When you Shop, Make it Count. Grocery Company’s Annual People with Disabilities Campaign Supports Thousands of Families Living with Disabilities

CHICAGO, April 4, 2011 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — Safeway Inc., one of the nation’s largest employers of people with disabilities, just launched their annual People with Disabilities fundraising campaign to benefit Easter Seals, Special Olympics and Rebuilding Together. This April, shop any Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Tom Thumb, Randalls, Dominick’s, Genuardi’s, or Carrs store and make a donation at checkout to support Easter Seals early identification, treatment and intervention services for kids at risk of developmental delays and those who have autism and other disabilities.

(Logo: http://photos.CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM.com/prnh/20110401/MM76153LOGO)

Making the First Five Count for All Children

As the largest provider of early intervention services, Easter Seals knows what’s possible when kids get the support they need during the first few years of life – and also what happens when they don’t.

Through Safeway’s campaign, more children will have access to early intervention services—programs that strengthen children’s physical, social, emotional and intellectual abilities and provide the building blocks for success in school and in life.

These young children who get the best start in life today will create our nation’s workforce for tomorrow. Because children who get the help they need early are less likely to be held back a grade, less likely to need special education and more likely to graduate high school(1). They are less involved in crime and delinquency, earn more as adults and are less likely to become dependent on welfare. Early care keeps kids in school and helps them find jobs; it keeps kids in communities and out of jail(2).

“As a company that proudly employs thousands of people with disabilities, Safeway directly benefits from the work of these programs and is committed to contributing to their success and increasing their outreach,” says Larree Renda, Safeway Executive Vice President and Chair of the Safeway Foundation.  

Since Easter Seals and Safeway’s partnership began in 1986, Safeway has contributed millions to Easter Seals, surpassing the $100 million mark in 2009.  ”Safeway’s commitment to Easter Seals and the millions of families we serve runs far beyond the annual fundraising campaign,” says James E. Williams, Jr., president and chief executive officer, Easter Seals. “The need for services is greater than ever — especially therapy for young kids at risk of developmental delays and those who have autism and other disabilities. We are appreciative and honored that Safeway and its thousands of employees are committed to helping us make a significant difference.”

How Safeway is Funding Kids’ Futures

Funds raised will support many Easter Seals’ disability services for children and adults across the country including:

• In California, child care centers that enhance development of infants and toddlers with disabilities and minimize their potential for delay.
• In Colorado, intensive play therapy that helps children with autism develop social, communication, and relationship-building skills.
• In Texas, high-quality Applied Behavior Analysis and scholarships for critical therapy services whose families are unable to afford the cost of physical, occupational and speech-language therapies.  
• In Arizona, expansion of early intervention services, screening, evaluation, assessment and intervention planning for infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families as well as supports for assistive technology and speech, occupational, physical therapy and a unique feeding program for infants and toddlers.
• In Illinois, audiology, assistive technology and Easter Seals’ Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research.
• In Washington, D.C., respite programs, autism training for therapists, assistive technology and inclusive early childhood education.

“Safeway’s in-store cause campaign in April is literally changing the lives of thousands of children and adults living with autism and other disabilities,” adds Williams.

About Safeway

Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 100 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America, based on sales. The company operates 1,694 stores in the United States and western Canada and had annual sales of $41.1 billion in 2010. The company’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY. Visit www.safeway.com.

About Easter Seals

Easter Seals is the leading non-profit provider of services for individuals with autism, developmental disabilities, physical disabilities and other special needs. For more than 90 years, we have been offering help and hope to children and adults living with disabilities, and to the families who love them. Through therapy, training, education and support services, Easter Seals creates life-changing solutions so that people with disabilities can live, learn, work and play. Visit www.easterseals.com or www.MaketheFirstFiveCount.org to learn more about autism, find services at an Easter Seals near you, or change the lives of people living with disabilities by becoming a donor or volunteer.

Resources

(1) Heckman, James. Nobel Prize Laureate Professor, economist and advocate for early education. The Heckman Equation Project. Available at www.heckmanequation.org

(2) “Economic benefits of quality preschool education for America’s 3- and 4-year olds. “National Institute for Early Education Research. Available at http://nieer.org/resources/facts/index.php?FastFactID=6 Note: Several studies, including Perry Pre-School in Michigan, the Abecedarian Project in Chapel Hill, N.C., and the Chicago Public School’s Child-Parent Centers document the value of high-touch early education programs for young children at risk for disability and developmental delay.

www.easterseals.com/media

www.facebook.com/easterseals  

SOURCE Easter Seals

http://www.easterseals.com

Safeway Makes the First Five Years of Life Count for Kids with Disabilities | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

ROTTERDAM, Netherlands – Kohei Uchimura’s left shoulder held up during qualifying Monday, helping Japan to the early lead at the world gymnastics championships.

Even a late push by the Americans couldn’t catch Japan and the defending all-around champion, who competed with skin-colored tape plastered over his left shoulder. Japan leads the standings with 361.400 points, followed by the United States (357.092) and Britain (357.033).

Olympic champion China, Russia and Germany compete Tuesday. The men’s team final is Thursday.

