Paris, 14 October (AKI) - An amateur football team in France made up entirely of Muslims was on Wednesday excluded from a tournament after it refused to play against another team earlier in October because of their name which included the word 'gay' in it.

 

Paris Foot Gay were set to play Bebel who are composed of mainly Muslims

The amateur club Creteil Bebel was excluded from the tournament by the Amateur Football League, a statement said on its website on Wednesday after it refused to play against the Paris Foot Gay club on 4 October. "The team Creteil Bebel is excluded from the LFC for refusing to compete and for discrimination," said the site of the Amateur Football League in its website. On 4 October, Creteil Bebel sent a message to the Paris Foot Gay club saying they would not play against them because of their name.

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Agence France-Presse

A MAINLY Muslim non-league French side said they could take on rivals consisting of gay players after all, four days after snubbing them in what the former on Saturday insisted was a "misunderstanding".

 

Paris Foot Gay (PFG) were set to play fellow Creteil side Bebel, who are composed of mainly Muslim players last week but Bebel cried off a day beforehand, sending an email in which they regretted they could not honour the match as doing so was "against their principles". "Sorry, but because of the name of your team and in keeping with the principles of the team, which is a team of practising Muslims, we cannot play against you," said the e-mail, according to PFG's co-founder and current president Pascal Brethes. It added: "Our convictions are stronger than a game of football. Sorry to have informed you so late." PFG deplored what they saw as a "homophobic" decision. But today, Bebel director Zahir Belgharbi insisted there had been "a misunderstanding" and sent out a statement through club lawyer Benedicte Puybasset indicating they were indeed ready "to play the match".

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Cleveland City Council approves a $700,000 grant to sweeten bid to land the 2014 Gay Games

By Henry J. Gomez
Cleveland Plain Dealer

Cleveland leaders hope that a pledge of tax dollars sweetens the city's bid to land the 2014 Gay Games.

City Council, following a request from Mayor Frank Jackson, on Monday night approved a $700,000 grant to help the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission put on the event. Boston and Washington, D.C., also are in the running to host the games.

Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson The winning location will be announced later this month at the Federation of Gay Games' annual meeting in Cologne, Germany, the site of the 2010 Gay Games. Tracey Nichols, Jackson's economic development director, told council members at Monday afternoon's Finance Committee meeting that the grant could boost Cleveland's chances. "We're showing in good faith that we want to bring the Gay Games here and are willing to put up some cash," Nichols said. "We need to show that this is a strong commitment." The $700,000 would be a fraction of what it costs to host the games. The money would come from the city's Urban Development Action Grant repayment fund, which includes money paid on real estate loans issued mostly for downtown projects in the 1980s and '90s. City officials said they also expect contributions from the Positively Cleveland tourism bureau, the Akron Convention and Visitors Bureau and private donors. Proponents believe the event could pump $85 million to $100 million into the regional economy. Nichols said the $700,000 would not be spent unless Cleveland lands the games. But, she added: "I think we are going to blow Boston and Washington out of the water." That optimism drew smiles from council members. With a nod to Cleveland's sports futility, Councilwoman Phyllis Cleveland declared to heavy cheers: "We may have a winning team in Cleveland, finally." Source link

By Entertainment Correspondent, John Frazier

When the former boxer was asked about the Chris Brown & Rihanna drama, he told the reporter that it was none of his business, but then he answered the question anyway. Mr. Tyson said that Chris is still a baby. He also stated that he understands the passion and also the environment comes into play.

 

"Do I feel that it's right to hit a woman?" "Hell no". "Have I ever hit a woman?" "Hell, yeah!" "Will I ever hit a woman again?" "Hell no!" I'm not surprised that finally someone asked Mr. Tyson his opinion, as his ex-wife, Robin Givens spoke about her experience when she was married to the champ. You read it here at GBMNews.com

By Entertainment Correspondent, John Frazier

Reported by TMZ.com, Mr. Charles Barkley and Antoine Walker, both basketball greats, were arrested for driving while being under the influence, driving while being intoxicated.

Mr. Barkley who has an extremely huge ego, has hired a criminal defense attorney, Scott Maasen, to help him clear his name, or perhaps to reduce the crime. It was released that the basketball great believes in the court system and has apologized to his fans for this situation. He's also cooperating with the courts and appears to be humble, which is a switch. The set count date is scheduled for January 20th.

