Is It Worth It?
If anyone can find a good news story coming out of Rio de Janeiro, please let us know. The upcoming Olympic Games, a seeming disaster in the making, continue to make news, all of it bad.
The filthy water where rowing and sailing events will take place has been well-documented and not remedied. The country is in political turmoil. Athletes are either refusing to go to Rio or on the verge of making that decision because of fears of the Zika virus, which can cause birth defects. Golfer Rory McIlroy pulled out last week.
Now, just six weeks before the scheduled opening of the games, the World Anti-Doping Agency has suspended the laboratory that was supposed to handle testing due to “non-conformity” with international standards. World governing bodies had already banned Russian track and field athletes from competing due to that country’s widespread doping irregularities and violations.
According to the New York Times, the International Olympic Committee will have to arrange for doping samples to be taken to and tested at another WADA-approved lab if Rio cannot be re-certified in time, which seems unlikely.
The Olympics should be safe, secure and exciting time for world sports. Instead it has devolved into a series of messes that will only further tarnish this spectacle.
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman
Check Out These Great July 4th Party Ideas!
The iPhone 7 May Have a Few Tricks up Its Sleeve
-
Correa joined the Mets with a $315 million contract. Recently, baseball player Carlos Correa announced that he had cut...
-
Oklahoma and Texas will depart from the college sports conference at the end of the season. The Big 12...
-
Robert Kraft wants to re-sign Brady just long enough that he can retire as a Patriot. Earlier this week,...
-
The skilled third-baseman will be enshrined in Cooperstown. Scott Rolen is one of the most skilled and recognized third-basemen...
-
Brady’s 23rd football season has ended. On Monday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Dallas Cowboys went head-to-head for...
-
Smith has been fired after one season with the team. Over the weekend, the owners of the Houston Texans...
-
Pelé passed due to complications related to colon cancer. On Thursday night, the sporting world received unfortunate news: Pelé,...
-
His return heralded a victory over the Phoenix Suns. On Sunday, Houston Rockets coach Stephen Silas needed to take...
-
Mayfield will be available on waiver to other NFL teams. After an underwhelming performance in his current role as...
-
Mike White led the team to a decisive victory over the Bears over the weekend. On Saturday, the New...
-
The game has been moved out of New York due to an encroaching snowstorm. This weekend, the Buffalo Bills...
-
Negative pushback prompted the team to give the role to someone else. Recently, the Brooklyn Nets have been in...