“The guy is ridiculous,” said two-time U.S. champion Jonathan Horton, who is second to Uchimura in the all-around standings. “He has got, like, no arm right now and he is still competing. He is just phenomenal.”

Uchimura employed a flowing style to win the all-around silver at the Beijing Olympics and gold at the world championships in London last year. But he’s had bone inflammation in his shoulder since July, giving him constant pain that is getting worse.

His performance in team qualifying was the day’s most anticipated event since it is assumed no one can get close to a healthy Uchimura. He consistently scored well despite limiting his degree of difficulty to protect his shoulder.

“In this condition, I did the best possible,” Uchimura said through a translator.

Uchimura leads the all-around standings with 92.231 points, followed by Horton (89.589) and Britain’s Daniel Purvis (89.498).

With last year’s silver medalist Daniel Keatings out with a torn knee ligament and 2007 runner-up Fabian Hambuechen limited to four events because of a lingering Achilles’ injury, Horton is likely Uchimura’s biggest challenge. But he started out with an error on high bar, the event where he won a silver medal in Beijing, and dropped points through carelessness throughout the evening.

“I was extremely sloppy. I was very ugly,” Horton said. “I can do two points better.”

Even with his injured shoulder, Uchimura was impressive.

His execution on the opening pommel horse was nearly flawless, bringing an airy lightness of touch where most other gymnasts struggle.

Expressionless and sullen ahead of the exercise, Uchimura lit up when coming off the horse, cheerfully hitting fists and slapping high-fives with teammates, knowing the first test was passed.

Immediately, though, a medic put even more tape on his shoulder to withstand the pressure on the joint the rings would impose. There, too, he brought the Uchimura touch to make the very difficult look almost easy.

“The rings were my biggest challenge. That gave me a lot of satisfaction,” he said. Despite the pain, “a rush of adrenaline” carried him through, he said. He followed it up by nailing his vault.

Halfway through the competition, he was already solidly in the lead for all-around qualifying and the trepidation over his shoulder had dissipated.

Uchimura looked close to his best again and he fully strutted his stuff on the high bar, swinging and leaping with abandon.

Waiting to close Japan’s session on the floor, he stood with a long white coat over his shoulders, like a boxer before a bout. He then finished with a flurry, and one error — relying on his hands on a landing, his worst mistake during his two-hour session.

He said the drive of the competition will carry him through his shoulder pain.

“I expect to get better for the team final and the individual all-around,” he said.

At the Beijing Games two years ago, China won the team event, ahead of Japan and the U.S. It was not held in London last year.

Scoring starts anew for the top eight teams that make Thursday’s final.

“Start over,” Horton said. “We are a very strong team.”

Uchimura sends Japan to early lead at gymnastics (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – International gymnastics officials are investigating another case of possible age falsification, this time of a North Korean gymnast who listed three different birth dates.

North Korea and Hong Su Jong will be given a chance to explain the discrepancies at a hearing and in written statements, the International Gymnastics Federation said Saturday.

Hong’s birth date is March 9, 1989, on the entry list for the world championships this month in Rotterdam, Netherlands. But she had a March 9, 1985, birth date at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 2006 world championships, and a March 9, 1986, birth date at the 2007 world championships, where she won the silver medal on vault.

If Hong was born in 1989, she would have been ineligible to compete in Athens. Gymnasts must turn 16 in the calendar year of an Olympics to be eligible.

The FIG’s investigation of Hong comes six months after China was stripped of its bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics for using an underage gymnast.

Age falsification has been a problem in gymnastics since the 1980s, when the minimum age was raised from 14 to 15 to help protect still-developing athletes from serious injuries. The minimum age was raised to its current 16 in 1997. North Korea was banned from the 1993 world championships after the FIG discovered Kim Gwang Suk, the 1991 gold medalist on uneven bars, was listed as 15 for three years in a row.

But the issue drew worldwide attention in 2008, when media reports and Internet records suggested some of the girls on host China’s gold-medal Olympic team could have been as young as 14. Those girls were eventually cleared, but the investigation uncovered evidence that Dong Fangxiao, a member of the 2000 squad, was only 14 in Sydney.

All of Dong’s results from Sydney were nullified, and the International Olympic Committee took the bronze medal from China and gave it to the United States.

To prevent age manipulation, the FIG last year began requiring all junior and senior gymnasts who represent their countries at most international meets to have a license. The licenses include gymnasts’ name, sex, country and date of birth, and are their proof of age for their entire career.

NKorean gymnast investigated for 3 birth dates (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

LONDON – Two groups of scientists have developed tests for gene doping in what the World Anti-Doping Agency hails as a major breakthrough in fighting the next round of cheating in sports.

Scientists in Germany said they have come up with a blood test that can provide “conclusive proof” of gene doping, even going back as far as 56 days from when the doping took place.

And a U.S.-French research team has devised its own method for detecting genetic doping in muscles.

The discoveries raise the possibility that a valid gene-doping test can be implemented by the 2012 London Olympics.

Gene doping is the practice of using genetic engineering to artificially enhance athletic performance. The method is banned by WADA and the International Olympic Committee.

