2008

25

Aug

Synchronized ‘Homies’ and Other Fun Memories From an Olympic Insomniac

Filed under: , , ,



For most people, the dust is already settling on all the extravagant Olympic action, but this sports graveyard desk editor is still riding high from sixteen sleepless days of swimming, more swimming, and the occasional taekwondo kick to the face. You want a unique perspective on the Beijing Games? This is the place to be. Just don't expect there to be any fresh coffee.

Michael Phelps is signing an endorsement deal for IHOP somewhere in exchange for free 5,000-calorie breakfasts for life.

Usain Bolt is concocting new ways to hot dog and high-step so he'll have some records left to break in 2012.

And I'm somehow still awake watching NBC replay the closing ceremony and Turkish oil wrestling highlights (now there's the next event!)

Spending the majority of the past sixteen days engulfed in Olympic coverage wasn't always a treat, but the memories I'll take with me will last a lifetime ... or at least four more years.

The visual treasures embedded in my mind aren't what you'd expect them to be. Phelps' record-breaking eight gold medals? Definitely wasn't a cakewalk, but we saw it coming. Bolt's ridonkulous sprints to history? Dude, his last name is Bolt.

Spanish synchronized swimmers dressed in 'gangsta' outfits, on the other hand? Now there's something I'm never going to forget, or hopefully see again for the rest of my life.

So let's toss the "memorable performances" and "winners and losers" aside for now. Here are my selections for the "Sweet 16" -- the lasting images that are off the beaten path ...

China's Liu Xiang retires, entire red-wigged nation cries ... For the first time in a while, we witnessed how much one athlete can mean to an entire nation. While American media coverage was saturated with the Phelps Fest and the splice of America's Sweethearts, Shawn Johnson and Nastia Liukin, I found it much more fascinating to scan through the countless images of China's citizens bawling their eyes out because Xiang Liu couldn't run the men's 110-meter hurdles at the "Bird's Nest." This man represented the hope of an entire nation, but only in track and field. It's not like he was their only shot at a gold medal in Beijing (heck, they won 51 of them).

It got me thinking -- how many people in America would shed tears if Phelps pulled up lame in one of his heats, and coudn't race towards any of his eight golds? Entirely different scenarios, yes, because the US is known for dominant swimmers while Liu was China's chance to make an impact in largely unchartered territory. But I'm not sure we have one athlete that single-handedly carries the pride of our nation on his or her shoulders.

Don't ever cross a Cuban taekwondo athlete, unless you want to lose teeth ... Look, we all know taekwondo judging was on the crooked side, but that doesn't justify going brainsick and belting a judge. Cuba's Angel Matos definitely won the nomination for "Olympian Most Likely to Wind Up in a Nuthouse" when he delivered a kick reminiscent of 'Bloodsport' to the face of match referee Chakir Chelbat. Still, how many people can say they're the subject of 100 slide-by-slide YouTubes? One. That's our good friend, Jose Offerman. Oh, and Castro will defend you, for whatever that's worth.


Jamaicans know how to have a good time ... For all the terrific performances by Bolt, Veronica Campbell-Brown and Shelly-Ann Fraser, the sad fact is that many Americans watching at home are going to come away with one thing ... they sure know how to rub it in. Bolt was even criticized by IOC prez Jacques Rogge for reveling too early in his 100-meter finish. But what about Fraser? She seemingly paraded down the track about five times as long as it took to win her 100-meter gold, even rolling around with the flag at one point. For me, the showboating won't tarnish her performance, but I did find myself saying "all right, enough already" -- and I would have still said it even if it was an American rejoicing.

George Bush knows how to have an AWESOME time ... If there was anyone on this planet who could show the Jamaicans a thing or two about the right way to party, it's definitely G.W. If you missed his hysterical jaunt to Beijing, don't fret. You can relive the power of the Bush in this gallery here. Just beware the 'chalk' pranks and volleyball butt slaps.

Paraguay's Leryn Franco didn't win a medal, but won our hearts ... In all the 'Attractive Olympian' posts we ran in FanHouse, there's wasn't one mention of this mysterious javelin beauty -- a massive oversight, to say the least. Thanks to Fourth-Place Medal for cracking the mystery and discovering her identity. To amend for not featuring her earlier, here's a gallery to make your heart sing for Paraguay. Viva la Franco!

Paraguayan Princess

    BEIJING - AUGUST 19: Leryn Franco of Paraguay competes in the Women's Javelin Qualifying Round held at the National Stadium on Day 11 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 19, 2008 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Mark Dadswell/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Leryn Franco

    Getty Images

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay is pictured during the women's javelin throw qualification round at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 19, 2008. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)

    AFP/Getty Images

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay is pictured during the women's javelin throw qualification round at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 19, 2008. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)

    AFP/Getty Images

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay competes during the women's javelin throw qualification round at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 19, 2008. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)

    AFP/Getty Images

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay is pictured during the women's javelin throw qualification round at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 19, 2008. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)

    AFP/Getty Images

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay is pictured during the women's javelin throw qualification round at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 19, 2008. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)

    AFP/Getty Images

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay competes in the women's javelin throw qualifying round of the athletics competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the National Stadium August 19, 2008. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach (CHINA)

    Reuters

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay competes in the women's javelin throw qualifying round of the athletics competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the National Stadium August 19, 2008. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach (CHINA)

    Reuters

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay competes in the women's javelin throw qualifying round of the athletics competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the National Stadium August 19, 2008. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach (CHINA)

    Reuters

    Leryn Franco of Paraguay competes in the women's javelin throw qualifying round of the athletics competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in the National Stadium August 19, 2008. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach (CHINA)

    Reuters

soKe.flace('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco', '645', '618'); var uid = new Date().getTime(); var flashProxy = new FlashProxy(uid, 'http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/modtools/kit_swfpublisher_javascriptflashgateway.swf'); var flashvars = {}; try { flashvars.lcId = uid; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.outlet_w = '645'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.outlet_h = '618'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.targetDivId = 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.targetAds = 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.omniture_tracker = '0'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.adrefresh_wrapper = '1'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.appswfURL = soKe.fv('http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=346823&pid=346822&uts=1219685267'); } catch (Exc) { }; if (typeof(screen_name) != 'undefined') try { flashvars.userName = screen_name; } catch (Exc) { }; var params = {}; try { params.wmode = 'opaque'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { params.quality = 'best'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { params.allowscriptaccess = 'always'; } catch (Exc) { }; var attributes = {}; try { attributes.id = 'outlet'; } catch (Exc) { }; top.exd_space.refresher.ads2Refresh(new Array( 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco', new Array('93240235', '300', '250', '0') )); top.exd_space.refresher.iFrm2Refresh(new Array( 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco', new Array('Placement_ID', '1368394'), new Array('Domain_ID', '993774') )); top.exd_space.refresher.mmx('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco', 'http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/channels/ke_blank.html', ''); swfobject.embedSWF('http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf', 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco-swf', '645', '618', '8.0.0', 'http://www.aolcdn.com/ke/swfobject/expressinstall.swf', flashvars, params, attributes); top.exd_space.refresher.launcher( 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_leryn_franco',{ size:['456t'], photoNumber:['2'], title:['Leryn Franco Photos'], numimages:['44'], baseImageURL:['http://o.aolcdn.com/photo-hub/'], imageurl:['46A808CFD5BEAFA5E60AEFEE867BF92025DC2849/DV_To_Getty_2132618_0__R.jpg'], credit:['AFP/Getty Images'], source:['AFP'], caption:['Leryn Franco of Paraguay is pictured during the women's javelin throw qualification round at the "Bird's Nest" National Stadium during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games on August 19, 2008. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo credit should read GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)'], dims:['http://o.aolcdn.com/dims/PGMC/5/404/269/70/'], showDisclaimerText:['true'], disclaimerText:['NOTE: AOL does not control caption content, which comes from the photo provider.'], CSS_Title:['#000000'], CSS_Caption:['#303030'], CSS_Disclaimer:['#5b5b5b'], CSS_Container:['#ffffff'], CSS_PhotoWell:['#ffffff'], CSS_Buttons:[''], CSS_BtnOver:[''], topMargin:['2,0,404,269,408,269,0,0'] } );

Spain's synchronized 'homies' ... There are probably synchronized swimmers out there that think their sport is unfairly lambasted -- that they're just one long running joke started by Martin Short in a classic 'SNL' skit. But how do you expect to be respected when you get banned from wearing suits with lights on them, and then follow it up with a 'gangsta' encore. Tone down the makeup five shades, invest in a can of hair spray instead of hair gel, and most importantly, stop looking so freaky ... then maybe people will respect the skills behind the show. Then again, maybe it won't truly be 'synchronized swimming' if that happened. Kind of like Dennis Rodman without dyed hair, tattoos and piercings.

Ara Abrahamian doesn't need your stinking medal ... More judging controversy, and more hilarity ensues. Abrahamian left the podium immediately after receiving the bronze medal, then placed it down as if he was saying, "Pick this piece of crap up." Then it turns out that Abrahamian actually had a right to be angry, according to the Court of Arbitration for Sport --- his penalty wasn't assessed until after the round. One thing is for sure: they're definitely recycling that medal and giving it to the trap shooters.

Meet Rohullah Nikpai, the hero of Afghanistan ... Eight medals will be worth countless endorsements for Phelps, but the Afghan taekwondo bronze winner is the proud recipient of ... get this ... a new house, a Toyota sedan, and $20,000 from the owner of the country's main cellphone network. That's what you get for being the first Afghan ever to win an Olympic medal. Let's face it... legendary US swimmer Matt Biondi could walk the streets without anyone recognizing him now. But Nikpai will be swamped with love and adulation for a single bronze. And we're here quibbling about China beating us in gold count?

Germany's Thomasz Wylenzek faints in his canoe
... and in a completely unrelated incident ...
Japan's Kobayashi Hiromi faints in the pool ... Wylenzek and his teammate Christian Gille really knew what it took to get me turned on to canoes. Fainting! In the process of winning the silver medal in the double 1,000-meter final, they crashed into a buoy and Wylenzek took a dip. He turned out to be OK, but days later, a synchronized swimmer followed suit. Hiromi hyperventilated as Japan's synchronized routine ended, and the other team members climbed out of the pool more concerned about their scores. The press officer's response? "She is a very nervous athlete," he said. "She is good. Don't worry." Thanks guy. As if the sight of the wacky routine wasn't off-putting enough.

You want human rights? How about the right to wear adult diapers while buried under boxes? ... I'm a big fan of filmmaker Zhang Yimou's work. 'House of Flying Daggers' was great stuff. Performers being forced to wear adult diapers for his crafted opening ceremony is a far cry from flying daggers. Especially when it involved nearly 900 performers under 40-pound boxes for at least six hours. But hey, the Chinese invention of movable type, that involved "suffering and sacrifice" too, right?

Something called 'Dressage' will be back, but Jennie Finch will not ... So, let me get this straight. A 'sport' that involves people wearing silly top hats and suits while training horses will stick in the Olympics. But flamethrower Jennie Finch and USA softball will never be back? I wonder how NBC did on ratings and Web site searches for dressage results compared to Finch. Let's get rid of dressage and bring back softball. At least there's no mess over judges for the women.

Chinese cheerleaders have a future in sporting events ... For the most part, there was way, way too much volleyball. Yet not enough of the cheerleaders who deserved a gold medal of their own (bringing the mighty total to 52!). The rainy final was interesting to say the least, and it wasn't because Misty-May Treanor and Kerri Walsh exchanged high fives every two seconds.

Handball is an Olympic sport? Bring it on. ... Right. So we got the endless hours of beach volleyball, swimming, and even diving from NBC's masterminds. But where was handball on prime-time display? That and BMX were two of the underrated events that deserved more coverage. They involve blood, crashes, and as the legendary 'Razor Ramon' would say, "oozing machismo" ...


Tajikistan's Dzhakhon Kurbanov bites his opponent, citizens of Kazakhstan collectively scoff at him ... I definitely think this was Mike Tyson's vicarious revenge for not getting to represent US boxing in the 1984 Summer Olympics. Maybe he coached Kurbanov on the side? The harder part of watching the bizarre infraction and subsequent disqualification was seeing them try to announce that Kazakhstan's Yerkebulan Shynaliyev won the bout.

Kim Jong Su, a sport shooter, gets booted for doping. And even horses banned too! ... We learned that the Olympics are not safe from drugs, even in the most mind-boggling scenarios. Using propanolol to pick up medals in shooting? The only thing more pathetic than that is being a team jumping horse that was suspended for a banned pain reliever. And not just any pain reliever. We're talking about Capsaicin, a derivative of chili peppers. And not just one horse -- four horses.

And that's my Sweet 16 of Beijing. I'm going to slip into a sleep coma now and dream of being struck by a javelin from Franco. Feel free to share some Olympic memories of your own with me at ThomasHerrera07 [at] aol.com.

Odd Memories From Beijing

    In a shocking attack, Cuba's taekwondo athlete Angel Valodia Matos kicked match referee Chakir Chelbat in the face, resulting in a ticket out of the Games and a lifetime ban by the World Taekwondo Foundation from all future competition. Click through for more of the strange and offbeat memories from the Beijing Olympics.

    Matt Dunham, AP

    Synchronized swimming isn't going to be taken seriously as a sport anytime soon. The Spanish synchronized swimming team was forbidden from wearing suits with lights on them, but found another way to get flashy with 'gangsta' artwork on their new suits.

    Greg Wood, AFP / Getty Images

    Jamaican sprinters blazed up the track and drew some ire for their celebrations along the way. Shelly-Ann Fraser, pictured, rolled around with the flag, and Usain Bolt was criticized by IOC president Jacques Rogge for showing a lack of "respect" to other competitors.

    Alexander Hassenstein, Bongarts / Getty Images

    George Bush had a short stay in Beijing, but was responsible for a slew of wacky moments. From mingling with the women's beach volleyball team to getting pranked by the women's softball team, Bush was in enough snapshots to fill a 'Best Of' photo album.

    Kai Pfaffenbach, Reuters

    When China's Liu Xiang retired from the first round of the men's 110-meter hurdles, an entire nation's dreams were crushed, and spectators shed tears in mourning of their track and field hope.

    Getty Images (2)

    Is Paraguay's Leryn Franco the most attractive Olympian in the world? She didn't win a medal in Beijing, but was in the spotlight long enough for many to take notice of her stunning beauty.

