Britain beat defending champions the Netherlands on Friday to take home their first Olympic gold medal in women&#39;s hockey, winning 2-0 in a tense shootout following a hardfought 3-3 draw. 
 
After topping the podium in Beijing and London, the Netherlands were hot favourites going into the Rio Games. 
 
Despite winning every game to finish top of their group, however, the top-ranked Dutch team only scraped into the final after beating ninth-ranked Germany 4-3 in a shootout following a 1-1 draw. 
 
Britain also finished the group stages with a perfect record and were gunning for gold in their first Olympic final having won bronze four years ago in London. Germany beat New Zealand 2-1 to take the bronze medal. 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve done it,&quot; British midfielder Nicola White told reporters, brandishing her medal with a grin plastered across her face. &quot;We&#39;ve trained our arses off for so long, this is what we&#39;ve dreamed of and now we&#39;ve got it. 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve now gone unbeaten through an Olympic tournament, which is unreal,&quot; she added. &quot;We are just over the moon.&quot; 
 
That the near sell-out crowd at the Olympic Hockey Centre, a venue which has struggled to fill seats during the Rio Games, were in for a show was clear from the pushback. 
 
A boisterous British tackle and ensuing penalty flick gave Dutch captain Maartje Paumen an early chance to score, but her shot was batted aside by British keeper Maddie Hinch. 
 
&#39;SHAME IT&#39;S SILVER&#39; 
 
Britain&#39;s Lily Owsley claimed the first score of the night, emerging victorious from a mad scramble in front of the Dutch goal to put her side 1-0 ahead. 
 
A Dutch equaliser came courtesy of forward Kitty van Male who broke away for a one-on-one with the British keeper, skilfully drawing her aside and putting the ball into the top of the net with an audacious reverse stick sweep. 
 
The Netherlands&#39; second goal promptly followed with Paumen scoring off the last of three penalty corners in the space of four minutes. Seconds later, Britain&#39;s Crista Cullen picked up a cross in the opposition circle to level the scores at 2-2 going into the break. 
 
The goals kept coming in the second half. Both teams netted one each after a series of penalty corners, leaving the score deadlocked at 3-3 on the final whistle and forcing a shootout to decide the match. 
 
Of the 10 goals available, only two were scored. Britain&#39;s Helen Richardson-Walsh and Hollie Webb found the back of net to secure victory and their team&#39;s first Olympic gold medals. 
 
&quot;We played very well during the game. I think we played way better than them,&quot; said the Netherlands&#39; Eva de Goede. &quot;But shootouts are fifty-fifty. They won, we lost, it&#39;s tough.&quot; 
 
&quot;Shame it&#39;s silver,&quot; she added, gesturing to the medal which will join the two gold ones she already has at home. &quot;We were really going for a third gold. But it didn&#39;t work out.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

After topping the podium in Beijing and London, the Netherlands were favourites going into the Rio Games

Britain beat defending champions the Netherlands on Friday to take home their first Olympic gold medal in women's hockey, winning 2-0 in a tense shootout following a hardfought 3-3 draw. After topping the podium in Beijing and London, the Netherlands were hot favourites going into the Rio Games. Despite winning every game to finish top of their group, however, the top-ranked Dutch team only scraped into the final after beating ninth-ranked Germany 4-3 in a shootout following a 1-1 draw. Britain also finished the group stages with a perfect record and were gunning for gold in their first Olympic final having won bronze four years ago in London. Germany beat New Zealand 2-1 to take the bronze medal. "We've done it," British midfielder Nicola White told reporters, brandishing her medal with a grin plastered across her face. "We've trained our arses off for so long, this is what we've dreamed of and now we've got it. "We've now gone unbeaten through an Olympic tournament, which is unreal," she added. "We are just over the moon." That the near sell-out crowd at the Olympic Hockey Centre, a venue which has struggled to fill seats during the Rio Games, were in for a show was clear from the pushback. A boisterous British tackle and ensuing penalty flick gave Dutch captain Maartje Paumen an early chance to score, but her shot was batted aside by British keeper Maddie Hinch. 'SHAME IT'S SILVER' Britain's Lily Owsley claimed the first score of the night, emerging victorious from a mad scramble in front of the Dutch goal to put her side 1-0 ahead. A Dutch equaliser came courtesy of forward Kitty van Male who broke away for a one-on-one with the British keeper, skilfully drawing her aside and putting the ball into the top of the net with an audacious reverse stick sweep. The Netherlands' second goal promptly followed with Paumen scoring off the last of three penalty corners in the space of four minutes. Seconds later, Britain's Crista Cullen picked up a cross in the opposition circle to level the scores at 2-2 going into the break. The goals kept coming in the second half. Both teams netted one each after a series of penalty corners, leaving the score deadlocked at 3-3 on the final whistle and forcing a shootout to decide the match. Of the 10 goals available, only two were scored. Britain's Helen Richardson-Walsh and Hollie Webb found the back of net to secure victory and their team's first Olympic gold medals. "We played very well during the game. I think we played way better than them," said the Netherlands' Eva de Goede. "But shootouts are fifty-fifty. They won, we lost, it's tough." "Shame it's silver," she added, gesturing to the medal which will join the two gold ones she already has at home. "We were really going for a third gold. But it didn't work out." (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Britain wins first gold in women's hockey

Germany won their first ever Olympic gold medal in women&#39;s football on Friday when they turned in a superior second half performance to beat Sweden 2-1. 
 
The no 2 ranked Germans, who are now one of only three women&#39;s teams to win both the Olympics and World Cup, scored two goals in the second half, and although the Swedes got a goal back they could not get a second to take the game into extra time. 
 
Sweden, who scored just three goals in their five games before the final, started more positively than their previous form suggested, but Germany started to impose themselves as time went on and the best chance of the half fell to Anja Mittag after 25 minutes. 
 
Leonie Maier&#39;s curling shot was only parried by the Swedish keeper and the ball fell to Mittag just yards from goal but she blasted the ball high and wide. 
 
The sides were evenly match but things changed in the second half and it was the Germans who deservedly took the lead three minutes into the second period. 
 
When they did it was a goal worthy of a cup final. Dzsenifer Maroszan gathered a cross ball on the edge of the box and had time to steady herself before curling a perfect strike into the top right hand corner of the net. 
 
They extended their lead 14 minutes later thanks to an unfortunate own goal. A Sara Daebritz free kick from 20 yards smacked the post and Linda Sembrandt tried to clear but instead kneed the ball into her own goal from just a few yards out. 
 
Sweden reacted almost immediately and just five minutes later Stina Blackstenius pulled them back into the game. Olivia Schough hit a beautiful low cross into the box from the right and Blackstenius slid in between two defenders and poked the ball home to cut the deficit. 
 
Schough had a great chance to level the scores three minutes from time but her shot was blocked just yards from goal. 
 
The win was a perfect farewell for German coach Silvia Neid, who was managing the side in her last match. 
 
Germany missed out on the Olympics in 2012 but won the bronze the last three times they played, in 2000, 2004 and 2008. 
 
(Reuters)

The win was a perfect farewell for German coach Silvia Neid, who was managing the side in her last match

Germany won their first ever Olympic gold medal in women's football on Friday when they turned in a superior second half performance to beat Sweden 2-1. The no 2 ranked Germans, who are now one of only three women's teams to win both the Olympics and World Cup, scored two goals in the second half, and although the Swedes got a goal back they could not get a second to take the game into extra time. Sweden, who scored just three goals in their five games before the final, started more positively than their previous form suggested, but Germany started to impose themselves as time went on and the best chance of the half fell to Anja Mittag after 25 minutes. Leonie Maier's curling shot was only parried by the Swedish keeper and the ball fell to Mittag just yards from goal but she blasted the ball high and wide. The sides were evenly match but things changed in the second half and it was the Germans who deservedly took the lead three minutes into the second period. When they did it was a goal worthy of a cup final. Dzsenifer Maroszan gathered a cross ball on the edge of the box and had time to steady herself before curling a perfect strike into the top right hand corner of the net. They extended their lead 14 minutes later thanks to an unfortunate own goal. A Sara Daebritz free kick from 20 yards smacked the post and Linda Sembrandt tried to clear but instead kneed the ball into her own goal from just a few yards out. Sweden reacted almost immediately and just five minutes later Stina Blackstenius pulled them back into the game. Olivia Schough hit a beautiful low cross into the box from the right and Blackstenius slid in between two defenders and poked the ball home to cut the deficit. Schough had a great chance to level the scores three minutes from time but her shot was blocked just yards from goal. The win was a perfect farewell for German coach Silvia Neid, who was managing the side in her last match. Germany missed out on the Olympics in 2012 but won the bronze the last three times they played, in 2000, 2004 and 2008. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Germany wins women's soccer gold after beating Sweden

Few athletes, not even Usain Bolt, have filled out Olympic stadiums over the past fortnight but pocket-rocket Mariana Pajon did just that on Friday as hordes of Colombians roared her to a second successive BMX gold. 
 
On a humpy ribbon of green and red cement at Rio&#39;s X Park and with a sea of yellow-shirted compatriots providing a backdrop, she delivered a masterclass to match her London feat. 
 
The 24-year-old, revelling in the south-American sunshine, appeared to be riding an easier course to her medal rivals - flowing over the jumps with graceful precision while others pedalled frantically to stay on her tail. 
 
Alise Post of the United States and Venezuela&#39;s Stefany Hernandez followed her home but Pajon was in a league of her own. 
Pajon, a national treasure in Colombia where the local track in Medellin is named after her, celebrated by lifting her bike above her head and beaming her smile. 
 
Despite standing just 1.58m and weighing 50 kilos, Pajon has proved herself a tough cookie, staying at the top of a sport where the all too regular crashes make you wince. 
 
Asked what fuels her, Pajon&#39;s answer was at faultless as her riding on Friday when she won all three of her semi-final runs with ease on the way to the eight-rider medal showdown. 
 
&quot;Sacrifice and hard work,&quot; she said told a news conference gate-crashed by a gaggle of fans in replica black Mariana Pajon tops with her race number, 100, emblazoned on the back. 
 
&quot;And smiles. I think smiling and happiness is the best doping you can have.&quot; 
 
Pajon&#39;s London win has spawned BMX circuits across Colombia`s cities where youngsters are now as keen to emulate Pajon as soccer stars like James Rodriguez. 
 
David Rodriguez, who travelled from Bogota with his mother to watch Pajon go for gold, summed up the mood as he joined in the salsa party shaking the temporary tribunes. 
 
&quot;This is an amazing moment for me, I was in London 2012 and that was great and now again!&quot; he said. &quot;She`s an amazing girl. She has so much courage. She is a winner! 
 
&quot;It&#39;s perfect today.&quot; 
 
Pajon, world champion this year as she was in 2011 and 2014, became only the second Colombian ever to win an Olympic gold medal in London. She said a repeat was even sweeter. 
 
&quot;The first medal was incredible, but the second medal was more emotional,&quot; she told reporters. 
 
