Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Marvellous synchronised swimming

Anastasia Davydova and Anastasia Ermakova prepare to perform in the duet technical routine synchronised swimming event at the National Aquatics Center during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in Beijing on August 18, 2008. Russia's team finished 1st.


Jiang Tingting and Jiang Wenwen of China perform in the duet technical routine synchronised swimming event at the National Aquatics Center during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in Beijing on August 18, 2008.The Chinese pair finished the technical routine in fourth place.


Saho Harada and Emiko Suzuki of Japan perform their duet technical routine during the duet synchronised swimming at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 18, 2008. The Japanese pair finished the technical routine in third place.


Evanthia Makrygianni and Despoina Solomou of Greece perform at the start of their duet synchronised swimming technical routine at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games August 18, 2008.


Jiang Tingting and Jiang Wenwen of China perform in the duet technical routine synchronised swimming event at the National Aquatics Center during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in Beijing on August 18, 2008.The Chinese pair finished the technical routine in fourth place.

Medalist mom sends gold to son

Shinobu Ohno of Japan runs with the ball during the match Japan VS the United States in women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Football events in Beijing, China, Aug. 18, 2008. The United States beat Japan 4-2.


Players of the United States celebrate a goal during the match Japan VS the United States in women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Football events in Beijing, China, Aug. 18, 2008.

U.S. beats Brazil in beach volleyball semifinal

Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor of the U.S. celebrate a point during the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event against Renata Ribeiro and Talita Rocha of Brazil in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008. Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor of the U.S. won the match 2-0 and advanced to final.


Kerri Walsh of the U.S. celebrates a point during the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event with Misty May-Treanor against Renata Ribeiro and Talita Rocha of Brazil in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008.


Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor of the U.S. celebrate a point during the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event against Renata Ribeiro and Talita Rocha of Brazil in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008.

Men's triathlon event underway

Wang Jie and Tian Jia of China celebrate after winning the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event against Xue Chen and Zhang Xi of China in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008.


Wang Jie and Tian Jia of China celebrate after winning the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event against Xue Chen and Zhang Xi of China in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008.


Wang Jie and Tian Jia of China celebrate after winning the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event against Xue Chen and Zhang Xi of China in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008. Wang Jie and Tian Jia won the match 2-1 and advanced to final.


Tian Jia of China celebrates after winning the women's semifinal of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games beach volleyball event with Wang Jie against Xue Chen and Zhang Xi of China in Beijing, China, Aug. 19, 2008.
Tian Jia and Wang Jie of China won over their compatriots Zhang Xi and Xue Chen in the semifinals of beach volleyball tournament at the Beijing Olympics on Tuesday.

Tian/Wang needed to play three sets before downing their fellow Chinese duo.

Zhang/Xue won the first set 24-22. They trailed at the beginning of the second sect but were able to come from behind. The two sides traded set points in the latter part of the second set and scored the highest points in the beach volleyball tournament at the Beijing Olympics. The set ended 29-27 in favor of Tian/Wang.

The third set went in the advantage of Tian/Wang, who beat the younger duo 15-8.

"Both of us played to our best standard in the match. I hope both of our two teams will have good performance in our next matches," said Tian after the match.

"My partner played excelently in the match. It seemed she was not for the first time at the Olympics," she added.

"I have done my best in the match. I have played and practiced beach volleyball for eight years and all that has been for the Beijing Olympics," the 24-year-old Zhang said at the press conference.

Her parter Xue Chen was sustained a waist injury when she tried to save but failed to touch the last ball.

About the loss of the third set, Zhang said, "We lack experiences and they captured our gaps and curbed our ways of offensive."

"I hope Tian and Wang would play better in the final against the United States and I hope I can give my strength to them," she said.

On the coming final against defending champions Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh, Wang said, "They are a very strong team, both in experience and techniques. We are going to face big difficulties in the match."

"We'll do our best and we don't think about the result," she added.

Source:Xinhua

World champ He Chong continues dominance in springboard semifinal

Beijing police has seized in a single day 110 scalpers who illegally sold Olympics tickets at competition venues, according to media reports.

About 340 Olympics tickets were found to be sold through illegal trading by scalpers on Friday, including 17 foreigner nationals, the Legal Daily reports.

The crackdown was launched after police received complaints from the public on many occasions during their patrol around the Olympic venues, said Shi Weiping, an official with the Municipal Public Security Bureau.

The scalpers were caught red-handed, usually at a price many times of the initial prices, Shi said.

A foreigner was found selling 24 tickets near the Water Cube at a price 10 times of the initial price on Friday morning. A woman, surnamed Zhang from outside Beijing, was caught when she sold two 150-yuan gym tickets for 1,000 yuan each at a light rail station near the Olympic Green.

The police are investigating the cases and will punish them according to Chinese laws, he added.

Policemen would set up bilingual signs near the Olympic venues to tell foreigners that illegal selling of Olympic tickets were against Chinese laws. Enditem

Source: xinhua

China's Tian/Wang in women's beach volleyball final

Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo met with visiting Japanese Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura here on Sunday, calling for joint efforts to enhance cooperation in energy saving and environmental protection and to push forward strategic mutually-beneficial relations between the two countries.

Komura is here for Beijing Olympic Games. He is scheduled to meet with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi later in the day.

Source: Xinhua

Germany's Frodeno lifts Olympic men's triathlon title

Chinese Vice Premier Hui Liangyu has stressed the need to further promote the development of the country's agriculture and animal husbandry in accordance with local resources condition, regional and ethnic features.

Hui, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, also called for stepped-up efforts for the development of ecological and environmental conservation, when he toured around west China's Qinghai Province from Aug. 13 to 16.

He said China should adopt a scientific approach to development that resulted in expanded production, a better life and sound ecological and environmental conditions.

During the visit, he went to farmlands, greenhouses, locals' houses and leading enterprises, to know in detail the practice of favorable measures for farmers.

The vice premier emphasized that developing agriculture and animal husbandry in accordance with local conditions was the main task to develop China's modern agriculture.

Qinghai Province, for example, with a unique climate and geographical conditions and farming resources, should beef up its efforts in agriculture and animal husbandry development.

Hui also visited the ecological conservation project for the Qinghai Lake and the Longyang Gorge hydraulic project.

"The environmental protection in Qinghai has an important bearing on the long-term interest of the Chinese nation," he said, adding great efforts should be made to intensify ecological conservation, protection of natural forest and treatment of desertification.

Hui also visited local people of ethnic groups and expressed his concerned about their life and production.

He said, the Party and the governments at all levels attach great importance to the development of ethnic groups, and has adopted special measures to promote the development in regions inhabited by ethnic groups. "I believe you can see your life improve further and further," He said.

Source: Xinhua