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D'Arcy axed from Olympic team
23/04/2008 12:11 - (SA)
Sydney - Swimmer Nick D'Arcy was dropped from the Australian Olympic team on Friday for bringing the sport into disrepute after a bar brawl that left a fellow swimmer with a broken jaw and nose.
The 20-year-old will appear in court on April 21 on charges of assault and causing grievous bodily harm over the altercation, which caused multiple facial fractures to former Commonwealth swimming champion Simon Cowley.
The incident came just hours after last month's national Olympic trials, where D'Arcy won a spot on the team for the Beijing Games in August by winning the 200m butterfly.
Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) president John Coates said D'Arcy would be able to appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
D'Arcy's lawyer, Jack Leitner, said the swimmer was considering his legal options.
"This is obviously a difficult decision to make," Coates said, reading from a prepared statement.
'Private and confidential letter'
"It is clear that being charged with criminal offences of such a serious nature is sufficient to bring Nicholas and the sport of swimming into disrepute and is likely to bring the team and the AOC into disrepute," he said.
"I have decided that Nicholas's membership of the 2008 Australian Olympic team must be terminated, and conveyed my decision to him this morning by a private and confidential letter."
D'Arcy, who won the 200m butterfly in a Commonwealth record time of one minute 55.10 seconds at the trials, issued a public apology after the incident - which became front-page news in Australia.
Debate has raged for weeks over whether D'Arcy should be allowed to contest the Olympics, with the Australian swimming team divided.
D'Arcy declined to comment on the AOC ruling, but his father, Justin, said: "Today's decision has come as a huge disappointment to Nick, to his family, and to all his supporters and after years of hard work in preparation towards this Olympic dream."
'The end of his career'
D'Arcy's coach Brian Stehr said the AOC decision had in all likelihood ended the swimmer's career.
"I doubt that he will swim again, this will be the end of his swimming career," he told national radio.
"It's basically for him a life sentence if you consider that perhaps your one opportunity to swim in the Olympics has been taken away from you."
His case may not be resolved by the courts before the Beijing Games, which kick off on August 8, and Coates said the swimmer was still entitled to the presumption of innocence.
"Notwithstanding this, I was required to consider Nicholas D'Arcy's conduct in a number of respects, given widespread media coverage of incidents in which he was reportedly involved - not limited to the above incident," Coates added.
"Membership of the team is a privilege to enjoy, and the standards expected of our athletes is extremely high."
- AFP
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