Nothing happened, says cyclist

Tim Gudsell

The woman cyclist reported to be at the centre of an incident which other athletes say has soured the mood inside the Games village spoke out for the first time last night.

Liz Williams' comments downplayed the pre-dawn incident, but came as other sources said the night of drunken revelry with two male cyclists, including streaking, was more serious than earlier reports indicated.

One witness said Williams and team members Tim Gudsell and Mark Ryan had appeared to engage in physical - but not sexual - horseplay that got out of hand.

"They did say they wanted to piss on her, which was kind of when it all got a bit weird," the athlete said. "But she was all okay with it because everyone was drunk and being stupid, until the next morning and she woke up and said she was going to press charges."

But when contacted by the Weekend Herald at her Melbourne home, Williams would not confirm who was involved, and said the whole episode was "a total over-reaction".

"We've heard all sorts of things and I just don't understand what this is all about. Nothing happened. It was a non-event."

Asked if she thought the security guard who reported the Monday high-jinks at a pool in the village had overreacted or misread the situation by calling police, she agreed.

The report of the males trying to urinate on the female was completely wrong, she said.

According to sources within the team, the men stripped naked and began streaking around the village. Williams initially enjoyed the horseplay, but things turned nasty.

"It all looked like everyone was having fun and everyone was drunk and laughing, but then she wanted it to stop," one witness said.

The claim that Williams was upset and said she intended to press charges has been supported by other sources.

Conflicting reports of the incident have been compounded by media accounts that binge drinking was rife in the New Zealand village. "It has cut the atmosphere inside the Games village flat," one athlete said.

New Zealand chef de mission Dave Currie categorically denied all the claims. He described reports of binge drinking as scurrilous.

Currie said no alcohol was permitted in the New Zealand zone of the village, there had been no excessive drinking by team members there, and no New Zealanders had been in strife other than the incident involving three members of the cycle squad.

Currie also said the behaviour of the cyclists described to the Herald was not true. "None of that happened - not the naked laps, not the threats of urination, not me being [woken] to have a complaint laid."

However, the Herald understands cycling bosses are aware of the incident, which occurred after the trio spent the evening partying in the city, and plan their own investigation.


Gudsell's father, Stuart, said his son was "absolutely gutted and distraught" when told of the allegations.

"The three of them had been out for a few drinks and when they returned Liz was picked up and dropped in water. It was minor bloody high-jinks ... To say they were urinating on her, or anything else, is absolute garbage."