A Brief Chat With Nick Symmonds - He didn't go to Europe to race, opting to stay in Eugene and train. Running a 1,000m time trial tonight.
Seven Russian female track athletes suspended - This is not good news, especially when Soboleva was the 1500m favorite and Tomashova won silver in Athens. Interestingly, the suspension is for what is apparently doctored or all the same urine samples. More here.
Beijing's Air Pollution: It Isn't The Cars - Written on the 29th after the car use restrictions went into effect, the author writes "... visibility outside my window the last few days has been worse than it was in the week before the car regulations came into place". It also points out that the pollution really comes primarily from factories and power plants outside of Beijing, but some of which are up-wind of the city meaning the stuff just continues to blow in.