Olympic Times – Sports Daily

HE was just a self-conscious teenage boy, scatterings of acne spotting his face, gangly arms sprouting out of a torso still waiting for its last burst of manhood.

But it was his stammer that made him blush.
It was early morning in Beijing this week and as the smog began to lift after a night of fierce storms, the kid was just one of hundreds of volunteers manning one of hundreds of security checkpoints in the Chinese capital.
As each bag rolled through the X-ray machine his task was to approach its owner and ask them to unlock it and allow him a brief inspection of its contents.
But the English he had been taught was also locked inside him.
He stared at the floor, his mouth chewing over the phrases until, finally, he spat them out. “P-P-P-PLEASE,” he shouted. “A-A-A-A.” His voice trailed off.
He shook his head in disgust and tried again, his face a bright crimson. “A-A-A-ALLOWING ME TO P-P-P-PLEASE LOOK?”

Finally, he dared look up.
When he saw an understanding smile on the visitor’s face, relief washed through him.
For a second he had come close to enduring one of the most humiliating moments a Chinese person can experience.
No human enjoys being belittled, but in China a loss of face can be a character wound never to be forgotten, or forgiven.
It is a fear almost tattooed into the psyche of the world’s most populous nation and it has become the driving force behind China’s determination to stage an impressive and, more importantly, incident-free Olympic Games beginning next Friday.
“You have just no idea how exhaustive the Chinese have been when it comes to security,” says one leading Australian intelligence source who is familiar with the workings of Beijing’s secretive security agencies.
“I know the man they appointed to run security for the Olympics when they won the rights to have them. He was called in by the government minister and told, ‘the reputation of the People’s Republic rests on your shoulders”.
“Now how’s that for a bit of pressure?”
This week’s security crackdowns in Beijing and other provinces, and the Government reneging on its original promise of providing unfettered internet access during the Games, underline the ingrained determination within China to do whatever it takes, no matter the fallout, to maintain pride.
Just like the teenage volunteer manning the security checkpoint, China is nervous. And struggling a little in its first major meeting with the West.
But some high-profile Chinese are questioning whether their nation’s fear of losing face will hold it back from using these Olympics to open its door just a little further.
The young boy with his stammering command of a handful of English phrases probably learned them from Li Yang, an almost cult-like figure in China who has made a fortune in recent years encouraging his countrymen to master the language once despised by the Communist dictatorship as the devil’s tongue.
Li runs a lucrative nationwide language learning school he calls “Crazy English”.
It is not uncommon for him to appear on stage in front of thousands of followers, microphone in one hand, the other raised skyward, his style reminiscent of an evangelist preacher.
He will shout out an English word or phrase and the adoring crowd will leap to their feat and repeat it, screaming it out in unison.
Li, a man whose stature and success has guaranteed him more freedom to speak his mind than most, was signed up by the Beijing Olympic Organising Committee to teach many of its almost 500,000 volunteers how to speak the language used as the chief currency in the Western world.
One of the key ideas promoted at any of the hundreds of Li Yang Crazy English language training camps in China is that it is all right to make mistakes, to flub a word or mangle a phrase.
The Chinese must, he says, overcome this fear of losing face if they are ever to take their place on the world stage.
China’s economy has been surging for more than a decade – it is tipped to overtake the US within the next 10 years to become the largest in the world.
But Li says it is still an immature nation, held back by decades of suspicion and distrust of the West, along with an inability to admit its own weaknesses.
“We do stupid, childish things,” he says. “We shut down our critics, shut down internet pages. Our Government is too nervous about the Western media. To be a big nation you should be able to listen to criticism.”
Li has a deep radio announcer’s voice with a slight American twang.
He still stumbles over some English phrases and words, and on the telephone occasionally misinterprets the meaning or nuance of a question from an Australian reporter.
But he is quick to reveal his scepticism about the West’s belief that China is poised to take over the world economically.
“The world media is overly optimistic about China’s economy. I don’t agree with it,” he says.
“We are developing quickly. No doubt. We may be the most populous country. But we have a lot of problems. Our factories have low efficiencies. We have wasted a lot of energy on things that didn’t matter.
“Our culture has a problem. Our education system has problems. Maybe we are exporting lots of goods. But we have hurt our environment doing it.”
Li is not alone in voicing concerns over how China’s push over the past three decades since the death of dictator Mao Zedong to slowly open up its economic borders has cost it dearly.
In order to have a good time, China has become the chronic heavy drinker and smoker at the world’s economic party.
It is plagued by environmental problems. Its rivers are blocked and polluted. Its earth is bleeding and parched, and its skies blackened by factories that daily belch out toxic clouds that hang over its sprawling and crowded cities.
“We have not protected our environment,” says Li. “Our pollution is already affecting other nations, crossing our borders into theirs. Other countries regard us as a threat. But it is not the economy or our numbers that is the threat. It is what we have done to this land.”
For much of the past week Beijing has been smothered in a grey blanket of haze and smog, despite halving the numbers of cars on its roads and shutting down many nearby factories.
In the bathrooms of leading Beijing hotels, patrons are urged to reuse their towels and are reminded how “we do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, but borrow it from our children”.
But Li believes such awareness campaigns pay lip-service to what could become a major environmental catastrophe for China if its pollution levels are not pulled back soon.
But Li has certainly picked up on the new wave of nationalism that has accompanied China’s rise as an economic superpower.
He tells his followers that while they need English to understand the West, they should avoid falling prey to the cultural weaknesses of materialism and obesity that now plague the US and other developed nations.
“We have spent so much time watching the West and not understanding it because we do not speak its language. Therefore, we do not quite know how it thinks, and what it thinks of us,” he says.
Will these Olympics be a trigger for China to take further steps towards becoming a democracy?
“Democracy should be given time to develop. Even people with democracy don’t know how to use it.” He laughs. “Everything is happening step by step. If we went any quicker there would be chaos.”
And chaos is one thing China wants to avoid. Since winning the right in 2001 to stage these Games, the Chinese have promised the International Olympic Committee China would use them as a platform to hasten democratic reform as well as lifting many of its restrictions on foreign media.
Yet frustrated IOC members have complained privately that, whenever pushed, Chinese authorities have reverted to type.
This week China reneged on a promise to allow unfettered access to the internet for all media covering the Games.
This backstepping reinforced Li Yang’s view that his own nation of 1.3 billion people, while having undergone such remarkable upheaval in recent years, still has a long way to mature.

