Olympics mints advertising gold

The Beijing Olympics may see the greatest ad spending ever, as firms try to etch brands into the hearts and wallets of China's 1.3 billion.

Sir Martin Sorrell, head of the world's No. 2 media group WPP, says China's tremendous economic growth produces about two times that in ad industry expansion.

Dan Sloan reports.

Phelps's dream still on, India shines at last

India celebrated their first individual Olympic gold medal on Monday and American swimmers kept Michael Phelps's dream alive by a finger-tip.

The usually cool Phelps screamed and pumped the air with joy as his U.S. team mates helped maintain his charge for an unprecedented eight golds in the pool, pipping France in the 4x100 meters freestyle relay.

Indians banged drums and danced in the streets after the world's second most populous nation won their first individual Olympic title with Abhinav Bindra's gold in the men's 10m air rifle.

"Now I have lots of work ahead as he is the country's most eligible bachelor," joked his mother Babli Bindra, speaking to Reuters from the family home in Chandigarh.

Like many winners in Beijing on Monday, Bindra needed a remarkable comeback, shooting a near perfect hit at the end.

"It's the thrill of my life," he said after a win that left China's defending champion Zhu Qinan sobbing with only silver.

A familiar shadow fell over the Games when a Spanish cyclist became the first competitor to fail a drugs test in China.

Maria Isabel Moreno was caught taking the endurance-boosting EPO drug, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said.

The IOC tested the entire Spanish cycling team three times before competition began, getting tough after a series of past scandals have marred the reputation of the sport and country.

"It's time that Spanish authorities start to do some concretely," the president of the International Cycling Union, Pat McQuaid, told Reuters. "For years they have not been tough enough on doping and this is the result of their leniency."

Phelps is counting off the golds in world records as he bids to surpass Mark Spitz's record of seven golds in 1972.

Again watched by U.S. President George Bush in the Water Cube, he left the Americans second after the first leg, trailing to a French team who had vowed to "smash" them.

With just a lap to go, France's former record holder Alain Bernard led by half a body length, but an astonishing comeback from Jason Lezak took the gold by a finger-tip.

"Jason finished that race better than we could even ask for," Phelps said. "I was so fired up."

The Americans took nearly four seconds off the world record, a big margin in swimming. In all, five relay teams beat it, while Eamon Sullivan claimed the individual world record from Bernard when he led the Australian team off on the first lap.

SHIMMERING POOL

The event left Phelps with two golds, after he destroyed his own world record on Sunday to win the 400 individual medley.

Having won six in Athens, Phelps needs only two more to have the most golds of any Olympian.

Also bringing the crowd to their feet in the shimmering pool venue, the most decorated Asian swimmer of all time, Japan's Kosuke Kitajima, justified his pre-race hype by shaving 0.22 seconds off the world record to win the 100 breaststroke.

Women swimmers were not to be outdone.

Rebecca Adlington won Britain's first Olympic women's swimming title in nearly half a century with a last-gasp victory in the 400 freestyle after being fourth at the final turn.

Australia's Libby Trickett had gone into the 2004 Games as world record holder for 100 freestyle but burst into tears the first time she saw the pool and failed to make the final.

This time she overcame another attack of nerves to claim gold in the women's 100 butterfly.

"Before the race I felt as if I was going to vomit I was that nervous," she said.

Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry had vowed to show her nation in a positive light in China despite its economic and political crisis. She did just that by shaving 0.20 seconds off the world record for the 100 backstroke during her semi-final.

The tennis tournament got into full swing after rain delays, Spain's Rafael Nadal surviving a scare to defeat Italian Potito Starace 6-2 3-6 6-2. Switzerland's Roger Federer shook off recent wobbles to cruise through in straight sets, while Serena Williams also recorded a comfortable win in the women's first round.

The pressure of expectations may be getting to China's shooters, another gold hopeful failing in the women's trap to add to a string of disappointments.

But it was a happier story for the hosts in the diving competition, with a second gold in two days thanks to a near-perfect performance by world champions Lin Yue and Huo Liang in the men's synchronized 10m platform diving.

Chen Yanqing won another weightlifting gold for China in the women's 58kg. The daughter of poor peasants, she defended her title to become the first woman to win two weightlifting golds.

Georgian and Russian shooters have embraced warmly despite their nations' fighting in South Ossetia and there was no animosity when Cuba met the United States in women's volleyball.

