Cuban Athlete Banned for Life in Olympics

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Luchador cubano de taekwondo Ángel Matos ataca al árbitro

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It appears that Ara Abrahamian [the Swedish Athlete who threw his Bronze Medal to the floor] is not the only one who has misbehaved in the Olympics. Acoording to ESPN,  Angel Matos who is a Cuban Tae Kwon Do Athlete lost and was disqualified in his match against Arman Chilmanov from Kazakhstan. The reason was for taking too much time [instead of the one minute requirement] for his injury. The response of Matos was to kick the referee Chakir Chelbat of Sweden. Matos then spat on the floor and was escorted out.

Cuban Coach Leudis Gonzalez stated that he refused to apologize and that the ruling was "excessively strict". The result was a lifetime ban for Matos and Gonzalez. In the same way that Abrahamian got what he deserved, Matos and Gonzalez received their just punishment. Whether the ruling was legitimate or not is not the question. The question is that unprofessional behaviour should not be tolerated and the punishment was just. Anyone who defiles the Olympics or any Sporting Event should be given harsh punishments regardless of race, creed, colour, ethnicity, ideology, or even previous status as Gold Medal Winners [of which Matos was a recipient in the 2000 Summer Olympic Games.

REFERENCE:

ESPN: "Matos Banned For Life After Kicking Referee Following Match"

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/summer08/judo/news/story?id=3549903&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines