Olympic Newsdesk -- IOC Confident in Russian Security; Rogge Watches Rugby; Oceania Meets

Rugby Sevens Shows Olympic Potential

International Rugby Board chairman Bernard Lapasset has hailed the Hong Kong Sevens tournament as an example of the sport's potential to add a buzz to the Rio 2016 Olympic program.

Lapasset watched the Sevens final on Sunday with IOC President Jacques Rogge, who was among the trophy presenters. The final on Sunday was played out in front of a capacity crowd of 40,000 at the Hong Kong Stadium, the first major showcase for the shortened form of rugby since the sport was awarded Olympic status at the IOC Session in Copenhagen last October.

"He's very impressed with the rugby. He was a rugby man himself and the Sevens is part of his life," said Lapasset.

"He's interested by how we're promoting the game and promoting Sevens around the world and it's interesting to see teams like Thailand and Korea [playing here]. It's important for developing the game around the world and Sevens is a broad game with the universality of the Olympics now."

Samoa were crowned Hong Kong Sevens champions after beating New Zealand 24-21 in the final. The victory means the Pacific island nation have leapfrogged the Kiwis to gain top spot in the IRB Sevens World Series with two tournaments to play.

IOC Confident in Sochi Security

The IOC says it has confidence in the ability of Russia to host safe Winter Olympic Games in Sochi in 2014.

The statement follows the twin suicide bomb attacks on the Moscow metro. So far 38 people are dead from the bombings. Police say the attacks were carried out by two women who blew themselves up about 30 minutes apart during the Monday morning commuter rush.

"The IOC is confident that the Russian authorities will put in place all necessary measures to ensure that the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi are held in a safe environment," says the brief statement from the IOC.

There was no immediate comment from Sochi 2014.

The suspected bombers aresaid to be linked to Chechen rebels who are from the southern part of Russia, in the same region as Sochi. So far, Sochi has been spared any terrorist attacks and no sport events in Russia have been subject to attack. There is no claim of responsibility for the Moscow bombing.

WADA Opens Bidding for 2013 World Conference

The World Anti Doping Agency opened the bidding process for the agency’s fourth World Conference on Doping in Sport.

Cities intending to host the Conference need to have infrastructure and facilities to stage a large international convention.

WADA stipulated not every country would be eligible to host the Conference saying "It should be noted that no application will be furthered if it comes from a country which does not currently show total support for anti-doping and the World Anti-Doping Code, i.e. through their ratification, acceptance, approval, or accession of the UNESCO Convention on Doping in Sport, or which has not paid its annual dues to WADA."

At this time, it is not known which cities are considering bids to host the event.

Applicant cities must submit bids to WADA in English and French by Aug. 27. The winning city will be announced on Nov. 21. The WADA Foundation Board will vote on the host city.

In order for a city’s bid to be accepted, all relevant authorities, including the National Olympic Committee must sign off on the bid.

Between 2500 and 3000 delegates are expected to attend the conference.

Madrid hosted the most recent World Conference in 2007.

ONOC Reviewing Constitution, Ant-Doping Support

IOC EB member John Coates is working to overhaul the Oceania National Olympic Committees' constitution to make it comply with the IOC Code of Ethics.

Coates told delegates at the ONOC General Assembly on Sunday that he has been working over the last several months to change the constitution. One of the major changes is incorporating ONOC in Fiji.

ONOC concludes its week-long assembly in Nadi, Fiji on Tuesday. In addition to changing the constitution, doping and media developments highlight the news from the assembly.

ONOC finalized an agreement with the Pacific Islands News Association for coverage on Monday. PINA represents journalists in the region and PINA coordinated coverage of the 2008 Beijing Games.

On Doping, Fiji became the latest ONOC country to ratify the UNESCO Convention on doping in sports. Australia, Cook Islands, New Zealand, Palau, Samoa, Marshall Islands and Papua New Guineas previously ratified the treaty.

ONOC President Robin Mitchell expressed disappointment about countries that have not ratified the agreement. They include Kiribati, Micronesia, Niue Island, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

In addition, Mitchell announced that the Oceania Regional Anti-doping Organizationwill receive $60,000 a year from the Australian government over the next two years. This funding will fill a gap after the Commonwealth Games Federation decided not to fund ORADO last November.

Medvedev Says Clean Russian Sport of Doping

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev wants to eradicate doping in Russian sport.

"We must get rid of this image, which our country seems to have picked up," he said on Friday. "We need to evaluate the situation and take all necessary measures, including the adoption of new laws."

Before the 2010 Winter Games, the Russian Ski Federation suspended 2006 bronze medalist skier Alena Sodko after a positive doping test. Sodko was one of a handful of high-profile athletes who did not compete in Vancouver due to doping violations.

Media Watch 2010 World Figure Skating

What's next for Yu-Na Kim? The Korea Times ponders the future of the 2010 Vancouver gold medalist.

Phillip Hersh follows the improvement of Mirai Nagasu from Japan.

Canadians shined on the ice in Turin, Toronto Star columnist Rossie Dimanno reviews Canada's performance.

Reuters reports on the top names missing from the championship.

Written by Mark Bisson, Ed Hula III and Sam Steinberg.