Turks question what went wrong in Beijing

By Selcuk Gokoluk

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey must improve sports facilities and spend less on soccer if it is to recover from a disappointing Beijing Olympics and achieve its ambition of hosting the 2020 Games, critics say.

The country won a single gold medal in Beijing, after three in Athens, and its most-heralded weightlifters failed to complete a single lift successfully.

"Everybody who watched the Olympics knows that this is a disgraceful disaster...The culprit is the Turkish sports organization. All federations were entrusted to the supporters of the AKP," said daily Sabah columnist Hincal Uluc, in a reference to the ruling political party.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has said that everyone, including himself, was responsible for the failure in Beijing and it was time for Turkey to reconsider its sports policy.

The allocation of funds to soccer, which is by far the most popular sport in Turkey, has come under criticism.

"Football takes a large share of revenues at the expense of other branches," Sports Minister Murat Basesgioglu said.

A committee would be set up to address what went wrong with the Beijing Games and decide on measures for future Games, he told CNN Turk.

Istanbul has repeatedly bid to host the Games and was shortlisted in 2000 and 2008, but failed to win enough votes. A new bid is planned for 2020 but critics say changes are needed in the way Turkey runs sport.

PAINFUL MOMENT

Going into Beijing, Turks had high expectations for their weightlifters, who won all three of the country's gold medals in Athens four years ago.

Apart from Sibel Ozkan, who brought home a silver medal, no Turkish lifter won a medal in Beijing last month. Two former gold medalists were eliminated early in their classes, shocking the nation.

Turkey's first female Olympic champion Nurcan Taylan failed to complete a single lift successfully in Beijing. She said after the Games that it was the most painful moment of her life.

The country's only gold medal came from a wrestler, Ramazan Sahin.

Weightlifting coach Raif Ozel blamed a lack of facilities for the weightlifters' failure and said past achievements had been due to individual lifters' own efforts.

"Our weightlifters are working with very limited opportunities. Some work out in corridors and cook their own meals. We do not have a fully-equipped gym even in Istanbul," said Ozel.