I just found it and wanted to share.

ANTaR, Indigenous rights group, claims that they merely want to get a share of the Commonwealth Games spotlight as they present to the rest of the population their cause, not because that they’re against the Games.

Watch the video clip here.

Post from: EveryJoe

Stolenwealth Games

The 2 notable absentees in the Australian Team for the Swimming event are Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett. It is such a shame to lose the country’s best bet however, it’s also an avenue for some potential stars to rise up and create a huge splash in the sport.

This puts pressure on the Women’s team to perform really well to bring home the gold for the country. So be on the look out for Jodie Henry, Giaan Rooney and Shayne Reese. The Men’s team will not be as strong as the women but are still expected to give a good performance.

Read more about it here and check out a related article by Scott Goldblatt over at Timed Finals.

Post from: EveryJoe

Ian Thorpe not competing for 400m Freestyle

I was watching this game live on TV (and Live Blogging) and there was no mention of this streaker. Around the ‘net .. sites are reporting the initial “sighting” from the AP news item… but I kept wondering … was this guy .. Mark Roberts?

It is now confirmed – Yes it was

Streaker interrupts bronze medal curling game
Updated Fri. Feb. 24 2006 4:53 PM ET

Associated Press

PINEROLO, Italy — Notorious British streaker Mark Roberts has apparently struck again.

A man wearing running shoes, a rubber chicken taped over his genitals and a towel on his head came out of the stands during the Olympic bronze medal curling game Friday, earning some laughs from the British and American rinks before he was taken away by security.

An Italian press agency indentified him as Patrick Roberts, a 42-year from Liverpool who was also responsible for a streaking incident at Wimbledon, and said he was in police custody.

That description would seem to better fit Mark Roberts, a man with a history of streaking and ties to GoldenPalace.com, an online casino whose name was written on the Olympic streaker’s chest.

GoldenPalace.com has a history of interrupting major sporting events to seek publicity and has used Roberts in the past to crash the world swimming championship, Super Bowl, Real Madrid home opener, French Open tennis and UEFA Cup soccer final.

The casino also has used boxers as human billboards during fights and employed topless women to crash golf tournaments. And it had former NBA bad boy Dennis Rodman run with the bulls in Pamplona to raise money for MS research.

GoldenPalace.com has Canadian ties in that it is one of many gambling ventures licensed by the Quebec-based Kahnawake Gaming Commission. It has an office on the First Nation community near Montreal as well as in Antigua and England.

GoldenPalace.com said nobody was available Friday for comment.

At the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, a Canadian man jumped off a board into the swimming pool during a diving event. The man, who was arrested and fined 2,000 euros ($3,225 Cdn), also had GoldenPalace.com on his chest and back, but the company said it didn’t put him up to the stunt.
© 2006 Bell Globemedia Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Here’s the NBC news item (the above picture was from this NBC article)

NBCOlympics.com – Torino Tracker – Is it cold in here, or is it just me?

….. Any doubt that curling has arrived was removed when the event was interrupted by a streaker.

During the fifth end break (curling’s version of halftime and/or a seventh inning stretch), a large and not-too-muscular guy ran out across the sheet. Nothing on except for the obligatory online gambling ad and a strategically-wrapped rubber chicken.

USA skip Pete Fenson had a chuckle, and so did Rogge. Less amused was chief referee Keith Wendorf, who tackled the offender.

An umpire mercifully covered him with a coat and he was led out of the arena by the Italian polizia.

I’m more pissed off that the entire event seemed to have gone unnoticed ON TV … than the actual streaking .. but C’mon Golden Palace … Streaking at the Olympics? C’mon! That’s bad dudes.

Post from: EveryJoe

Drats I missed this ..

I thought I would refresh the Canadians out there reading this post, on past Olympic medal accomplishments. Lately, I keep hearing (even though it probably is true most times), that there have been a lot of disappointing moments so far by Canadian Athletes during these Olympics … 4th place, disqualifications, upsets, illnesses, and there’s no reason to mention names!). I just wanted to give our competing athletes a big HART-ie pat on the back, for a job well done … and don’t worry .. we’re just venting! We really are proud of you!

