HANCOCK Backs Away from Olympics

The bribery scandal engulfing the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, has prompted John Hancock Financial Services to stop negotiations with NBC to become a major broadcast sponsor of the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. John Hancock released a statement February 10 that says, "The company will not purchase any advertising until it is confident that the International Olympic Committee is heading in the right direction."