WADA reports breakthrough in gene doping tests (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

ISTANBUL – Kobe Bryant towers over a city street as he dribbles a basketball in the cover photo of a pamphlet distributed earlier this year to promote the world championships.

After offseason knee surgery, Bryant isn’t doing much dribbling at all this summer.

Even before announcing he was leaving Cleveland for South Beach, it was obvious LeBron James wouldn’t be going to Turkey.

Nor did any other players who helped the United States win the gold medal in the 2008 Olympics. In their place is what’s been called the “B Team,” a group of second choices who are here only because the guys with bigger names had better things to do.

And they’re aware of what’s being said about them.

“We love to compete. We’re professionals,” forward Lamar Odom said. “One of the best things about playing sports is being competitive. When someone says you can’t, it makes you more motivated.”

Now the B Team will try to do what the A-listers couldn’t four years ago: win the world’s biggest basketball tournament.

The Americans dominate the Olympics but can’t seem to get the world championships right. They’ve won the tournament just three times, none since 1994, and left Japan in 2006 with a bronze medal despite a team that was loaded with stars such as James, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Chris Paul, Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony.

The team that remains may still be good enough to be considered the favorite, but is vulnerable enough to make this event more wide open than the Olympics two years ago.

Spain and Greece, who met in the championship game in 2006, plus Argentina head the list of other contenders for the Naismith trophy and the automatic berth into the 2012 Olympics in London.

The tournament starts Saturday in four cities in Turkey. Group A is in Kayseri, Group B in Istanbul, Group C in the capital city of Ankara, where the hosts will play, and Group D in Izmir. Six teams are in each group, and four will survive pool play to advance to the single-elimination round starting Sept. 4 in Istanbul.

The championship game is scheduled for Sept. 12, and the Americans expect to be playing in it for the first time in 16 years.

“We just want to go out there and win,” forward Andre Iguodala said. “I think we’re really hungry and we’re really excited to have the opportunity to play for the USA and we want to bring back home the gold.”

So does Spain, a veteran team that returns much of its core as it goes for a repeat. Greece, which stunned the U.S. four years ago in the semifinals, has a deep collection of physical players — and will need to rely on it after Antonis Fotsis and Sofoklis Schortsanitis were each suspended two games by FIBA on Thursday for their part in last week’s brawl in an exhibition game against Serbia.

The Americans beat both the Spaniards and Greeks on the road in warm-up games, sending them to Turkey with confidence soaring after some struggles in their first two outings.

“We passed the other tests and now we are just ready to get into it,” forward Rudy Gay said.

But there are still concerns for a team with a lack of size and experience. The 6-foot-10 Odom is now the starting center on a squad with only one 7-footer and with six players age 22 or younger.

Chauncey Billups, the veteran of the team at 33, was asked what still concerned the coaches the most.

“More than anything, I think it’s still rebounding the ball and going at a high level,” Billups said. “Still knowing that we are a small team, rebounding, and sometimes we get a little wacky and turn the ball over a little too much. Those are our main two concerns. But those are the things that we can get a little better control of after playing more and more together, knowing each other more.”

The U.S. isn’t the only team that arrived in Turkey without its best players. Pau Gasol, the MVP of the 2006 tournament, is resting after three straight trips to the NBA finals with the Los Angeles Lakers. Argentina is missing Manu Ginobili, who stayed home with newborn twins. Theo Papaloukas, the point guard who quarterbacked the upset over the Americans, is no longer suiting up for the Greeks.

Even non-contenders such as Germany (Dirk Nowitzki), France (Tony Parker) and Australia (Andrew Bogut) are without top NBA players this summer.

The Americans seem best equipped to handle the withdrawals, fielding the most athletic squad in the 24-team tournament. They will look to overcome any size disadvantage with their pressure defense, trying to create turnovers that get Kevin Durant and Derrick Rose out on fast breaks.

Teams that can control the pace and get the ball inside can hurt the Americans. Greece managed it for a half Wednesday before the Americans ran away in the second of their 87-59 victory. Argentina, with Luis Scola and Fabricio Oberto, and Group B opponent Brazil, with Anderson Varejao and Tiago Splitter, have front lines that will be tough for the U.S. to match.

But if the Americans are able to get out and run, they’re confident they won’t stop until they’ve reached the gold medal platform.

“From top to bottom everybody can play and score the ball and I think we’re really defending well,” guard Stephen Curry said. “We have our leaders, our go-to guys with K.D. and Derrick Rose, those kinds of guys who are definitely getting us going out of the gate. Then the backup lineup coming in and not missing a step. I think we have everything covered.”

No trace of Beijing for US basketball in Turkey (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

HELSINKI – Former Olympic ski jump champion Matti Nykanen was convicted Tuesday of attacking his wife with a kitchen knife in their home on Christmas Day last year. He was sentenced to 16 months in prison.

The 47-year-old ski jumper was convicted of aggravated assault in district court in Pirkanmaa. Lawyer Tero Lakka told The CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM that Nykanen will appeal.

Nykanen denied the charges, saying he was trying to defend himself in their home in southern Finland. He attributed his wife’s numerous knife cuts and scratches to a struggle over possession of the knife. He and his wife, Mervi Tapola, have since divorced.

