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Curling Nationals sweep into Philly The 2012 USA Curling National Championships kick off Saturday afternoon at IceWorks Skating Complex. Twenty-one of the top men's and women's curling teams in the U.S. will take the ice beginning Saturday morning with pre-competition practice. The opening ceremonies are slated for 2:30 p.m. Saturday. This is the first time that the Nationals have been hosted in the Philadelphia area and first time since 2007 that the event is being hosted on the east coast. The 10 women's and 11 men's teams will compete in a round robin with the top four teams advancing to...

An organization that investigates and fights government corruption announced this week that it obtained records detailing costs associated with a trip made by President and Mrs. Obama and key members of the administration to Copenhagen, Denmark, for the expressed purpose of securing the 2016 Olympics for the city of Chicago. Expenses for the two-week trip appear to have far exceeded $467,175, in light of the fact that costs associated with the aircrafts ? two Boeing 747s and several Air Force cargo planes – have not been made available. According to the records obtained from the Obama Department of Defense (DOD),...

Complete title: Judicial Watch Obtains Documents Revealing Cost of Barack and Michelle Obama’s Failed Bid to Bring 2016 Olympics to Chicago Two-Week Trip to Copenhagen Cost Taxpayers in Excess of $467,175 (Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch, the organization that investigates and fights government corruption, announced today that it has obtained records detailing costs associated with a trip made by President and Mrs. Obama and key members of the administration to Copenhagen, Denmark, for the expressed purpose of securing the 2016 Olympics for the city of Chicago. Expenses for the two-week trip appear to have far exceeded $467,175, in light of...

http://www.ironmind.com/ironmind/opencms/Articles/2011/Nov/Vasily_Alexeev_1942-2011.html

Nov 25 (Reuters) - Former Soviet weightlifter Vasily Alekseyev, who won two Olympic and eight world super heavyweight titles and set 80 world records during his illustrious career, died on Friday following a long illness.

Roger Christian, one-half of the Warroad, Minn., based brothers who helped lead the U.S. hockey team to the 1960 gold medal, died Wednesday at the age of 75. He and Billy Christian were linemates on the first USA hockey team to win gold medals. The key game was the USA's first victory ever against the Soviet Union, when Roger assisted on two goals scored by Billy in a 3-2 decision. The brothers also were partners in forming Christian Brothers, a Warroad-based company that made hockey sticks. Roger, who played on five U.S. National teams, is a member of the U.S....

Remember the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah? Of course, that was what helped put Mitt Romney on the map nationally and internationally. Financially, the Salt Lake Organizing Committee (SLOC) was deep in the hole. Then the bribery scandal surrounding the bid hit the news in a big way. The foundering committee turned to Mitt Romney, a guy with a great track record in turning around failing businesses. Romney came in and made everything better than even the most optimistic had hoped. The games went well (except for the ice skating scandal) and made money. Romney, who had previously failed in...

Schoolchildren in London are eligible for 125,000 free tickets for the 2012 Olympics next Summer, but any event that involves a firearm will be excluded from the massive giveaway. Why, you ask, would anyone choose to hide storied events and world class competitors from children’s eyes? Because City Hall and Olympic Organizers are afraid of an anti-gun backlash. That’s right — the powers that be in London won’t subject kids to such bloodsports as Skeet and Trap shooting. The London Evening Standard reported yesterday on the “Ticketshare” decision, and the window it has given into current British views on guns...

A TEENAGE girl accused of wrecking a police car in the riots is a London Olympics ambassador. Chelsea Ives, 18, was arrested after her parents allegedly saw her on TV during the mayhem in Enfield and called police. Mum Adrienne, 43, said: "I have no regrets. I love my daughter but she was brought up to know right from wrong." Chelsea is said to have hurled a rock through a shop window while rioting - then yelled excitedly to a friend: "This is the best day ever." She was behind bars last night after parents Adrienne and Roger turned her...

HEBRON — The Redneck Olympics are facing a legal challenge from the United States Olympic Committee, according to organizer Harold Brooks. Brooks said he received a phone call Monday from a legal office of the USOC, telling him he needs to change the name of his event in the future or face a lawsuit. He was told the word “Olympics” is the property of the Olympic Committee. Brooks said it's a case of large group bullying a small businessman. “I said, 'I'm not basing it on your Olympics, I'm basing it on the Olympics in Greece.'” Brooks said. “I understand...