source:news.com.au

Russia’s Maria Sharapova withdrew from the Rogers Open in Toronto after her second-round victory Wednesday because of a shoulder injury, possibly jeopardizing her participation in the Olympics.
Sharapova beat Marta Domachowska, 7-5, 5-7, 6-2. She will have an MRI today.
Trailing 3-4 in the second, the third-seeded Sharapova had the trainer look at her right shoulder, an injury that might have contributed to 17 double faults.
She said her presence at the Olympics and the U.S. Open, which begins in late August, will depend largely on the results of the tests.
“I’m too good of a player to go out there and try to fight through something that I think can eventually become something serious,” Sharapova said.
Nike swimmers can wear Speedo: Nike will allow its swimmers to wear Speedo’s sleek LZR Racer instead of its suit at the Olympics.

Nike spokesman Dean Stoyer said the company felt it was fair to extend the offer it made in June, when it allowed its swimmers to wear Speedo’s suit at the U.S. Olympic trials.
Four swimmers who signed with Nike, which has some of the industry’s tightest controls on athlete contract agreements, will head to Beijing, including breaststroker Brendan Hansen and backstroker Aaron Peirsol.
Speedo’s LZR Racer has had a major impact this year. Since its launch in February, swimmers have broken dozens of world records and athletes not sponsored by Speedo have clamored to wear it.
Iraqi rowers heading to Beijing: Two Iraqi rowers will be allowed to take part in the Olympics, the International Rowing Federation said.
Haidar Nozad and Hamzah Hussein Jebur were allowed back in the men’s double sculls because their places had not been given to competitors from other countries, Smith said.
North Korea declined to take the spots after the spots were offered last week, IOC spokeswoman Giselle Davies said.
The IOC readmitted Iraq to the Olympics Tuesday, six days after the deadline to enter athletes for the rowing, judo, archery and weightlifting competitions had passed.
FIFA frees up under-23 players: FIFA ruled that professional clubs must release players age 23 or younger for the Beijing Olympics, clearing the way for Lionel Messi to play for Argentina despite opposition from FC Barcelona, which said in a statement it would appeal the decision.
“Barcelona continues with its stance of not wanting to let me go and I understand it,” Messi said on Barcelona’s website before the ruling. “But I also think they have to understand that my dream is to take part in the Olympic Games.” … The U.S. men’s soccer team was held to a 0-0 draw by Ivory Coast at a four-nation tournament in Hong Kong. … Tour de France runner-up Cadel Evans of Australia withdrew from the Olympics road time trial because of a knee injury. … Mate Parlov, the 1972 light heavyweight gold medalist boxer from the former Yugoslavia, died. He was 59. … Former world triple jump champion Charles Friedek of Germany won’t compete at the Olympics after losing a court appeal. Friedek, 36, argued he qualified by leaping 55 feet, 9 1/4 inches and didn’t need to jump that distance twice as required.

source: courant.com

Amnesty International has accused the International Olympic Committee (IOC) of caving in to China’s demands on Internet censorship and urged the IOC and Beijing to provide unfettered Internet access as they had promised.

“The International Olympic Committee and the Organizing Committee of the Beijing Olympic Games should fulfil their commitment to full media freedom and provide immediate uncensored internet access at Olympic media venues,” said Mark Allison, East Asia researcher for the London-based rights group, in a statement issued late Wednesday.

“Censorship of the internet at the Games is compromising fundamental human rights and betraying the Olympic values,” Allison said.

The organization was reacting to statements by Kevin Gosper, chair of the IOC’s press committee that “some IOC officials negotiated with the Chinese that some sensitive sites would be blocked on the basis they were not considered Games related.” In Gosper’s statements to the South China Morning Post Wednesday, he also said the IOC could not tell China what to do.

