China's gymnastics team chief has denied that the country had falsified the ages of two of its squad members to allow them to compete at next month's Beijing Olympics. A report in the New York Times at the weekend said He Kexin and Jiang Yuyuan were not yet 16 as registered, citing previous online registration records and media reports. International Gymnastics Federation (FIGS) rules forbid athletes younger than 16 years old from competing at major championships and the Olympic Games. However, Chinese team manager Zhang Peiwen insisted on Monday that the age of all the members of the team had been recorded according to official documents. ''Our Olympic squads were recently named and we registered their ages according to their identity cards or other legal certifications presented by their regional gymnastics associations, which show they all are over the minimum age for the Olympics,'' Zhang told Xinhua. Suspicions of sports officials altering the age of athletes has long been a feature of Chinese sport. 

Aiming to offer “speedy services” to tourists and fans during the Olympic football tournament, Qinhuangdao authorities have organised a special squad of guides on roller skates. The 50-member squad is called "Angels on the beach" and the volunteers in blue T-shirts will patrol the major avenues and tourist attractions in co-host city Qinhuangdao during the Olympics to provide information. “You can turn to us for road directions, for accommodation information, or to consult about any difficulties you have,” said Li Ying, the captain of the group, pointing to the big-lettered “Roller skate guide” on his T-shirt. The idea came from the city's love for roller skates - it even has an annual celebration for this popular sports; traffic is stopped during the festivities to let skaters roll side by side all along the streets. 

Jacobus Franciscus “Jim” Thorpe won both pentathlon and the decathlon Olympic gold medals in the 1912 Stockholm Games. He also played American football collegiately and professionally, and also played professional baseball and basketball. He lost his Olympic titles when it was found he was paid for playing two seasons of minor league baseball before competing in the games. He struggled with racism throughout much of his life and his accomplishments were publicised with headlines describing him as a “Redskin” and “Indian athlete”. Thorpe was named the greatest athlete of the first half of the twentieth century by the Associated Press (AP) in 1950, and ranked third on the AP list of athletes of the century in 1999. 

Beijing, July 28
Loaded with outrageous talent but mindful of past mistakes, the United States men's basketball team will be checking egos at the door at the Beijing Olympics.

Boasting Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the NBA's Most Valuable Player and its leading scorer, the Americans are among the gold medal favourites along with Spain and Argentina.

Spain won men's gold at the 2006 world championships behind inspired play from Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers team mate Pau Gasol, who will be key to Spanish ambitions in China.

The sharp-shooting Argentines, who usurped the U.S. as champions at the 2004 Athens Olympics, will also be a serious threat to American hopes of redemption.

In the women's competition, American Becky Hammon's controversial defection to Russia not only triggered dismay but could give her adopted nation a vital edge in Beijing.

The U.S. have won 12 Olympic men's titles but their supremacy has waned in recent years. They finished with bronze four years ago and were third at the 2006 world championships.

The arrogance of old has been replaced by humility, individualism by team chemistry, and head coach Mike Krzyzewski preaches respect to his players.

"For too long we've been saying it's our game," he told reporters on naming his 12-man squad. "It's really the world's game. You can't be arrogant and win."

The dirty dozen who bulldozed and trash-talked their way to gold at the 1996 Atlanta Games, in particular, did little for the image of American basketball.

The current crop, who open their Olympic campaign against hosts China on Aug. 10, have worked hard to ensure similar public relations disasters are not repeated.

"Dream Team" labels, first bestowed on the U.S. team featuring Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird which won gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, are not welcome.

Basketball will be one of the hottest tickets at the Beijing Games, the host team having been given a huge boost by the return of towering Houston Rockets centre Yao Ming after he broke a foot in an NBA game in February.

While an ambush of the explosive U.S. team appears a tall order, home court advantage and the Yao factor could give China an outside hope of a first Olympic medal in men's basketball.

Russia, who stunned Spain in last year's European championship final in Madrid, and a three-times Olympic bronze medallists Lithuania will also be strong medal contenders.

Hammon, a 10-year veteran of the WNBA, has been called a traitor for opting for Russian citizenship in order to play at the Beijing Games.

U.S. coach Anne Donovan blasted Hammon's decision as "unpatriotic".

"The jersey that I wear has never made me who I was," Hammon told ESPN. "I'm absolutely 100 percent still an American. This is an opportunity to fulfil my dream of playing in the Olympics."

Donovan is bidding to lead the U.S. to a fourth successive Olympic gold after they were relegated to bronze at the 2006 worlds.

Australia underlined their pedigree by taking the title in Brazil, raising expectations of a first Olympic gold after taking silver behind the U.S. in 2000 and 2004.

Led by arguably the world's best player in Lauren Jackson, the "Opals" have the talent but they can expect a backlash from the Americans, whose pride was stung by their Brazilian flop.

