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Olympics

IOC reinstates Indian delegation for Sochi Olympics

India luger Shiva Keshavan, top left, cross-country skier Naddem Iqbal, top center, and alpine skier Himanshu Thakur, top right, march in the Sochi Olympics opening ceremony as independent athletes.
(Yuri Kadobnov / AFP / Getty Images)
By David Wharton

SOCHI, Russia -- Three Indian athletes at these 2014 Sochi Olympics are no longer men without a country.

The two skiers and a luger marched in the opening ceremony under the Olympic flag because their national committee had been suspended for improper elections.

But officials from India quickly worked to correct the problem and, on Tuesday, the International Olympic Committee took the unprecedented step of reinstating the nation during the Winter Games.

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The effect is immediate -- the athletes will no longer be listed as Independent Olympic Participants.

Their country’s flag will be raised in the Olympic Village and they can carry it during the closing ceremony on Feb. 23.

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David Wharton

David Wharton has filled an array of roles – covering the courts, entertainment, sports and the second Persian Gulf War – since starting as a Los Angeles Times intern in 1982. His work has been honored by organizations such as the Society for Features Journalism and Associated Press Sports Editors and has been anthologized in “Best American Sports Writing.” He has also been nominated for an Emmy and has written two books, including “Conquest,” an inside look at USC football during the Pete Carroll era.

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