Beijing Olympic Games

Rawlinson vows to continue despite Beijing withdrawal

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - World 400 meters hurdles champion Jana Rawlinson has vowed to keep competing until the London 2012 Olympics after being ruled out of the Beijing Games with complications from a toe injury.

Rawlinson, who returned to competition last week in Poland after nine months out with the injury, withdrew from Australia’s Olympic team on Wednesday.

“This decision about my athletics career was the hardest decision I’ve ever made to pull out of the Olympics, especially when I have unfinished business with Athens, and now Beijing,” she said in a televised interview on Australia’s Channel Nine.

“But I really know I will be strong and ready, mentally and physically, when it comes to London.

“This is definitely not the end of us.”

Rawlinson would have been the gold medal favorite at Beijing after news that Russia’s world record holder Yulia Pechyonkina was suffering heart problems and likely to miss the Games.

Leading Americans Lashinda Demus and Christine Spence both missed out on spots for the Games in their country’s trials last week.

The 25-year-old, who won the world title in Japan last year just months after giving birth to her first child, said she realised she would probably not make Beijing after having surgery on the toe earlier this year.

The surgery caused biomechanical changes to her running, which prompted hamstring, Achilles’ tendon, calf muscle and foot injuries, she told the Australian newspaper.

“I’m riddled. My physio is at her wit’s end about what to do,” Rawlinson was quoted as saying.

“It is not like my last Olympics where I was in good shape and had an injury that stopped me for two weeks.

“I can’t remember the last day I woke up and could walk to the toilet without pain because my plantar fascia (on the sole of her foot) feels like it is going to rip off.

“I have not been able to put more than two days in a row together in training for more than 28 weeks, and I’m not arrogant enough to think you can win an Olympic gold medal off five hurdles training sessions.”

(Reporting by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

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World champion Jana Rawlinson out of Olympics

SYDNEY, Australia (AP)—A toe injury and related problems knocked 400-meter hurdles world champion Jana Rawlinson out of the Beijing Olympics on Wednesday, the day she officially was selected as part of her third Australian Summer Games team.

Rawlinson, who won world titles in 2003 and 2007 and was Australia’s best chance of a track gold medal at Beijing, appeared to be on the road to recovery in Poland last week when she competed for the first time in nine months.

But Rawlinson’s manager, James Ward, said Wednesday that complications stemming from the toe injury, including achilles and calf ailments, would prevent her from competing in China.

“Her time in Poland was her slowest in eight years,” Ward said. “She’s done very little training since then, and when she trained on Tuesday, she couldn’t run in a straight line.”

Rawlinson said she had exhausted all medical options.

“I haven’t been able to train for more than two days straight over the past 26 weeks, so I’m not arrogant enough to think that on that basis I’d be able to compete at the Olympics,” she said. “I’m very upset because the Olympic Games has always been a dream of mine, but I’m trying to remain positive and I’m looking beyond the Olympics to other challenges.”

Rawlinson will now switch her focus to next year’s world championships in Berlin, where she will try to become the first Australian runner to win three world titles.

“I love my sport too much to end on this note, so I can definitely say that I will be setting my sights on the next goal, which will hopefully be the world championships next year,” she said.

The 25-year-old Rawlinson won her 2003 title as Jana Pittman and went into the Athens Olympics as one of the favorites, but finished fifth injuring her knee in training.

“It is devastating for her,” Ward said. “She’s very unlucky to have had this happen two Olympics in a row. Both times she’s had to battle injuries. She gave it every opportunity, but it’s not going to happen.”

Updated: 2008-04-10 From: Xinhuanet

BEIJING, April 10 — Austrian swimmer Markus Rogan is poised to shed the label of eternal runner-up.

Having finished second seven times at Olympics and world championships, Rogan led a competitive field in the 100-meter backstroke heats yesterday at the opening session of the short-course world championships in Manchester.

“It’s about (time) to change that,” Rogan said of his two silver medals at the Athens Olympics and five at short- and long-course world championships.

Coming off a 100 and 200 backstroke sweep at the European long-course championships last month, Rogan timed 51.30 seconds over four lengths of the temporary pool inside the MEN Arena. He got off to a slow start but recovered time as the race wore on.

“I wanted to go out fast but it didn’t work,” said Rogan, who trains in Rome with the Italian team.

Stanislav Donets of Russia was second in 51.35 and Liam Tancock of Britain was third in 51.43.

Tancock became the first British swimmer in 18 years to hold a world record when he established a new mark in the 50 back (long course) at the British Olympic trials in nearby Sheffield last week.

