Let there be light: David Cameron sparks Olympic Stadium into life for the first time

By Daily Mail Reporter

From: http://www.dailymail.co.uk

 David Cameron marked a historic moment for Britain last night when he turned on the lights at London's 2012 Olympic Stadium for the first time.

The Prime Minister, flanked by London Mayor Boris Johnson and Games organising chief Lord Coe, pushed the button to switch on the floodlights during a special ceremony at the snow-covered stadium.

It was the first time that all 532 bulbs had been lit together - in a scene that will be repeated during the 2012 Games.

Light show: The Olympic Stadium floodlights are officially switched on by Prime Minister David Cameron

Mr Cameron joked that the £537million stadium in Stratford, east London, looked more like a winter Olympic venue with ski-jumper Eddie the Eagle expected at any moment rather than the setting for the London 2012 summer Games.

But he told the 400-strong invited crowd, which included 2012 builders and a choir of local schoolchildren, at the site that 'the biggest show on earth' will be coming to east London in one year, seven months and seven days.

'It is being delivered on time and on budget thanks to British genius and many of the people here,' he added.


Introductions were carried out by Mr Johnson, who did not seem aware that the lights take up to eight minutes to reach full power.


'They are coming, they are coming,' he told the crowd before all the lights had phased in.

Biggest show on earth: Mr Cameron spoke to schoolchildren alongside London Mayor Boris Johnson who couldn't find anywhere to sit inside the stadium which was covered in snow

 
He described it as a 'wonderful and historic evening', while also joking that with plans so advanced, including 75 per cent of building work complete, London 2012 might consider holding a snap Olympics now 17 months before the Games 'to catch the world napping'.

There are 14 lighting towers reaching 70m (230ft) above the sports area.
Mr Cameron also spoke of changes to unpopular plans to cut £162million from school sport.

Earlier, the Education Department announced it will fund School Sport Partnerships to the end of the summer term 2011 at a cost of £47million, ensuring they can run until the end of the academic year.

Waiting game: The Olympic Stadium is set to be fully delivered next year for completion

Works goes on... The stadium is currently ahead of schedule leading Mr Cameron to joke London should hold a snap Olympics to 'catch the world napping'

A further £65million has been earmarked to enable every secondary school to release one PE teacher for a day a week in the school year 2011-12 and in 2012-13. This recognises the considerable impact the current network of School Sport Co-ordinators have had on PE and school sport throughout the country over the past decade.
The Department also announced it will fund the Youth Sport Trust (YST) to expand its Young Ambassadors programme so that every secondary school and some primary schools can create more Young Ambassadors ahead of London 2012.
The Government also restated its commitment to a nationwide school sport competition.

Once finished the Olympic Stadium will dominate the skyline in the east of the the capital

South Africa to make 2020 Olympic bid

Soccer City in Johannesburg could host the Olympic Games in 2020

South Africa hopes to follow up its hosting of the football World Cup by staging the Olympics after confirming it plans to bid for the 2020 Games.

The country's Olympic committee has invited potential host cities to "state their intention of being involved".

Organisers hope that the success of this year's World Cup will help lead to the first Olympics on African soil.

The International Olympic Committee has yet to begin the selection process but a host is set to be named in mid-2013.

Other cities who have expressed an interest in bidding are Budapest in Hungary, Busan in South Korea, this year's Commonwealth Games hosts Delhi in India, while Taiwan, Dubai and Italy are also expected to bid.

Cape Town beat off competition from Durban and Johannesburg for the South African bid to host the 2004 Games but was well beaten into third place in the overall campaign by Athens.

"Our intention is to provide a world-class city capable of hosting Africa's first Olympic Games in 2020," said Sascoc chief executive Tubby Reddy.

The move comes after President Jacob Zuma publicly declared the World Cup a success and expressed confidence that South Africa could do a similarly excellent job in 2020.

"For our eyes to be on 2020, we are not weary, because we have the facilities," he said.

IOC president Jacques Rogge met with Zuma in South Africa over the weekend and attended Sunday's World Cup final at Soccer City.

"From the start, when South Africa were named as World Cup hosts, we all knew the country would be able to organise the tournament," said Rogge on Monday.

"Now it is up to you as a nation to decide if you want to host this [the Olympics] event."

South Africa built several new stadiums for the World Cup, while infrastructure improvements in transport, energy and communications also took place.

Olympic Golden Girls

Gold medal winning women get very little exposure, these photos help us focus on their achievements in more detail.