&quot;Because it was in Brazil. This feel like a medal for all south Americans. I&#39;m so proud.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)

Alise Post of the United States and Venezuela's Stefany Hernandez followed Pajon

Few athletes, not even Usain Bolt, have filled out Olympic stadiums over the past fortnight but pocket-rocket Mariana Pajon did just that on Friday as hordes of Colombians roared her to a second successive BMX gold. On a humpy ribbon of green and red cement at Rio's X Park and with a sea of yellow-shirted compatriots providing a backdrop, she delivered a masterclass to match her London feat. The 24-year-old, revelling in the south-American sunshine, appeared to be riding an easier course to her medal rivals - flowing over the jumps with graceful precision while others pedalled frantically to stay on her tail. Alise Post of the United States and Venezuela's Stefany Hernandez followed her home but Pajon was in a league of her own. Pajon, a national treasure in Colombia where the local track in Medellin is named after her, celebrated by lifting her bike above her head and beaming her smile. Despite standing just 1.58m and weighing 50 kilos, Pajon has proved herself a tough cookie, staying at the top of a sport where the all too regular crashes make you wince. Asked what fuels her, Pajon's answer was at faultless as her riding on Friday when she won all three of her semi-final runs with ease on the way to the eight-rider medal showdown. "Sacrifice and hard work," she said told a news conference gate-crashed by a gaggle of fans in replica black Mariana Pajon tops with her race number, 100, emblazoned on the back. "And smiles. I think smiling and happiness is the best doping you can have." Pajon's London win has spawned BMX circuits across Colombia`s cities where youngsters are now as keen to emulate Pajon as soccer stars like James Rodriguez. David Rodriguez, who travelled from Bogota with his mother to watch Pajon go for gold, summed up the mood as he joined in the salsa party shaking the temporary tribunes. "This is an amazing moment for me, I was in London 2012 and that was great and now again!" he said. "She`s an amazing girl. She has so much courage. She is a winner! "It's perfect today." Pajon, world champion this year as she was in 2011 and 2014, became only the second Colombian ever to win an Olympic gold medal in London. She said a repeat was even sweeter. "The first medal was incredible, but the second medal was more emotional," she told reporters. "Because it was in Brazil. This feel like a medal for all south Americans. I'm so proud." (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Colombian Pajon wins BMX gold

Providing a major relief to Narsingh Yadav, the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) on Thursday gave a clean chit to the grappler to participate in the 74kg men&#39;s freestyle category at the ongoing Rio Olympics. 
 
On Tuesday, Narsingh&#39;s Rio campaign hit another roadblock when the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) decided to appeal the CAS against the clean chit given to him by the National Anti-doping Agency (NADA) in New Delhi connection with doping charge.&quot;Narsingh Yadav has been cleared by the CAS,&quot; confirmed lawyer Vidushpat Singhania. 
 
The decision means Narsingh will now kick start his Rio campaign on Friday when he takes on France&#39;s Zelimkhan Khadjiev in the qualification round. Earlier, NADA had paved the way for Narsingh to compete in the prestigious quadrennial event after its disciplinary panel exonerated the 26-year-old grappler from the charges of violating anti-doping rules saying he was a victim of sabotage perpetrated by a competitor. 
 
Narsingh, who bagged the quota with a bronze medal finish in last year&#39;s World Championships, tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid on both his A and B samples. He was kept under provisionally suspension until the NADA&#39;s verdict.Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh had earlier expressed his confidence that the embattled wrestler would be cleared by the CAS in his doping case. 
 
&quot;WADA has appealed in the CAS. We have presented our case to WADA. They have set a hearing for August 18. Our lawyer will not be able to reach here by that time and, therefore, he will mark his presence either through telephone or video conference. I am totally confident that Narsingh will clear this hurdle as well. Our case is not at all weak,&quot; Brij Bhushan had then said. 
 
Interestingly, Narsingh was also selected for the Rio Olympics in controversial circumstances as two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar had demanded for trials to determine who should go to the games. In the end, Narsingh was favoured for the same after fighting a lengthy legal battle with Sushil. 
 
(ANI)

Narsingh will now kick start his Rio campaign on Friday when he takes on France's Zelimkhan Khadjiev in the qualification round

Providing a major relief to Narsingh Yadav, the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) on Thursday gave a clean chit to the grappler to participate in the 74kg men's freestyle category at the ongoing Rio Olympics. On Tuesday, Narsingh's Rio campaign hit another roadblock when the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) decided to appeal the CAS against the clean chit given to him by the National Anti-doping Agency (NADA) in New Delhi connection with doping charge."Narsingh Yadav has been cleared by the CAS," confirmed lawyer Vidushpat Singhania. The decision means Narsingh will now kick start his Rio campaign on Friday when he takes on France's Zelimkhan Khadjiev in the qualification round. Earlier, NADA had paved the way for Narsingh to compete in the prestigious quadrennial event after its disciplinary panel exonerated the 26-year-old grappler from the charges of violating anti-doping rules saying he was a victim of sabotage perpetrated by a competitor. Narsingh, who bagged the quota with a bronze medal finish in last year's World Championships, tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid on both his A and B samples. He was kept under provisionally suspension until the NADA's verdict.Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh had earlier expressed his confidence that the embattled wrestler would be cleared by the CAS in his doping case. "WADA has appealed in the CAS. We have presented our case to WADA. They have set a hearing for August 18. Our lawyer will not be able to reach here by that time and, therefore, he will mark his presence either through telephone or video conference. I am totally confident that Narsingh will clear this hurdle as well. Our case is not at all weak," Brij Bhushan had then said. Interestingly, Narsingh was also selected for the Rio Olympics in controversial circumstances as two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar had demanded for trials to determine who should go to the games. In the end, Narsingh was favoured for the same after fighting a lengthy legal battle with Sushil. (ANI)

Rio Olympics 2016: Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav cleared after dope controversy

Brazilian police pulled two US Olympic swimmers off a US-bound plane in a row over their claim of having been victims of an armed mugging, officials said on Wednesday. 
 
&quot;We can confirm that Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz were removed from their flight to the United States by Brazilian authorities,&quot; said Patrick Sandusky, spokesman for the US Olympic Committee. 
 
The two were with star US swimmer Ryan Lochte and another squad member, James Feigen, when they said they were robbed at gunpoint early on Sunday. 
 
A Brazilian judge ordered a probe, saying their story is full of inconsistencies. 
 
&quot;The swimmers are here and making statements,&quot; an airport police spokesman said, without giving further details. 
 
Globo, a leading Brazilian news organisation, posted a video online showing the two swimmers walking into a police station. 
 
They were later released &quot;with the understanding that they would continue their discussions about the incident on Thursday,&quot; Sandusky said. 
 
Lochte, who went home before Brazilian authorities ordered the swimmers&#39; questioning, and Feigen, who remains in Brazil, will cooperate with the investigation, broadcaster NBC reported. 
 
Earlier on Wednesday, Judge Keyla Blank &quot;issued warrants for searches and the seizure of the passports for the US swimmers,&quot; a statement from her office said. 
 
&quot;With this, they are banned from leaving the country,&quot; the statement said. 
 
The court order was the latest twist in a story of a supposedly terrifying incident that embarrassed Olympic authorities and ramped up the fear factor for hundreds of thousands of tourists in Rio at South America&#39;s first Olympics. 
 
Now, Brazilian officials are suggesting that the US swimmers may have made up their account -- and could face charges for filing a false report. 
 
In Washington, state department spokesman John Kirby said American authorities had &quot;seen media reports that two US citizen athletes were detained. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance&quot;. 
 
Did the mugging happen?&nbsp; 
 
Lochte says he and three team-mates were held up by muggers posing as police as they left a late night party in central Rio. 
 
The incident was immediately plunged into confusion when the International Olympic Committee denied that anything had happened. 
 
Lochte, however, gave interviews describing the supposed robbery in detail and Brazilian Olympic authorities later issued a public apology for the security slip up. 
 
With some 85,000 police and soldiers guarding the Olympics -- twice the number from London in 2012 -- the apparently high-profile crime touched a nerve in Rio. In addition to multiple incidents of thefts from Olympic athletes and media, a Portuguese government minister was mugged in the swish Leblon district. 
 
Lochte said he had a gun put to his forehead in the robbery, when the swimmers&#39; taxi was pulled over by criminals who forced them to lie on the ground and stole money and other items. 
 
&quot;The guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, &#39;Get down,&#39;&quot; Lochte said afterwards. &quot;He took our money, he took my wallet -- he left my cell phone, he left my credentials.&quot; 
 
However, Olympic officials have said police are still looking for key witnesses, including the cab driver. 
 
And Blank&#39;s office said the judge was probing &quot;possible inconsistencies in the swimmers&#39; stories&quot;, including varying accounts of how many assailants were involved. 
 
According to the NBC report, Lochte strongly denied that the swimmers fabricated the story of the robbery. 
 
&quot;I wouldn&#39;t make up a story like this nor would the others -- as a matter of fact we all feel it makes us look bad,&quot; it quoted Lochte as saying. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

The swimmers had said they were mugged. A judge has ordered a probe, saying their story is full of inconsistencies

Brazilian police pulled two US Olympic swimmers off a US-bound plane in a row over their claim of having been victims of an armed mugging, officials said on Wednesday. "We can confirm that Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz were removed from their flight to the United States by Brazilian authorities," said Patrick Sandusky, spokesman for the US Olympic Committee. The two were with star US swimmer Ryan Lochte and another squad member, James Feigen, when they said they were robbed at gunpoint early on Sunday. A Brazilian judge ordered a probe, saying their story is full of inconsistencies. "The swimmers are here and making statements," an airport police spokesman said, without giving further details. Globo, a leading Brazilian news organisation, posted a video online showing the two swimmers walking into a police station. They were later released "with the understanding that they would continue their discussions about the incident on Thursday," Sandusky said. Lochte, who went home before Brazilian authorities ordered the swimmers' questioning, and Feigen, who remains in Brazil, will cooperate with the investigation, broadcaster NBC reported. Earlier on Wednesday, Judge Keyla Blank "issued warrants for searches and the seizure of the passports for the US swimmers," a statement from her office said. "With this, they are banned from leaving the country," the statement said. The court order was the latest twist in a story of a supposedly terrifying incident that embarrassed Olympic authorities and ramped up the fear factor for hundreds of thousands of tourists in Rio at South America's first Olympics. Now, Brazilian officials are suggesting that the US swimmers may have made up their account -- and could face charges for filing a false report. In Washington, state department spokesman John Kirby said American authorities had "seen media reports that two US citizen athletes were detained. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance". Did the mugging happen? Lochte says he and three team-mates were held up by muggers posing as police as they left a late night party in central Rio. The incident was immediately plunged into confusion when the International Olympic Committee denied that anything had happened. Lochte, however, gave interviews describing the supposed robbery in detail and Brazilian Olympic authorities later issued a public apology for the security slip up. With some 85,000 police and soldiers guarding the Olympics -- twice the number from London in 2012 -- the apparently high-profile crime touched a nerve in Rio. In addition to multiple incidents of thefts from Olympic athletes and media, a Portuguese government minister was mugged in the swish Leblon district. Lochte said he had a gun put to his forehead in the robbery, when the swimmers' taxi was pulled over by criminals who forced them to lie on the ground and stole money and other items. "The guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, 'Get down,'" Lochte said afterwards. "He took our money, he took my wallet -- he left my cell phone, he left my credentials." However, Olympic officials have said police are still looking for key witnesses, including the cab driver. And Blank's office said the judge was probing "possible inconsistencies in the swimmers' stories", including varying accounts of how many assailants were involved. According to the NBC report, Lochte strongly denied that the swimmers fabricated the story of the robbery. "I wouldn't make up a story like this nor would the others -- as a matter of fact we all feel it makes us look bad," it quoted Lochte as saying. (AFP)

Rio Olympics 2016: Brazil police pull 2 US swimmers off plane

Narsingh Yadav&#39;s Olympic dream seems to have come to an end with the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upholding the World Anti Doping Agency&#39;s (WADA) appeal against the clean chit given to him in a doping violation case. 
 
