olympic sports

Put aside the world citizen stuff and Usain Bolt matters in a way that no athlete has since Muhammad Ali because he makes us uncomfortable with truth (albeit in a different way) and that's very, very good.

Because he's a sprinter, we wonder if he won't go all Ben Johnson on us at some point, so we await the message in the bottle each time out. What are you going to do, eh?

Will the American men's bobsled team be able to end their 62-year Olympic gold-medal drought at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics?
We won't know until next February. But a good clue will come at this year's World Championships, which begin Friday in Lake Placid, N.Y.

I've seen the photograph, and I hereby declare Michael Phelps guilty.
I don't mean guilty of smoking pot at a college party on the night before a football game. Phelps admitted to doing that in November, but he wasn't arrested and he wasn't charged with a crime. In the eyes of the law, he's innocent.

APEX, N.C. -- Lunch was barely under way Thursday when Evan Morgenstein's phone buzzed with a call from Dara Torres, who recently made history with three Olympic silver medals in swimming at age 41.

The most interesting person I met while in China for the 2008 Olympics wasn't an athlete or a coach or a journalist.He wasn't even all that keen on the Games.He was a young man sitting across the aisle from me on a bus headed for the Badaling section of the Great Wall of China. He was, as much as anyone, the face of China I will remember.

So now that the Beijing Olympics are history, the question must be asked: Did China accomplish its mission?

BEIJING -- The days of Dream Team dominance are likely gone forever, but in the new world basketball order the United States once again resides on top.After a disastrous 2004 that totally reshuffled how international basketball is done in the U.S., the Americans here set things right with a bruising 118-107 victory over Spain in the championship game Sunday.

BEIJING -- Hugh McCutcheon watched the celebration and put his hands to his head and, suddenly, started to weep. He left the court, tears streaming down his cheeks, the joy of victory overcome by the pain of real life.Two weeks earlier, his father-in-law had been stabbed to death in Beijing. Now his United States men's volleyball team was celebrating Olympic gold.

BEIJING -- As the world's spotlight turns away from Beijing, several vexing Olympic questions remain.Will the 29th Summer Olympics be remembered for their spectacular venues and efficiently run Games or did the glitzy architecture and meticulous precision overshadow a sinister display of state power and abuse?

BEIJING -- After taking big steps, the United States men's water polo team ended up on the second step on the podium.After losing 14-10 to Hungary in the gold medal game at the Beijing Olympics Sunday, that felt more like a disappointment than the achievement it was. But in time, coach Terry Schroeder and his players know that will change.