Antoine Walker	Charles Barkley
Now what you may find interesting is that Mr. Barkley told the police who busted him in Arizona, the reason for his running a stop sign is that he was in a hurry to get some oral sex. The basketball great continued, "You want the truth?" "I was gonna drive around the corner and get a blowjob." He continued to explain to the arresting officers that he had received a blowjob from the lady of the night, a week prior and it was the best blowjob of his life. Now that should be interesting when he appears in front of the judge. A handgun was found also, which was not reported if it's legal. As for the hooker with the special skills, this could be her 15 minutes of fame. Girl, you better run with it! She can write a book, appear on the entertainment news shows, she can write her own ticket and retire from the local street corner. As for reputation, I don't think honey-child will be worried about that. Moving along to Mr. Antoine Walker, another basketball player, was arrested and charged with suspicion of driving drunk in Miami Beach. When the police pulled him over, they could smell the booze and his eyes were blood-shot red. Mr. Walker refused the breathalyzer test. No scheduled court date at this time of writing this article for Mr. Walker, however, it should be interesting to watch both cases unfold. You read it here at GBMNews.com.

Kyodo News

TOKYO —The executive committee of world soccer’s governing body FIFA approved a plan Saturday to name the hosts of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup finals simultaneously in December 2010. Japan, which co-hosted the 2002 finals with South Korea, is interested in staging the 2018 tournament but will decide whether to file for candidacy depending on the outcome of Tokyo’s bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics, Japanese soccer officials said.

According to FIFA President Sepp Blatter, Australia, China, England and Spain have shown interest in hosting a World Cup along with Japan. South Africa will stage the 2010 World Cup and the 2014 finals have been awarded to Brazil. FIFA rules out candidacy from Africa for the 2018 finals and South America for both the 2018 and 2022 tournaments.

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By James Hipps, GayAgenda

For those of you who don’t know, John Amaechi, is the 6 ft 10 in, 270 lb center who was signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers (basketball) in 1995. He played 28 games for the Cleveland Cavaliers during that season. From there, he went on to play for two years in Europe.

 

He returned to the USA to play for the Orlando Magic in 1999. With a solid 1999-2000 season, where he averaged 10.5 points in 21.1 minutes per contest, he gained notoriety for scoring the NBA’s first points in the year 2000. Later that same year, Amaechi turned down a $17 million contract offer from the Los Angeles Lakers in order to remain in Orlando for $600,000 per year. Amaechi went on to play for the Utah Jazz from 2001 to 2003. His final stint with the NBA was in Houston, where he played for the Rockets. It was during his NBA career that John earned a degree in psychology and founded the ABC Foundation in his hometown of Manchester, England. The Foundation and its Amaechi Basketball Centre simply subscribe to Amaechi’s theory that “no child shall go uncoached: in life or in sport.”

More recently, Amaechi provided co-commentary for the BBC at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Today, Amaechi owns Animus Consulting, which provides motivational speakers, and is a partner in Animus Development, an executive training program. Post NBA, Amaechi came out of retirement to represent England during the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, helping the England national basketball team win the bronze medal. He also came out…as gay.

In February 2007, Amaechi spoke about his homosexuality on ESPN’s Outside the Lines program. He also released a book, Man in the Middle, published by ESPN Books, which discusses his career and life as a closeted professional athlete. Amaechi is the first NBA player to speak publicly about being gay. He has spoken about his sexuality on shows such as Oprah. This year, Amaechi has made several appearances on Shirts & Skins, a reality series about a gay basketball team on LOGO Television. Amaechi acted as team “mentor” and “psychologist” to the San Francisco Rockdogs. He also shared his experiences on basketball, life, and coming out. John was also kind enough to grant GayAgenda.com with an interview, which follows.

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By Marlene Taveras

Lin Miranda, actor principal del espectáculo ganador de los Premios Tony 2008, “In The Heights,” le presentó una botella personalizada de Johnnie Walker Blue Label al catcher de los Yankees, Jorge Posada al terminar una reciente presentación de la obra. Posada, quien ha estado con los New York Yankees por 13 años, aceptó su regalo el cual portaba un mensaje personal de parte del elenco.

El grabado en la botella lee “paciencia y fe,” un mensaje ubicuo a lo largo del show. Johnnie Walker tiene una larga tradición de celebrar el progreso personal de los Latinos y ayudar a preservar la historia e inmensurable influencia que tales jugadores y actores han tenido en el público Hispano. Celebra a las personas que te inspiran.