Hosts China will be an outside bet for a medal, although recent history suggests Australia, the U.S. and Russia have a stranglehold on the podium places. — Reuters

Hong Kong, July 28
Athletes competing at the Beijing Olympics will face bigger mental issues than physical problems coping with China’s pollution, Netherlands soccer coach Foppe De Haan said today.

De Haan told a news conference his players had undergone a rigorous training programme to get themselves in the best physical shape to handle the heat and humidity. But he said nothing could prepare them for the psychological challenge of playing under a thick blanket of haze.

“This is not a physical problem, this is a mental thing,” he said. “I heard today that you can’t see the (Beijing) stadium from 500 metres away. That's awful I think, but there is no point complaining, it is the same for everyone.”

The Dutch, who are playing a warm-up tournament in Hong Kong with the United States, Cameroon and Ivory Coast, were given a stark warning of the potential problems they face.

De Haan ordered all the players to undergo a month of intense physical training, including spending time in humidity chambers that replicated the climate in Beijing, and two players, who had never had any previous problems with asthma, started to develop symptoms.

“We did a three-week programme with a lot of work on aerobic fitness,” De Haan said. “We took all the players to a hospital in The Hague for tests and most of them were fine but two players started to show signs.”

De Haan said the two unidentified players had reported their conditions to the International Olympic Committee in case they needed to take any medication during the Games. Cameroon coach Martin Mpile said he had no major concerns about the pollution although he conceded the humidity could force some of the more athletic teams to curb their natural instincts to conserve their energy.

“That’s why we have come here early, to adapt to the conditions,” he said. “I don’t know how the other teams will (cope) but we’re going to try and play our own game.

US coach Peter Nowak said he did not expect the conditions would make it any easier for his team to upset some of the top countries. “There are no more miracles in soccer anymore,” he said. “'Anyone can beat anyone on any given day. The conditions are the same for everyone. It's not going to be easy, but we know that.” — Reuters

New Delhi, July 28
A favourable draw in the Beijing Olympics is what all Olympians will dream of. But that’s not what India’s braveheart boxer Akhil Kumar bothers about. Akhil, who is among India’s best bets to fetch a medal from China, says he would go full throttle than counting on a favourable draw to win the Olympics laurels.

“I am not bothered about the draw as I can’t keep worrying about a favourable draw and keep eyeing a medal in the Olympics at the same time. I have to go full stretch and look to defeat whoever comes my way,” the ace pugilist said. Akhil, who could not make a mark in the 2004 Olympics, said he was prepared for any eventuality if that ensures India a medal in the quadrennial sporting extravaganza.

“I will give my everything. Even if it means breaking bones or inviting any injury, I don’t mind as long as it gives me a medal in the Olympics,” he said. Akhil booked his ticket to Beijing at the inaugural Asian Olympic qualifying tournament in Bangkok, when he made Athens Olympics silver medalist Worapoj Petchkoom of Thailand bite the dust.

A gold medalist in the 2005 Commonwealth Championships and 2006 Commonwealth Games, Akhil said his punches have improved a lot which is fetching him good dividends. “Although there has not been any change in my techniques as such, frequency of my punches have improved a lot and it is fetching me important points,” said the Bhiwani pugilist.

However, as the time for the Olympics is approaching, Akhil is indulging more in soul searching and visiting various temples, hoping for a divine intervention. “I am doing meditation everyday. I am also visiting temples and places of worship. I have a blind faith in the almighty, it gives me inner strength,” he said. — PTI 

London, July 28
British triple jumper Phillips Idowu said he would keep his hair dyed red to bring good luck in Beijing, and he was on track for winning Olympic gold. “In China, red is a lucky colour,” the 29-year-old world indoor champion told Reuters.

“I didn't realise that - my hair was red all through the season but someone told me that and Beijing was coming up and I thought let me keep it that way,” he said at a news conference ahead of the London Grand Prix this weekend.

China has long seen red as a lucky colour that wards off evil spirits - hence the red walls of the Forbidden City, gifts of cash in red envelopes and red paper cut-outs in Chinese homes.

Idowu, known for sporting an array of hair colours and facial piercings, will be competing at his third Olympics next month having failed to win a medal in Sydney and Athens.

Idowu set a new British and Commonwealth indoor record with the sixth furthest jump of all-time in March, and recorded this year's longest jump at the British Olympic trials earlier this month. — Reuters

New Delhi, July 28
Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar seems to have put the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in a Catch-22 situation after his sojourn with the World XI during his injury break from international cricket recently.

It is reported that Sachin, who had skipped the tri-angular series in Bangladesh and the Asia Cup in Pakistan due to a groin injury, played alongside rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) recruit Dinesh Mongia at the School Ground in Essex on June 27.

