Elias Bejjani: Shame on our Lebanese Olympic Head Delegation/منع الفريق الرياضي اللبناني الفريق الإسرائيلي من مشاركته نفس الباص في البرازيل هو عمل ولادي وسخيف وليس فيه رائحة البطولة
Shame on our Lebanese Olympic Head Delegation
Elias Bejjani/August 07/16
Sadly, the unacceptable, childish and unethical conduct of the head of our Lebanese Olympic delegation participating in The Rio 2016 Olympic Games, Mr. Salim al-Haj Nakoula has been by all Olympic standards a mere shame and disgrace.
Apparently he did not honour the Olympic games’ spirit, aims or regulations and acted as if he is still living in the stone age or in a war zone.
For heaven’s sake why should he ferociously and stupidly refuse to let the Israeli Olympic delegation board a bus the Israeli and the Lebanese teams were officially supposed to share, and what did he actually achieve?
Quite frankly, He achieved nothing but a humiliating official reprimanding response by the International Olympic Committee.
As far as we are concerned, our Lebanese Olympic head delegation’s conduct is totally irresponsible, hostile, bizarre, and accordingly strongly condemned.
Simply it was stupid, uncalculated and shameful.
This conduct shows with no doubt that our beloved Lebanon is occupied and that the occupier is the oppressive Iranian Mullahs’ regime via its terrorist, denominational and criminal armed proxy, Hezbollah Iranian Militia.
منع الفريق الرياضي اللبناني الفريق الإسرائيلي من مشاركته نفس الباص في البرازيل هو عمل ولادي وسخيف وليس فيه رائحة البطولة
الياس بجاني/06/16/بدأت أبواق الهوبرجية من ربع كذبة التحرير والممانعة والمقاومة تهلل وتكبر لتصرف الفريق اللبناني الرياضي في البرازيل حيث منع الفريق الإسرائيلي من مشاركته نفس الباص للإنتقال إلى الملاعب. الرئيس لحود وغيره من المقاومين “التجليط” والنفاق والكذب أصدروا بيانات تهنئة للفريق اللبناني تعبر عن فرحتهم وكأن التصرف هو اخلاقي ووطني وانتصار ما بعده انتصار. لا يا ربع النحر وبقر البطون وقطع الأعناق والنفاق ليس في تصرف فريقنا ما يُشرّف أو يسر، بل فيه ما يُخجِّل لسخافته وبعده عن كل القيم والفكر والثقافة والإنسانية.
في هؤلاء المقاومين والمحررين الدجالين يصح القول: “يلي استحوا ماتوا”
**الكاتب ناشط لبناني اغترابي
عنوان الكاتب الألكتروني phoenicia@hotmail.com
Background Olympics Spat as Lebanese Stop Israelis Joining Them on Bus
Associated Press/Naharnet/August 07/16/The Israeli and Lebanese Olympics teams became involved in a heated argument about access to a bus to the opening ceremony of the Rio de Janeiro Games.Both sides acknowledged Saturday that Israeli athletes were blocked from boarding a bus packed with the Lebanon team on Friday but they are at odds over the reasons for the actions of the head of the Lebanese delegation. Israel portrayed it as a hostile act, maintaining that organizers had told them to use the bus to reach the Maracana Stadium.
“The organizing committee saw the blunt behavior of the head of the Lebanese delegation and immediately arranged a different bus for us,” Gili Lusting, head of the Israeli delegation, said in a statement to The Associated Press. “The behavior of the head of the Lebanese delegation contradicts the Olympic Charter,” he added. Sailing coach Udi Gal said Lebanon chef de mission Salim Haj Nicola “physically blocked the entrance and wouldn’t let us on” after the driver opened the door. “We wanted to stand up for ourselves but you can’t cause trouble,” Gal, a former Olympic sailor, told Israel’s Channel 2 television. Haj Nicola insisted that he had the right to prevent another team’s athletes from joining them on the transport reserved for them. “I asked the bus driver to close the door but the guide with the Israeli team prevented him from doing so,” Haj Nicola told An Nahar newspaper. “I then stood at the door of the bus to prevent the Israel team from entering and some of them tried to go in and pick up a fight.”Haj Nicola told the AP that it was “only a small problem.””This problem is finished,” he said by telephone. “We are here only for sports.”It is a decade since Israel was embroiled in a month-long war with Hizbullah fighters in Lebanon. The 2006 conflict killed about 1,200 Lebanese, including hundreds of civilians, and about 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. The border between the two countries has been largely quiet since then.
