Reports: Australian athletes detained in Rio for trying to sneak into men's basketball semifinal
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Several Australian Olympic athletes were detained in Rio Friday night after they tried to tamper with their accreditations, according to several reports.
Mike Tancred, media director of the Australian Olympic Committee, confirmed to NBC News and the Sydney Morning Herald that nine athletes were taken to a police station after they altered their passes to sneak into the men’s basketball semifinal between Australia and Serbia.
The athletes, who have not yet been identified, were held for several hours.
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Australian Olympic Committee CEO Fiona de Jong was reportedly with the group at the police station trying to negotiate with authorities.
Tensions between Rio police and the Olympic community have risen in the wake of last week’s incident involving Ryan Lochte and three other U.S. swimmers. The swimmers initially said they were robbed at gunpoint Sunday night, but those claims were later found to have been falsified.
On Sunday, Australian Olympic Committee officials ordered their athletes to stay away from Rio’s beaches from sundown to sunrise because of security concerns.
