Libya Olympic Chief Ousted; Archbishop Praises Games; Silver Medalist Loses Eye

Libya Olympic Chief Ousted from Office

The Integrity Commission of the Libyan Cabinet has ordered Nabil Elalem, president of the Libyan Olympic Committee, to be removed from office.

Libyan media say no official explanation was offered, but he failed to meet "standards of integrity."

Elalem did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Abdulqadir Al-Qublawi Omar Alwandi, head of the Libyan swimming federation, and an LOC executive board member were also removed from office.

Archbishop of Canterbury Credits Games Makers

The Archbishop of Canterbury compares church volunteers to the Londoners who gave their time for the success of the Summer Games.

In his outgoing New Year Message delivered Tuesday, in fact, Rowan Williams paid quite a bit of lip service to the "extraordinary events" of London 2012 and the Games Makers who made them possible.

"If you have the good fortune to live in a community where things seem to be working well, the chances are that if you slip backstage you’ll find an army of cheerful people making the wheels go round - and don’t forget just what a huge percentage of them come from the churches and other faith groups," he was quoted by The Telegraph.

"But everyone who visited the Olympic site or watched the broadcasts will have been made aware of the army of volunteers who cheerfully gave up their free time and worked away, without complaint, all hours of the day and night to make these great events happen."

Williams, who stepped down Tuesday, added: "They were the key people who translated the Olympic vision into reality for the rest of us."

Click here to watch the complete New Year Message.

Silver Medalist Shot, Loses Eye

Mexican silver medalist in race walking Noe Hernandez was shot on Sunday, reportedly losing an eye in the process.

News agency EFE reports two people died when gunmen burst into a nightclub in Los Reyes La Paz outside of Mexico City.

"The surgeries were successful, without any complications," Hernandez’ doctor was quoted as saying. "We must wait and see his progress in intensive care."

It's unclear if Hernandez was a target of the violence. He serves as sports secretary for the ruling party of Mexico state.

He won a silver medal at the Sydney Olympics.

FLIR Awarded Olympic, World Cup Contract

Sensor systems manufacturer FLIR Systems was awarded a multi-million dollar contract for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics.

A statement from the company says the $12.5 million contract with Brazil's Special Secretariat for the Security of Major Events will provide security sensor systems, including airborne surveillance.

Olympics Top Year-End Search Stats

London 2012 is among the most popular stories of 2012, according to year-end statistics from the internet’s top search engines.

"Olympics 2012" ranked seventh on Google’s list of most searched-for terms from the past 12 months. "Olympics" was third among Yahoo! users, and "2012 Olympics" was third on Bing.

Other top searches involved Whitney Houston, Hurricane Sandy, Kate Middleton, the U.S. presidential election, new Apple products, the Korean pop song "Gangnam Style" and various worldwide celebrities.

Written by Ed Hula III and Matthew Grayson.

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.