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IOC to monitor betting during Beijing Olympics
Published on Sat, Jun 07, 2008 at 13:02 in Sports » Others section
Tags: Beijing Olympics 2008, IOC , Athens
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Athens: In an unprecedented move to keep illegal gambling and match-fixing out of the Olympics, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is setting up a special unit to check for suspicious betting patterns during the Beijing Games.
IOC President Jacques Rogge said on Friday that agreements have been signed with major betting companies for the first time to monitor any irregular gambling during the August 8-24 games.
"We rely on them to advise us if there is an abnormal pattern in betting and then they will advise us if something is suspicious," he said. "It is (in) their interest to work with us. It is (in) our interest to work with them because these betting companies definitely also want a clean sport."
If any suspect activity is detected, the IOC disciplinary commission will question those involved, Rogge said. The panel will report to the Executive Board, which has the power to take sanctions.
The decision follows a series of betting and fixing scandals and investigations in various professional sports, including football, cricket and tennis.
In December, Rogge and the IOC executive board were briefed by former London police chief Paul Condon, who has been conducting investigations into gambling and corruption in cricket. Condon said he did not believe the Olympics were particularly at risk, but that vigilance was required.
Rogge said the IOC would also be working with Interpol, the international police force, on betting and general security issues in Beijing.
"You should not imagine our unit as people in an enclosed and secluded bunker and with balaclavas over their head," he said. "It's not going to be the case. We'll have a team there that will work very closely together with the betting companies."
Meanwhile, Rogge said the IOC plans a commemoration during the Beijing Games for the victims of the May 12 earthquake that killed nearly 70,000 people in China.
"The IOC as a whole will have a ceremony of homage for the victims of the earthquake," Rogge said.
"We are discussing with the Chinese when and how exactly and what form it will take. But definitely we will not start the games without thinking of and recalling the victims."
Rogge said the games could help uplift China following the quake in a similar way to how the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City affected the United States five months after the 9/11 attacks.
"These games will mostly be the first moment of joy of Chinese people," he said. "These games can be considered as something to rejoice."
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