Amnesty, however, noted that on July 17 Jacques Rogge, the IOC’s president, said “there will be no censorship of the internet.”

“This blatant media censorship adds one more broken promise that undermines the claim that the Games would help improve human rights in China,” said Allison.

Beijing authorities have blocked access to internet websites considered politically sensitive or critical of China, including sites for Amnesty and other human rights groups, as well as websites for exiled Tibetan groups and the banned Falungong spiritual group.

Some foreign media websites, such as the BBC’s Chinese-language service, the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle, the Hong Kong-based Apple Daily and the Taiwan-based Liberty Time, also are blocked.

The IOC said late Wednesday its officials are meeting with Beijing Olympic organisers to try to resolve the problem.

“We’ve learned there are issues accessing some websites and the IOC is talking with the organizers to see what may need to be rectified,” Sandrine Tonge, the IOC’s media relations coordinator said in an email to Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa late Wednesday.

“The IOC has always encouraged the Beijing 2008 organizers to provide media with the fullest access possible to report on the Olympic Games, including access to the internet. BOCOG has said ‘sufficient and convenient’ internet access will be provided for the media to cover the Games,” said Tonge.

The French press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders on Wednesday also condemned the Chinese authorities for restricting journalists’ access to the internet and slammed the inability of the IOC to stop them.

Freedom House, a nonprofit organization which promotes democracy, said earlier this month that China has also put more pressure on Chinese journalists in recent days, banning them from covering sensitive issues.

from: bangkokpost.com

The ban on Iraq competing at the Beijing Olympics next month has been lifted, the International Olympic Committee announced here on Tuesday.

Iraq’s compact Olympic contingent was cleared to take part in the 2008 Games after agreement was reached between the IOC and the Iraqi government at a crisis meeting at the IOC’s headquarters in Lausanne.

As the deadline for competitors at the Games for all events except athletics passed on July 23 the Iraqi contingent will now number only two athletes – Haidar Nasir in the discus and sprinter Danma Hussein.

The lifting of the ban came about after the Iraqi government agreed on a series of steps leading to a fully functioning independent National Olympic Committee (NOC) in Iraq.

IOC president Jacques Rogge hailed the eleventh hour deal, saying: “We look forward to seeing the Iraqi flag in Beijing.”

The Olympic chief added: “I commend the government of Iraq for reaching an agreement that serves the long-term interest of Iraqi athletes.

“We have said all along that we want to see Iraqi athletes in Beijing.”

Under the deal brokered Tuesday rather than being frustrated observers the two Iraqi athletes will compete in Beijing under the Iraqi flag, led by coaches and team leaders selected by the independent Iraqi NOC.

Five government representatives will be invited by the IOC as observers to the Games in Beijing.

The Lausanne agreement also calls for the transparent and fair election of a new, independent Iraqi National Olympic Committee, no later than the end of November.

This process will be overseen by the IOC and the Olympic Council of Asia and will be held in cooperation with the Government of Iraq, and in accordance with the Olympic Charter.

In June the IOC had suspended Iraq for “political interference” in its NOC which was sacked in May and replaced by a new panel headed by Iraqi Youth and Sports Minister Jassem Jaafar.

The Iraqi government had said that the previous Olympic committee was sacked because of “solid evidence of blatant corruption, lack of legitimate transparent electoral processes and accountability.”

It said the committee had an insufficient quorum and had failed to hold elections in more than five years.

The head of the committee, Ahmed Al-Samarrai, was kidnapped at gunpoint in Baghdad in July 2006 at the height of sectarian violence in Iraq along with several associates and he has not been heard of since.

from: afp.google.com

Beijing today defied concerns of the International Olympic Committee and press freedom groups by confirming that the internet at Games facilities would remain censored.
Officials were challenged as to why journalists and others trying to access the internet at the Media Press Centre, the Olympic Village and other venues were blocked from seeing sites including the BBC Chinese language service, other international media and human rights groups.

Sun Weide, the chief spokesman, acknowledged that sites would remain blocked, specifically those connected to falun gong, a religious movement which is heavily repressed in China.

“Falun gong is an evil cult so their sites are blocked and will remain so,” he said, though he refused to give specifics about other sites.

The International Olympics Committee says it is “concerned” about internet censorship, while acknowledging there is little it can do as long as sites pertaining to sport are left open.

“I will speak with the Chinese authorities to advise them of the restraints and to see what their reaction is,” said Kevan Gosper, the IOC member who heads its press commission.

Among the other sites inaccessible are some Hong Kong and Taiwanese newspapers, those of human rights groups such as Amnesty International, and most non-Chinese government sites relating to Tibet.

China is maintaining tight security across the city in the lead-up to the Games next week, despite hopes by the IOC that the Games would bring greater openness.

The authorities also announced yesterday that security checkpoints were being set up for tourists wishing to walk on to Tiananmen Square, which is normally accessed through underpasses from the surrounding main roads.

