Summer Olympics 2012 London

[singveld]

Young athletes carried the Olympic flame around the stadium, a symbol of the Games' legacy

--------------------------------------------------

7 kids to light up caldron, this is a disgrace, it is for one person who achieve greatness and he represent his country, now they do exactly like giving nobel prize to obama (he did nothing, and has not done anything since)

 

[singveld]

The sporting prospects lit the petals, after they were passed the flame by Sir Steve Redgrave

--------------------------------------------------------------------

how many people need to do one man job? answer 7 kids.

 

[singveld]

The audience watched open-mouthed as the burning petals raised

 

[singveld]

The Cauldron was formed by 204 petals, one for each nation competing

Great inside stadium, now no one outside can see the olympic flame, it look like golf club, why does danny hate golf?

 

[singveld]

Olympics opening ceremony: the view from abroad

'The most rock and roll opening ceremony ever?' asked one Chinese journalist, as baffled overseas commentators digested Boyle's vision


Across the globe, Danny Boyle's opening ceremony provoked respect, excitement, the occasional whiff of disdain and no little bafflement.

Perhaps the most enthusiastic foreign reaction came from the States, where both the Washington Post and New York Times liveblogged the ceremony, although hard ball negotiating from NBC meant it was only broadcast after the event.

The Washington Post appeared particularly energised by the Queen's appearance. "So, we're all watching this movie at Olympic Stadium in which James Bond (Daniel Craig) walks into the Royal Palace," wrote Mike Wise. "He's followed by two mutts and suddenly walks in to see, yes, Queen Elizabeth. It's her first role. Ever!" The Post's verdict? "It's corny, cheesy, altogether over the top. And it works! […] This is awesome."

It fell to the US Slate economics columnist Matt Yglesias to dampen spirits, he tweeted: "Watching these open ceremonies, fairly confident that China will bury the west."

In China the state TV commentators did an admirable job of galloping through potted explanations of everything from the industrial revolution to Mary Poppins but appeared to be stunned to near-silence by the parachuting Queen.

On Sina's Weibo microblog, ordinary viewers seemed more enthusiastic, with one voting her an adorable old lady for participating – but concluding that the ceremony did not match the grandeur of Beijing's. Others seemed to see that as a plus: "Will this be the most rock and roll opening ceremony ever?" asked one arts and entertainment journalist.

Japanese channel NHK showed the ceremony live from the early morning. Two enthusiastic reporters explained cultural and historical references, with nods to Harry Potter, Peter Pan – and Rowan Atkinson's turn in Chariots of Fire – producing the biggest excitement.

On Copacabana beach, nervous Brazilians watched the show they would have to live up to: laughing at Bond, commenting that the Queen looked grumpy, but generally impressed by the spectacle. "I hope Rio can match this," said one. "Perhaps we will be embarrassed after this," added another.

The commentator on Italy's state-run RAI network pointed out that Boyle was "as unpredictable as the people here", with Italian correspondent Margherita Ghinassi adding: "Only in London could it be this way." Germany's prestigious conservative newspaper the Frankfurter
Allgemeine Zeitung said that London's hosting of the opening ceremony
passed off with "heart and humour … spectacular, but also thoughtful
and touching". It said: "Billions worldwide in front of their TV were enchanted by a stylish show that merged the traditional and the modern in colourful images." Spain's El Mundo correspondent John Muller tweeted: "I think that, despite all their mistakes, it has become clear that without the UK our lives would not be the same."

At the High Commission in Delhi, the Queen's appearance brought every guest to their feet, but tweets from across Africa were rather less supportive. Zimbabwean journalist Ranga Mberi tweeted:"#OpeningCeremony segment supposedly showing the people who built modern Britain. But I don't see many immigrants. OK Britain, we see you flaunting your history. Where's the bit in which you invade, loot, kill and plunder?"

Zimbabwean "gadget geek" Richard Mberi tweeted: "Worst Olympic opening ceremony ever! Trust the Brits!"

