Olympic Diary

ITS many critics dub it ‘doping on a hanger’, its supporters claim it is the evolution of technology.

So what does Irish Olympian Melaine Nocher make of the state of the art swim wear technology that has transformed her sport?

“I don’t think they are responsible for the times coming down,” she claimed. “I think it is generally due to the hard work from all the athletes.”

Nocher, who wore one of the new Speedo skintight range in last night’s 200m backstroke heats, believes the equipment has more mental than physical benefits when churning through the lanes of the Water Cube.

She agreed: “It definitely helps as a confidence booster. You do a feel a lot better with the buoyancy factor as well. I think if you are not wearing one you start to think: ‘Oh I don’t have this so I’m not going to get the benefit of it.’”

And what of her reasons for wearing the equipment?

She paused for a second the then replied: “because it makes me feel good in the water.”

HOOTERS, the international bar chain beloved of golfer John Daly and many an American male, has a franchise here in Beijing, one of five in China. We made the discovery thanks to a sizeable advertisement on the front page of China Daily, the national English language newspaper. The ad contains contact numbers for all the premises, a website address and the promise that ‘Hooters make you happy.’

THE Croatian water polo team are sporting Tom Selleck style moustaches in their quest for Olympic glory.

“It is for good luck but we can’t talk about it, it’s a secret. If I tell you it will ruin it. Maybe its working, it worked today,” said Igor Hinic after victory over Italy.

“But it is too early to tell.”

LONDON 2012 organisers are already sweating on the task which faces them in four years time. Sporting chiefs from the English capital are attending events and venues on fact finding missions and the worry lines are beginning to show. Officials are heaping praise on the Beijing effort and describing the Olympic Village as the best in the history of the Games, putting added pressure on the next act.

One of our Olympic Village sources admitted: “I saw the man who will be in charge of the Olympic Village in 2012 on a tour of the Village here.

He was a white as a sheet at the end of it.”

THE 1,000 beautiful medal hostesses are attracting plenty of attention in these parts. These are the hotties that carry medals and flowers which are presented at the winner’s podium after each final. Their preparation for these games received huge publicity with Richard Spencer of the Daily Telegraph recalling their first public appearance: “They knelt together - with knees arranged exactly to instructions - waved together, and, in an echo of old-fashioned British girls' boarding schools, they showed off their deportment, standing still for five minutes with books on the heads and clutching a sheet of paper each between their knees. Their instructress toured them, pushing shoulders out and stomachs in, and ensuring they maintained their permanent smiles throughout showing if at all possible a recommended six to eight teeth, something it is possible to practise by inserting chopsticks in the mouth sideways.”

Olympic chief image designer, Yi Ming, said the styling of the ladies was to show that Chinese beauties were not just heart-shaped face with phoenix eyes. The hostesses have three hairstyles, elegant rose dish, bold five rings and vital ponytail.

THE Beijing Bureau’s Equestrian Division had the pleasure of meeting with Hiroshi Hoketsu, the oldest competitor at these Olympics. Hoketsu is 67 and remarkably competed for Japan in showjumping at the 1964 Games in Tokyo and was selected for Seoul in 1988 but withdrew when his horse failed a quarantine test. After retiring from his job as head of Johnson and Johnson Japan, Hoketsu returned to the sport he loved but began to concentrate on dressage. “In show jumping you use your eyes to gauge the distance between the obstacle and yourself. This ability decreases as you get older. It is not the case in the dressage. You don’t have to pull on your physical strength as much. I think it is a sport which you can do at a fairly advanced age if you have a chance and agreeable horse.”

He warned: “I’m not going to the Olympics to take part. I’m planning to finish high up the placings.”

AUSTRALIA’S Casey Dellacqua turned a few heads at the tennis this week but not for her top spin serve. Dellacqua was forced to change her sweat soaked shirt in full view of the spectators after the umpire refused to allow her leave the court and undress in private.

More than two billion people watched the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics last week, Chinese state media reported Thursday.

The figure was based on a survey of 38 international markets, including Australia, Brazil, China, Italy, South Africa and the United States, the official Xinhua news agency reported, citing the Nielsen Company.

A Nielsen spokeswoman in New York said she was not able to immediately confirm the figures.

In terms of regions, television audiences in the Asia-Pacific showed the most interest, with half of viewers watching the ceremony, followed by Europe with 30 percent and North America with 24 percent, the report said.

As for individual markets, China had the largest percentage of its population watching the ceremony, followed by South Korea, Greece and Australia, the report said.