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Olympic silver medalist Jeret "Speedy" Peterson was found dead in a remote canyon in Utah in what police are calling a suicide. One of the world's most risk-taking and innovative freestyle skiers, the creator of the one-of-a-kind "Hurricane" called 911 before shooting himself, police said. The 29-year-old had been cited for drunken driving Friday in Hailey, Idaho and had pleaded not guilty. Officers found Peterson late Monday night between Salt Lake City and Park City in Lambs Canyon. Police said a suicide note was found near Peterson's car; they declined to reveal what it said....

A group of Utah business people who sat on the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic committee have formed a “truth squad” aimed at criticizing former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney for trumpeting his role in rescuing the troubled games, the Herald has learned. Utah Democratic Party Chairman Wayne Holland said he’s been meeting with former Olympic officials who plan to roll out an anti-Romney campaign in the coming weeks.“He just happened to come in at the right time,” Holland said. “Whoever came in at that time could have been the hero. His role has been way overblown.”Holland said the group came...

"The Koreans put in a determined bid, stressing their virtues of perseverance and patience, and employed their country's President Lee Mying-bak and Olympic women's figure skating champion Kim Yuna to persuade and charm the IOC."

A little over a year ago, I wrote about Matt Stutzman, a young man in his late twenties, born with no arms. Matt never let his handicap slow him down, and could do most things as good or better than a person with arms. Matt does everything with his feet, and I mean everything — eat, drive a car, ride a motorcycle. snip Matt Stutzman has qualified for the National U.S. Olympic team in archery! Not the Special Olympics. The Olympic Team.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – Officials with knowledge of the decision say NBC has retained the U.S. Olympic television rights in a four-games deal through 2020 worth more than $4 billion. The two officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the decision has not yet been officially announced by the International Olympic Committee. NBC won a three-way bidding contest against ESPN and Fox. It will have exclusive rights to the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, as well as the 2018 Winter Games and 2020 Olympics, whose sites have...

The Iranian women's soccer team was in tears after being forced to forfeit a 2012 London Olympics qualifying match this past weekend because it showed up to play in hajibs. FIFA banned the Islamic head scarf in 2007, saying that it could cause choking injuries -- the same reason it gave for recently banning snoods (neck warmers). FIFA also has strict rules against any religious statements in team uniforms.

NBC Sports Group Chairman Dick Ebersol resigned Thursday, ending a multidecade run at NBC Sports amid cultural clashes with the company's new management. View Full Image Associated Press Dick Ebersol Mr. Ebersol and NBCUniversal's new chief executive, Steve Burke, have disagreed over several management matters, including Mr. Ebersol's contract, a person familiar with the matter said.

I grew up with an Olympic Champion as a Father. As a kid I didn’t realize how rare Olympic Gold was and how few people actually achieve becoming the absolute best in their field. I know what winning looks like and I realize it takes hard work, dedication and motivation to achieve success. But until the last few years I never took the time to appreciate how important my Father’s lessons are to my life. Today, I realize that not only are the lessons relevant to my goals in life but my journey to personal success has been made easier...

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Kenyan Olympic marathon champion Sammy Wanjiru committed suicide by jumping from a balcony shortly after a domestic dispute involving his wife and another woman, police said Monday. He was 24. Wanjiru died late Sunday after jumping from a balcony at his home in the town of Nyahururu, in the Rift Valley, said John Mbijiwe, the police chief in Kenya's Central Province. "The fact of the matter is that Wanjiru committed suicide," said national police spokesman Eric Kiraithe.

Pressure from homosexual activist groups has compelled the head of the 2012 U.S. Olympic gymnastics team to quit. Two-time gymnastics gold medal winner Peter Vidmar has resigned upon receiving harsh criticism from homosexual and lesbian athletes and activists, who complained that he had donated $2,000 to promote California's Proposition 8, which defines marriage as between one man and one woman. "I wish that Peter Vidmar had not resigned," laments Peter LaBarbera of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality (AFTAH). "I wish that he'd stood up for his right to defend marriage, and I wish that he'd forced them to fire him...