Among the greatest concerns is the possibility of protests on the Square, the most sensitive and surveilled public place in China since the student demonstrations of 1989. International broadcasters are still battling with the authorities over the extent to which they will be allowed to film there during the Games, in line with earlier promises.

Meanwhile, police leave has been cancelled to ensure “absolute security without a single lapse” in Tibet, one potential source of disturbances during the Games period, state media reported.

By Richard Spencer in Beijing

source: telegraph.co.uk

Iraq have been banned from next month’s Beijing Games because of a government decision to disband the country’s National Olympic Committee (NOC), a senior official said on Thursday.

“This morning we were informed of the final decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to suspend the membership of the Iraqi Olympic Committee,” NOC general secretary Hussein al-Amidi told Reuters.

“It is a blow to Iraq and its international reputation, its athletes and its youth.”

The government of Iraq disbanded the NOC in May because of a dispute over how it had been assembled. The IOC gave Iraq a deadline to reinstate the committee but the government has refused to back down.

Iraq had planned to send a small team despite violence that has killed more than 100 athletes in the country since the 2003 United States-led invasion.

At least seven Iraqi athletes, two rowers, a weightlifter, a sprinter, a discus thrower, a judoka and an archer, had won places in Beijing.

“There’s nothing I can do. The government of Iraq wanted this. I can’t believe I’m not going to take part in the Beijing Olympics. The news is hard to take,” archer Ali Adnan told Reuters from Egypt where he had been training.

IOC DISAPPOINTED
The IOC, which has long supported Iraqi athletes training abroad to prepare for the Games, said it was very disappointed.

“We sent a letter to the Iraqi government today saying that as the situation stands today it is unlikely to have Iraqi athletes at the Beijing Games,” said IOC spokesperson Emmanuelle Moreau.

The chances of Iraq reinstating the NOC seem slim. The government has said the committee was illegitimate because it lacked a quorum and had failed to hold new elections.

“There is no review of the government’s decision because it was taken in accordance with the law,” Youth and Sports Minister Jasem Mohammed Jaafar told Reuters.

However, the IOC said the Olympic Charter forbids political interference in the Olympic Movement.

Rule 28(9) of the Charter provides for the suspension of an NOC in the event “any governmental body…causes the activity of the NOC…to be hampered.”

The Iraqi government was invited to go to (the IOC’s headquarters in) Lausanne to discuss possible remedies but did not positively respond to the invitation, the IOC said.

DETERMINED ATHLETES

Iraqi athletes had been determined to make their presence felt in Beijing despite the difficulties they faced.

Athletes’s reputations and international links make them and their families targets for violence in Iraq and the country’s sports infrastructure has decayed over decades.

Former basketball player and NOC boss Ahmed al-Hadjiya was kidnapped along with other sports officials by gunmen who stormed a conference in broad daylight in 2006. They are still missing.

Sport gave Iraqis arguably their greatest moment of unity since the fall of Saddam Hussein when the national soccer team, including members of all its main warring groups, defeated a heavily favoured Saudi Arabia to win the Asian Cup last year.

Over the last five years the IOC and the wider Olympic family have provided funding and training opportunities to support Iraq’s NOC and more than 50 Iraqi athletes and coaches.

“The Iraqi government’s actions have destroyed this progress,” an IOC official said.

(Writing by Mohammed Abbas; additional reporting by Karolos Grohmann in Athens and Wisam Mohammed and Tim Cocks in Baghdad; editing by Jon Bramley, Ken Ferris and Pritha Sarkar)

source: reuters.com

The election of the host city of the 2016 Games will take place on 2 October 2009 during the 121st IOC Session in Copenhagen. IOC members will cast their votes until one city has obtained a majority.

from: olympic.org

Germany announced on Thursday the first 79 athletes for Beijing Olympic Games, but German top sports official Thomas Bach told Xinhua that Germany does not set a goal for winning gold medal at the once-in-four-year sports gala.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, Bach, IOC Vice President and President of the Bureau of the German Olympic Sportbunds (DOSB), said he hoped the German team could maintain the place they had got in Athens four years ago.

According to DOSB, Germany’s top agency overseeing Olympic sports, a total of approximately 450 German athletes are to travel to China, there are about 300 people from the functional team, including trainers, doctors and carers.

“We don’t set any goal by number, but we are confident we have a good team,” Bach said.

“Our goal in Beijing is that we achieve the place we got in Athens,” he said.

“From Athens to Beijing, then to London, we want to make some progress (in medal standings), I hope for progress shown in Beijing, but it will be a tough competition,” he added.

As for individual events hopeful of winning medals, Bach, who won the foil team gold medal in Montreal Games in 1976, said Germany’s hope is slim in his own event.

“Now Germany’s fencing is not strong, we did quite well in Sydney, but not in Athens, not good in recent championships,” he said.

However, Bach casted more hope on canoeing and women’s football.

“They (German women’s football team) won world title in China, they are used to compete in China, and we hope it will help,” Bach said, smiling.