The court rejected a charge that Nykanen had tried to strangle her with a bathrobe belt, citing lack of evidence. He was ordered to pay Tapola $13,000 in damages and compensation for legal fees.

Nykanen won four gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics, was a four-time World Cup champion and winner of numerous international events, but his career has been overshadowed by violence and a turbulent private life.

In 2006, Nykanen was sentenced to four months in prison for another assault on his wife. That attack occurred just three days after he was released from jail. He had served half his 26-month sentence for a stabbing offense in 2004.

Ex-ski jumper Nykanen convicted of assaulting wife (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

SEOUL, South Korea – Olympic champion Kim Yu-na has parted ways with coach Brian Orser.

Orser’s management agency IMG said in a statement Tuesday that Kim’s mother Park Mi-hee informed the coach on Aug. 2 that “he would no longer be retained” to coach the 19-year-old skater. IMG said “no reason was given for the sudden and unexpected decision.”

Kim’s management company AT Sports later released a statement saying relations between the skater and coach have been “uncomfortable” since May.

“I am honored to have worked with such a talented and gifted skater,” Orser said in his statement. “I wish her all the best as she moves forward in her skating career.”

Kim announced last month that she would skip the Grand Prix series this season and focus instead on the world championships. She continues to train at the Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club.

Kim began working with Orser in 2006, when she came to Toronto to work with noted choreographer David Wilson. Orser, a two-time Olympic silver medalist, became her full-time coach in 2007, and Kim flourished under his guidance. She overwhelmed the field in Vancouver, shattering her own world record by 18 points, as she won South Korea’s first Olympic gold in a sport other than speedskating.

She also won the 2009 world championships in record fashion, and three Grand Prix final titles.

Her success on the ice has made her wildly popular in South Korea, where she is called “Queen Yu-na.” She does commercials for everything from mobile phones to bread. She is also a key part of Pyeongchang’s bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics.

SKorea’s Kim Yu-na, coach Brian Orser part ways (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – Evgeni Plushenko is no longer eligible for the Sochi Olympics after failing to appeal a decision by international skating officials.

The Olympic gold and silver medalist was stripped of his eligibility in June after skating in exhibition shows without receiving permission from the Russian federation. The International Skating Union said Monday its decision is now final because Plushenko failed to appeal within the 21 days allowed.

Plushenko can no longer compete in ISU events, including the Olympics, world championships and Grand Prix series.

Plushenko loses eligibility for failing to appeal (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

SINGAPORE – The International Olympic Committee says up to 17 countries have expressed interest in hosting future Youth Olympics, including the United States and others from Africa and Latin America.

The inaugural youth winter games will be held in Innsbruck, Austria, in 2012 and the summer games in Nanjing, China in 2014. Lillehammer, Norway, which hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics, is the only city that has expressed an interest in hosting the 2016 winter games, and has until November to submit a formal bid, the IOC said.

The IOC’s Olympic Games Executive Director Gilbert Felli said Saturday that an African and Latin American country as well as “some cities in the United States” have expressed interest in hosting the event in 2018 and beyond, but would not name them.

“We have had discussions with the USOC (U.S. Olympic Committee) and some cities in the U.S. who have the idea for the winter or summer games,” Felli said. “One day, they would like to come with a bid.”

IOC spokesman Mark Adams said the IOC is emphasizing the use of existing facilities to make the youth event more attractive to cities with smaller budgets.

“It gives them a chance to participate, to take part in the whole Olympic ideal,” Adams said. “That is why there is interest from cities which would probably never have thought of getting involved and could never see themselves as serious contenders for staging an Olympic event.”

IOC President Jacques Rogge praised the Singapore games as it reached the halfway point of the 12-day event. Education programs, including talks with elite athletes, have been popular with the youngsters. Fans have taken to the new sports like 3-on-3 basketball.

“So far everything is going smoothly and we’ve been very pleased with the organization, the competition and the non-sport activities,” Rogge said in a statement. “While it is impossible to provide a full assessment of the games until after they’re over, so far we are very satisfied.”

American athletes had their best day of the games Saturday, winning two golds, a silver and a bronze.

China leads the games with 20 golds and 33 medals overall. Russia is second with 15 golds and 32 overall, while South Korea has seven golds.

Tang Yi of China has been the star of the games so far. The 17-year-old has won six of her country’s 11 swimming golds.

The IOC said the popularity of the games is reaching well beyond Singapore. The Youth Olympics’ YouTube channel, part of a broad social media campaign, has had 2.8 million hits. That’s higher than the traffic for the 2010 Vancouver Games. The Youth Olympics has 3,500 followers on Twitter and a popular Facebook page.

Organizers from Innsbruck, who plan to host the 2012 winter Youth Olympic with 1,050 athletes from 70 countries, said the Singapore games have given them confidence.

“It’s taken some pressure off us because now we know it can work,” said Peter Bayer, chief executive of Innsbruck 2012.

Felli said the IOC had concerns that many venues this week were far from full — despite all tickets having been sold.

