Rogge doping ‘quote’ denied
The head of Greece’s Olympic committee, Minos Kyriakou, yesterday denied ever saying that International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge had remarked to him during the Beijing Games that Greece should be awarded a gold medal for doping. Reports at the time suggested Kyriakou had made Rogge’s alleged comments known to Greek journalists. But speaking to a parliamentary committee, he denied this. «I never said that the IOC president told me Greece won the gold medal in doping,» he said. «I spoke to Mr Rogge many times but not about doping.» Kyriakou pointed out the comment would have been true as 15 Greek athletes failed tests, compared to 11 from Bulgaria and 10 Russians. This comment prompted an irate response from Deputy Culture Minister Yiannis Ioannidis, who pointed out that pre-Games checks ensured that only one Greek athlete was caught at the Olympics.
