Spanish Olympic Committee Cancels new Anthem Debut

Spanish Olympic Committee Rejects Anthem

The Spanish Olympic Committee has withdrawn its support from a new set of verses meant to be sung with the country's wordless national anthem.

COE president Alejandro Blanco has been the main driver of a months-long nationwide contest designed to find words to the song. But the six judges gathered by the COE have chosen words that remind some Spaniards of dictator Francisco Franco's slogans.

The proposed verses begin with Viva Espana and urge citizens to ama a la patria, or "love the fatherland", a nationalistic concept especially unpopular with Basques and Catalans.

Public criticism began when the lyrics were leaked to the Spanish press last week. The words were meant to be secret until sung by opera megastar Placido Domingo at a launch on Jan. 21. The COE formally acknowledged the failure of the lyrics and disavowed them today.

But Blanco says the COE will continue its mission to find lyrics that bring together, not separate, the country's people.

NOC Briefs…

Slovenia's NOC announced Olympic and World Championship medal bounties on Jan. 15. Olympic gold medalists will take home some $75,000, silver medalists about three-quarters of that, bronze finishers one-half. World Championship medals will be worth about half their Olympic counterparts. The payments will be made monthly over four years, according to Slovenia media.

The Uganda Olympic Committee has been asked by the World Taekwondo Federation to clarify a question of support given to the country's national governing body. The WTF reports receiving fund requests from David Mutazindwa after he was voted out of the Uganda Taekwondo Federation presidency. The WTF asks the UOC to verify the role, if any, of Mutazindwa, and report on the use of equipment given to UTF, Kampala media report.

The 19-man Rwandan boxing team has called off training for the Jan. 22 Olympic qualifier in Algeria due to lack of funds. The national technical director insists the team will be prepared for a March 22 qualifier in Namibia; he says he remains optimistic that Rwanda will be represented in Beijing.

Rwandan National Olympic Committee boss Ignace Beraho recently accused star runner Dieudonné Disi of racing in Europe for money instead of training for the Olympics. Rwandan Youth, Culture and Sport Minister Joseph Habineza fired back, "Disi wins while wearing Rwanda's uniform and he has brought pride to Rwanda due to his better performances. Those were unfair comments and that should be stopped." Despite having his funding frozen by Beraho, Disi is the only Rwandan athlete to qualify for the 10,000 meter race in Beijing.

Habib Sissoko undertakes his third term as Mali NOC president after an election at the General Assembly meeting over the weekend. He ran unopposed for the four-year term. Also at the meeting, the Malian Fencing Federation officially joined the NOC.

The Canadian Olympic Committee is accepting applications for the Olympic Youth Camp in Beijing, which runs from Aug. 2 to 18. The Beijing 2008-sponsored camp gives each NOC tickets to send one boy and one girl to "experience the spirit" of the Games. Candidates must demonstrate excellence in academics, athletics and leadership and be between the ages of 16-18 as of June 30.

The Australian Olympic Committee has added to its website podcats of favorite Olympic moments compiled by veteran commentator Norman May. The 56 "Golden Nuggets" date back to 1896.

United States Olympic Committee licensee Griffin Publishing has just released its latest Games-themed textbooks. The two volumes of Journey to Beijing teach primary and secondary students about art, geography, history, language arts and math using Olympic lessons.

Written by Maggie Lee

For general comments or questions, click here

The Golden 25 special edition magazine is now available in PDF. Click here to see who will be most influential in the Olympic Movement in 2008.