The rules under which all Olympians compete are well established.
Jacques Rogge in his speech at
the opening of the Olympics said “That honour is determined
not by whether you win, but by how you compete. Character counts far more than
medals. Reject doping. Respect you opponents. Remember that you are all role
models
Then there is the Olympic Oath – “In the name of all the
competitors I promise that we shall take part in these Olympic Games,
respecting and abiding by the rules which govern them, committing ourselves to
a sport without doping and without drugs, in the true spirit of sportsmanship,
for the glory of sport and the honor of our teams”
Then
there is the Olympic Creed “The most important thing
in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important
thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not
to have conquered but to have fought well."
As for the Iranian Boxer he was disqualified for breaking the rules
after being warned three times by the Ref. Same as a footballer receiving a
yellow card and then offending again so he gets a red. There is breaking the
rules and then there is a breach of the Oath and the creed
Yes, some athletes save themselves for later rounds but still compete
to get through. Once they are “through” they run against all the others without
a knockout stage to fix. So, once they are “through” they have to compete against
the best. The disqualified badminton players just did not compete. They
disrespected each other on the court. That is the distinction. Even the Chinese Authorities see the decision as fair and proper and all credit to them for respecting the oath and the creed. Phil
------------- If you're not on a fell your wasting your feet and for 2014 it's.......Feb Castleton Mar North Yors Moors; Apr Sutton on Sea; May Thirsk; Jun Clapham/Riverside (Lakes); July Wharfedale; August Crakehall; Sept Knaresborough; Oct Wirral Park/Clitheroe
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