Inside Sports » 2008 Beijing Olympics

IOC INAUGURATES FIRST OLYMPIC YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CENTER IN ZAMBIA

ronnie — Tue, 18 May 2010 14:17:53 +0000

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has inaugurated a new sports complex in Lusaka, Zambia, in the presence of IOC President Jacques Rogge, the President of the Republic of Zambia, Rupiah Banda, and some 2,000 people, including 600 youngsters who used the state-of-the-art facilities for the first time.

The Olympic Youth Development Centre in Lusaka is the first of its kind. Its main purpose is to help enhance sports development in Zambia by offering sports competitions and training facilities, but it will also provide a wide range of educational programs, health services and community activities to athletes and the general public in the region.

The centre is set up as a multi-purpose complex, including outdoor and indoor facilities as well as a number of educational and cultural areas, such as classrooms, a library, an internet zone and offices.

Led by the IOC, the project was undertaken in partnership with the Zambian government, which donated the land to the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Zambia, and the six International Federations (IFs) of athletics, basketball, boxing, weightlifting, handball and hockey, which helped to develop the sports facilities and offered technical expertise as well as financial assistance. The IOC was in charge of the overall construction phase and will, together with the other stakeholders, continue to support the Zambian NOC, which will now look after the running and maintenance of the centre.

“I am very proud to officially open the first Youth Olympic Development Centre here in Lusaka,” said President Rogge in his inauguration speech. “This project would not have seen the light without the unfailing commitment of the government of Zambia, the International and National Sports Federations and the Zambian NOC. Like in sports, teamwork led to this success and I am confident that the centre will become not only the home of many elite regional and international athletes, but also the home of thousands of kids who will learn about sport and life. I look forward to seeing the place grow and inspire us to build similar centres in other regions of the world,” he concluded.

The Olympic Youth Development Centre in Lusaka is part of the Sports for Hope Programme initiated by the IOC to provide athletes, young people and communities in developing countries with better opportunities to practise sport and to be exposed to the Olympic values. Ensuring that every individual has access to sport is one of the fundamental principles of Olympism and the IOC works constantly towards making this vision a reality. The IOC is currently investigating possibilities to replicate the project on other continents.

PHELPS BECOMES 1ST YOUTH OLYMPIC GAMES AMBASSADOR

ronnie — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 23:00:39 +0000

PHELPS BECOMES 1ST YOUTH OLYMPIC GAMES AMBASSADOR

…

Wednesday, February 24, 2010 6:58:42

From:	ronnie nathanielsz … View Contact
To:	rachael_nathanielsz01@yahoo.com
Cc:	Jr. Calalang

©IOC/John Huet

Olympic swimming legend Michael Phelps today became the first official Ambassador of the Youth Olympic Games (YOG).

The 16-time Olympic medallist, who is visiting Vancouver to catch some of the Olympic Winter Games action, will support the Youth Olympic Games by encouraging the involvement of young people around the world.

Michael Phelps said “The Youth Olympic Games is an excellent initiative, not only for the athletes competing, but also those who are inspired to get into sport and be more active. I am delighted that I have been given the opportunity to become the first official Ambassador of the Youth Olympic Games, and can’t wait to get working with the YOG team to promote the first event this summer!”

IOC President Jacques Rogge said “We are delighted that Michael is supporting our efforts to launch the Youth Olympic Games. Preparations for the inaugural edition in Singapore are on track, and the IOC is looking forward to welcoming 3,600 athletes to Singapore this summer!”

The first-ever Youth Olympic Games will be held this summer in Singapore. The mission of the YOG is to inspire young people around the world to participate in sport and adopt and live by the Olympic values.

IOC reallocates Marion Jones’ medals

ronnie — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:08:00 +0000

International Olympic Committee

IOC reallocates Marion Jones’ medals

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today reallocated the medals won by Marion Jones at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

The IOC disqualified Jones on 12 December 2007 from the five Olympic Games events in which she participated at the Sydney Games, and one event she competed in at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens after she admitted to using a prohibited substance prior to, during and after the 2000 Games.