Cuba crushed the Americans in straight sets, then wished them best of luck for the rest of the tournament. By early evening on Monday, China led the medal table with eight gold, to four for South Korea and the U.S. on three.

The hosts hope to knock the U.S. off their perch at the top of the final medals table, to underline China's growing political and economic might.

Gay ready to break 9.7 to take 100m gold

Tyson Gay thinks he might need to break 9.7 seconds to win the Olympic 100 meters final and has been focused on doing just that since Usain Bolt ran his world record of 9.72 in May.

Gay was not far behind with his American record 9.77 in July and got an idea of what his promised land would feel like when, backed by an "illegal" wind, he roared to 9.68 seconds to win the U.S. trials.

"When Bolt ran 9.72, I realized that I had to run a 9.6 to beat him and that's what I trained my mind to do," Gay told a news conference on Monday.

"The record can go and the guys can go '9.6'. I did it with a lot of wind but I feel I can go there without wind.

"This is one of the hottest 100s in history, there hasn't been as much hype about it for a long time."

Gay's confidence comes despite his lack of action in the last month following the hamstring strain that ended his chances of making the 200 in Beijing. He spent the time in rehabilitation and said his recovery was complete.

"I'm fully confident my hamstring is 100 percent," he said. "I don't feel any aches or twitches, I've been staying hydrated and I'm confident my body will hold up."

"BIT OF A PANIC"

Gay, who pulled up during the 200 heats at the U.S. trials, admitted he had been in a "bit of a panic" at the time.

"It really hurt when it first happened," said Gay.

"I was really upset, the same thing happened in 2004 and that memory rose up and started messing with me," he said.

"Athletes have a tendency to think they can do anything. Now I definitely know I have to look after my body a bit better."

Gay's absence from the big European competitions turned the focus on Bolt and fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell but the American said it was impossible to pick a favorite.

"I guess it should be the world record holder but Powell is very confident right now," he said.

"There is pressure on Bolt and I don't know how he's taking it, he's a young guy and he likes to have fun. Regardless of what he says, people are expecting him to win the gold medal. I'm in the back but I've had some good practices.

"To have three guys who have run 9.7, I think it's amazing, and I can't overlook (Americans) Walter Dix and Darvis Patton, or any of the others."

Win or lose in the August 16 final, Gay, who says he is loving life in the athletes' village, is making sure he enjoys the whole Olympic experience.

"I think the torch was lit at 12.01 so it was actually on my birthday," said the world champion, who turned 26 on Saturday.

"The ceremony was the best experience of my life, words can't even describe it."

Phelps breaks Olympic record in 200m fly

American superfish Michael Phelps continued his quest for eight Olympic gold medals as he broke the Olympic record in the heats of the men's 200-metres butterfly at the Water Cube on Monday evening.

Australia's Travis Nederpelt failed to qualify for Tuesday's semi-finals though, swimming the 18th fastest time of 1 minute and 56.64 seconds.

Phelps touched the wall in 1:53.70, just hours after he was part of the 4X100m relay team that miraculously won gold against the French team.

The relay had been touted as the biggest stumbling block to Phelps's bid for an unprecedented eight gold medals at one Games.

"I think Michael knows we didn't do this for him," team-mate Jason Lezak said. "He was a part of it, and we were part of it.

"Whether he wins eight medals or not, it wasn't going to be our responsibility for that to happen. We all gave it our best efforts, so we didn't come up short.

"He's an amazing athlete, probably the best ever in the sport. Regardless of what happens here, he will go down in history like that."

Pellegrini smashes record

Meanwhile, Italian Federica Pellegrini set a new world record in the final heat of the women's 200-metres freestyle.

Pellegrini, a silver medallist from Athens, touched home in a time of 1 minute and 55.45 seconds to lower Laure Manaudou's previous world mark by seventh-hundredths of a second.

"That was revenge for what happened this morning," said Pellegrini, who finished fifth in the 400m free. "I didn't want to set a world record, but I felt good in the water."

Pellegrini was well behind world record pace at the final turn, but stormed home to top the second-fastest swimmer of the night, Slovenia's Sara Isakovic by 41 hundredths of a second.

Australian duo Bronte Barratt and Linda McKenzie also progressed to the semi-finals, as did Alicia Coutts and Stephanie Rice after strong swims in the heats of the women's 200m individual medley.

