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--> --> Rogge must steer Olympics on right course for future The Independent, London July 17 Jacques Rogge, a Brussels surgeon who became leader of the Olympic movement, has been dubbed Mr. Clean. It is, at best, a relative term - if there is such a thing as guilt by association, it hardly helps Mr. Rogge's arrival as the most important figure in sport that he is the hand-picked successor to Juan Antonio Samaranch as president of the International Olympic Committee. Mr. Samaranch was handed a gold medal in recognition of his services when power passed from him in Moscow yesterday. His critics would say that 30 pieces of silver might have been more appropriate. Though the Olympics of Sydney last summer were an extraordinary triumph, it was one for the spirit and the organizing powers of the Australian hosts rather than the IOC, who expelled six members and censured others after revelations of appalling corruption in the granting of the upcoming Winter Games to Salt Lake City. For many, it was stunning that Samaranch survived the scandal. His escape from responsibility, his uninterrupted enjoyment of the trappings of office - and he enjoyed them hugely - only compounded the sense that he had built a personal empire, one marked more than anything by compliance with the needs of corporate business and the American NBC television network. An Olympic yachtsman and rugby international in his time, Mr. Rogge admits that `There are a lot of things to be done.' Chief among them is a reassertion that the Olympics are supposed to be about sport and not the most cynical of big business. Email your... Technical questions & comments to: WebMaster Daily Tidings editorial comments & questions to: Editor Visit our other Oregon Newspapers... | Albany Democrat-Herald | Ashland Daily Tidings | Corvallis Gazette-Times | | Lebanon Express | Newport News-Times | Springfield News | Cottage Grove Sentinel | Ashland Daily Tidings 1661 Siskiyou Blvd. Ashland, OR 97520 Telephone 541-482-3456 © Copyright 2001 Lee Northwest Publishing