As for prize money for medal winners, Bach said a gold winner would get around 15,000 euros from Germany’s sports foundation.

However, Bach said DOSB plans to reform the prize-awarding system, with more eyes on investing in those events and athletes who boast potential to win Olympic medals.

“To put in a simple way, at present we look at athletes’ past, but in the future we will look at their future,” he explained.

Bach stressed the importance of the participation of Olympic Games, saying that is the “career peak” for all athletes.

He recalled the moment he won the gold medal in Montreal Olympic Games.

“I did not realize what had happened. I do remember the moment before and after the victory ceremony, but I did not remember victory ceremony itself,” he said.

Talking about China, Bach said he ended his sports career in Shanghai of China in 1980 when the German national fencing team had a friendly with Chinese counterparts.

“That was last time I was at the podium, after that I’ve never touched it (sword),”

After retirement from professional sports, Bach has become a lawyer. In 1990s, Bach participated in the IOC work and have frequent exchanges with Chinese colleagues.

Bach spoke highly of the preparation of Beijing Games, saying he was “impressed” by improvement of infrastructure, transportation, communication facilities and services, citing national stadium “nestle” and “water cube” for example.

“We are all favorable. My people told me they have had smooth coordination with colleagues from organizing committee of Beijing Games,” said Bach, who claimed that he would stay in Beijing during the whole period of the Games.

“We are very confident we will have a great games in Beijing,” he concluded.

from: chinadaily.com.cn

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge here on Wednesday.
Wen expressed gratitude to the IOC and Rogge for their valuable support to the preparations of the Beijing Olympic Games and admiration for the contribution he had made to the development of the Olympic Movement and the enhancement of mutual understanding and peace among people from different countries and regions.
Wen said that the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games would be a great event for the people from the world and the Beijing 2008 torch relay is being held all over the world.
He added that the Olympic Flame is a symbol of peace, friendship, advancement and brightness, representing the common pursuits and wishes of the mankind for the bright future and we believed that the Olympic flame, which belongs to all mankind, would never extinguish.
Wen said that the Chinese government and the 1.3 billion Chinese people would work hard in all aspects of preparations for the Beijing Olympic Games, enhance cooperation with the international society and make sure China could successfully stage a high level Olympic Games with distinctive features and fulfill China’s commitments to the world.
Rogge said that since their last meeting in 2006, excellent work has been done by BOCOG. He also said that China will be ready for the Games and it was the right decision to award the Games to Beijing in 2001.
Rogge expressed hope that Beijing 2008 torch relay will go on in a peaceful and smooth way. And he believes that the Chinese government has the ability to appropriately solve issues that have appeared recently.

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge on Tuesday condemned violent protests that target the Beijing Olympic torch relay, saying violence is by no means acceptable.
“The IOC definitely wants and wishes for the Olympic flame to be respected, because it is a very important symbol that unites people,” Rogge told Chinese reporters.
“We respect people who want to protest. This is the freedom of speech, freedom of expression. However, if you want to protest, it has to be peaceful,” added the IOC chief.
Despite disruptions by a few Tibetan separatists and their supporters during the London and Paris legs of the Olympic torch relay, there will be no change in the itinerary which includes carrying the flame to the highest peak on Earth, the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) said.
The flame was lit in Olympia, Greece, on March 24 and is being relayed through 21 cities outside the Chinese mainland before being carried into the opening ceremony on August 8.

from: chinadaily.com.cn 

The International Olympic Committee said on Thursday that Beijing is right on track to deliver a superb Olympic Games in August.
“We can again report that the commission has seen that BOCOG’s operations are absolutely right on track,” Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC coordination commission, told reporters as the commission wrapped its last inspection tour of the Chinese capital.
“We believe that the coming August will be able to give a superb organization to the athletes.
“All the organizations have been progressing according to the plan,” he added.
Verbruggen said the IOC coordination commission had examined Beijing’s preparatory work in 44 areas and received satisfactory feedbacks.
“We were very satisfied with the assurance we received in a number of areas … media services, internet access and live broadcast, where some concerns exist,” he said.
“There is every reason to believe that we will see here a gold-medal performance in August, also superb organization of the Olympic Games.”
Verbruggen reiterated that the IOC was a sporting organization and not a political one, and would not get involved in political issues.
“The games have been drawn into issues that do not necessarily have a link with the operations of the games. It’s the truth. We are all aware that the international community is discussing these topics,” he said.
Verbruggen also rejected the conclusions by an Amnesty International report this week that awarding the Olympic Games to China had made human rights worse.
“To go that far to say the Games contributed to a worsening situation in human rights, I would call blatantly untrue,” said Verbruggen.
“It is something very difficult to prove for them but we can easily prove that bringing the Games here has let to improvements.”
Wang Wei, executive vice president of the Beijing Olympics Organizing Committee (BOCOG), echoed these remarks.
“The Chinese people now enjoy great freedom of speech, and people can comment on and criticize the government’s work,” he said. “The Olympic Games is an opportunity for china to further open up and develop… and also will contribute to the improvement of human rights courses.”
Commenting on threats by some EU politicians recently of boycotting the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games, Verbruggen said that decision to boycott the opening ceremony or the Olympics should be made by athletes and not by politicians.
“I have very little admiration for politicians that come here to sign big business contracts and three or four months later say ‘ perhaps I won’t come to the opening ceremony’,” he said.
“The athletes have more than enough information to make up their own minds. It’s not up to some politicians making cheap use of the sport at the same time as signing big business contracts.”

