Samsung extends Olympics ‘sponsorship’ to 2028 — IOC

Girard gets gold medal at last

BERLIN, Dec 4, (Agencies): South Korea’s Samsung has extended its sponsorship contract with the International Olympic Committee by eight years and will remain a top sponsor until the 2028 Los Angeles Games, the world governing body said on Tuesday.

Samsung, who first signed up as a top sponsor with the IOC in 1998 and was a local sponsor at the 1988 Seoul Olympics as well, will support all Games up until and including the Los Angeles summer Olympics.

“I am delighted that we will be building on two decades of partnership with Samsung for another 10 years,” said IOC President Thomas Bach at the signing ceremony in Seoul.

“Together, we are able to connect with and inspire Olympic athletes and fans around the world, and we look forward to working with Samsung to build the digital future of the Olympic Games.”

Samsung is one of 14 top sponsors of the Olympics that also includes Coca-Cola, Intel and Panasonic.

Many of them have signed on till 2028 or beyond. In September, German insurer Allianz became the latest addition to the group, signing up to 2028.

No financial details of the deal were released but media reports have said the IOC has been seeking around $50 million per year for similar deals.

The 2022 winter Olympics will be held in Beijing, while the 2024 summer Games will be staged in Paris. The hosts of the 2026 winter Games will be announced next year.

It took more than six years but Christine Girard was finally awarded her 2012 London Games weightlifting gold medal on Monday to become Canada’s first Olympic champion in the sport.

At a ceremony held at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Girard, who has now retired but competed in the 63kg class, also received a bronze from the 2008 Beijing Games, making her the first Canadian to win two Olympic medals in weightlifting.

Girard was initially awarded bronze at the 2012 Olympics but, after the retesting of more than 1,500 urine samples from the Beijing and London Games the samples from two athletes who placed ahead of her, Maiya Maneza of Kazakhstan and Svetlana Tsarukaeva of Russia, were found positive for doping.

They were disqualified and Girard, now 33, was confirmed as the London 2012 Olympic champion in April 2018.

In late 2016, Girard was awarded the Beijing Olympic bronze after Irina Nekrassova of Kazakhstan was stripped of her silver for testing positive for banned substances.

“I want to celebrate this moment with all Canadians as it is a victory of our values,” Girard said in a statement.

“I want people to understand that regardless of your gender or sport, with hard work, determination and a little bit of patience, your dreams are within reach.”

Girard joins Dylan Armstrong (athletics, Beijing 2008) and Beckie Scott (cross-country skiing, Salt Lake City 2002) as Canadian Olympians to receive medal re-allocations due to doping violations by other competitors.

“We are thrilled that the day has now arrived where Christine will be properly recognised and celebrated for her historic achievements at the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games,” said Canadian Olympic Committee President Tricia Smith.

“Christine has shown incredible strength and perseverance throughout her long career, always competing with integrity and grace. We are so pleased to see her receive the Olympic medals which she has so rightfully earned.”

The coaches of South Korea’s “Garlic Girls” curling team, who shot to fame by winning Olympic silver in February, resigned Tuesday after the athletes accused them of verbal abuse and exploitation.

Nicknamed for their small hometown — which is famous for farming the pungent bulb — they were rank outsiders at South Korea’s Pyeongchang Games, and became a media sensation as they swept their way to the tournament final.

But last month they publicly accused their coaches of verbal abuse and intrusive control, saying the managers had berated them for speaking to other athletes and journalists, and had censored letters and gifts from fans.

The team accused the coaches of trying to run Korean curling like a family fiefdom: the husband of their head coach Kim Min-jung is a former national men’s team coach, while her father Kim Kyung-doo is a former vice-president of the Korean Curling Federation (KCF).

In an emailed statement, Kim Kyung-doo apologized for causing “huge disappointment and concern” to the curlers and the public, and said all three family members would resign from curling.

“I sincerely apologize to the athletes for causing great pain with my poor manner of expression,” Kim said.

“From this point, my family and I will step away from curling,” he added.

Kim said he will “faithfully” cooperate with the ongoing inquiry by the South’s sports ministry and the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee.

Canadian weightlifter Christine Girard holds up the gold and bronze Olympic medals she was awarded during a ceremony in Ottawa,

on Dec 3. (AP)