The ad hoc division of the CAS, which met here on Thursday to hear the WADA&#39;s appeal against the clearance to Narsingh by the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) also slapped a four-year ban on the Mumbai wrestler. 
 
&quot;WADA filed an urgent application before the CAS ad hoc Division to challenge the decision of NADA India to exonerate Narsingh Yadav following two positive anti-doping tests with methandienone on June 25 and July 5. The athlete asserted that he was the victim of sabotage (food/drink tampering) by another person. WADA requested that a four-year period of ineligibility be imposed on the athlete,&quot; the CAS said in a statement. 
 
&quot;The CAS panel did not accept the argument of the athlete that he was the victim of sabotage and noted that there was no evidence that he bore no fault, nor that the anti-doping rule violation was not intentional. Therefore the standard four-year period of ineligibility was imposed by the panel,&quot; the statement added. 
 
(IANS)

The CAS panel did not accept the argument of the athlete that he was a victim of sabotage

Narsingh Yadav's Olympic dream seems to have come to an end with the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upholding the World Anti Doping Agency's (WADA) appeal against the clean chit given to him in a doping violation case. The ad hoc division of the CAS, which met here on Thursday to hear the WADA's appeal against the clearance to Narsingh by the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) also slapped a four-year ban on the Mumbai wrestler. "WADA filed an urgent application before the CAS ad hoc Division to challenge the decision of NADA India to exonerate Narsingh Yadav following two positive anti-doping tests with methandienone on June 25 and July 5. The athlete asserted that he was the victim of sabotage (food/drink tampering) by another person. WADA requested that a four-year period of ineligibility be imposed on the athlete," the CAS said in a statement. "The CAS panel did not accept the argument of the athlete that he was the victim of sabotage and noted that there was no evidence that he bore no fault, nor that the anti-doping rule violation was not intentional. Therefore the standard four-year period of ineligibility was imposed by the panel," the statement added. (IANS)

Rio Olympics 2016: CAS slaps four-year ban on Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav

Allegations that star US swimmer Ryan Lochte invented a story about him and three team mates being mugged at gunpoint in Rio strengthened Thursday with video footage showing them in a gas station altercation. 
 
The controversy took a dramatic new twist after the leaking of security camera footage from a gas station on Brazil&#39;s Globo television. This came hours after two of the swimmers were hauled off a plane about to leave Rio de Janeiro for the United States and taken in for questioning. 
 
The video footage appears to support police accusations that the medal-winning swimmers vandalized a gas station bathroom where they had stopped off after all-night partying. They were then detained by a security guard. 
 
The four swimmers are seen in the video getting out of a taxi after a man identified as the security guard approaches. Later they are seen being made to sit on the ground. 
 
Brazil&#39;s G1 site quoted police saying the athletes broke the gas station&#39;s bathroom door and started a confrontation with the armed security guard, who pulled out his weapon and made them wait for police to arrive. 
 
This version of events is a far cry from 32-year-old Lochte&#39;s claims. 
 
The swimmer, one of the most visible faces of the Olympics and winner of six gold medals, told media that the four had been robbed at gunpoint by a man claiming to be a policeman. 
 
His report caused the Olympic authorities huge embarrassment, highlighting security worries at an Olympics where Brazil has deployed 85,000 police and soldiers -- double the number used in the 2012 London Games. 
 
However, the authorities soon raised doubts over the veracity of the allegation and the swimmers could face charges of filing a false claim with police. 
 
A judge on Wednesday ordered the swimmers to be detained and their passports confiscated. 
 
Lochte had already flown back to the United States. However, two other athletes -- Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz -- were removed by police from a plane just about to take off late Wednesday. 
 
The fourth, James Feigen, was also still in Brazil. 
 
&quot;The three US Olympic swimmers... are cooperating with authorities and in the process of scheduling a time and place today to provide further statements to the Brazilian authorities,&quot; said Patrick Sandusky, spokesman for the US Olympic Committee. 
 
- International scandal - 
The scandal overshadowed sporting action in the second week of South America&#39;s first Olympics, coming simultaneously with the arrest in Rio of IOC member Patrick Hickey on allegations of taking part in a black market ticket ring. 
 
Hickey, who fell ill during his arrest Wednesday, was expected to face interrogation once he is released from hospital. 
 
Lochte&#39;s harrowing story got worldwide attention and touched a nerve in Rio, where violent crime is common. 
 
In addition to multiple incidents of thefts from Olympic athletes and media, a Portuguese government minister was mugged in the swish Leblon district. 
 
On Thursday, British Olympic officials confirmed that an athlete had been robbed while returning to the Olympic Village, but was &quot;safe and well.&quot; 
 
The Guardian newspaper reported that British athletes had been warned not to leave the village complex for their safety. 
 
Lochte&#39;s story was particularly alarming because it supposedly involved police or someone claiming to be police. 
 
He described in detail how the assailant had a gun put to his forehead after the swimmers&#39; taxi was pulled over by criminals who forced them to lie on the ground and stole money and other items. 
 
&quot;The guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, &#39;Get down,&#39;&quot; Lochte recopunted. &quot;He took our money, he took my wallet -- he left my cell phone, he left my credentials.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

The video footage appears to support police accusations that the swimmers vandalised a gas station bathroom that night

Allegations that star US swimmer Ryan Lochte invented a story about him and three team mates being mugged at gunpoint in Rio strengthened Thursday with video footage showing them in a gas station altercation. The controversy took a dramatic new twist after the leaking of security camera footage from a gas station on Brazil's Globo television. This came hours after two of the swimmers were hauled off a plane about to leave Rio de Janeiro for the United States and taken in for questioning. The video footage appears to support police accusations that the medal-winning swimmers vandalized a gas station bathroom where they had stopped off after all-night partying. They were then detained by a security guard. The four swimmers are seen in the video getting out of a taxi after a man identified as the security guard approaches. Later they are seen being made to sit on the ground. Brazil's G1 site quoted police saying the athletes broke the gas station's bathroom door and started a confrontation with the armed security guard, who pulled out his weapon and made them wait for police to arrive. This version of events is a far cry from 32-year-old Lochte's claims. The swimmer, one of the most visible faces of the Olympics and winner of six gold medals, told media that the four had been robbed at gunpoint by a man claiming to be a policeman. His report caused the Olympic authorities huge embarrassment, highlighting security worries at an Olympics where Brazil has deployed 85,000 police and soldiers -- double the number used in the 2012 London Games. However, the authorities soon raised doubts over the veracity of the allegation and the swimmers could face charges of filing a false claim with police. A judge on Wednesday ordered the swimmers to be detained and their passports confiscated. Lochte had already flown back to the United States. However, two other athletes -- Jack Conger and Gunnar Bentz -- were removed by police from a plane just about to take off late Wednesday. The fourth, James Feigen, was also still in Brazil. "The three US Olympic swimmers... are cooperating with authorities and in the process of scheduling a time and place today to provide further statements to the Brazilian authorities," said Patrick Sandusky, spokesman for the US Olympic Committee. - International scandal - The scandal overshadowed sporting action in the second week of South America's first Olympics, coming simultaneously with the arrest in Rio of IOC member Patrick Hickey on allegations of taking part in a black market ticket ring. Hickey, who fell ill during his arrest Wednesday, was expected to face interrogation once he is released from hospital. Lochte's harrowing story got worldwide attention and touched a nerve in Rio, where violent crime is common. In addition to multiple incidents of thefts from Olympic athletes and media, a Portuguese government minister was mugged in the swish Leblon district. On Thursday, British Olympic officials confirmed that an athlete had been robbed while returning to the Olympic Village, but was "safe and well." The Guardian newspaper reported that British athletes had been warned not to leave the village complex for their safety. Lochte's story was particularly alarming because it supposedly involved police or someone claiming to be police. He described in detail how the assailant had a gun put to his forehead after the swimmers' taxi was pulled over by criminals who forced them to lie on the ground and stole money and other items. "The guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, 'Get down,'" Lochte recopunted. "He took our money, he took my wallet -- he left my cell phone, he left my credentials." (AFP)

Video undermines US Olympic swimmers' 'mugging' story

Rohtak district today erupted in joy and celebrations after local girl Sakshi Malik made India&#39;s northern Haryana state and the country proud by winning a Bronze medal in wrestling at the Rio Olympics. 
 
People from all walks of life including ministers, politicians, Sports Authority of India officials made a beeline to Sakshi&#39;s house at Mokhra village in Rohtak district to congratulate the family for clinching a medal in the 58 kg category in the Olympics. 
 
&quot;I have been receiving so many calls on my mobile phones for congratulatory messages ever since my daughter won the medal at Rio Olympic games,&quot; said Sudesh Malik, mother of Sakshi as the family was busy in distributing sweets to everyone who came to congratulate the wrestler&#39;s family. 
 
Sudesh, who has not slept for more than 20 hours till today morning, along with her husband and other family members were glued to the television to watch Sakshi&#39;s bout and they all erupted in joy when she won the match. 
 
All the family members could be seen hugging each other over the historic feat achieved by Sakshi. 
 
Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar called up Sakshi&#39;s father Sukhbir Malik to congratulate the family for their daughter&#39;s historic feat. 
 
Haryana state minister Manish Grover personally visited Sakshi&#39;s house and presented a &#39;Gada&#39; and sweet box to the family. 
 
A large number of media people flocked to the wrestler&#39;s house to interview the family as the 23-year-old Rohtak girl scripted history by winning a Bronze medal - the first by an Indian woman wrestler. 
 
The news of the Rohtak girl&#39;s medal winning feat will put the district on the world map even as few months back, Rohtak had remained the epicenter of violent Jat agitation. 
 
Several leaders including Haryana governor Kaptan Singh Solanki, chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, sports minister Anil Vij, finance minister Captain Abhimanyu, former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda congratulated Sakshi for her historic feat. 
 
In his message, the Governor said that the whole country was proud of Sakshi for this achievement. &quot;On this auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan, Sakshi has brought laurels to the country by bagging bronze in the 58-kg category of Women&#39;s Freestyle Wrestling,&quot; he said. 
 
Khattar said, &quot;Sakshi Malik has done Haryana and the country proud by opening India&#39;s account in the medals tally in the Olympics at Rio in Brazil. I congratulate her and members of her family on her achievement. The way she came from behind to win Bronze at Rio shows her class, grit and determination.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Sports minister Anil Vij, who is leading a delegation at Rio Olympic Games, said international wrestler Sakshi has made the state and country proud by winning the country its first medal at Rio. 
 
Vij also extended good wishes to Sakshi and her family members on behalf of the people of the state and country. 
 