Lin Miranda, lead actor of the 2008 Tony award winning musical “In The Heights,” presented an engraved bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Label to Yankee’s catcher, Jorge Posada after a recent performance. Posada, who has been with the New York Yankees for 13 years, accepted the gift that featured a personal message from the cast members. The personalized bottle reads “patience and faith”, a message that is ubiquitous throughout the musical. Johnnie Walker has a longstanding tradition of honoring the personal progress of Latinos and helping to preserve the history and profound influence that such players and actors have had on the Hispanic population.

Celebrate the people that inspire you.

by James Hipps, GayAgenda 

As part of GayAgenda’s “Out in the Workplace” Series, celebrating GLBT History Month and Nation Coming Out day, we are please to announce the distinct honor of speaking with Jamal Brown.

 

 

Mr. Brown is a recent graduate of Dartmouth College, where he ran track as an openly gay collegiate athlete. He is presently employed by the Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) in Boston. Here he has found a place where he can put actions behind his commitment to make the world better for gay people. Jamal hasn’t always been out however. It wasn’t too long ago he was still in high school, where he remained in the closet. During his high school years he heard homophobic slurs on a daily basis. Many times throughout his high school career, he would find himself lowering his voice in an attempt to “butch it up” a bit, not an uncommon defense mechanism for many closeted gays.

“Its very difficult to be out in an environment where doing so is an endangerment to your mental well-being an possibly even your health”, Brown said. I asked Mr. Brown if he ever took part in the harassment and he replied, “Maybe to close friends, but not to anyone’s face. I was very scared to be myself back then.” Jamal first realized he was gay “way before the age of 10.” He told me, “I remember when I was 7 or 8, having a crush on a boy in the second grade. Of course at that age, I never said anything.” But it just prior to his senior year of high school when he made his first attempt at become comfortable with his sexual orientation and started to come out. Jamal said, “I was going to school in Sacramento, California. I was about to begin my senior year when I came out to my best friend. He ended up coming out to me too. Then, throughout my senior year, I just stopped caring. I had been accepted to Dartmouth, I was a top athlete, I started dressing differently and I was going out to clubs, but I wasn’t out to any of my straight friends or family. I was really living a duel life at that time.” He said. But it wasn’t until he was in attendance at Dartmouth when he decided to really make his first attempt at coming out.

Coming out at Dartmouth was not an easy decision for Jamal however. As a matter of fact, he was, “considering not being out at all at Dartmouth.” “I really wasn’t sure if I should jeopardize being on the track team. I loved track, and still do,” he said, “Track played a large role in my reasoning for going to Dartmouth, but it was during (campus) orientation, I met a guy who I would secretly date while building the courage to come out.” Brown added. So, he decided to test the waters. He placed a post on his Facebook page, which stated he was “interested in men”. After that, he recalls, coming out just started to spiral. The very next day, one of his Dartmouth track mates, a Junior at the time, approached him on the field before practice as he was stretching. His teammate mentioned he had seen Jamal’s Facebook page and pressed the issue. Jamal didn’t acknowledge his teammates comments. He said, “I didn’t really say anything, I just kind of shrugged and went back to stretching.” He does recall however a response he did not anticipate. “My teammate said, it doesn’t matter, we’re here for you.” Brown recalls.

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At least 12 Premier League football players are gay but are afraid to admit it, a former star has claimed.

The dozen are afraid to admit their homosexuality to their team mates for fear of the reaction they would receive, former Chelsea and Celtic star Paul Elliott said.

 

	Paul Elliott, pictured here at a news conference on racism, is an adviser to the Equality and Human Rights Commission
While Elliott refused to reveal their names himself, the stars were challenged to come out to help rid football of homophobia. The comments came at a forum, organised by the FA, to launch an anti-homophobia drive. The FA extended its Kick It Out campaign, which has set up in 1993 to tackle racism, to combat homophobia - dubbed the 'last taboo' in the English game.

The move comes after fans hurled abuse at Portsmouth player Sol Campbell at a game against Tottenham Hotspurs, his former club, last month. Hampshire police and the FA are continuing to investigate the event.

It is clear that Elliott, who advises the Equality and Human Rights Commission, wants homophobia to be addressed with the same vigour as racism.

Justin Fashanu, the first major football player to openly admit he was gay, committed suicide

'One or two footballers have come to me to ask for advice over my time in football,' he said. 'Quite simply the next step of action would be to do exactly what Kick It Out has done. It's not re-inventing the wheel.