Confused South African political activist Zak Mbhele tweeted that viewers outside the country needed "to have taken a hallucinogen before watching the #OlympicGamesOpeningCeremony to get it." But Verashni Pillay, deputy editor of South Africa's Mail & Guardian Online, tweeted: "Other countries show off their national costume, a few local dances. The English boast by being excessively self-deprecating. Awesome."

Perhaps the only country not to be caught up in the thrill and fun of the event was, perhaps inevitably, our neighbour across the Channel who merely gave a Gallic shrug. At the display of British technology and invention, French commentator and tennis star Amelie Mauresmo said: " Decidedly, they [the British] have invented things," while during the NHS section another commentator said that in the health service the medicines and treatment were free, but added: "Of course you have to wait several weeks to be treated." The royal scenes, at least, needed no translation, with the commentator noting: "Ah oui. Les corgis."

 

[singveld]

Please resist the urge to mock London’s Olympic Opening Ceremony

It may be tempting to make fun of Britain on Friday night, particularly if you are Canadian. Anytime a country attempts to explain itself to the world through song, dance and pageantry, it is easy to look silly, and the early details of the Opening Ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics sound wild. And we’re not just talking about the sheep.

But perhaps we in Canada should restrain ourselves, as a nation. Perhaps we should take the higher road. That is, unless the higher road is crammed with traffic in this built-for-horses-and-carriage town. Or the tube is down again.

The Brits did not treat Canada kindly two years ago, it’s true. The Guardian said Vancouver could be the Worst Games Ever three days in, and they based the assessment on refunded snowboard tickets rather than on the preventable death of an athlete. The Guardian also called our glowing totem poles a collection of ice penises, and even the BBC announcer cocked an eyebrow, as it were. The Times of London called us cursed, while the Daily Mail mocked the escalation of the budget. They were, to be honest, kind of jerks about it.

But that doesn’t mean that Canadians should stoop to a similarly savage brand of mockery, beginning with the Opening Ceremony. It doesn’t mean we should make fun of the leaked details of the event, starting with children in hospital beds, which doesn’t seem terribly festive. It doesn’t mean we should make fun of the fact that Muse will apparently play, and even if they do not, that the official song of the Olympics by Muse is a grating, strutting, whining, overcompensatory sneer of a song.

It does not mean that we should make fun of the maypoles. Or the bubbles. Or the sheep.

It does not mean we need to make fun of Paul McCartney playing Hey Jude, which though an iconic song won’t be tedious at all, or of the whole “Isle of Wonder” theme that director Danny Boyle is going with, a mere 17 years after he made his gritty masterpiece, Trainspotting. It doesn’t mean we need to giggle at the 40-foot Voldemort fighting 30 Mary Poppinses, which seems like a departure from the source material of both. And it certainly does not mean we need to make fun of the fact that billions of people are going to watch this, more or less.

“Every time I’ve seen presentations and discussions I’ve always felt that tingling feeling on my spine, and the hair standing on the back of my neck with the treatment that they’re giving it,” Prime Minister David Cameron said Thursday, as his economy tanked somewhere in the background. “I mean, the truth is we have to celebrate what’s great about the past, but also all the potential Britain has in the future. I’m not an art director and have no prospects of becoming one, [but] I’d have thought the difficulty is, how do you cram in all that’s great about our country?”

Plus Muse. And sheep.

For that matter, let’s try to be cool about the rest of the problems, Canada. Let’s ease up on the fact that American hurdler Lolo Jones tweeted about the lack of air conditioners in the Athletes’ Village, saying “Where [are] the applications for Winter Olympics?”, or that the general secretary of the Archery Association of India called the accommodations “not even two-star.”

Let’s not make too much of the transportation snafus, or the security forces snafu, or the North Korean flag snafu, or the incomprehensible-Arabic-signs at-the-nearby-mall snafu, or the colour scheme (magenta!). Let’s not make too much fun of the nightmarish one-eyed surveillance mascots, or the relatively barren Olympic Park, or the food. Oh Lord, the food.

