2008 Beijing Olympics

[redbenn]

A Collection of Olympic Torches - Interactive Graphic - NYTimes.com

[bkochmc]

American cyclists arrive in black masks - Yahoo! News

American cyclists arrive in black masks

BEIJING (Reuters) - Unidentified members of the U.S. cycling squad arrived at Beijing airport wearing black respiratory masks, a U.S. Olympic committee spokesman said on Tuesday.


One woman wearing a mask which covered the nose and mouth was in what appeared to be an American team T-shirt, photographs showed. A male wore a white T-shirt with BEIJING in black letters across the chest.

"I suspect it was their choice, you would have to talk to them as to what prompted them to do this. I will say this, I am not a scientist, but in my view that was unnecessary," said Darryl Seibel, chief communications officer of the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Continued...

[Oh8ch]

I will say this, I am not a scientist, but in my view that was unnecessary

During the Tour de France they were talking about how cyclists actually rode faster after a mild rain because it increased the amount of oxygen in the air.
If there is any group of athletes who will be sensitive to poor air it is the folks riding 120 or 239 klicks.

These folks are machines that run on oxygen. I would imagine distance runners are in a similar category - although all athletes are affected to some degree (except golfers and NASCAR drivers of course).

You wouldn't run the 100 meters in the mud because the problem would be too obvious. Yet we are asking the finest athletes in the world to display their skills in an environment where they may not be able to breathe properly.

If somebody wants to wear a black mask to call attention to that issue I am fine with that.

[bkochmc]

IOC strips gold from 2000 US relay team - Yahoo! News

IOC strips gold from 2000 US relay team

By STEPHEN WILSON, AP Sports Writer
Sat Aug 2, 9:43 AM ET

BEIJING - The International Olympic Committee stripped gold medals Saturday from the U.S. men's 1,600-meter relay team that competed at the 2000 Olympics in the aftermath of Antonio Pettigrew's admission that he was doping at the time.


The IOC executive board disqualified the entire team, the fourth gold and sixth overall medal stripped from that U.S. track contingent in the past eight months for doping.

Three gold and two bronze were previously removed after Marion Jones confessed to using performance-enhancing drugs.

Saturday's decision was almost a formality after Pettigrew gave up his gold medal in June. During a trial involving former track coach Trevor Graham, he admitted in May that he used EPO and human growth hormone from 1997 to 2003.

Five of Pettigrew's teammates also lose their medals: Michael Johnson and twins Alvin and Calvin Harrison ran in the final; Jerome Young and Angelo Taylor ran in the preliminaries.


It was Johnson's fifth gold medal of his stellar career. He has already said he was giving it back because he felt "cheated, betrayed and let down" by Pettigrew's testimony. Johnson still holds world records in the 200 and 400 meters.


Three of the four runners from the relay final have been tainted by drugs.

Alvin Harrison accepted a four-year ban in 2004 after admitting he used performance-enhancers. Calvin Harrison tested positive for a banned stimulant in 2003 and was suspended for two years. Young was banned for life for doping violations.

Continued...

Hopefully future athletes learn from these past mistakes but I don't hold any hope for that. It's amazing how often track athletes get caught (worldwide, not just in the US) because they know how often they are tested for doping and how severe the consequences are.

[Oh8ch]

Hopefully future athletes learn from these past mistakes but I don't hold any hope for that. It's amazing how often track athletes get caught (worldwide, not just in the US) because they know how often they are tested for doping and how severe the consequences are.

But how bad ARE the consequences, really?

As I understand this incident without the admission there is no penalty. Testing was common long before 2000. We have no idea how many athletes win with drugs and are never identified. If you can run clean and miss the games or run juiced and garner international acclaim and more than a little bit of cash perhaps the risk/reward equation looks pretty favorable.

So long as the advantage gained is sufficient, those who cheat will out perform those who do not (cheaters really do prosper) and will rise to the top. So maybe some folks are getting the message - but the result is they aren't in Beijing.

[bkochmc]

Originally Posted by Oh8ch

But how bad ARE the consequences, really?

Depending on what your definition of bad is... if you are competing in a sport that you love and use a banned substance to gain a competitive advantage a 2-year or lifetime ban could be personally devastating. That is the question anyone who uses a banned substance has to tackle: is it worth the risk? Unfortunately there are those that say it is worth that risk.

As I understand this incident without the admission there is no penalty. Testing was common long before 2000. We have no idea how many athletes win with drugs and are never identified. If you can run clean and miss the games or run juiced and garner international acclaim and more than a little bit of cash perhaps the risk/reward equation looks pretty favorable.