'The conversations I have had with FA Chairman Lord Triesman have left me very impressed. It is clear he intends to be proactive on the subject of homophobia.' Justin Fashanu, the first football star to come out and openly admit he was gay to the public, committed suicide in 2000.

The rising star, who some believed would have gone on to play for England, experienced hostility from other players in the 1990s when his sex life came into focus. He was questioned by American police when a 17-year-old accused him of sexual assault.

Although the charges were later dropped, Fashanu protested that he was presumed guilty and wrote in his suicide note that he 'did not want to give any more embarrassment to my friends and family'.

Human rights activist Peter Tatchell, 56, said: 'Bigotry has no legitimate place in sport. 'The FA could privately sound out several gay and bisexual Premier League players about a collective coming out.'

England goalkeeper David James, 38, said football is one of the last professions where homosexuality is still a taboo. He said: 'In every other entertainment industry we have gay stars. Why should football be any different?'

But former manager Alan Smith warned that being openly gay would be a heavy burden to football players. 'You can get drunk and beat up your wife and that's quite acceptable, but if someone were to say: "I'm gay," it's considered awful. It's ridiculous.'

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By Justin Smith, Sr. Correspondent

Former Olympic track star Tim Montgomery was sentenced Friday to five years in prison for dealing heroin to an undercover cop. The former track star was under federal surveillance, for suspicion.

The former sprinter will serve the five-year sentence after he completes a 46-month prison term on an unrelated conviction in New York

Montgomery told U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Friedman. "I was blind - I never had a job in my life," "I did the wrong thing." In July he negotiated with the government and entered a guilty plea to possession and distribution of more than 100 grams of heroin he received the minimum term under federal sentencing guidelines. Montgomery had much success in his past career as an Olympian. He won an Olympic silver medal in the 400-meter relay at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Then Montgomery won 4 Olympic gold medals in the same event at the Sydney 2000 Summer Games. All of his successes were wiped cleaned from history because of a doping scandal, from which he never recovered.

Steve Riddick

In April of this year Montgomery was detained on the heroin charge one month after he was sentenced to nearly four years in prison for his role in a New York-based check-kiting conspiracy. Montgomery's heroin prosecution is based on four drug sales he made a year ago and this year in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. A Drug Enforcement Agency informant made buys that were electronically videotaped, tape-recorded or witnessed by agents, according to court records. While he never tested positive for drugs, but he retired in December 2005 after the ban was imposed. Last year, Montgomery admitted helping his former coach, Olympic champion Steve Riddick, and others cash $1.7 million in stolen and counterfeit checks. Riddick is serving a five-year prison term.

Montgomery's ex-cohort, Olympic gold medalist Marion Jones, is serving a six-month prison sentence for lying to investigators about the check-fraud scam and using steroids. Montgomery's Olympic medals and his world-record 9.78-second performance in the 100-meter dash were wiped clean after he was linked to the investigation of BALCO, the West Coast lab at the center of the steroid scandal in sports. He also was banned from track for two years. In his prime, Montgomery was dubbed "the world's fastest man" but his fortunes have sharply declined.

SYDNEY, Australia: Australian diver Matthew Mitcham, who won a gold medal at Beijing with a remarkable final dive at the Water Cube, says he is surprised but understands why more athletes have not admitted to being gay.

"I was actually very surprised I was the only 'out' male at the Olympic Games," Mitcham, 20, said in Wednesday's Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.

 

"It's a little bit sad, I think, because statistically there should be a lot more but, it's each to one's own. I'm not going to pressure anybody else to come out of the closet because it's their own choice. I'm proud to be there ... that lots of other people can look up to." Mitcham scored four perfect 10s on his final dive to win the 10-meter platform and prevent a Chinese sweep of the eight dive gold medals at the Olympics. The Australian hit the toughest dive anyone did on the final night — a backward 2 1/2 somersault with 2 1/2 twists.

