CHINA APPEALS AGAIN

The Chinese cycling team sent a second appeal letter to the International Cycling Union (ICU) on Wednesday (London time) after the first appeal was rejected last Friday.

The cycling team appealed to the ICU and the International Olympic Committee after China was stripped of the gold in the women's team sprint track cycling for making an early relay.

However, ICU president Pat McQuaid said in an interview that the referee's decision will be the final judgment, and the organization will not interfere. China was also fined 200 Swiss francs ($205) for intruding into the referees' area.

Pan Zhichen, manager of the Chinese cycling team, said in the second letter that quoting the game's rules did not violate the regulation. He also questioned the referees' double standards in the qualification criteria and the final.

The Chinese team used the same riding techniques in three matches, the letter explained.

It also said that if China violated the rules, the judgment should have been made in the early rounds instead of after it won the title. The judging panel still didn't give a believable explanation, which has hurt the riders and coaches, the letter said. The subjective judgment also exerted a negative influence over the sport's development in China, it added.

RELATIONSHIP DENIED

Chinese swimmer Sun Yang on Thursday denied having a relationship with a young model, despite a magazine report that claimed the Olympic champion has had a one-year affair with the woman.

The report said Sun, who scooped the gold in the men's 1,500m and 400m freestyle in London, was introduced to a Chinese model born in the 1990s last summer.

Sun's sister said the report made the family very angry.

"We know that all support him," she said. "But I want to say the relationship mentioned in the report doesn't exist. Some people are seeking popularity by making up rumors. Don't believe it!"

Sun tweeted: "Rumors find no credence with a wise man."

GOLD FOR GULFPORT

Three years after Hurricane Katrina devastated her hometown, Brittney Reese hoped to give Gulfport, Mississippi, a medal in the Beijing Games.

She came up short, and was crushed.

"When I placed fifth, I was devastated and cried the whole way back to the (athletes) village," she said. "I had the whole Gulf Coast behind me ... I wanted to come out there and do that for them."

She delivered four years later with a long-awaited gold medal in the long jump. She repeatedly recalled the struggles her family had been through after Katrina, which produced rain that collapsed the roof on her home and displaced the family for several months.

"We had mold and we were living out of mobile homes and trailers," she said.

ROYAL WATCH

Prince William's wife, the former Kate Middleton, was on hand for the women's field hockey semifinal between Argentina and Team GB on Wednesday.

Kate - now known formally as the Duchess of Cambridge - cheered on the home team despite its loss 2-1 to Argentina.

Sporting a white Team GB shirt under a navy blazer, Kate - who captained the field hockey team at her high school - joined the crowds in a round of applause for the losing team as it left the field.

She had visited with the team prior to the Olympics, taking the field with Team GB players in a morale-boosting mission ahead of the London Games.

AP - China Daily

(China Daily 08/10/2012 page11)