Summer Olympics

16 Aug 2012

Even though China finished second overall in the medal table, it doesn't mean it is a big sporting nation. The ready availability of sports facilities in schools and the inclusion of all kinds of...

China's Olympic stakes go beyond its medal count

15 Aug 2012

Inevitably, the London Olympics, in particular the opening and closing ceremonies, are being compared to the Games staged in Beijing four years ago, when China dazzled the world.

China reflects after London Olympics, sees tough road to Rio

14 Aug 2012

China's sports mandarins had warned before the London Games that their athletes would struggle to match the table-topping gold medal haul they enjoyed in Beijing. They will take little comfort in...

China's team praised as London Olympics close

13 Aug 2012

The curtain came down on the London Olympics last night, with both China and Britain hailing the 30th summer Games the "best ever" - for different reasons.

2012 London Games goes beyond motto to inspire generations of athletes

13 Aug 2012

The motto of the London Olympic Games was "inspire a generation". By the closing ceremony, the host nation would have been justified in changing that to "generations", after its team surpassed all...

Opinion

Wang Xiangwei

Super ministries may not be the right answer for mainland China

Alex Lo

Church developers remain unbowed by government rules

George Chen

A house is not a home until it becomes affordable

Sebastian Coe's next prize could well be IOC's top job

Legend has it that the London 2012 Olympic bid came about over a morning cup of coffee in the canteen of the IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland some nine years ago.

China stifles Olympic athletes' own drive for success

Sports don't interest me at all, but I made it a point to watch the agonising end, yet again, to Liu Xiang's quest for Olympic gold. Dare I discuss why I think the talented athlete couldn't...

Has London delivered on dreaded L-word?

In any capital city, the best way to discover what is on its mind is to ask a taxi driver. 'Olympic legacies?

Letters

It is not all about winning gold

Television coverage of the London Olympics has attracted a massive worldwide audience, fascinated by the intense contests between the competing...

Bigger, richer, stronger? Not always at the Games

The most stunning phenomenon in the past 24 years of Olympic history is indisputably the rise of China as a major power in the sports arena, commensurate with its rise as a major global economic...

Virtuous circles

We were in Oxford the day the Olympic flame came through last month, so my wife and I joined the crowd lining the roads to watch.