Mitcham recently signed with sports manager Dave Flaskas, who looks after the career of five-time Olympic gold medal swimmer Ian Thorpe. Flaskas says he expects similar offers that he would get for other athletes he represents, including Tour de France and Olympic cyclist Cadel Evans and swimmer Leisel Jones. "They all have different challenges, they all have different personalities, it's not going to be a quick grab for deals (but) obviously there is a priority because of the financial situation," Flaskas said. Mitcham says having some sponsorship money will give him more training time as he prepares for the 2012 Olympics in London. He juggled his training for Beijing with an office job. "Money was a huge stress leading into the Olympics for two years and for that to not be a massive burden on me leading into the next Olympics would be nice," Mitcham said. "But that's an ideal world and who knows what's going to happen?" Source link

 

Washington has been chosen as the host city for the 2009 Gay Soccer World Championship, local media said on Friday.

"On behalf of the residents of the District of Columbia, we look forward to hosting this prestigious event," said Washington D.C. mayor, Adrian Fenty.

The International Gay Lesbian Football Association tournament is scheduled to take place June 14-21 next year. The city held the first ever Gay Soccer tournament in 1997.

"In addition to promoting good sportsmanship, it affirms our city's reputation as being inclusive and tolerant. We look forward to welcoming the world to our nation's capital," Fenty said.

This year, the Gay Soccer World Championship was hosted in London, with 40 teams representing 13 countries. The English side Stonewall Lions beat Argentinean side SAF Gay 5-0 in the men's final.

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Africa had to wait until day seven of competition to win its first gold medal of the 2008 Olympics.

By Adnan Nawaz

The entire continent celebrated as Tirunesh Dibaba of Ethiopia won the women's 10,000m in the Bird's Nest Stadium, and then, on day eight, there was more glory for Africa to enjoy as Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry took gold while setting a new world record in the women's 200m backstroke.

It had been a long wait for Africa, but when triumph was finally achieved there was great evidence of continental solidarity among the African media here in Beijing.

It got me wondering, is there a greater sense of continental kinship in Africa than anywhere else in the world?

I asked a few of my fellow journalists whether they thought African solidarity was a greater force than European solidarity. African journalists certainly agreed with that premise, whereas European journalists were a bit more reluctant to agree, although often after a few minutes conversation, they too seemed to grudgingly accept that it might possibly be true.

What do you think? For example, imagine you're watching the final of the 1500m and the competitor from your own country comes fourth in an agonisingly close blanket finish. You're obviously disappointed, but would you take any solace from the fact that a runner from your own continent actually won gold in the event?

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BEIJING - WHEN she steps onto the starting block at Beijing's Olympic Water Cube pool, Cameroonian freestyler Antoinette Guedia will be up against much bigger rivals and a pool twice as long as she's used to.

 

Aged 12 years and 10 months, Guedia is the youngest athlete competing at the 2008 Games and she can count the number of times she's competed in an Olympic-sized pool on one hand.

'It is a bit overwhelming. I'm little,' said Guedia in lilting French, fiddling with the green, red and yellow-beaded 'Africa' necklace she wears as a lucky charm.

She will be up against swimmers of all ages in the women's 50 metres freestyle on Friday, including 41-year-old Dara Torres who has already won silver for the United States in the 4x100 freestyle relay.

'To be here at my age is amazing. I'm proud,' Guedia told Reuters at the athletes' village, where the volleyball players and weightlifters strolling by dwarf her tiny, girlish frame.

Nicknamed 'Champion' by her excited schoolfriends in Cameroon, Guedia still trains in the same 22-metre hotel pool that she first learned to swim in, aged 8.

The outdoor pool is the biggest available in Douala, Cameroon's biggest city, where her family lives. Before arriving in Beijing, Guedia had only swum in a 50-metre pool the day she competed in the 2007 African Games in Algiers.

Not that a lack of legroom has ever held her back.

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BEIJING - Lisa Leslie set a U.S. Olympic record going 7-for-7 from the field as the women's team continued its unblemished run through the Beijing Games with a 97-41 victory against Mali.

Leslie finished with 16 points as the U.S. won its 28th straight Olympic contest; the last loss was against the Unified Team in the semifinals of the 1992 Barcelona Games. The Americans have run over their first three opponents winning by an average of 47 points. They routed the Czech Republic, China, and now Mali.

 

Aminata Sininta of Mali tries to make some room between Katie Smith, left, and Lisa Leslie, during the United States' 97-41 victory in an Olympic preliminary round game Thursday in Beijing.

"We continue to stress our defense and really work hard at that end of the floor," U.S. coach Anne Donovan said.

Katie Smith (2000) and Nikki McCray (1996) held the record for highest field goal percentage, each going 6-for-6 from the field.

