Aug 22nd, 2008 · The source of the American national anthem being played at the Beijing Olympics during medal ceremonies is in question. Peter Breiner wasn't watching the Games until his friends starting calling to say, "That sounds like your arrangement." It does. Especially the "Rockets Red Glare" section — an unusually soft string rendition that brought some controversy when it was used in Athens in 2004.He got paid for that rendition in 2004. Now Mr. Breiner says he's "100-percent positive" that the Chinese borrowed it from his work. In an email to The Washington Post, the Chinese insist they came up with the arrangement themselves.
Keywords: games · national · Americans · China · Washington Post · Controversy · music · 2004 · Beijing · friends · anthems · Ceremonies
Aug 21st, 2008 · Steve Inskeep talks with NPR's Tom Goldman from Beijing about how some of the U.S. women's teams are doing.
Keywords: Steve Inskeep · Beijing · Tom Goldman · Banner
Aug 20th, 2008 · In an effort to curb air pollution for the Olympics, more than 250 factories in Beijing and nearby towns like Tangshan have been shuttered temporarily. Some factory workers are on vacation for the first time in 20 years.
Keywords: Town · workers · Pollution · Beijing · factories · factory · Vacation · economies · Shutter · olympic · Tangshan
Aug 20th, 2008 · Alex Chadwick checks in with Kenneth Rahn, University of Rhode Island atmospheric chemist. They discuss what sort of air quality track and field athletes are facing in Beijing this week.
Keywords: athletes · Alex Chadwick · Beijing · atmosphere · chemist · University of Rhode Island · Kenneth Rahn
Aug 20th, 2008 · Like two sprinters leaving the rest of the field behind, the United States and China are neck-and-neck in total medals at the Summer Olympics in Beijing. The United States and the host country are tied, 79-79, in total medals. But China leads the U.S. in gold medals, 45-26.
Keywords: country · China · United States · Beijing · gold · Sprinter · Summer Olympics
Aug 19th, 2008 · The 11th day of the Olympic Games in Beijing saw Americans take gold medals with individual displays of strength, skill and strategy, while U.S. teams advanced toward their final rounds. U.S. gymnast Shawn Johnson found her first gold on the balance beam.
Keywords: Americans · athletes · Skilling · Strategy · Beijing · 11th · gold · golden · advancements · balance · Olympic Games · gymnast
Aug 18th, 2008 · Open water swimming, a new sport to the Olympics, brings a new set of challenges to traditional swimmers. Practically a full-contact sport, swimmers compete in a 6-mile course and finish just fractions of seconds apart.
Keywords: Traditional · Beijing · fraction · swimmer · olympic
Aug 18th, 2008 · American sports fans have many traditions, but one bit of fan Americana that hasn't translated in Beijing is the beach volleyball's "party vibe." So two longtime announcers did some Olympics training of their own: working with Chinese DJs to pump up the sound and get the fans up and dancing.
Keywords: Americans · Traditional · Beijing · translator · Dancing · Americana · volleyball · olympic · VIBE · announcer · Chinese DJs
