfamiliar environment.

Rogge also cited doping and ethical violations as among the biggest threats to sports.

Citing the growing number of positive drug tests, he said, "This is an encouraging sign that the fight against doping is gaining ground, and that it is becoming increasingly hard to cheat."

Rogge called for sanctions against athletes and sports leaders who violate ethics rules. On Saturday, the IOC suspended Bulgarian member Ivan Slavkov for alleged improper conduct related to the 2012 bid-city process.
 
Greek president Costis Stephanopoulos welcomed the Olympic delegates but said he "personally felt bitter" toward some of the people who criticized Athens for taking until the last moment to build stadiums and other infrastructure for the Games.

"I came across a number of malevolent or ironical comments by others who were anticipating an organizational failure and rejoicing in advance," he said. "What I cannot admit is the assertion that in awarding the Games to Greece you supposedly committed an error."

Sprinter Williams is cleared to compete despite positive test

United States sprinter Bernard Williams, who won a gold medal in the 400-meter relay at the Sydney Olympics, was cleared to compete in the Athens Games despite testing positive for marijuana at a meet in June.

In accordance with International Association of Athletics Federations policy, Williams received a warning from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency for a first offense. He also had to forfeit his second-place finish in the 200-meter race in Seville, Spain, in June.

Williams will compete in the 200 meters in Athens.

Note

• A man reportedly threw himself off his balcony in Nea Ionia, Greece, two days after a quarrel prompted his girlfriend — a member of Greece's Olympic judo team — to jump from the same spot.

Giorgos Chrisostomides, 24, was on life support at an Athens hospital with injuries to his head and back. His high-school sweetheart, judo champion Eleni Ioannou, 20, was at another hospital in critical condition with multiple fractures to her head and body.

Friends and relatives said the couple's argument on Saturday was minor, and they were shocked at its tragic consequences. "It was a small fight, something silly," said Chrisostomides' cousin and downstairs neighbor, Paul Michaelides. "It started about who would play solitaire on the computer."