Look, I’m not saying that you can’t do any of this. I can’t tell you not to sit in front of your TVs and root for a torch malfunction, or for the sheep to run on stage and poop, or for the entire fleet of Mary Poppinses to plummet (safely) to Earth, where they will be forced to bat at the looming Voldemort’s ankles with their umbrellas. The Brits were jerks, after all. It would be completely understandable if we wanted payback.

But never forget this: If you make fun of England’s Opening Ceremony, you are forgetting the fact that ours broke down. If you cackle at the sheep or the bands or the theme, then you are forgetting the fact that we slapped Wayne Gretzky in the flatbed of a pickup truck and sent him careening through the rainy streets of Vancouver to be chased by dudes on bikes. If you hate the song by Muse, you are forgetting I Believe, the wretched saccharine earworm we unleashed on an unsuspecting world. It’s apparently been re-recorded. We’re sorry about this, again.

In other words, you are forgetting what we experienced, as a country. For God’s sake, we sent the world off with Nickelback and inflatable beavers. We had problems. A man died. We weren’t perfect, and the Brits went a bit overboard, but as Canadians we should not be dragged into this schoolyard nonsense, this Olympic sniping, this small-mindedness. We are better than this. We are bigger than this. We know the difference between North Korea from South Korea. Let’s leave it at that.

 

[singveld]

Olympic opening ceremony: Ai Weiwei's review



Brilliant. It was very, very well done. This was about Great Britain; it didn't pretend it was trying to have global appeal. Because Great Britain has self-confidence, it doesn't need a monumental Olympics. But for China that was the only imaginable kind of international event. Beijing's Olympics were very grand – they were trying to throw a party for the world, but the hosts didn't enjoy it. The government didn't care about people's feelings because it was trying to create an image.

In London, they really turned the ceremony into a party – they are proud of themselves and respect where they come from, from the industrial revolution to now. I never saw an event before that had such a density of information about events and stories and literature and music; about folktales and movies.

At the beginning it dealt with historical events – about the land and machinery and women's rights – epically and poetically. The director really did a superb job in moving between those periods of history and today, and between reality and the movies. The section on the welfare state showed an achievement to be truly proud of. It clearly told you what the nation is about: children, nurses and a dream. A nation that has no music and no fairytales is a tragedy.

There were historical elements in the Beijing opening ceremony, but the difference is that this was about individuals and humanity and true feelings; their passion, their hope, their struggle. That came through in their confidence and joy. It's really about a civil society. Ours only reflected the party's nationalism. It wasn't a natural reflection of China.

Few of the people were performers. They were ordinary people who contribute to society – and if there is a celebration, then it should be for everyone from the Queen to a nurse. I feel happy that they can all have their moment to tell their story.

It was about real people and real events and showed the independent mind of the director, but at the same time it had so much humour. There was a strong sense of the British character.

The Chinese ceremony had so much less information and it wasn't even real. It wasn't only about the little girl who was miming – which was an injury to her and the girl whose voice was used – but that symbolically showed the nation's future. You can't trust or rely on individuals or the state's efforts.

In London there were more close-ups – it didn't show the big formations. It had the human touch. In Zhang Yimou's opening ceremony there was almost none of that. You could not push into a person's face and see the human experience. What I liked most with this was that it always came back to very personal details. And that's what makes it a nation you can trust; you see the values there. Anyone who watched it would have a clear understanding of what England is.

 

[singveld]

London 2012: Yi Siling of China claims first gold medal of London Olympics

China's Yi Siling reacts after winning the women's 10m air rifle final competition at the London 2012 Olympic Games in the Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich in southeast London July 28, 2012.

LONDON — The first athlete to qualify for the London Olympics also won the first gold medal Saturday.

Yi Siling of China, who earned a shooting quota spot when she won the world women’s 10-metre air rifle championship in Munich two years ago, capped her domination of the discipline since then with the Olympic title.

“I feel like I had a lot of luck,” Yi said, even though the results said otherwise.

Unheralded Polish soldier Sylwia Bogacka topped qualifying and had gold in her grasp until the third-to-last shot. She recovered to claim silver for her first major medal.

