Word: sport
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America's pastime, baseball, and its sister sport, softball, will be banished from the Olympic program after Beijing. But flag-waving Americans shouldn't be dismayed. For on Aug. 20, a new event will debut at the Olympics, a quintessential U.S endeavor that will make all the red-white-and-blue-blooded citizens proud. America, introduce yourself to BMX cycling. Or more simply, dudes on dirt bikes...
...That sport was a hit, so NBC is giving BMX cycling the Phelps treatment. The bikers will race during breakfast in Beijing, and NBC will air it live in prime time on Aug. 20. Track won't get that kind of placement...
...Robinson is the rider to watch. Besides biking for gold, he's shooting to shift the stereotype of extreme-sport athletes. "I hope we can bring some edge," he says. "But we're not a bunch of punk kids riding around town vandalizing stuff." That's nice to know. "I'm not the typical action-sport athlete," he says. "I like to sing and dance. That's who I am; that's my personality...
More athletes than ever are competing in Beijing under flags (and, in many cases, names) different from the ones under which they were born, bending the very notion of national identity. For some observers, this growing trend is a symbol of how sport transcends national borders, giving athletes a chance to escape hardship, train with better coaches, or compete in sports that are saturated with talent back home. For others - including, in some cases, the Olympics' governing body - it can be a violation of the very spirit of the games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) now requires a three-year...
...Though Matt, 27, refuses to get depressed, pangs still pound his stomach. Shooting gets the spotlight only every four years, when the Olympics rolls around, and even then, something extraordinary - like back-to-back epic chokes - must take place for the sport to snare a headline. Ever hear of Americans Glenn Eller and Vincent Hancock? Of course not, even though they each won shooting gold in Beijing. "For the mass media, all they see is the Olympics," Matt says. Guilty as charged. "People don't get to the other 20 competitions a year. I've won many tournaments by scoring...