Vij in a release said that the state government would honour Sakshi with cash award of Rupees 2.5 crore as per its sports policy. He hoped that the other sportspersons of the state would also prove their mettle in coming events by winning medals. 
 
Before this historical event, Vij also met all athletes from the state and encouraged them to bring laurels to the state and the country by delivering sterling performances in their respective games. 
 
As a result of this, Haryana has bagged the first medal for the country in the Olympics, the release said. 
 
Former Haryana chief minister Hooda, who is also from Rohtak in his tweet said, &quot;Congrats Sakshi on winning our 1st medal in #Rio2016. Proud of u &amp; everyone who fought hard even if they cudn&#39;t win.&quot; 
 
Finance minister Captain Abhimanyu also tweeted, &quot;Many congratulations. #SakshiMalik.&quot; 
 
(PTI)

Everybody has been making a beeline for her home in Mokhra village. Even the chief minister called to congratulate the family

Rohtak district today erupted in joy and celebrations after local girl Sakshi Malik made India's northern Haryana state and the country proud by winning a Bronze medal in wrestling at the Rio Olympics. People from all walks of life including ministers, politicians, Sports Authority of India officials made a beeline to Sakshi's house at Mokhra village in Rohtak district to congratulate the family for clinching a medal in the 58 kg category in the Olympics. "I have been receiving so many calls on my mobile phones for congratulatory messages ever since my daughter won the medal at Rio Olympic games," said Sudesh Malik, mother of Sakshi as the family was busy in distributing sweets to everyone who came to congratulate the wrestler's family. Sudesh, who has not slept for more than 20 hours till today morning, along with her husband and other family members were glued to the television to watch Sakshi's bout and they all erupted in joy when she won the match. All the family members could be seen hugging each other over the historic feat achieved by Sakshi. Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar called up Sakshi's father Sukhbir Malik to congratulate the family for their daughter's historic feat. Haryana state minister Manish Grover personally visited Sakshi's house and presented a 'Gada' and sweet box to the family. A large number of media people flocked to the wrestler's house to interview the family as the 23-year-old Rohtak girl scripted history by winning a Bronze medal - the first by an Indian woman wrestler. The news of the Rohtak girl's medal winning feat will put the district on the world map even as few months back, Rohtak had remained the epicenter of violent Jat agitation. Several leaders including Haryana governor Kaptan Singh Solanki, chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, sports minister Anil Vij, finance minister Captain Abhimanyu, former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda congratulated Sakshi for her historic feat. In his message, the Governor said that the whole country was proud of Sakshi for this achievement. "On this auspicious occasion of Raksha Bandhan, Sakshi has brought laurels to the country by bagging bronze in the 58-kg category of Women's Freestyle Wrestling," he said. Khattar said, "Sakshi Malik has done Haryana and the country proud by opening India's account in the medals tally in the Olympics at Rio in Brazil. I congratulate her and members of her family on her achievement. The way she came from behind to win Bronze at Rio shows her class, grit and determination." Sports minister Anil Vij, who is leading a delegation at Rio Olympic Games, said international wrestler Sakshi has made the state and country proud by winning the country its first medal at Rio. Vij also extended good wishes to Sakshi and her family members on behalf of the people of the state and country. Vij in a release said that the state government would honour Sakshi with cash award of Rupees 2.5 crore as per its sports policy. He hoped that the other sportspersons of the state would also prove their mettle in coming events by winning medals. Before this historical event, Vij also met all athletes from the state and encouraged them to bring laurels to the state and the country by delivering sterling performances in their respective games. As a result of this, Haryana has bagged the first medal for the country in the Olympics, the release said. Former Haryana chief minister Hooda, who is also from Rohtak in his tweet said, "Congrats Sakshi on winning our 1st medal in #Rio2016. Proud of u & everyone who fought hard even if they cudn't win." Finance minister Captain Abhimanyu also tweeted, "Many congratulations. #SakshiMalik." (PTI)

Back in India, Sakshi's home state erupts in joy

India has finally managed to open their medal account in the ongoing Rio Olympics as wrestler Sakshi Malik clinched a bronze in the women&#39;s freestyle 58 kg event after defeating Asian number 1 Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyztan 8-5 here today. 
 
Although the 23-year-old was trailing 0-5 against her Kyrgyzstani opponent after the first period, she bounced back in style to hand India its fourth bronze medal in wrestling in the Olympic history. 
 
Prior to this, Malik won her repechage round 2 bout by beating Mongolia&#39;s Purevdorj Orkhon 12-3 to advance to the bronze-medal match.&nbsp; 
 
Malik had earlier suffered a major setback as she went down 2-9 against Russia&#39;s Valeriia Koblova in the quarter-finals of the event. She, however, had brought herself back into the medal contention after her Russian opponent made it to the finals of the freestyle 58 kg event. 
 
With the win, Malik has now become only the fourth Indian woman athlete to win an Olympic medal after Karnam Malleshwari, Mary Kom and Saina Nehwal. She has also become the fourth Indian wrestler to win a medal in Olympics after Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav,two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt. 
 
Indian Prime Minister congratulated the freestyle wrestler, hailing from the northern Haryana, on the microblogging site Twitter.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Sakshi Malik creates history! Congratulations to her for the Bronze. The entire nation is rejoicing. On this very auspicious day of Raksha Bandhan (a Hindu festival celebrated by siblings in India) , Sakshi Malik, a daughter of India, wins a Bronze &amp; makes all of us very proud,&quot; he tweeted.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Hearty Congratulations to #SakshiMalik for winning a medal in women&#39;s wrestling in #Rio2016 and doing India proud,&quot; Indian President Pranab Mukherjee also said in his official Twitter handle. 
 
(ANI)&nbsp;

Malik is only the fourth Indian woman athlete to win an Olympic medal

India has finally managed to open their medal account in the ongoing Rio Olympics as wrestler Sakshi Malik clinched a bronze in the women's freestyle 58 kg event after defeating Asian number 1 Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyztan 8-5 here today. Although the 23-year-old was trailing 0-5 against her Kyrgyzstani opponent after the first period, she bounced back in style to hand India its fourth bronze medal in wrestling in the Olympic history. Prior to this, Malik won her repechage round 2 bout by beating Mongolia's Purevdorj Orkhon 12-3 to advance to the bronze-medal match. Malik had earlier suffered a major setback as she went down 2-9 against Russia's Valeriia Koblova in the quarter-finals of the event. She, however, had brought herself back into the medal contention after her Russian opponent made it to the finals of the freestyle 58 kg event. With the win, Malik has now become only the fourth Indian woman athlete to win an Olympic medal after Karnam Malleshwari, Mary Kom and Saina Nehwal. She has also become the fourth Indian wrestler to win a medal in Olympics after Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav,two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt. Indian Prime Minister congratulated the freestyle wrestler, hailing from the northern Haryana, on the microblogging site Twitter. "Sakshi Malik creates history! Congratulations to her for the Bronze. The entire nation is rejoicing. On this very auspicious day of Raksha Bandhan (a Hindu festival celebrated by siblings in India) , Sakshi Malik, a daughter of India, wins a Bronze & makes all of us very proud," he tweeted. "Hearty Congratulations to #SakshiMalik for winning a medal in women's wrestling in #Rio2016 and doing India proud," Indian President Pranab Mukherjee also said in his official Twitter handle. (ANI)

Rio Olympics 2016: Wrestler Sakshi Malik wins bronze, gives India its first medal

Brazilian police on Wednesday arrested top International Olympic&nbsp;Committee member Patrick Hickey as part of an operation against&nbsp;black market Rio Olympics tickets. 
 
The 71-year-old head of the European Olympic Committees and&nbsp;Ireland&#39;s national committee, was detained at dawn at a luxury Rio&nbsp;hotel where he is staying with other IOC members, police said. 
 
According to Brazilian media, Hickey tried to escape when the&nbsp;operation was launched. 
 
Pictures shown by ESPN Brazil showed Hickey speaking to police in&nbsp;a bath robe in his room. 
 
Hickey was taken away from the hotel in an ambulance at about&nbsp;7 am and was expected to spend the night in hospital, IOC&nbsp;spokesman Mark Adams and police said. 
 
He has been accused of ticket scalping, ambush marketing and&nbsp;conspiracy. Prosecutors have estimated the profits from the black&nbsp;market sales at $3 million dollars. 
 
&quot;We will be fully cooperating with any police investigation,&quot;&nbsp;Adams told a press conference. 
 
&quot;Mr Hickey is entitled for the world and everyone to believe he is&nbsp;innocent until proven guilty,&quot; he added. &quot;Let&#39;s not jump the gun&nbsp;on this one.&quot; 
 
Brazilian police have launched a widening investigation after&nbsp;seizing more than 1,000 premier tickets for Games events,&nbsp;including the opening ceremony. 
 
Tickets with a face value of about $1,000 dollars were sold for&nbsp;more than $8,000. 
 
Some of the tickets had the Olympic Council of Ireland name on&nbsp;them. The OCI would only say that it was &quot;seeking total clarity on 
the situation&quot; before commenting. 
 
Kevin James Mallon, a director of THG Sports, was arrested in Rio&nbsp;on August 5 in possession of the tickets. 
 
THG Sports was licensed to resell London 2012 and Sochi 2014&nbsp;Olympic tickets. Hickey&#39;s son Stephen used to work at THG. 
 
Another THG staffer was arrested in Brazil in 2014 over the&nbsp;reselling of World Cup tickets. 
 
Brazilian prosecutors issued warrants for Hickey and other figures&nbsp;including Marcus Evans, a British hospitality businessman and&nbsp;owner of English Championship football club Ipswich.Hickey has&nbsp;been a member of the IOC executive board since 2012. As head of&nbsp;the European body he has been instrumental in setting up the&nbsp;European Games which was first held in Baku, Azerbaijan, last&nbsp;year. 
 
The arrest has echoes of a police raid on a FIFA hotel in Zurich&nbsp;last year in which seven officials of the football governing body&nbsp;were held on corruption charges. It will come as a blow to the IOC&nbsp;which has made anti-corruption efforts a priority since a bribery&nbsp;scandal around the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. 
 
Six IOC members were expelled after the scandal. Hickey senior denied any connection to THG in an interview last&nbsp;week with Irish broadcaster RTE. 
 
&quot;There is no impropriety whatsoever from anyone within the OCI or&nbsp;myself in the dealing of tickets. I want to re-assure you of that&nbsp;100 percent,&quot; Hickey said. 
 
&quot;I am fully expecting we, the OCI, will come out of it with a&nbsp;fully clear bill of health.&quot; 
 
Brazilian police are also looking for an executive with Pro10&nbsp;Sports Management, an Irish company based in Lucan which was&nbsp;appointed by the OCI as its authorised ticket re-seller in&nbsp;Ireland. 
 
Pro10 said the tickets Mallon had in his possession were held for&nbsp;collection by Irish and other European customers who had purchased&nbsp;them at face value, plus a commission. 
 
In a statement they called allegations against the company&nbsp;&quot;utterly untrue.&quot; 
 
&quot;Pro10 is appalled that allegations are being made against the&nbsp;company without any attempt to ascertain the facts. The Brazilian&nbsp;authorities seem to be dealing with these extremely serious&nbsp;allegations through the media and no contact has been made with&nbsp;ro10,&quot; it said.

