The Pettiness Of Politics IS Brought To The Olympics

The phony amateurism is gone from the Olympics, but the pettiness of politics remains.

Last week, an Egyptian judoka named Islam El Shehaby took the bold step of competing against (gasp!) an Israeli, Or Sasson. They competed fairly and Sasson won.

This match came against the backdrop of any earlier snafu in which a bus that was supposed to transport two teams to a venue was ticketed for both Lebanon and Israel; the Lebanese refused to allow the Israelis on “their” bus and a second bus had to be brought around. There was also a Saudi Arabian woman judoka who forfeited a first-round match so as not to face an Israeli in the second round.

El Shehaby, having boldly taken to the mat against Sasson, then refused to shake his hand. Saying he did not want to shake hands with an Israeli and wasn’t obligated obliged to, he attempted to exit but was called back to show at least a bit of sportsmanship. He offered a quick nod that passed for a bow and departed to loud booing from the crowd.

The International Olympic Committee, to the surprise of many, actually responded to this breach of decency and standards in its games. It said his behavior was not at all in line with the rules and spirit of the occasion and officially reprimanded him.

The news gets better. The Egyptian team sent him home. And the IOC’s Disciplinary Committee (DC) stepped in as well: “As well as a severe reprimand, the DC has asked the Egyptian Olympic Committee to ensure that in the future all their athletes receive proper education on the Olympic Values before coming to the Olympic Games,” the IOC said.

Sasson won the bronze medal. El Shehaby won nothing and left without his honor, whether he knows it or not.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman