Summer Olympics 2016 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Russian team will not face blanket ban from Olympics after doping scandal, IOC says

The International Olympic Committee will not impose a blanket ban on Russia for next month's Rio Olympics over the nation's doping record but will leave decisions on individual athletes' participation with their sports federations, it said.

The IOC's announcement follows the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) call for a Rio ban in response to the independent McLaren report that found evidence of widespread state-sponsored doping by Russian athletes at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

The Russian athletics team was already banned from Rio for state-sponsored doping, and the IOC also rejected a bid by Russian whistleblower and 800-metre runner Yuliya Stepanova to compete as a neutral athlete after the ban.

The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said the IOC had failed to show leadership with its decision.
"Many, including clean athletes and whistleblowers, have demonstrated courage and strength in confronting a culture of state-supported doping and corruption within Russia," USADA chief Travis Tygart said.
"Disappointingly, however, in response to the most important moment for clean athletes and the integrity of the Olympic Games, the IOC has refused to take decisive leadership.
"The decision regarding Russian participation and the confusing mess left in its wake is a significant blow to the rights of clean athletes."


The IOC said Russian athletes will have to satisfy the 28 federations who run the summer Olympic sports that they are clean. The conditions include:

• That "the absence of a positive national anti-doping test cannot be considered sufficient" by the federations.
• Federations will have to carry out an individual analysis of each athlete's anti-doping record "taking into account only reliable adequate international tests, and the specificities of the athlete's sport and its rules".
• No competitor or national federation named in the report issued last week by Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren for the WADA can be considered. About 20 different summer Olympic sports were accused in the McLaren report.

The report, produced by Canadian law professor Richard McLaren, described extensive doping and cover-ups across a series of summer and winter Olympic sports and particularly at the Sochi Winter Olympics hosted by Russia in 2014.


http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-2...o:-ioc/7656416

The Canadian Olympic Committee has announced Canada’s full 313-athlete team for the Rio Olympics.

The large Canadian contingent is made up of 187 women and 126 men ranging in age from 16 to 56.

The oldest athlete on the team is 56-year-old Lesley Thompson-Willie, coxswain of the women’s eights rowing team. She will be competing at her eighth Olympic Games, tying the all-time women’s record.
She was also named to Canada’s team for the 1980 Moscow Olympics but did not compete when Canada joined the U.S.-led boycott of those Games.
Artistic gymnast Shallon Olsen, 16, is the youngest member of the Canadian team. She is one of four team members born in the 21st century


Track cyclist Georgia Simmerling is on the verge of becoming first Canadian athlete to compete in a different sport at three Olympic Games. She participated in alpine skiing in Vancouver 2010 and freestyle skiing in Sochi 2014.
The Canadian team includes 98 coaches and 107 support staff.



92 of the athletes were also at the Olympics four years ago

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/eh...210510813.html

The teams

http://olympic.ca/games/2016-rio/#

Athlete profiles

http://olympic.ca/athletes/

Opening outfits likened to erasers

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It can't be nice for a designer to have your work become the target of the unforgiving eye of a fashion critic. But a cultured reviewer is no match for the tirade that can come your way if you irk social media. Especially when the catwalk is one of Earth's most high profile and watched events.
More than one billion people around the world are expected to watch the cream of the globe's athletes take part in the opening ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio on 5 August.
So it's no wonder that leading fashion brands have been keen to design uniforms for their country's Olympians. Historically, the likes of Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren and Stella McCartney have threaded their expensive needles and sewed furiously through the night (we'd like to think) to create designs for their nation's athletes. But there are some who must now be wondering why they bothered.
We imagine that when traditional Georgian clothing manufacturer Samoseli Pirveli got a call to design the look of the nation's Olympians for the opening ceremony, the brand must have thought it was a career high-point.
However, many Georgians did not agree. So much so that more than 6,000 have now signed an online petition, against the firm's designs for the Georgian national team.

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http://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/624/c...2_petition.jpg

Iran

http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/660/cps...mbodjavan1.jpg

Canadian weightlifter Christine Girard in line for Olympic medal upgrade to gold


https://firstpull.files.wordpress.co...pg?w=201&h=210

Christine Girard appears poised to become Canada's first Olympic gold medallist in weightlifting, but she may have to wait years to celebrate the historic achievement.

