Layden: Competing under withering pressure, Olympians deserve our fervor and empathy
Bottom of the ninth? Pressure. Two free throws to win the game? Pressure. Six-foot putt to win the U.S. Open? Pressure. But there's not pressure like that heaped on Olympic athletes, who carry the expectations of a nation and only get the chance to shrug it off every four years.
Entering Beijing's Olympics bubble is a surreal experience
For the thousands of athletes, journalists and others descending on Beijing for the Winter Olympics, China’s strict pandemic measures are creating a surreal and at times anxious experience. China is isolating everyone coming from abroad from any contact with the general public for the duration of the Games, which open next week. “I know the only experience of Beijing I’m going to experience is the Beijing I will see out of my bus window and my hotel window,” said Associated Press photo editor Yirmiyan Arthur, who arrived this week.
news.yahoo.comBroadcasters urged to cancel plans to cover Beijing Olympics
Some of the world’s largest broadcasters including American network NBC are being asked by human rights groups to cancel plans to cover next year's Winter Olympics in Beijing. The request comes in an open letter from rights groups representing minorities in China, including Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kong residents and others. The letter, obtained by the Associated Press, was sent Tuesday to NBC Universal chief executive officer Jeff Shell and other international broadcast executives.
news.yahoo.comWhy the Beijing Winter Olympics Are Facing Boycotts and Political Pressure
When China hosted its first Olympics in 2008, U.S. President George W. Bush was among more than 80 heads of state in attendance in Beijing. Fourteen years later, the 2022 Winter Games are set to open in the same city but a different world, one wracked by a pandemic and one where a more-powerful China finds itself increasingly at odds with the U.S. and other democracies. Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for the games to be “simple, safe and splendid,” a challenge as Covid-19 cases mount gl
washingtonpost.comWhy the Beijing Winter Olympics Face Threat of Boycotts, Political Pressure
When China hosted its first Olympics in 2008, U.S. President George W. Bush was among more than 80 heads of state in attendance in Beijing. Fourteen years later, the 2022 Winter Games are set to open in the same city but a different world, one wracked by a pandemic and one where a more-powerful China finds itself increasingly at odds with the U.S. and other democracies. Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for the games to be “simple, safe and splendid,” a challenge as Covid-19 cases mount gl
washingtonpost.comOlympics Latest: 2nd judo athlete out before facing Israeli
A second judo athlete has dropped out of the Olympics before facing Israel’s Tohar Butbul in the 73-kilogram division. Olympic officials say Sudan’s Mohamed Abdalrasool didn’t show up to face Butbul in their round of 32 bout Monday despite weighing in for the bout earlier. The International Judo Foundation didn’t immediately announce a reason why Abdalrasool didn’t compete, and the governing body didn’t respond to requests for comment.
news.yahoo.comOlympics Latest: Costa Rican surfer gets last-minute spot
The International Surfing Association has confirmed a last-minute alternate: Carlos Munoz, who will surf for Costa Rica as the sport makes its Olympic debut. Munoz replaces Frederico Morais of Portugal, who announced Friday that he had tested positive for COVID-19 and would not travel to Japan while he quarantines at home. Munoz’s confirmation comes at the very last minute possible, as the association had set the 3 p.m. Saturday Tokyo time as the deadline for alternates to be approved.
news.yahoo.comOlympic scandals march on long after torch goes out
From doping to demonstrations to dirty officials, the Olympics have never lacked their share of off-the-field scandals and controversies that keep the Games in the headlines long after the torch goes out. The five-year gap since the last Summer Olympics has been no different. SEX ABUSE — Larry Nassar's sexual abuse of hundreds of gymnasts in the U.S. opened a window into an abusive culture that permeates throughout the sport and in all corners of the globe.
news.yahoo.comTrack Star Ja’Quan Lavender creates Olympic docuseries ‘Journey to Gold’
Ja'Quan Lavender is a track star from Ohio that recently moved to Houston during the Summer of 2020. Lavender is originally from Steubenville, Ohio. and graduated from Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio. He was currently training for the 2020 Summer Olympics, but unfortunately, did not qualify for the 400 meter dash this year. So now, his focus is to prepare for the 2022 World Championships and 2024 Summer Olympics.
