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CNN 10

Russia is Banned from Global Sporting Events; United States and North Korea Exchange Words of Warning; A South Pacific Volcano Erupts While Tourists Are On It

Aired December 10, 2019 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

CARL AZUZ, CNN 10 ANCHOR: Hi, I`m Carl Azuz. CNN 10 is getting things started this Tuesday with a report concerning Russian athletes and

international sports. In fact if the World Anti-Doping Agency gets its way, Russian athletes won`t be allowed to compete in major international

sports for four years. The World Anti-Doping Agency works to keep certain drugs out of sports. Performance enhancing drugs, which could give

athletes an unfair advantage are among them. In 2016 a report came out that accused Russia of having a widespread and complicated doping or drug

program that was supported by the Russian government.

The World Anti-Doping Agency says Russia hasn`t fully cooperated with investigations into this so it voted on Monday to ban the country from

major events. What does that mean? If the decision is upheld, Russia won`t be able to host any major international sporting events for four

years. In the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, the 2022 Winter Olympics and the 2022 World Cup Finals, the Russian flag won`t be flown and

the country`s national anthem won`t be played. This doesn`t mean that all Russian athletes have been kicked out. Those who can prove they never took

part in doping programs can still compete as neutral athletes.

You might remember in the 2018 Olympics how a number of people competed as Olympic Athletes from Russia when they won medals the Olympic flag was

raised and the Olympic anthem was played. That same thing could happen again and if the Russian National Soccer Team qualifies for the 2022 World

Cup it will be allowed to play but will have to compete as a neutral team. The World Anti-Doping Agency says Russia`s been given every chance to quote

"get its house in order and rejoin the global anti-doping community" but it chose instead to continue in its stance of deception and denial.

The United States Anti-Doping Agency says Russia`s punishment doesn`t go far enough. That the country should have been completely banned from

international competition but Russian Prime Minister Dimitry Medvedev says though his country has had problems with doping, the decision to ban

Russian athletes including some who`ve already been punished makes it look like a continuation of anti-Russian hysteria. He wants Russian

organizations to appeal the decision and another Russian government official suggested the country would do that because Russia quote "must

defend our athletes".

Meantime there are signs of strain appearing in the rollercoaster relationship between the United States and North Korea. For about a year

and a half now, their leaders have tried and failed to reach an agreement concerning North Korea`s controversial nuclear program. America has a

number of penalties in place on North Korea`s economy and the communist country wants those removed first before it gets rid of its nuclear

program. The U.S. wants North Korea to denuclearize first before the sanctions are lifted. So they`ve been butting heads there and in recent

days U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un have traded words of warning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are back in familiar territory here. A test from North Korea over the weekend and then followed by this increasing rhetoric

between the North Koreans and the United States. Now on Sunday, the North Koreans announced that they had the day before carried out a very

important, very successful test. They didn`t specify what exactly it was but experts looking at satellite imagery say that they believe that it was

a - - a rocket engine test. We`re waiting for confirmation from Pyongyang on that but it could be used for launching satellite launchers or ICBM`s

into continental ballistic missiles that potentially could hit mainland United States. That is the particular missile that Washington is most

concerned with.

Now we did have a response from the U.S. President Donald Trump saying that he believed that Kim Jong-Un is too smart to - - to throw everything away

and said that he would lose everything if, in fact, he was acting in a hostile way. Also saying that acting in a hostile way could void the

special relationship between him and Kim Jong-Un. Now we`ve heard a reaction as well from the North Korean side fairly quickly. This was from

Kim Yong Chol, the former nuclear negotiator of North Korea who met with President Trump just in January of this year in the Oval Office at the

White House and - - and delivered a - - a message, a very positive message from Kim Jong-Un at the time.

But he has said that these remarks from the U.S. president are inappropriate, they are dangerous. If he continues then Kim Jong-Un may

have to reassess what he thinks of the U.S. president saying North Korea has nothing more to lose. Now up until this point North Korean officials

have been very careful not to slam the U.S. president. They have slammed the U.S. policy when it comes to North Korea but never President Trump

himself. So certainly that is something that is changing and also just on Saturday we heard from the - - the North Korean Ambassador to the U.N. Kim

Song saying the - - the denuclearization was off the table when it comes to negotiation with the U.S. and they have no need now for lengthy talks with

the U.S. So clearly the relationship between the U.S. and North Korea is - - is suffering at this point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ: 10 Second Trivia. Which of these countries is composed of two main islands and a number of smaller ones? Cuba, Indonesia, Dominican Republic

or New Zealand. It`s the South Pacific nation of New Zealand that has two major islands and a bunch o` little ones.

Most of New Zealand`s population lives on its North Island and a little more than 30 miles from it is the Bay of Plenty, where you`ll find White

Island and that`s where an active volcano erupted Monday while 47 tourists were on it. Dozens of them were injured and hospitalized, at least five

people were killed and eight were still missing when we produced this show. On Tuesday morning, New Zealand police said there were no signs of life on

White Island but rescuers couldn`t actually set foot there to search because it was so unstable. New Zealand`s on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a

belt of eruptions and earthquakes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tragedy in New Zealand where a volcano has erupted in the northern part of the country on White Island.

About 50 people are believed to have been visiting the island at the time of the eruption including more than 30 passengers from a Royal Caribbean

cruise liner. The eruption started Monday, 2:15 local time, about 50 kilometers from the east coast of New Zealand`s North Island. Massive

plumes of smoke have been seen from the mainland. Volcanologists say it may not have been a powerful eruption but its force was certainly felt by

those on the island.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: White Island has a - - a water lake in its crater and that water is very acidic. And so, an explosion underneath the lake would

have thrown out very, very hot, kind of, steam so those burn injuries likely a result of burn steam blasts. But the explosion would have created

a lot of - - of what we call ballistics, (inaudible) rocks falling as well.

LU STOUT: Soon after the eruption an emergency operation was launched to located and rescue those on the island but police say at this stage it is

too dangerous for police and rescue to go onto the island as its covered in ash and volcanic material. The White Island volcano is New Zealand`s most

active cone volcano. It`s also one of the world`s most accessible active volcanoes. There are ocean cruises that run nearside and even guided tours

on the island itself. Tourists visit White Island for its strange, alien moonscape. It`s one of the most dramatic environments that can be visited

in New Zealand and although the focus now is on search and rescue. Questions are being asked about why tourists were allowed on the island,

the home of a steaming, smoking and erupting volcano. Kristie Lu Stout, CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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AZUZ: Trampolines can be fun especially if you consider yourself an extreme athlete who`s ready to risk more than an injury to go airborne. A

Slovenian group of stuntmen built the bouncy platform and then used a crane to suspend it 100 feet in the air. What happens if they go over the side?

That`s where the "don`t try this at home" warning comes in. One of the acrobats says you can`t help but feel dizzy when you`re propelled in the

air but it gives then a unique platform or springboard from which to prove there`s nothing they "strastosfear" as they "tramp" all over the "lines"

others would draw when the "air" you catch is your only safety net. And you "vertigo" for the height of "fungi" with a "bungee" that leaves

everyone "craning" their neck in suspense. I`m Carl Azuz and we`ve got to "bounce" ya`ll. We`ll catch you again tomorrow on CNN.

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