In 12.87 seconds on an Oregon track, China's Liu Xiang banished five years of injury-filled misery and annointed himself favourite to reclaim the Olympic gold he relinquished so painfully in Beijing four years ago.
A tailwind slightly over the allowed strength last weekend denied him a share of the world record held by Cuba's Dayron Robles, but there was no doubt Liu was very much back in business ahead of the London Games.
China's first men's champion on the Olympic track in 2004, Liu also won the world title and held the world record (12.88) in his pre-2008 pomp but for some time it has looked like his Beijing misery might be the enduring image of his career.
It was with a false start at the corresponding Prefontaine Classic meeting in Oregon four years ago that Liu gave the first hint that he might not provide the crowning moment of China's first Olympics.
He failed to compete again until he lined up for Olympic 110 metres hurdles heats at the Bird's Nest on a sunny August morning, when he stunned the host nation by withdrawing, racked with pain from an Achilles injury.
A string of operations and talk of psychological damage followed and there were many, including his long-time coach and mentor Sun Haiping, who believed Liu might never return to the top level of competition.
Despite still running with pain, an encouraging 2011 season culminated in his making the final at the world championships, where Beijing Olympic champion Robles was disqualified for hindering him.
Liu took home a silver medal and, mercifully free from further injury problems, embarked on preparations for his third Olympics by perfecting his reduced run to the first hurdle in seven rather than eight steps.
Although the dark years saw his star wane in the international arena, a lack of other Chinese track athletes coming through meant Liu remained one of his country's biggest celebrities.
His gold medal at the Athens Games had brought him fame and fortune in China rivalled only by basketball player Yao Ming but also made his life more like that of a rock star and placed a huge burden of expectation on him.
Even in a culture where self deprecation is expected, Liu has become a particular expert in playing down that expectation with his infrequent public utterances.
"I think my start was good," he said in Oregon after matching Robles's legal record. "But I think I made some mistakes from the third to the sixth hurdles."
Liu was born in Shanghai on July 13, 1983 to Liu Xuegen and Ji Fenhua, who prophetically named him Xiang, which means 'fly'.
With his parents both working, Liu was brought up largely by his grandmother who fattened up the skinny child with braised pork in brown sauce.
Under a project where youngsters had their bones measured and were allocated sports depending on their anticipated growth, Liu was chosen at the age of seven as a future high jumper.
When later tests predicted he would not grow tall enough, his career might have been over had Sun not turned up and persuaded his parents to let the teenager train in the high hurdles.
With Sun guiding him, Liu became an outstanding technician, helping make up for a lack of raw sprinting power typified by the best American hurdlers.
He illustrated that technique again with a flawless run in 12.97 seconds on a rainy night in his hometown of Shanghai last month -- his fastest since he won the world title in 2007 -- before his blistering run in Oregon.
Despite his recent form, coach Sun, who was reduced to tears by Liu's withdrawal at the Bird's Nest four years ago, warned recently that his charge's injuries were still a factor.
"Liu Xiang, he is the Liu Xiang he is now, not the one of several years ago," he told reporters before the Diamond League meeting in Shanghai.
"As he ages, his physical strength goes down, and his muscles recover more slowly from fatigue. Plus he has old injuries.
"Our training continues safely and steadily. The tricky thing is high quality training, which is necessary for good results, is also highly risky.
"Conversely, playing safe causes no trouble but also gives you poorer results. For me, our overall training errs on the side of safety still."
If Sun's comments were meant to dampen Chinese expectations in the run-up to the Olympics, the Oregon performance almost certainly means that would be a fruitless task.
Source: uk.eurosport.yahoo.com
London 2012: Team GB athletes will learn anthem - head coach - BBC News
GB athletes will know the words to the national anthem before the London Games, UK Athletics head coach Charles van Commenee says.
The Dutchman believes the step is necessary to head off potential criticism over "plastic Brits" - athletes who have switched allegiance to represent Team GB at the Olympics.
Van Commenee said: "They know the words, or they will.
"If they don't somebody will make an issue of it."
The 53-year-old added: "(Whether it should matter), that's a different question.
"I'm not going to rehearse everybody because we have 90 athletes, but people that matter... let's say the relevant ones, the ones on your radar (will rehearse the anthem)."
Van Commenee's choice of United States-born Tiffany Porter as team captain for the World Indoor Championships in March sparked the row after she declined to sing God Save the Queen at a news conference ahead of that meeting.
Porter, who qualifies for Britain through her London-born mother and has held a British passport since birth, said she knew the words but questioned her singing ability.
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
London 2012 Olympics: Sir Paul McCartney confirms he will perform at opening ceremony at Games - Daily Telegraph
Intended as a celebration showcasing the best of the host nation, it will feature a parade of all competing nations and the highly anticipated entrance of the Olympic flame, which ignites the cauldron and signals the start of the Games.
Meanwhile, a major Olympic Games opening concert coinciding with the opening ceremony will be headlined by 80s chart-toppers Duran Duran.
The band will represent musical talent from England, alongside Snow Patrol, representing Northern Ireland, Stereophonics for Wales, and Paolo Nutini who will play for Scotland.