Japan to declare virus emergency lasting through Olympics
Japan is set to place Tokyo under a state of emergency that would last through the Olympics, fearing an ongoing COVID-19 surge will multiply during the Games. At a meeting with experts Thursday morning, government officials proposed a plan to issue a state of emergency in Tokyo from next Monday to Aug. 22. The Games already will take place without foreign spectators, but the planned six-week state of emergency likely ends chances of a local audience.
news.yahoo.comJapan's vaccine push ahead of Olympics looks to be too late
It may be too little, too late. The Olympics risk becoming an incubator for “a Tokyo variant,” as 15,000 foreign athletes and tens of thousands officials, sponsors and journalists from about 200 countries descend on — and potentially mix with — a largely unvaccinated Japanese population, said Dr. Naoto Ueyama, a physician, head of the Japan Doctors Union. With infections in Tokyo and other heavily populated areas currently at high levels and hospitals already under strain treating serious cases despite a state of emergency, experts have warned there is little slack in the system.
news.yahoo.comWhy the 2020 Tokyo Olympics Will Be Like No Other
When the coronavirus pandemic forced Tokyo last year to delay the Summer Olympics and Paralympics to July 2021, organizers kept the Tokyo 2020 name, saying they wanted the event to be seen as a “light at the end of the tunnel.” Covid-19 is still spreading but the games appear to be going ahead, in what would be the biggest world event of the pandemic era. But they are almost certain to look like no other Olympics, with a bar on spectators from abroad and uncertainty as to whether even fans in Ja
washingtonpost.com'Like hell:' As Olympics loom, Japan health care in turmoil
As she struggled to breathe, Shizue Akita had to wait more than six hours while paramedics searched for a hospital in Osaka that would treat her worsening COVID-19. Akita, 87, was dead two weeks later. “Osaka’s medical systems have collapsed,” said her son, Kazuyuki Akita.
news.yahoo.com2 years after Notre Dame Cathedral fire, rebuilding remains a monumental task
This week marks two years since the Notre Dame Cathedral caught fire in Paris. French President Emmanuel Macron visited the centuries-old church Thursday. He still believes reconstruction will be complete by the 2024 Olympic games. CBS News' Elaine Cobbe reports.
cbsnews.comU.S. men's soccer team fails to qualify for third straight Olympics
The U.S. men's national soccer team failed to qualify for the Summer Olympics for the third consecutive cycle. U.S. men's national team coach Jason Kreis said the team was "absolutely devastated" by the loss. Refugio Ruiz / Getty ImagesThe U.S. women's national soccer team is a different story. Unlike the men's game, each qualified nation sends their senior women's national team to the Olympics. The U.S. men's team has played in four Olympics but has never won a medal.
cbsnews.comSeiko Hashimoto takes over as Tokyo Olympic president
Seiko Hashimoto, president of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics Organizing Committee, speaks during a press conference following the Tokyo 2020 Executive Board meeting in Tokyo Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. The 56-year-old Hashimoto was named president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee after a meeting of its executive board, which is 80% male. She also held a portfolio dealing with gender equality and women’s empowerment. "I think it will be important for Tokyo 2020 to practice equality.”International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said Hashimoto was “the perfect choice” for the job. AdKotani is the sports director for the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee.
Japan finally begins COVID vaccinations amid worries over staging Olympics
Months after other major economies, Japan began giving the first coronavirus vaccines to front-line health workers Wednesday. The late rollout will make it impossible to reach so-called "herd immunity" against the virus before the Olympics begin in July, experts say. About 80% of those polled in recent media surveys support cancellation or further postponement of the Olympics because of the virus worries. "I think it is more important for the Japanese government to show the Japanese people that we have done everything possible to prove the efficacy and safety of the vaccine to encourage the Japanese people to take the vaccine," Japanese vaccine minister Taro Kono said. The first batch of the Pfizer vaccine that arrived Friday is enough to cover the first group of medical workers.
cbsnews.comJapan starts COVID-19 vaccinations with eye on Olympics
A medical worker receives a dose of COVID-19 vaccine Tokyo Medical Center in Tokyo Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Japan's first coronavirus shots were given to health workers Wednesday, beginning a vaccination campaign considered crucial to holding the already delayed Tokyo Olympics. Medical workers say vaccinations will help protect them and their families, and business leaders hope the drive will allow economic activity to return to normal. The first batch of Pfizer vaccines that arrived Friday is enough to cover the first group of medical workers. AdAfter the front-line medical workers will come inoculations of 3.7 million more health workers starting in March, followed by about 36 million people aged 65 and older beginning in April.
