Rio police arrest Irish IOC executive Patrick Hickey

Rio de Janeiro authorities have arrested an International Olympic Committee executive from Ireland accused of the unauthorised reselling of tickets.

Police said in a statement they had discovered evidence linking Patrick Hickey to an international scheme to illegally pass Olympic tickets to touts who were reselling them at well above their original price.

Local media reported that Hickey, who also heads the European Olympic Committee (EOC), was detained at the hotel Windsor Marapendi near the Olympic Park and was rushed to hospital after his arrest.

An IOC spokesman declined to comment on the arrest but confirmed that Hickey had been taken to hospital.

The Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI) said in a statement it was aware of media reports of Hickey's arrest and was seeking clarity on the situation before commenting.

Hickey did not respond to calls for comment.

It was later announced that Hickey had temporarily stepped down as president of the Olympic council of Ireland in light of recent developments, with William O'Brien stepping in, while Slovenian Janez Kocijancic will take over the presidency of the EOC after Hickey also stepped down from that role.

He was a member of the IOC's coordination commission for the Rio Games, the body in charge of overseeing preparations for the first Olympics held in South America.

His arrest comes after police detained last week a director of international sports hospitality company THG Sports, Kevin Mallon, and a translator employed by the company.

THG deny any wrongdoing.