Lindsey Vonn | Alpine Skiing Downhill

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Maria Riesch | Alpine Skiing - Super Combined

 

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Ashleigh McIvor | Ski Cross

 

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Julia Mancuso | Super Combined - silver

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Hannah Teter | Snowboard Halfpipe - Silver

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Yu-Na Kim | Figure Skating

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Tessa Virtue | Ice Dancing

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Magdalena Neuner | Biathlon

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Evi Sachenbacher | Cross-Country Skiing Team Sprint

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Claudia Nystad | Cross-Country Skiing Team Sprint

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Lydia Lassila | Freestyle Skiing Aerials

Passing the Torch: An Evolution of Form

By LEE BYRON and ALICIA DeSANTIS |
From: http://www.nytimes.com/

Click above for a cool interactive infographic

Source: I.O.C./Olympic Museum Collections

Rock the House: The Hotties of Olympic Curling

by Adam Lindemer

Adam Lindemer

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I have probably watched more curling, men's and women's, in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics than any other event.

Some may think it's boring, but I enjoy watching matches because as they say, it's like chess on ice. There is so much strategy to the game and the only one to get inside your head is yourself.

Like everything else, people watch certain sports because of who play them, and curling is no different as there are plenty of attractive women on this ice.

That may be one reason I watch, but it's also because of the fact that curling only gets national television exposure every four years at the Olympics.

I also like the lingo of the sport of curling: Curlers throw the 'rock' or 'stone' in each 'end', with the last one named the 'hammer'. They play on a 'sheet' to get the stones into the 'house' with the main goal of landing on the 'button'.

I'm liking the sport more and more everytime I watch a match. Plus, these are everyday women who just happened to pick up curling as a sidenote early on, purely because they loved it.

These athletes aren't like hockey players. The women have normal jobs back home because there is very little to no money in being a professional curler, so the Olympics is truly their chance at glory.

The following ladies are my top 15 curlers that I'm watching for, and I apologize if your favorite fails to make this list.

Had I known that curlers look like this, I might have taken up curling at a local club growing up and practiced my 'draw' shot.

No. 14: Anna Svard (Sweden)

You knew there had to be at least one Swede on this list.

In Vancouver, Svard is in the lead for the Swedish team, who are the 2006 gold medalists from Turin.

The 36-year-old from Taby, Sweden, is a traffic-planning engineer and consultant back home.

Svard also gets to play with her sister in Canada, as Kajsa Bergstrom is also a member of the 2010 team.

Some of her hobbies include traveling, reading, sports, and designing.

No. 13: Corinna Scholz (Germany)

Scholz hails from Bernbeuren, Germany, and my German heritage has no problem with women from Deutschland making this list.

The 20-year-old Scholz was named as the alternate for the German team for the 2010 Vancouver Games.

She was also the alternate on Germany's gold medal team in the 2009 Aberdeen European Championships, where she was able to play the lead on several occasions.

No. 12: Cheryl Benard (Canada)

The 43-year-old Bernard is the skip for the home Canadian team, looking to finish with the gold medal.

Both of Bernard's parents curled, and she practically grew up at the local curling club.

She started her own insurance company at age 23 and sold it 13 years later to spend more time with her family.

Bernard could easily be classified as a cougar: She, along with other curlers, posed for a 36-month calendar baring all, trying to fund each of their ways further into the competition.

This may or may not be Bernard's backside that is bared in the top picture here: http://www.hothletes.com/?tag=curling

No. 11: Anna Sidorova (Russia)

One of the younger curlers in Vancouver, the 19-year-old Sidorova is from Moscow, Russia, like other members of her team, and was a last minute replacement of Olga Jarkova.

She came into 2010 as the alternate but has skipped two matches, making her the youngest skip in Vancouver as Great Britain's Eve Muirhead is ten months older.

Sidorova is a student at Russian State University of Humanities and like most teenage girls, lists shopping as one of her hobbies.

No. 10: Denise Dupont (Denmark)

Denise Dupont comes in as the third on the Denmark team, and the 25-year-old was born in Gulstrop, Denmark.

Her younger sister Madeleine is the alternate in Vancouver for the Danes.

Denise is studying nutrition and health sciences back in her home country and enjoys listening to music, working out, and spending time with friends.

The elder Dupont speaks five languages: Danish, english, swedish, german, and norwegian making it hard for opponents to discuss strategy while she is within an ear shot.

No. 9: Eve Muirhead (Great Britain)

As mentioned earlier, the 19-year-old Muirhead came into the Vancouver Games as the youngest skip, with Great Britain, but was later bested by Russia's Sidorova.

