Gamble and get kicked out: AOC to athletes

The Australian Olympic Committee warned its athletes competing at the 2012 London games on Saturday that they'll be thrown off the Australian team if they engage in any illegal betting or gambling activities.

AOC president John Coates told the organization's annual meeting that athletes will be "named and shamed" if they use inside information for illegal sports gambling.

Coates also said the AOC is updating its team membership agreement, which all athletes must sign, to spell out the organization's gambling restrictions.

"If the AOC team membership agreements do not already make it clear that being involved in betting or gambling on the games or providing inside information is conduct we will not tolerate, they will now," Coates said.

He said Australian Olympic team members must also agree that the AOC can collect information related to any gambling activities they might be involved in and provide it to law enforcement agencies.

The AOC said in a statement that Coates has been lobbying Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard to establish a national Sports Betting Authority similar to the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority.

Coates said he believes federal legislation should give authorities the power to record the names of offending athletes, officials and clubs, tap phones and seize information related to illegal sports gambling that isn't protected by privacy legislation and share that information with police, the tax office and international authorities.

Match-fixing and suspicious betting have become increasingly problematic in the sports world in recent years, particularly in football and tennis.

The International Olympic Committee announced in March the establishment of a task force to coordinate the fight against the underground gambling industry, estimated to be worth $140 billion last year.

The International Tennis Federation has also created the Tennis Integrity Unit in an attempt to keep its sport clean.