Sexist remark about "annoying" women mars Japan's bid to show it's ready to host the Olympics
Just as Japanese and international Olympics officials are trying their hardest to demonstrate meticulous care in planning for the already-delayed Summer Olympics, the chief of the Tokyo Games has been forced to apologize for sexist remarks. Tokyo Olympic And Paralympic Games Organizing Committee (TOGOC) President Yoshiro Mori speaks to media from the TOGOC headquarters, January 28, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. Takashi Aoyama/GettyThe International Olympic Committee issued a statement calling gender equality "a fundamental principle" for the organization and citing gains in recent years to reduce significant gaps in the number of women versus men on its leadership bodies. Also, all athletes and officials need to be tested 72 hours before leaving their home countries, and then they need to be tested every four days while in Japan. In the days ahead the Tokyo Olympics Committee is expected to release more detailed playbooks for other groups, including athletes, media and spectators.
cbsnews.comTokyo Olympics: Q&A on vaccines, fans, qualifying, and costs
Bach said during this week's trip to Tokyo that he is encouraging all Olympic participants and fans to be vaccinated - if one becomes available - if they are going to attend next year's Tokyo Olympics. The Tokyo Olympics were postponed eight months ago, and now are to open in eight months: July 23, 2021. Hanging in the balance are 11,000 Olympic athletes and 4,400 Paralympians. Tokyo said the Olympics would cost $7.3 billion when it was awarded the games in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2013. Bach was asked this week in Tokyo about reported payments of $8 million made by the Tokyo bid committee to Haruyuki Takahashi.
Bach comes to Tokyo as cheerleader for next year's Olympics
TOKYO – The IOC and Tokyo Olympic organizers have been shouting the message for months now, that despite the continuing pandemic, the Games will open on July 23, 2021. Bach was also asked last week whether he was going to Tokyo to talk about contingencies for canceling the Olympics. Bach is travelling on a private charter and will meet new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on Monday morning. An hour later he’s with Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike, and then holds a media conference with Tokyo organizing committee President Yoshiro Mori, another former prime minister. The IOC president has has called Tokyo the best prepared Olympics in history, a point he's likely to repeat.
Tokyo Olympics to give refunds to ticket buyers in Japan
TOKYO – Fans living in Japan who bought tickets for the postponed Tokyo Olympics have been guaranteed refunds, the local organizing committee said Friday. The IOC and Tokyo organizers are running several task forces looking at ways to handle immigration and COVID-19. He’s also organized a popular Facebook page that’s a go-to for Tokyo ticket information. Tokyo organizers have budgeted $800 million in income from ticket sales in Japan and aboard, their third largest source of income. Organizers say 4.48 million Olympic tickets have been sold in Japan, with 970,000 tickets for the Paralympics.
'Jurassic Park' to 'Apocalypse Now': USOPC faces steep climb
FILE - In this Feb. 18, 2020, file photo, United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Los Angeles 2028 organizers in Beverly Hills, Calif. Even before the coronavirus pandemic wiped the Summer Olympics off the 2020 sports calendar, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee was an organization in peril. “Last year I talked about evolution and ‘Jurassic Park,’” chair Susanne Lyons said, in a nod to the changes the USOPC had embarked upon, pre-COVID. College sports teams supplied the U.S. with about 75% of its roster at the 2016 Summer Games. The Summer Olympics are nine months away, with a Winter Games set for February 2022, and the Los Angeles Games — the first Summer Games in America in a generation — scheduled for 2028.
Tokyo Olympics say they found savings even as costs rise
TOKYO – Tokyo Olympic organizers estimate they have found cost-savings of about $280 million by simplifying and cutting some frills from next year’s postponed games. The savings represent about 2% of the official Tokyo Olympic budget of $12.6 billion. Gakuji Ito, the chief financial officer of the Tokyo Olympics, acknowledged the cost-savings figure was only an estimate. Most of the bills for the Tokyo Olympics and the postponement fall on Japanese taxpayers. About $5.6 billion in the Tokyo Olympic budget is private money, and about $1.3 billion of that comes from the IOC.
IOC gets official look at simplification for Tokyo Olympics
TOKYO – The IOC and local organizers are trying to “simplify” the postponed Tokyo Olympics, promising to save money in what one study says is already the most expensive Summer Olympics on record. Organizers and the IOC say they had already slashed several billion dollars in costs before the Olympics were postponed six months ago because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tokyo and the IOC have not offered an estimate of the savings, but estimates in Japan put them at 1-2% of official spending of $12.6 billion. The document handed out last month by organizers showed them considering “measures to increase” donations to make up for lost income. To keep sponsors on board, the IOC and local organizers have talked confidently in the last several months about the Olympics opening as planned on July 23, 2021.
