Olympic Pink Slips
Jean-Claude Ganga of the Congo was one of six members of the International Olympic Committee expelled Wednesday for taking money he shouldn't have. He took the defeat like he had taken the money - in stride, CBS News Correspondent Mark Phillips reports.
"I am a sportsman, a good winner and good loser," said Ganga.
Ganga was among those on the IOC who voted to bring the next winter games to Salt Lake City, Utah. He and the others were accused of taking money and favors in return for their votes.
Ganga had protested his innocence to the IOC and to CBS News.
The IOC members who expelled him and the others, Ganga said, were looking for scapegoats to cover up the Olympic movement's own failings. He intimated that perhaps even racism was involved.
All six expelled members were from poor, non-white, third world countries.
Olympic president Juan Antonio Samaranch was given an overwhelming vote of confidence at the meeting. But the scandal has left such negative feelings that even former Olympic champions have called for an athlete's union to push for change.
"There's a definite break between the ideals and what's really being practiced within the Olympic movement," said Mark Tewksbury, an Olympic Gold Medallist. "Unfortunately, I would classify it as a culture of greed and corruption."
With other investigations pending, including one by the U.S. Justice Department, these expulsions will not close the book on the IOC scandal. Even the IOC admits that too much money and too few principles have done too much damage to be repaired by the quick fix offered Wednesday.
©1999 CBS Worldwide Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated contributed to this report