Iran objects to the logo for the 2012 London Olympics, contending it is racist because it resembles the word "Zion" and warning of a possible boycott of the games. The secretary general of Iran's National Olympic Committee said Iran sent a letter to International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge. The letter claims the 2012 logo spells out "Zion," a biblical term widely recognized to refer to the city of Jerusalem. In comments carried by the official IRNA news agency Monday, secretary general Bahram Afsharzadeh said the letter urges other Muslim states to oppose the "racist logo."

Iran has threatened to boycott the London Olympics unless the organisers replace the official logo, which Tehran claims spells out the word "Zion".

Six days after Putin's puppet President Medvedev made his first-ever visit to and repledged Russia's support for a new jihadi cancer to be implanted in Israel, Abbas' fellow koranimals from Chechnya blew up the airport outside of Moscow, killing 35 and wounding over 150. Along with our condolences, and the "surprise... you reap what you sow" factor, astute readers will note that Al-Reuters had an interesting little tidbit in their "reporting":Islamist rebels [ah, how nice, Al Reuters calls them rebels....] have vowed to take their bombing campaign from the North Caucasus to the Russian heartland in the year before presidential...

Seventeen years ago this month, Stoneham ice princess Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed on the knee by a gang of thugs connected to her Olympic rival, Tonya Harding. So why, why, why not make the sordid skating saga a rock opera??? “Tonya and Nancy: The Rock Opera” by Arlington scribe Elizabeth Searle is coming to the Oberon Theatre in Harvard Square on Feb. 1 and 2.

LATHAM, N.Y., Jan. 10, 2011 – Justin Olsen earned a gold medal for the United States in the Winter Olympics last year. Now, as a private first class in the New York Army National Guard, he’s serving his country in another way. Olsen, a member of the U.S. bobsled team since 2007, enlisted here Jan. 6. "I already represent my country," he said. "Now I have an opportunity to serve and represent my country at the same time." Olsen will train as a human resource specialist for the Joint Force Headquarters after this season's World Cup ends. Once he completes...

Oh, to catch Bud Greenspan's eye and then turn up in one of his Olympic documentaries. For many athletes, from the famous to the obscure, the honor ranked just behind winning a medal.

LONDON -- Britain's national terror threat will remain at a severe level during the 2012 London Olympics, the country's national counterterrorism minister said Thursday. The current threat was raised to the second highest classification in January, meaning an attack is highly likely in Britain. To test the country's preparedness to cope with a major incident, a series of national counterterrorism simulations will be conducted in the run-up to the opening ceremony on July 27, 2012. "We must work on the assumption that (the threat) will remain as it is," counterterrorism and security minister Pauline Neville-Jones told an Olympic security conference....

The White House has offered to send a U.S. aircraft carrier to be stationed off the British coast and boost security during the London Olympics, Ministry of Defence sources claimed last night. The suggestion is said to have been rejected by No10 because it would make the UK look ‘weak’. And last night Downing Street was silent on the claim. But a well-placed source, with knowledge of international discussions about security for the 2012 Games, said the MoD had been offered a U.S. carrier, based in the Thames Estuary, to help defend the skies over London and eavesdrop on any...

Tommie Smith is selling the gold medal he won at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, where his Black Power salute on the podium shocked the sports world. The former San Jose State runner has put his gold medal for the 200 meters and red-and-white Puma spikes up for auction at New York-based M.I.T. Memorabilia. The bidding starts at $250,000, and the sale is scheduled to close Nov. 4. M.I.T.'s Gary Zimet said Smith is selling the medal for the money but also because he wants to share it with the public. ..Smith, now 66 and living in Georgia declined...

On the 20th floor of the Aon Center, amid the largely empty offices, are a few souvenirs of the activity that filled the area a year ago. The label on a September issue of Forbes magazine says the subscriber is "Joseph Ahern, Chicago 2016 Olympics.'' Visible through a window is a banner with the Daniel Burnham exhortation to make no small plans, which Chicago's 2016 Olympic bid adopted as a leitmotif

President Obama is reading a speech in Copenhagen in support of the Chicago Olympics: - Oh,Oh,Oh,Oh,Oh… - Mr President, these are the Olympic Circles, keep reading down. Check out these other Useful Info Nation pages:

Olympic athletes are wondering what impact the U.S. Olympic Committee's multimillion-dollar sponsorship deal with BP could have on their future, given the continued bad news coming from the Gulf Coast oil spill. American athletes receive money from the USOC, some of which comes via the BP sponsorship. The oil company signed a deal with the USOC in February worth between $10 million and $15 million, which represents about 6 percent to 7 percent of the federation's sponsorship revenue. The London 2012 Olympic organizing committee also has a deal with BP, valued at around $58 million. And next weekend's all-Chicago baseball...