Skateboarding — a Pretty Good Sport in Social Distancing Times - Jumps Back Into the Mainstream
The likes of legends such as Tony Hawk, Bob Burnquist, and Danny Way are only able to perform their signature moves such as The 900 on vert ramps such as the Houston Vert Ramp. The Houston Vert Ramp. Photo from Houston Vert Ramp InstagramClosed to private sessions only, the monstrous ramp is for the top tier of skater, and that includes Jordan Santana. Santana uses the size of the vert ramp to perform advanced moves like The 540, a trick that only six other female riders have been able to land. Still Houston's skateboard community will be more than ready for the Olympics to expand to vert ramp competition in the future and any other developments in the sport.
houstonpress.comA flame, a look, one of the Olympics' most powerful moments
FILE - In this July 19, 1996, file photo, American swimmer Janet Evans passes the Olympic flame to Muhammad Ali during the 1996 Summer Olympic Games Opening Ceremony in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, File)ATLANTA EDITORS With the Tokyo Olympics postponed for a year because of the coronavirus pandemic, The Associated Press is looking back at the history of Summer Games. Here are some of the highlights of the 1996 Atlanta Games, where Muhammad Ali provided the greatest moment before the competition even began. ___Less than 24 hours before the opening ceremony of the Atlanta Olympics, at a secretive midnight practice run, Janet Evans finally got the word. As the last host city to rely mainly on private funding, Atlanta faced griping that its commercial backers made the event look more like a tacky county fair than the Summer Olympics.
NBC resets focus for Tokyo while also looking to Beijing
NBC which has the U.S. media rights through the 2032 Summer Games had already done most of its features and taped promos before the International Olympic Committee postponed the Games in March. Other issues include how many people NBC will send to Tokyo. ABC aired 63 hours from the Sarajevo Winter Games and 180 from the Los Angeles Summer Games, which were both records at the time. NBC's coverage from Tokyo will be over 7,000 hours and the 2022 Beijing Winter Games an additional 2,500. While ABC used only one channel for its coverage, NBC will again air across many channels along with online streaming.
St. Louis Olympics was really World's Fair with some sports
This image provided by the Library of Congress, shows the athletics field at the 1904 Olympic games in St. Louis. The St. Louis Games were the first at which gold medals were awarded to winners, and they remain the only medals made entirely of gold. The first Olympic Games in the New World would produce a profound and permanent result," author and historian Carl Posy wrote years later, shaping every Olympic Games to come." GO FOR GOLDThe St. Louis Games were the first at which gold medals were awarded to winners, and they remain the only medals made entirely of gold. The outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War and the challenge in getting to St. Louis prevented many of the best European athletes from competing.
US Olympic museum to open July 30; will honor 1980 team
This July 17, 2020 photo provided by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum shows the U.S. Olympic Museum in Colorado Springs, Colo. The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Museum announced Monday, July 20, 2020 that it will open July 30. It will have a first-of-its-kind tribute to the 1980 Olympic team, which was forced to miss the Moscow Games because of a boycott. Olympic & Paralympic Museum via AP)A 60,000-square foot museum that will include a first-of-its-kind tribute to the 1980 U.S. Olympic team is scheduled to open July 30 in Colorado Springs after a three-year construction project. The project was conceived in 2012, as Olympic leaders looked to establish the first full-fledged Olympic museum in the United States.
The 1992 Olympic golf match Michael Jordan never forgot
In the summer of 1992, the United States sent 11 future members of the NBA Hall of Fame to represent the nation at the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. A month earlier, the reigning back-to-back NBA Most Valuable Player had led the Chicago Bulls to their second consecutive championship. As a member of the 1992 Olympic "Dream Team," Jordan was coached by Chuck Daly, who also manned the bench for the Detroit Pistons. Daly's Pistons eliminated Jordan's Chicago Bulls from the NBA playoffs three straight times from 1988 to 1990. In this never-before-seen footage, Bradley asked both player and coach about a game of golf at the 1992 Olympics.
cbsnews.comOlympic hopefuls lose more than medals in Summer Games delay
Women wearing face masks, amid concerns of the COVID-19 coronavirus, walk past a display showing a countdown to the start of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo on March 23, 2020. Athletes who were going to compete don't automatically qualify for the Games next year, she says. There's no uniform way this will be decided, Williams said, because different sports and different countries all have somewhat different time lines. One thing is for certain: For people who have set aside time to train full-time, this means an extra year of costs, Williams says. "Either they worked full-time the previous year to have their one full Olympic year or did some combination of other funding," she said.
