2008 Olympics: Standout US Olympic athletes
It’s amazing that another Olympics is up us. The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing,China started August 8th, 2008.There are going to be many sports in which US athletes stand out.
Let’s start with Dara Torres in swimming. Dara Torres has won 9 medals in previous years. Qualifying for her 5th Olympic games at the Olympic trials this year is an inspiration. At 41 years old, she is showing the world that you can still make your dreams come true.
Another standout US Olympic athlete in swimming is Michael Phelps. He has already won 8 Olympic medals in the 2004 Olympics. He is a favorite to win more medals in swimming in the Beijing Olympics and possibly breaking more world records.
Let’s move on to gymnastics.In women’s gymnastics Shawn Johnson is America’s hope to win a gold medal. She has focus, spunk, and skill when she competes. She is a very strong contender. Nastia Liukin is also favored to win a medal. She won last years world title and this year at the Olympic trials she has never looked better.
In men’s gymnastics, Paul Hamm has been the standout athlete for the US to win more medals. With his recent injury to his right hand. The focus may be turned to his twin brother, Morgan Hamm.Morgan, has a strong event in the bars and can be a competitive challenger in the all around. So,we can’t count out Morgan Hamm on winning a medal for the United States at the Olympics in Beijing.
In track and field, Tyson Gay is considered one of the fastest men in the 100-meter dash and the 200-meter dash. He has set a new American record at the 2008 Olympic trials. He ran a record-breaking 9.68 in the Olympic trials final. He truly is the fastest human being to run the 100 meters.
On the women’s side of Track and Field, Allyson Felix is a phenomenon in the 200-meter dash. She won a silver medal in the Athens Olympics. Doing well in the 2008 Olympic trials this year. She is going for the gold medal and she just might get it.
There are many more 2008 Olympics: Standout US Olympic Athletes to watch at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Here’s the list:
US Softball Team – Jennie Finch,Jessica Mendoza, Crystl Bustos
US Tennis Athletes – Serena Williams, Venus Williams,Mike and Bob Bryan,James Blake
Women’s Beach Volleyball – Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh are the top ranked in the world.
Men’s Basketball – Dwayne Wade, Lebron James,and Dwight Howard may bring home the gold for the United States.In 2004 they won the bronze medal,but there’s nothing better than winning the gold medal.
For more information on “Standout US Olympic athletes. You can go to www.nbcolympics.com/athletes
Beijing Summer Olympics: Get Your Seats Quick!
The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing will be an event the world will remember. If you want to get there and see all the action yourself, the good news is that there are still tickets available. It can be quite a challenge getting to watch the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, but it is well worth the effort!
Tickets for all the major events went on sale early in 2007. Unlike some events, there are no special buying privileges for anyone. Almost all of the tickets were to be sold directly on the market to consumers. But, they’ve been on the market for a while, and they are running out fast. If you want to see the Summer Olympics this year, now is the time to act!
First of all, check and see which events you want to attend. The official Olympics website lists all the events. You can pick and choose which competitions you would like to attend, and there are also package deals available. The events vary in price, with the opening ceremony and other popular events being much pricier than the regular events.
After you’ve secured your seats, the next step is to take care of the visa situation. If you don’t already have a passport, you should start that process right away. They always tell you that it may take a couple of months to process, but usually it is done in a couple of weeks. Still, the visa and passport are two things you don’t want to leave until the last minute.
Next, you should book your hotel. This will perhaps be the biggest tourist season in Beijing’s history, with people coming from all over the world to the city for the Olympics, so Beijing’s hospitality industry will be falling over itself to offer the best deals and best service possible. Another advantage for travelers from the US and Europe is that the dollar and the Euro are strong against Chinese currency, which means your lodging and food will be as costly!
The best place to make your purchase is with online ticket dealers. Once you get online and look, you’ll find that there are lots to choose from. There is also the option of buying on auction sites. It is generally best to buy from an authorized dealer and not an auction site, because you can expect a speedy delivery, guarantees and better customer service from a serious dealer.
You can make your purchase directly from the official ticketing site for the 2008 Olympic Games, but there are some hassles involved. First off, the time window for buying tickets is very short. Also, to prevent fraud, there have been security features installed that require you to submit your ID and photograph electronically when you buy. If you don’t want to go through all of this, there are plenty of other purchasing options.
When selecting an online ticket seller, customer service is very important. If there is any problem at all with your purchase or delivery, you want a dealer who you can easily contact to resolve the issues. For this reason, you should choose a site that has a toll-free number, and call ahead of time to make sure it leads to something other than an electronic message.
Make sure that the company is legit. One way to do this is to check with the Better Business Bureau. You can also do your own research by using a search engine with the name of the dealer and looking for sites or forums where people have complained about them, or praised them. This can give you an idea of some of the problems you might have, and might tip you off on which sites NOT to buy from.
Finally, shop around. Don’t buy tickets from the first site you look at. Spend a little time looking at what several different sites offer so you know you’re going with the best one.
Get started buying your 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics tickets today! There are still plenty available online, but they will be selling out soon.
Beijing the City of Many Temples
The capital of the peoples republic of China is Beijing. It was formlery known in English as Peking or Peiking. It is hosting the 2008 summer olympics and is one of the four great ancient capitals of China.
As the capital Beijing has also been the site of political turmoil in recent years. Tiananmen Square a well known landmark in the city was the site of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1976 and then the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 which ended in the Tiananmen Square massacre.
The Great Wall of China passes through Beijing. The Great Wall extends for a good 3000 miles from Shanhaiguan. Today travellers go to The Great Wall to walk on the only man made structure visible from space and to look out from one of the guard towers onto the barren mountains.
Badaling is the section closet to Beijing and offers some of the best views, but it is always crowded.
Mutianyu is another restored section. This section is a more rigours climb but have cable cars to reach the top. A less crowded section is known as Simatai but is 100 kilometres northeast of Beijing and takes a day trip. All section have tour but the most popular is Badaling.
Forbidden City
In the centre of Beijing is The Imperial Palace which was the residence of the emperors for five hundred years from the 15th century to the 20th century. It was the symbolic sea of the imperial power. It is better known as The Forbidden City. Many of the buildings of the Palace have been rebuilt or repaired. The architectural covers an area of 2350,000 square feet and has 9,999 rooms. It is the biggest complex in the world .The forbidden City has three primary Halls of State. The Hall of Supreme Harmony The Hall of Middle Harmony and The Hall of Preserving Harmony. The Outer Court the emperors governed from their thrones and hold court session with the ministers also The Outer Court was used for ceremonies such as birthday and weddings. The Inner Court was where the emperor dealt with state affairs.
Urban Beijing is known for being the center of pirated goods and anything from the latest dvds to the latest designer clothing can be found in markets all over the city.
Most night clubs are in the area around Sanlitun or near the workers stadim.
Wudaokou, in northwestern Beijing, is also a bustling nightlife center. There are more Koreans and other foreigners, mostly students, in the area.