Current Year Medal Count – CAN & USA

Here are the medal results for both Canada and the USA as of close of day – February 23, 2006. I recapped both countries, (because that’s what neighbors do~) .. and to show everybody .. Hey! We’re Ahead of last year! Nyah Nyah! USA is not! Nyah Nyah! haha :D .. I only went back to the years that I was alive :p

Country – Gold / Silver / Bronze // Total

CANADA – 5 / 8 / 6 // 19
USA – 7 / 8 / 5 // 20

Previous Year Medal Count – CAN & USA

Some are some News updates…

Gushue goes for Curling Gold

A lock to win Canada’s record 20th medal at the Torino Olympics, Brad Gushue also will try to make history in Pinerolo, Italy.

The 23-year-old skip and his rink of third Mark Nichols, second Russ Howard and lead Jamie Korab will take on Finland’s Markku Uusipaavalniemi for curling gold on Friday (CBC, 11:30 a.m. EST).

…. Like Kleibrink, Gushue will have an entire nation behind him, including thousands of school kids who were given the afternoon off by Newfoundland and Labrador Education Minister Joan Burke.

She called Friday’s match a historic moment for Newfoundland and Labrador.

“We want our students to remember exactly where they were when they saw the world recognize the talent in this province,” Burke said in a statement.

In St. John’s, a crowd of about 6,000 is expected to gather at Mile One Stadium to watch the final.

Beckie Scott Elected To IOC Athletes’ Commission

TURIN, February 23, 2006 – The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced today that Canadian cross-country skier Beckie Scott (Vermilion, Alta.) was one of two Olympians elected to the IOC’s Athletes’ Commission for an eight-year term. Finnish ice hockey player Saku Koivu was also elected.

During the 16-day election period from February 8 to 23, Scott received the highest number of votes amongst the 15 candidates with a total of 449. Runner-up Koivu received 412 votes. A total of 2003 athletes – a record number – voted in the election, representing 78.2% of all eligible voters.

Congratulations to Beckie Scott .. At these games, she has earned herself (and Canada) one Silver medal for the “Cross-Country Skiing – Ladies Team Sprint” event with teammate Sara Renner.

Post from: EveryJoe

Today’s Lineup – February 24, 2006 – Medal History for Canada

The president of the Austrian ski federation revealed that two athletes “may have used illegal methods” at the Torino Olympic Winter Games.

Federation president Peter Schroecksnadel told reporters Tuesday that Wolfgang Perner and Wolfgang Rottman, both of whom fled Italy when the team’s Olympic residences were raided by local police last Sunday evening, confessed to sports director Markus Gandler.

Schroecksnadel did not elaborate, noting only that the skiers have been kicked off the national team and that a commission is being set up to investigate.

“Team Austria is a small group and we live in close proximity to each other,” said biathlete Ludwig Gredler, who has competed in five Olympics. “But naturally, I cannot know what happens in other rooms.

“I know I am clean and have taken nothing. But I cannot speak for my teammates.”

Police reportedly seized 100 syringes, unlabelled medicine bottles, boxes of prescription drugs, and even a blood-transfusion machine in the anti-doping raid, the first on athletes in Olympic history.

[...more...]

Post from: EveryJoe

Austrians admit to ‘illegal methods’

Feb 20 2006

SESTRIERE, Feb 20 (Reuters) – The start times of Monday’s two Alpine ski races at the Turin Olympics have been put back to allow workers to clear snow from the pistes, organisers said.

Heavy snow had fallen all day on Sunday, forcing a postponement of the women’s super-G by 24 hours.

Monday dawned clear and bright but organisers said they needed time to clear the men’s giant slalom piste in Sestriere and the women’s super-G course in nearby San Sicario.

The two legs of the men’s race will now start an hour later than planned at 1030 and 1400 local time (0930 GMT and 1300 GMT) with the women’s race pushed back nearly three hours to 1445 local (1345 GMT).

Post from: EveryJoe

Alpine Skiing: race start-times pushed back

Last Updated: Sun Feb 19 19:58:21 EST 2006
CBC Sports

Walter Mayer, the man whose appearance at the Torino Winter Olympic Games set off a raid by Italian police on the Austrian nordic ski team, has been taken into custody by Italian police after he allegedly took them on a chase through the mountains that ended with a crash into a police barrier.

Italian police took Mayer into protective custody after he allegedly tried to run a one-car road block while heading for the Austrian border.