Patrick Hickey has been accused of ticket scalping, ambush marketing and?conspiracy

Brazilian police on Wednesday arrested top International Olympic Committee member Patrick Hickey as part of an operation against black market Rio Olympics tickets. The 71-year-old head of the European Olympic Committees and Ireland's national committee, was detained at dawn at a luxury Rio hotel where he is staying with other IOC members, police said. According to Brazilian media, Hickey tried to escape when the operation was launched. Pictures shown by ESPN Brazil showed Hickey speaking to police in a bath robe in his room. Hickey was taken away from the hotel in an ambulance at about 7 am and was expected to spend the night in hospital, IOC spokesman Mark Adams and police said. He has been accused of ticket scalping, ambush marketing and conspiracy. Prosecutors have estimated the profits from the black market sales at $3 million dollars. "We will be fully cooperating with any police investigation," Adams told a press conference. "Mr Hickey is entitled for the world and everyone to believe he is innocent until proven guilty," he added. "Let's not jump the gun on this one." Brazilian police have launched a widening investigation after seizing more than 1,000 premier tickets for Games events, including the opening ceremony. Tickets with a face value of about $1,000 dollars were sold for more than $8,000. Some of the tickets had the Olympic Council of Ireland name on them. The OCI would only say that it was "seeking total clarity on the situation" before commenting. Kevin James Mallon, a director of THG Sports, was arrested in Rio on August 5 in possession of the tickets. THG Sports was licensed to resell London 2012 and Sochi 2014 Olympic tickets. Hickey's son Stephen used to work at THG. Another THG staffer was arrested in Brazil in 2014 over the reselling of World Cup tickets. Brazilian prosecutors issued warrants for Hickey and other figures including Marcus Evans, a British hospitality businessman and owner of English Championship football club Ipswich.Hickey has been a member of the IOC executive board since 2012. As head of the European body he has been instrumental in setting up the European Games which was first held in Baku, Azerbaijan, last year. The arrest has echoes of a police raid on a FIFA hotel in Zurich last year in which seven officials of the football governing body were held on corruption charges. It will come as a blow to the IOC which has made anti-corruption efforts a priority since a bribery scandal around the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. Six IOC members were expelled after the scandal. Hickey senior denied any connection to THG in an interview last week with Irish broadcaster RTE. "There is no impropriety whatsoever from anyone within the OCI or myself in the dealing of tickets. I want to re-assure you of that 100 percent," Hickey said. "I am fully expecting we, the OCI, will come out of it with a fully clear bill of health." Brazilian police are also looking for an executive with Pro10 Sports Management, an Irish company based in Lucan which was appointed by the OCI as its authorised ticket re-seller in Ireland. Pro10 said the tickets Mallon had in his possession were held for collection by Irish and other European customers who had purchased them at face value, plus a commission. In a statement they called allegations against the company "utterly untrue." "Pro10 is appalled that allegations are being made against the company without any attempt to ascertain the facts. The Brazilian authorities seem to be dealing with these extremely serious allegations through the media and no contact has been made with ro10," it said.

Rio Olympics 2016: European Olympic Committee chief arrested over black market tickets

A Brazilian judge on Wednesday ordered that US Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte and teammate James Feigen be prevented from leaving the country after doubts emerged over their claim to have been mugged at gunpoint. 
 
Judge Keyla Blank &quot;issued warrants for searches and the seizure of the passports for the US swimmers&quot;, a statement from her office said. &quot;With this, they are banned from leaving the country.&quot; 
 
There were unconfirmed Brazilian media reports that Lochte had already left Brazil. Rio police did not respond immediately to requests for comment.&nbsp;The US Olympic Committee refused to comment on the athletes&#39; whereabouts but confirmed that Brazilian police were looking for the swimmers. 
 
&ldquo;Local police arrived at the Olympic Village this am and asked to meet with Ryan Lochte and James Feigen and collect their passports in order to secure further testimony from the athletes,&quot; spokesman Patrick Sandusky said. 
 
&quot;The swim team moved out of the village after their competition ended, so we were not able to make the athletes available.&nbsp;Additionally, as part of our standard security protocol, we do not make athlete travel plans public and therefore cannot confirm the athletes&#39; current location.&quot; 
 
Sandusky said the US team would &quot;continue to cooperate with Brazilian authorities&rdquo;.&nbsp;Lochte says that he and three teammates were held up by muggers posing as police as they left a party in central Rio. 
 
Lochte said he had a gun put to his forehead in the robbery&nbsp;when the swimmers&#39; taxi was pulled over by criminals who forced them to lie on the ground and stole money and other items. 
 
&quot;The guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, &#39;Get down&#39;,&quot; Lochte said afterwards. &quot;He took our money, he took my wallet, he left my cell phone, he left my credentials.&quot; 
 
However, Olympic officials have said police are still looking for key witnesses, including the driver of the cab the swimmers said they had been in.&nbsp;Blank&#39;s office said the judge was probing &quot;possible inconsistencies in the swimmers&#39; stories&quot;.&nbsp;These included different accounts of how many assailants there were. 
 
Another point raising doubts over the swimmers&#39; stories was their behavior, caught on security cameras, as they returned to their hotel after the supposed robbery, the judge said. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s noticeable that the victims arrived back physically and mentally unshaken, even joking with each other,&quot; the judge said. 
 
(AFP)

This prevents the Olympic gold medalist from leaving the country after doubts emerge of claim that he and teammates were robbed at gunpoint

A Brazilian judge on Wednesday ordered that US Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte and teammate James Feigen be prevented from leaving the country after doubts emerged over their claim to have been mugged at gunpoint. Judge Keyla Blank "issued warrants for searches and the seizure of the passports for the US swimmers", a statement from her office said. "With this, they are banned from leaving the country." There were unconfirmed Brazilian media reports that Lochte had already left Brazil. Rio police did not respond immediately to requests for comment. The US Olympic Committee refused to comment on the athletes' whereabouts but confirmed that Brazilian police were looking for the swimmers. “Local police arrived at the Olympic Village this am and asked to meet with Ryan Lochte and James Feigen and collect their passports in order to secure further testimony from the athletes," spokesman Patrick Sandusky said. "The swim team moved out of the village after their competition ended, so we were not able to make the athletes available. Additionally, as part of our standard security protocol, we do not make athlete travel plans public and therefore cannot confirm the athletes' current location." Sandusky said the US team would "continue to cooperate with Brazilian authorities”. Lochte says that he and three teammates were held up by muggers posing as police as they left a party in central Rio. Lochte said he had a gun put to his forehead in the robbery when the swimmers' taxi was pulled over by criminals who forced them to lie on the ground and stole money and other items. "The guy pulled out his gun, he cocked it, put it to my forehead and he said, 'Get down'," Lochte said afterwards. "He took our money, he took my wallet, he left my cell phone, he left my credentials." However, Olympic officials have said police are still looking for key witnesses, including the driver of the cab the swimmers said they had been in. Blank's office said the judge was probing "possible inconsistencies in the swimmers' stories". These included different accounts of how many assailants there were. Another point raising doubts over the swimmers' stories was their behavior, caught on security cameras, as they returned to their hotel after the supposed robbery, the judge said. "It's noticeable that the victims arrived back physically and mentally unshaken, even joking with each other," the judge said. (AFP)

Brazilian judge orders seizure of Ryan Lochte's passport

Ferry Weertman of the Netherlands won the men&#39;s marathon swimming event in a photo finish off Rio&#39;s Copacabana Beach on Tuesday. 
 
After covering a distance of 10 km, the 24-year-old Weertman touched the electronic pads at the finish line just before Spiros Gianniotis of Greece, giving the Dutchman his first gold medal in his first Olympics. 
 
The official results showed the first two swimmers with the same time. 
 
Marc-Antoine Olivier of France won the bronze medal. 
 
Tuesday&#39;s race is the first of three editions to take place in the ocean. The water temperature was a comfortable 21 C under sunny skies. 
 
(Reuters)

Tuesday's race was the first of three editions to take place in the ocean

Ferry Weertman of the Netherlands won the men's marathon swimming event in a photo finish off Rio's Copacabana Beach on Tuesday. After covering a distance of 10 km, the 24-year-old Weertman touched the electronic pads at the finish line just before Spiros Gianniotis of Greece, giving the Dutchman his first gold medal in his first Olympics. The official results showed the first two swimmers with the same time. Marc-Antoine Olivier of France won the bronze medal. Tuesday's race is the first of three editions to take place in the ocean. The water temperature was a comfortable 21 C under sunny skies. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Dutchman Weertman wins gold at swimming marathon

Fired-up Malaysians Goh V Shem and Tan&nbsp;Wee Kiong upset the powerful Chinese duo of Chai Biao and Hong Wei&nbsp;to reach the final of the men&#39;s doubles at the Olympic badminton&nbsp;on Tuesday. 
 
Roared on by a raucous contingent of home fans, the 12th-ranked&nbsp;pair closed out an impressive 21-18 21-17 win at the Riocentro to&nbsp;give Malaysia another chance to win its first ever Olympic gold&nbsp;medal. 
 
Malaysia have already secured at least two silver medals at the&nbsp;badminton, with Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying to contest the&nbsp;mixed doubles final against Indonesian duo Tontowi Ahmad and&nbsp;Liliyana Natsir. 
 
China&#39;s Fu Haifeng and Zhang Nan play Britain&#39;s Marcus Ellis and&nbsp;Chris Langridge in the other men&#39;s doubles semi-final later on&nbsp;Tuesday. 
 
The gold medal decider is on Friday. 
 
(Reuters)

The 12th-ranked?pair have given Malaysia another chance to win its first ever Olympic gold

Fired-up Malaysians Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong upset the powerful Chinese duo of Chai Biao and Hong Wei to reach the final of the men's doubles at the Olympic badminton on Tuesday. Roared on by a raucous contingent of home fans, the 12th-ranked pair closed out an impressive 21-18 21-17 win at the Riocentro to give Malaysia another chance to win its first ever Olympic gold medal. Malaysia have already secured at least two silver medals at the badminton, with Chan Peng Soon and Goh Liu Ying to contest the mixed doubles final against Indonesian duo Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsir. China's Fu Haifeng and Zhang Nan play Britain's Marcus Ellis and Chris Langridge in the other men's doubles semi-final later on Tuesday. The gold medal decider is on Friday. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Malaysians reach men's badminton doubles final

Weightlifter Ruslan Nurudinov, known as the &quot;Pride of Uzbekistan&quot;, struck gold in the men`s 105kg class with an Olympic record at the Rio Games on Monday. 
 
The 24-year-old raised a combined total of 431kg above his head to win by a massive 14kg over 19-year-old silver medallist Simon Martirosyan of Armenia.&nbsp; 
 
Kazakhstan`s Alexandr Zaichikov, who served a doping ban from 2013 to 2015, claimed bronze with 416. 
 
Nurudinov, who already had gold assured, lifted 237kg in the clean and jerk to set a new Olympic record. 
 
