Nigeria Celebrates First Olympic Basketball Berth
I received an email from Abel Udoekene, a loyal Sonny Side of Sports listener in Lagos, Nigeria, celebrating the achievement of The Tigers, Nigeria’s national men’s basketball team. “It gives me great joy,” wrote Abel, “to congratulate the Nigerian basketball team for qualifying for the first time for the Olympics, they are the pride of […]
USA Aims For More Gold In Olympic Basketball
The United States will be defending its gold medals in both men’s and women’s basketball at the upcoming London Olympics. Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski led the American men to gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey, and he says the 2012 Olympic squad is a […]
South Africa’s Blade Runner Makes Olympic History
Calling it one of the proudest days of his life, Oscar Pistorius was selected Wednesday for South Africa’s Olympic team for the upcoming London Games. The 25-year-old Pistorius, nicknamed “The Blade Runner” for his carbon fiber, artificial legs, will become the first amputee to compete in an Olympic track event. South Africa’s Olympic Committee says […]
Amantle Montsho: Botswana’s First Olympic Medalist?
Amantle Montsho says she has her eyes set on London, where she hopes to become the first athlete from Botswana to win an Olympic medal. The 400 meter specialist has already won world, African and Commonwealth titles, but it’s Olympic gold she craves the most. Montsho, who turns 29 on July 4th, won Botswana’s first […]
London’s Olympic Stadium To Become A British Meadow
The artistic director of the London 2012 Olympic Games opening ceremony is promising to transform the Olympic Stadium into a British meadow on July 27th. Danny Boyle says the festivities will include fields, cows, ducks, horses and a game of village cricket. During a briefing in the British capital, Boyle said, “this land 200 years […]
Rudisha Ready For London Olympics
World record holder David Rudisha is in great form ahead of next month’s Olympics in London, where he’ll be the favorite to win his first Olympic gold medal in the 800 meters. Competing for the first time in the United States over the weekend, the 23-year-old Kenyan blew away the field at the Adidas Grand […]
Meb Keflezighi Runs For More Olympic Glory
Meb Keflezighi after winning 2009 New York City Marathon Meb Keflezighi ran in his adopted hometown of San Diego June 3rd and successfully defended his title in the city’s annual Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon, clocking one hour, three minutes and 11 seconds. It was a good Olympic tune-up race for the 37-year-old Keflezighi, who […]
Tariku & Kenenisa Bekele: An Olympian Family Affair
As Ethiopian star Kenenisa Bekele prepares to defend his Olympic 10,000 meters gold medal in London, his toughest competition could very well come from his younger brother, 25-year-old Tariku. On Sunday in Hengelo, the Netherlands, Tariku clocked 27:11:70, the fastest time in the world this year for the 25-lap race. The Dutch competition doubled as […]
VOA Swahili Sportsman Mwamoyo Hamza
In this Olympic year, Mwamoyo Hamza says the favorite sporting event he’s covered was the 1984 Los Angeles Games. In an email sent from his Tanzanian homeland, Mwamoyo looks back fondly on those Olympics in Los Angeles: “The first time I came to the USA was for reporting the 1984 Summer Olympics. I was a […]
Libya Hopes For First Olympic Medal
Libya is once again expected to send a small team to this year’s Olympics in London. Eight Libyans participated at Athens 2004 and seven at Beijing 2008. Check out this video in which I profile three Libyan Olympic hopefuls. The Libyans sent only one athlete to the country’s first Olympics in Tokyo in 1964. And […]
