Saturday, August 16, 2008

Now if we could just do something about the Clintons

Swedish wrestler stripped of bronze medal - Olympics - Yahoo! Sports
A Swedish wrestler was disqualified and stripped of his bronze medal Saturday for dropping the prize in protest after a disputed loss at the Beijing Olympics.

Ara Abrahamian was punished by the International Olympic Committee for violating the spirit of fair play during the medal ceremony, becoming the fourth athlete kicked out of the games and bringing the number of medals removed to three.

Abrahamian became incensed when a disputed penalty call decided his semifinal match against Italian Andrea Minguzzi, who went on to win the gold medal in the Greco-Roman 84-kilogram division Thursday.

During the medal ceremony, the Armenian-born Abrahamian—who also lost a 2004 Olympic semifinal match on a disputed call—took the bronze from around his neck and, angrily, dropped it on the mat as he walked away. He did not take part in the rest of the medal ceremony.
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The IOC executive board ruled Abrahamian’s actions amounted to a political demonstration and a mark of disrespect to his fellow athletes.

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