Yoga Gets Competitive

IOC execs reject baseball, softball; decision faces Oct. vote

(AP) - Olympic leaders selected golf and rugby today for proposed inclusion in the 2016 Summer Games, rejecting bids from baseball, softball, and three other sports. The IOC executive board narrowed the field to two from a list of seven, which also included squash, karate, and roller sports. The board will submit golf and rugby sevens—a faster-paced version of the standard game—for ratification by the full IOC assembly in October. More»

Ashrams enjoying newfound popularity

(NEWSER) - Many left unemployed or weary by recession are heading to yoga retreats, where they get meals, lodging, spiritual education, and quiet reflection for some chores and a low fee. “I figured if I stayed for a year, the economy would be warming up by then, and I could head back and see what’s available,” one participant—who’s been at Pennsylvania’s Himalayan Institute since 2007—tells the New York Times. More»

(AP) - Sporting a goatee and an old-school swimsuit, Michael Phelps picked up right where he left off in Beijing. Two races. Two wins. The world's greatest swimmer left a 9-month layoff and marijuana travails in his wake tonight at his first meet since a triumphant Olympics. None of it seemed to matter when Phelps dove in for two events less than an hour apart at the Charlotte UltraSwim in Charlotte, NC. More»

Religious leaders say sports are unfeminine

(NEWSER) - Though obesity and diabetes are on the rise in Saudi Arabia, officials there are cracking down on women-only sports clubs because they lack licenses—which no government body will actually issue. Leaders say their opposition is based on Islam, but, Caryle Murphy writes for GlobalPost, it stems as much from views about women long extinct in other societies. “Depriving women of this is yet another way of marginalizing them,” says one activist. More»

Travelers can breathe deeply in San Francisco

(NEWSER) - Air travelers in San Francisco, rejoice: You can now relax between the dreaded security pat-down and the slow shuffle onboard your flight. San Francisco International Airport has set up a yoga room that includes a soothing blue light and loaner floor mats, MSNBC reports. “The room gives modern travelers a space that fosters and supports quiet and reflection," says the room's design director. "Those aren’t emotions that people typically encounter at the airport." More»