-ABC/AFP

Kookaburras crush Canada in Olympic opener

Youngster Des Abbot scored three goals on his Olympic debut as Australia's men's hockey team cruised through its opening group match against Canada on Monday evening.

The Kookaburras had no difficulties recording a 6-1 victory, even with captain Bevan George and talisman Jamie Dwyer making early exits through injury.

Canada managed its sole goal in the 38th minute.

The match was marred by a minor scuffle minutes from the finish when two players collided close to the sideline, sending the Canadian sprawling to the turf.

Sprinters speculate future winners

Former 100 metres world record holders Donovan Bailey and Maurice Greene pick their favourites to win the event.

Tyson Gay, Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell - who is going to be fastest man at the 2008 Olympics?

Usain Bolt is the fastest of the trio, clocking 9.72 in May, but former world record holders Donovan Bailey and Maurice Greene gave their opinion as to who they believe will win gold in the 100 metres.

U.S. beat China in hot ticket game

The U.S. men's basketball team overpowered Olympic hosts China 101-70 on Sunday after a pre-game huddle with President George W. Bush.

In one of the hottest ticket contests of the Beijing Games, giant Chinese centre Yao Ming triggered a deafening roar from a sellout crowd of 18,000 after scoring the opening basket.

Led by the high-flying Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the NBA's leading scorer, the Americans stormed back to take a 49-37 halftime advantage and never looked back.

Bush had playfully bumped shoulders with the players in a court-side corridor prior to the game.

His father, former U.S. President George Bush, also greeted the American players, with Carmelo Anthony hugging him and asking, "What's up, pops?"

The blockbuster Group B opener was likely the most-viewed sporting contest ever in China, with hundreds of millions believed to be watching on television.

"This is something I will treasure as a memory for the rest of my life," Yao told reporters. "It felt great, all the flags and cheering."

Heavily defended, Yao made just three of 10 shots and finished with 13 points, while Dwyane Wade scored a game-high 19 points and James added 18 for the gold medal favorites.

CROWD ENERGY

"I had five dunks in one game -- it was amazing," said Bryant, the NBA's most valuable player. "The last time I had five dunks in a game I was 17. That's because of the energy of this crowd. You could feel the electricity. It was amazing."

Meanwhile, Argentina's defense of their Olympic title suffered a blow when they were upset 79-75 by Lithuania in Group A.

Denver Nuggets forward Linas Kleiza nailed an off-balance three-point shot with 2.1 seconds left to seal a dramatic win for the Lithuanians.

"It's very special to beat Argentina in our first game," Kleiza said. "It was definitely an important game for us. We are just a small country."

World champions Spain, in contrast, had too much firepower for Greece in their Olympic opener, rolling to an 81-66 victory in Group B.

Earlier, Dirk Nowitzki's Germany crushed Angola 95-66 in Group B, while European champions Russia thrashed Iran 71-49 and Croatia beat Australia 97-82 in Group A.

(Additional reporting by Simon Evans; Editing by Steve Ginsburg and Ralph Gowling)

Trickett, Schipper lead Aussie swim charge

Australia's swimming team will be looking to build on the two medals it won yesterday when day two of the swimming finals gets under way at the Beijing Olympics.

Stephanie Rice won gold with a world record in the 400m individual medley, while the women's 4x100m relay team won bronze behind the Netherlands.

Australia has several strong chances to add to its medal tally, starting with Libby Trickett and Jess Schipper in the 100m butterfly.

World champion Trickett will start favourite in the event, with Schipper also a strong medal chance after the two both won their respective semi-finals.

Queenslander Bronte Barratt will swim from lane two in the 400m freestyle final after qualifying fifth-fastest on Sunday evening.

Brenton Rickard qualified third-fastest in the 100m breaststroke, but it will be the men's 4x100m relay that will be the feature race.

The US, France and Australia all went under the world record in the heats last night, catching Australia's Leith Brodie by surprise.

"Personally, I didn't think we could go that quick but it's great to see that time up there," he said.

Brodie and Patrick Murphy will be replaced by Eamon Sullivan and Ashley Callus for the final, and Murphy says the Australians are a big chance.

"I mean we've got two of our most experienced athletes back home and obviously it's looking pretty promising," he said.

Head coach Alan Thompson says the relay team will face a tough battle in its quest for gold.

"It's going to be a tough race though, the French are bringing in two guys, the Americans are bringing in three guys, so it's gonna be tough and the Italians won't be far behind us, so it's going to be a real dogfight in there," he said.

