2008 Olympics Opening Ceremony and the Little Pony

The Opening Ceremony in Beijing is expected to surpass any start to any Games in history. Reports are the most expensive opening ever was four years ago in Athens, when the Greeks spent around $30 million on their torch-lighting rite. The Chinese have surpassed them by a factor of 10. With an estimated $300 million budget, a seemingly never-ending cast of 15,000, and a fireworks display that's rumored to be the biggest in history, the Bird's Nest is redefining Olympic spectacle extraordinaire. Click here for more photos and info.

Now to the fashion of the US Teams during Opening Ceremony. Anyone recognize this little, teeny, tiny iconic pony? Personally, I think the suit is fresh, smart and fabulously representative of the USA. Looks like Terri, from Season 5's Project Runway, had the right idea in her fashion creation - white pants, navy blazer - from the "Rings of Glory" Challenge. Was she spot on or what? Loved that look!


designer: Terri from Season 5's Project Runway

OLYMPIC BEAUTIES: Laura Wilkinson

Continuing our series on the fabulous women representing the USA in the upcoming Olympics, please meet diver Laura Wilkinson.



When Laura Wilkinson, 30, launches off the three-story diving tower, it takes just two seconds for her to reach the water. In that blink of an eye, she will do three and a half somersaults in a pike position before opening up and hitting the water at the speed of 35 mph. The dive has never been executed by a woman at the Olympics, but Wilkinson plans on completing it perfectly in Beijing. It's a small way to thumb her nose at her critics. A 2000 gold medalist, she was struggling in 2003 (a reporter even asked, "Exactly how does it feel to be a has-been?") and then finished fifth at the 2004 games. Now she's doing some of the most difficult dives in her field. "Something inside me said, 'I can do better,'" she says. "I felt like I hadn't reached my potential yet."

- The above article was taken from Glamour, July 2008

photos: CNN, Glamour, USAToday

OLYMPIC BEAUTIES: The Women of the US Women's Soccer Team

Continuing our series on the fabulous women representing the USA in the upcoming Olympics, please meet Leslie Osborne, Heather O'Reilly, Christie Rampone and Abby Wambach.

Pictured L-R, T-B: Leslie Osborne, 25; Heather O'Reilly, 23; Christie Rampone, 33; Abby Wambach, 28

The U.S. women's soccer team is a talented bunch: At Glamour magazine's press time Abby Wambach had scored 95 goals in 119 games--the highest average in U.S. history; Christie Rampone is a two-time Olympian; Leslie Osborne and Heather O'Reilly are two of the team's brightest up-and-comers. But the skill of a few individuals isn't the reason they're favored in Beijing. "Every time we've won a championship, it's been because of the team and nothing else," says Rampone, the team captain. Adds O'Reilly: "It's that day in, day out camaraderie we have." Their cohesiveness translates to the game--their communication on the field, their die-hard motivation to play their best. Says Osborne, who got injured just as this story went to press: "We put our lives together to go win gold. We're family."

- The above article was taken from Glamour, July 2008

photos: Glamour, US Soccer, USA Today, Celebrity Babies, The Group News

OLYMPIC BEAUTIES: Nastia Liukin

Continuing our series on the fabulous women representing the USA in the upcoming Olympics, please meet Nastia Liukin.



Nastia Liukin, now 18, was four years old when her parents--a world champion rhythmic gymnast and an Olympic gold medalist from Russia--opened a gymnastics facility in Plano, Texas. They couldn't afford a nanny, so little Nastia went to the gym with them each day. She'd copy the other gymnasts doing round-offs and flips. "Nastia would do them better than the kids I was teaching," says Valeri Liukin, her father and coach.

Most parents would be thrilled to discover such talent. Not Liukin's. "Gymnastics is very hard mentally and physically," says Valeri. "I definitely didn't want my daughter living that life." But eventually--"after a lot of begging and pleading," says Nastia--she won them over. Liukin's focus has resulted in a long list of wins, and she's widely considered to be the best in the world on the uneven bars and balance beam. "Nastia has her game face on every day," says 2004 gold medalist Carly Patterson, her good friend. Her concentration also makes her incredibly consistent. "Nastia's technical execution is close to perfection," says Martha Karolyi, national team coordinator for the U.S. women's national team. Liukin is ready to win in Beijing, and can't wait to share the Olympics with her family. "It will be exactly 20 years since my dad went to the Olympics," says Liukin. "To be back with his athlete--not to mention his daughter--will be really special for both of us."

- The above article was taken from Glamour, July 2008

photos: Glamour, About Gymnastics, clipmarks, daylife

2008 OLYMPIC BEAUTIES: Venus Williams & Serena Williams

Continuing our look at the fabulous women who will represent the USA in the upcoming Olympics, no look would be complete without featuring the incomparable Venus and Serena Williams. Here, a peek from the pages of Glamour magazine on the two tennis aces:





VENUS WILLIAMS, 28
Venus Williams made history when she won her fourth Wimbledon last July: She became the first woman in the 123-year-old event to earn the same prize money as the guys. (The year before, the pay gap was nearly $60,000). Williams, who had been seeded twenty-third in the tournament, was thrilled. "It wasn't about the money," she says. "It was just about being treated as equals." Heading into Beijing, she's playing as strong as ever--last year she set a new record with a 128.8 mph serve. "I'm glad I never had to play Venus," tennis legend Martina Navratilova once said. "She's just too long, too fast."

