The latest from ESPN.com here and here. And the latest from Google News.......

Is the air quality at the Beijing airport really that bad? The New York Times has the story (and some photos): The masks they wore were specially designed by and issued to them by the United States Olympic Committee. The U.S.O.C.’s lead exercise physiologist, Randy Wilber, had advised U.S. Olympians to wear the masks on the plane and as soon as they stepped foot in Beijing. Two of the cyclists wore the masks on the......

Al-Jazeera: The scenes of destruction and devastation, and the smell of death. Melissa Chan wins our thumbs-up once again with this report: AP catches up with the group of British tourists that have been rescued from the Wolong Panda Preserve: AP: "The focus of rescue workers is starting to shift to a recovery mission. The death toll is already approaching 15,000 and that number is expected to skyrocket. (May 15)" France24:"While the earthquake's death toll......

From Associated Press: "A group of protesters planning to protest the Olympic torch relay in Hong Kong have been barred from entering the city, local media and activists say. They were questioned at the airport and put on a flight to London." (April 27) From France24: "The Olympic torch is travelling from its historic home in Olympia, Greece, to the Chinese capital Beijing for the 2008 Olympic Games. Watch our special report on its relay......

Following up on our previous post entitled "Attack on an American volunteer by anti-Carrefour mob in Zhuzhou, Hunan," we were contacted today by James Galvin, the unnamed American volunteer mentioned in the story which has now gone on to receive coverage by the Associated Press. In his email, Galvin provided his first-hand account of the alleged incident outside a Carrefour Sunday night in Hunan Province. He feels the story has gotten blown out of proportion.......

From AP: The Olympic torch arrived in San Francisco for its only North American stop amid heavy security Tuesday, one day after its visit to Paris descended into chaos.From what we see in the video, looks like things are pretty calm so far in San Francisco! With disruptions in the Olympic torch relay in Athens, Istanbul, London and Paris, and more expected to dog the event everywhere it goes, the IOC is having such a......

BBC: "Protests in the Nepalese capital Kathmandu turned violent as police made arrests outside the Chinese embassy." AP: "Greek officials handed over the Olympic flame to organizers of the Beijing Games on Sunday amid small protests by a pro-Tibetan group. The ceremony was held where the first modern Olympics were staged in 1896. (March 30)" AP: "Eight giant pandas from a breeding center in southern China are set to travel to Beijing for the Olympic......