The 100m butterfly final is due to start at 12:21pm AEST.

US spears fencing gold

Aug 10 - Fencer Mariel Zagunis won the first U.S. gold in Beijing, further minting an American rise from obscurity to the leading-edge of the sport.

The 23-year-old was the first American to capture gold in fencing saber in 100 years when she won in Athens, while Zagunis says after a 1-2-3 U.S. sweep in individual saber medals, a team win is now expected.

Dan Sloan reports from Beijing.

U.S. men demolish 4x100 free record

The United States men's swim team, fielding a supposedly second-string relay line-up, smashed their own 4x100 meters freestyle world record in the Olympic qualifiers on Sunday.


The quartet, who rested their leading lights including powerhouse Michael Phelps, roared into the finals in a time of 3:12.23 that destroyed the record of 3:12.46 set at the 2006 Pan-Pacific championship in Canada.



Phelps, who can expect to compete in the final to continue his bid for a record eight golds in a single Olympics, had already won his first title of the Games in the 400 individual medley while he also qualified for the 200 freestyle semi-finals.

The world champions will face their toughest opponents in France, who were without 100 world record holder Alain Bernard but still qualified inside the old world record in 3:12.36.

Third placed Australia, with 50-metre world record holder Eamon Sullivan yet to figure, also broke the previous record in 3:12.41.

"That was fantastic, I can't complain much about today," said Matt Grevers, who swam the anchor leg for the United States.

"We've been talking all week about breaking that world record, the prelim guys, to show the final guys we're pretty good."

All squad members who swim in the qualifiers, even if not selected for the final, still get any medals won.

The record looks sure to be slashed further on Monday. Although the final line-up has yet to be confirmed, the United States are likely to summon Phelps, Jason Lezak and Garrett Weber-Gale alongside Sunday's qualifier Cullen Jones.

"That relay out there tonight, that's a great relay. We're real glad they wanted to break that world record but tomorrow, two seconds better than that record will not win," said U.S. head coach Eddie Reese.

"The relay is going to be fast. The French were real, real good and they left off their world record holder and the second fastest guy at their trials. They're already two and a half seconds faster."

The French are likely to add Bernard, who has talked already about "smashing" the Americans in the relay, and Fabien Gilot.

"They didn't look at us. I could feel it, they were a little bit afraid of us," said French anchorman Frederick Bousquet of the Americans attitude to them in the ready room.

"Our goal was to beat the world record tonight. In a way we still did it.

"We did what we wanted do. Our coach told us that it was better to be second. It's looking very good for tomorrow. Fabien and Alain watched the race from the sofa and I know they'll have only one thing in mind tomorrow, give it everything."

Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice poses with her gold medal

Stephanie Rice with gold medal

Source:	Al Bello, Getty Images
Published:	Sunday, August 10, 2008 2:25 AEST

Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice poses with her gold medal after winning the women's 400m individual medley during day two of the Beijing Olympics on August 10, 2008.

Phelps kicks off golden journey

American star Michael Phelps smashed his own world record as he won the 400 metres individual medley in Beijing this morning to kick-start his bid for a record eight golds at this year's Olympics.

Phelps took 1.41 secs off his old mark of 4:05.25 to finish in 4:03.84, the eighth time he has broken the 400m medley world record.

It was his seventh career Olympic gold medal and his ninth Olympic medal overall.

Laszlo Cseh of Hungary took silver in 4:06.16 with Ryan Lochte of the United States finishing with the bronze in 4:08.16.

"I wanted to go 4.03, I didn't know if I would," Phelps said following the race.

"To be honest, I didn't really feel that great.

"And going into the ready room I started getting these kind of like these chills up my body.

"And right then and there I knew I was starting to get more excited."

"I was pretty emotional after that race and I'm pretty excited to have the first one under my belt."

Phelps responded to the challenge of countryman Ryan Lochte in the second 50m of the breaststroke and was never headed from there.

"I wasn't comfortable after the first 200, after seeing everybody so close together.

"It's usually not how it is after the first 200, that's usually the 300 mark.

"I think it made my breaststroke a lot stronger, and at that point, coming home on freestyle it's all adrenaline."

Said Lochte: "It was all over by the freestyle."

Rice claims first Aussie gold

Stephanie Rice has claimed Australia's first medal at the Beijing Olympics, winning gold in the women's 400 individual medley in a world record time of 4.29.45.