Tancock said he was practicing swimming fast in the heats to prepare for the Olympics, when finals will be held in the morning.

“That is what we need to do in Beijing, so that is what I will continue to do in my buildup to the games,” he said.

Overall World Cup champion Randall Bal of the US, a short-course specialist, qualified fourth.

Ryan Lochte, the American who holds the world record of 49.99, did not qualify for the 100 back at the American short-course trials.

The 100 back semifinals were scheduled for later yesterday, with the final today.

Looking to add to his career tally of 16 medals in Olympics and world championships, Massimiliano Rosolino of Italy led the men’s 200 freestyle heats in 1:44.81.

David Carry of Britain was second fastest in 1:45.58, exciting the crowd filled mostly with screaming school children.

“I am the first Brit to compete here and I knew it was important to get the crowd up, which I think I did,” Carry said. “I think tonight will be a great final and I will be looking to improve my time.”

European short-course champion Filippo Magnini of Italy tied with Alexander Sukhorukov of Russia for third.

Magnini, the two-time long-course world champion in the 100 free, does not put this meet atop his priority list. “For me, it is not important to win a medal, but I want to perform well anyway,” Magnini said.

Australian favorites Kenrick Monk and Kirk Palmer struggled somewhat. Monk qualified in sixth and Palmer was eighth. Both were members of the team that set the world record in the 800 freestyle relay at the national short-course championships last year.

Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe, who won gold, silver and bronze at the Athens Olympics, led the women’s 100 back heats in 58.41. Natalie Coughlin, who has the world record, in 56.51, is absent.

Coventry got back in the pool a half hour later and qualified second in the 400 individual medley in 4:33.54. Hannah Miley led heats in 4:29.83, a week after breaking the European long-course record.

Now 19, Freddy Adu fitting into US national team

By SOLANGE REYNER, Associated Press Writer

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. (AP)—Freddy Adu liked the attention. He liked running around soccer fields and trying fancy ball tricks. He liked shooting, he liked scoring and he liked messing around with teammates.

Adu knew some veteran players didn’t appreciate a kid who was trying to have fun—and who was making more money than most of his teammates.

“It was hard,” Adu said in an interview with The Associated Press, “because I felt like the creativity was being coached out of me.”

The creativity is still there. Now older, wiser and starting to play more often with the U.S. national team, the 19-year-old feels more comfortable.

“At times, I wasn’t always welcomed with open arms,” Adu said. “That was definitely the hardest part, was having to deal with a little bit of—quote, unquote—jealousy from some of the older guys because they had been there, done that, and I was getting a lot of attention.”

Adu figures to be a part of the U.S. team at this summer’s Olympics and could play a role in World Cup qualifying, which resumes with the regional semifinals starting Aug. 20 at Guatemala.

The path has not been easy for him.

At 14, Adu was the youngest player to sign with a Major League Soccer team. He was getting constant attention. Some media outlets dubbed him the next Pele, who would make Americans fall in love with U.S. soccer. Adu’s MLS debut was nationally televised on ABC. His first playing time was national news.

It was overwhelming.

Adu was, admittedly, a carefree kid who just wanted to enjoy the spotlight. He had a tough time dealing with all those off-the-field issues and used a sports psychologist at IMG Sports Academy and Michael Johnson, a retired world-record-holding sprinter, to help him get through.

The hype was there even before the teen signed an MLS contract—Nike gave him an endorsement contract at age 13 said to be worth $1 million. Adu had four goals at the 2003 FIFA Under-17 World Championship, months before signing with D.C. United. He was a celebrity, which he loved, but Adu said some of his teammates mistook youthful exuberance as arrogance.

“I was a confident little kid on the field,” a bubbly and beaming Adu said at practice last week ahead of the U.S. team’s World Cup qualifier at Barbados. “I thought I took chances on the field and people took that the wrong way. They took it as me trying to show off and what not.”

Looking back, the phenom—he’s currently the youngest player on the U.S. roster—says the experience helped him. And even though the spotlight has dimmed, Adu is happy to be on the new-look U.S. team, which hopes to rebound from its first-round exit of the 2006 World Cup.

Coach Bob Bradley, who replaced Bruce Arena after the World Cup, thinks Adu needs a bit more experience to play well at the national-team level. But he does see potential in the Ghana native, who assisted on Eddie Lewis’ goal in Sunday’s 1-0 win, which completed a 9-0 aggregate victory.

