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Olympic Notes: Olympic Water Polo Players Complain Of Water Stinging Eyes

Olympic athletes have complained of stinging eyes because Rio organizers have "over-chlorinated" the outside swimming pool in a bid to "prevent it going green." They said that "huge quantities of the chemical have been put into the water next to the diving pool which turned a bizarre murky colour overnight." But now athletes say that the water "is damaging their game -- and even making them feel nauseous due to the high levels of chlorine used." Team USA men's water polo captain Tony Azevedo said that he could "barely" open his eyes for the final quarter, after his team's 6-3 victory over France on Wednesday. He said, "This is the Olympic Games and they are putting so much chlorine in the water that people can't see. You can't have that" (London DAILY MAIL, 8/11).

KUWAIT FA RAIDED: Police in Kuwait raided the country's FA HQ late on Tuesday, "a week after the Gulf state lost a Swiss court case" against the IOC which has banned the country from int'l competitions. A statement from the Kuwait FA said, "Police and other government authorities visited the Kuwait FA headquarters. Kuwait Olympic Committee headquarters is their next destination." An interior ministry spokesperson "denied the police had raided the offices, saying a photo going around on social media was of a governmental committee looking into infringements on state property which had visited a number of locations, including sports clubs" (REUTERS, 8/10).

SOLDIERS SHOT IN RIO: National security forces are "employing operations in the Vila do João favela community, part of the Complexo da Maré in Zona Norte (North Zone) of Rio de Janeiro, twenty minutes from the Maracanã Stadium where the Olympic Games Opening ceremony was held five days earlier." The military action is in response to Wednesday’s "shooting attack on soldiers that mistakenly entered the Vila do João neighborhood by local drug gangs, referred to as traficantes." The soldiers "were shot at when they took a wrong turn following a mobile navigation app, and entering the favela community by accident, according to the Civil Police" (RIO TIMES, 8/11).

OLYMPIC BRIEFS ...
A Kenyan magistrate has "ruled that the country's athletics manager can be held by police for four weeks as they investigate claims that he was prepared to warn coaches about drugs tests" in return for £10,000 ($13,000). Michael Rotich "denies any wrongdoing, saying he wanted to protect athletes." Rotich has "already been sent home from the Olympic Games in Rio" (BBC, 8/10).

The Int'l Paralympic Committee confirmed that over the last 12 months it has looked into 16 potential cases of intentional misrepresentation in IPC Swimming and determined that in all cases there is insufficient evidence to take any cases forward. Each case was examined thoroughly. This included the review of competition footage and further examinations of each athlete's classification record. The resulting determination was that the IPC would take no further action in each case. IPC CEO Xavier Gonzalez said, "The IPC treats intentional misrepresentation in any Para sport as a very serious offence. It is one that can lead to a two-year suspension for an athlete and/or athlete support personnel" (IPC).

Mexican National Commission for Physical Culture & Sport (CONADE) Dir Alfredo Castillo "exploded against" FINA after the 3m synchronized diving final. Castillo "complained that Mexican duo Rommel Pachecho and Jahir Ocampo were not allowed to repeat their sixth dive," after a temporary light above the pool suddenly turned on while they were starting their dive. The CONADE exec took to Twitter to accuse FINA of retaliating for Mexico's "refusal to pay a fine of $15M after deciding not to host the 2017 FINA World Championships" (LA AFICIÓN, 8/10).

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