from: xinhuanet.com 

An analysis of Beijing’s air quality indicates that the health of the vast majority of athletes competing in the summer Olympic Games will not be impaired, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on Monday.
Over the past few weeks, the IOC has made an analysis of a set of air quality data – including temperature, wind, humidity and SO2, NO2, CO, Ozone and PM10 readings – which were taken by the Beijing Environment Protection Bureau in August 2007 and given to the IOC.
“The findings indicate that, at Games time one year out, the health of athletes was largely not impaired,” said the Lausanne-based IOC in a statement.
The findings are also supported by the fact that no health issues related to air quality were reported to the Beijing Organizing Committee or the IOC by any team physicians looking after athletes who competed in the August 2007 test events, the statement said.
Besides, no air quality-related problems were reported at the IAAF Junior World Championships that were held in Beijing in August 2006, it added.
“As with all Olympic Games, we want to ensure that air quality risks are mitigated and that measures are put into place to protect the health of the athletes,” said Arne Ljungqvist, chairman of the IOC’s Medical Commission.
“For a few sports where we do see a possible risk, we will monitor the situation daily during Games time, and take whatever decisions are needed at the time to ensure the athletes’ health is protected,” he said.
The official expressed confidence that measures already put in place, plus those planned by Beijing organizers and city authorities, will continue to improve the city’s air quality leading up to – and during- the Games.

from: chinadaily.com.cn/olympics/2008-03/18/content_6543550.htm

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Saturday observed International Women’s Day by revealing the winners of its 2008 Women and Sport Awards. China’s Li Lingwei was one among the prize winners.
Li is one of few icons who continue to share their experience and expertise, even after giving up active competition. A badminton champion in the 1980s, and having won over 50 Grand Prix and international titles, she has been a catalyst in attracting women and girls to her sport. Later she became the coach of China’s badminton women’s national team, inspiring young athletes to greater heights. Today, as a council member of the Badminton World Federation, a member of the IOC’s Olympic Programme Commission and Deputy Director General of BOCOG’s International Relations Department, she demonstrates how women can lead by example.
Like Li, many other Chinese women also play an important role in sports, both in China and around the world. Through the great efforts of its players, the Chinese women’s volleyball team continually stands ahead of other world teams; Chinese Zheng Jie and Yan Zi, now world-famous tennis stars, have proved the potential of Chinese women’s tennis; and Deng Yaping, one of the most excellent table tennis players ever, has become a member of two different IOC committees and joined the 2008 Beijing Olympics Organizing Committee in 2003.
With their efforts and passion, Chinese female sports stars are boosting the number of women practicing sports in China. They have furthermore made outstanding contributions to the development of sports around the world through their dedication.

from: beijing2008.cn

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge on Saturday said that China is making big strides in clearing up its air quality ahead of the 2008 Olympics.
During the opening ceremony of the 4th World Conference on Women and Sports, which was opened in the sort of Dead Sea, Jordan, Rogge told some reporters that “we will see that Beijing has made major progress.”
China has taken some measures, including switching from coal togas energy, closing 10 percent of its gas stations, and planting millions of trees to improve its air quality, said Rogge.
He also said he was pleased that more female athletes than ever, about 45 percent of the 10,500 participants, will compete in the Beijing Games.
On Friday, Beijing launched its first census of pollution sources for accurate statistics, amid a green drive to improve environment ahead of the Olympics.
The survey will cover 90,000 sources of pollution, among which 24,000 are industrial sources, 45,000 residential, 21,000 agricultural and 128 facilities for centralized treatment of pollutants, according to the city’s bureau of environmental protection.
Beijing authorities said last month that major pollutants in Beijing were down and air quality in the city had improved for a ninth consecutive year, but experts warned that the government should prepare for a long and tough fight against air pollution, citing inhalable particles and ozone as major obstacles for Beijing to achieve its “Green Olympics” goal.
China started its first national census of pollution sources on February, focusing on industrial sources including metallurgy, chemistry, construction materials, power plants, paper-making, pharmaceuticals and mining.
The central government planned to finish data collection and analysis this year and approve the findings in the first half of 2009.

from: xinhuanet.com 

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today announced that Singapore will host the first Summer Youth Olympic Games in 2010. The result was unveiled by the IOC President, Jacques Rogge, at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. Singapore beat Moscow in the final by 53 votes to 44.
The 105 IOC members entitled to vote(1) had cast their votes by post over the last few weeks. The sealed envelope with the name of the winning city was delivered to the IOC President during the announcement ceremony by the independent and certified notary who oversaw the process to guarantee confidentiality.
“This is a key moment for the Olympic Movement“, said Rogge to the journalists present in Lausanne. “Singapore has put together a very exciting project. Hosting the Youth Olympic Games for the first time is a great responsibility, and I have every confidence in the team in Singapore. I have no doubt that their professionalism and enthusiasm will be instrumental in the staging of successful Youth Olympic Games in 2010″, he continued.