“We’ve seen a lot of young athletes in different sports that when they come on the scene, they get a lot of attention and he was one of them,” Bradley said. “When the spotlight is on like that, just learning every day what you need to do to become a better player, earning the respect of your teammates— all those things sometimes become second to the spotlight and I think now Freddy has seen the bigger picture. He is maturing. It is a process.”

Adu, who is most likely a lock for a spot on this summer’s U.S. Olympic team, says he is surrounded by experienced talent and encouraging teammates.

Regardless of who is coaching, Adu is satisfied to be on a stable team. Since joining the pro ranks, Adu’s career has been on a rocky road.

After playing for D.C. United for three years, the midfielder was traded to Real Salt Lake. He then negotiated a transfer to Portugal’s Benfica, where he saw little play last season.

“Going to Europe took him out of the U.S. soccer spotlight a little bit and put him in an environment where he had to earn respect every day,” Bradley said.

Bradley is pleased Adu is being given the chance to be in a stable environment and says the youngster needs “a consistent message every day.”

Adu says he’s getting that message.

“I’m still young and I’m the youngest guy on this team,” Adu said. “But it’s easy to play with these guys. I just keep my mouth shut and just try to lead by the way I play.”

Kobe Bryant, LeBron James head Olympic basketball team

By Ben Klayman

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the NBAs Most Valuable Player and its leading scorer, headed the 12-man U.S. Olympic basketball team named on Monday for the Beijing Olympics.

Premier point guard Chris Paul was also included in the squad, which the U.S. Olympic Committee hopes will reverse a trend of disappointing results for American teams in recent international competitions.

Jerry Colangelo, managing director of USA Basketball and chairman of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, said the emphasis was on building a team that would play well together, rather than collecting NBA all-stars.

“It’s already been proven that a group of all-stars does not necessarily ensure that you’re going to win,” he said at a press conference.

“You need scorers, you need size, you need distributors, you need role players and we’ve stayed true to that.”

The team features six guards and five forwards with Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic the only regular center named in the team.

The U.S. team’s head coach Mike Krzyzewski said the emphasis was on speed and versatility.

He added that team defense will decide whether the U.S. team can win the gold medal, and said three point guards were selected so the U.S. team could win that critical match-up every game.

Besides Bryant and Paul, the other guards are Jason Kidd (Dallas), Michael Redd (Milwaukee), Dwyane Wade (Miami) and Deron Williams (Utah).

Carmelo Anthony (Denver), Carlos Boozer (Utah), Chris Bosh (Toronto) and Tayshaun Prince (Detroit) join James in the forwards.

U.S. teams have struggled overseas in recent years after decades of international dominance as the growth of the game overseas has led to vast improvement by other countries’ teams.

“The key word for us throughout this whole process has been respect,” said Krzyzewski, who also coaches at college power Duke University. “We respect the international game. For too long, we’ve been saying it’s just our game. It’s really the world’s game.

“You can’t be arrogant and win,” he added later.

The United States finished with a disappointing bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens behind gold-medal winning Argentina, and also finished third at the world championship in Japan in 2006.

The U.S. team will begin training in Las Vegas on Friday and play a series of exhibition games against other NBA players, as well as other countries’ teams in July and August. It opens the Olympics in Beijing against the host Chinese team on August 10.

U.S. team - Carmelo Anthony, forward, Denver Nuggets; Carlos Boozer, forward, Utah Jazz; Chris Bosh, forward, Toronto Raptors; Kobe Bryant, guard, Los Angeles Lakers; Dwight Howard, forward/center, Orlando Magic; LeBron James, forward, Cleveland Cavaliers; Jason Kidd, guard, Dallas Mavericks; Chris Paul, guard, New Orleans Hornets; Tayshaun Prince, forward, Detroit Pistons; Michael Redd, guard, Milwaukee Bucks; Dwyane Wade, guard, Miami Heat; Deron Williams, guard, Utah Jazz.

(Editing by Miles Evans)

Bryant, James head U.S. basketball team

(Adds comments from US basketball executives and players)

By Ben Klayman

CHICAGO, June 23 (Reuters) - Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the NBA’s Most Valuable Player and its leading scorer, headed the 12-man U.S. Olympic basketball team named on Monday for the Beijing Olympics.

Premier point guard Chris Paul was also included in the squad, which the U.S. Olympic Committee hopes will reverse a trend of disappointing results for American teams in recent international competitions.

Jerry Colangelo, managing director of USA Basketball and chairman of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, said the emphasis was on building a team that would play well together, rather than collecting NBA all-stars.