    Thomas Kienzle, AP

    Unhappy with the judges for assessing his penalty too late, Sweden's Ara Abrahamian left the podium immediately after receiving the bronze medal he won in men's Greco-Roman wrestling and left it in the center of the mat.

    Vanda Biffani, AP

    Afghanistan's Rohullah Nikpai only won a bronze medal in the men's taekwondo competition, but it was enough to make him a big celebrity in his home country. His reward for being the first Afghan to win an Olympic medal? A new house, a Toyota sedan, and $20,000 from the owner of Afghanistan's main cellphone network.

    Matt Dunham, AP

    Winning a silver medal in the canoe double 1,000-meter men's final was far from easy for Germany's Thomasz Wylenzek and his teammate Christian Gille. After crashing into a buoy, Wylenzek fainted and had to be placed in the rescue boat.

    Kirsty Wigglesworth, AP

    Wylenzek wasn't the only one who fainted during competition though. Japan's Kobayashi Hiromi had to be carried out of the pool after she hyperventilated during the synchronized swimming team free routine final.

    Martin Bureau, AFP / Getty Images

soKe.flace('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16', '645', '618'); var uid = new Date().getTime(); var flashProxy = new FlashProxy(uid, 'http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/modtools/kit_swfpublisher_javascriptflashgateway.swf'); var flashvars = {}; try { flashvars.lcId = uid; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.outlet_w = '645'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.outlet_h = '618'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.targetDivId = 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.targetAds = 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.omniture_tracker = '0'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.adrefresh_wrapper = '1'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { flashvars.appswfURL = soKe.fv('http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=346841&pid=346840&uts=1219690045'); } catch (Exc) { }; if (typeof(screen_name) != 'undefined') try { flashvars.userName = screen_name; } catch (Exc) { }; var params = {}; try { params.wmode = 'opaque'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { params.quality = 'best'; } catch (Exc) { }; try { params.allowscriptaccess = 'always'; } catch (Exc) { }; var attributes = {}; try { attributes.id = 'outlet'; } catch (Exc) { }; top.exd_space.refresher.ads2Refresh(new Array( 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16', new Array('93240235', '300', '250', '0') )); top.exd_space.refresher.iFrm2Refresh(new Array( 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16', new Array('Placement_ID', '1368394'), new Array('Domain_ID', '993774') )); top.exd_space.refresher.mmx('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16', 'http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/channels/ke_blank.html', ''); swfobject.embedSWF('http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf', 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16-swf', '645', '618', '8.0.0', 'http://www.aolcdn.com/ke/swfobject/expressinstall.swf', flashvars, params, attributes); top.exd_space.refresher.launcher( 'sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_olympics_sweet16',{ size:['456t'], photoNumber:['0'], title:['The 'Sweet 16' of Beijing'], numimages:['16'], baseImageURL:['http://cdn.compuserve.com/'], imageurl:['http://o.aolcdn.com/photo-hub/news_gallery/5/7/571482/1219497901715.JPEG'], credit:['Matt Dunham, AP'], source:['Matt Dunham, AP'], caption:['In a shocking attack, Cuba's taekwondo athlete Angel Valodia Matos kicked match referee Chakir Chelbat in the face, resulting in a ticket out of the Games and a lifetime ban by the World Taekwondo Foundation from all future competition. Click through for more of the strange and offbeat memories from the Beijing Olympics.'], dims:['http://o.aolcdn.com/dims/PGMC/5/407/269/70/'], showDisclaimerText:['false'], disclaimerText:['NOTE: AOL does not control caption content, which comes from the photo provider.'], CSS_Title:['#000000'], CSS_Caption:['#303030'], CSS_Disclaimer:['#5b5b5b'], CSS_Container:['#ffffff'], CSS_PhotoWell:['#ffffff'], CSS_Buttons:[''], CSS_BtnOver:[''], topMargin:['0,0,407,269,408,269,0,0'] } );

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: Afghanistan• JennieFinch• Kerri Walsh• KerriWalsh• Leryn Franco• LerynFranco• Liu Xiang• LiuXiang• Michael Phelps• MichaelPhelps• Misty May-Treanor• Misty-mayTreanor• Nastia Liukin• NastiaLiukin• ShawnJohnson• Usain Bolt• UsainBolt• jennie finch• shawn johnson Posted by RSS

Leave a Reply

There may be a bug in FeedWordPress. Please contact the author and paste the following information into your e-mail:

