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Only six months has passed since the Beijing Olympics and the Birds Nest stadium which hosted the spectacular opening and closing ceremonies is already beginning to lose its shine. The paint is peeling and stains have appeared on its famous lattice design. Accelerating the deterioration of the iconic National Stadium is the absence of a permanent tenant. [...]
Posted on 11 February 2009 | 12:06 am
The Olympics are now over, but my adventures continue. You can continue following my travels in Asia here.
Posted on 17 October 2008 | 1:17 am
The opening ceremony for the Paralympics was held last night in Beijing. The ceremony was spectacular but perhaps not on the scale of the ceremony for the Beijing Olympics. Most of the show was performed by people with disabilities, including Li Yue, who lost her left leg in the Sichuan earthquake and performed [...]
Posted on 6 September 2008 | 7:44 pm
The Beijing Paralympics are just a day away from starting. Here are some pictures from Tiananmen Square which has some pretty impressive floral displays on show now.
Posted on 4 September 2008 | 8:59 pm
Posted on 4 September 2008 | 7:47 pm
The ticket scammers who defrauded people by selling non-existent tickets through the internet are getting ready for the Vancouver and London Olympics. “I was shocked by the brilliance and hard work of the thieves fleecing the Olympic family — and they are setting up to do the same thing in Vancouver in 2010 and London in [...]
Posted on 2 September 2008 | 8:23 pm
Beijing did a lot to improve the air quality leading up to the Beijing Olympics, with mixed results. The days before the opening ceremony were pretty bad, but a burst of rain cleared the air and pollution became less of a talking point. Almost straight after the closing ceremony the hazy skies returned. A [...]
Posted on 1 September 2008 | 3:56 am
Beijing recorded 6.52 million visitors for the 2008 Olympics, with 382,000 of those coming from overseas. Authorities long estimated that 500,000 foreigners would visit the city, but tougher visa controls reduced that number. The Xinhua news agency reported that tourist spots in the city reported total revenues of 162 million yuan (US$23 million), according to [...]
Posted on 31 August 2008 | 8:34 pm
To the athletes tonight: You were true role models. You have shown us the unifying power of sport. The Olympic spirit lives in the warm embrace of competitive rivals from nations in conflict. Keep that spirit alive when you return home. These were truly exceptional Games! (Source: Dr Jacques Rogge, Chairman of the International Olympic [...]
Posted on 24 August 2008 | 4:39 pm
The fireworks are still going on over Beijing tonight as the Olympics comes to a close. The closing ceremony wasn’t as long as the first one and not as spectacular, but still very well done. We had a short section to mark the handover of the Olympics from Beijing to London. London’s mayor [...]
Posted on 24 August 2008 | 7:16 am
""Four years ago the winning medal went to Cuba, thanks to a remark from Australian basketball player Michelle Trims: "The Cubans are using up condoms as if they're about to go out of fashion."
This time around the talk of sex is slightly more discreet, but matters are still exciting when it comes to the unofficial "sport" going on in the suffocating summer heat at the Athens Games.
The debate about whether athletes should have sex or refrain on the night before a big competition was yet again broached by the Greek newspaper Ta Nea.
The newspaper found some surprising opinions: German physicians and Russian psychologists are in favor of sexual relations prior to a big sports event, but Israeli experts only approve of sex in the case of women athletes.
"If the athlete is conditioned by social or religious factors, the influence of sex is negative. But it has not been proved scientifically that sex before competing has a negative effect," said Tassos Stalikas, a Greek sports psychologist.
Durex gave 130,000 condoms and 30,000 portions of lubricating creams to Olympic village administrators for use by athletes. That was 40,000 more than the 90,000 distributed in Sydney, but considerably lower than the 250,000 condoms given away at the Salt Lake City 2002 winter games.
"It's hard to hold back and be modest when faced with so many good-looking people here," Canadian rower Marni McBin was quoted as saying by German newspaper Bild, which gave a detailed account of the sex lives of athletes."
Read more at No qualifying round for frantic Olympics sex scene