“You have some sessions where people are coming in the morning and watching for a while and then leaving and they don’t come for the afternoon and evening session. That is something of a disappointment,” Felli said. “But it was much fuller last night than the beginning of the week, so they are working on that to bring more people in.”

In other events, Odane Skeen of Jamaica ran 10.42 seconds to win the boys’ 100 gold Saturday, beating Masaki Nashimoto of Japan and David Bolarinwa of Britain. Josephine Omaka of Nigeria won the girls’ 100 gold ahead of Myasia Jacobs of the United States and Fany Chalas of the Dominican Republic.

Ekaterina Bleskina of Russia beat out Michelle Jenneke of Australia to win the gold in the 100-meter hurdles while Luguelin Santos of the Dominican Republic took gold in the 400 meters, ahead of Ruan Greyling of South Africa.

In archery, Ibrahim Sabry of Egypt took gold in junior individual category, easily defeating Rick Van Den Oever of the Netherlands. Medals are also scheduled to be handed out in artistic gymnastics, athletics, diving, judo, modern pentathlon and tennis.

The inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore involves 3,600 athletes ages 14 to 18 from 204 national Olympic committees competing in 26 sports.

___

CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM Writer Alex Kennedy in Singapore contributed to this report.

IOC: Many countries interested in youth games (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Chicago – A suburban Chicago high school and Special Olympics are keeping a girl with cerebral palsy from playing basketball with other diasbled students according to a federal lawsuit.

The advocacy group Equip for Equality sued Monday on behalf of Jennifer Youngwith. The 17-year-old attends Community High School in West Chicago.

She uses a service dog named Simba to carry a four-pound oxygen tank she needs. The girl’s mother, Janice Youngwith, says Special Olympics has said only that it’s “not appropriate” for Jennifer to be on the basketball court with the dog or the oxygen tank.

School District Superintendent Lalo Ponce says the district’s attorneys are reviewing the complaint.

Special Olympics Illinois hasn’t returned a call seeking comment.

Originally reported by FOX News Chicago. Read the original article here.

Palsy Patient Banned From Court | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

SINGAPORE – Japan’s Yuka Sato has won the first gold medal in the inaugural Youth Olympics, racing to a comfortable victory in the women’s triathlon.

Sato finished the race in 1 hour, 49 seconds. Australian Ellie Salthouse was second in 1:01:04 and American Kelly Whitley placed third in 1:01:48 seconds. The 32 athletes swam 750 meters, cycled 20 kilometers and ran 5 kilometers Sunday through Singapore’s East Coast Park.

Organizers were dealt a blow when British diver Tom Daley, one of the best known athletes at the Youth Games, announced he might not compete because of a triceps injury.

Japan’s Sato wins first gold in Youth Olympics (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

NEW YORK – Gold medal-winning gymnast Shawn Johnson says she’s serious about her training for the 2012 London Olympics.

The days of traveling the country and dancing with the stars are over, replaced by long hours in the gym in Des Moines. She’s still recovering from February surgery to repair a torn ACL in her left knee, so she says “it’s more like cross country training right now than gymnastics.”

She hopes to be back practicing the toughest skills by the end of the year, then to be ready for elite competition by the U.S. championships next August.

But the 18-year-old isn’t about to guarantee she’ll be in London. It just depends on how her body responds to training.

Johnson won four medals in Beijing, including a gold on balance beam.

Shawn Johnson serious about London 2012 training (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

GENEVA – International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge hopes the inaugural Youth Olympic Games will teach young athletes to embrace fair play and reject doping, racism and corruption.

Rogge will declare the inaugural games open in Singapore on Saturday, fulfilling his longtime wish to create a global, multi-sport event for young athletes.

“It’s a preparation for their later Olympic life,” Rogge told The CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM in a telephone interview. “In a very modern and human way we are going to tell them things that are important that they have to acquire. I think that is the added value of the Youth Olympic Games.”

The event will feature about 3,600 athletes — aged 14-18 and representing more than 200 nations — competing in the same 26 sports on the current Summer Olympics program.

Rogge said the athletes’ village — “what I call this magical atmosphere” — will double as a large classroom for the Aug. 14-26 games.

“I believe I can say we are experts in staging major sports events,” Rogge said. “But we are entering now a new field, the education field. We might make some errors in the beginning, but we will learn from them.”

The IOC has sought to learn from groups such as the Boy Scouts and Girl Guides movements, schools, child experts in the academic world and United Nations agencies.

Rogge hopes all this expertise will equip athletes for a lifetime of learning.

“We are not going to force-feed them with precooked information,” he said. “Education is not only about the transfer of knowledge. It is about acquiring things, adopting them and executing.”

Workshops will be held in the athletes’ village to promote positive values and healthy lifestyles.

“Prevention of doping. Prevention of illegal betting because this is something that is coming up very much. Prevention of racism that unfortunately we see too much of in sporting fields,” Rogge said. “And the Olympic values of pursuit of excellence and fair play.”

Athletes also will receive advice on diet and warm-up and training techniques to prevent injuries.

“They also should not abandon their education,” Rogge said. “There is a time when they will not be competing any more, at the age of 30, 35, and they need to reinsert into professional and social life.”

