Ugur Erdener, IOC member, President of the Turkish National Olympic Committee and the President of World Archery, speaks during the presentation of the Candidate Cities for the 2020 Olympic Games during the ANOC (Association of National Olympic Committees) Extraordinary General Assembly at the Beaulieu Congress Hall, in Lausanne, Switzerland, Saturday, June 15, 2013. (AP Photo)
FILE - The six International Olympic Committee presidential candidates are shown in these file photos. They are, from left, Thomas Bach of Germany, Ng Ser Miang of Singapore, finance commission chairman Richard Carrion of Puerto Rico, amateur boxing association head C.K. Wu of Taiwan, former pole vaulter Sergei Bubka of Ukraine and rowing federation chief Denis Oswald of Switzerland. (AP Photo)
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - JUNE 06: An aerial picture of the Joao Havelange Stadium which will host the athletics and opening cermony as preparations continue ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games on June 6, 2013 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Getty Images)
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - JUNE 06: An aerial picture of the site of the Olympic Park in Barra as preparations continue ahead of the 2016 Olympic Games on June 6, 2013 in Rio de Janeiro. (Getty Images)
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL - JUNE 06: An aerial picture of Rio Olympic Arena that will hosts Gymnastics events and wheelchair basketball in the Paralympics 2016 on June 6, 2013 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Getty Images)
There are 245 days until Sochi 2014. The following is a brief sampling of the news and events that occurred today.
USA’s Justin Gatlin beats Usain Bolt in 100
ROME (AP) — Justin Gatlin beat Usain Bolt by one-hundredth of a second Thursday to win the 100 meters at the Golden Gala meet — the Jamaican’s first significant loss since his false-start disqualification at the 2011 world championships in South Korea. Gatlin was timed in 9.94 seconds and was restrained in his celebration. The American has won all five of his 100-meter races this year and is shaping up as a serious threat to Bolt at the world championships in Moscow in August. Bolt briefly covered his face with his hands after the race, then saluted the crowd.
Esther Williams, Godmother of Synchro-Swimming, passes away (OlympicTalk)
Champion swimmer and Hollywood star Esther Williams, best known for her “aqua-musicals” of the 1940s, passed away Thursday in LA. She was 91. Williams was never able to compete in the Helsinki Olympics, due to the outbreak of World War II that led to the cancelation of the 1940 and ’44 Games, but she’s often credited with the IOC adopting synchronized swimming into its program in 1984, and served as a TV analyst for its inauguration. “The life she had goes without saying,” her spokesperson and close friend for more than 15 years, Harlan Boll, told NBC News.“She stood out among other people. She’s the godmother of synchronized swimming and is the reason it became an Olympic sport.”
IOC officially opens bidding for 2022 Olympics (OlympicTalk)
The International Olympic Committee officially opened up the two-year, three-phase bidding process for hosting the 2022 Winter Games Thursday, with many cities already declaring intentions of bringing the event home. Oslo, Norway immediately threw its hat into the proverbial ring and is expected to be a strong contender, while Poland and Slovakia are expected to send in a joint bid soon, and Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych called for four cities to prepare proposals for the Games. Other cities considering a bid are Almaty, Kazakhstan, which helped host the 1997 Asian Winter Games; Sarajevo, which hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics; Munich, which hosted the Summer Games in 1972 and lost in its bid for the 2018 Winters to Pyeongchang, South Korea; and Stockholm, which hasn’t hosted the Olympics in more than a century.
Justin Gatlin, of the United States, left, competes alongside Michael Rodgers, of the United States, and Usain Bolt of Jamaica on his way to win the men’s 100m event at the Golden Gala IAAF athletic meeting, at Rome’s Olympic stadium, Thursday, June 6, 2013. American sprinter Justin Gatlin handed world-record holder Usain Bolt a narrow defeat in the 100-meter race at the Golden Gala meet on Thursday. Gatlin clocked 9.94 seconds and Bolt crossed second in 9.95. (AP Photo)
BEIJING, CHINA - JUNE 06: Team of China celebrate after winning the Women’s Water Polo Gold Medal match between the China and Russia on day six of the FINA Women’s World League Super Final 2013 at National Aquatics Center on June 6, 2013 in Beijing, China. (Getty Images)
BEIJING, CHINA - JUNE 04: Goalkeeper Yang Jun of China reaches for the ball during day fourth of the FINA Women’s World League Super Final 2013 match between China and Italy at National Aquatics Center on June 4, 2013 in Beijing, China. (Getty Images)
Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt takes pictures of photographers during a press conference ahead of the Golden Gala IAAF athletic meeting scheduled at the Rome Olympic stadium for June 6, in Rome, Tuesday, June 4, 2013. Usain Bolt is looking forward to performing at his best again after being slowed by a hamstring injury a month ago. The 100-meter world record-holder makes his European debut this season at Thursday’s Golden Gala meet. The six-time Olympic champion ran the 100 only once this year, narrowly edging one of his training partners, Kemar Bailey-Cole, in a photo finish in the Cayman Islands on May 8 with a relatively slow time of 10.09 seconds. (AP Photo)
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