The one-eyed figures, called Wenlock and Mandeville, were unveiled at an east London school on Wednesday with organisers hoping they will inspire a generation of children and persuade their parents to contribute the £15 million the mascots are slated to raise in merchandising revenue. Two parts-Pokemon to one-part lava lamp with yellow 'Taxi’ lights on their foreheads, the distinctive characters are intended to capture the imagination of children and work as well in the digital world as they will in costume form at trackside in 2012.

"China was stripped of a team all-around bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics on Wednesday because it fielded an underage gymnast. Dong Fangxiao was discovered to be 14 at the time of those Games, two years younger than the minimum age requirement."

China was stripped of a team all-around bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics on Wednesday because it fielded an underage gymnast. Dong Fangxiao was discovered to be 14 at the time of those Games, two years younger than the minimum age requirement. The medal will be given to the United States team which finished fourth in Sydney. The IOC has asked for China to return the medals "as soon as possible" so they can be reallocated to the U.S. team. The action comes 20 months after China was accused of doctoring the ages of at least two of its...

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – China was stripped of a bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics on Wednesday for fielding an underage gymnast, with that women's team medal now going to the United States. The International Olympic Committee acted after investigations by the sport's governing body determined that Dong Fangxiao was only 14 at the 2000 Games. Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to be eligible. "I'm really just proud to know that justice prevailed," said Dominique Dawes, a member of the U.S. squad in 2000. "My teammates are very well-deserving of the bronze medal, and I'm...

China Loses Gymnastics Bronze Medal 2000 Team Bronze Goes To USA STEPHEN WILSON, AP Sports Writer DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- China was stripped of a bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics on Wednesday for fielding an underage female gymnast, with the women's team medal now going to the United States. The International Olympic Committee acted after investigations by the sport's governing body determined that Dong Fangxiao was only 14 at the 2000 Games. Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to be eligible. Dong's results from Sydney were nullified in February by the International Gymnastics Federation. Because...

The tally is in: NBC lost $223 million on the Winter Olympics in the first quarter. That's slightly better than the most recent estimate of $250 million in losses. Advertising sales have improved a bit since NBC parent General Electric Co. made that projection in late January. The Olympics did bring about $800 million in extra revenue to GE. But NBC had a lot of production and other expenses, including $820 million just to acquire the rights to carry the Vancouver Games on television and online. That expense was cited as the main culprit for the red ink.

SALT LAKE CITY — Thanks to Mitt Romney, the head of the site selection team for the 2012 GOP National Convention said Tuesday she knows more about Salt Lake City than the other two cities competing to host the event: Tampa, Fla., and Phoenix. (SNIP) Hughes dismissed concerns that Utah, headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, might be seen as alienating some Republicans. Romney, a Mormon, faced a backlash from conservatives in his party who did not believe he was a Christian. "I heard that question when he was running for president, and I'm like, 'What...

(Newser) – USA Swimming has been rocked by the disclosure that 36 coaches have been banned for life for molesting teen athletes over the last 10 years, according to a suit brought by victims' families. Coaches secretly videotaped, fondled, and were otherwise indecent with their charges, court papers reveal. One coach in Indiana set up a camera in a "special" shower room and secretly filmed his athletes while they bathed, ABC News reports. In some cases, the itinerant coaching lifestyle allowed predators to stay one step ahead of authorities and victims' families. Another coach, who was sentenced to 40 years...

Iran's girls' football team has been kicked out of the Youth Olympic Games because FIFA rules prevent players wearing an Islamic headscarf. (edit) FIFA maintains football's international rule book which contains a section on players' on-field equipment. Law 4 states that "basic compulsory equipment must not have any political, religious or personal statements. "The team of a player whose basic compulsory equipment has political, religious or personal slogans or statements will be sanctioned by the competition organiser or by FIFA." The hijab issue was first examined in 2007 after an 11-year-old girl in Canada was prevented from wearing one...

