Archive for the ‘Beijing Olympics’ Category
Kashgar, China, June 18 Kyodo - The Olympic torch relay passed through the mainly Muslim region of Xinjiang for a second day Wednesday, amid massive security.
Only spectators with permits were allowed to watch the event and people living along the route were told not to go out and to close their windows and curtains.
Security officials were deployed about every 5 metres as the torch was run through the streets. At least one man who tried to watch the relay without a permit was arrested by police.
Chinese security officials say they have broken up at least three terrorist plots organized by Muslim separatists in Xinjiang this year, although exiled Muslims from the region say the terrorist threat has been exaggerated to justify tighter security and Chinese government control.
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Tags: Kashgar City, Olympic Torch, Xinjiang
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Beijing has been criticized for doing business with the Sudanese government despite ongoing violence in Sudan’s western region of Darfur. More than 200,000 people have died, and another 2.5 million have been displaced. In 2006, a report (PDF) from a UN Panel of Experts implied that China was Sudan’s main arms dealer, though China’s special envoy on Darfur says that China is only supplying 8 percent of Sudan’s total arms imports. Regardless, China is Sudan’s largest trading partner, purchasing up to two-thirds of the country’s oil exports.
Some national Olympic teams, including the Americans, plan to arrive only at the last minute and to bring their own supplies of food and water.
Because of China’s investment in Sudan, Mia Farrow, an actress and former UNICEF goodwill ambassador, has led a campaign to dub the games the “Genocide Olympics.” She says she hopes to shame Olympic sponsors into getting China to divest in Sudan. U.S. director Steven Spielberg has also expressed concern with China’s investment in Darfur. In February 2008, he publicly withdrew as an artistic adviser for the games, claiming that China “should be doing more” (BBC) to end the “continued human suffering” in the war-torn region.
Experts disagree on the efficacy of such outside criticism. Pei suggests Beijing may moderate its Sudan policy to a slight degree, but adds that “if the level of shrillness is too high, then nothing will be accomplished.” He believes increased criticism from abroad will only serve to unite the Chinese government and its people. In an interview with CFR.org, former Olympic CEO Mitt Romney notes that Olympic sponsors are financially “locked in” for the Beijing games, regardless of any attempts to shame them. He adds that “taking action which in any way disrespects China—or is seen as being disrespectful or ‘taking away face,’ if you will, from China—would have the exact opposite effect than had been intended.”
But other experts say Beijing is watching U.S. public opinion on how it handles Khartoum. In a January/February 2008 article for Foreign Affairs, Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt and Andrew Small write that Beijing has already changed its Sudan policy because of the public outcry on Darfur. In 2006, China abandoned its policy of noninterference and began pressuring Sudan into accepting the deployment of more than twenty thousand UN and African Union troops in Darfur. China has also sent close to three hundred of its own military engineers to Sudan. “China’s shifting diplomacy reflects not a fundamental change in its values but a new perception of its national interests,” they say.
Source: http://www.cfr.org/publication/13270/chinas_torch_song.html?breadcrumb=%2F#4
Tags: Tibet, tibetian
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LUSAKA, June 18 (Xinhua) — Zambian long distance runner Tonny Wamulwa upgraded at the weekend his credential for Beijing Olympic Games, beating the qualifying time in a championship in Spain, according to Times of Zambia.
Wamulwa, who had earlier earned his ticket to Beijing as a wildcard entry, finally qualified after a shining performance at the Spain Grand Prix in his speciality, the 5,000 meters category.
According to results released by an excited National Olympic Committee (NOC) secretary general Hezel kennedy in Kitwe of Copper belt province of Zambia on Tuesday Wamulwa, presently on a high performance camp in Kenya, clocked 13 minutes and 25.54 seconds and clearly beat the Olympic qualifying time of 15:28.00.
“This is pretty exciting and a plus for Zambia because it means we are sending more competent athletes to the Olympic, athletes just as competent as anyone else there.” she said.
Zambia has six athletes going into the Olympic, four of them have already deservedly qualified while the other two both swimmers would be going there on a wild card entry.
According to kennedy, Wamulwa was on a circuit in Europe and after excelling at a race in Turin, where he came first in the 3,000 meters, he was flown to Avellino, Spain where he bettered his previous time in the 5,000-meters and eventually qualified to the Olympic.
“This is great and means that for the first time in a very longtime, there will be no wild cards in athletics this year. A definite plus for the efforts of the NOC-IOC scholarship program,” she said.
Tags: Tonny Wamulwa, Zambian
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INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Divers from around the country are in the Circle City this week with one thing on their minds: Beijing.
At the IU Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI downtown, dreams can come true. For the next five days divers will showcase years of training with the hope of qualifying for this year’s Olympics.
“I think it’s the ultimate goal pretty much for anyone. It’s like the biggest competition in the world, so just getting to go there and know that you’re one of the best would be amazing,” said Ariel Rittenhouse, a springboard diver from California.
Divers ranging in age from 14 to 30 compete in two types of diving: springboard and platform. The highest platform is ten meters high, the equivalent to jumping off of a three-story building.
Many of these divers have been training since they were very young and they are dedicated. They often have to get up at 5 a.m. to jog and practice, and many are home schooled so they have enough time to train.
Platform diver David Boudia from Noblesville has won three national championships. He now has his eye on the ultimate prize. But does he ever get burnt out?
“Definitely, I think every athlete goes through that, and those are the times you need to push through, because that’s what’s going to make you the best diver possible, so when you get tired and sore, you have to push through that,” said Boudia.
This is the fifth time Indianapolis has hosted the Olympic Diving Trials, with the last competition here in 1996.
Indiana Sports Corp. works hard to get the trials. They say it helps the city build on the reputation as a place where big events are held, plus it is fun for the people who live here.
“For Indianapolis folks, it is their best chance to see Olympic competitors this year unless you’re going over to Beijing. We have some of the world’s top athletes, and the nation’s top divers for sure, that have converged on our city to fight for an Olympic birth to represent their country,” said John Dedman, Indiana Sports Corp.
Preliminaries start at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Semifinal and preliminary sessions continue Thursday and Friday, and finals are this weekend. For a complete schedule of events, click here.
Tickets start at $5. You can buy tickets at the door or at Ticketmaster.
Report by Jeannie Crofts, WISH.
Tags: beijing, Circle City
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