Yelena Isinbayeva, the Russian pole vault world-record holder and Olympic champion, will be the star presence in Singapore, supported by athletes in 26 sports leading workshops.

Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps have been featured in pre-games publicity, promoted through a dedicated YouTube channel and social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.

“We want to work as much as possible in the language and the tone that young kids expect,” said Rogge, who has seen his personal vision for the games realized in a world different from the one he imagined 21 years ago.

In October 1989, Rogge was elected president of the European Olympic committees with a mandate to create a youth event that would break through the barriers of Cold War-era communism.

“East and West were totally divided by the Iron Curtain. There were exchanges between athletes … but only at adult level, there was nothing for the youth,” Rogge said.

Three weeks later, by “an irony of history” he says, the Berlin Wall fell and the idea “was almost made redundant.”

However, his native Belgium hosted a youth festival in 1991 and Russia staged an IOC-endorsed World Youth Games in 1998.

When Rogge was elected to lead the IOC in 2001, he was able to revive the project.

“Then I think the time was right to do it on a world and Olympic level,” he said.

Days before the start of the games, Rogge said he has the same pre-competition nerves he had when competing in sailing at three straight Olympics from 1968-76.

“It’s the same feeling, which is nice after such a long time,” Rogge said. “You have a goal, you have worked hard to achieve it and you cannot wait for the competition to begin.”

Rogge has high hopes for inaugural Youth Olympics (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

LONDON – Hold off from hugging an Indian, don’t be alarmed if the French are rude and never mistake a Canadian for an American.

Britain’s national tourism agency issued guidelines Wednesday on the etiquette of dealing with the hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors who will be coming to London for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Seeking to help the country’s sometimes snarky citizens offer a warmer welcome, VisitBritain has updated its advice for anyone likely to work with travelers arriving from overseas — from hotel staff to taxi drivers.

Other tips: Don’t go around asking Brazilians personal questions and never be bossy with visitors from the Middle East.

“Giving our foreign visitors a friendly welcome is absolutely vital to our economy,” said Sandie Dawe, chief executive officer of the agency. “With hundreds of thousands of people thinking of coming to Britain in the run-up to the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012, this new advice is just one of the ways that VisitBritain is helping the tourism industry care for their customers.”

About 30 million people visit Britain each year, spending about 16.6 billion pounds ($26 billion). The 2012 Olympics is likely to bring in an additional 2.1 billion ($3.3 billion) in tourism revenue, according to a government estimate, and about 320,000 extra visitors from overseas during the games in July and August 2012.

VisitBritain said research it had conducted found tourists believe Britons are honest and efficient — but not the most pleasant. Britain is ranked 14th out of 50 in the Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index on the quality of welcome offered to visitors, the tourism agency said.

The frank etiquette tips were written by agency staff about their own native countries.

Polish tourists are likely to be hurt by stereotypes that imply they drink excessively, while the French are notoriously picky in restaurants, the guidelines claim.

U.K. workers are told to brush off common Argentine jokes about a person’s clothing or weight. Belgians take offense at people snapping their fingers while Australians are fond of coarse language. Japanese people consider prolonged eye contact impolite and smile to express a range of emotions — not simply to show happiness.

Tourism workers are advised to show extra patience when dealing with guests from India or the United Arab Emirates.

“Indians are in general, an impatient lot, and like to be quickly attended to,” the guidelines claim. “The more affluent they are, the more demanding and brusque they tend to be.”

Indians also don’t like being touched by strangers and may be suspicious about the quality of British food, the guide said, without noting the latter might be a common concern.

Travelers from the Middle East are likely to be demanding with staff and “are not used to being told what they can’t do,” the guide warns.

Guests from China and Hong Kong may find winking or pointing with an index finger rude, while “mentioning failure, poverty or death risks offense,” the advice claims. Chinese visitors may be unimpressed by landmarks just a few hundred years old, tourism staff are told.

Workers are advised against discussing poverty, immigration, earthquakes or the Mexican-American war with visitors from Mexico — who prefer to chat about history and art.

Canadian tourists are likely to be quite annoyed about being mistaken for Americans, the guide suggests — urging workers to keep an eye out for maple leaf pins or badges on tourists’ clothing.

And Americans? They can appear “informal to the point of being very direct or even rude” and won’t ever hesitate about complaining, the guide says.

Snarky no more: UK issues Olympics etiquette guide (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Usain Bolt is calling it quits for 2010, cutting his season short because of tightness in his lower back less than a week after losing in the 100 meters to American rival Tyson Gay.

Bolt’s manager, Ricky Simms, wrote in an e-mail Tuesday that the world record-holder at 100 and 200 meters will have treatment to loosen his back and then rest, skipping IAAF Diamond League track and field meets in Zurich on Aug. 19, and Brussels on Aug. 27.

“I am very disappointed to miss two of the top meetings on the circuit … but trust that it is better for me not to take any risks this year,” Bolt said, according to Simms. “2011 and 2012 are very important Championship years and I hope to be back fully fit and healthy. I would like to thank everyone for their support and look forward to coming back stronger next year.”

Simms said Bolt was examined Monday by a doctor in Munich who found the back problem.