Girard learned Wendesday that her bronze medal from the London Olympics may be upgraded to gold after the two women who finished ahead of her were nabbed in doping retests.

"I'm really, really proud that's for sure, I'm even more proud it's the first gold medal for my sport and our country. It's pretty amazing," Girard told The Canadian Press in a phone interview. "It's bittersweet. I would have really liked to have had the proper ceremony, have our flag and hear that song that makes us cry on the podium, but at the same time I'm happy that it got cleared up."

The International Weighlifting Federation announced Wednesday that samples of 11 weightlifters from the 2012 Games showed positive results.

Svetlana Tsarukaeva of Russia, who finished second in the women's 63-kilogram division, was among the 11 athletes, testing positive for the steroid dehydrochlormethyltestosterone.
Gold medallist Maiya Maneza of Kazakhstan was already caught testing positive for stanozolol in an earlier batch of retesting.
Both Tsarukaeva and Maneza have been provisionally suspended but it will likely take months, or even years, for the Olympic medals to be redistributed.
"These people still have a right to appeal and the right to a second test," Canadian Weightlifting Federation president Paul Barrett said.

Medals in London were determined by the sum of each lifter's best result in the snatch and the clean and jerk, with three attempts allowed in each.
Girard narrowly missed out on silver in 2012, finishing third with a total of 236 kilograms behind Tsarukaeva at 237. Maneza totalled 245 kilograms.

http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/...rade-gold.html

Ralph Lauren and the United States Olympic Committee unveiled the outfits American athletes will wear in next week’s Opening Ceremony on Friday morning and it didn’t take long for some to notice they might be better suited for athletes representing another country.

https://s1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/x...a7e3efa0104574

the pattern of the striped t-shirt follows the order of the white, blue and red bars of the Russian flag. When paired with a buttoned-up navy blazer, only three bars are visible and it looks like the Russian flag.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CoiWd4OVIAA6tHK.jpg

The jacket of the yet-to-be-named flag bearer will have an illuminated U-S-A for everyone to walk behind.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CoiRBq7UsAAyLtx.jpg

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/the...142917003.html

Cuba closing ceremony outfits

http://a1.files.fashionista.com/imag...MzMjk4OTIw.jpg

http://a3.files.fashionista.com/imag...AxNzk5OTEz.jpg
Cuban Team Members Lidianny Echevarria Benitez and Javier Cortina Lacerra with designers Henri Tai and Christian Louboutin.

http://fashionista.com/2016/07/cuban...tian-louboutin

Brazil
The host nation is playing on its reputation for energy and love of life, with a team outfit based on the national flag’s upbeat palette of green and yellow. The jaunty pattern mimics tropical birds in flight and lush fronds, a clear reference to one of the country’s greatest assets – its rainforests. Topped with boater hats, lace-up shoes and relaxed chinos for men, this is a uniform designed to have fun in.

http://www.thenational.ae/storyimage...20160801151855

Olympic TV Schedule: Daily guide of when to watch events at Rio 2016

http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/...-rio-2016.html


360 degree/Virtual Reality viewing

http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/...-coverage.html

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Originally Posted by Natalka

Cuba closing ceremony outfits



http://a3.files.fashionista.com/imag...AxNzk5OTEz.jpg
Cuban Team Members Lidianny Echevarria Benitez and Javier Cortina Lacerra with designers Henri Tai and Christian Louboutin.

http://fashionista.com/2016/07/cuban...tian-louboutin

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I need those sandels..

^ can't find where to buy them

https://www.instagram.com/p/BINcIFUgg6Q/

:bawling:

Canadian women's soccer team wins Olympic opener over Australia

Canada's Janine Beckie scores fastest soccer goal in Olympic history

Janine Beckie made Olympic history with a goal after 20 seconds and captain Christine Sinclair added some late insurance as Canada, despite playing a woman down for 71 minutes, defeated Australia 2-0 in Rio 2016 soccer action Wednesday.

http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/...australia.html

https://s1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/1...04fd06eb36cd3d
Janine Beckie

Canada also set another Olympic record for the fastest red card received in Olympic history.

Shelina Zadorsky's red card (19') is the earliest in Olympic women's soccer history.

http://olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/...1st-match.html

Rio Olympics golf course looking more like a zoo

The course, located in western Rio's Barra da Tijuca neighbourhood, just happens to sit in between two very large lakes. And with the lakes often comes the wildlife. Sloths, boa constrictors, monkeys, caimans (mini crocodiles about five feet in length) and burowing owls, to be specific.

