Summer Olympics

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Team USA's Most-Decorated Athlete Will Be Its Flag-Bearer

Star swimmer will be Team USA's flag-bearer at Friday's opening ceremony

(Newser) - "King of the Olympic Rings" Michael Phelps already has more medals than any other athlete in history, Fox Sports notes. Now he's going to add a flag to the mix as Team USA's flag-bearer at the opening ceremony in Rio on Friday, the Olympic National Committee announced...

Teen's Tweeted Olympic Dream Comes True 5 Years Later

Morolake Akinosun is heading to Rio after prophetic posting years ago

(Newser) - In the summer of 2011, a 17-year-old heading into her senior year at an Illinois high school started thinking more seriously about her future, and she determinedly announced her plans via social media. "In 2016 I will be 22, graduated from a school I have not chosen yet, and...

Pro Tip for Rio Travelers: 'Don't Put Your Head Underwater'

AP study finds waters in Olympic city are still dangerously contaminated

(Newser) - Just days ahead of the Olympic Games, Rio waterways are as filthy as ever, contaminated with raw human sewage teeming with dangerous viruses and bacteria, according to a 16-month-long study commissioned by the AP . Not only are some 1,400 athletes at risk of getting violently ill in water competitions,...

Rio's Newest Problem: 'Super Bacteria' in the Water

And a nasty oil slick in Guanabara Bay, right where sailors are set to compete

(Newser) - Rio de Janeiro has been plagued by body parts on beaches , muggings , and Zika fears ahead of the Summer Olympics, and now a "super bacteria" has entered the mix. Brazilian scientists say the drug-resistant bacteria was found along the coast of popular beaches including Flamengo and Botafogo, both of...

Doping Gets Another Russian Team Booted From Olympics

Rower's urine sample had banned substance in it

(Newser) - World rowing's ruling body says that the Russian men's quadruple sculls team has been disqualified from the Rio de Janeiro Olympics for a doping violation, and will be replaced at the games by New Zealand, the AP reports. The World Rowing Federation says that trimetazidine, a banned substance,...

Rio Governor: Olympics Could Be 'Big Failure'

Acting governor warns that federal government payout is needed

(Newser) - Rio de Janeiro's acting governor warned Monday that the Olympic Games could be a "big failure" because of budget shortfalls that threaten to compromise security and mobility during the games. In an interview with Rio's O Globo daily, Francisco Dornelles said the state is still awaiting an...

Russian Track Team Banned From Olympics

Doping scandal results in bad news for the nation

(Newser) - In what the New York Times calls "an extraordinary punishment that might be without precedent in Olympics history," the Russian track and field team has been banned from competition at the Summer Olympics. Seven months ago, the World Anti-Doping Agency published a scathing report accusing Russia of a...

Pregnant Savannah Guthrie: I'm Skipping Olympics

She's the highest-profile NBC employee to opt out so far

(Newser) - Today co-host Savannah Guthrie is pregnant with her second child—which means she won't be heading to Brazil to cover the Olympics this summer. "I’m not going to be able to go to Rio, so you’ll have to go to beach volleyball without me," she...

Usain Bolt Could Lose One of His Gold Medals

2008 teammate allegedly tested positive for banned substance

(Newser) - Usain Bolt could lose one of his three gold medals from the 2008 Beijing Olympics thanks to another member of Jamaica's 400-meter relay team from that year. Amid a crackdown during which Olympic officials have been re-testing samples from the past two Summer Games with new technology, Jamaican team...

Detroit Tigers Pitcher Contracted Zika

Francisco Rodriguez said he didn't feel like himself for 2 whole months

(Newser) - When he's not pitching for the Detroit Tigers, Francisco Rodriguez heads home for some R&R in his native Venezuela. But the 34-year-old came back from the last offseason with more than just memories: He contracted the Zika virus , and it wasn't pleasant, ESPN reports. For two entire...

Expert Says Olympics Should Be Rescheduled Over Zika

He says the lives of many thousands of unborn babies are at risk

(Newser) - "But for the games, would anyone recommend sending an extra half a million visitors into Brazil right now?" University of Ottawa professor Amir Attaran writes in the Harvard Public Health Review . According to the AP , Attaran is calling on the International Olympic Committee to postpone or relocate the Summer...