“He has a tightness that restricts his ability to generate power in his stride and continuing to race in this condition could risk injury to his hamstrings or calf muscles,” Simms wrote.

Bolt’s manager said the decision to take a break was made “with a view to his future career.”

Simms also said that an MRI exam showed that a previous left Achilles’ tendon injury is healed.

Bolt hadn’t lost an individual race in two years until Friday, when Gay beat him at the DN Galan meet in Stockholm. Gay ran 9.84 seconds, and Bolt finished in 9.97.

Afterward, even Gay acknowledged he wasn’t racing against a fit Bolt.

“I’m really happy with the win,” Gay said at the time, “even though Usain Bolt isn’t in the best shape.”

When the 6-foot-5 Bolt is at his best, no one comes close to him.

The Jamaican stole the show on the track at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, winning gold medals and breaking the world records in the 100 and 200 sprints, as well as the 400 relay. None of the finals in those events was even close, and Bolt began his celebration in the dash before it was done, stretching out his arms with palms up, then slapping his chest.

He followed that up at last year’s world championships in Berlin by lowering his marks in the 100 to 9.58 seconds and in the 200 to 19.19.

Usain Bolt taking rest of 2010 off because of back (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

CHICAGO, IL–(Marketwire – 08/09/10) – RCN (NASDAQ:RCNI – News), a local provider of all-digital television, high speed Internet and voice services, will support Special Olympics Illinois by participating in the Windy City Rubber Ducky Derby in Chicago on August 12, 2010.

The 5th annual Rubber Ducky Derby is a fundraising event organized by Special Olympics Illinois and sponsored by RCN. The competition will begin at 1:00 pm when more than 30,000 rubber ducks will be dropped into the Chicago River and race from the Columbus Drive Bridge to Michigan Avenue. RCN is celebrating its 4th year supporting the Windy City Rubber Ducky Derby and has donated $21,000 in advertising to promote the event. In addition, RCN will adopt a team of ducks to participate in the derby.

“We are pleased to support the Windy City Rubber Ducky Derby because it helps raise public awareness of Special Olympics,” said Tom McKay, GM of RCN-Chicago. “As a local provider of cable, phone and Internet services, we believe it’s important to be involved in the communities we serve. So, we are happy to assist them in raising funds and providing encouragement for their wonderful athletes.”

All proceeds from the Rubber Ducky Derby directly benefit the more than 25,000 athletes served by Special Olympics Illinois. As an added value, those who adopt a rubber duck become eligible to win prizes such as a shopping spree, vacation, flat screen TV and more. For additional information about the Windy City Rubber Ducky Derby, visit http://www.duckrace.com/chicago.

“We are very appreciative of RCN’s support,” said Doug Snyder, President and CEO of Special Olympics Illinois. “It enables us to continue our work to provide opportunities for athletes with intellectual disabilities to develop strength, courage and a connectedness to their friends and family. The advertising that RCN donated will also help increase awareness for this much-anticipated event.”

About RCN Corporation RCN Corporation (NASDAQ:RCNI – News), http://www.rcn.com, is a competitive broadband services provider delivering all-digital and high definition video, high-speed internet and premium voice services to residential and small-medium business customers under the brand names of RCN and RCN Business Services, respectively. In addition, through its RCN Metro Optical Networks business unit, RCN delivers fiber-based high-capacity data transport services to large commercial customers, primarily large enterprises and carriers, targeting the metropolitan central business districts in the company’s geographic markets. RCN’s primary service areas include Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Lehigh Valley (PA), New York City, Boston and Chicago. (RCNI-G)

About Special Olympics Illinois Special Olympics Illinois is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization that raises funds through private means, such as donations and grants. Special Olympics Illinois is accredited by Special Olympics, Inc. which operates in all 50 states and in more than 180 countries. Illinois supports nearly 21,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities and more than 4,000 Young Athletes ages 2-7 with and without intellectual disabilities annually from communities throughout the state.

The focus in Special Olympics is on what athletes can do. Like everyone, Special Olympics athletes like to win, but more importantly — they strive to do their best. The sportsmanship that is demonstrated on the court, in the field, or on the track serves as an inspiration to all. http://www.soill.org.

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RCN Participates in Windy City Rubber Ducky Derby for Special Olympics Illinois | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

The American finished in 10.34 seconds Tuesday to comfortably qualify for the final later in the day.

None of the other sprinters was under 10 seconds in the Bigbank Kuldliiga meet in Estonia. Americans J-Mee Samuels and Rubin Williams finished first and second in the other heat.

Gatlin won the gold medal in the 100 at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 100 and 200 at the 2005 world championships in Helsinki. He tested positive for excessive testosterone in 2006. The ban ended last month.

Gatlin wins 100-meter heat in comeback in Estonia (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

London will celebrate the milestone by beginning a search for Olympic volunteers and opening some venues to athletes. They will test facilities where they will be competing after the games open July 27, 2012.

Former Olympic champion Michael Johnson will sprint on a temporary track in the 80,000-seat main stadium. British cyclist Chris Hoy will take a spin at the velodrome. Former NBA player John Amaechi will take a few shots at the basketball arena.