This specific incident was seemingly based on admission alone but I can't help but wonder what brought this out. Usually an admission comes about as a reaction to testing threats or after a positive test has been given but in this case the article does not mention either of those situations.

Also, almost every governing body (including USATF) state that if you are caught doping then any prize money and/or awards must be returned upon a positive test/admission. There have also been instances where corporate sponsors have sued to get their money back from the athlete.

So long as the advantage gained is sufficient, those who cheat will out perform those who do not (cheaters really do prosper) and will rise to the top. So maybe some folks are getting the message - but the result is they aren't in Beijing.

Not necessarily... Do you think Lance Armstrong was doping during any of his 7 Tour de France wins? Do you think Michael Johnson was doping in when he set his world records? (Not necessarily asking you Oh8ch... more of a rhetorical question) I'd take a physical specimen like those who have tested negative time and time again over anyone who may get a temporary boost by doping. I guess I'm forever the optimist that we'll see less and less doping in Olympic sports and will give the benefit of the doubt to the athlete unless they test positive/admit to doping... but I'm also a realist that this is an issue that will never go away.

[bkochmc]

A reporter's picks on who will win every medal: Medal Picks - Brian Cazeneuve - SI.com

[Oh8ch]

Do you think Lance Armstrong was doping during any of his 7 Tour de France wins?

[BuckeyeMike80]

I'm reading some of the blogs from the reporters in Beijing and it's interesting that the Washington Post decided to skip any of the possible restrictions placed on them by the ChiComs and Bought their own T-1

[bkochmc]

Former 'Lost Boy' to lead U.S. Olympians in Beijing - CNN.com

Former 'Lost Boy' to lead U.S. Olympians in Beijing

• U.S. team picks runner Lopez Lomong to carry flag at Olympics opening ceremony
• Lomong fled home in Sudan at age 6, became separated from his family
• As one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan," he grew up in U.S., became U.S. citizen
• China criticized for not doing enough to end violence in Sudan

Lopez Lomong competes during Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon, last month.

BEIJING, China (CNN) -- A U.S. athlete who overcame the chaos of war in Sudan to become a middle-distance runner in the United States will carry the American flag during Friday's opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Games.

Lopez Lomong, a 23-year-old competitor in the 1,500-meter race, will lead the U.S. Olympic team as the flagbearer.

Teammates chose him Wednesday, the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) said in a statement.

Lomong is a member of Team Darfur, a group of athletes committed to raising awareness about chronic violence in the Darfur region of western Sudan.

He was among roughly 3,800 refugees, dubbed the Lost Boys of Sudan by reporters and aid workers, who were resettled in cities around the United States.

Continued...

[bkochmc]

Meet Team USA - Brian Cazeneuve - SI.com

Meet Team USA: Get to know the nearly 600 Olympians in Beijing

Story Highlights

• America's new set of Olympians in Beijing are from 47 of the 50 U.S. states
• There are soldiers, a cancer patient and the daughter of a Super Bowl champion
• See who's the shortest, tallest and who's a descendant of a former U.S. president

Pole vaulter Jenn Stuczynski and 400-meter specialist LaShawn Merritt
Michael O'Neill/SI

The U.S. has sent nearly 600 athletes to Beijing for the Olympic Games. But who are they? America's new set of Olympians are from 47 of the 50 states -- as well as athletes who were born in 28 other countries -- and includes identical twins, teenagers, a cancer patient and the daughter of a Super Bowl champion. Who's from the smallest hometown? Which team is the brainest? Which college is represented by the most Olympians? Get to know a little more about Team USA.

Continued...

BRAINIEST TEAM
Fencing. Jason Rogers was a finalest for a Rhodes Scholarship. Emily Cross won the world junior title in foil in '05 and then passed up senior worlds to finish her sophomore year at Harvard. Sada Jacobson has a history degree from Yale. Tim Morehouse is a Brandeis grad and former teacher. It's no wonder the siblings on the team, who work in finance in New York City, are named Keeth and Erinn Smart.

[jlb1705]

Citizen lame: Olympic carpetbagging amounts to athletic treason - CBSSports.com Live Scores, Stats, Schedules

Citizen lame: Olympic carpetbagging amounts to athletic treason

Aug. 7, 2008
By Gregg Doyel
CBSSports.com National Columnist

He'll be wearing the red, white and blue of the United States in Beijing, and any Olympic medal he wins in the 1,500 meters or 5,000 meters will go toward the U.S. medal count, but he doesn't represent me. I don't want his stinking medals. Bernard Lagat is a terrific runner and he might even be a terrific human being, but he's from Kenya, which means he's Kenyan. Not American.

