IOC EB Closes with Doping, Ethics, Lance Armstrong

(ATR) Four athletes are stripped of their medals from the 2004 Athens Olympics, one of several loose ends tied up by the IOC Executive Board on Wednesday.

Representatives from the Hellenic, Lithuanian, Maltese and Serbian NOCs were also revealed to have been implicated in the London 2012 ticketing investigation as the EB's last meeting of 2012 drew to a close in Lausanne.

Meanwhile, the decision to strip Lance Armstrong of his time trial bronze medal from Sydney 2000 is delayed as the IOC waits for the International Cycling Union to formally notify the retired U.S. cyclist.

And president Jacques Rogge reiterated that Rio 2016 organizers need to find "a sense of urgency" following reports on Tuesday that they were slipping behind on venue construction for the next Summer Games.

Greek, Maltese NOC Chiefs Named in Ethics Report, But No Sanctions

Officials with the Hellenic, Lithuanian, Maltese and Serbian NOCs were all accused of tarnishing the reputation of the Olympic Movement but will not be sanctioned in accordance with the Olympic Charter, a report from the Ethics Commission announced Wednesday.

Greek and Maltese NOC presidents Spyros Capralos and Lino Farrugia were both named as two of the individuals implicated in the investigation with HOC head of marketing Nicole Avramidou, Lithuanian NOC secretary general Vytautas Zubernis, Maltese NOC secretary general Joe Cassar and Serbian NOC secretary general Djordje Visacki also included in the report.

Despite the findings, all five will escape punishment as, according to the Olympic Charter, "no individual sanctions may be imposed on individuals performing functions with NOCs".

"The scope of the contents of the [Olympic Charter] allows the IOC to take action against the governing body or association," Rogge said Wednesday in his closing press conference. "But for legal reasons, we have no authority on the people themselves. We are studying if this can be changed in the ethics code. We must, of course, respect the limits of the rules."

However, the Commission did recommend that the entire ticket sales system be reviewed by the EB. Rogge added that the IOC is researching how to adapt the distribution for future events.

"We have also conducted a survey of the ticketing distribution system to see if we can improve it," he said. "This is something that we will know by the end of January. By February, we will be able to judge whether we have to change the entire system or just fine-tune it."

Gold Medalist Bilonog Stripped of Shotput Gold

Ukrainian Yuriy Bilonog was officially stripped of the shotput gold medal he won at Athens 2004 with the decision to disqualify three other athletes also announced after their stored samples from the Games tested positive.

Men’s hammerthrow silver medalist Ivan Tsikhan and women’s discus bronze medalist Iryna Yatchenko, both from Belarus, as well as women’s shotput bronze medalist Svetlana Krivelyova of Russia also had their medals revoked following the decision – with one case still pending.

However, the fate of Lance Armstrong’s bronze medal won’t be announced until the UCI formally notifies him, after which the former cyclist has 21 days to appeal the decision.

The length of the statute of limitation, currently eight years, was also brought into question, with Rogge informing reporters that there is a World Anti-Doping Agency proposal to extend it to 10 years, although it remains to be seen whether the samples can be sustained for such a long period.

Rio Reminded to Pick Up Pace

Rio 2016 also received another reminder that further progress needs to be made if Brazil is to deliver a successful Games in four years’ time.

On Tuesday, IOC communications director Mark Adams told reporters that "time is ticking", a sentiment echoed Wednesday by Rogge, who cited the venue for golf as a particular concern.

"We have indicated very clearly to the Rio Organizing Committee ... that we were basically happy with the progress but we thought there would need to be a sense of urgency because, indeed, time is ticking away," he said.

"This is mainly for sports venues and constructions. This is something that needs to be addressed as soon as possible.

"The golf venue is a good example."

Disciplinary Commission on Park Jong Woo; Rogge Neutral on European Games; Ban Ki-moon to be Honored

In other news, Korean footballer Park Jong Woo will face a Disciplinary Commission hearing based on the recent decision by FIFA to ban the player from international competition for two matches. The player’s Olympic bronze medal was withheld after an alleged political statement following South Korea's win over Japan in the bronze-medal match at London 2012.

Meanwhile, Rogge remained coy on plans for a European Games, re-iterating that "it’s not up to me to make a decision" ahead of discussions set to take place at the European Olympic Committees General Assembly in Rome on Friday and Saturday.

And the IOC announced that UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will be awarded the Olympic Order in gold.

Reported in Lausanne by Nick Winn.

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