Winter Olympics: Ice hockey legend deflects controversy

TURIN - A defiant Wayne Gretzky expects to be saddled with the blame if Canada fail to win the ice hockey gold medal at the Winter Olympics.

"If we don't win the gold medal obviously I'm going to get blamed," said Gretzky, Team Canada's executive director.

"But I've been blamed for losses before and it's not going to change my life."

Gretzky and his hand-picked team arrived in Turin under a cloak of secrecy to defend their title but a gambling controversy swirling around the hockey icon has followed him across the Atlantic and threatens to overshadow the competition.

After watching his team conduct their first practice session, Gretzky addressed a packed news conference and calmly fielded questions about his links to an illegal gambling ring.

Gretzky's wife, Janet, who has accompanied her husband to Italy, has been implicated as a heavy gambler with the ring, although Gretzky himself is not accused of having any role.

North American media have reported that Janet Gretzky bet more than US$500,000 ($750,638) on various sporting events in recent months.

The National Hockey League's all-time leading scorer addressed the controversy that has rocked the sport, then the player known as the "Great One" said it was the last time he would discuss the issue.

"I'm not involved, I've said for seven days I'm not involved, it's over and done with," Gretzky said.

"Quite frankly this is the last time I'm going to talk about it.

"I'll talk hockey all day long. Ask me about hockey; ask me about the Olympics ... no problem."

Despite his denials and new evidence to support his claims that he did not know about his wife's betting, the controversy has continued to rage, detracting from the team's bid to win successive Olympic titles.

Gretzky, head coach and part-owner of the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes, said he did not want his presence in Turin to be a distraction to his players or other Canadian athletes.

"My concern is not just for these hockey players but all the athletes here who have worked their rear ends off to get to the Olympics."

- REUTERS