Union Youth Affairs and Sports Minister M S Gill on Wednesday said that India [ Images ] should not be thinking of hosting Olympics [ Images ] Games in the near future.
Gill's remarks came in response to a statement made by actor-turned-politician of Samajwadi Party (SP) Jaya Bachchan, who reportedly said that the Commonwealth Games [ Images ] gives an opportunity to bid for the Olympics.
IOA president Suresh Kalmadi said Wednesday the International Weightlifting Federation has instructed the association to “withdraw the leadership of IWF and conduct fresh election.”
“IOA will take a final decision on the matter after the meeting in Korea,” Kalmadi said.
“The International Weightlifting Federation president wrote to the IOA about the doping violations committed by Indian weightlifters in the past few weeks and also mentioned that it was not the first time that our lifters tested positive,” Kalmadi said.
The legal counsel for the international organisation Monika Ungar said: “The executive board will hold its meeting tomorrow and a decision regarding the Indian federation will be taken there.”
Indian Weightlifting Federation chief Harbhajan Singh said the executive council members decided to resign en masse in the interest of the sport.
“The executive committee met Tuesday. Not everyone favoured the extreme step of resignation of the entire board and opinions were divided. We discussed it threadbare and came to the conclusion that this could be the only way to escape a harsher penalty from the IOA and the international federation,” Harbhajan told IANS.
“In any case, IOA had constituted a panel and you never know they could have asked us to resign. We thought it would be better if we take the moral responsibility instead of being forced to step down.”
“Our lifters have done well in recent tournaments. We won so many medals in the Commonwealth Championships, but at the same time it is also true that we have come under the scanner because some of our lifters tested positive. We do not want to be banned and not participate in the Delhi Commonwealth Games where our lifters have good chances of winning a rich haul of medals.”
Under international rules, three or more violations in one calendar year may result in the “national federation being banned from participation in international tournaments for a period of up to two years and/or be imposed a fine of at least $50,000.”
The IWF has twice been banned in 2004 and 2006 because of more than three or more doping violations in a calendar year.
“The international body will hear our case tomorrow and hopefully they will take a lenient view.”
IOA sources said that the association might set up an ad-hoc committee for the time being until the election could be held. source: http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal
Rio de Janeiro will host the 2016 Olympics
Rio de Janeiro will host the 2016 Olympics after the Brazilian city won a landslide victory over Madrid in the final round of voting on Friday.
International Olympic Committee members shocked everyone at the Bella Convention Centre by eliminating favourites Chicago in the first voting round, despite the unprecedented personal support President Barack Obama gave the bid.
Tokyo were the next city to fall before the IOC backed Rio to become the first South American city to host the Games by a final-round margin of 66 votes to Madrid's 32.
A few seconds after the announcement, an almost speechless Carlos Osorio, general secretary of the Brazilian bid, told Reuters: "Overwhelming, spectacular, unbelievable."
Brazil is already preparing to host the soccer World Cup in 2014 and President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, left in tears of joy by the announcement, said the country would have to work harder than ever to stage a Games they could be proud of.
"We are going to have to sleep less, think more and work more," Lula said at a news conference.
"Now our term of reference is going to be work, work, work -- work for Brazil to do better than any other time in its history."
CHICAGO STUNNED
Chicago went out after polling just 18 votes in the first round, despite the eloquent speeches on their behalf made by Obama, the first sitting U.S. president to address an IOC session, and first lady Michelle Obama.
Madrid led the race at that stage with 28 votes, followed by Rio on 26 and Tokyo on 22.
Rio came close to polling an absolute majority in the second round with 46 votes, followed by Madrid on 29 with Tokyo going out on 20.
The final round was not even close.
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero told Reuters: "Rio was a great candidate.
"It was well worth the effort. Olympic sport goes this way sometimes. We had a very good result and there will be other opportunities."
NERVOUS MOMENTS
The announcement was delayed by several nervous seconds as IOC president Jacques Rogge struggled to open the envelope.
"Like in every competition there can only be one winner," Rogge said. "Tonight I have the honour to announce that the Games of the 31st Olympiad are awarded to the city of Rio de Janeiro," Rogge said.
Carlos Nuzman, Rio bid leader, hugged President Lula, both in tears and said: "We did it, we did it," and the Brazilian delegation broke into their "Marvellous City" song, waving flags and hugging each other.
Both finalists had staged impressive presentations, featuring heartfelt contributions from Lula for Rio and former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch for Madrid.
Lula persuaded members it was time to address the fact that South America had never hosted the Games.
The 89-year-old Samaranch, who ran the IOC for more than two decades, asked voters to take his age into account.
"I know I am very near the end of my days," he said. "May I ask you to consider granting my country the honour and also the duty to organise the games in 2016?"
That tug on the heart-strings helped take Madrid into the final but could not prevent the Games going to Brazil.
(Additional reporting by Karolos Grohmann, John Acher and Owen Wyatt)
Rio De Janeiro, Sep 24 (Kyodo) Brazil is optimistic that it will win the race against Japan, Spain and US to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will meet in Copenhagen on Oct 2 to announce the host city for the 2016 Games. Rio De Janeiro, Tokyo, Madrid and Chicago are cities contending to host the prestigious event.
"We are aware that anything can happen on Oct 2, but we are optimistic because we have done our homework well," Rio De Janeiro's mayor Mayor Eduardo Paes told reporters yesterday.
Paes said that IOC gave a positive analysis of Rio de Janeiro's bid report although most local sports commentators feel Tokyo will be the main rival in the race for the Games.
Since 1995, pedicabs have been a regular at West End, the entertainment area around Covent Garden, Leicester Square and the more crowded Soho, Regent Street and Piccadilly Circus.
Today there are more than 400 of them going up and down the busy London streets. And come 2012, the pedicabs will play an important role in giving the London Olympics a green image.
"The Olympic Village is trying to have 100-400 pedicabs so as to have an eco-friendly environment," said Friedel Schroder, managing director of BugBugs, the market leader in creating pedicabs since 1998.
Life is not so easy for pedicab drivers who often have to struggle to earn a meagre income.
Gokhann, 20, a Turkish national, clad in blue jeans and a black turtleneck sweater , stands in front of the Leicester Square tube station. He has been waiting for two hours for a customer to hitch a ride on his pedicab.
"Sometimes I enjoy my job. But at times, I am tired, especially when I have to pedal with four people on the pedicab," Gokhann said and added on some days he earns a mere 20 pounds.
An Egyptian national who did not wish to be named took up a job as a pedicab driver the day after he came to London almost three months ago. "Money is very difficult to come by in this job. It is difficult to go on like this," he said.
With the Olympics Village giving the nod to pedicabs, there is now some hope for Gokhann and others, as they feel the humble rickshaw could get a lot of publicity during the mega sporting event.
The pedicabs are popular among tourists who take short rides in the eco-friendly vehicle for a few pounds.
"I loved chatting with the pedicabbie when I took it from Oxford Street to Edgware Road. It's a lovely way of seeing London," said Rama Arya, a communications expert for the South African government.
A short trip from Leicester Square to Covent Garden varies from five to 10 pounds and this irks the 'big brother' - the London black cabbies.
"There's no regulation on the pedicab fares. They fleece the tourists for a five-10 minute journey. Our main problem is the congestion the pedicabs creates on the streets," said Bob Oddy, general secretary, Licensed Taxi Drivers Association (LTDA).
But pedicab driver Carl, a Polish national, refutes the allegation. He says he accepts whatever the riders give as a tip, while the fare of the journey is conveyed to the riders in advance.
Soruce:http://news.in.msn.com/national
