Photo: Matthias Hangst/Getty
A group of Australian athletes competing at theTokyo Summer Olympicsreportedly left a mess in their rooms at the Olympic village.
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“The vast majority of athletes have absolutely done the right thing through their stay and been model citizens both on and off the field of play,” the chief of Australia’s Olympic team, Ian Chesterman, said, per theTimes. “A few have let themselves down.”
In a statement toReuters, Chesterman added that the damage was “minor” and that it was “not the hardest thing to break the cardboard bed.” Two life-sized mascots — a kangaroo and an emu — that went missing from the Team Australia living quarters were also returned.
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“The rooms were not completely trashed in any way,” he continued, before noting, “It is a book as old as time: a good young person makes a mistake, chapter two is a good, young person is full of remorse. Chapter three is a good young person learns from the mistake and becomes a better person.”
In an email statement, a spokesperson for the AOC, Strath Gordon, told theTimesthat the occurrence had been “appropriately dealt with” and the final decision has “put the matter behind us.”
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Football Australia also sent out a similar statement, perThe Guardian, noting, “Football Australia is aware of reports regarding unacceptable behaviour of some athletes on board a flight from Tokyo to Sydney last Friday. Football Australia is discussing the matter with the Australian Olympic Committee and is taking the responsibility to investigate the involvement of any footballers.”
AOC Chief Executive Officer Matt Carroll said in a separate statement that the incident was “unacceptable.”
source: people.com