The medals are allocated as follows:

100m, where Jones placed 1st:
Gold: Not awarded
Silver: Ekatirini Thanou (Greece)
Silver: Tanya Lawrence (Jamaica)
Bronze: Merlene Ottey (Jamaica)

200m, where Jones placed 1st:
Gold: Pauline Davis-Thompson (Bahamas)
Silver: Susanthika Jayasinghe (Sri Lanka)
Bronze: Beverly McDonald (Jamaica)

Long Jump, where Jones placed 3rd:
Bronze: Tatyana Kotova (Russia)

The reallocation of the medals for the 4 x 400m relay and 4 x 100m relay, where Jonesâ€™ teams placed first and third respectively, is still pending the outcome of an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

JAMAICAN SPRINTER BLAKE HAS NO DRUG-TEST WORRIES

ronnie — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 01:54:05 +0000

Vikki Orvice of the British newspaper THE SUN reports that Beijing Olympics sprint sensation Usain Bolt insists his training partner Yohan Blake is not worried about his future – despite failing a drugs test. Here’s the story courtesy of The Sun. (ED)

Blake, 19, was one of five Jamaicans who tested positive for a banned drug last week.

But Olympic 100m champion and world-record holder Bolt insisted: “I’ve spoken to Yohan and he’s not worried about it.

“Until the B-sample comes back I can’t say anything more.”

Blake, who is ranked fifth fastest in the world this season, could now be stripped of his place in the Jamaican team for next month’s World Championships in Berlin.

He refused to comment after Saturday’s 4x100m relay victory alongside Bolt in the London Grand Prix at Crystal Palace.

USAIN BOLTS IN FRONT

ronnie — Tue, 19 May 2009 04:20:44 +0000

BOLT-ING OUT IN FRONT

Beijing Olympics triple gold medalist Usain Bolt of Jamaica has spreadeagled the rest of the field in a 150meter race on the streets of Manchester..

The world record holder in the 100 and 200 meters set a world’s best clocking of 14.35 seconds over the 150 meter distance with Britian’s Marlon Devonish closest at the finish line.

There were fears earlier that Bolt may have been forced to pull-out of the race after he had a car accident in which his car crashed into a ditch last April 29 forcing himto have stitches in his left foot.

Although Bolt returned to full training last week, he was still too good for the opposition as evidenced by the fact that his time for the first 100 meters was a fantastic 9.9 seconds. The Jamaican sensation went on to smash the previous best of 14.8sec for the 150m set by Italian Pietro Mennea in 1983 — when Bolt was not even born.

Bolt told Vikki Orvice of The Sun: “I didn’t expect to run that fast. It’s my first major run of the season and I was happy just to come out and run. I don’t even think I’m in the best of shape and I still have a lot of work to do ”

Devonish, who was a member of Britain’s 4x100m gold relay squad in Athens, was second in 15.07sec with American Ivory Williams third in 15.08sec.

BOLT FIT TO RUN IN MANCHESTER

ronnie — Wed, 13 May 2009 06:52:41 +0000

Olympic sprint sensation Usain Bolt of Jamaica is ready to compete in a 150 meter street race in Manchester despite a car accident in Jamaica last April 29 in which thorns had to be removed from his left foot.

BBC Sport reported that Bolt who won gold medals at the Beijing Olympics last August in the 100 and 200 meters as well as the 4×100 meters relay had returned to light training last Friday.

Bolt’s coach Glen Mills said “he looks okay and will be fine for Manchester ” in which he will race against top British sprinters Marlon Devonish and Simeon Williamson in the city center.

A fan of the leading English Premier League football team Manchester United indicated he was looking forward to meeting the team at their training ground.

BBC Sport reported that Bolt had promised to give ManU superstar Cristiano Ronaldo some sprinting tips in return for a signed jersey.

Bolt is also to be introduced to the fans during half-time of the Manchester United game against Arsenal at Old Trafford on Saturday. He will also attend the Manchester United Players Awards on Sunday where Bolt will present the fans “Player of the Year” prize.

MMA ATTRACTS BEIJING GOLD MEDALIST

ronnie — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 14:31:41 +0000

Nikkan Sports in Japan reports that Beijing Olympic judo gold medalist Satoshi Ishii has been attracted by Mixed Martial Arts which is huge in Japan and is giving up judo to begin a career in MMA.

Ishii is not the first Olympic judo gold medalist to switch to the lucrative MMA. The man who won the Beijing gold medal in the men’s over 100 kilogram category is the third Japanese to switch to Mixed Martial Arts.

After the 1992 Barcelona Olympics 78 kilogram judo champion Hidehiko Yoshida turned pro and joined the MMA competitions while following the 2000 Sydney Olympics Makoto Takimoto also switched to the MMA.

The report said Ishii had informed Japanese judo officials about his decision last Friday.

MMA is so popular in Japan that events sometimes attract as many as 60,000