Olympic games

Over 9,000km on horseback to get to the Beijing Olympics… seven months too late

Sophie Team Observers — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 16:38:36 +0100

Photo posted on this forum.

A Chinese expat in Russia who dreamt of returning to China alone on horseback, Li Jing set off on 21 August 2007, giving himself a year to get to the 2008 Olympic Games. He didn't arrive until last Sunday however, with hopes of reaching the event long gone.

Li Jing crossed 9,000 kilometres, wearing out ten different horses in the process. His 19-month trip cost him 150,000 Yuan (€17,000) which he put together by emptying his savings account and borrowing money from friends. He didn't make it to the Beijing Olympics, but now he's got a new plan... London 2012, starting out in April. It's an even longer trek (17,000km), but a slightly less lonely one - this time he's travelling with two companions; an English and a Chinese friend.

An Olympic landmark goes up in flames… set off by a firework

Sophie Team Observers — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 11:03:47 +0100

Source.

One of Beijing's most photogenic buildings went up in flames on Monday night. According to Chinese news agency Xinhua, the blaze was started by a firework let off in the adjacent building - Chinese TV station CCTV.

Zhang, one of our Observers in China, tells us that, while internet sites in the country are reporting it, television channels are choosing to omit the catastrophe, which has destroyed one of the city's Olympic landmarks and killed one firefighter. The building which now lies smouldering was the 159-metre tall Mandarin Oriental, used for the games and set to open to the general public this summer. Xinhua quotes investigators who say that the fire was started by a firework set off in the next-door CCTV building as part of Lunar New Year celebrations.

Source.

Who pays for our "ambassadors"?

Emmanuel F24 — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 13:11:30 +0200

"Olympic athletes are our country's ambassadors", said Gianni Petrucci, president of the Italian Olympic Committee (Coni). "It would be normal they receive a special attention," he concluded. Petrucci was pointing to the taxes medal winners have to pay; a levy he wishes to lift.

Italian athletes are awarded €140.000 for a gold medal, €75.000 for a silver and 50.000€ for a bronze. Yet, after tax, they get only half the reward. The other half is taken by the State.

But what they get is still more than what French medal winners get.
In France, Olympic medals bonuses are tax exempted, but they 'only' earn €50.000 for gold, €20.000 for silver and €13.000 for bronze.

Although some countries are ready to splash over 400.000€ for a gold medal, as the war-stricken Georgia, France has opted for softer incentives, such as tax exemption on image rights. These amount to a present of 32 million euros, paid for by the Ministry of Sports.

But before their rise to fame draws in money from sponsors, who pays for our sports 'ambassadors'?

Olympics are no treat for Beijing’s illegal workers

Ségolène Team Observers — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:59:27 +0200

Photo: Kevin German

For most inhabitants of Beijing, the long-awaited Olympics are a unique opportunity for rejoicing and pride. Yet for the city's numerous illegal workers, the Games are tantamount to a threat of expulsion.

One of our Observers in the Chinese capital stumbled upon the arrest of a street hawker. Though he was himself handled roughly by the police, he managed to take a few pictures and post them on his blog.

With crowds of street hawkers a familiar site in the streets of Beijing, this man's arrest probably had something to do with the ongoing crackdown on illegal workers. About one quarter of the city's population does not hold the residence permits required to live in the Chinese capital. While authorities used to turn a blind-eye on these illegal workers, this is no longer the case during major events such as the Olympics.

Olympics: "Cheer Beijing Workers" drafted in to fill empty seats

Ségolène Team Observers — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 06:00:55 +0200

Photo Kevin German

US photoblogger Kevin German took pictures of a gymnasium in Beijing just before the start of a weightlifting contest. He noticed that most seats were empty... until the arrival of professional supporters.

"Liu Xiang: voted best actor of the year"

Ségolène F24 — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 10:27:04 +0200

He was supposed to be a national hero, the biggest star of the Olympics. Liu Xiang, gold-winning hurdler in Athens, dreamed of a second Olympic triumph in his own country. But the dream was shattered as the Chinese sprinter failed to take part in the race against his great rival, Cuba's Dayron Robles.

In the Bird's Nest, dismay was palpable. China is crying, as was Liu Xiang when he limped off the track. During the press conference, his coach Sun Haiping was also in tears. Suddenly, China was no longer untouchable.

Ranging from virulent criticism to disappointment and compassion, reactions from the Chinese people were many and varied. On Liu Xiang's website, the page dedicated to fans was, temporarily, inaccessible.

Usain Bolt, how far can he go?

Ségolène F24 — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 14:03:45 +0200

Usain Bolt crossed the finish line easily and turned to the crowd, savouring his victory. Formerly a 200-metre specialist, Jamaica's Bolt won the Olympic Games men's 100-metre gold medal, crushing everything in his way.

First, he broke his own record, set in May in New York, by 0.03 seconds. He also smashed his opponents Richard Thompson of Trinidad and Tobago, who won the silver with a time of 9.89 seconds, and American Walter Dix, who won the bronze at 9.91 seconds.

Jamaican Asafa Powell finished fifth in the final at 9.95 seconds.

World champion Tyson Gay of the United States did not even make the final, finishing fifth in his semi in 10.15 seconds.

Bolt's win gave Jamaica its first medal of the games. He is also running in the 200 metres and hopes to be the first man to win the 100-metre and 200-metre Olympic double since Carl Lewis in 1984.

Hiccups at the opening ceremony

Sophie Team Observers — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:38:44 +0200

Everyone agreed that the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games last Friday was a great success. Web users however, couldn't resist amusing themselves by pointing out minor faults... and white lies on the organisers' part.

Beijing Olympics: "a very exclusive party"

Sophie Team Observers — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:05:24 +0200

After a barrage of protest and significant political opposition, the Beijing Olympics finally made it to the starting line Wednesday night, with pre-opening-ceremony events taking place in three cities. One of the first events to be held was a women's football match between China and Sweden (China won by 2-1) at the "Teardrop Stadium" in Tianjin, a city 140 kilometres (85 miles) from Beijing. One of our Observers, who lives in an apartment opposite the stadium, described the atmosphere and and took these photos as the crowds filed out.

The games are on high security after a fatal bombing on Monday in a Muslim region of China that heightened fears that the event would be targeted by terrorists. About 100,000 armed soldiers have been deployed to the host cities. And while the organisers say that the athletes have "never been better protected," others complain that the military presence is just part of an increasingly Orwellian state.

The exit onto Binshui Xi Dao road. On the right you can see abound 50 security forces lined up on the floor and police cars parked along the street.

The Olympics opening ceremony for all to see online

Sophie Team Observers — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:52:53 +0200

The organisers of the Beijing Olympics are furious after a South Korean TV channel broadcast excerpts of a rehearsal of the Games' opening ceremony. The video then found its way onto the Internet and became a huge hit, worsening the situation.

Over a week before the Games begin on 8 August and we already know what the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony will look like. The channel that aired the images, SBS, insists that it got hold of them legally. "We went there, nobody arrested us. So we filmed," said one its reporters. The video has already been removed from YouTube, but can still be found on other video sharing sites.

UPDATE (4 August 08 - 11am): the video has now also been removed from LiveLeak. You can find the video here.