SERENA WILLIAMS, 26

She's won eight Grand Slam titles and an Olympic gold, but Serena Williams believes she hasn't "accomplished all that much" in tennis. "I feel like I'm just getting started," she says. After an injury forced her to pull out of the 2004 Olympics, she publicly vowed not to miss Beijing. But by 2006 her ranking had plummeted due to injuries. Still, Williams never gave up. Now she's ranked fifth and headed to Beijing. "What defines a person's character is not how you are when you're on top. It's how you are when you're on the bottom and working your way back," she says. Besides, she adds, "I love proving people wrong."

- The above article was taken from Glamour, July 2008

photos: Glamour, Tennisforum, Southcountry, Houghton-Mifflin

2008 OLYMPIC BEAUTIES: Dara Torres

Are you getting excited about the Olympics?

I can't wait! I don't know why I'm looking forward to them more this go 'round than in times past, but I am. Perhaps it's the opportunity to see the world's countries coming together yet again in a common arena, competing with each other, yet in a civilized, good-sported way. Well, for the most part I hope.

Reading my latest issue of Glamour gave me such respect for many of our competing women this Olympics. I was so impressed and touched by some of their stories that I'm bringing them here for further attention, straight from the pages of July's Glamour.

I've been fascinated with Dara Torres in particular. The thought of someone my age competing in the Olympics - strong, healthy, fit, determined - I love it! This woman is SUCH an inspiration and I'm thrilled to see so much attention given to her.




When Dara Torres hops into the pool at her Coral Springs, Florida, training facility, goose bumps break out over her broad shoulders. "Michael--the pool is freezing!" Torres yells teasingly to her coach.

"Look around, D," he fires back, glancing at the 34 other swimmers in the pool. "You're the only one who's cold."

"Maybe my skin's just thin from being old," she laughs, and starts swimming.

Torres, as you may have heard, is 41. She's practicing with--and competing against--swimmers half her age. But in the water, you can't spot the small, sun-weathered lines on her face. All you see are lean, toned muscles powering her through the pool. Even at an everyday practice like this one, Torres' coach, Michael Lohberg, can't hide his amazement. "I have her racing with the boys, because the girls--they can't touch her," he says. "She trashes the field."

This is Torres' second comeback. She returned to the 2000 Sydney Games after a seven-year hiatus and won two gold and three bronze medals. Then she hung up her goggles again, even though her coach at the time said, "'It's too bad you're retiring, because I don't think you've reached your peak yet,'" recalls Torres. "At that point, I was like, Get me out of here!"

But by 2006 the burnout had faded. Torres joined a masters team to stay in shape while she was pregnant. She planned to just paddle around, she says, "but all these middle-aged guys wanted to race me. And even though I had this big belly, I couldn't chill and let them win."

Three and a half months after her daughter, Tessa, was born, Torres competed in the 50-meter freestyle at the Masters World Championships. She hadn't really trained for it, but she qualified for the Olympic trials. "Everyone kept saying how great it would be to have a 40-year-old swimmer there. That's what lit a fire under me to get back into it," she says. "All I needed was a little motivation--a little push."

So Torres began training in earnest. But because her body can't recover as well as it used to, her workouts are, by necessity, much shorter than they once were. While many swimmers (including U.S. teammates Natalie Coughlin and Katie Hoff) often put in morning and afternoon pool sessions, Torres sticks to one; she also spends less time strength training. Yet she won the 100-meter freestyle at the U.S. nationals last August and set a new American record in the 50-meter free. She's now the top U.S. contender in the race.

How can a woman this age, who trains less than she ever has, swim faster than ever? Some speculated she was on drugs; eager to put the rumors to rest, Torres went to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency and asked officials to give her frequent, random blood and urine tests (she's passed them all). "I wanted to take every proactive measure I could to prove that I am clean," she says. "I want Tessa to be proud of what I've done--and how I've done it."

When Lohberg explains her success, it seems to make, oddly, perfect sense. First there's Torres' insatiable drive. It's also possible that Torres is hardwired to go fast. "Speed is something that you either have or you don't. You're born with a certain amount of fast- and slow-twitch muscle. And Dara has a very high percentage of fast-twitch," says Lohberg. After so many years of training, he says, "all you have to do is sort of reactivate it and fine-tune it."

Torres says she didn't embark on this journey for gold--or silver or bronze. "For me, it's about trying something that no one my age has done before, and to hopefully open doors for other athletes who may have closed them because they felt they were too old. You can't put an age on your dreams."

- The above article was taken from Glamour, July 2008

photos: Glamour, MSNBC