Yu Dan of China earned the bronze. China became the first team since 1988 to have two medallists in the event.

Nur Suryani Mohd Taibi of Malaysia, competing while eight months pregnant, was 34th in the field of 56, and was relieved not to go into labour during the 75-minute qualifying.

“She kicked only three or four times,” she said. “I told her to behave herself, and she always listens to me.”

Yi, renowned for her ability to stay unruffled, cried with relief in her coach’s arms after the final and welcomed the crush of Chinese media, saying their enthusiasm for her made her feel like a movie star.

Movies may not be far off for the woman known in her homeland as the Shooting Beauty.

But all she and Yu could think of afterward, aside from celebrating with teammates, were their families. Yi said her father has been suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure for a year.

Yu became emotional in thanking her family, especially her father, for their support. She stood at the news conference and bowed to the TV cameras and wiped tears.

“They never let me worry,” Yu said.

Yi has made it to 12 finals in 15 competitions over the past four years, and medalled nine times. She’s the world and Asian champion. Yet she admitted to nerves throughout the event at the Royal Artillery Barracks.

She couldn’t catch Bogacka until the Pole flubbed her eighth shot in the 10-shot final. Bogacka scored 9.7, her worst of the final, and dropped to third, but a near-perfect score, 10.8 out of 10.9, on her final shot gave her silver ahead of Yu.

“It happens sometimes,” she said of the 9.7. “I didn’t prepare well for the shot, but I knew what I did wrong and fixed it for the last shot. I saw in my mind the last shot, 10.8, and when I saw it on the monitor I was very happy.”

She’s the first Polish shooting medallist since 2000.

Defending champion Katerina Emmons of the Czech Republic, who scraped into the final from a qualifying shootoff, finished fourth. Beijing silver medallist Lioubov Galkina of Russia was 10th.

 

[elephanto]

Olympic opening ceremony: Ai Weiwei's review



Brilliant. It was very, very well done. .....you can trust; you see the values there. Anyone who watched it would have a clear understanding of what England is.

Well done Singveld : for the pix and the effort in collecting the various reviews for which i dun like ai wei wei but i like his review best....

Also, the Canadian review also very honest and thoughtful...

Regarding the imperfections, i agree with ai wei wei's take, the Brits dun even bother to rehearse too much ! So spontaneous and imperfect yet so full of life and vitality!

Contrast that with China (asian mostly) and singapore's assidiously ad nauseum intolerance of disorder hence the umpteenth NDP rehearsal : so formulaeic and predictably contrived.

I salute the Brits : even though i have no patience to sit through and didnt even catch it at all : live or otherwise.

Also from forummers divergent views here, really proves the old adage: one man's meat is another man's poison.

 

[singveld]

Tour de France winner got kick in the balls in their home game olympic, that is funny, not their ceremony.

Perfect setting: The Mall was the iconic final stretch of the thrilling race, where thousands lined the streets in central London

Home straight: The eventual gold and silver placed riders, Alexandr Vinokurov and Rigoberto Uran, ride alongside Buckingham Palace during a tense finale

Great expectations: Fans line the race route in Twickenham in anticipation of the arrival of the peloton

On the charge: Cavendish (sixth from left) is supported by fellow Team GB riders Chris Froome (right), Tony Martin, Bradley Wiggins, David Millar and Ian Stannard

The riders cross Putney Bridge in south west London near the start of the six-hour race

Royal setting: The riders set off along the Mall at the start of the race, which will see them back in central London for the final sprint at around 3.50pm

After the stunning Opening Ceremony last night, all eyes have turned to the real Olympic action to see if the sport could provide the same kind of spectacle.

And if today's men's road race is anything to go by, Olympic fans are in for a memorable fortnight of twists, turns, and amazing surroundings.

The nail-biting race took in picturesque countryside and iconic London landmarks as cyclists ended the 156-mile course at breakneck pace.

Although the race ended in disappointment for Britain and favourite Mark Cavendish, the estimated one million fans who lined the route still created an electric atmosphere.