cnbc.comFrom 'huge blow' to 'relatively limited': Analysts weigh in on the potential impact of delaying Tokyo Olympics
A pedestrian wearing a face mask walks past a banner promoting the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games outside the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building on February 26, 2020 in Tokyo, Japan. While some analysts say that it could be "a huge blow" to the Japan economy, others say the impact may be "modest." Japan has been under pressure to either cancel or delay the games, set to take place in Tokyo from Jul. Fitch Solutions said in a report that the postponement or cancellation of the Tokyo Olympics Games could deal "a huge blow to Japan's economy and prestige." "In a hypothetical scenario without the coronavirus pandemic, such a step would have a significant impact," Angrick said.
cnbc.comNBCs Peacock bets viewers will watch ads to stream for free
Along with AT&T Inc.s HBO Max, NBCs new service, Peacock, is poised to be a relatively late entrant in the burgeoning market for streaming-video services. Comcast executives have said they plan to spend $2 billion over the next two years on the streaming service and expect it to break even by its fifth year. Their subscribers will have access to twice as many hours of content as those using the free version. Ad OptionsAnyone can get the free version of Peacock, but customers will have to pay $4.99 for the premium version with advertising. It also reflects the fact that Peacock is owned by Comcast, the largest U.S. cable-TV provider, which can use a free streaming service to make its other offerings more attractive.
chron.comNBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke will retire on Aug. 14
NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke will retire on August 14, 2020 following the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Comcast announced on Monday. Jeff Shell will become CEO of NBCUniversal beginning Jan. 1, 2020, when Burke will move to role of Chairman of NBCUniversal. Following Burke's retirement, Shell will report to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts. Roberts said Shell, who currently oversees NBCUniversal's Film and Entertainment division, is the "ideal executive" to "lead NBCUniversal NBCUniversal into the future." Burke, 61, has been CEO of NBCUniversal since Comcast closed its acquisition of the company in 2011.
cnbc.comLewis, Tomjanovich and Retton headed to Houston Sports Hall of Fame
The Harris County Houston Sports Authority announced the next class of inductees to the Houston Sports Hall of Fame and it's a trio of several of Houston's most famous gold medalists. Nine-time Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis, 2-time NBA champion Rudy Tomjanovich and the first American woman to win the all-around gold medal, gymnast Mary Lou Retton are headed to the Houston Sports Hall of Fame. Retton won five medals at the 1984 Olympic games and is the first woman to be inducted in the Houston Sports Hall of Fame. Ill tell you, its really, really special, Lewis said. He finished his NBA coaching career with a 527-416 record and coached the U.S. to Olympic gold in 2000 in Sydney.
News 2 Know: Temple retrial continues, suspects ID'd in 2 recent shootings and more
Read more3 teens arrested in connection with fatal shooting of 16-year-old in ClevelandCleveland Police Deparment Eliud Barberena-Mota, 17, and Javier Lopez, 17, were arrested in the fatal shooting of 16-year-old teen in Cleveland. Three teens were arrested for the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old boy who was shot near a gas station Wednesday in Cleveland, police said. Read moreWhat happened Tuesday in retrial of David TempleKPRC2Testimony continued in court Tuesday in the retrial of David Temple. Read moreBen Taub Hospital under scrutiny, investigation for violating standards for patients careKPRC2 The exterior of Ben Taub Hospital in Houston. Harris Health System's Ben Taub hospital is facing sanctions from state and federal regulators after a patient died in the emergency center bathroom after waiting more than 24 hours for care.
News 2 Know: Temple retrial continues, suspects ID'd in 2 recent shootings and more
Read more3 teens arrested in connection with fatal shooting of 16-year-old in ClevelandCleveland Police Deparment Eliud Barberena-Mota, 17, and Javier Lopez, 17, were arrested in the fatal shooting of 16-year-old teen in Cleveland. Three teens were arrested for the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old boy who was shot near a gas station Wednesday in Cleveland, police said. Read moreWhat happened Tuesday in retrial of David TempleKPRC2Testimony continued in court Tuesday in the retrial of David Temple. Read moreBen Taub Hospital under scrutiny, investigation for violating standards for patients careKPRC2 The exterior of Ben Taub Hospital in Houston. Harris Health System's Ben Taub hospital is facing sanctions from state and federal regulators after a patient died in the emergency center bathroom after waiting more than 24 hours for care.