Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Gymnastics: Kevin Tan was named captain of the U.S. men’s gymnastics team for the Beijing Olympics while Miles Avery, who coaches Paul and Morgan Hamm, was picked to be the assistant coach. This is the first Olympics for Tan, whose grandparents lived in Beijing. A three-time member of U.S. world championship teams, he is the best American on the still rings. He won his third U.S. title on rings earlier this summer, and was fourth in the event at last year’s world championships. Avery, the coach at Ohio State, also served as the assistant in 2004. The U.S. men won their first Olympic medal in 20 years in Athens, a silver, and Paul Hamm became the only American man to win the all-around title.
Presidential sendoff: President Bush gave U.S. Olympians a rousing White House send-off to next month’s games in Beijing, urging them Monday to “compete swifter, higher and stronger” but also be mindful they will be “ambassadors of liberty” to the people of China and elsewhere. Bush is attending the opening ceremonies and the first few days of the Aug. 8-24 games. Standing in the Rose Garden with about two dozen athletes who will compete in the Beijing Olympics and the corresponding Paralympics there in September, Bush said he is “fired up” to watch some of the competition. “I can’t wait to salute our athletes, and I can’t wait to share in the joy of your triumphs,” he said.
London Games over budget? Preparations for the 2012 London Olympics are being affected by the global financial turmoil, which could make the project go over budget. The Olympic Delivery Authority published the warning Monday in its annual report, which stressed that strong progress in the last year means preparations are on track with four years to go. “There will always be financial challenges on a multi-billion pound program of this complexity,” wrote ODA chief executive David Higgins.
Associated Press