Jingoistic? Me? Hardly. Patriotic? Damn right. And maybe a little bit old-fashioned. Not so long ago, Americans represented America, and Kenyans represented Kenya, and Russians represented Russia, and so on and so forth. And it was beautiful. The Olympics were beautiful.

Graphic of the Day: Foreign-born athletes playing for the U.S. Olympic team - Olympics - CBSSports.com

Graphic of the Day: Foreign-born athletes playing for the U.S. Olympic team

Aug. 7, 2008
By Roland Liwag
CBSSports.com Staff Writer

For every American-born athlete like Chris Kaman and Becky Hammon, who are playing for Germany and Russia, there are Olympians like Steffen Peters and Nastia Liukin competing for the Stars and Stripes.

Peters (equestrian) was born in Germany and became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1992. Liukin (gymnastics) was born in Moscow to two former Soviet champion gymnasts.

Khatuna Lorig (archery) was originally from the Republic of Georgia (as in former Soviet state Georgia, not Peach State Georgia) and gained her U.S. citizenship last year.

Freddy Adu (men's soccer) was born in Tema, Ghana and emigrated to Potomac, Md., in 1997 after his parents won an immigration lottery.

Howard Bach (badminton) was born in Vietnam in 1979 and moved to the U.S. at age 3.

Giuseppe Lanzone (rowing) grew up in the "five block by 10 block" town of La Punta in Peru. His family moved to the U.S. in 1997 and he became a citizen in 2006.

So are these athletes traitors? Hardly.

To me, these aren't the stories of traitors, but of Americans with an overseas heritage.

And yes, these athletes do represent me.

I agree with Doyel on this for the most part, but he is an idiot and makes his point with the subtlety of Gallagher smashing a watermelon. "Traitor" is not the right word, but "carpetbagger" and "sellout" are pretty good descriptions for people like Chris Kaman and Becky Hammon. I think there is room in the Olympics for immigrants to play for their new country, but the way some are exploiting this is unscrupulous and it borders on free agency. I believe the Olympics are about representing your country, not representing yourself by playing for the highest bidding country or the one with a team where it is easier to make the roster.

For those who don't know, Becky Hammon is a multiple-time WNBA All-Star, and was not invited to be a part of Team USA. So instead of sucking it up and rooting for her fellow Americans, she signed with a pro team in Moscow so she would be eligible to play in the Olympics for Russia. She is going to walk out under their flag, wear their colors, and salute during their national anthem. It's disgusting.

As the article points out, Chris Kaman is playing basketball for Germany. He is not German, he is from M*ch*g*n. His parents are from the US. All of his grandparents are from the US. Apparently he has some German great-grandparents. It's a joke.

As Doyel points out, the US team has taken on its share of carpetbaggers. The example he starts off his article with is a distance runner who won medals in 2000 and 2004 representing Kenya. Now he runs for the US.

Like I said though, I think there needs to be room for immigrant athletes to compete for their new country. Freddy Adu for example has been in the US for over ten years now. I'm fine with that. Citizenship is of course required, it is handed out way too easily. Kaman gained German citizenship last month. Hammon gained Russian citizenship earlier this year. How convenient! I don't know what the solution is, but I don't think the way it is now is the right way to do it. Perhaps the answer is some kind of residency requirement or something. Sure, that's a pain in the ass and a real bureaucratic nightmare, but the Olympics (not unlike the NCAA) already tries to enforce a huge number of rules for much less significant things than this.

[bkochmc]

I agree that Doyel is a hack and an idiot an the internet's version of a shock jock but I would hardly call many of those athletes "carpetbaggers" or "sellouts". Sure that can be said for certain people like Kaman and Hammon but many of the individuals fall under the umbrella of naturalized citizenship including Lagat. He's been in the US since '96 and was naturalized in 2004. Kenya does not recognize dual citizenship so once he gained US citizenship he was banned from competing for Kenya. Who else is he suppose to compete for? Maybe the country where he currently resides and has held citizenship for 4 years.

You did hit the nail on the head when you said there is no easy solution since every country has different citizenship laws. Heck, we don't have to look any further than last year's Ohio State basketball team... Kosta Kofous played for the Greek national team even though he was born, raised, and living here in the US but since his parents were born in Greece he qualifies for citizenship even though he has never lived there. It wouldn't surprise me to see him in the 2012 Olympics playing for Greece if he is not on the US squad. This issue will come up more every Olympics as the world becomes smaller.

[Muck]

The Olympics gave up any claim to credibility years ago. Who cares. Let Micheal Jordan play for Angola if he wants.

[jlb1705]

Is anybody else watching the Opening Ceremonies? These things are usually a bunch of stupid Eurotrash, but what the Chinese are doing is pretty awesome from a technical standpoint and fairly entertaining.