News Inventory

Usain Bolt may have just broken the human speed limit. Last week, he took two gold medals in the Olympic 100m, shattering his own world record with a time of 9.69 secs., and the 200m with a time of 19.3 secs., obliterating by two-hundredths of a second the long-standing world record Michael Johnson set at the Atlanta Games in 1996. Bolt is an exciting showman and, clearly, a gifted runner, but is he an inimitable oddity, or proof that athletes are simply getting ... Read More

I know how to spend it. The money spent on the Games is colossal. Better to spend it on something useful, not the antics of athletes (Alice Miles) Were you up for Rebecca? Did you catch that split-second moment when her hand touched the edge of the pool first? Or did you perhaps read about her Jimmy Choos yesterday; the promise from her mum of a new pair of Christian Louboutin heels if she won? I am not sure whether the dull details of ... Read More

A Russian and a Georgian shared a podium today, putting aside the conflict that has erupted between the two countries and providing a lift to a Georgian team that had contemplated withdrawing from the Games. Nino Salukvadze took bronze for Georgia in the women's 10m air pistol, with Russia's Natalia Paderina collecting silver. After the medal ceremony the two posed together for photographers, their arms on each others' shoulders, and Paderina gave Salukvadze a kiss on the cheek. "This medal is good for Georgia, ... Read More

Unless you’ve been living under an especially large slab of rock recently, you’ll probably have noticed that this big sports day thing is coming up. The Olympics, they call it. In celebration of this wondrous event, we’ve collected together the sexiest female athletes on the planet. Enjoy! 10. Amanda Beard Despite the unappealingly masculine name, Ms Beard is in fact an American Olympic swimmer and model. She’s not shy, either: in her time she’s appeared in Sports Illustrated, Playboy and good ol’ FHM. Which ... Read More

The Beijing Olympics opened on Aug. 8th with a pyrotechnic display of Chinese organization, technology, and talent in the Bird's Nest national stadium. The four-hour show directed by Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou featured more than 15,000 performers including martial arts experts, singers, and musicians performing before an audience of 100,000. Dancers performed skits heralding China's 5,000 years of history and invention while British soprano Sarah Brightman joined Chinese singer Liu Huan in singing the Olympic theme song. In attendance were more than ... Read More