Hot Fashion for S. Korea's Olympic Team: Zika-Proof Attire

Training, ceremonial clothing for Rio Games to be 'impregnated' with chemicals

(Newser) - South Korea's Olympic committee on Wednesday unveiled Zika-proof long-sleeved shirts and pants it says will help protect the country's Olympic athletes from the mosquito-borne virus at this year's games in Rio de Janeiro, the AP reports. The sets of clothing will be impregnated with mosquito-repellent chemicals and...

Here's Brazil's Plan for a Zika-Free Olympics

Largest outbreak has been in host country to 2016 Summer Games

(Newser) - From polluted waterways to terrible planning , organizers of the 2016 Summer Olympics set to take place in Rio de Janeiro have faced plenty of challenges . The latest: the mosquito-borne Zika virus that has been linked to serious birth defects in newborn babies. Authorities in Brazil—home of the largest-known outbreak...

IOC: We Want Refugee Athletes at 2016 Olympics

It's the first time refugees will be allowed to compete without a home country

(Newser) - Refugees have never been allowed to go for Olympic gold because they can't represent the countries they've fled from. Now they're going to get their shot, thanks to a decision by the International Olympic Committee to allow "highly qualified" refugees to take part in the Summer...

It's Back: Wrestling Rejoins the Olympics

IOC votes to reinstate it for 2020 Games

(Newser) - Just seven months after it got dumped by the IOC , wrestling has been officially reinstated for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, reports the AP . The sport swatted away challengers for a spot at the Games with ease: Wrestling won 49 votes to 24 votes for baseball-softball and 22 for squash. "...

Games&#39; Strangest Job: Sweat Mopper
 Games' 
 Strangest Job: 
 Sweat Mopper 
olympics
Aug 8, 2012 1:33 PM CDT

Games' Strangest Job: Sweat Mopper

Volunteers compete for elite, but kinda gross, position

(Newser) - One of the most unusual—and sought-after—volunteer positions in the London Olympics? Sweat mopper. These surprisingly high-profile volunteers are in charge of keeping the players safe from slips on a wet court, and even though they're not athletes themselves, the job is quite intense. Teams of two moppers...

Federer Misses Out on Gold
 Federer Misses Out on Gold 
olympics
Aug 5, 2012 10:29 AM CDT

Federer Misses Out on Gold

Andy Murray beats him for Olympic top spot in tennis

(Newser) - Andy Murray had Centre Court rocking today, winning gold for the home team and beating Roger Federer 6-2, 6-1, 6-4 in the Olympics tennis final at Wimbledon. The result was a royal rout. Murray swept nine consecutive games, breaking Federer's serve four times in a row. The victory marked...

US Basketball Team Busts Through Olympic Records

Beats Nigeria 156-73

(Newser) - The last group in England with this many records was The Beatles: The US men's Olympic basketball team beat Nigeria 156-73 last night in an epic blowout that answered the Americans' detractors, who had earlier criticized their slow starts and outside shooting. "Our guys just couldn't miss,...

US Grabs Judo Milestone
 US Grabs Judo Milestone 
olympics
Aug 2, 2012 11:43 AM CDT

US Grabs Judo Milestone

Kayla Harrison wins nation's first gold in the sport

(Newser) - For the first time in Olympic history, the United States has taken home a gold medal in judo. Kayla Harrison won the top spot in the 78-kilogram division today, the AP reports. She defeated Britain's Gemma Gibbons, who won silver, throwing her twice in the final. Harrison, a former...

Mom&#39;s Cancer, Family Deaths Kept From China Diver
Mom's Cancer, Family Deaths Kept From China Diver
olympics
Aug 2, 2012 10:36 AM CDT

Mom's Cancer, Family Deaths Kept From China Diver

News hidden from Wu Minxia to ensure success

(Newser) - Wu Minxia won gold yet again for China in the women's synchronized 3m springboard at the London Olympics, making her the first diver to ever take gold at three consecutive Games—but the honor comes at a great cost. Wu's father tells the Shanghai Morning Post that he...

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