IOC President Rogge announces the host city. (Photo credit : Hélène Tobler/IOC)

“The Youth Olympic Games are the flagship of the IOC’s determination to reach out to young people. These Games will not only be about competition. They will also be the platform through which youngsters will learn about the Olympic values and the benefits of sport, and will share their experiences with other communities around the globe. We are looking forward to joining in the celebration in Singapore in 2010″, Rogge added.
The IOC President thanked Moscow for its excellent efforts and the quality of its candidature. He also hoped that today’s disappointment would not discourage it from bidding again.
Rogge also paid tribute to the other seven Candidate Cities which took part in a candidature process that started in August 2007: Athens (Greece), Bangkok (Thailand), Debrecen (Hungary), Guatemala City (Guatemala), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Moscow (Russian Federation), Poznan (Poland), Singapore (Singapore) and Turin (Italy).
(1) Out of the 110 current IOC members, 105 were entitled to vote. In addition to the IOC President, the members from the countries of the finalist Cities did not vote – V. Smirnov, S. Tarpischev and A. Popov (Russian Federation) and S.M. Ng (Singapore).

About the Youth Olympic Games
The Youth Olympic Games aim to bring together talented athletes – age group 14 to 18 – from around the world to participate in high-level competitions, and will also run, alongside the sports element of the event, educational programmes on the Olympic values, the benefits of sport for a healthy lifestyle, the social values sport can deliver, and the dangers of doping and of training to excess and/or of inactivity.
The first Summer Youth Olympic Games in Singapore will bring together approximately 3,200 athletes and 800 officials The sports programme will encompass all the sports on the programme of the 2012 Summer Games, but with a limited number of disciplines and events.

from: beijing2008.cn

The Vision
The vision of the Youth Olympic Games is to inspire young people around the world to participate in sport and adopt and live by the Olympic values. It was during its session in Guatemala in July 2007 that the IOC decided to create a nw sporting event to educate, engage and influence young athletes inspiring them to play an active role in their communities.

What are the YOG?
The Youth Olympic Games are a sporting event for young people, balancing sport, education and culture. These Games work as a catalyst in these fields throughout the Olympic Movement.

The YOG’s objectives are:
1. to bring together the world’s best young athletes and celebrate them
2. to offer a unique and powerful introduction to Olympism
3. to innovate in educating and debating Olympic values and challenges of society
4. to share and celebrate the cultures of the world in a festive atmosphere
5. to reach youth communities throughout the world to promote Olympic values
6. to raise sports awareness and participation among young people
7. to act as a platform for initiatives within the Olympic Movement
8. to be an event of the highest international sporting standard.

Who? What? When?
The Youth Olympic Games aim to bring together talented athletes – aged from 14 to 18 – from around the world to participate in high-level competitions, but also, alongside the sports element of the event, to run educational programmes on the Olympic values, the benefits of sport for a healthy lifestyle, the social values sport can deliver and the dangers of doping and of training to excess and/or of inactivity.

The first ever Summer Youth Olympic Games will bring together approximately 3,200 athletes and 800 officials in 2010. The sports programme will encompass all 26 sports on the programme of the 2012 Summer Games, with a limited number of disciplines and events. The first Winter Olympic Youth Games will bring together around 1,000 athletes and 500 officials. The athletes will compete – for the first time in 2012 – in all seven Olympic Winter Sports. The YOG follow the traditional cycle of four years, with Summer Games in 2010, 2014, 2018, etc and Winter Games in 2012, 2016, 2020, etc.
Moscow and Singapore finalists for 1st ever Summer Youth Olympic Games
Out of a list of nine candidates, Moscow and Singapore have been chosen as the finalists for the election of the Host City of the 1st ever Summer Youth Olympic Games to be held in 2010. Their names, together with the evaluation report, have been be submitted to the IOC members for a postal vote. The winning city will be announced by IOC President Jacques Rogge in a live web cast on www.olympic.org on Friday 21 February 2008 from the Olympic Museum in Lausanne.

After the 1st Summer YOG in 2010 come the 1st Winter YOG in 2012
The IOC has already launched the bidding process for the 1st Winter Youth Olympic Games in 2012. A letter was sent out to all National Olympic Committees (NOCs) informing them of the procedure and documentation available for cities interested in bidding for the Games.