Muirhead is quite the talented young lady: She also golfs and plays the bagpipes, along with curling.

As she hails from Pitlochry, Scotland, all that doesn't surprise me, but she has come up with some big shots in Canada.

Muirhead comes from a curling family as her father, Gordon, helped the men's team place fifth in the 1992 Olympics and her brother, Glen, skipped for Scotland at the 2008 World Junior Championships.

The greatest thing about Muirhead: the Scottish accent, of course.

No. 8: Irene Schori (Switzerland)

Schori was named as the alternate for the Swiss team in Vancouver and hails from Glattpark, Switzerland.

She also posed for that same curling calendar mentioned with Canada's Bernard, and this was one of Schori's tamer pictures.

The 26-year-old was relatively unknown outside of Switzerland before the 2010 Olympics, but if she keeps doing photos shoots like this, she'll make a name for herself in no time.

No. 7: Stella Heiss (Germany)

Heiss is the youngest curler in Vancouver, at 17-years-old, and is from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.

She was named as the alternate for the Germans but has thrown the lead in Canada as well.

Heiss is the daughter of former German men's hockey goaltender, Josef Heiss.

As long as she continues curling, she should be the future of curling for Germany, as two of its current curlers are in their mid-40s.

No 6: Carmen Schaefer (Switzerland)

Schaefer is the 29-year-old third for the Swiss team, who has experience as a skip.

She skipped for the junior team in 2000 and '01, placing fifth in '00 and fourth in '01, losing to Team USA 5-3 in the bronze medal match.

Schaefer made her debut with the Swiss when she was named as an alternate during the 1999 World Junior Champions but failed to play a match.

She lists dancing, cycling, jogging, and photography as her hobbies and as you can see in the picture, might be the only curler in Vancouver with a tongue piercing.

No. 5: Ekaterina Galkina (Russia)

The second Russian on this list, Galkina is the lead for Russia in Vancouver.

The 21-year-old, like her teammates, comes from Moscow, where she is studying management and international relations at Russian State University of Humanities.

Galkina, nicknamed Katja, also enjoys swimming, synchronized swimming, dancing, singing, and plain-old partying when she's not curling.

Not that's a woman who knows how to keep herself busy.

No. 4: Liudmila Privivkova (Russia)

The third and final Russian, Privivkova is the 23-year-old skip while in Vancouver.

She too is from Moscow, where she is a student of economics at the Mati Russian State Technical University.

Privivkova lists watching movies as one of her hobbies, and perhaps there is a movie about curling in the works out there somewhere (one that is on a more serious note than the 2002 flick "Men With Brooms", and maybe focusing on the women's game).

No. 3: Madeleine Dupont (Denmark)

The younger Dupont trumps her older sister on this list, as the 22-year old Madeleine was named as Denmark's alternate in the 2010 Olympics.

She was born in Hvidorve, Denmark and only speaks three languages—danish, english, and german—needing to learn two more to catch up with her big sis.

Madeleine is studying commerce at the Copenhagen Business School back in Denmark making her knowledge of three languages even more important.

No. 2: Nicole Joraanstad (USA)

The homer in me made the 29-year-old Joraanstad No. 2, as she is the second for Team USA while in Vancouver.

The homer vote not only comes from her being a member of Team USA, but also being a Wisconsinite, as Joraanstad comes from Madison, where she works as a senior corporate recruiter for TDS Telecom.

Joraanstad also has two curling related tattoos, including one of a stone with USA on her lower back and acts as the team's manager, dealing with travel arrangements and filling out the various paperwork.

She moved from Seattle, Wash. to Madison not only to attend the University of Wisconsin for business (receiving a degree) but also to be closer to the heart of curling.

On June 4, 2008, she received the Madison Sports Hall of Fame Club 2008 Sportswoman of the Year Award.

Joraanstad started curling at the late age of 15 but has quickly improved as shown by her playing in the Olympics.

She may be the runner-up on my list, but careful guys, she's engaged and set to be married this July back in Madison.

Her 2010 Olympic teammates in Natalie Nicholson, Allison Pottinger, and Debbie McCormick are all scheduled to be in the bridal party, proving just how close Team USA is.

No. 1: Melanie Robillard (Germany)

When I found this picture, there was no doubt in my mind who the hottest curler of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics was.

In hopes of gaining attention for her sport, the 27-year-old Robillard also posed in that pre-mentioned calendar. I think it worked, as more people should be watching curling now.

Too bad she covers up on the ice, although she might get a little cold on the 'sheet' without a shirt.