Triggered at line # 603 FeedWordPress version: 2009.1112 MagpieRSS version: 2009.0725 WordPress version: 2.9.1 PHP version: 5.2.14 SyndicatedPost::insert_new::_wp_id: array(3) { ["$this->_wp_id"]=> int(0) ["$dbpost"]=> array(17) { ["post_title"]=> string(38) "Sochi Starts Search For Olympic Mascot" ["post_content"]=> string(2170) "<p class=\"iocCopyIntro\">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href=\"http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/\">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href=\"http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/\">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called \"Schuss\" had appeared at the <a href=\"http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/\">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href=\"http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/\">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href=\"http://www.sochi2014.ru\">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(2170) "<p class=\"iocCopyIntro\">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href=\"http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/\">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href=\"http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/\">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called \"Schuss\" had appeared at the <a href=\"http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/\">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href=\"http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/\">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href=\"http://www.sochi2014.ru\">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["epoch"]=> array(3) { ["issued"]=> int(1283421180) ["created"]=> NULL ["modified"]=> int(1283421180) } ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 03:53:00" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 03:53:00" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 09:53:00" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 09:53:00" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["meta"]=> array(6) { ["syndication_source"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["syndication_source_uri"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["syndication_feed"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["syndication_feed_id"]=> string(2) "28" ["syndication_permalink"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["syndication_item_hash"]=> string(32) "f720b731bb366a016497c21570952acb" } ["tags_input"]=> array(0) { } ["post_author"]=> int(2) ["post_category"]=> array(1) { [0]=> int(1) } ["post_pingback"]=> bool(false) } ["$this"]=> object(SyndicatedPost)#278 (10) { ["item"]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "Sochi Starts Search For Olympic Mascot" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "9/2/2010 9:53:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1283421180) } ["link"]=> object(SyndicatedLink)#257 (4) { ["id"]=> string(2) "28" ["link"]=> object(stdClass)#268 (22) { ["link_id"]=> string(2) "28" ["link_url"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["link_name"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["link_image"]=> string(0) "" ["link_target"]=> string(0) "" ["link_category"]=> string(1) "0" ["link_description"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["link_visible"]=> string(1) "Y" ["link_owner"]=> string(1) "1" ["link_rating"]=> string(1) "0" ["link_updated"]=> string(19) "0000-00-00 00:00:00" ["link_rel"]=> string(0) "" ["link_notes"]=> string(1511) "feed/title#: 1 feed/title: International Olympic Committee : News feed/link#: 1 feed/link: http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true feed/description#: 1 feed/description: WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News feed/copyright#: 1 feed/copyright: Copyright CIO. All rights reserved. feed/language#: 1 feed/language: en feed/tagline#: 1 feed/tagline: WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News feed/subtitle#: 1 feed/subtitle: WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News feed/id: http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true update/last: 1283540039 update/ttl: 74 update/timed: automatically update/hold: scheduled update/unfinished: yes map authors: name\ninternational olympic committee : news\n2 update/processed: http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78310\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78309\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78292\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78187\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78140\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78107\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77662\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77657\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77591\nhttp://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77601 " ["link_rss"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["object_id"]=> string(2) "28" ["term_taxonomy_id"]=> string(1) "3" ["term_order"]=> string(1) "0" ["term_id"]=> string(1) "3" ["taxonomy"]=> string(13) "link_category" ["description"]=> string(0) "" ["parent"]=> string(1) "0" ["count"]=> string(2) "22" } ["settings"]=> array(25) { ["feed/title#"]=> int(1) ["feed/title"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["feed/link#"]=> int(1) ["feed/link"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["feed/description#"]=> int(1) ["feed/description"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["feed/copyright#"]=> int(1) ["feed/copyright"]=> string(35) "Copyright CIO. All rights reserved." ["feed/language#"]=> int(1) ["feed/language"]=> string(2) "en" ["feed/tagline#"]=> int(1) ["feed/tagline"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["feed/subtitle#"]=> int(1) ["feed/subtitle"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["feed/id"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["update/last"]=> int(1283544763) ["update/ttl"]=> int(68) ["update/timed"]=> string(13) "automatically" ["update/hold"]=> string(9) "scheduled" ["update/unfinished"]=> string(3) "yes" ["map authors"]=> array(1) { ["name"]=> array(1) { ["international olympic committee : news"]=> int(2) } } ["update/processed"]=> string(649) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78310 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78309 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78292 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78187 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78140 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78107 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77662 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77657 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77591 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77601" ["link/uri"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["link/name"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["link/id"]=> string(2) "28" } ["magpie"]=> object(MagpieRSS)#279 (31) { ["parser"]=> resource(179) of type (Unknown) ["current_item"]=> array(0) { } ["items"]=> array(10) { [0]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "Sochi Starts Search For Olympic Mascot" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "9/2/2010 9:53:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1283421180) } [1]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(47) "A lovely, moving donation to The Olympic Museum" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(1481) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Recently, at The Olympic Museum, we welcomed two lovely champions: Stéphane Lambiel, the Swiss skater with an impressive record (twice world champion, twice European runner-up, silver medallist in Turin in 2006, and bronze medallist in the world championships); and Joannie Rochette, the talented Canadian skater who won a bronze medal in Vancouver last February, and who courageously competed in the events only two days after the sudden death of her mother.</p> <p>These two young athletes came to make a donation to The Olympic Museum: Lambiel donated the zebra-striped suit he wore when he won the Olympic silver medal, and Rochette donated the first dress she wore in her Olympic short programme.</p> <p>Olympic Museum Curator Frédérique Jamolli welcomed the young athletes and recalled how their performances, be it in Turin or Vancouver, had enthused and excited the general public, whom they had both won over.</p> <p>Stéphane Lambiel and Joannie Rochette then received the Olympic Museum’s traditional donor’s certificate and signed the guest book. They both said that it was both a pleasure and an honour to make their donations, in the hope that these two outfits would provoke the same emotions in the visitors as they had felt themselves.<br /></p><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8_9kMwtPUY8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US" width="540" height="328" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(20) "8/30/2010 4:32:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=97755" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(1481) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Recently, at The Olympic Museum, we welcomed two lovely champions: Stéphane Lambiel, the Swiss skater with an impressive record (twice world champion, twice European runner-up, silver medallist in Turin in 2006, and bronze medallist in the world championships); and Joannie Rochette, the talented Canadian skater who won a bronze medal in Vancouver last February, and who courageously competed in the events only two days after the sudden death of her mother.</p> <p>These two young athletes came to make a donation to The Olympic Museum: Lambiel donated the zebra-striped suit he wore when he won the Olympic silver medal, and Rochette donated the first dress she wore in her Olympic short programme.</p> <p>Olympic Museum Curator Frédérique Jamolli welcomed the young athletes and recalled how their performances, be it in Turin or Vancouver, had enthused and excited the general public, whom they had both won over.</p> <p>Stéphane Lambiel and Joannie Rochette then received the Olympic Museum’s traditional donor’s certificate and signed the guest book. They both said that it was both a pleasure and an honour to make their donations, in the hope that these two outfits would provoke the same emotions in the visitors as they had felt themselves.<br /></p><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8_9kMwtPUY8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US" width="540" height="328" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1283185920) } [2]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(29) "London 2012 Venues Take Shape" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(4071) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">With a little under two years to go, the London 2012 venues are rapidly taking shape, as water is now flowing at the canoe slalom venue, the seating structure is taking shape at the basketball arena, ground preparation work is beginning at Greenwich Park, and landscaping work is getting underway at the Olympic Village. With athletes and teams now in the process of qualifying for the 2012 Games, this progress is a reassuring sign that London is on time and on track to welcome the world’s top sports people in 2012.</p> <h5>Water Works</h5> <p>Construction work on the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/water-flowing-at-london-2012-canoe-slalom-venue.php">new lake and competition courses</a> has been completed at the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">London 2012 canoe slalom venue</a> in the <a href="http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/en/content/cms/white_water_canoe_ce/white_water_canoe_ce.aspx">Lee Valley Regional Park</a> and this has allowed <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">water to start flowing</a> at the venue, so that the courses can be tested. The venue is expected to be completed later this year and will include a standard 300m competition course, a boat conveyor, a 160m intermediate/training course, a 10,000m² finish lake, and a facility building and pumping house.</p> <h5>Capacity of 12,000</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/london-2012-basketball-arena-prepares-for-seat-installation.php">Thousands of seats</a> are soon to be installed in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/basketball-arena.php">London 2012 basketball arena</a>, which is reported to be one of the largest temporary venues ever used for an Olympic and Paralympic Games. The seating structure is now taking shape, before the black and orange seats – representing the colours of a basketball – are put into place. At Games-time, the venue will host basketball, handball, wheelchair basketball, and wheelchair rugby.</p> <h5>Preparing The Ground</h5> <p>Work has begun on preparing the ground at Greenwich Park, the site of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/greenwich-park.php">London’s Olympic equestrian venue</a>. The work, which will be carried out by London 2012 sub-contractors in association with The Royal Parks, will ensure that the condition of the grass is ideal for <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2009/equestrian-stars-tour-greenwich-park.php">the competitors in 2012</a>. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/greenwich-park-ground-preparation-work-begins-for-2012.php">Work will include irrigation, de-compaction, mowing, and some other enhancements</a>. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also announced <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/athletes-village-to-feature-new-green-spaces.php">plans for thousands of new trees, parks, play areas, and open spaces</a> to support the new homes being delivered in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/olympic-village.php">London 2012 Olympic Village</a>. Landscaping is already underway for the creation of an extensive wetlands area on the Village site, with the overall plans for these green spaces&nbsp;adding to the landscaping works already underway in the Olympic Park site, which is creating one of the largest new urban parks in the UK for over 100 years.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the host city for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>Want to get involved in London 2012? How about <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteer/index.php">volunteering</a>?</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(21) "8/24/2010 12:00:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=97649" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(4071) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">With a little under two years to go, the London 2012 venues are rapidly taking shape, as water is now flowing at the canoe slalom venue, the seating structure is taking shape at the basketball arena, ground preparation work is beginning at Greenwich Park, and landscaping work is getting underway at the Olympic Village. With athletes and teams now in the process of qualifying for the 2012 Games, this progress is a reassuring sign that London is on time and on track to welcome the world’s top sports people in 2012.</p> <h5>Water Works</h5> <p>Construction work on the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/water-flowing-at-london-2012-canoe-slalom-venue.php">new lake and competition courses</a> has been completed at the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">London 2012 canoe slalom venue</a> in the <a href="http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/en/content/cms/white_water_canoe_ce/white_water_canoe_ce.aspx">Lee Valley Regional Park</a> and this has allowed <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">water to start flowing</a> at the venue, so that the courses can be tested. The venue is expected to be completed later this year and will include a standard 300m competition course, a boat conveyor, a 160m intermediate/training course, a 10,000m² finish lake, and a facility building and pumping house.</p> <h5>Capacity of 12,000</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/london-2012-basketball-arena-prepares-for-seat-installation.php">Thousands of seats</a> are soon to be installed in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/basketball-arena.php">London 2012 basketball arena</a>, which is reported to be one of the largest temporary venues ever used for an Olympic and Paralympic Games. The seating structure is now taking shape, before the black and orange seats – representing the colours of a basketball – are put into place. At Games-time, the venue will host basketball, handball, wheelchair basketball, and wheelchair rugby.</p> <h5>Preparing The Ground</h5> <p>Work has begun on preparing the ground at Greenwich Park, the site of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/greenwich-park.php">London’s Olympic equestrian venue</a>. The work, which will be carried out by London 2012 sub-contractors in association with The Royal Parks, will ensure that the condition of the grass is ideal for <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2009/equestrian-stars-tour-greenwich-park.php">the competitors in 2012</a>. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/greenwich-park-ground-preparation-work-begins-for-2012.php">Work will include irrigation, de-compaction, mowing, and some other enhancements</a>. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also announced <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/athletes-village-to-feature-new-green-spaces.php">plans for thousands of new trees, parks, play areas, and open spaces</a> to support the new homes being delivered in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/olympic-village.php">London 2012 Olympic Village</a>. Landscaping is already underway for the creation of an extensive wetlands area on the Village site, with the overall plans for these green spaces&nbsp;adding to the landscaping works already underway in the Olympic Park site, which is creating one of the largest new urban parks in the UK for over 100 years.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the host city for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>Want to get involved in London 2012? How about <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteer/index.php">volunteering</a>?</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1282608000) } [3]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(60) "Three Olympian brothers at The Olympic Museum for a donation" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(2145) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">They already made names for themselves at the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver last February. Three brothers from one family present at the Olympic Games is something quite exceptional, and it is for this reason that the people responsible for the Museum collections approached them when they were asking for donations in Vancouver. </p> <p>On Thursday 20 August at The Olympic Museum, the three Ligocki brothers, Luckasz, Michal and Mateusz, accompanied by their parents, donated to The Olympic Museum the full set of equipment they wore in Vancouver, either as athletes or as an official: snowboard, bindings, boots, helmet, gloves, mask, bodysuits, delegation clothing, etc. The donations also included accreditation cards, bibs and some photographs. </p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_2.jpg" /></p> <p>The donation was made in the presence of Francis Gabet and Frédérique Jamolli, Director and Curator of The Olympic Museum respectively. All three athletes received a donor’s diploma signed by the IOC President, acknowledging their donation.</p> <p>In the book signed successively by the three brothers, Michal wrote: “I’m feeling so special, to give my Olympic equipment to this Museum. From now on I’ll feel that the memory of me and my family will live 4 ever!” </p> <h5>A bit of background…</h5> <p>Mateusz Ligocki (born 1982) participated in the Turin Games in 2006 in snowboard and snowboard cross. He was the only athlete to compete in the two disciplines. In Vancouver, he participated in the snowboard cross events. </p> <p>Michal Ligocki (born 1985) also participated in the Turin and Vancouver Games, but in half-pipe.</p> <p>The two brothers really want to participate in a third edition of the Games and are seriously preparing themselves for the 2014 Games in Sochi. </p> <p>As for the oldest Lukasz brother (born 1980), he is FIS snowboard A license judge and technical delegate for snowboard. He was the Deputy Chef de Mission for the Polish team in Whistler.</p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_3.jpg" /><br /></p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(20) "8/23/2010 3:02:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=97661" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(2145) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">They already made names for themselves at the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver last February. Three brothers from one family present at the Olympic Games is something quite exceptional, and it is for this reason that the people responsible for the Museum collections approached them when they were asking for donations in Vancouver. </p> <p>On Thursday 20 August at The Olympic Museum, the three Ligocki brothers, Luckasz, Michal and Mateusz, accompanied by their parents, donated to The Olympic Museum the full set of equipment they wore in Vancouver, either as athletes or as an official: snowboard, bindings, boots, helmet, gloves, mask, bodysuits, delegation clothing, etc. The donations also included accreditation cards, bibs and some photographs. </p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_2.jpg" /></p> <p>The donation was made in the presence of Francis Gabet and Frédérique Jamolli, Director and Curator of The Olympic Museum respectively. All three athletes received a donor’s diploma signed by the IOC President, acknowledging their donation.