During dinner, I was scanning the headlines over at CNN (on telly) then I spotted a blurb that said “Olympic Torch arrives in Beijing”. I was still out so when I got home I quickly browsed through my sources and found out that the plane bearing the torch landed on Beijing, 9 this morning. It was Chinese President Hu Jintao who announced the official start of the Beijing Olympic Torch Relay. The President lit the cauldron at the Tianamen Square in Beijing. This took place two (2) hours after the Olympic Torch landed in China. You can view the welcome ceremony here (video). Source [Read more]

Here are the four candidate cities for the First Winter Olympic Youth Games 2012, listed in no particular order: Harbin (China) Innsbruck (Austria) Kuopio (Finland) Lillehammer (Norway) Now briefed and oriented with the concept of the Youth Olympic Games, these cities will now prepare their respective candidature files which will be submitted on 19 June 2008. The IOC will then evaluate draw up the shortlist by August 2008 and the shortlisted cities will be announced by December 2008. Good luck to them all! Source [Read more]

March 25, 2008 — The president of the Brazilian Olympic Committee and Rio 2016 Bid Committee, Carlos Arthur Nuzman, made it clear this Monday, March 24, that Brazil will compete in the Olympic Games Beijing 2008. For Nuzman the Olympic Games are a unique time for harmonization between peoples and athletes. He says political or activist issues should not prevail over what Olympism proposes. “We fully support the International Olympic Committee and its president Jacques Rogge, as well as the Beijing 2008 Organizing Committee, which have been working to provide athletes and the world with a great edition of the Olympic Games. The Olympic Games are a magic time to promote integration of different peoples, races and religions, and not an... [Read more]

Doha, 24 March 2008 – Over the next four years, several hotel conglomerates will invest billions of dollars in a series of hotels and hospitality related developments in Qatar. The Four Seasons, Hyatt, Hilton, Intercontinental and other multinational hotel corporations are constructing new properties in Doha to meet the high demand. According to the Qatar Tourism Authority, a total of 22 new hotels will open by the summer of 2008 alone. Qatar is one of the top five fastest growing economies in the world. As a result, Doha is building new infrastructure at a phenomenal rate. More than USD 100 billion in infrastructure and investment projects will be completed by 2012. The Qatar Master Plan envisions Qatar “as the academic centre, sports centre,... [Read more]

The Olympic Torch is currently staying overnight in Athens, Greece. It will leave ancient Acropolis in Athens headed towards its last destination in Greece. The ceremony will take place at the Panathenaikon Stadium. The Olympic Torch will be ceremoniously handed over to representatives of BOCOG (The Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad). The Panathenaikon Stadium is the site of the first modern-day Olympic Games. Source [Read more]