Robillard was born in Canada, lives in Belgium and competes as the third for Germany, speaking german, french, and english.

She is a law student at the University of Brussels in Belgium and enjoys skiing, cycling, travelling and ... keeping herself fit.

And for that, we say, "Danke."

Curling Finally Explained [InfoGraphic]

i.imgur.com — At last, someone makes sense out of the weirdest sport of the Winter Olympics.

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Pole Dancers Thrust for Olympic Status

By Kyle Munzenrieder
From: http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/

via Crave Online

​
The Winter Olympics may be getting dismal local ratings, but if the pleas of poll dancers across the world to have their "sport" recognized by the Olympics are heeded, we've got a feeling ratings would shoot through the roof.

"After a great deal of feedback from the pole dance community, many of us have decided that it's about time pole fitness is recognized as a competitive sport, and what better way for recognition than to be part of the 2012 Olympics held in London," British pole dancer KT Coates writes in an email to the Associated Press.

Apparently top pole dancers train like Olympic athletes, and once you remove the g-strings and sweaty dollar bills, is it really that much different than things like ice dancing and rhythmic gymnastics?

Pole dancing has taken off as a fitness craze lately, too, but even though there is a U.S. Pole Dance Federation which hosts championships (which, hello, Miami really needs to work on hosting someday) there's still a need to standardize scoring and technique.

Pulling off an Elevated Booty Clap might net you big points in Miami, but places like Los Angeles tend to value moves like the Fake Titty Twister 360.

Plus, the AP article doesn't even breech whether or not the competition would be open to both sexes (maybe Johnny Weir can win Gold after all...)

We doubt we'll see it in the Olympics anytime soon. Just like we doubt we'll ever see Miami ever host an Olympics, but if that ever does happen we sure as hell wouldn't mind seeing it at least featured as an exposition sport.

15 Hottest Female Figure Skaters of All Time

By Manolith Team

From: http://www.manolith.com/


There have been a lot of figure skaters over the years, and it’s always been a given that they tend to be hot. There are always exceptions, as there are for any rule of thumb or stereotype — but much like the cheerleading profession, figure skaters seem to defy the odds pretty damned well. These are the 15 hottest figure skaters of all time; these girls may have spent their lives on ice, but they are definitely hot.


Sasha Cohen

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2006 Olympic silver medalist and multiple championship-winning fox Sasha Cohen is fully aware of how gorgeous she is, and luckily she’s the type to share her gift by way of public appearances and photo shoots. While she does understand Russian, and her mother is a transplant from the Ukraine, Sasha was born in California and is very much your standard hottie from LA — yet somehow a staggering number of people seem to think she’s Russian. After taking a brief hiatus from the sport after her success in 2006, she made her return debut this year prior the Winter Games. Unfortunately, the judges felt that she needs a bit more practice to get her game back, and she wasn’t selected for the Olympic team this year.


Idora Hegel

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Idora Hegel is one of Croatia’s finest, and we’re not just talking about figure skating here, either. While she may not have any Olympic medals to back her up, she’s still a seven-time Croatian National Champion and world-class hottie. Idora did compete at the Games, though. She placed 19th twice — at the 2002 and 2006 Winter Games. 


Tanith Belbin

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Tanith, who seems incapable of taking a bad picture, has competed professionally for the USA since 1998 despite being Canadian-born and holding a dual citizenship. Apparently the guy she teamed up with in 1998 is something of a lucky charm, which makes sense since he’s one lucky bastard. Since their pairing, she’s gone on to win the US Championship five times, the Four Continents Championship three times, four World Medals, and some 2006 Olympic Silver. She’s at the Winter Games this year, and wasn’t doing half bad until Sunday night’s Free Dance. It’s OK though, we don’t mind if she doesn’t win this time around.


Katerina Witt

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Katerina Witt represented East Germany shortly before the Wall fell, and all of Germany afterward. She racked up a string of major wins throughout the 80s, including two Olympic Golds at Sarajevo and Calgary. She’s often called one of the very best figure skaters of all time, largely due to her massive winning record, but she’s a winner in our book for posing in many nude shots. Hit the image source on this one if you’re not at work — those black boxes were quite necessary.


Anna Semenovich

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With a last name that screams bad punnery and a penchant for posing, Anna Semenovich is a favorite for her good humor — if not so much for her record of wins. She never seemed able to find a partner that she had chemistry with, and though she did score two Finlandia Trophies, she didn’t have the best of score sheets. Now 29, she’s turned from figure skating full time for Russia to exploring a singing, acting and modeling career. We’re just fine with that, so long as more shots like this one come out of it.


