RIO DE JANEIRO:  United States goalkeeper Hope Solo will not face any disciplinary action from the International Olympic Committee over her bitter comments following the Olympic women’s football champions’ quarter-final defeat by Sweden.

The US lost on penalties after a 0-0 draw and Solo complained afterwards at the Swedish team’s cautious but ultimately more effectice tactics.

She said: “We played a bunch of cowards . . . They dropped off. They didn’t want to open play. They didn’t want to pass the ball. They didn’t want to play great. It was a combative game, a physical game. Exactly what they wanted. I think it was very cowardly.”

Mark Adams, spokesman for the International Olympic Committee, said: “It is in heat of the moment. Passions run very high, people say things they then regret,.

“If those were the comments, it is disappointing. We can only keep talking about how athletes treat each other. People are free to say those things. We would not stop them expressing their opinion within boundaries.”

The IOC has launched a disciplinary commission after an Egyptian judoka refused to shake the hand of an Israeli opponent as per the sport’s specific conventions of respect.

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