Winter Olympians champion climate, peace amid muted activism
Around the world, athletes are throwing their support behind political and social causes, part of a wave of sports activism that has flourished in the years since former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began taking a knee during games to protest police brutality against Black people.
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Welcome 2021: The year of the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics
Ever since the Olympics were postponed nine months ago, local organizers and the IOC have been biding their time. Ever since the Olympics were postponed nine months ago, local organizers and the IOC have been biding their time. The International Olympic Committee and Tokyo organizers will have to start getting specific in the next few months. โThe fact that you're going to put 10,000-plus athletes, plus all the volunteers, plus all the coaches, plus, plus, plus, plus plus. There is just too much unknown.โQ: Despite the uncertainties, what do we firmly know about staging the Tokyo Olympics?
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Swimmer Ryan Lochte miffed at his times in return to racing
โThis is probably going to go down as my worst meet that Iโve ever had,โ he said by phone from Sarasota, Florida. Lochte figures heโs competed in just seven meets since 2016. Lochte said heโs still in touch with Phelps, who retired after Rio and has three boys of his own now. Lochte looks around the pool deck at his young competitors and admits not knowing their names and who is the fastest. Itโs still fun.โLochte still has his supporters, whether itโs his fans who know heโs always willing to accommodate their requests or those in the sport.
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Lochte to compete in 1st major US meet since pandemic began
SARASOTA, Fla. โ Ryan Lochte is launching his bid to make a fifth Olympic team in the first major U.S. meet since the coronavirus pandemic shut down sports in mid-March. Heโs seeded third in the 100 and 200 backstrokes, fifth in the 100 freestyle and sixth in the 200 free. The 12-time medalist is the second-most decorated Olympic swimmer behind Michael Phelps. Lochte has competed in few events since the 2016 Rio Games, where he won a gold on the 4x200 freestyle relay. Lochte gained infamy in Rio after an incident at a gas station that resulted in a 10-month suspension.
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'Empire' star Taraji P. Henson hailed for mental health work
โEmpireโ star Taraji P. Henson has enjoyed wealth, celebrity, a Golden Globe win and an Academy Award nomination. โItโs OK to not be OK," Henson, the latest recipient of the Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion, told The Associated Press via email. In 2018, the Washington, D.C., native started the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation to stop those with mental illness from being stigmatized โ especially Blacks, who she says are less likely to seek treatment. This year, with the coronavirus pandemic complicating people's mental health struggles, Henson's foundation has been helping African Americans โ who've been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 โ access free online therapy. โWe need more people like Taraji to continue to eliminate the stigma around mental health across all our communities in America.โ___Follow AP New England editor Bill Kole on Twitter at http://twitter.com/billkole.
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Olympics return to antiquity at the 2004 Athens Games
FILE - In this Aug. 13, 2004, file photo, the Olympic Rings are shown in flames in a pool of water during the Opening Ceremony of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson, File)When the Olympics returned to Athens in 2004, they also returned to antiquity. They finished in central Athens at the Panathenian Stadium, the marble venue used for the opening and closing ceremonies of the inaugural 1896 Games. Irina Korzhanenko of Russia became the first woman to win a gold medal at the ancient site that birthed the Olympics. The gold medal instead went to Argentina, a team led by Manu Ginobili.
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Bird's Nest and Water Cube: Beijing venues were stars, too
That was true in Beijing in 2008, and the stars were Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt. But Beijing is also storied for its signature venues like the Bird's Nest stadium, and the Water Cube swimming venue. Here are some of the highlights of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. That was true in Beijing in 2008, when the stars were Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt. But Beijing is also storied for its signature venues like the the 91,000-seat Bird's Nest stadium, and the nearby swimming venue called the Water Cube.No games before or since have impacted a city the way the Olympics did Beijing.
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Cold War rivalries split the Olympics in Moscow in 1980
Here are some of the highlights of the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. The Cold War made for decades of tense Olympic battles between the United States and the Soviet Union. Four years later, the Soviet Union boycotted the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles as retaliation. The Soviet war in Afghanistan rumbled on through the 1980 Olympics. Barely a decade later, the Soviet Union would be a thing of the past as it fractured into 15 newly independent countries.

Swimming legend Michael Phelps opens up
(CNN) - Swimming legend Michael Phelps is more likely to jump in a ball pool than a swimming pool these days. Phelps, who already had two sons, Boomer and Beckett, says fatherhood as been one of the "greatest things" he's had the chance to do. "For me it has been such an amazing and exciting time to see Boomer grow up as he has," Phelps told CNN's Don Riddell. "That has to change," added Phelps, as he reflected on the issue of doping in sport. "It's difficult at times," Phelps said when asked about dealing with fame.

Kieran Culkin and Jazz Charton Welcome Their First Child Together: Find Out Her Name!
Kieran Culkin and his wife, Jazz Charton, have welcomed their first child together. Charton took to Instagram on Wednesday to share the news with a sweet photo of her in a bra and underwear, cradling her newborn daughter. My favourite surprise so far, Charton captioned a sonogram pic at the time. We had no idea how much we wanted this until it happened.For more recent celebrity baby news, watch the clip below:RELATED CONTENT:Michael Phelps and Wife Nicole Welcome Third Child: Find Out His Name! Christina Anstead Welcomes Baby Boy With Husband Ant AnsteadChance the Rapper and Wife Kirsten Welcome Baby No.

Michael Phelps and Wife Nicole Welcome Third Child: Find Out His Name!
Michael Phelps and his wife, Nicole, have welcomed their third child, a baby boy named Maverick. Born 9-9-19, he captioned an Instagram shot from Nicoles hospital room with his wife and their three sons. #housefullofboys @boonestudios.Michael and Nicole are already parents to sons Boomer, 3, and Beckett, 1. For more celebrity baby news, watch the clip below:RELATED CONTENT:Michael Phelps and Wife Nicole Johnson are Expecting Baby No. 3 -- See the Cute AnnouncementMichael Phelps Celebrates Son Boomer's 2nd Birthday With Heartwarming Family PhotosMichael Phelps and Wife Nicole Welcome Baby No.

Clay County native Caeleb Dressel breaks Phelps' butterfly record
Caeleb Dressel competes in the men's 100-meter butterfly semifinal at the 2019 FINA World Championships. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)GWANGJU, South Korea - Caeleb Dressel broke Michael Phelps' world record in the 100-meter butterfly on Friday at the world swimming championships. Dressel was out in 22.83 seconds -- 0.53 seconds under Phelps' pace -- and came home in 26.67 to lead eight men into Saturday's final. It's the second world record of Phelps' to fall at this year's worlds. Caeleb Dressel celebrates as he sets a new world record of 49.50 seconds in the men's 100-meter butterfly semifinal at the 2019 FINA World Championships.