Barbara Ann Scott

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1948 Olympic Gold-winner and immortalized Canadian pin-up girl Barbara Ann Scott was one hell of a figure skater before most of us were even a dirty thought in dad’s mind. She didn’t just come out of nowhere to win that one, either. Barbara won the World, European, and North American Championships twice each, all on top of winning the Canadian Championships four times. As if that wasn’t awesome enough, this lady is still alive and kicking today; she was a flag-bearer at the Winter Games opening ceremony at Vancouver.


Kristi Yamaguchi

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Making a comeback recently as champion of 2008’s Dancing with the Stars, Kristi Yamaguchi has been a household name since the early 90’s. She won the gold at the 1992 Olympics, and she’s racked up more wins and top placements than losses during her career, making her nothing short of extraordinary. In 2005, she was inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame. The crazy part of her story is how she began; when she was a kid, she had club feet, so she started skating as therapy.


Tara Lipinski

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Though she was only 15 when she was actively competing in figure skating, Tara Lipinski still counts because she’s become a part of the sport. She took home the gold in the 1998 Winter Games at Nagano, after racking up some serious wins world-wide beforehand, and has since taken to acting and cameo work. She’s been in a slew of shows and movies, and now at 27, she’s looking better than ever before. We can’t wait to see her take on some more serious roles.


Oksana Baiul

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Oksana Baiul hasn’t competed since the mid-90’s, but that hasn’t stopped her from remaining a part of pop culture ever since her hay day. She came seemingly out of nowhere to grab the gold at the Ukranian and World Championships, as well as Skate America — all in 1992. She also nabbed second place in the European Championships that year, along with fourth place in the Nations Cup. One year later she scored the gold at the Winter Olympics. She’s been living in the US ever since, despite being technically Ukranian. These days she spends her time collaborating for ice dances and running her own clothing and jewelry lines — and looking great while doing it.


Ekaterina Gordeeva

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Two-time Olympic Gold Medal-winner Ekaterina “Katia” Gordeeva made a name for herself back in the Cold War days by winning just about every competition she entered — and scoring top places in the few she didn’t. She represented the Hammer & Sickle before the Wall fell, and afterward continued to skate for Russia. These days, she spends her time getting even better looking than when she was young, and working as a choreographer and mentor for aspiring hotties on ice. She’s a huge part of the sport and a star for life, and we like it that way.


Kim Yu-Na

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Helping to give South Korea a good name, 19 year-old Kim Yu-Na has been competing for the better part of the last decade — and winning. Her career’s score card is full of “first place,” and she’s not showing any signs of slowing down yet. This year she’s competing at the Winter Games in Vancouver, and her chances look pretty good so far. We’re keeping fingers crossed for this one.


Sonja Henie

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This Norwegian blast from the past is a fixture in the world of figure skating, much the same way that posters of her were probably fixtures on the walls of young men the world over when she was active in the sport. She took home the gold three times, in 1928, 1932 and 1936 — along with ten World Championships, six European Championships, and six Norwegian Championships. The woman is nothing short of a legend, and she cemented her fame when she turned to acting afterwards. She played in 15 films in her lifetime, was inducted into several halls of fame, and graced the cover of Time Magazine in 1939. We dig vintage.


Michelle Kwan

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If you don’t already have a thing for Michelle Kwan, you’ve probably spent the better part of your life under a rock, or you’re too young to be reading this in the first place. Besides her obvious level of hotness, Kwan has made a name for herself by racking up a ridiculously impressive 30 wins between 1992 and 2005. Unfortunately, the highest she ever attained at the Olympics was silver, with one bronze four years later at her next attempt. Despite her narrow misses at the Olympics, she’s regarded as one of the greats. We agree.


Jamie Salé

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Winner of the 2002 Winter Olympics, Canadian Jamie Salé led an impressive, albeit short career. Between 1991 and 2002, she won 16 golds. After her Olympic win, she decided to take it easy and now tours around the continent performing in Stars on Ice — and posing nearly naked for men’s magazines.


Peggy Fleming

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Peggy Fleming, after a blitzkrieg winning-streak starting in 1964, nabbed the gold at the 1968 Olympics in Grenoble. She basically embodied the quintessential girl of the 60’s, complete with the Bond Girl international look and all. She was stunningly gorgeous then, and she’s still got it, too. As well as staying fit and beautiful, she also likes to stay relevant; she made a cameo in Blades of Glory as a judge. We love this woman.