Oh, almost forgot about the family of capybaras, which reportedly lives on the golf course as well. Capybaras are the largest rodents in the world; they can weigh up to 150 lbs and can reach heights of 60 cemtimetres. “They chew down on the grass at night,” says Mark Johnson, director of international agronomy for the PGA Tour in an interview with the National Post. “There are about 30-40 of them inside the course perimeter, but they live here and we play golf here, we co-exist.”


But fear not, Henrik Stenson and company. The IOC is preparing to deploy five "handlers" to monitor (and potentially move) the caimans that venture a little too close to the action, according to the Brazilian newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo.

As for the other animals on the course, the threat level doesn't appear to be very high. Especially with the burrowing owls, which appear to be spreading far too much love to be considered a threat.
“I am not a biologist by any means but these owls routinely have excessive amounts of babies,” Johnson shared with the Post. “There is something they like here.”

https://s.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/c4...late/cap_0.jpg

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/eh...150337694.html

Rio opening ceremony to break with opulent traditions



https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/JN...ONY.JPG.cf.jpg
An aerial view shows the Christ the Redeemer statue with the Maracana stadium, where the opening cermony of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games will be held

The Rio de Janeiro Olympics opening ceremony on Friday will break with the recent tradition of large-scale and expensive shows, featuring a low-emissions cauldron and an "analogue" experience, executive producer Marco Balich said on Monday.

"This is not an opulent event given the situation in Brazil," said Balich, who has been involved in several past Games ceremonies, including the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

"It does not have the grandiosity of Beijing, the huge special effects of Athens, the eccentricity and technological skills of London. It is an analogue opening ceremony," Balich said.
The show, expected to cost about half the $42 million spent by London in 2012, is based on the themes of sustainability, the Brazilian smile and "gambiarra", the ability to keep functioning with makeshift fixes.
"Brazil has the last big garden (the Amazon rainforest) of the world. We need to take care of this garden and we tried to share this message, a message of hope," Balich said.
"It is a very contemporary ceremony. Even without special effects it talks to people about the future. In a very humble way. It is not a display of how good or modern Brazil is."


That cauldron, however, will not be like past big structures with huge flames, visible for miles.
"It will be a low-emission cauldron as it would be an oxymoron to talk about sustainability and then burn massive amounts of gas," Balich said.
"It is a small burner with a kinetic sculpture."
While the real flame will only be accessible for Olympic stadium ticket holders, a smaller copy will be placed in a live site in central Rio for fans to take photos of.
Some 4,800 people will take part in the opening ceremony along with about 11,000 athletes, who will enter the stadium and, due to the lack of a track, will gather at the center of the legendary football arena.

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/rio-openin...8236--oly.html

No track.... in the Olympic stadium..... http://www.palyne.com/talk/Smileys/p...cratchhead.gif
I dunno. Is it just me or do you find that strange also?

it's going to be interesting.
i just hope everything goes peacefully.

https://media.giphy.com/media/10grzNr7E5mgN2/giphy.gif

They are cracking down on GIFs -

The Olympics is a GIF gold mine, thanks to athletes' superhuman feats of strength, agility and speed, all the crazy fans and the hilarious moments in between. This year, though, the International Olympic Committee will make it harder to find them: it has prohibited the press from releasing animated GIFs and even short videos like Vines.

https://www.rt.com/viral/354693-olym...ban-reactions/

There is a track - they call it the blue oval

http://www.nbcolympics.com/sites/def...?itok=UM8Hm84O



https://smsprio2016-a.akamaihd.net/news/o_xLiw7p.jpg

https://www.rio2016.com/en/news/rhap...lympic-stadium

Russia will have 271 athletes eligible to compete at the Rio Games, says the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

This is more than two-thirds of their original entry list of 389 athletes, despite the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) recommending a blanket ban after a state-sponsored doping scandal.
Russia's Olympic Committee president Alexander Zhukov said his country will have "the cleanest team" at the Games.


