World Best Sports

One local woman traveled all the way to Lincoln, NE, to compete in the 2010 Special Olympics hoping to bring back a gold medal to her hometown. KSAX-TV has been following the story of Sara Abbott, a mentally challenged woman, who was going to make her dreams come true by competing in the Special Olympics.

Sara lost more than 150 lbs to get to that point in her life. "We are just so proud of her," Sara's Aunt Deb Callaghan said. "It was great to have the entire family down in Nebraska to watch her compete."Sara had a huge fan club in Nebraska cheering her on as she competed in the rope, hoop, ribbon and the ball for the gymnastics round.

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As host nation, Britain automatically qualifies for every sport regardless of standards, except for basketball, where the team must qualify through the European Championship. The Olympic ethos that participation is more important than victory resonates with the British officials only if it means not coming last. The decision could also impact on potential Olympic Games ticket sales of some of the minor sports as the public is less likely to support sports that do not have a British presence.

BOA chief executive Andy Hunt said: “We are not just taking athletes for the ride, we need credible performances, the public would not be pleased to see someone in a Team GB uniform finish last in the first round of competition.”The BOA says it will probably field a team of up to 530 athletes, with as many officials and support staff again. If the BOA was to fill every spot available, it could field as many as 613 athletes. At the Beijing Games, the BOA sent a team of 311 athletes and 236 coaches and support staff.

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Falling at the halfway point of what promises to be a deeply difficult and unpopular Parliament, the Games could offer a distraction from the country's woes, and a unique chance to redefine the national image, domestically and in the eyes of the world It is an oft-repeated fact in sporting-political circles that no Government that has hosted an Olympics has failed to be re-elected afterwards. Some of those opportunities remain, but so deep is the fiscal hole that the new administration faces a more practical problem before it can look forward to Union Flags on the streets and a post-Games bump in the polls. How to deliver the Games that Britain promised in the face of huge cuts to the public purse?

It is a pressing quandary for the coalition and its sports minister Hugh Robertson, who came into office promising to deliver not just a world-class Games but a meaningful and abiding sporting legacy. The first part of the bargain may be easier to deliver than the second.

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Not that watching the Olympics is something volunteers can necessarily count on being able to do. A job as an Olympics volunteer is not merely a trackside ticket to the 100m final, or a licence to carry Andy Murray’s bags; more likely, it’ll be checking tickets at Greenwich Park, aiding spectators at Eton Dorney, greeting dignitaries at their hotels.

Olympic volunteers – or ‘Games Makers’, to use London 2012’s terminology – will fall into two broad categories: specialists offering things such as medical services and sporting assistance, and generalists – the vast army of volunteers assigned to direct spectators, man information points and help desks, stewarding and working in the uniform centre, and so on. The work is hard. The hours are long. If you’re not from London, you’ll need to arrange and fund your own accommodation. But if you ask any Games volunteer, it’s certainly worth it. The majority of volunteers will be based in and around the Games venues, but you could spend two weeks standing at the airport holding up a placard with a name on it.

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London looks likely to miss its 20% renewable energy target that was set prior to the Olympic Games. In a meeting between the London Assembly’s Environment Committee and the head of sustainability at the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games, David Stubbs explained that there are not enough renewable energy projects in the city. A planned wind turbine scheme has already been blocked and this, combined with a general lack of sustainable energy facilities, means that London may not meet its target during the staging of the Olympic Games and Paralympics.

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On Thursday, August 5th, Nashville Rhythm and Race Fest rolls into Music City ready to share the ultimate NASCAR  experience. Brought to you by The Professional Race Truck Transporters Association (PRTTA) and Powerhouse Entertainment Group, this year's event will benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation of Middle Tennessee.The colorful NASCAR haulers will pull in to Limelight in Nashville to gear up for a night of good times and good music for a great cause. The PRTTA makes it possible for race teams to travel all over the country and are giving fans a behind-the-scenes look into NASCAR’s state-of-the-art haulers from 5 PM to 9 PM. Entertainment will kick off at 7 p.m. with Reno Collier hosting the event and featured performances by Trent Tomlinson and Mickie James.

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Next week, a roster of 179 golfers from 39 states will compete at the 2010 Special Olympics USA National Games in Lincoln, Neb., July 18-23. Golf is one of 13 competitive sports at the USA National Games where nearly 3,000 Special Olympics athletes from across.

The United States will compete in the largest multi-sport event in the history of Nebraska and one of the largest multi-sport events in the United States during 2010.Special Olympics golf is part of the worldwide Special Olympics sports movement for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics golfers and Unified partners (for team play), ranging in age from 13- to 73-years old, will compete in one of five levels of competition.

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 So how can WWE superstar Kofi Kingston top what he's already done in Money in the Bank ladder matches?

“I'm not sure,'' Kingston, the WWE Intercontinental champ, chuckled. “I guess I can probably top it by actually winning the match. I think that's the ultimate goal.''

WWE's Money in the Bank pay-per-view is 8 p.m. EST Sunday, July 18 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.

Kingston joins The Big Show, Dolph Ziggler, Kane, Dashing Cody Rhodes, Christian, Drew McIntyre and Matt Hardy in the SmackDown Money in the Bank ladder match. The one who climbs the ladder and grabs the briefcase, hanging above the ring, wins a title match of his choosing, any place, any time.

“It's really hard to do that when you have eight guys trying to do the same thing,'' Kingston said. “So I think the toughest enemy, the biggest threat, is the fact there are seven other guys in that match.'' Kingston provided some jaw dropping moments in WWE WrestleMania Money in the Bank history. He scaled half of a ladder held by Mark Henry at the 25th anniversary of WrestleMania and used two halves of ladders as stilts during WrestleMania 26.

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The Olympics. Despite the last games being held in my country of residence, they don't mean all that much to me. I'll watch the opening ceremonies on occasion and tune in for an event or two, but it has more to do with hot athletes than exhilarating competitions. (Yeah, I like hot divers.)

My sports-phobia aside, I like what the Olympics stand for, in that they foster national pride for countries all over the world. Oh, and healthy competition. You know, when there are no underage Chinese gymnasts in the mix.

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VANCOUVER  Governments in the host city and host province have reported their spending on the 2010 Winter Olympics, but what about the feds? Treasury Board president Stockwell Day said Wednesday a final report is coming soon, but he wouldn’t say when.

“Some of it involves us getting the final receipts from the province, or from VANOC or from the city,” Day said after a round table with a group of Metro Vancouver business leaders. The British Columbia government reported Friday that it spent $925.2 million, not including Crown corporations and agencies. An April report from the City of Vancouver pegged net costs at $554.4 million.

Ottawa committed $1.23 billion to stage Vancouver 2010. “We’re waiting for the final bills to come in," Day said. "Anything that hasn’t been published we plan to fully publish and be transparent in terms of all the costs so that taxpayers know at all levels what was paid.” The delay may be because Ottawa and Victoria directly bailed out the cash-strapped Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee for a combined $80.7 million to help it balance the $1.76 billion operations budget.

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