1. The refusal of Iranian judo champion Arash Miresmaili to fight his Israeli opponent, and the International Judo Federation’s subsequent decision exonerating Iran of any wrongdoing.
2. The capitulation of Australian rower Sally Robbins in the 2000m rowing final, followed by threats and criticism by her teammates.The International Judo Federation accepted the disqualification of Arash Miresmaeili came because a medical condition left him too heavy to fight.—-The 23-year-old double world champion, who carried his country’s flag at the Games’ opening ceremony, weighed more than five kilograms over the 66 kg limit for the bout against Israeli Ehud Vaks. After the draw, he was quoted by the Iranian news agency as saying that he had refused to face his Israeli rival in sympathy with the “oppressed Palestinian people”.
“I had some pretty hard words thrown at me. I had some pretty tough things to take. I haven’t really experienced anything like that before,” Sally Robbins said.She said one furious teammate threatened to throw her overboard. “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t know what to say. I was stunned myself,” she said.Her controversial capitulation 600m from the finishing line has split the country and experts alike. The Daily Telegraph has also learned that she has done the same thing before – two years ago at the world championships in Spain.Then, Robbins was in the Australian women’s quad scull that led the final when she imploded and the crew came in fourth.Criticism was led last night by former Olympic silver medallist rower Rachael Taylor.“What happened on Sunday and previously in 2002 is no different that one of our Australian swimmers stopping swimming mid race in their Olympic relay final,” she said.“There is no doubt in my mind that Sally Robbins quitting on Sunday was a repeat of complete mental weakness, not physical exhaustion.”“They were leading the race [in Spain], as close to having it in the bag as you could get with 500m to go Sally did a similar thing … stopped rowing.”Yesterday, amid shocking scenes, Robbins was barracked by her teammates as she headed off for interviews. Catcalls could be heard including: “Tell the truth Sally, don’t lie.”
3. The father of a Japanese wrestler showing his displeasure at his daughter’s defeat in the Gold medal match.
The father of Japanese female wrestler Kyoko Hamaguchi had to be restrained by officials after venting his fury at her controversial defeat at the Athens Olympics.Former professional wrestler “Animal” Hamaguchi tried to leap from the stands to protest when Chinese opponent Wang Xu was awarded victory in the 72 kg semi-final.Dressed in a rising sun T-shirt, he yelled: “That’s impossible. It’s not on. They’ve made a mistake.”Security guards moved in to restore order as the 56-year-old man then became embroiled in an angry exchange with his wife, who was doing her best to calm him down.
4. US gymnast Paul Hamm’s winning of the men’s gymnastics all-around title – thanks to a judging error that robbed South Korean Yang Tae-young of the gold – and Hamm’s subsequent lack of sportsmanship.
Hamm won the gold Wednesday after judges incorrectly scored Yang’s parallel bars routine, failing to give him enough points for the level of difficulty. Yang ended up with the bronze while Hamm became the first American man to win the event.The federation, known as FIG, admitted the judges made a mistake, but said it couldn’t change the results. But that wasn’t good enough for the South Koreans, who want a gold medal for Yang.—-Under FIG rules, protests have to be filed immediately, and the South Koreans waited until after the meet to lodge their complaint. FIG rules also prevent scores from being changed once the meet is over.“If the athlete does not agree to give up his medal, I don’t know what we can do,” IOC member Alex Gilady said.Grandi seemed to indicate that’s what he would like.“For me, the best situation would be for Paul Hamm to take this medal and give …” Grandi said, pretending to remove a medal from around his neck and leaving the sentence unfinished.But Hamm said he has no plans to give up the medal unless someone asks him.“I truly believe in my heart that I am the Olympic all-around champion,” Hamm said. “I did my job, and I competed with pride and integrity.”
I think it would be fair to say that the Olympic Games have lost much of their nobility and prestige. If years of drug cheating and questionable judging hadn’t already taken their toll, the current Games in Athens have already produced some amazing instances of unsportsmanlike behavior:
