2008 Beijing Olympics – News Stories About 2008 Beijing Olympics - Page 6

OLYMPICS

Aug 16, 2008 10:51 PM CDT

8 Golds: Phelps Makes History

(Newser) - Michael Phelps swam into history today by picking up his 8th gold medal at the Beijing Olympics, NBC reports. Phelps swam the third leg of the men's 4x100 medley—yes, another world record—to trump Mark Spitz's record of 7 medals set more than three decades ago. "I'm more...

High-Tech
Gear Floods
Olympic Games

olympics

Aug 16, 2008 5:35 PM CDT

High-Tech Gear Floods Olympic Games

Maker of spring-soled shoe challenges the rules

(Newser) - The Michael Phelps-endorsed body suit is only one of the high-tech inventions at this year's Olympic Games, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. NASA-designed shoes, 3D motion-capture-designed bicycles, and a Nike PreCool vest have all garnered attention. But the most controversial is a spring-enhanced shoe that track and field athletes will...

US Water Polo
Bests Top-Ranked Croatia

Aug 16, 2008 1:00 PM CDT

US Water Polo Bests Top-Ranked Croatia

Ninth-ranked Americans hope for medal

(Newser) - The ninth-ranked US water polo team took down top-ranked Croatia in a surprise 7-5 Olympic victory today, the New York Times reports. The victory was thanks in large part to the defensive work of goalie Merrill Moses, who had 11 saves. “What better place to take down the best...

Defining Olympic Moment?
Phelps By a Hair

opinion

Aug 16, 2008 12:30 PM CDT

Defining Olympic Moment? Phelps By a Hair

(Newser) - Sure, if Michael Phelps wins his eighth Olympic gold, as he’s expected to do in the men’s relay, all eyes will be on him. And we’ll wonder (even more) if he’s all human or part-fish. But the Olympics' "defining fabulous moment" has already passed, writes...

Why China's Rooting for Us

OPINION

Aug 16, 2008 11:31 AM CDT

Why China's Rooting for Us

(Newser) - China hopes that its Olympic team will do the country proud—but many Chinese are openly rooting for US athletes. Why the love? Francesco Sisci, an Italian diplomat who lives there and whose wife is Chinese, writes in the Washington Post that the idea of "America," even with...

Jamaica's
Bolt: World's
Fastest Man

olympics

Aug 16, 2008 9:26 AM CDT

Jamaica's Bolt: World's Fastest Man

(Newser) - Jamaica's Usain Bolt rewrote the record books again and easily captured his first Olympic medal by running the 100-meter dash in a stunning 9.69 seconds. Laying claim to the title of "world's fastest man," Bolt beat Richard Thompson of Trinidad and Tobago by 0.2 seconds, while...

Phelps Ties Spitz With 7 Golds

olympics

Aug 15, 2008 9:41 PM CDT

Phelps Ties Spitz With 7 Golds

(Newser) - Michael Phelps beat Milorad Cavic of Serbia by the thinnest of margins to win the 100-meter butterfly yesterday, tying Mark Spitz's record of seven gold medals at a single Olympics. Phelps, seemingly destined for second at the finish, somehow touched the wall first, a scant .01 seconds ahead of Cavic....

Cops Turn China Protesters Into Propaganda

Aug 15, 2008 7:09 PM CDT

Cops Turn China Protesters Into Propaganda

Beijing police feed arrested visitors fried chicken, deport them

(Newser) - The Rev. Patrick Mahoney posed for pictures during his interrogation in Beijing—half of it, anyway. Over 7 hours, police ran a classic good cop/bad cop routine on Mahoney, who had unfurled a “Jesus Christ is King” banner in Tiananmen Square, he tells the Washington Post. "They wanted...

Liukin Does What Dad Couldn't

olympics

Aug 15, 2008 2:42 PM CDT

Liukin Does What Dad Couldn't

Daughter scores gymnastics gold as silver medalist father watches

(Newser) - Growing up in Texas, Nastia Liukin eyed her father's four Olympic gold medals, won for his gymnastics exploits as a USSR star. But one always eluded him: the all-around individual medal, which he came within a tenth of a point of in 1988. "I hope that I made up...

Phelps: Great,
or Greatest?

olympics

Aug 15, 2008 10:50 AM CDT

Phelps: Great, or Greatest?

The debate rages on

(Newser) - Everyone agrees that Michael Phelps is one of the greatest Olympians ever—but is he the greatest? It’s become a hot topic of debate in Beijing, the New York Times reports. Phelps stands alone in the gold medal column, but swimming hands out a lot of medals, and some...

