Olympics News

ATHENS (Reuters) - Four cities vying to host the 2016 summer Olympics throw themselves into a final year of hectic campaigning on Thursday to convince the IOC their bid has what it takes to deliver a successful Games.

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese female gymnasts who competed at this year's Beijing Olympics were not underage, the sport's governing body said on Wednesday after investigating claims the Games hosts fielded ineligible athletes.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - A coalition of international women ski jumpers, suing for the right to compete in the 2010 Olympics, boosted their case on Wednesday by adding an another athlete from host country Canada.

NEW YORK - World record-holder Paula Radcliffe will defend her title at the New York City Marathon. She pronounced herself healthy Wednesday, coming off a 23rd-place finish at the Beijing Olympics after injuries hampered her preparation.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AFP) - Gymnastics officials on Wednesday cleared Chinese gymnasts of underage claims for the Beijing Olympics, but said there were doubts regarding those who competed in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

BEIJING (AFP) - China knew about the contamination of milk products months ago but covered the scandal up to prevent it tarnishing the Beijing Olympics, according to journalists, rights groups and media critics.

GENEVA - IOC president Jacques Rogge says the global financial crisis should not hurt preparations for upcoming Olympics.

ATHENS (Reuters) - A Greek sprinter who failed a dope test days before the Beijing Olympics told a prosecutor on Tuesday he was not aware he was being given performance-enhancing drugs.

BEIJING - China kicked off its National Day celebrations Monday by highlighting its hosting of the Beijing Olympics and the country's first spacewalk, two hard-won successes in a tumultuous year marked by natural disasters, ethnic unrest and another food safety scandal.

SYDNEY, Australia - The chairman of the British Olympic Association said Monday any increase in the security budget for the 2012 London Games is a "price you absolutely have to pay" to make the Olympics secure.

LONDON (AFP) - A protestor who tried to extinguish the Olympic flame as it passed through London en route for Beijing walked free Monday, after a judge found in his favour.

GEUMSAN, South Korea (AFP) - Hard training and dedication brought South Korean athletes a record 13 gold medals in this summer's Beijing Olympics, but some may have had a secret weapon -- Korean ginseng.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Michael Phelps returned to the University of Michigan, his home for four years before the Beijing Games.

VARESE, Italy (AFP) - Welsh cycling star Nicole Cooke overcame years of frustration by adding a maiden world road race title to her Beijing road race gold here at the world championships on Saturday.

BEIJING - A Chinese activist who applied to protest in special zones set up for demonstrations during the Beijing Olympics has become the latest applicant to be detained by police, a rights group said Friday.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) - Organizers of the 2010 Winter Olympics denied on Thursday they were trying to lay claim to Canada's national anthem, "O Canada", by trademarking part of it for the Games' official slogan.

BALTIMORE - Returning to the Baltimore pool where he honed his swimming skills, Michael Phelps accepted a $250,000 donation Thursday from Kellogg's for his charitable foundation.

PARIS (AFP) - France, which failed to win the right to host the 2012 summer Olympics in Paris, launched a bid to host the 2018 winter Olympics on Wednesday with the hope of an eventual renewed summer bid.

LONDON - Olympic organizers issued detailed design rules for the 2012 London games Wednesday, including a mandate that at least some toilets in the Olympic park do not face the holy Islamic city of Mecca.

OSLO (AFP) - The Nobel Peace Prize could go to a Chinese dissident this year as a way of keeping human rights pressure on Beijing as it basks in the glow of a successful Olympics, an expert said Wednesday.

BEIJING (AFP) - Olympic semi-finalist Li Na crashed out of the China Open on Tuesday, joined as a first-round loser by Peng Shuai on a disastrous day for the host nation.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland - The United States has been disqualified from its fourth-place finish in the Olympic team dressage event for a positive drug test.