Afterwards he sank to his knees, roared and burst into tears.&nbsp; 
 
He then ran a lap of the platform waving an Uzbek flag as the crowd stood and cheered.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)

'Pride of Uzbekistan' won by a massive 14kg over silver medalist Martirosyan of Armenia in 105kg weightlifting event

Weightlifter Ruslan Nurudinov, known as the "Pride of Uzbekistan", struck gold in the men`s 105kg class with an Olympic record at the Rio Games on Monday. The 24-year-old raised a combined total of 431kg above his head to win by a massive 14kg over 19-year-old silver medallist Simon Martirosyan of Armenia. Kazakhstan`s Alexandr Zaichikov, who served a doping ban from 2013 to 2015, claimed bronze with 416. Nurudinov, who already had gold assured, lifted 237kg in the clean and jerk to set a new Olympic record. Afterwards he sank to his knees, roared and burst into tears. He then ran a lap of the platform waving an Uzbek flag as the crowd stood and cheered. (AFP)

Rio Olympics 2016: Nurudinov's heavy lifting cleans up Games record en route to gold

Christian Taylor of the United States retained his Olympic men&#39;s triple jump title on Tuesday by jumping further than anyone else has recorded this season. 
 
Taylor, the defending Olympic and world champion, made his mark of 17.86 metres at the first attempt, staking a claim for the podium top spot his rivals were unable to match. 
 
His American team mate Will Claye leapt 17.76 metres took silver. China&#39;s Dong Bin went home with bronze after jumping 17.58 metres on his first attempt and failing to make a mark for the rest of the competition. 
 
(Reuters)

Taylor, the defending Olympic and world champion, made his mark of 17.86 metres in the first attempt

Christian Taylor of the United States retained his Olympic men's triple jump title on Tuesday by jumping further than anyone else has recorded this season. Taylor, the defending Olympic and world champion, made his mark of 17.86 metres at the first attempt, staking a claim for the podium top spot his rivals were unable to match. His American team mate Will Claye leapt 17.76 metres took silver. China's Dong Bin went home with bronze after jumping 17.58 metres on his first attempt and failing to make a mark for the rest of the competition. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Taylor bags his second gold in men's triple jump

Indian ace shuttler PV Sindhu progressed through to the quarterfinals of the women`s singles event with a crushing straight games win over Tai Tzu-Ying of Chinese Taipei here at the Rio Olympics here on Tuesday. 
 
Sindhu, the two-time bronze medallist at World Championship, recorded a thumping 21-13, 21-15 win over Tzu-Ying in an enthralling contest that lasted 40 minutes at Riocentro-Pavilion 4. 
 
Sindhu looked completely in command of her game as she didn`t allow Tzu-Ying to settle down at any stage of the gripping match. She will next take on China`s Wang Yihan on Wednesday. 
 
Earlier in the day, Kidambi Srikanth produced a perfect blend of power and precision to progress through to the quarterfinals after trouncing Denmark`s Jan O Jorgensen 21-19, 21-19 in the men`s singles event. 
 
He will next play against Chinese great Lin Dan for a place in the semifinals on Wednesday. 
 
India, which has sent their largest-ever contingent of 119 athletes in Rio Olympics, are yet to open their medal account in the ongoing Summer Games. 
 
(ANI)&nbsp;

Srikanth stunned World No 5 Jan O Jorgensen in straight sets while PV Sindhu dispatched a higher seeded opponent Tai Tzu-Ying

Indian ace shuttler PV Sindhu progressed through to the quarterfinals of the women`s singles event with a crushing straight games win over Tai Tzu-Ying of Chinese Taipei here at the Rio Olympics here on Tuesday. Sindhu, the two-time bronze medallist at World Championship, recorded a thumping 21-13, 21-15 win over Tzu-Ying in an enthralling contest that lasted 40 minutes at Riocentro-Pavilion 4. Sindhu looked completely in command of her game as she didn`t allow Tzu-Ying to settle down at any stage of the gripping match. She will next take on China`s Wang Yihan on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, Kidambi Srikanth produced a perfect blend of power and precision to progress through to the quarterfinals after trouncing Denmark`s Jan O Jorgensen 21-19, 21-19 in the men`s singles event. He will next play against Chinese great Lin Dan for a place in the semifinals on Wednesday. India, which has sent their largest-ever contingent of 119 athletes in Rio Olympics, are yet to open their medal account in the ongoing Summer Games. (ANI)

Rio Olympics 2016: Sindhu, Srikanth shine bright to reach quarters

Bahamian Shaunae Miller launched herself over the finishing line with a desperate dive to pip American Allyson Felix to Olympic 400 metres gold by the slimmest of margins in a thrilling final on Monday. 
 
After literally flying across the line in a personal best time of 49.44 seconds, the 22-year-old lay on the track, shaken up and exhausted, as she waited for the scoreboard to confirm she had clinched her first major title. 
 
&quot;I didn&#39;t see anyone until the last 20 metres and the only thing I was thinking was that I must get that gold medal,&quot; said Miller. 
 
&quot;I think (the dive) was just a reaction, my mind went blank, the next thing I knew I was lying on the ground. I&#39;ve got a few cuts and bruises but I&#39;m okay. 
 
&quot;This is the moment I have been waiting for. I am just so happy, so grateful, such emotions I just can&#39;t say.&quot; 
 
Felix, who finished in 49.51, was also on the floor after failing to claim her fifth Olympic gold medal, let alone the 200-400 double she had originally planned for the Rio Games. 
 
&quot;Disappointment,&quot; said the 30-year-old, struggling to hold back her tears. &quot;It&#39;s been a tough one and I really hoped it would come together tonight. 
 
&quot;I just gave it all I had, I don&#39;t think I had anything left to give. I feel emotionally and physically drained at this moment. I really wanted it, it&#39;s painful.&quot; 
 
Felix was denied the chance to defend her 200m title, and bid for an unprecedented double, after failing to finish in the top three at the U.S trials while suffering the effects of an ankle injury she suffered in a gym accident earlier this year. 
 
The Californian&#39;s silver medal was, though, her seventh in four Games, the most of any American female track and field athlete at the Olympics. 
 
Silver medallist in the 200m in Athens in 2004 and again in Beijing four years later, Felix won her only individual gold over the half-lap in London in 2012. She has also won three relay golds and could add to that tally in Brazil. 
 
Second behind Felix in the 400 metres at the world championships in Beijing last year when her strong finish was not enough to rein in the American, Miller had clearly learned her lesson. 
 
She exploded out of the blocks in lane seven and went for broke, her long stride giving her a good lead on the back straight as the shorter Felix powered away inside her. 
 
Miller retained the lead coming off the final bend but started tightening up as Felix surged about 50 metres from the line and the pair were neck-and-neck until the Bahamian&#39;s gold medal-winning dive. 
 
Jamaica&#39;s Shericka Jackson took bronze in 49.85 ahead of Americans Natasha Hastings (50.34) and Phyllis Francis (50.41) in fourth and fifth.&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)

'The only thing I was thinking was that I must get that gold medal,' said Miller

Bahamian Shaunae Miller launched herself over the finishing line with a desperate dive to pip American Allyson Felix to Olympic 400 metres gold by the slimmest of margins in a thrilling final on Monday. After literally flying across the line in a personal best time of 49.44 seconds, the 22-year-old lay on the track, shaken up and exhausted, as she waited for the scoreboard to confirm she had clinched her first major title. "I didn't see anyone until the last 20 metres and the only thing I was thinking was that I must get that gold medal," said Miller. "I think (the dive) was just a reaction, my mind went blank, the next thing I knew I was lying on the ground. I've got a few cuts and bruises but I'm okay. "This is the moment I have been waiting for. I am just so happy, so grateful, such emotions I just can't say." Felix, who finished in 49.51, was also on the floor after failing to claim her fifth Olympic gold medal, let alone the 200-400 double she had originally planned for the Rio Games. "Disappointment," said the 30-year-old, struggling to hold back her tears. "It's been a tough one and I really hoped it would come together tonight. "I just gave it all I had, I don't think I had anything left to give. I feel emotionally and physically drained at this moment. I really wanted it, it's painful." Felix was denied the chance to defend her 200m title, and bid for an unprecedented double, after failing to finish in the top three at the U.S trials while suffering the effects of an ankle injury she suffered in a gym accident earlier this year. The Californian's silver medal was, though, her seventh in four Games, the most of any American female track and field athlete at the Olympics. Silver medallist in the 200m in Athens in 2004 and again in Beijing four years later, Felix won her only individual gold over the half-lap in London in 2012. She has also won three relay golds and could add to that tally in Brazil. Second behind Felix in the 400 metres at the world championships in Beijing last year when her strong finish was not enough to rein in the American, Miller had clearly learned her lesson. She exploded out of the blocks in lane seven and went for broke, her long stride giving her a good lead on the back straight as the shorter Felix powered away inside her. Miller retained the lead coming off the final bend but started tightening up as Felix surged about 50 metres from the line and the pair were neck-and-neck until the Bahamian's gold medal-winning dive. Jamaica's Shericka Jackson took bronze in 49.85 ahead of Americans Natasha Hastings (50.34) and Phyllis Francis (50.41) in fourth and fifth. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Bahamian Shaunae Miller dives over finish line, wins 400m gold

Brazilian Thiago da Silva edged out world record holder Renaud Lavillenie of France to win the Olympic pole vault in dramatic fashion on Monday and give the host country its first athletics gold medal of the Games. 
 
Against a back drop of raucous fan cheering, Da Silva skipped an attempt at 5.98 metres and pushed hot favourite Lavillenie to 6.03, which the Frenchman failed twice and the Brazilian passed at the second attempt to set an Olympic record. 
 
The upset gold was assured after Lavillenie, who was continually booed by the passionate Rio crowd, failed to clear 6.08. 
 
&quot;The gold? Incredible. My first time over six metres,&quot; Da Silva told reporters. &quot;My home town wanted me to win.&quot; 
 
Shown the vault again by a TV interviewer, Da Silva said: &quot;Wow, that was beautiful. Thank God.&quot; 
 
The Olympic Stadium crowd had been quiet early in the night, which began with a rain delay, but quickly got behind their 22-year-old countryman, cheering him wildly and booing Lavillenie as he prepared for his final jump. 
 
Lavillenie gave a thumbs down signal but the crowd continued, changing to cheers when the Frenchman failed at 6.08. 
 
&quot;For the Olympics it is not a good image,&quot; Lavillenie said of the booing. &quot;I did nothing to the Brazilians. 
 
&quot;In 1936 the crowd was against Jesse Owens,&quot; he said in reference to the Berlin Olympics when the black American sprinter won four golds. 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve not see this since. We have to deal with it.&quot; 
 
Brazil&#39;s raucous fans, who have brought soccer culture to a number of Olympic events, have confounded some athletes used to more sedate crowds. 
 
Even Da Silva, who only took up the sport at 14, was surprised by the exuberance. 
 
&quot;The crowd were cheering me too much,&quot; he said. &quot;I had to fix my mind on my technique, forget the people.&quot; 
 
Outside the quarter-full stadium, shouts echoed through the darkened streets of Rio&#39;s Jardim Botanico neighbourhood upon Da Silva&#39;s win. 
 
It was Da Silva&#39;s highest jump ever by 10cm, earning the host country&#39;s second gold of South America&#39;s first Olympics. 
 
It was also the first athletics gold achieved by a Brazilian man since Joaquim Cruz won the men&#39;s 800m at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. 
 
