Bookmakers say Olympic spot-fixing fears overstated

Britain's leading bookmakers say fears that the London Olympics could be hit by match-fixing are "over-stated" and the result of a lack of understanding. Jacques Rogge, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has previously stated that fixing is now a bigger threat to the Games than doping - a message echoed by Britain's Sports Minister, Hugh Robertson.
But bookmakers say the government and organisers do not fully understand the issue. "We don't really see any problems with betting and the Olympics," Jessica Bridge, spokeswoman for Ladbrokes, told dpa. "The athletes aren't allowed to bet anyway. "We are working with the IOC and British Olympic Association to make sure nothing untoward happens but I don't think they (the government and the IOC) really understand. They're right to cover all corners but I think they're being a little overcautious, let's say."
The 2011 conviction of three Pakistan cricketers for alleged spot-fixing thrust the topic into the spotlight but Graham Sharpe, the media director for William Hill, told dpa that the Olympics was very different from other sports that have been affected. "We're all aware of recent cases of betting-related match fixing in football and in cricket," he said. "Cricket's not an Olympic sport and to my knowledge there's no example of match-fixing related to the Olympics since the Second World War.
"We don't believe there's a significant threat. That's not to say we're nave enough to know something might happen. We will go into this with our eyes open, and we will obviously report any unfamiliar betting activity to the gambling commission." BOA chairman Lord Moynihan told reporters at a briefing earlier this month that the gambling commission will meet daily during the Games to analyse any unexpected or significant moving in the betting markets. British competitors at the Olympics are banned from betting on any sport, not just their own, something that has upset many athletes, especially from the "minor" sports who do not see why they cannot have a bet on the bigger events in other sports.