Now the question is will the Board ban Tendulkar from playing international cricket for playing with a rebel player as they had stopped three of their contracted players - Piyush Chawla, VVS Laxman and Ajit Agarkar - from signing up for various English counties as those counties had ICL players in their ranks.

It may sound a bit rude and unreasonable on part of the BCCI to ask three of their players not to associate themselves with teams having ICL connections and then turn a blind eye when the best batsman in the world, who is on the verge of creating cricket history by overtaking Brian Lara's Test aggregate runs, breaks the same rules and plays alongside or against a team with a rebel player.

It is not that the public would have pointed a finger if ICL players had played in our domestic setup or had gone on to play for the country as to them performance counts and it is immaterial if that particular player is from ICL, Indian Premier League (IPL) or from the moon as long as he does his job for the team.

For that matter the cricket loving public would not bother if Sachin plays with any rebel Indian player as long as he does well to prove his fitness level. But if the BCCI rule is broken by any player, including the great Tendulkar, the general public and the affected cricketers have the right to ask for explanations and the Indian board better be ready with a satisfactory answer.

However, this new turn of event has only made the BCCI officials look like fools as the other players, including Chawla, Laxman and Agarkar and others who are sure to get a chance to play in English county in the near future can turn back and ask the same officials, including IPL chairman and commissioner Lalit Modi, what action has been taken against a senior player like Sachin for breaking the rules.

Now with Sachin Tendulkar playing alongside a rebel player (Mongia) in England, it will be interesting to see what kind of answer the BCCI will come up with or will they brush this incident under the carpet like they have done in the past. —UNI 

Toronto, July 28
Rafael Nadal crushed Nicolas Kiefer 6-3, 6-2 to win the Rogers Masters on Sunday, claiming his seventh title in 2008 and fifth in a row since mid-May. Playing his first event since an epic five-set victory over Roger Federer in the Wimbledon final on July 6, Nadal completed a smooth transition from grass to hard-court to move within sight of Federer’s world number one ranking.

The 22-year-old Spaniard, who extended his winning steak to 29 matches, overwhelmed his 31-year-old German opponent in 90 minutes becoming the third youngest player behind Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connors to accumulate 30 titles.

Nadal, who had won his four previous finals at Hamburg, Roland Garros, Queen's Club and Wimbledon, has not lost since a second round exit against compatriot Juan Carlos Ferrero at the Masters Series in Rome on May 7.

The 31-year-old Kiefer, who won his last tournament in 2000 before Nadal had joined the Tour, would not be intimidated by the muscular Spaniard but was quickly put under pressure. Nadal capitalised on his first break chance to surge ahead 3-2 then took the opening set with another break when Kiefer double-faulted.

It was not until the fifth game of the second set that the unseeded German got his first break opportunity but could not convert any of three chances, Nadal holding serve. The muscular Spaniard immediately broke Kiefer to go up 4-2 and swept the last four games to take his second Canadian hardcourt title.

While Nadal has downplayed his unofficial status as the world's top player he now heads to the Masters Series stop in Cincinnati with Federer's number one ranking within his grasp. Nadal had arrived in Toronto 770 points behind Federer but trimmed the lead to 300 with his victory and will have a chance to topple the Swiss master from the top spot he has held since Feb. 2, 2004. Federer lost to Frenchman Gilles Simon in his opening match. — Reuters

Melbourne, July 28
A series of bombings in India over the weekend has raised concern about the safety of cricketers across the region. Media reports in Australia suggests that there is some amount of concern over Australia’s Test tour in October following the serial blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad.

Officials from Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) will arrive in India in August for a pre-planned inspection, and may now also bring along a security consultant with them.

Cricket Australia general manager of public affairs, Peter Young discussed the latest bombings with Chief Executive James Sutherland. “We have a principle which supports a consistent process of having a pre-tour inspection and assessment before every tour,” Young was quoted as saying by The Australian.

However, Tim May, chief executive of the Federation of International Cricketers Associations (FICA) said it was unfair to compare the Jaipur bombing to the situation in Pakistan.

“Pakistan has had 66 suicide bombings within its country over the past 12 months with over 3,000 people killed and 17 of those attacks have been in the venues of the Champions Trophy,” May said. “There was no security assessment that there was the likelihood of any further bombs going off in Jaipur.”

Australia are scheduled to play four-Test series in India in October. The first Test is scheduled to be played in Bangalore, where nine explosions on Friday night killed two people and injured 12. A day later, blasts in Ahmedabad killed at least 30 people and injured more than 100. —UNI

New Delhi, July 28
The Federation of International Cricketers Association has strongly objected to the ICC drawing parallel between bomb blasts in Jaipur and Pakistan, saying it was an "irresponsible" and "mischievous attempt" to dress up the reality to woo teams to strife-torn Pakistan for Champions Trophy.