Lebanese Olympic team scolded by IOC for refusing to let Israelis on bus
Jerusalem Post/August 07/16
The head of the Lebanese Olympic delegation was reprimanded by the International Olympic Committee on Sunday after refusing to let the Israeli delegation board a bus the two teams were supposed to share.As a result, according to the original Facebook post by Israeli sailing coach Udi Gal, event organizers tried to scatter the Israeli athletes on several different buses. He called this “unacceptable for security and representative reasons.”During the hearing on the matter, the IOC committee warned Salim al-Haj Nakoula the head of the Lebanese delegation, that they would not accept any further instances like this.Al-Haj Nakoula responded that the whole incident was the result of a misunderstanding. A source from the Lebanese Olympic committee told Lebanese television station Al Mayadeen on Saturday that the refusal to allow the Israeli delegation to ascend the bus on Friday was a group decision of the Lebanese Olympic delegation. A separate source also said that Lebanese athletes are “committed to the national position in refusing to be in the same place as the Israelis.” He added that Lebanon will remain part of the resistance against Israel. Gal’s post set off an internet firestorm after he described the incident on his Facebook account on Friday. “2016 Olympics…shame on you,” he wrote. “The Israeli delegation was preparing to board a bus to the opening ceremony, which was to be shared with the Lebanese delegation. The Lebanese, upon comprehending that they were to share a bus with the Israelis, addressed the driver in refusal and demanded that the door to the bus be shut. Event organizers then attempted to scatter us on different buses – something that is unacceptable for security and representative reasons.” “We insisted that we board the bus designated for us – and that the Lebanese should de-board if so they wish. So the bus driver opened the door. But this time, the head of the Lebanese delegation blocked the entrance to the bus with his own body. Event organizers – attempting to prevent a diplomatic incident – then organized a separate ride for us. But the diplomatic incident already occurred – shame!”He added: “How can it be that something like this occurs on the eve of the Olympic opening ceremony? Does this not directly oppose what the Olympics represent and stand for…I cannot begin to express my feelings, I’m in shock from the incident.”
Lebanese Olympics team stops Israelis from boarding shared bus
Ynetnews/August 06/16/Sailor Udi Gal, a member of Israel’s Olympics delegation, says members of the Lebanese delegation refused to let the Israelis ride the bus with them to the Maracana stadium, where the opening ceremony was to take place.
The Rio 2016 Olympic Games began on a sour note for the Israeli delegation, but not one relating to the actual competition. When the delegation was ready to board the bus to the Maracana stadium in the Brazilian city, they were physically prevented from doing so by the Lebanese delegation, already aboard, according Israeli sailor Udi Gal. “The 2016 Olympics – a disgrace!!” wrote Gal in a Facebook post. “(When) Israel’s Olympic delegation got ready to board the bus for the opening ceremony, it turned out the bus was shared with the Lebanese delegation. Once the members of the Lebanese delegation realized they were (sharing the bus) with the Israeli delegation, they asked the driver to close the door, with their delegation leader heading (the effort).”Gal claimed that the organizers tried to calm things down. “The organizers tried to split us up to different buses, something which was not possible security and representation-wise,” he wrote, “I insisted and we insisted that we get on the intended bus, and if the Lebanese don’t want (to ride with us), they are welcome to get off (of it). The bus driver opened the door, but this time the head of the Lebanese delegation blocked the entrance with his body. The organizers tried to prevent an international incident and sent us aside to a special (vehicle).”Gal was surprised the organizers gave in to the pressure, writing, “How is it that they let something like this happen, and on the opening night of the Olympic Games? Isn’t this the opposite of what the Olympics represent and (don’t the actions by the Lebanese delegation) work against it? I cannot describe the way I feel. I’m enraged and shocked by this event.”Lebanese delegation head, Salim al-Haj Nakoula gave the Lebanese press his version of the story on Saturday. In an interview given to the An-Nahar newspaper, Nakoula claimed that each delegation was to have its own bus. “There are over 250 buses dedicated to transporting the delegations from the Olympic village to the opening ceremony. After we boarded Bus 22, which was dedicated to the Lebanese delegation, I was surprised by the Israeli delegation’s approaching and wanting to get on the bus with us,” he said.