As the leading pack tore through west London, the sprint finish saw Kazakhstan rider Alexander Vinokourov claim gold ahead of Colombian Rigoberto Uran.

The 38-year-old winner finished 40 second ahead of Cavendish, who crossed the line in a disappointing 29th position.

The leading pair dashed the hopes of a million fans who had lined the streets of the 156-mile route, hoping to see Britain's cyclists kickstart Team GB's medal haul.

Norway's Alexander Kristoff took bronze in the race, as hot favourite Cavendish eventually finished 40 seconds behind the winner in 29th position.

In the end, perhaps nerves and the weight of expectation of a nation got the better of Cavendish.

Following the success of teammate Bradley Wiggins in the Tour de France, in many people's eyes Cavendish had already been anointed champion. But earlier in the day he admitted on Twitter: 'I am nervous.'

Thousands of people waving Union Flags lined the route and the nation's hopes had rested on Cavendish to continue the feelgood factor after a UK TV audience of 26.9million people watched last night's stunning opening ceremony.

Cavendish, known as the Manx Missile, was also cheered on by his girlfriend, former Page 3 model Peta Todd, 25, the mother of his four-month-old daughter.

Cavendish, the world champion and winner of 23 Tour de France stages, had been a favourite at the start of the 250-kilometre race but crowds experienced early nerves as a 12-man breakaway group led by more than five minutes early on.

He lagged behind the front group as the riders re-entered Richmond Park as the race neared its end.

But a key moment offered a ray of hope as half a dozen leaders misjudged a corner and crashed out of the race.

However in the end Kazakhstan's Alexandr Vinokourov triumphed in the dramatic race.

Colombia's Rigoberto Uran, a Team Sky colleague of Cavendish's, claimed silver, with Norway's Alexander Kristoff third.

He had described Britain's five-man squad as the 'dream team', featuring Tour winner Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, David Millar and Ian Stannard.

All four had ridden in support of Cavendish when he won the World Championships road race in Copenhagen last September, but this task was tougher, according to Millar and Wiggins.

And despite phenomenal support from his four British team-mates a late breakaway stayed clear and Vinokourov, who served a two-year ban until 2009 for blood doping, won the sprint for the line.

Cavendish was unhappy the likes of Australia and Germany, who had sprinters in their teams, were reluctant to pursue the breakaway.


He added: 'It's bitterly disappointing. There's 70 guys in our group at the finish, I don't understand why there's (only) three guys riding. It doesn't make sense.

'No-one wants to help us. The Australians sit there. They always just ride negatively...they're happy to see us lose.

'I'd like to say that's how it goes, but it's disappointing.

'But we did everything. We can't make excuses. We did everything we said we were going to do and more. To see the guys with the calibre they've got ride like that for me is incredible.'

On his team-mates, he continued: 'Incredible. I couldn't be more proud of them. They're still sat there in their kit in the tent. They're absolutely spent.

'They just rode 250k (kilometres) they've gone 60k an hour for the last hour. It's incredible, I'm so proud of them.'

Despite the result, Cavendish relished the experience of competing in front of vocal support at a home Games.

'All our ears are ringing,' he said. 'Obviously we don't pick up on individuals, you just hear noise. It was tremendous the whole way round.

'It's something I'll remember forever.

'I haven't got a medal but I can be completely proud of my team and completely proud of my country for their support.'

Cavendish had lagged behind the front group as the riders re-entered Richmond Park as the race neared its end.
A young supporter with her face painted in the colors of the British national flag
Cycling fans cheer their favorite sportsmen as the peloton passes in front of Buckingham Palace

But a key moment offered a ray of hope as half a dozen leaders misjudged a corner and crashed out of the race. But the Team GB riders were too far behind to take advantage.

Fans had gathered at the home of British cycling in Manchester in the hope of watching Mark Cavendish claim gold.

Supporters, some dressed in Team Sky tops, gathered around a big screen at the National Cycling Centre (NCC) to watch the British team.

Rose Joyce, acting duty manager at the velodrome, said: 'I'm disappointed for Cav mainly because he is one of our lads but he is still a champ in our eyes.'