Sam Kendricks took bronze for the United States after clearing 5.85, with Czech Jan Kudlicka and Piotr Lisek of Poland in fourth.&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)

He trumped France's defending Olympic champion Renaud Lavillenie to win the men's pole vault title

Brazilian Thiago da Silva edged out world record holder Renaud Lavillenie of France to win the Olympic pole vault in dramatic fashion on Monday and give the host country its first athletics gold medal of the Games. Against a back drop of raucous fan cheering, Da Silva skipped an attempt at 5.98 metres and pushed hot favourite Lavillenie to 6.03, which the Frenchman failed twice and the Brazilian passed at the second attempt to set an Olympic record. The upset gold was assured after Lavillenie, who was continually booed by the passionate Rio crowd, failed to clear 6.08. "The gold? Incredible. My first time over six metres," Da Silva told reporters. "My home town wanted me to win." Shown the vault again by a TV interviewer, Da Silva said: "Wow, that was beautiful. Thank God." The Olympic Stadium crowd had been quiet early in the night, which began with a rain delay, but quickly got behind their 22-year-old countryman, cheering him wildly and booing Lavillenie as he prepared for his final jump. Lavillenie gave a thumbs down signal but the crowd continued, changing to cheers when the Frenchman failed at 6.08. "For the Olympics it is not a good image," Lavillenie said of the booing. "I did nothing to the Brazilians. "In 1936 the crowd was against Jesse Owens," he said in reference to the Berlin Olympics when the black American sprinter won four golds. "We've not see this since. We have to deal with it." Brazil's raucous fans, who have brought soccer culture to a number of Olympic events, have confounded some athletes used to more sedate crowds. Even Da Silva, who only took up the sport at 14, was surprised by the exuberance. "The crowd were cheering me too much," he said. "I had to fix my mind on my technique, forget the people." Outside the quarter-full stadium, shouts echoed through the darkened streets of Rio's Jardim Botanico neighbourhood upon Da Silva's win. It was Da Silva's highest jump ever by 10cm, earning the host country's second gold of South America's first Olympics. It was also the first athletics gold achieved by a Brazilian man since Joaquim Cruz won the men's 800m at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. Sam Kendricks took bronze for the United States after clearing 5.85, with Czech Jan Kudlicka and Piotr Lisek of Poland in fourth. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Brazil's Da Silva delights with upset pole vault gold

A big stumble backwards after his first soaring leap could not prevent Ri Se-gwang from becoming the first North Korean man to win the Olympic vault title on Monday. 
 
The double world champion earned an average score of 15.691 to become only the second man from communist North Korea to win an Olympic gold medal in gymnastics, following the success of Pae Gil-Su on the pommel horse at the 1992 Barcelona Games. 
 
&quot;This gold medal is a joy for my country and I think it will bring a sense of victory and courage to the people of my country,&quot; said Ri, who described it as the greatest moment of his career. 
 
At the victory ceremony, he saluted with his hand to his right temple throughout the national anthem as the flag of North Korea was hoisted. 
 
&quot;I was filled with a lot of emotions and joy because I thought I was able to bring a sense of victory and glory to our leader,&quot; he told reporters, cradling his medal in his hand. 
 
The 31-year-old from Pyongyang stuttered backwards following his first vault - a piked double front summersault with half twist. The effort earned him 15.616 
 
He also stepped backwards from his second vault. 
 
But there was so much difficulty packed into his Tsukahara full-twisting double back effort - a skill which he invented and is named after him - that the flawed landing did not affect his score too much and he was awarded 15.766. 
 
Ri beat Denis Abliazin by 0.175 of a point. It was the Russian&#39;s second medal of the day after he collected bronze on the rings. 
 
Japan&#39;s Kenzo Shirai, who missed out on a medal on his signature floor exercise event on Sunday, won bronze with 15.449. He edged out 35-year-old Romanian Marian Dragulescu on the tie-break rule after both earned the same average score. 
 
(Reuters)

He is only the second man from the country to win an Olympic gold medal in gymnastics

A big stumble backwards after his first soaring leap could not prevent Ri Se-gwang from becoming the first North Korean man to win the Olympic vault title on Monday. The double world champion earned an average score of 15.691 to become only the second man from communist North Korea to win an Olympic gold medal in gymnastics, following the success of Pae Gil-Su on the pommel horse at the 1992 Barcelona Games. "This gold medal is a joy for my country and I think it will bring a sense of victory and courage to the people of my country," said Ri, who described it as the greatest moment of his career. At the victory ceremony, he saluted with his hand to his right temple throughout the national anthem as the flag of North Korea was hoisted. "I was filled with a lot of emotions and joy because I thought I was able to bring a sense of victory and glory to our leader," he told reporters, cradling his medal in his hand. The 31-year-old from Pyongyang stuttered backwards following his first vault - a piked double front summersault with half twist. The effort earned him 15.616 He also stepped backwards from his second vault. But there was so much difficulty packed into his Tsukahara full-twisting double back effort - a skill which he invented and is named after him - that the flawed landing did not affect his score too much and he was awarded 15.766. Ri beat Denis Abliazin by 0.175 of a point. It was the Russian's second medal of the day after he collected bronze on the rings. Japan's Kenzo Shirai, who missed out on a medal on his signature floor exercise event on Sunday, won bronze with 15.449. He edged out 35-year-old Romanian Marian Dragulescu on the tie-break rule after both earned the same average score. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Ri Se-gwang's gold makes him first North Korean to win Olympic vault

The Russian runner who helped expose a system of state-backed&nbsp;doping in her country says she fears for her life and has been&nbsp;forced to move after hackers tried to find her location. 
 
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Saturday Yulia&nbsp;Stepanova&#39;s online doping management account had been illegally&nbsp;accessed. The doping scandal she lifted the lid on has rocked&nbsp;sport and cost over 100 Russians their place at the Rio Games. 
 
Stepanova has been in hiding in the United States with her husband&nbsp;Vitaly, a former Russian anti-doping official, after giving&nbsp;evidence that the Russian government for years facilitated&nbsp;widespread cheating across nearly all Olympic sports. 
 
Speaking to journalists on a video conference call just days&nbsp;before the 800 metres final in Rio, which she has been barred from&nbsp;running in following the suspension of Russian track-and-field&nbsp;from international competition, Stepanova said she had moved her&nbsp;family to another location after the hack. 
 
&quot;The only reason somebody would hack an ADAMS account is to find&nbsp;out your exact location,&quot; she said. &quot;We decided it was safer to&nbsp;relocate. 
 
&quot;If something happens to us then you should know that it is not an&nbsp;accident.&quot; 
 
All athletes have to enter their details into WADA&#39;s Anti-Doping&nbsp;Administration and Management System (ADAMS) and register a time&nbsp;and location each day where they can be reached by doping testers&nbsp;for an out-of-competition test. 
 
Stepanova and her husband have repeatedly raised concerns about&nbsp;their safety in light of the doping scandal they helped ignite and&nbsp;criticised the International Olympic Committee for not doing more&nbsp;to support whistleblowers. 
 
Vitaly Stepanov said he did not know who had hacked his wife&#39;s&nbsp;account but said the couple were being watched by Russian&nbsp;authorities. 
 
After she initially fled Russia for Germany, Russian sports&nbsp;officials said they did not know about any threats against&nbsp;Stepanova or her husband that could have compelled them to seek&nbsp;refuge abroad. 
 
Stepanova said attending the Games - she and her husband declined&nbsp;an invitation from Olympic bosses to visit as spectators - would&nbsp;have left her particularly vulnerable. 
 
General worries about safety and violent crime have cast a pall&nbsp;over the Rio Olympics. Most recently, U.S. gold medallist swimmer&nbsp;Ryan Lochte was robbed at gunpoint by men posing as police&nbsp;officers. 
 
&quot;Watching the Olympic Games and reading the news about what is&nbsp;happening there, on some level I&#39;m glad that I didn&#39;t go,&quot; she&nbsp;said. &quot;If someone wanted to hurt us, it would be very easy to do&nbsp;it there.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

The doping scandal has now cost over 100 Russians their place at the Rio Games

The Russian runner who helped expose a system of state-backed doping in her country says she fears for her life and has been forced to move after hackers tried to find her location. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Saturday Yulia Stepanova's online doping management account had been illegally accessed. The doping scandal she lifted the lid on has rocked sport and cost over 100 Russians their place at the Rio Games. Stepanova has been in hiding in the United States with her husband Vitaly, a former Russian anti-doping official, after giving evidence that the Russian government for years facilitated widespread cheating across nearly all Olympic sports. Speaking to journalists on a video conference call just days before the 800 metres final in Rio, which she has been barred from running in following the suspension of Russian track-and-field from international competition, Stepanova said she had moved her family to another location after the hack. "The only reason somebody would hack an ADAMS account is to find out your exact location," she said. "We decided it was safer to relocate. "If something happens to us then you should know that it is not an accident." All athletes have to enter their details into WADA's Anti-Doping Administration and Management System (ADAMS) and register a time and location each day where they can be reached by doping testers for an out-of-competition test. Stepanova and her husband have repeatedly raised concerns about their safety in light of the doping scandal they helped ignite and criticised the International Olympic Committee for not doing more to support whistleblowers. Vitaly Stepanov said he did not know who had hacked his wife's account but said the couple were being watched by Russian authorities. After she initially fled Russia for Germany, Russian sports officials said they did not know about any threats against Stepanova or her husband that could have compelled them to seek refuge abroad. Stepanova said attending the Games - she and her husband declined an invitation from Olympic bosses to visit as spectators - would have left her particularly vulnerable. General worries about safety and violent crime have cast a pall over the Rio Olympics. Most recently, U.S. gold medallist swimmer Ryan Lochte was robbed at gunpoint by men posing as police officers. "Watching the Olympic Games and reading the news about what is happening there, on some level I'm glad that I didn't go," she said. "If someone wanted to hurt us, it would be very easy to do it there." (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Russian runner Stepanova fears for life after exposing state-backed doping

An overhead television camera suspended by cables crashed to the ground in the Olympic Park on Monday, injuring seven people including two children, in the latest of a string of mishaps to hit South America&#39;s first Games. 
 
No one was badly hurt in the accident, which comes as another embarrassment for organisers already facing safety concerns after the armed robbery of US gold medallist swimmer Ryan Lochte and three of his team mates at the weekend as well as the robberies of two visiting government ministers. 
 
The aerial camera, encased in a heavy black cover, belonged to the official Olympics broadcast unit and fell about 20 metres (65 ft) after cables snapped, sending screams through the crowd, witnesses and officials said. 
 
&quot;I was looking to the camera ... and suddenly I heard a big snap on the cable and the camera came down,&quot; said visitor Chris Adams, a member of the British gymnastics delegation. 
 
A Brazilian television news report showed two women looking dazed, sitting on the ground near the camera. One woman, bleeding from the face as medics arrived, was taken away on a stretcher. The other walked from the scene wearing a neck brace. 
 
A total of four people were taken to hospital after the incident, including two children who had been hit by a cable, a Rio Games official said. All were expected to be discharged from hospital later on Monday, the official said. 
 
One of the camera&#39;s cables had already broken before it fell and a walkway directly beneath had been cordoned off while the Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) unit arranged for a cherry-picker to go to the scene and hoist someone up to it, OBS said. 
 