“It’s already been proven that a group of all-stars does not necessarily ensure that you’re going to win,” he said at a press conference.

“You need scorers, you need size, you need distributors, you need role players and we’ve stayed true to that.”

The team features six guards and five forwards with Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic the only regular center named in the team.

The U.S. team’s head coach Mike Krzyzewski said the emphasis was on speed and versatility.

He added that team defense will decide whether the U.S. team can win the gold medal, and said three point guards were selected so the U.S. team could win that critical match-up every game.

Besides Bryant and Paul, the other guards are Jason Kidd (Dallas), Michael Redd (Milwaukee), Dwyane Wade (Miami) and Deron Williams (Utah).

Carmelo Anthony (Denver), Carlos Boozer (Utah), Chris Bosh (Toronto) and Tayshaun Prince (Detroit) join James in the forwards.

U.S. teams have struggled overseas in recent years after decades of international dominance as the growth of the game overseas has led to vast improvement by other countries’ teams.

“The key word for us throughout this whole process has been respect,” said Krzyzewski, who also coaches at college power Duke University. “We respect the international game. For too long, we’ve been saying it’s just our game. It’s really the world’s game.

“You can’t be arrogant and win,” he added later.

The United States finished with a disappointing bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens behind gold-medal winning Argentina, and also finished third at the world championship in Japan in 2006.

The U.S. team will begin training in Las Vegas on Friday and play a series of exhibition games against other NBA players, as well as other countries’ teams in July and August. It opens the Olympics in Beijing against the host Chinese team on Aug. 10.

U.S. team - Carmelo Anthony, forward, Denver Nuggets; Carlos Boozer, forward, Utah Jazz; Chris Bosh, forward, Toronto Raptors; Kobe Bryant, guard, Los Angeles Lakers; Dwight Howard, forward/center, Orlando Magic; LeBron James, forward, Cleveland Cavaliers; Jason Kidd, guard, Dallas Mavericks; Chris Paul, guard, New Orleans Hornets; Tayshaun Prince, forward, Detroit Pistons; Michael Redd, guard, Milwaukee Bucks; Dwyane Wade, guard, Miami Heat; Deron Williams, guard, Utah Jazz.

(Editing by Miles Evans)

Krzyzewski: US Olympic team will be announced Monday

By AARON BEARD, AP Sports Writer

DURHAM, N.C. (AP)—Calling it “the toughest decision” facing USA Basketball since it began using professional players, U.S. Olympic team coach Mike Krzyzewski said the 12-man roster for this summer’s Beijing Games will be released Monday.

Krzyzewski, Duke’s Hall of Fame coach, said the roster will be announced during a news conference in Chicago.

“The pool of players that we have have all made commitments and have given time and effort,” Krzyzewski said Tuesday during his annual summer news conference in Durham. “Really we have more people qualified for those 12 spots than we can take, so that’s what makes it tough. There will be people we’ve coached, either last summer or the summer before, who will not be on this team.”

Earlier this month, USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo said the U.S. would pick its squad without a tryout. There are more than 30 players in the national team program, but he said officials are down to about 14 names.

The deadline to submit the roster is July 1. The U.S. team will go to Las Vegas to train in mid-July and play an exhibition against Canada before opening the Beijing Games against the host Chinese on Aug. 10.

Last year, the U.S. team started Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Jason Kidd and Dwight Howard en route to an unbeaten showing in an Olympic qualifying tournament. The roster also included Amare Stoudemire, Chauncey Billups, Deron Williams, Michael Redd, Tayshaun Prince, Tyson Chandler and Mike Miller.

“We understand the level of pressure that’s involved in this and to me the pressure can be looked at in two different ways: it can inhibit you or it can excite you,” Krzyzewski said of expectations to win the gold medal. “My feeling is it will excite our group. They want that pressure. The most foolish thing you can do is … be arrogant and just say it’s going to happen. To me, we have to show the respect of preparation to do it.”

Krzyzewski said USA Basketball has talked with players to make sure they don’t have any family or health issues that would prevent them from being committed to the team. He said they also have talked with potential choices about how their roles might change, going as far to tell some, “You may be the 12th man. You may not be a starter. Are you able to handle that?”

Their responses, he said, have typically been, “Whatever you want.”

“This team has a chance to be incredibly unique,” he said. “How it’s been put together has shown a tremendous amount of respect for worldwide basketball. We’ve said, ‘It’s the world’s game, not the U.S.’s game.”’