Mrs Joyce, who has worked at the NCC for 14 years, said Cav was a 'down-to-earth' lad and would 'bounce back' from today's result.

Manchester's velodrome has played a big part in the career of Cavendish, Wiggins and many other British cyclists who began their track careers there.

Mrs Joyce said the British cycling team would carry on to inspire young athletes, adding: 'The velodrome will be packed now over the next few weeks because of the Olympics. They are brilliant. We can't knock them. In our eyes they will always be champs.'

Fight to the finish: Kazakhstan's Alexander Vinokourov dashed Britain's hopes of an early gold medal by powering to victory over favourite Mark Cavendish

 

[singveld]

Weren't they meant to be sold out? Day one of the Games sees banks of empty seats at key venues

Unfilled: Although cheaper seats higher up in the Aquatics Centre were filled to capacity by the general public, those lower down had rows of empty seats for this morning's swimming heats

Locog said the seats were meant to be filled by officials and media at the Aquatics Centre

Tory MP Louise Mensch today tweeted this picture of banks of empty seats at the Olympic Aquatic centre

Poor attendance: Over at the gymnastics arena in North Greenwich, Frenchman Pierre Yves Beny competed in the rings in front of more empty seats

Great Britain's women's football clash with New Zealand was played out before empty stands at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
Olympic bosses have promised to investigate major sponsors after banks of empty seats were spotted at several sold-out Games venues today.

Several high-profile venues, including the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park and the gymnastics arena in North Greenwich, had rows of empty seats during morning sessions on the first day of the Games.

Locog said they would be investigating why the seats were unfilled, while Lord Coe has reportedly promised to name and shame sponsors who did not find takers for the venues.

Fans who paid huge sums to secure sought-after Olympics tickets were left fuming as seats - thought to have been bought in bulk by Games sponsors - were left unfilled.

At the Aquatics Centre, where every session is a sell-out, there were rows of empty seats in the lower tier, where more expensive tickets are situated.

The ticketing situation will have caused a further headache for Lord Coe, who admitted before the Opening Ceremony prices were under review amid fears some venues could remain partly empty.

The London 2012 chairman said that although two million more Olympic tickets have been sold in recent months, the prices of more expensive seats could be cut.

Lord Coe said: 'We'll look at all those sorts of things but we've got any number of options.

'I just don’t think, from what’s happening at the moment, we’re going to have a great deal left.

'It was always my ambition to put people that look like they wanted to be in the stadium, to make them affordably priced... and really to meet our revenue targets (£600million) and I think we’ve done that in a really, really difficult climate.'

Meanwhile, there were reports of queues of up to 50 minutes for free water inside the rowing venue at Eton Dorney.

Spectator Anna Woodhams said: 'There was an excellent atmosphere. The people doing the catering weren't coping very well, but it's day one and it was ok. I'm sure they'll learn from it.'

LOCOG promised to reduce the queues. A spokeswoman said: 'There are five free water points within the venue and also 19 concessions selling water.

'Yes, there were queues and we're working hard to keep them to a minimum.'

 

[singveld]

Well done Singveld : for the pix and the effort in collecting the various reviews for which i dun like ai wei wei but i like his review best....

you are welcome elephanto. Pls contribute to moderated folder if you have time.

 

[singveld]

Badly drawn ploy: Clothing store tries to avoid strict Olympic merchandising rules (with squares instead of rings... and very questionable spelling)

They certainly get a gold medal for effort in their attempts to get round strict rules surrounding Olympic merchandise.

But it is hard to be seen whether even the most ardent rebel will be moved to buy the slightly unorthodox attire.

A men's clothing hire shop in Surbiton, South-West London, has produced a range of clothes with squares rather than rings in the Olympic colours.

And written above them is an interesting spelling of London 2012 Olympics - it has been changed to Lodnon 2102 Oimplycs

It remains to be seen how Games organisers will react, but there have been a number of shopkeeprs who have fallen foul of the strict rules covering Olympic trademarks.

