End of a supreme carnival

London Olympic 2012
End of a supreme carnival
At the end of a long, raucous night, it was inevitably the words of Lord Sebastian Coe that best summed up the last sixteen days of whirlwind madness in London.
“When our time came, we did it right,” said Coe in his short and sweet speech towards the end of the Closing Ceremony at the Olympic Stadium, and it had the capacity crowd at the stadium clapping in

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2012 ‘off-the-chain’

London Olympics 2012
2012 ‘off-the-chain’
If there ever was a one-word summary to describe the 30th Olympiad in London, the USA athlete DeeDee Trotter found it during one of many press conferences at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday.
“Off-the-chain,” said Trotter and the whole room burst out laughing. “And that is putting it mildly,” she continued. Trotter was right. London has indeed been, in the parlance of the

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A question and grim reality

The American journalist was clearly irritated by the presence of so many Bangladeshi newsmen at the press conference after almost every athletics event at London.
He had no clue as to why a country would be so highly represented despite them having no stake in any of the events. Spurred on by the question from his deep inside, he finally took the courage on

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Gold eludes Brazil again

London Olympics 2012
Gold eludes Brazil again
Romario couldn’t do it, Bebeto couldn’t do it, Rivaldo couldn’t do it, Ronaldinho couldn’t do it. Neither could Brazil’s latest poster boy Neymar. The weight of history proved far too much for Mano Menezes’s young Selecao and their dreams of Olympic gold crumpled to dust on the picture-perfect Wembley turf on Saturday.
Mexico were their latest conquerors, as two goals from the dynamic Oribe Peralta saw them

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Curtain drops on Olympics tonight

After two weeks of frantic excitement, on and off the field dramas, a loud cheer from the fans and birth of many new champions, the London Olympics comes to an end tonight with a dazzling closing ceremony.
The cauldron of the Games will be formally extinguished sometime in zero hour in London to signal the end of what the British media have already called the most successful ever

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‘Nice girl’ Felix third time lucky

She was accused of being too relaxed in Beijing. Coming as overwhelming favourite, with two world championship titles to her name, Allyson Felix had expected it to be an easy walk in the park.
One of her key aim was to be a role model and for that she had some other commitments too. She voluntarily submitted herself for extra anti-doping test as part of a programme

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The Dream Team rumbles on

Even from a distance, the white headband was unmistakable. And you could hardly miss the roar from the crowd as soon as LeBron James touched the ball at the signature North Greenwich Arena in London on Wednesday night. The American was sensational as well in their quarterfinal against the Australians — a match that served up a sumptuous atmosphere. Basketball

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The beach is where it’s at

Wolf-whistles ring out after every set, the beers are flowing, the clothes in the stand are posh, even when disguised as they are in the pink parkas to protect against the drizzle. Out in the middle, clothes are lacking. Four women clad skimpily in bikinis stand on each side of a net fighting in the sand. At interludes, Hawaiian dancers put on shows as rakers set the sand for the

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Brownlees light up London

Overhead, there was the distant whirl of the helicopter blades. Down below though, swans still swam elegantly and peacefully on the brimming Serpentine. A cool breeze rustled through the leaves of the lush green surroundings of Hyde Park. The only thing breaking the serene monotony was the noise.
On Tuesday, one of London’s most famous parks was transformed into a beehive of

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Serena gives London a show symbol

Of all colors the one Serena Williams said she likes most is golden. Until this week her choice had no meaning to Serena, but now she is well aware of what it is in a career of a successful athlete.
Serena had confessed on a few occasions that she came to London to have some fun, collect some pins and mingle with fellow athletes and never too serious about her

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Bolt ready for another blitz

Usain Bolt’s self-styled journey towards becoming an athletic legend is set to be completed today when his most preferred event – men’s 200-metre sprint – will be held at London Olympic Stadium.
With the pressure to defend his crown as the planet’s fastest man is now off, Bolt returned to his usual self and sent a chilling message to his challengers winning his heats in

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Mexico-Brazil final a pointer to the future?

Deep inside the Wembley Stadium on Tuesday, following Mexico’s comprehensive victory over Japan in the Olympic semifinals, a group of journalists were working while the TV beamed images from Old Trafford. Brazil had looked streaky at the start, as they cleared two South Korean attacks off the line but just as they scored their second goal through the prolific forward

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London Diary

London 2012 are investigating how a bucket of unofficial condoms found its way into the athletes’ village without official consent.
The Australian BMX cyclist Caroline Buchanan tweeted a photograph of the bucket, which featured a sign reading “Kangaroos condoms, for the gland downunder”, and a picture

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A gold for grandma

On the podium Felix Sanchez cried and cried. As the national anthem of his beloved Dominican Republic rung out across the stadium speakers, Sanchez wept uncontrollably. Despite his gold medal, they hardly looked like tears of joy to anyone watching. It could yet become one of the most enduring images of London 2012.
Sanchez had just won his second Olympic gold. The first had come in Athens in

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A Grenadian’s tale

One of the more poignant moments of Sunday’s electric track-and-field lineup in the Olympic Stadium came in the semifinals of the 400 meters. Oscar Pistorius, who had managed to reach his goal and qualify for the semi-final, finished last. There were cheers for Pistorius though, from around the stadium. But more importantly, the young sprinter who had led the field came over to

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