Rice blitzed her American rival and former world record holder Katie Hoff, reclaiming the record she set at the Australian trials earlier this year by 1.67 seconds.

It was Australia's first medal of the Games and the country's 400th in Olympic history.

Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe claimed silver from lane one in a time of 4:29.89 with Hoff third in 4:31.71.

Fellow American Elizabeth Beisel, who qualified fastest in the event, finished fourth in 4:34.24.

"I guess it hasn't really kicked in for me, but I know it's such an amazing achievement," Rice said after winning gold.

"I've worked so hard for it and I have no regrets for the preparation I've had.

"I've really given it my all and I'm so excited to have seen it all pay off."

Rice said she just stayed focused on her own race against a strong contingent of opponents.

"I was trying not to think about the end of the race, it was more about the process," she said.

"Going into that race, I've never been able to race Kirsty Coventry, and Katie Hoff and all those girls.

"So it was a new race for me and something I had to really go in to with a different mindset, and really focus on my own race, because everyone has different strengths."

Rice started brilliantly in the opening butterfly leg, swimming two seconds inside the world record time after the first 100 metres.

The Olympic debutant maintained her fantastic first half in the backstroke, stretching her lead over Hoff and 16-year-old Beisel, tipped as an outside threat for the gold medal after a stirring heat swim.

Turning into the penultimate breaststroke leg, Rice's weakest stroke, veteran Coventry looked to be her only threat while Hoff, a much stronger breaststroker, failed to rein in the deficit.

The outcome was purely academic by the time Rice turned into the final 100m freestyle leg, making the final turn 0.74 seconds under world record pace to motor home and kick-start Australia's campaign at the Water Cube.

For Iraq, just getting to Beijing is enough

For Iraq's athletes the Beijing Olympics has been a rollercoaster of high hopes, heartache and relief, and that was before their events started.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) disqualified Iraq for "political interference" in its national committee just weeks before the opening of the Games, derailing the war-torn country's plan to send a team of seven.

Now four of those athletes are in Beijing thanks to a last-minute decision by the IOC to lift its ban.

"We did it. Finally we did it," said a jubilant Government spokesman Ali Aldabbagh, who had flown to the IOC's headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland to negotiate the reversal of the ban.

"Although we faced problems with the IOC, problems in Iraq, problems of getting our athletes here because there is no proper flight and no proper visas, in the end we did it," he told reporters at a flag-raising ceremony on Saturday.

A double-sculls crew, a sprinter and a discus thrower are competing under that flag in Beijing.

Three athletes had to stay at home because their spots were redistributed to other national teams when the ban came into effect.

Sport has given Iraqis arguably their greatest moment of unity since the 2003 fall of Saddam Hussein, when an Iraqi soccer team, including members of all its main warring groups, defeated a heavily favoured Saudi Arabia to win the Asian Cup last year.

But sport has suffered with the rise of sectarian violence in the country, and the reputations and international links of sporting stars have made them and their families targets of criminal gangs.

Sprinter Dana Abdul-Razzaq, the team's only woman, has faced many obstacles to reach Beijing, from a sniper's bullets to a scantiness of adequate training facilities and religious and cultural opposition to female athletes.

The 22-year-old told Reuters in an interview at Baghdad's crumbling Shaab stadium in March that she had come under fire from gunmen twice in the Iraqi capital.

Having survived, she went on to set a new Iraqi record for the 200 metres, running a time of 24.80 seconds at the Arab Games in Cairo last November to lower the previous mark by almost 0.3 of a second. She will run in the 100 metres in Beijing.

"I was disappointed and angry with the IOC ban," she told reporters at Saturday's ceremony.

"Now I'm just happy to be here, and the most important thing for us was the raising of our flag."

Past bans

Afghanistan missed the 2000 Games in Sydney because the Taliban would not allow female athletes to compete and South Africa was suspended for 28 years due to the Apartheid regime.

Former Olympic swimmer Lisa Forrest defied the Australian Government's boycott of the 1980 Moscow Games.

She says the IOC is very strict about the national Olympic Committees being free from political interference.

"South Africa was not banned from Olympic competition because the Government had a policy of Apartheid," she said.

"South Africa was banned because the national Olympic Committee of South Africa went along with the policies of Apartheid that the government set up and didn't act independently.

"So the national Olympic Committee didn't allow mixed races to play games or play sport and that's why they were banned."

-Reuters/ABC

Olympics 2008 Opening Ceremony