Police earlier in the evening had approached a car in which a man was sleeping. The occupant, identified as Mayer by authorities, drove off, hitting and slightly injuring an officer, and authorities gave chase.

Mayer, himself, was reported to be slightly injured in the later incident, in which a car rammed an unoccupied police cruiser set up to block a road in the town of Paternion, in the province of Carinthia, about 24 kilometres from the Italian frontier, and 400 km from Turin.

He refused to take a sobriety test requested by the officers.

It was not known on Sunday evening if Mayer would face charges, or if a search was done of the vehicle. His license was provisionally suspended.

He was apparently returning to his home country, some hours after Italian authorities had launched their raid on the Austrian biathlon and cross-country team quarters, looking for banned substances and equipment.

Italian authorities said they had seized blood analysis equipment, as well as syringes, vials of distilled water, asthma medication and other substances, according to ANSA, the Italian news agency.

ANSA also reported that one athlete had thrown a bag out of a window of the residence during the raid that contained needles and medicines.

Mayer had been living in a house next door to the Austrian team’s residence in the hamlet of San Sicario, said CBC News, on Sunday night. A BBC News report also said that Austrian officials had admitted Mayer was staying with the group.

Meanwhile, the Austrian Ski Federation said Sunday night it had ended its relationship with Mayer, giving the accident as the reason.

There was no indication as to why the Austrian federation had any kind of relationship in the first place with Mayer, who was on the the international ski federation’s (FIS) banned list to 2015, and had been banned from the Torino and Vancouver 2010 Games by the IOC.

With files from Associated Press

[Source]

Post from: EveryJoe

Austrian coach crashes roadblock

Italian law enforcement authorities raided the Olympic residences of Austria’s biathlon and cross-country teams early Sunday, but found no evidence of doping. It marked the first anti-doping police raid on athletes in Olympic history.

…….”They checked every drink, every food, and they took a lot of stuff with them,” Austrian spokesman Eric Wagner claimed. “They came around 9 and stayed until 12 and then took the athletes away to be tested.” Austria finished dead last in Sunday’s 4×10-kilometre relay. “They absolutely ruined the race,” Austrian skier Martin Tauber said. “I was already a little bit tired yesterday.”

…… Italian police were acting on a report by the World Anti-Doping Agency, an organization headed by Canadian lawyer Dick Pound. Pound told the Associated Press on Saturday that doping control officers went to Austria to test athletes and, while they did not find who they were looking for, they did find blood doping equipment linked to Walter Mayer, a former nordic coach banned for suspicion of performing blood transfusions on athletes at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Winter Games.

[... more ...]

What do you think? Isn’t drug testing of our athletes enough? Can’t the raids wait until after the Olympics or at Customs trying to leave the country?

*shrugs*

Post from: EveryJoe

Austrians Angry Over Police Raid

A formal complaint filed by the Canadian Olympic Committee over the finish of the women’s 500-metre short-track speed skating final has been denied.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport dismissed the protest following a hearing held Friday.

Anouk Leblanc-Boucher of Prevost, Que., won the bronze medal in Wednesday’s sprint, but the COC claimed that silver medallist Evgenia Radanova of Bulgaria crossed the finish line with her front skate tilted upward.

Rules require skaters to cross with both skates on the ice.

Canadian officials argued that Radanova be disqualified and Leblanc-Boucher awarded the silver medal and Kalyna Roberge of St-Etienne-de-Lauzon, Que., elevated from fourth to third.

Roberge won the B final, but finished fourth overall because Fu Tianyu of China was disqualified for cross-tracking (impeding another skater) in the A final.

“Kalyna didn’t want us to file the appeal,” Canadian coach Guy Thibault noted. “She was saying she wanted to beat the skaters on the ice.”

Speed Skating Canada director Jean Dupre filed the protest to the Court of Arbitration for Sport on behalf of the COC.

with files from CP Online
Copyright © CBC 2006

Source

Post from: EveryJoe

Canada Loses Short-Track Protest

Italian law enforcement authorities raided the residences of some staff members of the Austrian biathlon and cross-country teams early Sunday morning, apparently searching for banned substances, said two separate news reports.

The International Olympic Committee also confirmed it has conducted out-of-competition doping tests on “a number of Austrian cross-country and biathlon athletes,” according to Reuters and Associated Press.

[..more..]

Post from: EveryJoe

Police raid Austrian Ski Team