But the camera came down at an angle, falling outside the cordon, said Adams, the British visitor, who was taking pictures of the park at the time. 
 
&quot;There was a lot of medical people and Rio staff around. They were very, very quick, they were excellent.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

The aerial camera, encased in a heavy black cover, belonged to the official Olympics broadcast unit

An overhead television camera suspended by cables crashed to the ground in the Olympic Park on Monday, injuring seven people including two children, in the latest of a string of mishaps to hit South America's first Games. No one was badly hurt in the accident, which comes as another embarrassment for organisers already facing safety concerns after the armed robbery of US gold medallist swimmer Ryan Lochte and three of his team mates at the weekend as well as the robberies of two visiting government ministers. The aerial camera, encased in a heavy black cover, belonged to the official Olympics broadcast unit and fell about 20 metres (65 ft) after cables snapped, sending screams through the crowd, witnesses and officials said. "I was looking to the camera ... and suddenly I heard a big snap on the cable and the camera came down," said visitor Chris Adams, a member of the British gymnastics delegation. A Brazilian television news report showed two women looking dazed, sitting on the ground near the camera. One woman, bleeding from the face as medics arrived, was taken away on a stretcher. The other walked from the scene wearing a neck brace. A total of four people were taken to hospital after the incident, including two children who had been hit by a cable, a Rio Games official said. All were expected to be discharged from hospital later on Monday, the official said. One of the camera's cables had already broken before it fell and a walkway directly beneath had been cordoned off while the Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) unit arranged for a cherry-picker to go to the scene and hoist someone up to it, OBS said. But the camera came down at an angle, falling outside the cordon, said Adams, the British visitor, who was taking pictures of the park at the time. "There was a lot of medical people and Rio staff around. They were very, very quick, they were excellent." (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Overhead camera falls into Olympic Park injuring 7

Bahrain&#39;s Ruth Jebet blew away the competition to win the women&#39;s 3,000 metres steeplechase gold on Sunday, but narrowly missed out on the world record. 
 
Jebet ran a bold race, bursting into the lead after a few laps and setting a blistering pace to win in 8 minutes, 59.75 seconds, just shy of the 8:58.81 world record set by Russia&#39;s Gulnara Galkina at the 2008 Beijing Games. 
 
Kenya&#39;s Hyvin Kiyeng, who won the world title in Beijing last summer, was nearly 50m from the finish line when Jebet won&nbsp;and had to settle for silver. 
 
American Emma Coburn won United States&#39; first ever medal in the steeplechase after winning bronze. 
 
(Reuters)

Her time of 8:59:75 was just shy of the 8:58.81 world record set by Russia's Gulnara Galkina at the 2008 Beijing Games

Bahrain's Ruth Jebet blew away the competition to win the women's 3,000 metres steeplechase gold on Sunday, but narrowly missed out on the world record. Jebet ran a bold race, bursting into the lead after a few laps and setting a blistering pace to win in 8 minutes, 59.75 seconds, just shy of the 8:58.81 world record set by Russia's Gulnara Galkina at the 2008 Beijing Games. Kenya's Hyvin Kiyeng, who won the world title in Beijing last summer, was nearly 50m from the finish line when Jebet won and had to settle for silver. American Emma Coburn won United States' first ever medal in the steeplechase after winning bronze. (Reuters)

Rio Olympics 2016: Bahrain's Ruth Jebet wins 3000m steeplechase

Indian gymnast Dipa Karmakar missed out on a historic medal in the women&#39;s vault competition by a whisker as she finished a creditable fourth in the final of the Olympic Games here on Sunday. 
 
Dipa averaged 15.066 points to finish fourth. 
 
Simone Biles of the US won the gold with an average of 15.966, while Maria Paseka (15.253) of Russia and Switzerland`s Giulia Steingrubber (15.216) took home the silver and bronze medals respectively. 
 
Dipa scored a total of 14.8661 points with her first attempt which included 6.000 points for difficulty and 8.866 for execution.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; 
 
The Tripura gymnast then attempted her renowned Produnova vault in her second attempt. Her run up and the spins in the air were perfect, but the landing saw her falter a bit which ultimately proved to be costly. 
 
The judges awarded Dipa 7.000 points for difficulty and 8.266 for execution and the second attempt total of 15.266 saw her finish with an average of 15.066. 
 
Dipa was at the second spot at that stage behind then leader Steingruber. But she was pushed to the second spot after Maria`s attempt which saw the Russian score 15.266 and 15.241 with her first and second attempts respectively. 
 
The 23-year-old from Agartala soon drooped to the fourth position after Biles brilliant attempt and agonisingly missed out on a medal by 0.15 point margin. 
 
(IANS)

The gymnast attempted her renowned Produnova vault in her second attempt

Indian gymnast Dipa Karmakar missed out on a historic medal in the women's vault competition by a whisker as she finished a creditable fourth in the final of the Olympic Games here on Sunday. Dipa averaged 15.066 points to finish fourth. Simone Biles of the US won the gold with an average of 15.966, while Maria Paseka (15.253) of Russia and Switzerland`s Giulia Steingrubber (15.216) took home the silver and bronze medals respectively. Dipa scored a total of 14.8661 points with her first attempt which included 6.000 points for difficulty and 8.866 for execution. The Tripura gymnast then attempted her renowned Produnova vault in her second attempt. Her run up and the spins in the air were perfect, but the landing saw her falter a bit which ultimately proved to be costly. The judges awarded Dipa 7.000 points for difficulty and 8.266 for execution and the second attempt total of 15.266 saw her finish with an average of 15.066. Dipa was at the second spot at that stage behind then leader Steingruber. But she was pushed to the second spot after Maria`s attempt which saw the Russian score 15.266 and 15.241 with her first and second attempts respectively. The 23-year-old from Agartala soon drooped to the fourth position after Biles brilliant attempt and agonisingly missed out on a medal by 0.15 point margin. (IANS)

Rio Olympics 2016: India's Dipa Karmakar finishes fourth in vault finals

At first, it looks like smoke billowing from a high-rise.&nbsp;But look again: that surprising splash of gray against the blue Rio de Janeiro sky is a giant image of Sudanese high jumper Mohamed Younes Idriss making a larger-than-life leap over a 20-story building. 
 
This Olympic-sized trompe l&#39;oeil is the work of French art photographer JR, who is famous for plastering huge black-and-white photographs onto street scenes around the world. 
 
He is in Brazil at the invitation of the International Olympic Committee, paying playful tribute to Rio 2016 with superhero-like images that are visible to everyone, whether they have tickets for the Games or not. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s like taking the city as a playground... and having sculptures jumping off the buildings,&rdquo; JR told AFP.&nbsp;He has set up three such &quot;sculptures&quot; so far, pasting his photographs onto scaffolding at iconic spots around the city. 
 
In the second, near the Olympic park and village, a diver is suspended in motion, arms spread wide and poised to plunge into the Atlantic from the end of a pier.&nbsp;In the third, a butterfly swimmer rises from the ocean in front of Rio&#39;s famous Sugarloaf mountain. 
 
&quot;The idea is to evoke these athletes who train all over the world with the dream of making it to the Olympics. Sometimes they fall just short, like Mohamed (the Sudanese high jumper), who was injured just before coming to Rio,&quot; JR said. 
 
The artist has also been touring the city in a giant, rolling photo booth, taking portraits of people he meets and churning them out the side of the vehicle in giant poster format. 
 
He then asks the recipients to plaster the black-and-white photos in public.&nbsp;He has made a mosaic of them on Olympic Boulevard, in the redeveloped port district at the heart of the Games venues. 
 
JR, who keeps his identity secret, knows Rio well. In 2008, he covered the slum walls of the Morro da Providencia favela with black-and-white photographs of the eyes and faces of 30 women, a project he called &quot;Women are Heroes&quot;. 
 
A self-described &quot;artiviste&quot; or artist-as-activist, he called it a homage to the women who hold impoverished communities together despite the daily violence they face.&nbsp;The favela is near Olympic Boulevard, and JR praised the area&#39;s transformation. 
 
&quot;That street was just a mess,&quot; he said.&nbsp;&quot;It was pretty dangerous to walk in. Seeing it for the first time (when) people can walk like this and everything is ready and being able to paste there, it&#39;s great. It&#39;s a great moment.&quot; 
 
&quot;Pasting&quot; is how he describes his work. And the Olympian feat of covering a building in photographs makes him and his assistants identify with the hard work and competitive drive of the real Olympians, he said.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Pasting is a sport to us. When we cover an entire building, we have to go on scaffoldings or paste all day,&quot; he said.&nbsp;&quot;We&#39;re trying to make it recognised at the Olympics. It might be a little hard but who knows&nbsp;one day. Skateboard has just been recognised and gonna be at the next Olympics. So we might get a chance.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

Art photographer JR is famous for plastering huge black-and-white photographs that look like sculptures onto street scenes around the world

At first, it looks like smoke billowing from a high-rise. But look again: that surprising splash of gray against the blue Rio de Janeiro sky is a giant image of Sudanese high jumper Mohamed Younes Idriss making a larger-than-life leap over a 20-story building. This Olympic-sized trompe l'oeil is the work of French art photographer JR, who is famous for plastering huge black-and-white photographs onto street scenes around the world. He is in Brazil at the invitation of the International Olympic Committee, paying playful tribute to Rio 2016 with superhero-like images that are visible to everyone, whether they have tickets for the Games or not. "It's like taking the city as a playground... and having sculptures jumping off the buildings,” JR told AFP. He has set up three such "sculptures" so far, pasting his photographs onto scaffolding at iconic spots around the city. In the second, near the Olympic park and village, a diver is suspended in motion, arms spread wide and poised to plunge into the Atlantic from the end of a pier. In the third, a butterfly swimmer rises from the ocean in front of Rio's famous Sugarloaf mountain. "The idea is to evoke these athletes who train all over the world with the dream of making it to the Olympics. Sometimes they fall just short, like Mohamed (the Sudanese high jumper), who was injured just before coming to Rio," JR said. The artist has also been touring the city in a giant, rolling photo booth, taking portraits of people he meets and churning them out the side of the vehicle in giant poster format. He then asks the recipients to plaster the black-and-white photos in public. He has made a mosaic of them on Olympic Boulevard, in the redeveloped port district at the heart of the Games venues. JR, who keeps his identity secret, knows Rio well. In 2008, he covered the slum walls of the Morro da Providencia favela with black-and-white photographs of the eyes and faces of 30 women, a project he called "Women are Heroes". A self-described "artiviste" or artist-as-activist, he called it a homage to the women who hold impoverished communities together despite the daily violence they face. The favela is near Olympic Boulevard, and JR praised the area's transformation. "That street was just a mess," he said. "It was pretty dangerous to walk in. Seeing it for the first time (when) people can walk like this and everything is ready and being able to paste there, it's great. It's a great moment." "Pasting" is how he describes his work. And the Olympian feat of covering a building in photographs makes him and his assistants identify with the hard work and competitive drive of the real Olympians, he said. "Pasting is a sport to us. When we cover an entire building, we have to go on scaffoldings or paste all day," he said. "We're trying to make it recognised at the Olympics. It might be a little hard but who knows one day. Skateboard has just been recognised and gonna be at the next Olympics. So we might get a chance." (AFP)

French artist JR leaves giant imprint on Rio Olympics

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