</p> <p>In the book signed successively by the three brothers, Michal wrote: “I’m feeling so special, to give my Olympic equipment to this Museum. From now on I’ll feel that the memory of me and my family will live 4 ever!” </p> <h5>A bit of background…</h5> <p>Mateusz Ligocki (born 1982) participated in the Turin Games in 2006 in snowboard and snowboard cross. He was the only athlete to compete in the two disciplines. In Vancouver, he participated in the snowboard cross events. </p> <p>Michal Ligocki (born 1985) also participated in the Turin and Vancouver Games, but in half-pipe.</p> <p>The two brothers really want to participate in a third edition of the Games and are seriously preparing themselves for the 2014 Games in Sochi. </p> <p>As for the oldest Lukasz brother (born 1980), he is FIS snowboard A license judge and technical delegate for snowboard. He was the Deputy Chef de Mission for the Polish team in Whistler.</p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_3.jpg" /><br /></p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1282575720) } [4]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "London 2012 Celebrates Two Years-To-Go" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(4241) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">27 July 2010 marks the two-years-to-go point before the opening of the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/splash/index.php">London 2012 Olympic Games</a>. This important milestone in London’s progress is being celebrated with a number of events across the host city and country. </p> <p>From 23-25 July, the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">London 2012 Open Weekend</a> was organised across the UK and included over 800 “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenging</a>” events for the public. This was followed today by the launch of London 2012’s specialist volunteer programme, the opening of London 2012’s first official shop, a number of special events in the Olympic Park, and <a href="http://www.london2012.com/press/media-releases/2010/07/london-2012-celebrates-two-years-to-go.php">numerous other events</a> organised by London 2012’s partners.</p> <h5>Huge Progress</h5> <p><a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge</a> said, “The new Olympic venues are now a visible part of London’s skyline, and the London 2012 Organising Committee is progressing well in its preparations to welcome the athletes of the world. With two years to go, London has made huge progress in the development of its Olympic project, and I am confident in London’s ability to stage Games of the highest standard, as we enter the back straight of this race that will lead us to 2012.” </p> <h5>Sport In The Park</h5> <p>With the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php">main venues</a> in London’s Olympic Park on track to be completed next year, a number of special events are being held in the Park today, which shows the great progress that London has made in its construction projects. For example, Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy is taking part in a cycling activity within the velodrome, former NBA star John Amaechi is shooting some hoops in the basketball arena, Michael Johnson is sprinting on a temporary track in the Olympic Stadium, and the first group of people will be walking across the main access bridge between the Aquatics Centre and the Olympic Stadium.</p> <h5>Are You Ready? Plan Your Games!</h5> <p>The athletes are in full preparation for the 2012 Games, the venues are taking shape and the organisation is making <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">solid progress</a>, but the question is are you ready for 2012? With the 2012 Games fast approaching, now is the time to start planning your role and your summer of 2012. Would you like to attend an Olympic event? Then <a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH">sign up for ticketing information</a>. Thinking about volunteering? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/volunteering">Sign up for more information</a>. Perhaps attend an event during the Cultural Olympiad? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/cultural-olympiad/index.php">Find out more</a>. See the Olympic Torch Relay? It’s coming <a href="http://www.london2012.com/blog/2010/05/london-2012-torch-relay-bringing-the-games-to-your-doors.php">to a town near you</a>! Maybe create something and be <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/inspire-programme/index.php">part of the inspire programme</a>? Or teach children using the Games to inspire them? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/education/index.php">It’s all here</a>. There are numerous ways that you can play a part in 2012, start thinking and planning what you want to do now, so that you don’t miss out.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(21) "7/27/2010 12:19:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=95219" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(4241) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">27 July 2010 marks the two-years-to-go point before the opening of the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/splash/index.php">London 2012 Olympic Games</a>. This important milestone in London’s progress is being celebrated with a number of events across the host city and country. </p> <p>From 23-25 July, the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">London 2012 Open Weekend</a> was organised across the UK and included over 800 “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenging</a>” events for the public. This was followed today by the launch of London 2012’s specialist volunteer programme, the opening of London 2012’s first official shop, a number of special events in the Olympic Park, and <a href="http://www.london2012.com/press/media-releases/2010/07/london-2012-celebrates-two-years-to-go.php">numerous other events</a> organised by London 2012’s partners.</p> <h5>Huge Progress</h5> <p><a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge</a> said, “The new Olympic venues are now a visible part of London’s skyline, and the London 2012 Organising Committee is progressing well in its preparations to welcome the athletes of the world. With two years to go, London has made huge progress in the development of its Olympic project, and I am confident in London’s ability to stage Games of the highest standard, as we enter the back straight of this race that will lead us to 2012.” </p> <h5>Sport In The Park</h5> <p>With the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php">main venues</a> in London’s Olympic Park on track to be completed next year, a number of special events are being held in the Park today, which shows the great progress that London has made in its construction projects. For example, Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy is taking part in a cycling activity within the velodrome, former NBA star John Amaechi is shooting some hoops in the basketball arena, Michael Johnson is sprinting on a temporary track in the Olympic Stadium, and the first group of people will be walking across the main access bridge between the Aquatics Centre and the Olympic Stadium.</p> <h5>Are You Ready? Plan Your Games!</h5> <p>The athletes are in full preparation for the 2012 Games, the venues are taking shape and the organisation is making <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">solid progress</a>, but the question is are you ready for 2012? With the 2012 Games fast approaching, now is the time to start planning your role and your summer of 2012. Would you like to attend an Olympic event? Then <a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH">sign up for ticketing information</a>. Thinking about volunteering? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/volunteering">Sign up for more information</a>. Perhaps attend an event during the Cultural Olympiad? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/cultural-olympiad/index.php">Find out more</a>. See the Olympic Torch Relay? It’s coming <a href="http://www.london2012.com/blog/2010/05/london-2012-torch-relay-bringing-the-games-to-your-doors.php">to a town near you</a>! Maybe create something and be <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/inspire-programme/index.php">part of the inspire programme</a>? Or teach children using the Games to inspire them? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/education/index.php">It’s all here</a>. There are numerous ways that you can play a part in 2012, start thinking and planning what you want to do now, so that you don’t miss out.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1280233140) } [5]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(24) "London 2012 Open Weekend" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(3036) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">On 27 July, London 2012 will be celebrating two years-to-go until the start of its Olympic Games. In advance of this significant date, London 2012 is running its annual <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">Open Weekend</a> event, which is a UK-wide celebration taking place from 23 till 25 July. The event includes over 800 events across the country ranging from sport to art, dance to exhibitions, and each event features a special challenge: <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/upcoming-events/index.php?age=openweekend&amp;owd1=yes&amp;owd2=yes&amp;owd3=yes&amp;regionfilter=&amp;typefilter=&amp;q=&amp;x=26&amp;y=11">What will you do this weekend?</a></p> <h5>“Challenge Yourself”</h5> <p>The 2010 Open Weekend is based on the theme of “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenge yourself</a>”, with organisations setting public challenges at their events. This will allow everyone across the UK to attempt to set a new personal best by trying something new or by taking an existing interest to the next level. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">LOCOG Chairman Seb Coe</a> had this to say about the Open Weekend, “Open Weekend will lead the nation into the two-year countdown to the start of the London 2012 Games, with new personal bests being set right across the UK. Open Weekend 2010 is another opportunity for thousands of people to join in with the London 2012 Games.”</p> <h5>Solid Progress<br /></h5> <p>With a little over two years to go until the Games begin, London 2012 is continuing to <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">make solid progress on its preparations</a> for the Games, according to the International <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Coordination Commission</a>, which visited London only a few weeks ago. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also recently <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/07/london-2012-venues-on-track-to-be-finished-next-year.php">unveiled a new set of milestones</a>, which outline how, by summer 2011, the structures of the main venues for London 2012 will be complete and ready to be handed over for testing, with all major new infrastructure finished and landscaping work well advanced across the Olympic Park. </p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting, taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(20) "7/23/2010 3:30:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=94706" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(3036) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">On 27 July, London 2012 will be celebrating two years-to-go until the start of its Olympic Games. In advance of this significant date, London 2012 is running its annual <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">Open Weekend</a> event, which is a UK-wide celebration taking place from 23 till 25 July. The event includes over 800 events across the country ranging from sport to art, dance to exhibitions, and each event features a special challenge: <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/upcoming-events/index.php?age=openweekend&amp;owd1=yes&amp;owd2=yes&amp;owd3=yes&amp;regionfilter=&amp;typefilter=&amp;q=&amp;x=26&amp;y=11">What will you do this weekend?</a></p> <h5>“Challenge Yourself”</h5> <p>The 2010 Open Weekend is based on the theme of “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenge yourself</a>”, with organisations setting public challenges at their events. This will allow everyone across the UK to attempt to set a new personal best by trying something new or by taking an existing interest to the next level. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">LOCOG Chairman Seb Coe</a> had this to say about the Open Weekend, “Open Weekend will lead the nation into the two-year countdown to the start of the London 2012 Games, with new personal bests being set right across the UK. Open Weekend 2010 is another opportunity for thousands of people to join in with the London 2012 Games.”</p> <h5>Solid Progress<br /></h5> <p>With a little over two years to go until the Games begin, London 2012 is continuing to <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">make solid progress on its preparations</a> for the Games, according to the International <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Coordination Commission</a>, which visited London only a few weeks ago. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also recently <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/07/london-2012-venues-on-track-to-be-finished-next-year.php">unveiled a new set of milestones</a>, which outline how, by summer 2011, the structures of the main venues for London 2012 will be complete and ready to be handed over for testing, with all major new infrastructure finished and landscaping work well advanced across the Olympic Park. </p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting, taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1279899000) } [6]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(41) "London 2012 Announces Volunteer Programme" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(3620) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has announced its plans to recruit up to 70,000 volunteers or “Games Makers” for the London Games. It is expected to be the biggest volunteer recruitment campaign in the post-war period in the UK, and LOCOG will be looking for dedicated and inspirational people representative of the diversity of London and the UK to apply for a wide variety of volunteer positions. <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Sponsoring/Sponsorship/McDonalds/">Olympic TOP partner McDonald’s</a> will be the presenting partner of the London volunteer programme and will use its expertise in customer service and training and its nationwide presence to help attract, select and train the diverse team that will be needed to make the 2012 Games a success.</p> <h5>Games Makers</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">Sebastian Coe</a>, Chairman of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/">LOCOG</a>, said: “London 2012 needs brilliant volunteers to help us deliver a great Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our volunteers will be called Games Makers to reflect the important role they will play in staging the 2012 Games. The programme to find our Games Makers will launch on 27 July 2010 and I urge anyone who is interested to come to our website to find out everything they need to know about volunteering in 2012.”</p> <h5>Different Roles<br /></h5> <p>There are two different types of volunteer role: specialists in areas such as medical services, sport or press operations; and generalists, with roles ranging from spectator assistants, uniform distributors and ticket checking. In addition to the LOCOG volunteers, the Mayor of London will shortly announce plans for the recruitment of city volunteers to be stationed at key transport hubs, at visitor attractions, and on the streets of the capital to make sure all visitors to London get the best possible welcome during the Games.&nbsp; </p> <h5>Key Dates<br /></h5> <p>Volunteer recruitment will start exactly two years before the London Games on 27 July 2010. The key dates for the process are:<br /><br />•&nbsp;27 July 2010: applications open for pre-identified applicants for specialist sport, press operations, anti-doping and medical roles and members of a wide range of disability specialist organisations. This is also an opportunity for those interested in the generalist roles to find out if they have what it takes to be a <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteering/index.php">Games Maker via a dedicated section on the London 2012 website</a>. Recruitment also starts on this date for the Mayor’s London Volunteers scheme.<br /><br />•&nbsp;15 September 2010: applications open to the public for generalist roles and continue for specialist roles.<br /><br />•&nbsp;LOCOG today also confirmed that up to 1,500 of the Games Maker roles will be made available for those under the age of 18 through the ‘Young Games Maker’ programme that will be unveiled in July 2011.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(21) "7/12/2010 11:30:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=94172" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(3620) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has announced its plans to recruit up to 70,000 volunteers or “Games Makers” for the London Games. It is expected to be the biggest volunteer recruitment campaign in the post-war period in the UK, and LOCOG will be looking for dedicated and inspirational people representative of the diversity of London and the UK to apply for a wide variety of volunteer positions. <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Sponsoring/Sponsorship/McDonalds/">Olympic TOP partner McDonald’s</a> will be the presenting partner of the London volunteer programme and will use its expertise in customer service and training and its nationwide presence to help attract, select and train the diverse team that will be needed to make the 2012 Games a success.</p> <h5>Games Makers</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">Sebastian Coe</a>, Chairman of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/">LOCOG</a>, said: “London 2012 needs brilliant volunteers to help us deliver a great Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our volunteers will be called Games Makers to reflect the important role they will play in staging the 2012 Games. The programme to find our Games Makers will launch on 27 July 2010 and I urge anyone who is interested to come to our website to find out everything they need to know about volunteering in 2012.”</p> <h5>Different Roles<br /></h5> <p>There are two different types of volunteer role: specialists in areas such as medical services, sport or press operations; and generalists, with roles ranging from spectator assistants, uniform distributors and ticket checking. In addition to the LOCOG volunteers, the Mayor of London will shortly announce plans for the recruitment of city volunteers to be stationed at key transport hubs, at visitor attractions, and on the streets of the capital to make sure all visitors to London get the best possible welcome during the Games.&nbsp; </p> <h5>Key Dates<br /></h5> <p>Volunteer recruitment will start exactly two years before the London Games on 27 July 2010. The key dates for the process are:<br /><br />•&nbsp;27 July 2010: applications open for pre-identified applicants for specialist sport, press operations, anti-doping and medical roles and members of a wide range of disability specialist organisations. This is also an opportunity for those interested in the generalist roles to find out if they have what it takes to be a <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteering/index.php">Games Maker via a dedicated section on the London 2012 website</a>. Recruitment also starts on this date for the Mayor’s London Volunteers scheme.<br /><br />•&nbsp;15 September 2010: applications open to the public for generalist roles and continue for specialist roles.<br /><br />•&nbsp;LOCOG today also confirmed that up to 1,500 of the Games Maker roles will be made available for those under the age of 18 through the ‘Young Games Maker’ programme that will be unveiled in July 2011.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278934200) } [7]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(45) "Solid progress continues with two years to go" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(4276) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games</a> concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">IOC President Jacques Rogge</a> and <a href="http://www.olympic.org/content/The-IOC/Members/Mr-Denis-OSWALD/">Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald</a> meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <h5>Completely Behind The Project </h5> <p><font size="2">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</font></p> <h5>Visits And Reports</h5> <p><font size="2">During its stay, the Commission visited </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php"><font size="2">a number of the Olympic venues</font></a><font size="2">, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the </font><a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH"><font size="2">ticketing</font></a><font size="2">, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </font></p> <h5>Operational Testing Phase</h5> <p><font size="2">With the Games a little over two years away, </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/"><font size="2">London 2012</font></a><font size="2"> is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase. “The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the upcoming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.” In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</font></p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p><font size="2">London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</font></p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "7/8/2010 4:30:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=93762" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(4276) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games</a> concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">IOC President Jacques Rogge</a> and <a href="http://www.olympic.org/content/The-IOC/Members/Mr-Denis-OSWALD/">Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald</a> meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <h5>Completely Behind The Project </h5> <p><font size="2">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</font></p> <h5>Visits And Reports</h5> <p><font size="2">During its stay, the Commission visited </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php"><font size="2">a number of the Olympic venues</font></a><font size="2">, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the </font><a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH"><font size="2">ticketing</font></a><font size="2">, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </font></p> <h5>Operational Testing Phase</h5> <p><font size="2">With the Games a little over two years away, </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/"><font size="2">London 2012</font></a><font size="2"> is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase. “The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the upcoming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.” In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</font></p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p><font size="2">London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</font></p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278606600) } [8]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(115) "[PRESS RELEASE] New government maintains all-party support for Games as solid progress continues with 2 years to go" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(6377) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with IOC President Jacques Rogge and Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"/?