Ukrainian Athletics Bid; Rugby for Rogge; Sochi Curling Progress

Bubka: Ukrainian Athletics Bid Ahead

IOC member and NOC president Sergey Bubka says to watch "within the next few years" for an athletics world championships bid from Ukraine.

"Hosting elite world or European class athletics championships in Kiev will give a huge boost to the development of our sport across the country," says Bubka, also an IAAF vice president and Olympic champion pole-vaulter, in a statement made available to Around the Rings.

"Kiev would also be interesting choice for the IAAF strategy of expanding athletics borders, particularly bearing in mind the fact that the city last hosted a major international athletics competition more than 40 years ago."

The obvious choice for venue would be Kiev’s newly renovated National Sports Complex Olimpiysky, the showcase stadium of next year’s European football championships.

"On behalf of Ukrainian athletes I would like to praise everyone involved in ensuring that there was track and field infrastructure when the Olympic Stadium was rebuilt," Bubka says.

"Six months after the UEFA Euro 2012 final, the venue will be ready to host the world-class athletics competitions."

Donestsk, Ukraine is already set to stage the IAAF world youth championships in 2013.

With the senior world champs heading to Moscow in 2013, Beijing in 2015 and either London or Doha in 2017, the earliest Ukraine could host is 2019. Bidding would begin in 2013 unless the IAAF opts next month to award both the 2017 and 2019 editions at once – one to London and the other to Doha.

Rogge Bound for Rugby Final

Expect the IOC president to be more than a casual spectator of the Rugby World Cup final.

As a former member of the Belgian national team, Jacques Rogge will know exactly what’s at stake when New Zealand takes thepitch looking to end a 24-year title drought.

According to Kiwi media, he’s already in Auckland for some Olympic business ahead of Sunday’s showdown.

"The NOC celebrates its centenary on Tuesday, on Thursday he will be involved in a function at the Millennium Institute, and will also meet Sparc leaders at some point," IOC member Barry Maister tells The New Zealand Herald.

"No doubt some talk will be about the advancement of sevens into the Olympic program and there's work to be done on how to qualify nations in a fair and transparent way."

IOC members from Fiji, Australia,Japan, Malaysia and Monaco will also be in the stands at Eden Park on Sunday, according to The Herald.

Curling Chief Visits Sochi Venue

World Curling Federation president Kate Caithness likes what she sees from Sochi.

"The development of the facilities and venues is very impressive," she said Tuesday following a tour of the Olympic Village, Main Press Center and, of course, the "Ice Cube" Curling Center.

"We are pleased that the Olympic curling venue is on track to be completed by July 2012 in time for two of our key events, the World Junior and World Wheelchair Curling Championships in 2013."

Alongside WCF curling secretary general Colin Grahamslaw and director of competitions Keith Wendorf, Caithness also visited Moscow to discuss curling’s Memorandum of Understanding with Sochi 2014, a document providing for the pair of test events.

"It was great to meet the Sochi 2014 organizing committee in person," she added.

This was curling’s first official visit to the Black Sea resort.

Today in History

Exactly 43 years ago today, Tommie Smith and John Carlos made their symbolic and controversial stance at the Mexico City Olympics.

On Oct. 18, 1968, the two medal winners raised their black-gloved fists on the podium in support of the Black Power movement.

Smith, who received the gold medal for the 200-meter event, and Carlos, who won bronze, were also shoeless in protest of black poverty.

While the event is now viewed as a symbolic moment in the Civil Rights Movement, the men were harshly criticized at the time and even received death threats.

Smith and Carlos were also suspended from the U.S. team by IOC president Avery Brundage.

According the New York Times, the IOC continues to look unfavorably at political protests during the Games and released a statement addressing the issue before the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

"According to the Olympic Charter, the peak of the Olympic Movement’s action is ‘the bringing together of the world’s athletes at the great sports festival, the Olympic Games’. The Games are about sport. They are not a stage for different kinds of political statements about issues such as armed conflicts, regional differences, religious disputes and many others."

Samsung Fires Back at Apple

Olympic sponsor Samsung is seeking to stop sales of Apple’s iPhone 4S in Australia and Japan.

The Associated Press reports that the Korean electronics manufacturer filed a suit on Monday to ban the sale of the new iPhone in the two countries. It'salso appealing a temporary injunction that banned the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy tablet in Australia.

This recent move is part of an ongoing legal battle between the two companies over patent infringement that spans four continents. Lawsuits have been filed in Japan, the U.S., the U.K., Italy and South Korea.

Written by Matthew Graysonand Ann Cantrell.

20 Years at #1:

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