Olympics: Samaranch admits he should have quit after Barcelona

The International Olympic Committee president, Juan Antonio Samaranch, has admitted he should have stepped down after the 1992 Barcelona Games. "It's very difficult to reach a position of such responsibility as I now have. But the most difficult thing is to quit at the right time. I didn't do that and that was a mistake," Samaranch told the Barcelona daily newspaper La Vanguardia. "I always thought that the moment to go would come after Barcelona, once that dream [of seeing the Games held in the capital of his native Catalonia] had been realised," said Samaranch. "But there was an important stage to get through afterwards - the IOC centenary - and that made it four more years. Then, in 1997, I convinced myself I should carry on," added the 78-year-old Samaranch who, on Wednesday, won a sweeping vote of confidence from IOC members to complete his term, until 2001. Meanwhile, synchronised diving, from 3m and 10m boards, will be included in the 2000 Sydney Games, swimming's ruling organisation announced.

Killy the king-elect, page 12