><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe said, "This week, we have taken the IOC through the progress we are making across both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and we are delighted with their very positive report. With two years to go, our focus is very much on working through the details of delivering this large and complex project. There will of course be challenges ahead, but we have an excellent team in place, and we benefit from great partnerships with the government, the Mayor of London, our sponsors and, of course, both the British Olympic Association and the British Paralympic Association. The strength of this team, combined with the tremendous support of the public, will help us work through any challenges and deliver&nbsp;Olympic and Paralympic Games we will all be proud of in 2012."</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">During its stay, the Commission visited a number of the Olympic venues, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the ticketing, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">With the Games a little over two years away, London 2012 is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase.</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the up-coming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class="iocCopyNoSpacing">In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</p> <p class="iocCopyIntro"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"></span>&nbsp;</p> <p align="center">###</p> <p><font size="2">For more information, please contact the IOC Communications Department: <br />Tel: +41 21 621 6000 e-mail: </font><a href="mailto:pressoffice@olympic.org"><font size="2">pressoffice@olympic.org</font></a></p> <p><font size="2"><strong>Videos</strong><br />Broadcast quality videos can be accessed and downloaded for free: <a href="http://www.videoforum2.afp.com/VideoForum/AuthFiles/login.aspx">click here</a> <br />Login: IOC<br />Password: MEDIA2009 <br />YouTube: </font><a href="http://www.youtube.com/iocmedia"><font size="2">www.youtube.com/iocmedia</font></a><font size="2"> <br />&nbsp; <br /><strong>Photos</strong><br />For an extensive selection of photos available shortly after each event, please follow us on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/iocmedia">Flickr</a>.<br />To request archive photos and footage, please contact our Images team at: </font><a href="mailto:images@olympic.org"><font size="2">images@olympic.org</font></a><font size="2">.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><strong>Social media</strong><br />For up-to-the-minute information on the IOC and regular updates, please follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/olympics">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/olympicgames">Facebook</a>.</font></p> <p><font size="2"><br />&nbsp;</font></p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "7/8/2010 4:00:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=93761" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(6377) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with IOC President Jacques Rogge and Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"/?><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe said, "This week, we have taken the IOC through the progress we are making across both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and we are delighted with their very positive report. With two years to go, our focus is very much on working through the details of delivering this large and complex project. There will of course be challenges ahead, but we have an excellent team in place, and we benefit from great partnerships with the government, the Mayor of London, our sponsors and, of course, both the British Olympic Association and the British Paralympic Association. The strength of this team, combined with the tremendous support of the public, will help us work through any challenges and deliver&nbsp;Olympic and Paralympic Games we will all be proud of in 2012."</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">During its stay, the Commission visited a number of the Olympic venues, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the ticketing, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">With the Games a little over two years away, London 2012 is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase.</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the up-coming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class="iocCopyNoSpacing">In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</p> <p class="iocCopyIntro"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"></span>&nbsp;</p> <p align="center">###</p> <p><font size="2">For more information, please contact the IOC Communications Department: <br />Tel: +41 21 621 6000 e-mail: </font><a href="mailto:pressoffice@olympic.org"><font size="2">pressoffice@olympic.org</font></a></p> <p><font size="2"><strong>Videos</strong><br />Broadcast quality videos can be accessed and downloaded for free: <a href="http://www.videoforum2.afp.com/VideoForum/AuthFiles/login.aspx">click here</a> <br />Login: IOC<br />Password: MEDIA2009 <br />YouTube: </font><a href="http://www.youtube.com/iocmedia"><font size="2">www.youtube.com/iocmedia</font></a><font size="2"> <br />&nbsp; <br /><strong>Photos</strong><br />For an extensive selection of photos available shortly after each event, please follow us on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/iocmedia">Flickr</a>.<br />To request archive photos and footage, please contact our Images team at: </font><a href="mailto:images@olympic.org"><font size="2">images@olympic.org</font></a><font size="2">.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><strong>Social media</strong><br />For up-to-the-minute information on the IOC and regular updates, please follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/olympics">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/olympicgames">Facebook</a>.</font></p> <p><font size="2"><br />&nbsp;</font></p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278604800) } [9]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(57) "[PRESS RELEASE] IOC President Visits No.10 Downing Street" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(3108) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Jacques Rogge, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), met with the new British Prime Minister David Cameron at No.10 Downing Street today. The visit to see the new British leader was part of a full day of Olympic events for the President in the next Olympic host city. </p> <p>He started the day by addressing London 2012’s staff, before going on to visit the Olympic Park venues and later met the Mayor of London Boris Johnson. </p> <p>Following his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron, President Rogge said, “We had very productive discussions with the Prime Minister and the Mayor about the London 2012 Games and the development of sport in the UK. It is a sign of the government's commitment to the 2012 Games that such a meeting was organised so early in the life of the new government. The Prime Minister reassured me of the government’s continued support for London 2012 and we are looking forward to continuing the bi-partisan approach so vital to a successful Games. LOCOG and the ODA have done amazing things, and huge progress has been made - as we enter the crucial final delivery&nbsp; phase. But we are confident, not complacent. LOCOG and the ODA are doing a great job in what are tough financial circumstances - and we all continue to ensure we make intelligent use of available resources."<br /><br />The meeting with the British Prime Minister at No.10 Downing Street also included Olympic sport leaders Lord Moynihan, Lord Coe, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson.</p> <p>Speaking after the meeting Sebastian Coe, Chairman of LOCOG, the organisers of London 2012, added, "The meetings today demonstrate the commitment the Government and the Mayor have to delivering a great Games that will energise the country.&nbsp; Every day we focus on hosting a Games that delivers pride and value for&nbsp;money to the nation and we look forward to taking the IOC through the progress we are making right across this project over the next few days."</p> <p>As part of the Olympic Park visit, Rogge helped to put in place the 2012th seat in the Olympic Stadium. The President was assisted in his task by the Chairman of the IOC’s Coordination Commission Denis Oswald, Chairman of London 2012 Sebastian Coe, IOC member Craig Reedie and some of the children who were present in Singapore for&nbsp;the 2012 vote. In a little over two years' time, these seats will be where thousands of spectators will be able to watch the world’s best athletes compete.</p> <p>At a meeting later in the day with Mayor Boris Johnson, President Rogge was able to listen to the Mayor's plans to energise the capital and its people in the run-up to, during, and after the Games of 2012. </p> <p>President Jacques Rogge also visited the headquarters of the British Olympic Association (BOA) in central London.&nbsp; While at the BOA,&nbsp;Rogge met with BOA Chairman Colin Moynihan, Chief Executive Andy Hunt and members of the BOA Board to review Team GB’s preparation and the sports legacy plans for the London 2012 Olympic Games.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "7/5/2010 7:50:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=93533" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(3108) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Jacques Rogge, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), met with the new British Prime Minister David Cameron at No.10 Downing Street today. The visit to see the new British leader was part of a full day of Olympic events for the President in the next Olympic host city. </p> <p>He started the day by addressing London 2012’s staff, before going on to visit the Olympic Park venues and later met the Mayor of London Boris Johnson. </p> <p>Following his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron, President Rogge said, “We had very productive discussions with the Prime Minister and the Mayor about the London 2012 Games and the development of sport in the UK. It is a sign of the government's commitment to the 2012 Games that such a meeting was organised so early in the life of the new government. The Prime Minister reassured me of the government’s continued support for London 2012 and we are looking forward to continuing the bi-partisan approach so vital to a successful Games. LOCOG and the ODA have done amazing things, and huge progress has been made - as we enter the crucial final delivery&nbsp; phase. But we are confident, not complacent. LOCOG and the ODA are doing a great job in what are tough financial circumstances - and we all continue to ensure we make intelligent use of available resources."<br /><br />The meeting with the British Prime Minister at No.10 Downing Street also included Olympic sport leaders Lord Moynihan, Lord Coe, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson.</p> <p>Speaking after the meeting Sebastian Coe, Chairman of LOCOG, the organisers of London 2012, added, "The meetings today demonstrate the commitment the Government and the Mayor have to delivering a great Games that will energise the country.&nbsp; Every day we focus on hosting a Games that delivers pride and value for&nbsp;money to the nation and we look forward to taking the IOC through the progress we are making right across this project over the next few days."</p> <p>As part of the Olympic Park visit, Rogge helped to put in place the 2012th seat in the Olympic Stadium. The President was assisted in his task by the Chairman of the IOC’s Coordination Commission Denis Oswald, Chairman of London 2012 Sebastian Coe, IOC member Craig Reedie and some of the children who were present in Singapore for&nbsp;the 2012 vote. In a little over two years' time, these seats will be where thousands of spectators will be able to watch the world’s best athletes compete.</p> <p>At a meeting later in the day with Mayor Boris Johnson, President Rogge was able to listen to the Mayor's plans to energise the capital and its people in the run-up to, during, and after the Games of 2012. </p> <p>President Jacques Rogge also visited the headquarters of the British Olympic Association (BOA) in central London.&nbsp; While at the BOA,&nbsp;Rogge met with BOA Chairman Colin Moynihan, Chief Executive Andy Hunt and members of the BOA Board to review Team GB’s preparation and the sports legacy plans for the London 2012 Olympic Games.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278359400) } } ["channel"]=> array(14) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["link#"]=> int(1) ["link"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["copyright#"]=> int(1) ["copyright"]=> string(35) "Copyright CIO. All rights reserved." ["language#"]=> int(1) ["language"]=> string(2) "en" ["tagline#"]=> int(1) ["tagline"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["subtitle#"]=> int(1) ["subtitle"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" } ["textinput"]=> array(0) { } ["image"]=> array(6) { ["linknode#"]=> int(1) ["linknode"]=> string(55) "http://www.olympic.org/common/images/common/anneaux.gif" ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(31) "International Olympic Committee" ["link#"]=> int(1) ["link"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" } ["feed_type"]=> string(3) "RSS" ["feed_version"]=> string(1) "2" ["encoding"]=> string(5) "UTF-8" ["_source_encoding"]=> string(0) "" ["ERROR"]=> string(0) "" ["WARNING"]=> string(0) "" ["_XMLNS_FAMILIAR"]=> array(22) { ["http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"]=> string(4) "atom" ["http://purl.org/atom/ns#"]=> string(4) "atom" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/"]=> string(3) "rss" ["http://backend.userland.com/RSS2"]=> string(3) "rss" ["http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"]=> string(3) "rdf" ["http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"]=> string(5) "xhtml" ["http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"]=> string(2) "dc" ["http://purl.org/dc/terms/"]=> string(7) "dcterms" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"]=> string(7) "content" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"]=> string(2) "sy" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/taxonomy/"]=> string(4) "taxo" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/dc/"]=> string(2) "dc" ["http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"]=> string(3) "wfw" ["http://webns.net/mvcb/"]=> string(5) "admin" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/annotate/"]=> string(8) "annotate" ["http://xmlns.com/foaf/0.1/"]=> string(4) "foaf" ["http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/"]=> string(9) "trackback" ["http://web.resource.org/cc/"]=> string(2) "cc" ["http://search.yahoo.com/mrss"]=> string(5) "media" ["http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/"]=> string(5) "media" ["http://video.search.yahoo.com/mrss"]=> string(5) "media" ["http://video.search.yahoo.com/mrss/"]=> string(5) "media" } ["_XMLBASE_RESOLVE"]=> array(2) { ["atom"]=> array(14) { ["link"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["content"]=> array(3) { ["src"]=> bool(true) ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["summary"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["title"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["rights"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["subtitle"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["info"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["tagline"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["copyright"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["generator"]=> array(2) { ["uri"]=> bool(true) ["url"]=> bool(true) } ["uri"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } ["url"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } ["icon"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } ["logo"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } } ["xhtml"]=> array(17) { ["a"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["applet"]=> array(1) { ["codebase"]=> bool(true) } ["area"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["blockquote"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["body"]=> array(1) { ["background"]=> bool(true) } ["del"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["form"]=> array(1) { ["action"]=> bool(true) } ["frame"]=> array(2) { ["longdesc"]=> bool(true) ["src"]=> bool(true) } ["iframe"]=> array(3) { ["longdesc"]=> bool(true) ["iframe"]=> bool(true) ["src"]=> bool(true) } ["head"]=> array(1) { ["profile"]=> bool(true) } ["img"]=> array(3) { ["longdesc"]=> bool(true) ["src"]=> bool(true) ["usemap"]=> bool(true) } ["input"]=> array(2) { ["src"]=> bool(true) ["usemap"]=> bool(true) } ["ins"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["link"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["object"]=> array(4) { ["classid"]=> bool(true) ["codebase"]=> bool(true) ["data"]=> bool(true) ["usemap"]=> bool(true) } ["q"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["script"]=> array(1) { ["src"]=> bool(true) } } } ["_ATOM_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS"]=> array(8) { [0]=> string(7) "content" [1]=> string(7) "summary" [2]=> string(5) "title" [3]=> string(4) "info" [4]=> string(7) "tagline" [5]=> string(9) "copyright" [6]=> string(6) "rights" [7]=> string(8) "subtitle" } ["_XHTML_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS"]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "body" [1]=> string(3) "div" } ["_KNOWN_ENCODINGS"]=> array(3) { [0]=> string(5) "UTF-8" [1]=> string(8) "US-ASCII" [2]=> string(10) "ISO-8859-1" } ["stack"]=> array(4) { ["element"]=> array(0) { } ["ns"]=> array(0) { } ["xmlns"]=> array(0) { } ["xml:base"]=> array(1) { [0]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" } } ["inchannel"]=> bool(false) ["initem"]=> bool(false) ["incontent"]=> array(0) { } ["xml_escape"]=> bool(false) ["exclude_top"]=> bool(false) ["intextinput"]=> bool(false) ["inimage"]=> bool(false) ["root_namespaces"]=> array(1) { [0]=> string(3) "rss" } ["current_namespace"]=> string(0) "" ["working_namespace_table"]=> array(0) { } ["current_category"]=> int(0) ["http_status"]=> int(200) ["header"]=> array(9) { ["cache-control"]=> string(7) "private" ["content-type"]=> string(23) "text/xml; charset=utf-8" ["expires"]=> string(29) "Thu, 02 Sep 2010 00:05:37 GMT" ["server"]=> string(17) "Microsoft-IIS/7.0" ["x-aspnet-version"]=> string(9) "2.0.50727" ["content-length"]=> string(5) "40100" ["date"]=> string(29) "Fri, 03 Sep 2010 20:12:43 GMT" ["connection"]=> string(5) "close" ["x-n"]=> string(1) "S" } } } ["feed"]=> object(MagpieRSS)#279 (31) { ["parser"]=> resource(179) of type (Unknown) ["current_item"]=> array(0) { } ["items"]=> array(10) { [0]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "Sochi Starts Search For Olympic Mascot" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "9/2/2010 9:53:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1283421180) } [1]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(47) "A lovely, moving donation to The Olympic Museum" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(1481) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Recently, at The Olympic Museum, we welcomed two lovely champions: Stéphane Lambiel, the Swiss skater with an impressive record (twice world champion, twice European runner-up, silver medallist in Turin in 2006, and bronze medallist in the world championships); and Joannie Rochette, the talented Canadian skater who won a bronze medal in Vancouver last February, and who courageously competed in the events only two days after the sudden death of her mother.</p> <p>These two young athletes came to make a donation to The Olympic Museum: Lambiel donated the zebra-striped suit he wore when he won the Olympic silver medal, and Rochette donated the first dress she wore in her Olympic short programme.</p> <p>Olympic Museum Curator Frédérique Jamolli welcomed the young athletes and recalled how their performances, be it in Turin or Vancouver, had enthused and excited the general public, whom they had both won over.</p> <p>Stéphane Lambiel and Joannie Rochette then received the Olympic Museum’s traditional donor’s certificate and signed the guest book. They both said that it was both a pleasure and an honour to make their donations, in the hope that these two outfits would provoke the same emotions in the visitors as they had felt themselves.