"Another record?" Leslie said with a smile. "Oh well, records are meant to be broken. It feels good, but we just wanted to get the win. We wanted to come out and perform well."

The U.S. plays Spain next on Friday.

The USA's Sylvia Fowles (13) steals the ball from Mali center Nagnouma Coulibaly, right, during the second quarter of the Americans' 97-41 win.

"They are getting better each game, and what you can expect from Spain is -- they are athletic, they play with a lot of passion and energy and feed off it," U.S. coach Anne Donovan said. "We've played them quite a bit through the years and we know we'll have to play well to move on to the next game."

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Togo has hailed French-born Benjamin Boukpeti for winning the West African country's first ever Olympic medal and said it would make sure he was suitably honoured.

Until the white water kayaker's bronze medal triumph, many Togolese had no idea who he was bar the odd mention in the sports pages of local newspapers.

 

Born to a Togolese father and resident in France, Boukpeti has been to Togo only once, as a baby.

Boukpeti, 27, who chose to compete for Togo in Beijing when it became clear he was too old for France, said he now had a "very good reason" to visit the African nation after stunning the field and spectators at the Olympics.

The first non-European male kayaker to win an Olympic slalom medal, Boukpeti – the world number 56 in his sport – received by far the biggest cheers from the packed crowd.

"We are very pleased with Benjamin Boukpeti's achievement," said Eloi Salakoffi, director of sport at Togo's Sport and Leisure Ministry.

Benjamin Boukpeti of Togo breaks his paddle as he celebrates his third place in men's kayak final at the fact that won his country's first ever Olympic medal.

"We will have to make sure he is suitably honoured," said Salakoffi, adding Togo would do all it could to arrange for Boukpeti to visit the country to celebrate.

"I've never heard of this person, but having a compatriot win a medal at the Olympic Games is a real honour for us," said Yves Gbetounou, a high school science student in the capital Lome.

Boukpeti's Olympic medal victory was a rare sporting success for Togo.

The national football team made it to the World Cup finals in Germany in 2006 only to go on strike over pay and almost miss a match, causing the coach to walk out.

A year later the sports minister, football officials, fans and journalists were killed in a helicopter crash in Sierra Leone after an African Nations Cup qualifying match.

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By Grahame L. Jones

BEIJING --The width of a crossbar made all the difference in the world on Wednesday.

Had forward Charlie Davies’ last-minute header off a Dax McCarty free kick been just a couple of inches lower, the U.S. might have tied Nigeria and earned a place in the quarterfinals of the Olympic men's soccer tournament.

Maurice Edu of the U.S. and Nigeria's Chinedu Ogbuke Obasi, right, fight for a header during their Group B game Wednesday evening in Beijing. Photo by: Petr David Josek

But the ball clanged off the bar at the Workers’ Stadium in Beijing and rebounded away, taking with it American hopes as Nigeria survived to win the match, 2-1, in front of 48,096.

That result, combined with the Netherlands’ 1-0 victory over Japan, sent the Dutch and the Nigerians through to the last eight and ended U.S. participation in the tournament.

The American team’s hopes were dealt an early blow when defender Michael Orozco was ejected by German referee Wolfgang Starg for throwing an elbow into a Nigerian player just three minutes into the match. The foul occurred at midfield and was totally unnecessary.

The red card caused Coach Peter Nowak’s side to have to play short-handed for 87 minutes plus stoppage time. It was too great a wall to climb, even in China.

But the Americans gave it everything they had. Goalkeeper Brad Guzan was in phenomenal form, time and again making world-class saves.

There was nothing he could do about Nigeria’s two goals, however. The first came in the 39th minute when Chinedu Ogbuke Obasi, Nigeria’s liveliest player, got around defender Michael Parkhurst to the right of the American net and then provided the pass that left Promise Isaac with the simplest tap-in for the goal.

Maurice Edu of the U.S., right, fought for the ball with Chinedu Ogbuke Obasi of Nigeria during their match on Wednesday.

The second came in the 79th minute and again Parkhurst was the unfortunate victim, this time slipping and falling in the penalty area while trying to tackle the ball away from Victor Obinna, who curled a shot past Guzan at the far post.

The U.S., playing inspired soccer considering it was exhausted from having to make up for Orozco’s absence, managed to pull a goal back in the 88th minute on a penalty kick by Chivas USA midfielder Sacha Kljestan after Nigeria goalkeeper Ambruse Vanzekin had fouled Maurice Edu.