Beijing Olympics: Terror bombing was 'Muslim jihad'http://pewforum.org/news/display.php?NewsID=16212Islamist group threatens attacks at China Olympics Reuters - [August 7, 2008] 1, the speaker "describes the barbarism exhibited by China towards Muslims and East Turkistan, justifying the jihad that is declared against the.. http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL7313886 Islamist bombers target Olympics; Declare Olympic Jihad by PEP | July 27, 2008 at 02:16 am | 107 views | 2 comments As though the Olympics weren't already in enough trouble, now a militant Islamic group has declared jihad against the games. A MILITANT Islamic group has threatened to attack the Beijing Olympics with suicide bombers and biological weapons...

<p>Britain's record at soundtracking sporting events is woeful. The 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester ended with – for reasons apparent to absolutely nobody – a Jimmy Cliff and Dave Stewart duet. M People's Heather Small wandered onstage at one point. And when future historians identify when the western world was left in the dust by China, they will look at the end of the 2008 Olympics, when China's jaw-dropping, CGI-enhanced performance was followed by the UK. A rickety, balsa wood bus trundled on, then fell apart like a cheap circus prop. Leona Lewis emerged from the roof to sing Whole Lotta Love while Jimmy Page wobbled around on a hydraulic lift, each of them pretending to have a clue who the other was....</p>

From an email I recieved....time for some humor: The International Olympic Committee announced today that it had taken back the gold medal previously awarded to American skier Lindsey Vonn and given it to U.S. pResident Barack Obama. Olympic officials sad that Obama deserved the medal more than Vonn because no one has ever gone faster down hill than he has.

Henry Wittenberg, an Olympic gold and silver medalist who became one of America’s greatest amateur wrestlers while he was a New York City police officer, died on Tuesday at his home in Somers, N.Y. He was 91.

Zamboni make the ice resurfacing carts that are a familiar sight at any hockey game, and also at any number of Winter Olympics – Turin, Salt Lake, Nagano and way back into the past. But the company has been frosted out at Vancouver. Instead, the ice resurfacing is being done by what are called “electric Zambonis”. Zamboni is a bit like Hoover and Aspirin - it’s become a generic term – and it turns out the “electric Zambonis” are not Zambonis at all, but manufactured by a company called Olympia that landed the contract because the Vancouver organizers were determined...

Watching the Olympics closing ceremony last Sunday, a video clip for the upcoming 2014 winter games in Sochi, Russia aired. Shockingly among the Russian scenes was the Communist sculpture ‘ Worker and Kolkhoz Woman‘ featuring the dreaded hammer and sickle. It’s very disturbing how these images of oppression and murder, the darkest periods of modern history are to be glorified in the spirit of the Olympics: Goes to show that not much has really changed in Russia. Meet the new boss, same as the old Boss!!

TORONTO — Reebok Canada is offering a $10,000 reward, no questions asked, for the return of the stick and gloves Sidney Crosby used to score in overtime in Canada's Olympic championship victory over the United States. The equipment disappeared after Crosby tossed his stick and ripped off his gloves to celebrate. Hockey Canada says all of the equipment was collected and was being put into the players' bags when it was noticed Crosby's stick and glove were missing

It's kind of like a reverse Matrix situation. Canadians have been fed a program that has repeatedly stated that we must believe in things like forced bilingualism, peacekeeping instead of fighting, forced environmentalism, and that we must be seen as 'nice' on the international stage. In short, the left has controlled the nation for decades and had their way with promoting their agenda. We must be wimps! We must have socialism! Disagree and we will all become….American!

Dallas-Fort Worth sports columnist likens our patriotism to Nazi Germany An American sports columnist gets a bizarre Nazi flashback in Vancouver By Cam Battley, Canwest News Service March 2, 2010 It took the investigative skills of intrepid Fort Worth Star-Telegram sports columnist Gil LeBreton to uncover the ugly truth. Like Edward R. Murrow in pre-Second World War Vienna and London, Mr. LeBreton put his personal safety at risk to file a brave report from the turbulent city of Vancouver. Sure, Canadians seem multicultural, friendly and good-natured on the surface. But that's just what they want you to think. Dig a...