While Usain Bolt is promoting the 2016 Olympics with a 150m race on the beach in Rio, Powell is spend Easter weekend running in the Stawell Gift, a century-old 120m race on grass where entrants are handicapped by their speed.
Pro wrestler Kurt Angle is on the short list of men I wouldn’t want to upset, and now the ’96 Olympic gold medalist (yes, he’s legit) is focusing all his efforts on returning his beloved sport to the Games, after it was recommended for removal by the IOC during a vote last month.
Olympic and Paralympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius, who was charged with the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp last month, has been granted permission to travel outside of South Africa, and no longer needs to report to his probation officer.
Either every potential 2020 Olympic host city has done a fantastic job of wooing IOC with their plans, or the evaluation commission is keeping their true feelings under their hats while they prepare reports for the upcoming vote in Buenos Aires.
The Rio Stadium that will host track and field event for the 2016 Olympics, the Engenhao, has been forced closed by authorities, who say structural problems with the roof make it unsafe for public events.
Olympic officials in Istanbul are optimistic their shortcomings in transportion infrastructure, considered the weakest line in their Olympics bid resume, will be resolved if the city is awarded the opportunity to host the 2020 Games.
While wrestling fans are new to wondering how and why their sport was unceremoniously ousted from the Olympics, the feeling is old hat for baseball and softball aficionados, who saw their sports voted out in a similar fashion back in 2005.
With next year’s New York Super Bowl landing on February 2, followed quickly by the 2014 Sochi Olympics from February 7 to 23, the Oscars have officially pushed back next year’s ceremony until March 2, to avoid any conflict with the events.
After watching wrestling get ousted from the Olympics, the International Boxing Association is doing whatever it can to innovate its sport, including some substantial rule changes that happened over the weekend.
Istanbul’s bid committee got a bit ahead of itself Monday, announcing its official motto of the 2020 Games - “Bridge Together” - six months before the IOC even votes on who will host the event.
Along with L.A., San Francisco, Dallas, Tulsa, and maybe Boston, officials in Seattle have answered the USOC’s call and, at the request of Mayor Mike McGinn, the Seattle Sports Commission plans to talk with the USOC about the city’s potential as an Olympic host for the 2024 Games.
Turkey’s lone female gold medalist from the London Games, 1500m champ Asli Cakir Alptekin, is one of eight athletes who the World Anti-doping agency says has tested positive for banned, albeit yet unnamed, substances.
IOC vice President Craig Reedie said he was “greatly impressed” by Madrid after he and his team spent four days in the Spanish capital evaluating the city’s potential as host of the 2020 Olympic Games, and added that he think this bid is superior to the two that failed for 2012 and 2016.