<br /></p><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8_9kMwtPUY8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US" width="540" height="328" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(20) "8/30/2010 4:32:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=97755" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(1481) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Recently, at The Olympic Museum, we welcomed two lovely champions: Stéphane Lambiel, the Swiss skater with an impressive record (twice world champion, twice European runner-up, silver medallist in Turin in 2006, and bronze medallist in the world championships); and Joannie Rochette, the talented Canadian skater who won a bronze medal in Vancouver last February, and who courageously competed in the events only two days after the sudden death of her mother.</p> <p>These two young athletes came to make a donation to The Olympic Museum: Lambiel donated the zebra-striped suit he wore when he won the Olympic silver medal, and Rochette donated the first dress she wore in her Olympic short programme.</p> <p>Olympic Museum Curator Frédérique Jamolli welcomed the young athletes and recalled how their performances, be it in Turin or Vancouver, had enthused and excited the general public, whom they had both won over.</p> <p>Stéphane Lambiel and Joannie Rochette then received the Olympic Museum’s traditional donor’s certificate and signed the guest book. They both said that it was both a pleasure and an honour to make their donations, in the hope that these two outfits would provoke the same emotions in the visitors as they had felt themselves.<br /></p><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/8_9kMwtPUY8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US" width="540" height="328" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always"></embed>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1283185920) } [2]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(29) "London 2012 Venues Take Shape" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(4071) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">With a little under two years to go, the London 2012 venues are rapidly taking shape, as water is now flowing at the canoe slalom venue, the seating structure is taking shape at the basketball arena, ground preparation work is beginning at Greenwich Park, and landscaping work is getting underway at the Olympic Village. With athletes and teams now in the process of qualifying for the 2012 Games, this progress is a reassuring sign that London is on time and on track to welcome the world’s top sports people in 2012.</p> <h5>Water Works</h5> <p>Construction work on the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/water-flowing-at-london-2012-canoe-slalom-venue.php">new lake and competition courses</a> has been completed at the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">London 2012 canoe slalom venue</a> in the <a href="http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/en/content/cms/white_water_canoe_ce/white_water_canoe_ce.aspx">Lee Valley Regional Park</a> and this has allowed <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">water to start flowing</a> at the venue, so that the courses can be tested. The venue is expected to be completed later this year and will include a standard 300m competition course, a boat conveyor, a 160m intermediate/training course, a 10,000m² finish lake, and a facility building and pumping house.</p> <h5>Capacity of 12,000</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/london-2012-basketball-arena-prepares-for-seat-installation.php">Thousands of seats</a> are soon to be installed in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/basketball-arena.php">London 2012 basketball arena</a>, which is reported to be one of the largest temporary venues ever used for an Olympic and Paralympic Games. The seating structure is now taking shape, before the black and orange seats – representing the colours of a basketball – are put into place. At Games-time, the venue will host basketball, handball, wheelchair basketball, and wheelchair rugby.</p> <h5>Preparing The Ground</h5> <p>Work has begun on preparing the ground at Greenwich Park, the site of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/greenwich-park.php">London’s Olympic equestrian venue</a>. The work, which will be carried out by London 2012 sub-contractors in association with The Royal Parks, will ensure that the condition of the grass is ideal for <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2009/equestrian-stars-tour-greenwich-park.php">the competitors in 2012</a>. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/greenwich-park-ground-preparation-work-begins-for-2012.php">Work will include irrigation, de-compaction, mowing, and some other enhancements</a>. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also announced <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/athletes-village-to-feature-new-green-spaces.php">plans for thousands of new trees, parks, play areas, and open spaces</a> to support the new homes being delivered in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/olympic-village.php">London 2012 Olympic Village</a>. Landscaping is already underway for the creation of an extensive wetlands area on the Village site, with the overall plans for these green spaces&nbsp;adding to the landscaping works already underway in the Olympic Park site, which is creating one of the largest new urban parks in the UK for over 100 years.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the host city for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>Want to get involved in London 2012? How about <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteer/index.php">volunteering</a>?</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(21) "8/24/2010 12:00:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=97649" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(4071) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">With a little under two years to go, the London 2012 venues are rapidly taking shape, as water is now flowing at the canoe slalom venue, the seating structure is taking shape at the basketball arena, ground preparation work is beginning at Greenwich Park, and landscaping work is getting underway at the Olympic Village. With athletes and teams now in the process of qualifying for the 2012 Games, this progress is a reassuring sign that London is on time and on track to welcome the world’s top sports people in 2012.</p> <h5>Water Works</h5> <p>Construction work on the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/water-flowing-at-london-2012-canoe-slalom-venue.php">new lake and competition courses</a> has been completed at the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">London 2012 canoe slalom venue</a> in the <a href="http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/en/content/cms/white_water_canoe_ce/white_water_canoe_ce.aspx">Lee Valley Regional Park</a> and this has allowed <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/lee-valley-white-water-centre.php">water to start flowing</a> at the venue, so that the courses can be tested. The venue is expected to be completed later this year and will include a standard 300m competition course, a boat conveyor, a 160m intermediate/training course, a 10,000m² finish lake, and a facility building and pumping house.</p> <h5>Capacity of 12,000</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/london-2012-basketball-arena-prepares-for-seat-installation.php">Thousands of seats</a> are soon to be installed in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/basketball-arena.php">London 2012 basketball arena</a>, which is reported to be one of the largest temporary venues ever used for an Olympic and Paralympic Games. The seating structure is now taking shape, before the black and orange seats – representing the colours of a basketball – are put into place. At Games-time, the venue will host basketball, handball, wheelchair basketball, and wheelchair rugby.</p> <h5>Preparing The Ground</h5> <p>Work has begun on preparing the ground at Greenwich Park, the site of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/greenwich-park.php">London’s Olympic equestrian venue</a>. The work, which will be carried out by London 2012 sub-contractors in association with The Royal Parks, will ensure that the condition of the grass is ideal for <a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2009/equestrian-stars-tour-greenwich-park.php">the competitors in 2012</a>. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/greenwich-park-ground-preparation-work-begins-for-2012.php">Work will include irrigation, de-compaction, mowing, and some other enhancements</a>. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also announced <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/08/athletes-village-to-feature-new-green-spaces.php">plans for thousands of new trees, parks, play areas, and open spaces</a> to support the new homes being delivered in the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/olympic-village.php">London 2012 Olympic Village</a>. Landscaping is already underway for the creation of an extensive wetlands area on the Village site, with the overall plans for these green spaces&nbsp;adding to the landscaping works already underway in the Olympic Park site, which is creating one of the largest new urban parks in the UK for over 100 years.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the host city for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>Want to get involved in London 2012? How about <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteer/index.php">volunteering</a>?</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1282608000) } [3]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(60) "Three Olympian brothers at The Olympic Museum for a donation" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(2145) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">They already made names for themselves at the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver last February. Three brothers from one family present at the Olympic Games is something quite exceptional, and it is for this reason that the people responsible for the Museum collections approached them when they were asking for donations in Vancouver. </p> <p>On Thursday 20 August at The Olympic Museum, the three Ligocki brothers, Luckasz, Michal and Mateusz, accompanied by their parents, donated to The Olympic Museum the full set of equipment they wore in Vancouver, either as athletes or as an official: snowboard, bindings, boots, helmet, gloves, mask, bodysuits, delegation clothing, etc. The donations also included accreditation cards, bibs and some photographs. </p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_2.jpg" /></p> <p>The donation was made in the presence of Francis Gabet and Frédérique Jamolli, Director and Curator of The Olympic Museum respectively. All three athletes received a donor’s diploma signed by the IOC President, acknowledging their donation.</p> <p>In the book signed successively by the three brothers, Michal wrote: “I’m feeling so special, to give my Olympic equipment to this Museum. From now on I’ll feel that the memory of me and my family will live 4 ever!” </p> <h5>A bit of background…</h5> <p>Mateusz Ligocki (born 1982) participated in the Turin Games in 2006 in snowboard and snowboard cross. He was the only athlete to compete in the two disciplines. In Vancouver, he participated in the snowboard cross events. </p> <p>Michal Ligocki (born 1985) also participated in the Turin and Vancouver Games, but in half-pipe.</p> <p>The two brothers really want to participate in a third edition of the Games and are seriously preparing themselves for the 2014 Games in Sochi. </p> <p>As for the oldest Lukasz brother (born 1980), he is FIS snowboard A license judge and technical delegate for snowboard. He was the Deputy Chef de Mission for the Polish team in Whistler.</p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_3.jpg" /><br /></p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(20) "8/23/2010 3:02:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=97661" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(2145) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">They already made names for themselves at the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver last February. Three brothers from one family present at the Olympic Games is something quite exceptional, and it is for this reason that the people responsible for the Museum collections approached them when they were asking for donations in Vancouver. </p> <p>On Thursday 20 August at The Olympic Museum, the three Ligocki brothers, Luckasz, Michal and Mateusz, accompanied by their parents, donated to The Olympic Museum the full set of equipment they wore in Vancouver, either as athletes or as an official: snowboard, bindings, boots, helmet, gloves, mask, bodysuits, delegation clothing, etc. The donations also included accreditation cards, bibs and some photographs. </p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_2.jpg" /></p> <p>The donation was made in the presence of Francis Gabet and Frédérique Jamolli, Director and Curator of The Olympic Museum respectively. All three athletes received a donor’s diploma signed by the IOC President, acknowledging their donation.</p> <p>In the book signed successively by the three brothers, Michal wrote: “I’m feeling so special, to give my Olympic equipment to this Museum. From now on I’ll feel that the memory of me and my family will live 4 ever!” </p> <h5>A bit of background…</h5> <p>Mateusz Ligocki (born 1982) participated in the Turin Games in 2006 in snowboard and snowboard cross. He was the only athlete to compete in the two disciplines. In Vancouver, he participated in the snowboard cross events. </p> <p>Michal Ligocki (born 1985) also participated in the Turin and Vancouver Games, but in half-pipe.</p> <p>The two brothers really want to participate in a third edition of the Games and are seriously preparing themselves for the 2014 Games in Sochi. </p> <p>As for the oldest Lukasz brother (born 1980), he is FIS snowboard A license judge and technical delegate for snowboard. He was the Deputy Chef de Mission for the Polish team in Whistler.</p> <p><img alt="" src="/Global/Images/News/08-2010/24/Donation_BIG_3.jpg" /><br /></p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1282575720) } [4]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "London 2012 Celebrates Two Years-To-Go" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(4241) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">27 July 2010 marks the two-years-to-go point before the opening of the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/splash/index.php">London 2012 Olympic Games</a>. This important milestone in London’s progress is being celebrated with a number of events across the host city and country. </p> <p>From 23-25 July, the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">London 2012 Open Weekend</a> was organised across the UK and included over 800 “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenging</a>” events for the public. This was followed today by the launch of London 2012’s specialist volunteer programme, the opening of London 2012’s first official shop, a number of special events in the Olympic Park, and <a href="http://www.london2012.com/press/media-releases/2010/07/london-2012-celebrates-two-years-to-go.php">numerous other events</a> organised by London 2012’s partners.</p> <h5>Huge Progress</h5> <p><a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge</a> said, “The new Olympic venues are now a visible part of London’s skyline, and the London 2012 Organising Committee is progressing well in its preparations to welcome the athletes of the world. With two years to go, London has made huge progress in the development of its Olympic project, and I am confident in London’s ability to stage Games of the highest standard, as we enter the back straight of this race that will lead us to 2012.” </p> <h5>Sport In The Park</h5> <p>With the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php">main venues</a> in London’s Olympic Park on track to be completed next year, a number of special events are being held in the Park today, which shows the great progress that London has made in its construction projects. For example, Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy is taking part in a cycling activity within the velodrome, former NBA star John Amaechi is shooting some hoops in the basketball arena, Michael Johnson is sprinting on a temporary track in the Olympic Stadium, and the first group of people will be walking across the main access bridge between the Aquatics Centre and the Olympic Stadium.</p> <h5>Are You Ready? Plan Your Games!</h5> <p>The athletes are in full preparation for the 2012 Games, the venues are taking shape and the organisation is making <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">solid progress</a>, but the question is are you ready for 2012? With the 2012 Games fast approaching, now is the time to start planning your role and your summer of 2012. Would you like to attend an Olympic event? Then <a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH">sign up for ticketing information</a>. Thinking about volunteering? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/volunteering">Sign up for more information</a>. Perhaps attend an event during the Cultural Olympiad? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/cultural-olympiad/index.php">Find out more</a>. See the Olympic Torch Relay? It’s coming <a href="http://www.london2012.com/blog/2010/05/london-2012-torch-relay-bringing-the-games-to-your-doors.php">to a town near you</a>! Maybe create something and be <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/inspire-programme/index.php">part of the inspire programme</a>? Or teach children using the Games to inspire them? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/education/index.php">It’s all here</a>. There are numerous ways that you can play a part in 2012, start thinking and planning what you want to do now, so that you don’t miss out.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(21) "7/27/2010 12:19:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=95219" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(4241) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">27 July 2010 marks the two-years-to-go point before the opening of the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/splash/index.php">London 2012 Olympic Games</a>. This important milestone in London’s progress is being celebrated with a number of events across the host city and country. </p> <p>From 23-25 July, the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">London 2012 Open Weekend</a> was organised across the UK and included over 800 “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenging</a>” events for the public. This was followed today by the launch of London 2012’s specialist volunteer programme, the opening of London 2012’s first official shop, a number of special events in the Olympic Park, and <a href="http://www.london2012.com/press/media-releases/2010/07/london-2012-celebrates-two-years-to-go.php">numerous other events</a> organised by London 2012’s partners.</p> <h5>Huge Progress</h5> <p><a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge</a> said, “The new Olympic venues are now a visible part of London’s skyline, and the London 2012 Organising Committee is progressing well in its preparations to welcome the athletes of the world. With two years to go, London has made huge progress in the development of its Olympic project, and I am confident in London’s ability to stage Games of the highest standard, as we enter the back straight of this race that will lead us to 2012.” </p> <h5>Sport In The Park</h5> <p>With the <a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php">main venues</a> in London’s Olympic Park on track to be completed next year, a number of special events are being held in the Park today, which shows the great progress that London has made in its construction projects. For example, Olympic gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy is taking part in a cycling activity within the velodrome, former NBA star John Amaechi is shooting some hoops in the basketball arena, Michael Johnson is sprinting on a temporary track in the Olympic Stadium, and the first group of people will be walking across the main access bridge between the Aquatics Centre and the Olympic Stadium.</p> <h5>Are You Ready? Plan Your Games!</h5> <p>The athletes are in full preparation for the 2012 Games, the venues are taking shape and the organisation is making <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">solid progress</a>, but the question is are you ready for 2012? With the 2012 Games fast approaching, now is the time to start planning your role and your summer of 2012. Would you like to attend an Olympic event? Then <a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH">sign up for ticketing information</a>. Thinking about volunteering? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/volunteering">Sign up for more information</a>. Perhaps attend an event during the Cultural Olympiad? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/cultural-olympiad/index.php">Find out more</a>. See the Olympic Torch Relay? It’s coming <a href="http://www.london2012.com/blog/2010/05/london-2012-torch-relay-bringing-the-games-to-your-doors.php">to a town near you</a>! Maybe create something and be <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/inspire-programme/index.php">part of the inspire programme</a>? Or teach children using the Games to inspire them? <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/education/index.php">It’s all here</a>. There are numerous ways that you can play a part in 2012, start thinking and planning what you want to do now, so that you don’t miss out.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1280233140) } [5]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(24) "London 2012 Open Weekend" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(3036) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">On 27 July, London 2012 will be celebrating two years-to-go until the start of its Olympic Games. In advance of this significant date, London 2012 is running its annual <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">Open Weekend</a> event, which is a UK-wide celebration taking place from 23 till 25 July. The event includes over 800 events across the country ranging from sport to art, dance to exhibitions, and each event features a special challenge: <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/upcoming-events/index.php?age=openweekend&amp;owd1=yes&amp;owd2=yes&amp;owd3=yes&amp;regionfilter=&amp;typefilter=&amp;q=&amp;x=26&amp;y=11">What will you do this weekend?