“I asked the driver to shut the door, but the guide who was there with the Israeli delegation prevented him from doing so. I had to stand at the entrance to the bus to block it, and prevent the (Israeli) delegation from coming in,” Nakoula said. He claimed that the Israelis were trying to cause an incident on purpose. “They have a bus of their own like all delegations. Why did they want to get on the Lebanese delegation’s bus?” he asked. Head of the Israeli delegation to the Rio 2016 games, Gili Lustig, responded to Nakoula by saying, “The organizing committee was the one that determined the travel arrangements, and which bus we would take to the ceremony. The organizing committee saw the rude behavior of the Lebanese delegation head and immediately provided an alternate bus. The behavior of the Lebanese delegation head is in conflict with the Olympic truce. As far as we are concerned, the whole thing is behind us and we’re ready for the competitions.”
Lusting mentioned that the organization committee apologized for the incident. “They pointed us at a bus with ten Lebanese people in it. It was an unwise decision from the start and it’s too bad they didn’t think of that before. This king of incident could have been prevented. We certainly don’t believe in boycotts. The committee’s people tried to talk to the Lebanese, who refused to accept us. It should be said that the busses were joint: They’d fill a bus, and move on. They asked that we not make a scene ahead of the opening ceremony.”
Lebanese Minister of Youth and Sport Abdel Motaleb Hannawi told a Lebanese news site that this was not the first time Israel has attempted to embarrass a Lebanese delegation in this kind of circumstance. He praised the delegation’s behavior, Nakoula’s specifically. “His stance was principled and patriotic,” he said. Nakoula became the hero of the day in Lebanon after the incident was publicized. The Al Mayadeen and Al-Manar news networks, both associated with Hezbollah, gave Nakoula praise, with the latter also interviewing him. Hezbollah supporters and officials praised him on social media, with one Al-Manar broadcaster tweeting, “The Israelis were sent away from the bus because normalization (with Israel) is not to be had in any form, and because the Lebanese identity (is that of) resistance. Be proud to be Lebanese.”
**Nadav Zenziper, Oren Aharoni, and Roi Kais contributed to this report.
Lebanese Olympic team scolded by IOC for refusing to let Israelis on bus
Jerusalem Post/August 07/16/The head of the Lebanese Olympic delegation was reprimanded by the International Olympic Committee on Sunday after refusing to let the Israeli delegation board a bus the two teams were supposed to share. As a result, according to the original Facebook post by Israeli sailing coach Udi Gal, event organizers tried to scatter the Israeli athletes on several different buses. He called this “unacceptable for security and representative reasons.” During the hearing on the matter, the IOC committee warned Salim al-Haj Nakoula the head of the Lebanese delegation, that they would not accept any further instances like this. Al-Haj Nakoula responded that the whole incident was the result of a misunderstanding. A source from the Lebanese Olympic committee told Lebanese television station Al Mayadeen on Saturday that the refusal to allow the Israeli delegation to ascend the bus on Friday was a group decision of the Lebanese Olympic delegation. A separate source also said that Lebanese athletes are “committed to the national position in refusing to be in the same place as the Israelis.” He added that Lebanon will remain part of the resistance against Israel. Gal’s post set off an internet firestorm after he described the incident on his Facebook account on Friday. “2016 Olympics…shame on you,” he wrote. “The Israeli delegation was preparing to board a bus to the opening ceremony, which was to be shared with the Lebanese delegation. The Lebanese, upon comprehending that they were to share a bus with the Israelis, addressed the driver in refusal and demanded that the door to the bus be shut. Event organizers then attempted to scatter us on different buses – something that is unacceptable for security and representative reasons.””We insisted that we board the bus designated for us – and that the Lebanese should de-board if so they wish. So the bus driver opened the door. But this time, the head of the Lebanese delegation blocked the entrance to the bus with his own body. Event organizers – attempting to prevent a diplomatic incident – then organized a separate ride for us. But the diplomatic incident already occurred – shame!” He added: “How can it be that something like this occurs on the eve of the Olympic opening ceremony? Does this not directly oppose what the Olympics represent and stand for…I cannot begin to express my feelings, I’m in shock from the incident.”