"The Russian team may have experienced the toughest checks of the Olympics, because they had to go through multiple tests and checked," said Zhukov.
"On top of all that, Russian athletes are going through additional testing which is taking place at the Olympic Village.
"So, as of now, the Russian team is probably the cleanest in Rio."

http://www.bbc.com/sport/olympics/36970627

Torch begins final race to stadium from beneath Rio's Christ

https://s1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/W...YMPICS-RIO.JPG

https://s.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/7z...YMPICS-RIO.JPG

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - The Olympic torch was raised before Rio de Janeiro's iconic Christ the Redeemer statue on Friday on the final leg of its journey to the opening ceremony of the Olympics, as Brazil excitedly put the final touches to seven years of preparations.

Former Brazilian women's volleyball player, Maria Isabel Barroso Salgado, lifted the flame beneath the outstretched arms of the giant statue of Christ that overlooks Rio's Guanabara bay.


"May this be the moment for us to overcome difficult times and to work as a team, to make our country and our world fairer and safer, full of hope and joy," said Rio's Archbishop Orani Joao Tempesta, flanked by Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes.

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/par...3333--oly.html

As a Brazilian it really saddens me to know that the Olympic events (opening ceremony) will be plain, and not more elaborate.
Even through all the political turmoil, the Brazilian people are full of life, joy, color.
This would have been a great opportunity to make Brazil, it's life and its culture shine, but instead(just like the World Cup) they have spent a ridiculous amount of money and still done something subpar.

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Originally Posted by Brasileira

As a Brazilian it really saddens me to know that the Olympic events (opening ceremony) will be plain, and not more elaborate.
Even through all the political turmoil, the Brazilian people are full of life, joy, color.
This would have been a great opportunity to make Brazil, it's life and its culture shine, but instead(just like the World Cup) they have spent a ridiculous amount of money and still done something subpar.

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You know, maybe like so many other things in the world, people and countries trying to out-do each other, a more humble, honest ceremony might just be what's needed these days. We seem to expect each successive ceremony to out-perform anything that's been done before, and are 'disappointed' when fireworks aren't shooting out of people's butts.
Personally, I'm looking forward to what's been described as an all-inclusive ceremony celebrating the many cultures that have contributed to Brazil over the years, audience participation. Maybe that's what the Olympics were always meant to be.

{{{stepping elegantly off her soap-box}}}...jmho. I hope it does go off without a hitch, too...:rolleyes:


Unfortunately, behind the scenes in Brazil, particularly in Rio, violence and death have once again raised their ugly heads. Before the Fifa world cup in 2014 and now, police and military have once again exhibited a "shoot first and ask questions later" policy. I even doubt many questions have been either asked or answered by the police.

https://www.amnesty.ca/blog/rio-2016...ics-have-begun

With just over a month to go until the Rio 2016 opening ceremony, the pre-Olympic legacy includes more than 2,500 people killed by the police in the city since 2009, when Rio de Janeiro won its bid to host the Games. Over the past few weeks, the sense of defeat has grown before the Games even get under way, with daily shootings and police operations leaving a trail of blood in several of Rio’s favelas.

http://www.amnesty.ca/news/brazil-‘cross-fire’-new-app-document-gun-violence-rio-ahead-olympics

I'm guessing this issue won't be raised during the ceremonies this evening. As a matter of fact, it's been largely glossed-over in any news programs I've watched, if mentioned at all. Usually a one-liner for those killed.

I'm looking forward to the judo events. Rooting for Sagi Muki to win in his events

Gee, so much for the Olympics not being political.... (climate change stuff)

LOVE the trikes that usher each country in.

(Am I the only one who keeps reading the name of the stadium as "Macarena"??? - then I get an earworm and do the dance in my head...)

Canada coming in looks great - they are all SO happy!
I wish they had the men and women wear different outfits - it looks just like a plain sea of red when they are all the same.

Absolutely love the countries which wear their national garb, so beautiful!

OO, the Cook Island women - beautiful green dresses and fabulous wreaths on their heads!

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Originally Posted by Natalka

(Am I the only one who keeps reading the name of the stadium as "Macarena"??? - then I get an earworm and do the dance in my head...)

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NOpe..

Why are those dancers wearing pop=tarts???

I can't find a live feed and he won't watch on TV. help?

The Jamaican flag-bearer's hair is awesome

love the Polish women's skirts..

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Originally Posted by lecale

I can't find a live feed and he won't watch on TV. help?

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http://olympics.cbc.ca/