The Australian Olympic Committee will "ask Brazilian authorities to expunge records of criminal proceedings against nine athletes who were detained at the Rio Olympics" after their accreditation passes were tampered with after an investigation labeled the criminal process "oppressive," according to Greg Stutchbury of REUTERS. Nine athletes were detained on Aug. 19 by local authorities "for over seven hours after they were discovered to have entered the basketball arena without proper accreditation" for Australia's semifinal against Serbia. A report commissioned by the AOC said that two of its "Athletes Services" staff had "stuck labels on the accreditations to allow them to enter the venue." The report, written by sports lawyer Patrick George, said that "it was not the first time delegation staff had manipulated accreditations to allow athletes to enter venues unauthorized." They had printed labels to allow them to enter "various venues" during the first week of competition, the report added, a practice that came to the attention of team Chef de Mission Kitty Chiller, who "ordered it to cease." It added that the IOC had "not made any complaint against the athletes." The AOC said that "it would join with the IOC to seek to have the athletes' records of criminal proceedings expunged immediately, rather than wait for a two-year 'good behavior' period ordered by the court to elapse." It said that the athletes services staff, who were volunteers and former Olympians, "had been admonished and were denied privileges including participating in the closing ceremony" (REUTERS, 9/1).
MORE MONEY: REUTERS' Ian Ransom reported Australia's top sports funding authority has "defended its record in the wake of the nation's worst Olympic haul in 24 years and called for more money to bridge the gap at elite international events." The Australian Sports Commission and its funding program "Winning Edge" have been "under fire since Rio." AOC President John Coates publicly questioned "Winning Edge" two days before the closing ceremony and said that the model "needed to be reviewed." But ASC Chair John Wylie said that the authority's board had "committed unanimously" to its key principles at a meeting this week. In a statement, Wylie said, "Australia's Winning Edge is built on evidence-based funding decisions, high aspirations for achievement, sports taking responsibility for their own high performance programs and improved leadership and governance in sports organizations. It needs to be understood that these changes strengthen sports but don't produce results overnight" (REUTERS, 9/1).