</a></p> <h5>“Challenge Yourself”</h5> <p>The 2010 Open Weekend is based on the theme of “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenge yourself</a>”, with organisations setting public challenges at their events. This will allow everyone across the UK to attempt to set a new personal best by trying something new or by taking an existing interest to the next level. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">LOCOG Chairman Seb Coe</a> had this to say about the Open Weekend, “Open Weekend will lead the nation into the two-year countdown to the start of the London 2012 Games, with new personal bests being set right across the UK. Open Weekend 2010 is another opportunity for thousands of people to join in with the London 2012 Games.”</p> <h5>Solid Progress<br /></h5> <p>With a little over two years to go until the Games begin, London 2012 is continuing to <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">make solid progress on its preparations</a> for the Games, according to the International <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Coordination Commission</a>, which visited London only a few weeks ago. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also recently <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/07/london-2012-venues-on-track-to-be-finished-next-year.php">unveiled a new set of milestones</a>, which outline how, by summer 2011, the structures of the main venues for London 2012 will be complete and ready to be handed over for testing, with all major new infrastructure finished and landscaping work well advanced across the Olympic Park. </p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting, taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(20) "7/23/2010 3:30:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=94706" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(3036) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">On 27 July, London 2012 will be celebrating two years-to-go until the start of its Olympic Games. In advance of this significant date, London 2012 is running its annual <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/open-weekend/index.php">Open Weekend</a> event, which is a UK-wide celebration taking place from 23 till 25 July. The event includes over 800 events across the country ranging from sport to art, dance to exhibitions, and each event features a special challenge: <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/upcoming-events/index.php?age=openweekend&amp;owd1=yes&amp;owd2=yes&amp;owd3=yes&amp;regionfilter=&amp;typefilter=&amp;q=&amp;x=26&amp;y=11">What will you do this weekend?</a></p> <h5>“Challenge Yourself”</h5> <p>The 2010 Open Weekend is based on the theme of “<a href="http://www.london2012.com/videos/2010/london-2012-open-weekend-2010.php">challenge yourself</a>”, with organisations setting public challenges at their events. This will allow everyone across the UK to attempt to set a new personal best by trying something new or by taking an existing interest to the next level. <a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">LOCOG Chairman Seb Coe</a> had this to say about the Open Weekend, “Open Weekend will lead the nation into the two-year countdown to the start of the London 2012 Games, with new personal bests being set right across the UK. Open Weekend 2010 is another opportunity for thousands of people to join in with the London 2012 Games.”</p> <h5>Solid Progress<br /></h5> <p>With a little over two years to go until the Games begin, London 2012 is continuing to <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Media/?articleNewsGroup=-1&amp;articleId=93762">make solid progress on its preparations</a> for the Games, according to the International <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Coordination Commission</a>, which visited London only a few weeks ago. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has also recently <a href="http://www.london2012.com/news/2010/07/london-2012-venues-on-track-to-be-finished-next-year.php">unveiled a new set of milestones</a>, which outline how, by summer 2011, the structures of the main venues for London 2012 will be complete and ready to be handed over for testing, with all major new infrastructure finished and landscaping work well advanced across the Olympic Park. </p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting, taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1279899000) } [6]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(41) "London 2012 Announces Volunteer Programme" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(3620) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has announced its plans to recruit up to 70,000 volunteers or “Games Makers” for the London Games. It is expected to be the biggest volunteer recruitment campaign in the post-war period in the UK, and LOCOG will be looking for dedicated and inspirational people representative of the diversity of London and the UK to apply for a wide variety of volunteer positions. <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Sponsoring/Sponsorship/McDonalds/">Olympic TOP partner McDonald’s</a> will be the presenting partner of the London volunteer programme and will use its expertise in customer service and training and its nationwide presence to help attract, select and train the diverse team that will be needed to make the 2012 Games a success.</p> <h5>Games Makers</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">Sebastian Coe</a>, Chairman of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/">LOCOG</a>, said: “London 2012 needs brilliant volunteers to help us deliver a great Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our volunteers will be called Games Makers to reflect the important role they will play in staging the 2012 Games. The programme to find our Games Makers will launch on 27 July 2010 and I urge anyone who is interested to come to our website to find out everything they need to know about volunteering in 2012.”</p> <h5>Different Roles<br /></h5> <p>There are two different types of volunteer role: specialists in areas such as medical services, sport or press operations; and generalists, with roles ranging from spectator assistants, uniform distributors and ticket checking. In addition to the LOCOG volunteers, the Mayor of London will shortly announce plans for the recruitment of city volunteers to be stationed at key transport hubs, at visitor attractions, and on the streets of the capital to make sure all visitors to London get the best possible welcome during the Games.&nbsp; </p> <h5>Key Dates<br /></h5> <p>Volunteer recruitment will start exactly two years before the London Games on 27 July 2010. The key dates for the process are:<br /><br />•&nbsp;27 July 2010: applications open for pre-identified applicants for specialist sport, press operations, anti-doping and medical roles and members of a wide range of disability specialist organisations. This is also an opportunity for those interested in the generalist roles to find out if they have what it takes to be a <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteering/index.php">Games Maker via a dedicated section on the London 2012 website</a>. Recruitment also starts on this date for the Mayor’s London Volunteers scheme.<br /><br />•&nbsp;15 September 2010: applications open to the public for generalist roles and continue for specialist roles.<br /><br />•&nbsp;LOCOG today also confirmed that up to 1,500 of the Games Maker roles will be made available for those under the age of 18 through the ‘Young Games Maker’ programme that will be unveiled in July 2011.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(21) "7/12/2010 11:30:00 AM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=94172" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(3620) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) has announced its plans to recruit up to 70,000 volunteers or “Games Makers” for the London Games. It is expected to be the biggest volunteer recruitment campaign in the post-war period in the UK, and LOCOG will be looking for dedicated and inspirational people representative of the diversity of London and the UK to apply for a wide variety of volunteer positions. <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Sponsoring/Sponsorship/McDonalds/">Olympic TOP partner McDonald’s</a> will be the presenting partner of the London volunteer programme and will use its expertise in customer service and training and its nationwide presence to help attract, select and train the diverse team that will be needed to make the 2012 Games a success.</p> <h5>Games Makers</h5> <p><a href="http://www.london2012.com/about-us/the-people-delivering-the-games/the-london-organising-committee/locog-board.php">Sebastian Coe</a>, Chairman of <a href="http://www.london2012.com/">LOCOG</a>, said: “London 2012 needs brilliant volunteers to help us deliver a great Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our volunteers will be called Games Makers to reflect the important role they will play in staging the 2012 Games. The programme to find our Games Makers will launch on 27 July 2010 and I urge anyone who is interested to come to our website to find out everything they need to know about volunteering in 2012.”</p> <h5>Different Roles<br /></h5> <p>There are two different types of volunteer role: specialists in areas such as medical services, sport or press operations; and generalists, with roles ranging from spectator assistants, uniform distributors and ticket checking. In addition to the LOCOG volunteers, the Mayor of London will shortly announce plans for the recruitment of city volunteers to be stationed at key transport hubs, at visitor attractions, and on the streets of the capital to make sure all visitors to London get the best possible welcome during the Games.&nbsp; </p> <h5>Key Dates<br /></h5> <p>Volunteer recruitment will start exactly two years before the London Games on 27 July 2010. The key dates for the process are:<br /><br />•&nbsp;27 July 2010: applications open for pre-identified applicants for specialist sport, press operations, anti-doping and medical roles and members of a wide range of disability specialist organisations. This is also an opportunity for those interested in the generalist roles to find out if they have what it takes to be a <a href="http://www.london2012.com/get-involved/volunteering/index.php">Games Maker via a dedicated section on the London 2012 website</a>. Recruitment also starts on this date for the Mayor’s London Volunteers scheme.<br /><br />•&nbsp;15 September 2010: applications open to the public for generalist roles and continue for specialist roles.<br /><br />•&nbsp;LOCOG today also confirmed that up to 1,500 of the Games Maker roles will be made available for those under the age of 18 through the ‘Young Games Maker’ programme that will be unveiled in July 2011.</p> <h5>LONDON 2012<br /></h5> <p>London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278934200) } [7]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(45) "Solid progress continues with two years to go" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(4276) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games</a> concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">IOC President Jacques Rogge</a> and <a href="http://www.olympic.org/content/The-IOC/Members/Mr-Denis-OSWALD/">Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald</a> meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <h5>Completely Behind The Project </h5> <p><font size="2">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</font></p> <h5>Visits And Reports</h5> <p><font size="2">During its stay, the Commission visited </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php"><font size="2">a number of the Olympic venues</font></a><font size="2">, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the </font><a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH"><font size="2">ticketing</font></a><font size="2">, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </font></p> <h5>Operational Testing Phase</h5> <p><font size="2">With the Games a little over two years away, </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/"><font size="2">London 2012</font></a><font size="2"> is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase. “The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the upcoming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.” In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</font></p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p><font size="2">London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</font></p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "7/8/2010 4:30:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=93762" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(4276) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Commissions/Coordination-commissions--Olympic-Games1/?Tab=1">Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games</a> concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/The-IOC/Members/Count-Jacques-ROGGE/">IOC President Jacques Rogge</a> and <a href="http://www.olympic.org/content/The-IOC/Members/Mr-Denis-OSWALD/">Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald</a> meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <h5>Completely Behind The Project </h5> <p><font size="2">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</font></p> <h5>Visits And Reports</h5> <p><font size="2">During its stay, the Commission visited </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/games/venues/index.php"><font size="2">a number of the Olympic venues</font></a><font size="2">, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the </font><a href="http://www.tickets.london2012.com/?camefrom=CFC_UK_LONDON2012_L2012_SIGNUPSPLASH"><font size="2">ticketing</font></a><font size="2">, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </font></p> <h5>Operational Testing Phase</h5> <p><font size="2">With the Games a little over two years away, </font><a href="http://www.london2012.com/"><font size="2">London 2012</font></a><font size="2"> is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase. “The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the upcoming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.” In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</font></p> <h5>LONDON 2012</h5> <p><font size="2">London was elected as the Host City for the Games of the XXX Olympiad on 6 July 2005 at the 117th IOC Session in Singapore. London eventually succeeded in the fourth round of voting taking 54 votes from a possible 104. London faced stiff opposition during the vote from the other four candidate cities: Paris, New York, Moscow and Madrid. There will be 26 sports on the Olympic Programme in London in 2012 and around 10,500 athletes.</font></p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278606600) } [8]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(115) "[PRESS RELEASE] New government maintains all-party support for Games as solid progress continues with 2 years to go" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(6377) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with IOC President Jacques Rogge and Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"/?><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe said, "This week, we have taken the IOC through the progress we are making across both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and we are delighted with their very positive report. With two years to go, our focus is very much on working through the details of delivering this large and complex project. There will of course be challenges ahead, but we have an excellent team in place, and we benefit from great partnerships with the government, the Mayor of London, our sponsors and, of course, both the British Olympic Association and the British Paralympic Association. The strength of this team, combined with the tremendous support of the public, will help us work through any challenges and deliver&nbsp;Olympic and Paralympic Games we will all be proud of in 2012."</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">During its stay, the Commission visited a number of the Olympic venues, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the ticketing, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">With the Games a little over two years away, London 2012 is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase.</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the up-coming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class="iocCopyNoSpacing">In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</p> <p class="iocCopyIntro"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"></span>&nbsp;</p> <p align="center">###</p> <p><font size="2">For more information, please contact the IOC Communications Department: <br />Tel: +41 21 621 6000 e-mail: </font><a href="mailto:pressoffice@olympic.org"><font size="2">pressoffice@olympic.org</font></a></p> <p><font size="2"><strong>Videos</strong><br />Broadcast quality videos can be accessed and downloaded for free: <a href="http://www.videoforum2.afp.com/VideoForum/AuthFiles/login.aspx">click here</a> <br />Login: IOC<br />Password: MEDIA2009 <br />YouTube: </font><a href="http://www.youtube.com/iocmedia"><font size="2">www.youtube.com/iocmedia</font></a><font size="2"> <br />&nbsp; <br /><strong>Photos</strong><br />For an extensive selection of photos available shortly after each event, please follow us on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/iocmedia">Flickr</a>.<br />To request archive photos and footage, please contact our Images team at: </font><a href="mailto:images@olympic.org"><font size="2">images@olympic.org</font></a><font size="2">.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><strong>Social media</strong><br />For up-to-the-minute information on the IOC and regular updates, please follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/olympics">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/olympicgames">Facebook</a>.</font></p> <p><font size="2"><br />&nbsp;</font></p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "7/8/2010 4:00:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=93761" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(6377) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Coordination Commission for the London 2012 Games concluded today its sixth visit to the British capital since the city was awarded the Games in 2005. The meetings, which ran from 6 to 8 July, saw good progress being made across the project, particularly in the area of venue and infrastructure construction. The week’s meetings began with IOC President Jacques Rogge and Coordination Commission Chairman Denis Oswald meeting the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson, as well as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, at No.10 Downing Street. </p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“We held very constructive talks with Prime Minister Cameron and Mayor Johnson about the upcoming Games, and we are assured that the government at all levels remains completely behind the project,” said Oswald. “We also realise that we are working in a difficult economic environment at the moment, but we are confident that LOCOG’s early entry into the market and its robust private sector financing will mean that the delivery of top class Games will not be affected.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"/?><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe said, "This week, we have taken the IOC through the progress we are making across both the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and we are delighted with their very positive report. With two years to go, our focus is very much on working through the details of delivering this large and complex project. There will of course be challenges ahead, but we have an excellent team in place, and we benefit from great partnerships with the government, the Mayor of London, our sponsors and, of course, both the British Olympic Association and the British Paralympic Association. The strength of this team, combined with the tremendous support of the public, will help us work through any challenges and deliver&nbsp;Olympic and Paralympic Games we will all be proud of in 2012."</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">During its stay, the Commission visited a number of the Olympic venues, including the Olympic Park, Olympic Village, Broxbourne, Excel, and Royal Holloway, and heard reports from the London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) on the progress being made in preparing the services for a number of Games participants, such as the athletes, media, spectators, National Olympic Committees and International Federations, as well as in areas like technology, medical services, commercial, transport, communications, marketing, culture, ceremonies and education. LOCOG also updated the Commission on its plans for the ticketing, volunteer and Olympic Torch Relay programmes, which will be rolled out over the coming two years. </span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">With the Games a little over two years away, London 2012 is now approaching a crucial stage in its development as it shifts from the planning stage into its operational testing phase.</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p><font color="#000000"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">“The staff at LOCOG is top class and has been key to the success of the project so far. And there have been many successes, including the great advances in construction, in particular at the Olympic Park,” Oswald said. “They have done an exemplary job so far, but now is not the time for complacency; they need to continue working diligently and to focus on the details of the project during the up-coming operational testing phase in order to put on great Games in 2012.”</span><span style="FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'"><o:p></o:p></span></font></p> <p class="iocCopyNoSpacing">In the next 18 months, LOCOG will run numerous tests to determine that everything is in place to smoothly deliver the Games. It is at this stage that the local organisers will determine where improvements can be made and calibrate their plans accordingly. The Commission said it was impressed with the work completed to date and was looking forward to seeing LOCOG and its partners’ plans put to the test and refined over the coming months.