Florist Lisa Cross, 33, was told by trading standards officials that colourful rings put up in her window constituted an ‘unauthorised use’ of the Olympic logo that left her at risk of being sued by Games organisers.

The mother of three, who runs La Rose florists in Hanley, Stoke, with business partner Tony Finney, said: ‘The trading standards officers said they really loved the display, but told us we’d have to take it down or we could be sued. We’ve only been running the shop for 16 months. I couldn’t fight it against them, they are a big organisation. I’m trying to grow my business, not ruin it.’

The five rings and a torch, all made from tissue paper, were a hit with customers.

Mrs Cross, from Burslem, added: ‘I had no idea I was breaking any rules. I just wanted to support Team GB and the Olympics.

‘People have come into the shop and told me the display looks absolutely brilliant. It’s very frustrating because all it was there for was as a display. I wasn’t making any money from it or advertising anything.’
Elsewhere, a cafe manager who displayed five bagels in the style of Olympics rings was stunned to be raided by ‘community wardens’ from the council.

They took it upon themselves to declare the light-hearted window display ‘unauthorised’, and threatened him with court.

They proclaimed it a breach of laws brought in to prevent businesses exploiting the 2012 Games unless they are official sponsors.

Despite no one from the Olympics, the Government or any official sponsors complaining about the display of bread, the cafe had the book thrown at it by Southwark Council in South London.

Two ‘community wardens’ swooped on the House Cafe and Gallery, in Camberwell, within 20 minutes of manager David Adams putting up the display.

They claimed that putting the circular buns on show breached copyright rules.

The shop in Surbiton, South-West London defies the International Olympic Committee's ban on advertising with the Olympic logo and Olympic Rings

Rebellion: The spelling on the T-shirt may not even tempt the most rebellious souls to help them flout the ban

Amazed: Lisa Cross, right, pictured with her assistant Cristy Marshall, left, was ordered to remove an Olympic themed window display after being warned she is breaching copyright laws

O-no: Ring-shaped bagels at the House cafe in Camberwell, south London was told to take down the Olympic-themed display by southwark Borough Council

 

[THE_CHANSTER]

The empty seats in many of the venues is an absolute disgrace. LOCOG need to fix this urgently.

 

[singveld]

The empty seats in many of the venues is an absolute disgrace. LOCOG need to fix this urgently.

do you know why? the ticketing was given to an external companies, which turn it into airlines ticketing, same seat, different price, there are very cheap tickets and very expensive tickets, but they are the same area. They release them bits by bits, trying to increase demand, always trying to get the public to pay more.
So, the people who want the cheap tickets will be told the seats all sold out, then months later, some tickets are released. Always trying to get them to pay more.

Obviously they miscalculate what the londoner willing to pay and in the end unable to sell all the tickets.

 

[singveld]

Misery for the Murrays on a bad day for the Brits: Andy and Jamie suffer defeat at Wimbledon as Team GB fail to pick up a medal on the opening day

They were not playing for gold, but defeat still hurt for Andy and Jamie Murray as they lost on the grass of Wimbledon in the first round of the Olympic men's doubles

In a very tight battle with Austria's Jurgen Melzer and Alexander Peya they went down 5-7, 7-6 (8/6), 7-5 after two hours and 23 minutes.

The British pair were cheered on by a raucous crowd on Court Two and edged the first set but, despite being twice a break ahead in the decider, they could not close it out.

It was just one of a number of disapointments suffered by Team GB on a day when none of their medal hopefuls were able to secure a place on the podium.
This afternoon Mark Cavendish failed to challenge in the men's cycling road race and - along with teammates Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, David Millar and Ian Stannard - finished way out of contention.

Great things had been expected of world champion Cavendish, but it seemed the expectation got the better of him as he finished a disappointing 29th.

He said: 'It's bitterly disappointing. There's 70 guys in our group at the finish, I don't understand why there's (only) three guys riding. It doesn't make sense.

'No-one wants to help us. The Australians sit there. They always just ride negatively...they're happy to see us lose.

'I'd like to say that's how it goes, but it's disappointing.