FICA Chief Executive Tim May said it was unfair to compare the two blasts because in Jaipur there were no warnings for further blasts during the IPL while Pakistan was known for being a hub of violence.

"It is a mischievous attempt by the ICC to compare the two events. There is a vast difference. In Jaipur, there was no intelligence of further attacks. In this case there is a well documented history against westerners in most cities of Pakistan," May was quoted as saying by 'cricketnirvana'.

"It is a standard business practice in most companies. But let's face it, there are only so many questions and so many answers. Ultimately the man on the street is smart enough to see through this. We can bicker about this, but there is a difference between reality and perception. But the reference to Jaipur was irresponsible," he said.

May said the ICC was "desperate" to stage the event in Pakistan. "I will go with an open mind. We would have made significant progress if the players are comfortable with what we see in Pakistan. All the stakeholders need to be satisfied.," he said. 
— PTI 

Colombo, July 28
Ripping apart already bruised and battered Indian team for their below-par show in the first Test, Sri Lankan media said the visitors did not look a side fit to play Test cricket.

"They did not look a side fit to play at this level of the game. The Indian batsmen looked feetless wonders as they stayed manacled to the crease and refused to attack the spin. Had the Indian top order done that, such a disgraceful defeat would not have been slapped on them," the state-run newspaper 'Daily News' said of India's disgraceful defeat.

It would require a cricketing miracle for the visitors to show their resolve and resilience to come good and pocket the series in the next two Tests, the paper said.

Indian batsmen were handed an innings and 239-run defeat by Sri Lankans with a day to spare in the first Test, thanks to the spin duo of Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis.

The report wondered how the Indians who taught the world how to play spin could be so disgraceful and "spin shelled and shocked".

"For the Indians, who taught the world to win matches with spin, this batting display was an utter disgrace. No one expected the Indians to capitulate in this poor fashion.

"In name they had some of the best batsmen going in the game. But the meek manner in which they surrendered was a shame and brought their game down to the depths," it said.

The paper felt spin wonder Mendis deserved the man-of-the-match award for his scintillating 8/132 on debut ahead of his senior Muralitharan.

"No one would have faulted the Test adjudicator had he awarded the man-of-the match award to spin sensation Ajantha Mendis," the paper was quoted as saying.

"Muralitharan (who was declared the man-of-the-match) had won this award several times before. Mendis was making his debut. His figures for a debutant were sensational," added the report.

Possibly no other debutant, in Sri Lanka or any other Test playing country, made such a "telling" debut that also earned his side a massive victory, it said in a back page spread article. — PTI 

Galle, July 28
With the humiliating loss in Colombo still rankling the Indian cricket team, Indian opener Gautam Gambhir today asserted that the visitors will find a way to tackle the menacing spin duo of Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis in the second cricket Test starting July 31 here.

"We had a bad Test but now we are very positive. We want to come hard at the Sri Lankans. They have a quality spin attack... Muralitharan is a legend. It will be a fantastic battle because we have guys who can play good spin," Gambhir said. Gambhir insisted that the Sri Lankan spin duo of Mendis and Murali was “not unplayable”.

“You have to bat according to your strength. Mentally, you have to be very sound when your are playing at this level. The wicket looks similar to the one in Colombo,” he said. Gambhir said he would looking to improve upon his performance in the first Test and build on the starts that he has been getting. “As an opener, my priority is to give a good start and convert it into a long innings. The previous match, I got a good start but could not convert it. However, in the forthcoming match, I want to convert my start into a big innings," he said. — PTI 

Colombo, July 28
Seam bowler Dammika Prasad has earned his first call up to the Sri Lanka Test squad in the side's only change for the second cricket Test against India starting on Thursday.

The 25-year-old Prasad played in three limited-overs internationals for Sri Lanka in 2006 before succumbing to a back injury. He subsequently performed well for the Sri Lanka Board XI in a warmup match against India earlier this month, taking 3 wickets for 30 runs and 1-28 over two innings.

Sri Lanka cricket media manager Shane Fernando said that other 14 members of the Test squad will be unchanged.

Sri Lanka easily won the first Test of the three-match series by an innings and 239 runs.

Led by Mahela Jayawardene the Sri Lanka squad includes eight specialist batsmen, four pace bowlers and two spinners, while Prasanna Jayawardene is retained as wicketkeeper.

Sri Lanka squad: Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Kumar Sangakkara, Michael Vandort, Malinda Warnapura, Thilan Samaraweera, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Chamara Silva, Prasanna Jayawardene, Chaminda Vaas, Muttiah Muralitharan, Nuwan Kulasekara, Thilina Thushara Mirando, Ajantha Mendis, Chamara Kapugedera and Dammika Prasad. — AP