Bird's Nest Stadium:
Your Corporate Logo Here

Aug 15, 2008 8:38 AM CDT

Bird's Nest Stadium: Your Corporate Logo Here

Beijing's National Stadium and Aquatics Center put post-game rights on market.

(Newser) - For a low, low price in the hundreds of millions of dollars, Beijing’s $500-million National Stadium, known as the “Bird’s Nest,” is peddling 30-year naming rights, courting six multinational corporations for logo privileges and other partnerships, the Wall Street Journal reports. The “Water Cube” Aquatics...

US Gymnasts Grab
Gold, Silver in All-Around

OLYMPICS

Aug 15, 2008 6:33 AM CDT

US Gymnasts Grab Gold, Silver in All-Around

Liukin takes gold, Johnson silver to China's bronze

(Newser) - Americans Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson captured the gold and silver medals in the women’s gymnastics all-around competitions, marking the first time US gymnasts have taken the top two spots, USA Today reports. Liukin’s standout balance-beam routine and focus on artistic elements helped lead her to victory with...

Phelps Grabs Gold No. 6

Aug 14, 2008 9:53 PM CDT

Phelps Grabs Gold No. 6

(Newser) - Six for six. Michael Phelps swam to another gold medal with an easy win in the 200 individual medley, the AP reports. Phelps, who continued his perfect streak of world records, beat Hungary's Laszlo Czeh (silver) and fellow American Ryan Lochte (bronze). He's got two races remaining to set a...

Twitter Helps Chinese Blogger Tell His Story

analysis

Aug 14, 2008 8:06 PM CDT

Twitter Helps Chinese Blogger Tell His Story

Citizen journalist is forced to leave Beijing, but he plans to return

(Newser) - Twitter gets a bad rap for its often less-than-substantive musings, but every now and then the service proves its "true potential" as an Internet tool, writes Mathew Ingram in the Toronto Globe and Mail. Case in point: When a Chinese citizen journalist recently traveled to Beijing, the authorities hustled...

Chinese News Agency
Put Gymnast's Age at 13

Aug 14, 2008 8:00 PM CDT

Chinese News Agency Put Gymnast's Age at 13

(Newser) - Just 9 months before the Beijing Olympics, the Chinese government's news agency, Xinhua, reported that gymnast He Kexin was 13, which would have made her ineligible to be on the team that won a gold medal this week. In its report Nov. 3, Xinhua identified He as one of "...

Olympics Online Coverage Still In Learning Curve

review

Aug 14, 2008 6:44 PM CDT

Olympics Online Coverage Still In Learning Curve

NBC serves up quantity, but quality is sometimes lacking

(Newser) - NBC is offering a nearly endless supply of Olympics coverage online, a laudatory move but one with its share of hiccups, writes Robert Bianco in USA Today. NBCOlymics.com provides live feeds of dozens of events—many of them obscure—for free. But the broadcasts lack much of the polish...

Irate Wrestler Chucks Bronze

OLYMPICS

Aug 14, 2008 1:38 PM CDT

Irate Wrestler Chucks Bronze

Sweden's Abrahamian only out for the gold

(Newser) - Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian threw his bronze medal to the floor during the ceremony, stormed off, and vowed to quit the sport, the Telegraph reports. "I don't care about this medal. I wanted gold," Abrahamian said. The wrestler had earlier confronted the judges’ over their decision that eventually...

Federer Falls to Blake

olympics

Aug 14, 2008 12:11 PM CDT

Federer Falls to Blake

Phelps eases into butterfly semis

(Newser) - Roger Federer’s lackluster year continued today, as American James Blake knocked him out of the Olympics, 6-4, 7-6 (2), ESPN reports. Blake had won just a single set against the once-invincible Federer in their previous eight meetings. The women’s side also saw big upsets, with Serena Williams falling...

Hey Saudis, Let the Women Play!

Opinion

Aug 14, 2008 10:42 AM CDT

Hey Saudis, Let the Women Play!

Time for the IOC to enforce it's no discrimination rule

(Newser) - The most beautiful sight in the Olympics' opening ceremony came when Egypt’s 26 female competitors strode into the stadium, writes Mona Eltahawy, an Egyptian Muslim, in the Washington Post. Women also carried flags for Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, filling Eltahawy with pride. And then came Saudi Arabia—...

China Defends
'Olympic Karaoke'

OLYMPICS

Aug 14, 2008 9:50 AM CDT

China Defends 'Olympic Karaoke'

Bucktoothed girl not 'flawless' enough for Olympic image

(Newser) - Chinese officials are defending Friday’s lip-synched performance of its national anthem, reports the AP. "There were a number of candidates to sing that song and at the end of the day the artistic directors picked the best voice and the best performer," a spokesman said. The actual...