</p> <p class="iocCopyIntro"><span style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"></span>&nbsp;</p> <p align="center">###</p> <p><font size="2">For more information, please contact the IOC Communications Department: <br />Tel: +41 21 621 6000 e-mail: </font><a href="mailto:pressoffice@olympic.org"><font size="2">pressoffice@olympic.org</font></a></p> <p><font size="2"><strong>Videos</strong><br />Broadcast quality videos can be accessed and downloaded for free: <a href="http://www.videoforum2.afp.com/VideoForum/AuthFiles/login.aspx">click here</a> <br />Login: IOC<br />Password: MEDIA2009 <br />YouTube: </font><a href="http://www.youtube.com/iocmedia"><font size="2">www.youtube.com/iocmedia</font></a><font size="2"> <br />&nbsp; <br /><strong>Photos</strong><br />For an extensive selection of photos available shortly after each event, please follow us on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/iocmedia">Flickr</a>.<br />To request archive photos and footage, please contact our Images team at: </font><a href="mailto:images@olympic.org"><font size="2">images@olympic.org</font></a><font size="2">.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><strong>Social media</strong><br />For up-to-the-minute information on the IOC and regular updates, please follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/olympics">Twitter</a> and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/olympicgames">Facebook</a>.</font></p> <p><font size="2"><br />&nbsp;</font></p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278604800) } [9]=> array(13) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(57) "[PRESS RELEASE] IOC President Visits No.10 Downing Street" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(3108) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Jacques Rogge, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), met with the new British Prime Minister David Cameron at No.10 Downing Street today. The visit to see the new British leader was part of a full day of Olympic events for the President in the next Olympic host city. </p> <p>He started the day by addressing London 2012’s staff, before going on to visit the Olympic Park venues and later met the Mayor of London Boris Johnson. </p> <p>Following his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron, President Rogge said, “We had very productive discussions with the Prime Minister and the Mayor about the London 2012 Games and the development of sport in the UK. It is a sign of the government's commitment to the 2012 Games that such a meeting was organised so early in the life of the new government. The Prime Minister reassured me of the government’s continued support for London 2012 and we are looking forward to continuing the bi-partisan approach so vital to a successful Games. LOCOG and the ODA have done amazing things, and huge progress has been made - as we enter the crucial final delivery&nbsp; phase. But we are confident, not complacent. LOCOG and the ODA are doing a great job in what are tough financial circumstances - and we all continue to ensure we make intelligent use of available resources."<br /><br />The meeting with the British Prime Minister at No.10 Downing Street also included Olympic sport leaders Lord Moynihan, Lord Coe, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson.</p> <p>Speaking after the meeting Sebastian Coe, Chairman of LOCOG, the organisers of London 2012, added, "The meetings today demonstrate the commitment the Government and the Mayor have to delivering a great Games that will energise the country.&nbsp; Every day we focus on hosting a Games that delivers pride and value for&nbsp;money to the nation and we look forward to taking the IOC through the progress we are making right across this project over the next few days."</p> <p>As part of the Olympic Park visit, Rogge helped to put in place the 2012th seat in the Olympic Stadium. The President was assisted in his task by the Chairman of the IOC’s Coordination Commission Denis Oswald, Chairman of London 2012 Sebastian Coe, IOC member Craig Reedie and some of the children who were present in Singapore for&nbsp;the 2012 vote. In a little over two years' time, these seats will be where thousands of spectators will be able to watch the world’s best athletes compete.</p> <p>At a meeting later in the day with Mayor Boris Johnson, President Rogge was able to listen to the Mayor's plans to energise the capital and its people in the run-up to, during, and after the Games of 2012. </p> <p>President Jacques Rogge also visited the headquarters of the British Olympic Association (BOA) in central London.&nbsp; While at the BOA,&nbsp;Rogge met with BOA Chairman Colin Moynihan, Chief Executive Andy Hunt and members of the BOA Board to review Team GB’s preparation and the sports legacy plans for the London 2012 Olympic Games.</p>" ["pubdate#"]=> int(1) ["pubdate"]=> string(19) "7/5/2010 7:50:00 PM" ["guid#"]=> int(1) ["guid@"]=> string(11) "ispermalink" ["guid@ispermalink"]=> string(4) "true" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=93533" ["summary#"]=> int(1) ["summary"]=> string(3108) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">Jacques Rogge, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), met with the new British Prime Minister David Cameron at No.10 Downing Street today. The visit to see the new British leader was part of a full day of Olympic events for the President in the next Olympic host city. </p> <p>He started the day by addressing London 2012’s staff, before going on to visit the Olympic Park venues and later met the Mayor of London Boris Johnson. </p> <p>Following his meeting with Prime Minister Cameron, President Rogge said, “We had very productive discussions with the Prime Minister and the Mayor about the London 2012 Games and the development of sport in the UK. It is a sign of the government's commitment to the 2012 Games that such a meeting was organised so early in the life of the new government. The Prime Minister reassured me of the government’s continued support for London 2012 and we are looking forward to continuing the bi-partisan approach so vital to a successful Games. LOCOG and the ODA have done amazing things, and huge progress has been made - as we enter the crucial final delivery&nbsp; phase. But we are confident, not complacent. LOCOG and the ODA are doing a great job in what are tough financial circumstances - and we all continue to ensure we make intelligent use of available resources."<br /><br />The meeting with the British Prime Minister at No.10 Downing Street also included Olympic sport leaders Lord Moynihan, Lord Coe, Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt and Olympics Minister Hugh Robertson.</p> <p>Speaking after the meeting Sebastian Coe, Chairman of LOCOG, the organisers of London 2012, added, "The meetings today demonstrate the commitment the Government and the Mayor have to delivering a great Games that will energise the country.&nbsp; Every day we focus on hosting a Games that delivers pride and value for&nbsp;money to the nation and we look forward to taking the IOC through the progress we are making right across this project over the next few days."</p> <p>As part of the Olympic Park visit, Rogge helped to put in place the 2012th seat in the Olympic Stadium. The President was assisted in his task by the Chairman of the IOC’s Coordination Commission Denis Oswald, Chairman of London 2012 Sebastian Coe, IOC member Craig Reedie and some of the children who were present in Singapore for&nbsp;the 2012 vote. In a little over two years' time, these seats will be where thousands of spectators will be able to watch the world’s best athletes compete.</p> <p>At a meeting later in the day with Mayor Boris Johnson, President Rogge was able to listen to the Mayor's plans to energise the capital and its people in the run-up to, during, and after the Games of 2012. </p> <p>President Jacques Rogge also visited the headquarters of the British Olympic Association (BOA) in central London.&nbsp; While at the BOA,&nbsp;Rogge met with BOA Chairman Colin Moynihan, Chief Executive Andy Hunt and members of the BOA Board to review Team GB’s preparation and the sports legacy plans for the London 2012 Olympic Games.</p>" ["date_timestamp"]=> int(1278359400) } } ["channel"]=> array(14) { ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["link#"]=> int(1) ["link"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["description#"]=> int(1) ["description"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["copyright#"]=> int(1) ["copyright"]=> string(35) "Copyright CIO. All rights reserved." ["language#"]=> int(1) ["language"]=> string(2) "en" ["tagline#"]=> int(1) ["tagline"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["subtitle#"]=> int(1) ["subtitle"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" } ["textinput"]=> array(0) { } ["image"]=> array(6) { ["linknode#"]=> int(1) ["linknode"]=> string(55) "http://www.olympic.org/common/images/common/anneaux.gif" ["title#"]=> int(1) ["title"]=> string(31) "International Olympic Committee" ["link#"]=> int(1) ["link"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" } ["feed_type"]=> string(3) "RSS" ["feed_version"]=> string(1) "2" ["encoding"]=> string(5) "UTF-8" ["_source_encoding"]=> string(0) "" ["ERROR"]=> string(0) "" ["WARNING"]=> string(0) "" ["_XMLNS_FAMILIAR"]=> array(22) { ["http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"]=> string(4) "atom" ["http://purl.org/atom/ns#"]=> string(4) "atom" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/"]=> string(3) "rss" ["http://backend.userland.com/RSS2"]=> string(3) "rss" ["http://www.w3.org/1999/02/22-rdf-syntax-ns#"]=> string(3) "rdf" ["http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"]=> string(5) "xhtml" ["http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"]=> string(2) "dc" ["http://purl.org/dc/terms/"]=> string(7) "dcterms" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"]=> string(7) "content" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"]=> string(2) "sy" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/taxonomy/"]=> string(4) "taxo" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/dc/"]=> string(2) "dc" ["http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"]=> string(3) "wfw" ["http://webns.net/mvcb/"]=> string(5) "admin" ["http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/annotate/"]=> string(8) "annotate" ["http://xmlns.com/foaf/0.1/"]=> string(4) "foaf" ["http://madskills.com/public/xml/rss/module/trackback/"]=> string(9) "trackback" ["http://web.resource.org/cc/"]=> string(2) "cc" ["http://search.yahoo.com/mrss"]=> string(5) "media" ["http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/"]=> string(5) "media" ["http://video.search.yahoo.com/mrss"]=> string(5) "media" ["http://video.search.yahoo.com/mrss/"]=> string(5) "media" } ["_XMLBASE_RESOLVE"]=> array(2) { ["atom"]=> array(14) { ["link"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["content"]=> array(3) { ["src"]=> bool(true) ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["summary"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["title"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["rights"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["subtitle"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["info"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["tagline"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["copyright"]=> array(2) { ["*xml"]=> bool(true) ["*html"]=> bool(true) } ["generator"]=> array(2) { ["uri"]=> bool(true) ["url"]=> bool(true) } ["uri"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } ["url"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } ["icon"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } ["logo"]=> array(1) { ["*content"]=> bool(true) } } ["xhtml"]=> array(17) { ["a"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["applet"]=> array(1) { ["codebase"]=> bool(true) } ["area"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["blockquote"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["body"]=> array(1) { ["background"]=> bool(true) } ["del"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["form"]=> array(1) { ["action"]=> bool(true) } ["frame"]=> array(2) { ["longdesc"]=> bool(true) ["src"]=> bool(true) } ["iframe"]=> array(3) { ["longdesc"]=> bool(true) ["iframe"]=> bool(true) ["src"]=> bool(true) } ["head"]=> array(1) { ["profile"]=> bool(true) } ["img"]=> array(3) { ["longdesc"]=> bool(true) ["src"]=> bool(true) ["usemap"]=> bool(true) } ["input"]=> array(2) { ["src"]=> bool(true) ["usemap"]=> bool(true) } ["ins"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["link"]=> array(1) { ["href"]=> bool(true) } ["object"]=> array(4) { ["classid"]=> bool(true) ["codebase"]=> bool(true) ["data"]=> bool(true) ["usemap"]=> bool(true) } ["q"]=> array(1) { ["cite"]=> bool(true) } ["script"]=> array(1) { ["src"]=> bool(true) } } } ["_ATOM_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS"]=> array(8) { [0]=> string(7) "content" [1]=> string(7) "summary" [2]=> string(5) "title" [3]=> string(4) "info" [4]=> string(7) "tagline" [5]=> string(9) "copyright" [6]=> string(6) "rights" [7]=> string(8) "subtitle" } ["_XHTML_CONTENT_CONSTRUCTS"]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "body" [1]=> string(3) "div" } ["_KNOWN_ENCODINGS"]=> array(3) { [0]=> string(5) "UTF-8" [1]=> string(8) "US-ASCII" [2]=> string(10) "ISO-8859-1" } ["stack"]=> array(4) { ["element"]=> array(0) { } ["ns"]=> array(0) { } ["xmlns"]=> array(0) { } ["xml:base"]=> array(1) { [0]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" } } ["inchannel"]=> bool(false) ["initem"]=> bool(false) ["incontent"]=> array(0) { } ["xml_escape"]=> bool(false) ["exclude_top"]=> bool(false) ["intextinput"]=> bool(false) ["inimage"]=> bool(false) ["root_namespaces"]=> array(1) { [0]=> string(3) "rss" } ["current_namespace"]=> string(0) "" ["working_namespace_table"]=> array(0) { } ["current_category"]=> int(0) ["http_status"]=> int(200) ["header"]=> array(9) { ["cache-control"]=> string(7) "private" ["content-type"]=> string(23) "text/xml; charset=utf-8" ["expires"]=> string(29) "Thu, 02 Sep 2010 00:05:37 GMT" ["server"]=> string(17) "Microsoft-IIS/7.0" ["x-aspnet-version"]=> string(9) "2.0.50727" ["content-length"]=> string(5) "40100" ["date"]=> string(29) "Fri, 03 Sep 2010 20:12:43 GMT" ["connection"]=> string(5) "close" ["x-n"]=> string(1) "S" } } ["feedmeta"]=> array(25) { ["feed/title#"]=> int(1) ["feed/title"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["feed/link#"]=> int(1) ["feed/link"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["feed/description#"]=> int(1) ["feed/description"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["feed/copyright#"]=> int(1) ["feed/copyright"]=> string(35) "Copyright CIO. All rights reserved." ["feed/language#"]=> int(1) ["feed/language"]=> string(2) "en" ["feed/tagline#"]=> int(1) ["feed/tagline"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["feed/subtitle#"]=> int(1) ["feed/subtitle"]=> string(65) "WWW.OLYMPIC.ORG - Official website of the Olympic Movement - News" ["feed/id"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["update/last"]=> int(1283544763) ["update/ttl"]=> int(68) ["update/timed"]=> string(13) "automatically" ["update/hold"]=> string(9) "scheduled" ["update/unfinished"]=> string(3) "yes" ["map authors"]=> array(1) { ["name"]=> array(1) { ["international olympic committee : news"]=> string(1) "2" } } ["update/processed"]=> string(649) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78310 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78309 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78292 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78187 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78140 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=78107 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77662 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77657 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77591 http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=77601" ["link/uri"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["link/name"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["link/id"]=> string(2) "28" } ["post"]=> array(16) { ["post_title"]=> string(38) "Sochi Starts Search For Olympic Mascot" ["post_content"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["post_excerpt"]=> string(2156) "<p class="iocCopyIntro">The Organising Committee for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games has launched a nationwide competition in Russia to design the mascot for the Sochi Olympic Games. The competition will run from 1 September till 5 December 2010, and participants can submit their ideas through <a href="http://talisman.sochi2014.ru/">a special web portal</a> (in Russian only) or by mail. An expert jury, made-up of filmmakers, animators, artists, cultural workers, professional marketers and athletes, will then create a shortlist of finalists. The winning design will be decided on 7 February 2011 through a public SMS and telephone vote. The winner will receive two tickets to the Opening Ceremony of the Games.</p> <h5>A long history of Olympic mascots</h5> <p>The first official Olympic mascot - Waldi the dachshund - was launched on the occasion of the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Summer/Munich-1972/">1972 Olympic Games in Munich</a>, although an unofficial mascot called "Schuss" had appeared at the <a href="http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/All-Past-Olympic-Games/Winter/Grenoble-1968/">1968 Winter Games in Grenoble</a>. Since that time, the mascot has become a regular feature at the Games appearing alone or with friends and taking not only animal forms but also those of traditional dolls and even an ice cube and a piece of snow. The latest mascot to join this special Olympic family is <a href="http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/">Wenlock</a>, who will be welcoming fans to London in 2012.&nbsp;</p> <h5>Sochi 2014</h5> <p><a href="http://www.sochi2014.ru">Sochi</a> was elected as the host city for the XXII Olympic Winter Games at the 119th IOC Session in Guatemala City on 4 July 2007. Sochi won the vote against the cities of Salzburg (Austria) and PyeongChang (Republic of Korea) in the second round of voting. The Russian city edged out PyeongChang 51 votes to 47, with Salzburg having been eliminated in round one. The Sochi Games will play host to the seven Olympic Winter sports currently on the Olympic programme and will run from 7 to 23 February 2014.</p>" ["epoch"]=> array(3) { ["issued"]=> int(1283421180) ["created"]=> NULL ["modified"]=> int(1283421180) } ["post_date"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 03:53:00" ["post_modified"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 03:53:00" ["post_date_gmt"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 09:53:00" ["post_modified_gmt"]=> string(19) "2010-09-02 09:53:00" ["post_status"]=> string(7) "publish" ["comment_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["ping_status"]=> string(4) "open" ["guid"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["meta"]=> array(6) { ["syndication_source"]=> string(38) "International Olympic Committee : News" ["syndication_source_uri"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["syndication_feed"]=> string(75) "http://www.olympic.org/rss/feed.aspx?Language=en&NewsPage=29&Aggregate=true" ["syndication_feed_id"]=> string(2) "28" ["syndication_permalink"]=> string(64) "http://www.olympic.org/en/content/Olympic-Games/?articleId=99082" ["syndication_item_hash"]=> string(32) "f720b731bb366a016497c21570952acb" } ["tags_input"]=> array(0) { } ["post_author"]=> int(2) ["post_category"]=> array(1) { [0]=> int(1) } } ["_freshness"]=> int(2) ["_wp_id"]=> int(0) ["uri_attrs"]=> array(25) { [0]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(1) "a" [1]=> string(4) "href" } [1]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "applet" [1]=> string(8) "codebase" } [2]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "area" [1]=> string(4) "href" } [3]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(10) "blockquote" [1]=> string(4) "cite" } [4]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "body" [1]=> string(10) "background" } [5]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(3) "del" [1]=> string(4) "cite" } [6]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "form" [1]=> string(6) "action" } [7]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(5) "frame" [1]=> string(8) "longdesc" } [8]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(5) "frame" [1]=> string(3) "src" } [9]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "iframe" [1]=> string(8) "longdesc" } [10]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "iframe" [1]=> string(3) "src" } [11]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "head" [1]=> string(7) "profile" } [12]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(3) "img" [1]=> string(8) "longdesc" } [13]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(3) "img" [1]=> string(3) "src" } [14]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(3) "img" [1]=> string(6) "usemap" } [15]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(5) "input" [1]=> string(3) "src" } [16]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(5) "input" [1]=> string(6) "usemap" } [17]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(3) "ins" [1]=> string(4) "cite" } [18]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(4) "link" [1]=> string(4) "href" } [19]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "object" [1]=> string(7) "classid" } [20]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "object" [1]=> string(8) "codebase" } [21]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "object" [1]=> string(4) "data" } [22]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "object" [1]=> string(6) "usemap" } [23]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(1) "q" [1]=> string(4) "cite" } [24]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "script" [1]=> string(3) "src" } } ["_base"]=> NULL ["strip_attrs"]=> array(1) { [0]=> array(2) { [0]=> string(6) "[a-z]+" [1]=> string(6) "target" } } } }