Source and for further informations: olympic.org 

The Water Cube’s debut event was not all about competition: it’s about getting familiar with the water and try out hands six months before the big-time Olympics in the Chinese capital.
The Swimming China Open ended its six-day competitions on Tuesday in the bubble-wrapped Olympic venue, with 32 golds bagged by teams including host China, Germany and Japan, the top three on the medal tally.
A sizable competition force of more than 200 swimmers came to Beijing. Only a few top swimming powers such as the United States and Australia were absent.
But the meet was not short of top-notch swimmers. German sent in the world 100m freestyle record-holder Britta Steffen and world championship silver winner Annika Lurz. Steffen won two gold medals in women’s 50 and 100 meters freestyle, while Lurz was crowned in the women’s 400 meters freestyle and 100 meters freestyle relay.
World No. 2 butterfly specialist Pawel Korzeniowski of Poland and Sweden’s sprinter Stefan Nystrand were also among the few leading swimmers who impressed the spectators in Beijing.

Ceremony girls hold flower bouquets at a medal ceremony during the Good Luck Beijing 2008 Swimming China Open
at the National Aquatics Centre, nicknamed “Water Cube”, in Beijing February 4, 2008.
China Open is the first event held in the center, which will host the Olympic swimming and diving events in August. [Xinhua]

Korzeniowski won his best event in men’s 200 meters butterfly and sprint specialist Nystrand claimed the men’s 50 meters and 100 meters freestyle titles.
However, Olympic 200m butterfly champion and multiple-medalist Otylia Jedrzejczak of Poland did not think too much about winning golds at the event. “I’ve been doing intense training,” she said.
The Chinese team, headed by top breaststroker Qi Hui and long-distance swimmer Zhang Lin, indeed shared some of the limelight. With two golds and three results under the Olympic qualifying A standards, Qi declared a comeback from being bogged down by failed trainings.
Zhang in turn impressed the home crowd with a new national record in men’s 400 meters freestyle, and brought himself closer to world’s first-ranking South Korea’s Park Tae-Hwan.
But the Chinese team may have to make another few leaps to realize its Olympic ambitions after the retirement of Olympic women ‘s 100 meters breaststroke gold medalist Luo Xuejuan.
China’s No.1 male swimmer and butterfly specialist Wu Peng appeared in the stadium but didn’t compete. Wu and some other Chinese swimmers are not in winter training.

The Pool in the Bubble
Water Cube is one of the flagship Olympic facilities, neighboring the Birds Nest, the main stadium.
The facility, which will host swimming, diving, synchronized swimming competitions during this summer’s Olympics, offers a huge slice of gold, silver and bronze medals in the Olympics. By then, swimming sensations like Michael Phelps, Australian stars Leisel Jones, Libby Lenton and Laure Manaudou of France, are all poised for the gold rush.
Its debut event has drawn accolades from officials and the athletes. A high-ranking IOC member Kevan Gosper called it “out of this world” and “breathtaking“.
Mongolia’s Tsogjargal Narantsog, who swam in the men’s 100 meters butterfly heat, was officially the first swimmer in the pool.He won cheering applause despite a slow performance. China’s Shi Feng also made a few headlines when he won the venue’s first gold on offer in men’s 100 meters butterfly.
As praises were piled on the center, glitches were also discovered in the test event: mixed zone is too small, change room is too hot and air is too dry. But venue officials assured these problems would be addressed. “The operation teams and other relevant parties will brainstorm on making necessary changes to the facility,” said Shang Heshun, director of the venue.
“So far, all operations have gone well and we have gathered valuable experience for the August Olympics,” he added.

from: chinadaily.com.cn 

“Water Cube” debut draws accolades from IOC official, swimmers

The debut of China’s National Aquatics Center, nicknamed by the Chinese as “water cube“, has drawn accolades from International Olympic Committee (IOC) official as well as swimmers for the Olympic test tournament.
“This is an excellent and wonderful facility…and the best aquatic venue by far,” said Richard Kevan Gosper, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Press Commission Chairperson.
“It (the Olympic test) will be a very successful event, and all operation work has gone very smoothly,” he told reporters on Thursday afternoon.
The Good Luck Beijing 2008 Swimming China Open, which opened on Thursday and serves as a test of the venue ahead of the Olympics, is scheduled to be participated by 234 swimmers from more than 36 countries and regions.
“I felt a very good mood for competition the time I entered the cube,” said Zhang Lin, a Chinese swimmer on the national team, adding that the pool water temperature was just right for him.
Ryan Pini, from Papua New Guinea, said “the venue is very easy to get around, and the volunteer services are quite satisfying.”
However, a few other swimmers also voiced their advice for the improvement.
Otylia Jedrzejczak, a Poland swimmer who swam women’s 200m butterfly on Thursday, complained it was too hot in the water and the change room. “But besides that, everything else is OK,” she said.
The swim meet is the maiden show of the Water Cube, but only as a test event, few world-class swimmers take part in. Swimming powerhouses like the United States and Australia will only send observers to the event.
The 17,000-seat venue will host swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo during the game period and 42 gold medals will be awarded there.
The squat box-like structure with three pools below ground level is made up of a steel skeleton sheathed in a Teflon-like plastic membrane that resembles bubbling water and gives the venue its name.
The eco-friendly structure’s translucent shell allows in natural sunlight, providing heat and light and cutting energy use by up to 30 percent, according to the information provided by the Beijing Olympic organizing committee.

from: xinhuanet.com