The Americans kept pressuring Nigeria in search of the tying goal that would have sent them into the quarterfinals at the expense of the Dutch, but their luck ran out when Davies’ header sailed just a little too high and hit the crossbar instead of the back of the net.

Overall, Nigeria outshot the U.S., 20-8, but it had only a 5-4 advantage in shots on target.

The U.S. finished with four points after defeating Japan, 1-0, and tying the Netherlands, 2-2, and while the team did not make it out of the group play, its performance in the tournament was worthy of a quarterfinal place.

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By M.A. Mehta

BEIJING - When Cullen Jones powered through the water Sunday night, chasing history, the charismatic kid who learned to swim in Newark could hear the roar from a half a world away. Amid the deafening cheers from the thousands squeezed into the National Aquatics Center, Jones felt the support from the scores of people that he touched along an incredible and unlikely path that began in inner city pools and led him here to the world's biggest stage.

An ambassador for African-American swimmers, Jones wanted to shatter stereotypes one lap at a time, eager to spread his message that, yeah, black kids can swim, too.

He also wanted to help out a buddy on his own personal mission.

Jones accomplished both by helping the 4X100 freestyle relay team win the gold medal in a comeback for the ages. In a race soaked with drama and subplots, the Americans shattered the world record they had set just hours earlier in the prelims, blistering through the water in 3 minutes, 8.24 seconds.

Trailing after three legs, anchor Jason Lezak erased a huge gap to overtake and out-touch French world record holder Alain Bernard to set off a wild celebration. A few days after Bernard declared his team would "smash" the Americans in the finals, the U.S. team authored a stunning chapter in these Olympics.

"We beat a team in most people's mind was not beatable," said U.S. coach Eddie Reese. "It was amazing. (Lezak's leg) had to be the best ever and it was the best ever. That's the kind of anchor you dream of."

Jones became the second African-American swimmer to win a gold medal as the team kept Michael Phelps' quest for an unprecedented eight golds alive. But it was Lezak's fastest split in history at 46.06 seconds and mad dash in the final frenzied moments when he hunted down Bernard after being behind by more than eight-tenths of a second that had everyone buzzing.

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Lomong's parents who had, long ago, assumed he was dead, held a funeral and buried what remnants, like a child's beads, that he had left behind. Last December, Lomong participated in a burial in reverse as his plot was unearthed and blessed.

By Thomas Boswell

For seven years, China has dreamed of orchestrating every detail, athletic and political, of its glorious Opening Ceremonies to the Olympics. Now, one lean 1,500-meter runner from the United States, chosen by his teammates in an act of open defiance, may steal the show. Lopez Lomong, one of the Sudanese "Lost Boys" and a member of the anti-genocide group Team Darfur, has been chosen by his 595 U.S. Olympic teammates to carry our flag on Friday. What, we couldn't find a Tibetan monk on the team?

What a coincidence. Just hours before U.S. team captains met to decide on the flag carrier, Chinese officials rescinded the visa of Joey Cheek, a speedskating gold medalist who carried the U.S. flag at the Closing Ceremonies at the 2006 Winter Games and later co-founded Team Darfur. After that slap at Cheek, U.S. athletes here had almost nothing to say on the topic. One even referred to the subject as "the question they warned us about."

Perhaps they didn't answer individually. But the entire U.S. team gave its answer -- as a group and in capital letters -- with Lomong's selection. You jerk Cheek's visa. We put Lomong in your face. And do it proudly.

You have to hand it to the Chinese Communist Party: They certainly know how to muzzle Americans. Cheek, a Princeton grad, might have held a seminar. Four billion people around the world will see Lomong carrying our flag.

Far more than that, untold millions of people, in the next few days, will hear Lomong's life story, in his own words. In a half-hour monologue here on Friday, just 10 hours before he was to carry the flag, Lomong told a tale of grief, endurance, redemption and almost unimaginable hardship that captures in human terms every aspect of the Darfur tragedy. And without Lomong saying a single "controversial" political word, he highlighted China's culpability by cynically supporting the Sudanese regime as partner in the vast oil company PetroChina

When U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman Peter Ueberroth was asked if the selection of Lomong was an expression by U.S. athletes about their views on China's human rights abuses, Ueberroth said: "The athletes can answer that better themselves. But either way, it's fine. Either way it's good. Lopez earned the right to carry the flag. You [media] folks can go with it. We'll get out of your way."

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