'But we did everything. We can't make excuses. We did everything we said we were going to do and more. To see the guys with the calibre they've got ride like that for me is incredible.'
On his team-mates, he continued: 'Incredible. I couldn't be more proud of them. They're still sat there in their kit in the tent. They're absolutely spent.

The disappointment of Cavendish's defeat was followed this evening when Team GB's Hannah Miley could manage only fifth place in the 400 metres individual medley.

She had been seen as a genuine medal hope after winning silver at last year's World Championships.

Miley was cheered on by an ecstatic home crowd at poolside but the final was won by Chinese swimmer Shiwen Ye, who set a new world record.
Elswhere, Steve Grotowski and John Garcia-Thompson's Olympic bid for glory in the Beach Volleyball began with a defeat as the British pair went down in straight sets against Canada at a pulsating Horse Guards Parade.

A near-capacity crowd at the 15,000-sweater arena did their best to cheer on the home favourites in their Pool F opener but their opponents just had that bit more guile around the court and emerged with a solid 21-19 21-13 win.

Meanwhile Great Britain's hopes of a men's archery team medal ended at the first hurdle as they were soundly beaten by Ukraine at Lord's.

Having ranked in eighth place on Friday, they had a first-round assignment against ninth seeds Ukraine.

But despite being a close match on paper Larry Godfrey, Simon Terry and Alan Wills went down 223-212 to Viktor Ruban, Dmytro Hrachov and Markiyan Ivashko.But it will not be all doom and gloom in the Olympic village tonight among British athletes - The British women's football team made it two wins out of two with a 3-0 victory over Cameroon.

And at Wimbledon, Elena Baltacha got Great Britain's tennis players off to a winning start by overpowering Hungary's Agnes Szavay in the first round of the women's singles.

In the Olympic boxing tournament at ExCel, Anthony Ogogo got Great Britain off to a successful start with a convincing 13-6 win over Junior Castillo of the Dominican Republic.

After a cagey start, Ogogo pulled away in the final two rounds for a victory which takes him into a last 16 bout against reigning world champion Evgen Khytrov of Ukraine on Thursday afternoon.

Ogogo, whose build-up has been disrupted by his mother's serious illness, was roared into the ring by the capacity 6,000 crowd and visibly relaxed as the bout went on.

 

[singveld]

A man holds a British flag at Trafalgar Square in downtown London during a clock countdown prior to the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 27, 2012, in London

 

[singveld]

A spectator wears glasses in the colors of the British flag during the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 27, 2012, in London.

Anna Prior, right, walks with her children Detty Prior, center, and Johnny Prior toward Olympic Stadium to watch the Opening Ceremony at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 27, 2012, in London.

 

[singveld]

Flying the flag: One young fan showed her support by painting her face in the colours of the Union Jack

National pride: Flag-waving spectators at the Olympic Park in East London yesterday

 

[singveld]

Ye Shiwen of China broke the world record to win 400m individual medley gold in London.

Ye, 16, set a new world best of four minutes 28.43 seconds, ahead of American world champion Elizabeth Beisel and fellow Chinese Li Xuanxu.

Ye broke the previous record of 4:29.45, set by Australia's Stephanie Rice at the 2008 Beijing Games.

After she won silver at last year's World Championships, there had been high hopes that Miley could get on the podium, but the pace was too strong and she never threatened for a medal.

"It was probably just down to the heats," added Miley, who had finished sixth on Saturday morning to qualify for the final.

"They were the fastest that have ever been recorded in the history of the 400m IM and the challenge was who can recover the fastest to be able to put out again - and the young ones won.


"For me, it was an honest effort and I apologise to anyone who feels disappointed in me, but I feel really proud and happy to have been able to represent Britain and the crowd were absolutely awesome."

Elsewhere, Ellen Gandy qualified for the 100m butterfly final, but team-mate Fran Halsall missed out, as did Michael Jamieson and Craig Benson in the 100m breaststroke semi-final.

David Carry finished seventh in the 400m freestyle final, and the British women's 4x100m sprint freestyle squad came a creditable fifth.