The inclusion of Duran Duran prompted bemusement from some music fans – the band, formed 34 years ago, have scored just two top 10 hits in the past two decades.
But the involvement of Sir Paul, whose status as a national treasure is uncontested, is unlikely to prove controversial.
The Beatles were declared the biggest-selling singles act since charts began 60 years ago in a new Radio 2 countdown this week.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
Video: London police give tour of infamous marijuana grow-op - Metronews.ca
London Police have posted a video on their YouTube channel giving viewers a behind-the-scenes look into one of the largest known marijuana grow operations in the city’s history.
The house used in the video is 166 Ambleside Dr. On May 25, police seized 1,000 marijuana plants — with a street value of over $1 million — and $5,000 worth of equipment from the north London house.
The video, entitled “Indoor Commercial Marijuana grow operation May 2012,” is over 12 minutes long. It’s purpose, according to police spokesperson Const. Dennis Rivest, is to educate homeowners of potential nearby operations so they don’t suffer as well.
“When a house is seized, the house will either be turned over for auction or given back to the owner if they’re acquitted,” Rivest said. “However, in between that time the house is condemned and (the neighbourhood’s) standard house value plummets.”
At the four-minute mark, a room filled with hundreds of plants is shown.
Rivest adds there’s also some serious health hazards associated with indoor marijuana grow-ops.
“With the hydro by-pass and the amount of water required to run the operations, there’s a huge potential for fire,” Rivest said. “The chemicals that are being used are dangerous to children, too.”
Local police are making a conscious effort to become more interactive with the online community. In the future, Rivest says they’ll be posting YouTube videos pertaining to cyber crime, fraud, and other hot topics.
Source: metronews.ca
London 2012 security operation investigating 500,000 people - The Guardian
The backgrounds of up to 500,000 people are being scrutinised in an unprecedented security screening designed to stop the Olympic Games being disrupted by criminals or terrorists, the Guardian has learned.
In what is understood to be the biggest vetting process since the second world war, the Home Office has so far refused about 100 applications for Games accreditation, mostly because of concerns about the extent of people's criminal records.
However, some people have been denied accreditation on the advice of MI5, which has to assess whether a person might pose a significant threat to national security.
The 500,000 figure includes anyone seeking employment at the Games, as well as athletes, coaches and officials from more than 200 competing nations.
The Guardian has been told the threshold for refusing accreditation has been set high, which means some of those working at the Olympics this summer will have "come to the notice of" the police or MI5 in the past.
"To be rejected, they have to pose a significant potential threat to the safety of the Games," said a source. "They won't be rejected on the basis that information is held about them.
"A judgment has to be made, not on the basis that there is an official record, but does this person pose a significant threat to security."
Police and MI5 have been taking a careful look at all those who may end up working at the Olympic sites. It is an obvious way for would-be terrorists to gain access to venues, and police are aware that terrorists may masquerade as casual workers looking for temporary jobs.
However, those involved in the security of the Games say they have found no evidence so far that al-Qaida sympathisers have tried to infiltrate the civilian workforce.
The vetting process began in earnest last October and officials are more than two-thirds of the way through the process, which is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.
It has been one of the core tasks of counter-terrorism officials but the scale of the operation, and the depth of the checks required, has made it a drawn-out affair.
Among those still to be vetted are many of the 10,000 security guards who will be employed by G4S, the private firm which is contributing 23,700 personnel at the Olympic venues.
A big recruitment drive was launched by G4S when the number of guards it was expected to provide grew from 2,000 to 10,000, after it emerged that the Games organisers, Locog, had seriously underestimated the number required. The 70,000 volunteers recruited by Locog, who are considered crucial to the success of the Games, are also being screened.
Home Office officials said that many of the 10,500 athletes taking part in the Games and those accompanying them were used to travelling to international events and were unlikely to pose any security problems.
There remain outstanding questions surrounding a handful of high-profile individuals, including members of the Syrian Olympic committee with close links to the Assad regime.
It is believed that discussions are continuing over whether to bar General Mofwaq Joumaa, the president of the Syrian national Olympic committee, from entering the UK.
Scotland Yard and MI5 are understood to have hundreds of investigations "live", with the Olympic security operation likely to reach a new pitch as teams arrive for training before the event.
It is understood that the security service has not set up a separate Olympic security unit, believing it would be wrong to draw a distinction between terrorism and Olympic terrorism.
The security service is said to be bracing for a possible deluge of intelligence from foreign police forces and intelligence agencies, who will not want to sit on any information just in case it reveals a potential threat to the Games. MI5 remains confident it will be able to cope, and the Home Office said it will leave nothing to chance when it comes to security.
"We are undertaking stringent checks on all those seeking accreditation," a Home Office spokesman said. "This rigorous process has been designed to ensure those working at the Games are fit to do so. We will leave nothing to chance in our aim to deliver a safe and secure Games that London, the UK and the whole world will enjoy."
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Labour MP: Jubilee stewards left by roadside at 3am in London - ITV
Edward: Duke 'getting better'
The Duke of Edinburgh remains in hospital today after being admitted with a bladder infection on Monday. On Tuesday, his son Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex, said the Duke was "getting better" after visiting him.
Source: www.itv.com
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