International Rugby Board, says the top seven teams from

In an unusually blunt public warning, a vice-president of the International Olympic Committee on Tuesday called the delayed preparations for the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro "the worst I have experienced." John Coates, who has made six trips to Brazil as part of the IOCs co-ordination commission for Rio, said the Brazilians are behind "in many, many ways" and are in worse shape than Greek organizers were in preparing for the 2004 Olympics. Despite the critical delays, the Australian said there is no backup plan and the games will take place in Rio. Coates noted that the IOC had taken the unprecedented step of embedding experts in the host city to help the local organizing committee deliver the games. "The IOC has formed a special task force to try and speed up preparations but the situation is critical on the ground," Coates told an Olympic forum in Sydney, outlining that construction delays are just part of the problem. "The IOC has adopted a more hands-on role. It is unprecedented for the IOC, but there is no plan B. We are going to Rio." Brazil has also come under fire from footballs world governing body, FIFA, for long delays in construction of stadiums and other infrastructure and the overdue delivery of venues for the World Cup, which kicks off in June. Two years out from the 2016 Olympics, the situation on the construction front is just as bleak. "We have become very concerned. They are not ready in many, many ways," Coates said. "And this is against a city thats got social issues that also have to be addressed; a country thats also trying to deal with the FIFA World Cup coming up in a few months." Coates said dealing with three levels of government in Brazil made it harder for local organizers than it was for the heavily criticized organizers of the Athens Games, which were also plagued by construction delays and earned a "yellow light" warning from then-IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch. "I think this is a worse situation than Athens," Coates said. "In Athens, we were dealing with one government and some city responsibilities. Here, theres three. "There is bureaucracy, there is little co-ordination between the federal, the state government and the city -- which is responsible for a lot of the construction. The flow of funds from the federal government is not happening quickly enough. We think we need to help facilitate that." Coates, who chairs the IOC co-ordination commission for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, said he thinks the IOC has put the message across in Brazil. "We have to make it (the Olympics) happen and that is the IOC approach, you cant walk away from this," he said. "If it comes off -- the first (Olympic) Games on the South American continent, in a magical city in so many ways -- itll be a wonderful experience for the athletes." Work hasnt begun at Deodoro, a complex for eight Olympics sports venues, and the course that will host golfs return to the Olympic program for the first time in more than a century doesnt have grass yet. Water pollution is a big worry for sailing and other sports. Concern over the delays has been building over time but hit crisis levels at the SportAccord meeting in Belek, Turkey, earlier this month. In a rare display of unified, open criticism against an Olympic host, 18 sports federations publicly aired concerns over Rios preparations, with some sports asking about "Plan B" contingencies. The IOC has decided to send a senior troubleshooter, IOC executive director Gilbert Felli, to Brazil as part of a series of emergency measures to tackle the delays threatening the games. Coates said other experienced, high-level staff will soon be appointed. Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes fired back last week at the complaints by sports federations, saying they were making too many unnecessary demands. Paes said the federations were asking for too many "large things" that wont be used by the city after the Olympics. Tubular Shadow Sko .J. -- While Martin Brodeur wasnt willing to say he stole one for the New Jersey Devils against the Columbus Blue Jackets, almost everyone else was. Nmd Sko Udsalg . Mladenovics quick hands at the net made the difference while Bencics inexperience in doubles showed. "We took a lot of pleasure," Mladenovic told Sport Plus television. "Its extremely difficult to play in such conditions, but our doubles team showed a lot of quality. http://www.nmdnorgesalg.com/nmd-r1-sko-norge.html . "This isnt really the week you want to lose Chris Greaves," fellow lineman Glenn January said Wednesday after practice. Greaves is expected to miss several weeks after suffering a knee injury in last weeks 36-28 win over the Ottawa Redblacks. Nmd Xr4 Norge . Listen to the Raptors vs. Jazz live tonight on TSN Radio 1050 at 9pm et/6pm pt. The Raptors are 1-1 so far on the five-game junket after defeating Denver and losing to Portland. Adidas Eqt Norge . -- Antoine Bibeau bought the Val-dOr Foreurs valuable time at the Memorial Cup with his 51-save shutout Friday.TORONTO - Canada, runner-up at the Womens Rugby World Cup this summer, is one of seven teams granted automatic qualification for the 2017 tournament.World Rugby, formerly known as the International Rugby Board, says the top seven teams from the 2014 competition — champion England, Canada, France, Ireland, New Zealand, U.S. and Australia — are confirmed for the 2017 tournament.The remaining five teams will be determined through qualification to include:— The two best-ranked 6 Nations Womens teams (outside of those teams already qualified) from the combined results of the 2015 and 2016 Womens 6 Nations tournaments.— The winner of a home-and-away playofff match between the lowest-ranked side in the Womens 6 Nations (combined 2015 and 2016 results and outside of the teams already qualified) and the Rugby Europe womens champion.dddddddddddd The two best-ranked teams from a final qualifying tournament featuring South Africa, one team from Oceania and two teams from Asia.A decision on tournament host will be made in May 2015.The Womens World Cup, which was won by England by a 21-9 score over Canada in Paris in August, will move to 2017 to maximize synergy with the Olympic and Rugby World Cup Sevens cycles, according to World Rugby. The event will return to a four-year cycle after 2017. ' ' '