Greek press demands answers

The pair face an uncertain future

The withdrawal of sprinting stars Kostas Kenteris and Katerina Thanou from the Olympic Games following a missed drugs test is continuing to dominate the attention of Greek press commentators.

Many think the outcome leaves crucial questions unanswered.

The left-of-centre Ethnos daily carries a photograph of Ancient Olympia, next to a picture of the protagonists with the headline "Athens 2004: the Grandeur and the Shadow".

"Catharsis is essential," reads the headline from the independent daily I Kathimerini, reflecting the general mood.

The leftist Elevtherotipia agrees. It says Kenteris must "speak here and now and tell everything to become a hero again - a hero of catharsis".

"Feeling cheated and betrayed, the Greek people are waiting, even today, here and now, for him to tell the truth about what happened... to show that he truly regrets so as to receive forgiveness from everyone," says an editorial.

Passing the buck

According to the English-language Athens News, "the resignations offered some form of closure to a scandal still riddled with questions".

But opinions are divided on who should answer them.

The centre-left daily Ta Nea calls on the government to "to shed light on the issue so that it is not converted into another episode in the serial of sports corruption".

An editorial in the independent To Vima says that it is now up to the governing body of athletics (IAAF) to take the matter further.

"With the two athletes withdrawing voluntarily from the Games, the baton for sanctions has passed to the IAAF; the travails commence for all those implicated in the issue."

But Rizospastis, which supports the Greek Communist Party, feels that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been let off the hook.

"They decided to close the doping issue without any damage to the IOC immortals," reads its front-page headline.

The paper accuses the IOC of ducking its responsibilities by passing the buck to the IAAF.

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.