London to mark 2-year Olympic countdown on Tuesday | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

The dominating pitcher announced Tuesday that she will play her final games with the U.S. national team this week at the World Cup of Softball in Oklahoma City. She’ll then finish the rest of the National Pro Fastpitch season with the Chicago Bandits before calling it quits at the age of 29 to focus on her family.

The 6-foot-2 Finch was a standout at Arizona before becoming an icon with the U.S. team, going 32-0 her junior year and putting together 60 consecutive wins — both NCAA records. She won gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and silver four years later in Beijing.

This month, she helped the U.S. win its seventh straight world championship.

“This whole career has been way more than I ever even imagined or dreamed,” Finch said in an interview with The CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM. “The opportunities that I’d be able to enjoy and appreciate and be a part of, it’s been incredible.”

Finch was much more than a pretty face as she took over Lisa Fernandez’s place as the sport’s most recognized player during a period when the following for the Women’s College World Series and the national team experienced marked growth. Her 60-game run stretched over nearly two years and included the 2001 WCWS title.

Her dominance carried over to the national team, where she combined with the likes of Fernandez and Cat Osterman to make up the world’s best pitching rotation through the early part of the decade.

Coupled with her softball skills, Finch’s beauty and charm landed her a place in pop culture. She struck some of the big leagues’ best hitters in appearances on “This Week in Baseball,” competed on “Celebrity Apprentice” and made the rounds on late-night talk shows.

Finch, who will turn 30 in September, said it’s time to turn her focus to her family. She and pitcher Casey Daigle, who has split this season between the Houston Astros and Triple-A Round Rock, have a 4-year-old son, Ace, and hope to have more children.

The couple have spent about two weeks together at their Arizona home over the past year, Finch said, and the world championships in Venezuela meant 14 days away from her family.

“I just feel like it gets harder and harder every year with Ace getting older and time away from my husband and even family events such as birthdays and friends’ weddings and things that I’ve always just missed out on because of softball,” Finch said.

“It’s getting a little bit harder to miss those moments in life.”

While many of her veteran teammates walked away from the game after the U.S. lost to Japan in the gold-medal game in 2008, Finch stuck around and helped with an unsuccessful bid to get softball added back into the Olympics after it was dropped from the 2012 and 2016 games.

Finch said she plans to stay involved in softball, running her own camps and perhaps serving as an ambassador if asked to do so. She even suggested that eliminating travel and training will give her more time to help spread the sport. She didn’t rule out a role in team ownership.

“I hope to stay involved,” she said. “It’s been such a big part of my life and I can’t imagine my life without it.”

Even now, Finch gets a rush out of putting on the red, white and blue and hearing a home crowd chant “U-S-A” — something she’ll experience a few final times at the World Cup beginning Thursday night.

“Right now in my career, it’s like I’m having more fun than I’ve ever had, so it’s kind of like, “Man, I can’t stop now,’” she said. “I’m playing first base and pitching and hitting. I feel like I’m almost better than I’ve ever been. It’s like, “You’re going to walk away like this?’”

The Bandits’ last regular-season game is scheduled for Aug. 22 at home in Elgin, Ill.

Jennie Finch retiring from softball next month | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Athletes compete today in track and Field, Gymnastics, Tennis and Volleyball

MINNEAPOLIS, June 19 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — Today is the last day of competition at the Special Olympics Minnesota’s 2010 Summer Games. Volleyball competition will take place on the third floor of the University of Minnesota’s Recreation Center (1906 University Avenue SE) from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and tennis competition will be held at Life Time Fitness in Lakeville (18425 Dodd Boulevard) from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. In addition, artistic gymnastics competition will start at 2 p.m. and conclude at 5:30 p.m. at Mini-Hops Gymnastics Club in Minnetonka (131 Cheshire Lane, Suite 100). Track and Field events continue today at the Bierman Athletics Complex from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Today in Olympic Town athletes can sing karaoke on the Olympic Town Stage and enjoy performances by Fidgety Fairy Tales. In the Healthy Athletes Village, athletes can participate in a number of free health screenings and activities, including Opening Eyes from 9 a.m. to noon, Health Promotion from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Today’s health fair activities include a blood glucose screening by Health East, 9 a.m. to noon, and chair massages from the students of Globe University/Minnesota School of Business—Massage Therapy. Healthy Athletes is a free health screening initiative designed to increase the health and fitness of people with intellectual disabilities, a medically underserved population. The Healthy Athletes program works to improve access to health care by providing free screenings, making referrals to local health practitioners and training health professionals and students about the needs of people with intellectual disabilities.

For more information, visit Special Olympics Minnesota’s Web site at www.specialolympicsminnesota.org or contact Kristen Lancaster at 612-791-5346 or kristen.lancaster@somn.org.

Special Olympics Minnesota offers children and adults with intellectual disabilities year-round sports training and competition. Through Special Olympics’ athletic, health and leadership programs, people with intellectual disabilities transform themselves, their communities and the world.

Below is the 2010 Summer Games Schedule of Events

SOURCE Special Olympics Minnesota

http://www.specialolympicsminnesota.org

Competition Concludes at Special Olympics Minnesota’s 2010 Summer Games | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.