IOA/IOC Update
The Indian Olympic Association will further update the IOC about the status of president Suresh Kalmadi this week.
A report in the Associated Press quotes acting IOA president VK Malhotra saying: "We've intimated to the IOC that we are discussing the issue at an emergency meeting on Friday. We will explain the situation to them after the executive council discusses the issue."
The IOC set a deadline of Thursday, March 1 for the IOA to respond. Kalmadi stepped away from his responsibilities in the role following corruption allegations with his leadership of the 2010 Commonwealth Games. However, he never relinquished the title of IOA president.
Malhotra says the IOA informed the IOC of that fact.
"Mr. Kalmadi has written to us saying he will not be involved in the running of the association for a long time," Malhotra said. "He has not resigned from his post but has forsaken his rights. We’ve forwarded to IOC the letter sent to us by Kalmadi that he would not exercise his rights as president."
U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame Nominees
A total of 28 nominations for the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame were unveiled Monday.
In the group are 18 Olympians and five Paralympians and teams.
Included among the nominees are: Gail Devers, Cammi Granato, and Gary Hall Jr. The three have nine gold and 18 total medals among them.
Voting is open to the general public here until April 9.
AOC Warns Athletes About Tweeting
The Australian Olympic Committee is warning its national teams to consider implementing rules "to eliminate the risk of social media derailing athlete performance at the London Olympics."
Mike Tancred, AOC Communications Director, wrote the notice in the latest issue of the AOC newsletter "Lookout London".
"The problem was highlighted at thediving test event in London where athletes were tweeting during competition," Tancred wrote.
"Diving officials stopped the use of social media during the competition that doubled as a World Cup event once they learned it was happening.
"One athlete's tweet read ‘I’m a novice. I will stop tweeting next round. Distraction!’"
Tancredadded: "Clearly athletes are distracted when they should be totally focused on their sport."
Cook Islands Funding Questions
Mark Brown, finance minister for the Cook Islands, explained his funding earmark for the country’s National Olympic Committee in the national budget.
The bulk of the amount, $78,000, will cover sending the Olympic team to London, according to Radio New Zealand International.
A further $25,000 will pay down wages owed to NOC staff.
Written by Ed Hula III.
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